I can't get very excited about Montreal Canadiens limping into the players as if they were the Maple Leafs. For the Bruins and Canadiens the past two seasons have been total reversals. After the Canadiens swept the season series between the teams last year, the Bruins won five out of the teams’ six meetings this year. The Canadiens were the first seed in 2008, and the Bruins the eighth, but the Bruins have taken the first seed in 2009, and the Canadiens the eighth.
Carey Price went from amazing last year to below-average this year in net for the Habs, while Tim Thomas went from below-average last year to amazing this year.
he Canadiens are a carbon copy of the 2007-08 Senators, another top contender who, like the Canadiens, started falling apart mid-season, and barely hung on to a playoff spot thanks to a second-half coaching change.
The Senators got swept in the first round, and the Canadiens probably won’t do much better. They’re also quite similar to their team last year, in that no matter how well the rest of the team plays, you can leave it to Carey Price to ruin their chances at winning.
