Those with a short term view on the world might be inclined to think that it would be much better to be a fan of the Habs. They'll say there's certainly more joy following a team headed to the playoffs than a team that languished near the bottom of the basement all season long.
I'm here to tell you that you would wish that you could have the Canes to cheer for going forward.
Carolina will miss the playoffs, but since the New Year the Canes have the second-best record in all of hockey.
The season for them fell a week short, or they would have made the postseason and would have pulled off one of those upsets in the first round no one saw coming but should have.
And moving into next season and beyond, you want the Canes and not the Habs.
Here's why in two words: Eric Staal.
Stanley Cups are not won without strength down the middle. Great teams are not made without that strength. If I were Pierre Gauthier, I would think long and hard about committing long term to Tomas Plekanec. Don't misunderstand me. He is a great hockey player, but matched up against Staal in a 7-game series, well, you better hope Staal catches the flu or the Habs won't win a game. In fact, when evaluating who the Habs should play in the playoffs, ask yourself which team does Plekanec have a chance at playing well against. Without their best player this season at forward having a chance to succeed, forget it. Montreal is done. Throw Gomez in the mix too. The Habs get dominated by the Staals of the hockey world.
When you consider Ward, Staal, and the fact the Canes are down to their 9th D on the depth chart and they still kicked the Habs around for two games even though Montreal had everything to play for and Carolina nothing, I like the Canes in the 2011 playoffs.
Oh by the way, Jim Rutherford, the Canes GM, has a ton of room in the cap to improve his team this summer, Gauthier has $7 million committed to Gomez and is contemplating another $5 million for Plekanec, and very little room to keep his goalies happy. Are those Cup-winning centres? Is it wise to have two number one goalies?
I have a long-term vision and I like the building blocks that remain in Carolina. After an injury riddled season, the Canes, the second best team in the league in 2010, are ready to launch next year.
The Habs? They can't seem to find a single point to get in the playoffs. It should be fascinating to watch who performs well when they get there. And don't worry Habs fans they will get there. That might be so eye-opening though, based on the present play, that you may wish they didn't arrive at that lofty destination. But is it lofty? The Habs have 24 wins in 81 games this year in regulation. They don't need a 25th either. Just a tie or a Ranger tie. What a season! The best thing you can say about the Habs is they are consistently inconsistent. The best thing you can say about Carolina is "look out".
