Habs fan savours sweet taste of playoff victory

I am a Montreal Canadiens fan but I grew up and have lived most of my life in southern Ontario and that means I know lots of Toronto Maple Leafs’ supporters. And in the days leading up to their NHL playoff series, I’m pretty sure I heard from every single one.

“Hey, did you see that all the pundits picked the Leafs to beat the Canadiens?” read one message. “Most of them don’t think Montreal will win a game. LOL.”

Or this gem: “Did you know that the Canadiens are the worst team to make the playoffs and the Leafs have the best odds of winning their firstround series. You guys are screwed. Haha.”

Needless to say, it didn’t get much better when the Leafs went up 3-1in the series. “Dude,” said a co-worker on Teams, one so young I’m not sure he’s seen Toronto win a playoff series, never mind the Stanley Cup. “Are you ready to trade that Habs jersey in for something better?”

I did not give in to the temptation to fire back, to engage in even the lowest level of braggadocio. Even when the Canadiens won Game 1, I kept my chirping to baby bird levels. I badly wanted to unleash both barrels but I was pretty sure we were gonna lose the series and I didn’t want to have to take any more crap from Leafs Nation when the inevitable happened.

Bragging and then getting beat is the worst. Apparently.

My parents are divorced and I spent time in Montreal where my Dad lived going to games at the old Forum. I am a Canadiens fan because my Dad is a Canadiens fan and my grandfather was a Canadiens fan before him. My half-brothers — we just say brothers — are Canadiens fans, too.

So we just chatted among ourselves as the Canadiens won Game 5, then Game 6 and forced a winner-take-all Game 7. I did not engage in any smack-talking with the Blue and White crew who had suddenly gone so very quiet. I knew they were nervous and scared and that was enjoyable enough.

But when the Canadiens won Game 7? It was Schadenfreude time — and no, that’s not the name of a highly-paid Leafs player who didn’t score in the playoffs.

Did I wear my Habs jersey to the morning video conference and keep my camera on? Why yes I did. What about re-sending old messages about “pundits” and “odds” with a winkyface emoji attached? Un-huh. Revelling in the cornucopia of gifs and memes that sprouted from the steaming pile that were the hopes and dreams of Toronto Maple Leafs’ fans everywhere? Oh yes, there was soooo much revelling.

Of course, the only thing worse than a cocky Leafs Nation is a sad-mad-who-can-weblame one. Watching them burn their jerseys, call for a (very good) team to be broken up while simultaneously whinging about their fears that little Kyle and Kylie might never see a Toronto-based Stanley Cup parade... I mean, get a grip. Aren’t you used to it by now?

The Canadiens aren’t good. They were lucky to win the Leafs series and but now — rather surprisingly — in the final four but are going to, eventually, get stomped by a far better team. I am OK with this. Beating Toronto is a sign that, even in these tumultuous, crazy times some things will remain forever unchanged. We are who we are and you are... well, you already know.

Enjoy your summer, Toronto fans. If it’s all the same to you, I’m going to watch just a little bit more hockey... LOL.