As some of you know, I am from Montreal, but currently live in L.A. This means I will be at the Habs – Kings game tonight (as will Eric, who flew in for the occasion, which means we will probably be late, because Eric is late for everything, and as I write this on Saturday early afternoon, Eric is asleep somewhere in Vegas…..Note to Eric: wake up and get in the car already).

Where were we? Ahhh yes….following hockey in L.A. is lonely. It’s Lakers first, then the Dodgers, then the NFL, College Football, College Basketball, then the Clippers, and then, maybe, if American Idol or The Good Wife isn’t on, your Los Angeles Kings. Even this year, with the Kings doing well, Staples Center is maybe 2/3 full. Aside from the rare “go back to Canada” taunts and “hit somebody” screams, the L.A. fans that do attend games are pleasant and knowledgeable enough…….And I do have my tribe of hockey amateurs here in L.A., some are L.A. locals, some are transplants from East Coast US cities like Boston and Philly, who love the game and follow it. I see them once or twice a week when I hit the ice for my team, we talk shop, trash talk each other’s teams, it’s fun.

But none of that replaces the sheer passion Montrealers have for the Habs. We (current and former residents of the city) have the team in your blood. We get to the games early, we buy the programs even though we don’t need them and we all wear team jerseys in the only arena that has figured out how to keep the ice cold but the seats warm (Staples Center is frigid). We are bipolar about the Habs: depressed when they lose, ecstatic when they win. And that’s just the exhibition season.

My favorite part of going to games in Montreal is the 5 minutes before the anthems. Everyone’s already in their seats and the crowd is buzzing with nervous energy. What are the lines? How will Price / Halak play? Why isn’t Sergei on the second line? Then the anthems are sung, everyone knows the words to both, the puck drops, and there is a thunderous ovation. We are here and we are excited. Unlike in most of the U.S., being at a hockey game in Montreal is a glamorous and special and important event. Everyone in the building hangs on every single tiny turn – and we collectively hold our breaths as time winds down, hoping, sometimes desperately, sometimes confidently, sometimes arrogantly, that the Habs will pull out just another win for us. And there is always 100% engagement.

I am thankful there are a lot of ex-Montrealers in L.A. now, and for today at least, when I return to the Staples Center, many of them will be there. Almost half the building, actually. And for a little time at least, I will be back at the Forum, or the Bell Center, with my friends and fellow fans, cheering on the home team, hoping against hope that my heroes can pull out just another win for me…………………………  I can’t wait.

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