The Canadiens got off to a poor start last year. There were two reasons for this:1. Martin St-Louis's practice camp looked like a day camp;2. Patrik Laine's serious knee injury, courtesy of Cédric Paré, threw cold water on a vibe that was ultra-positive before that.
We're (already) entitled to hope for a better start to the season from the Montrealers, because the intensity has been there since the first day of camp in Brossard, which opened after weeks and weeks of informal voluntary practice in Montreal… But we're still hoping that Patrik Laine, Kirby Dach or Kaiden Guhle won't get injured before the end of training camp. Except that tonight's game scares me. Why? Because, in theory, it should be Kirby Dach's first game (under Patrik Laine and Ivan Demidov); Demidov and Laine didn't play on Tuesday, and Dach could be their center tonight at the Bell Centre. But also because Cédric Paré could be in uniform tonight at the Bell Centre. He was once again invited to take part in the Maple Leafs' camp this year… and he didn't play in the team's first two pre-season games.
(Credit: Toronto Maple Leafs)
Opposing teams have a habit of playing their Québécois when they come to Montreal in pre-season, so Paré could be in uniform tonight. We should have confirmation before lunchtime. Paré injured Laine on September 28, 2024 at the Bell Centre; let's hope that if he's in the visitors' line-up tonight, he won't injure Dach or Laine (again) on September 25, 2025. In theory, if the NHL were a league where respect was king, we'd arrange for Paré and Laine/Dach not all to be on the Bell Centre ice tonight. The two teams would call each other to avoid another catastrophe…
But the Toronto – Montreal rivalry is likely to mean that nobody will call each other. Let's just hope the Maple Leafs have had a flash of genius in concocting their starting lineup. If they haven't, I'm pretty sure the Bell Centre crowd will greet Cédric Paré with boos. That's the way we are in Montreal… and I have no problem with our intense and passionate partisan nature. Let's hope we have guys like Arber Xhekaj or Tyler Thorpe in the lineup…
'Prolongation'
Cédric Paré played 59 games with the Toronto Marlies last season, after injuring Patrik Laine. He collected 26 points and spent 43 minutes in the penalty box. He's more of a player with limited talent than a badass. Greetings to his chums who sent me threats last year. No need to do it again this year, gentlemen..
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