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BIRTHDAY BASH
This is a big week in Montreal, building towards the official 100th birthday celebration for the Canadiens on Friday against Boston, with a two hour pre-game extravaganza.
Leafs defenceman Francois Beauchemin felt the buzz around the city yesterday, having grown up in Sorel, about an hour away.
"Everyone had the Canadiens as their favourite team then," he said. "When I was young, they were close to a Cup every year; they won in 1986, they lost to Calgary in '89 and won again in '93. It seemed they had a chance every year.
"We would watch all the Montreal games on Saturday night like the people watch the Leafs in Toronto."
However, you can put a price on memories. A Quebec auction house, Classic Collectibles, is offering a personal miniature of the 1957-58 Stanley Cup trophy and an original 1959 championship ring from the personal collection of Albert (Junior) Langlois among other items.
NO RUSH ON BOOTS
The Leafs are not rushing out to get the new hi-tech protective skate boot guards that some players around the NHL are adopting to prevent foot injuries on shot blocks.
"I used them for almost half a season last year when I broke my foot at the start," said Jeff Finger, one of Toronto's top blockers. "It helps, obviously, if you get one directly off of the foot. Some guys don't find it a hinderance and some guys hate it. Even a couple of ounces might get in your head that your (skate is) heavier."
