HabsCast Hockey Blog

“Revenge is a dish best served cold”

Finally the night all Habs fans worldwide have been waiting for… Habs vs Leafs.

This game has built in meaning for both teams. The Montreal Canadiens seek to regain their manhoods after last season’s HUGE and disappointing loss, while the Leafs are looking for their first win of the season after losing two in a row to Ottawa. Not to mention, these two teams hate each other and there’s always this inexplicable intensity when they meet.

Here’s what I think the lineup should look like:

Forwards
Higgins – Koivu – Ryder
Kotsitsyn – Grabovski – Kovalev
Latendresse – Plekanec – Kostopolous
Chipchura – Smolinski – Dandenault

Defense
Markov – Komisarek
Brisebois – Hamrlik
Bouillon – Streit

Goalie
Huet

The lines should be fairly similar, however, the only difference will be either Begin or Dandenault coming out of the lineup (as you can see my first pick is Begin). The first three lines are pretty solid and shouldn’t be moved around yet, aside for Kostopolous. The second line is bound to click after the chances they created against Carolina. Grabovski and Kostitsyn are loaded with speed and should settle in sooner rather than later.

Toronto, on the other hand, have a goalie controversy and it is yet to be seen whether they will play Raycroft or Toskala. Both had pretty similar games in their losses to Ottawa, so it should be interesting to see who will get the call.

Either way, this game will be packed with hits, excitement, and Tucker-Komisarek battles. Hopefully, Mats Sundin won’t shed a tear over getting slashed or hit into the boards.

Notes: The Canadiens are coming off an overtime win in Carolina. Saku Koivu had two goals, his second being the winner. Cristobal Huet also had an impressive outing stopping 29 of the 31 shots he faced. The Maple Leafs, on the other hand, are coming off of two consecutive losses to the Ottawa Senators, one of which was in overtime. They played Andrew Raycroft the first night and Vesa Toskala the second.

This game can be seen on both CBC (HD) and RDS (HD). If you’re outside the Montreal area and can’t get the game on TV visit CJAD’s website and tune-in to their webcast.

HabsCast will be broadcasted on Sunday night and should hit the streets on Monday (Gross permitting).

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