TRAIKOS: What does it mean if the Montreal Canadiens get swept in the Stanley Cup final? – Toronto Sun

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If the Montreal Canadiens become the first team in more than two decades to get swept in the Stanley Cup final, does that change how we think about them?

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It’s a complicated question.

On one hand, the Habs did something no other Canadian team has done since 2011 by reaching the final in a year when few expected them to even make the playoffs. That’s something to be proud about.

On the other — and here is where the jokes come in — down 3-0 to the Lightning, it’s still been 28 years since they actually won a game in the final.

Ba-dum-TISH.

That’s the fear now — that if the Habs get swept in a series in which they have looked overwhelmed and overmatched, they will have something to be embarrassed about. That four games will essentially wipe out what they accomplished in the previous three rounds of the playoffs. That they have gone from being put on a pedestal to being the country’s punch line.

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Obviously, it shouldn’t be this way. In a normal situation, reaching the final is worth celebrating. Win or lose, it’s a sign of growth and an indication that the team is on the path to something special. Except, as Canadiens head coach Dominique Ducharme said on Saturday morning: “There’s nothing normal about this year.”

Because of the new divisional alignments in this post-pandemic season, a Canadian team had a 50% chance of making the final. That Montreal happened to be the team to do it was a bit lucky — if not fluky.

The Canadiens were the lowest-seeded playoff team in a North Division that was widely considered as the weakest in the NHL. Had they been in the Central, East or West, the Habs would not have qualified for the post-season. Even in the North, they finished with fewer wins than Calgary and probably would have been passed by Vancouver if not for an outbreak of COVID.

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That doesn’t take away from what the Habs accomplished. But if we’re going to be real, they mightily overachieved. They got hot at the right moment and got some help from the hockey gods.

They were an overtime goal away from losing in five games to the Maple Leafs in the first round and they might have lost in the semifinal to Vegas had Marc-Andre Fleury been better at playing the puck behind his own net. They benefitted from playing teams that were without a top centre, whether it was Toronto’s John Tavares, Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele or Vegas’ Chandler Stephenson.

Yes, Carey Price has been fantastic. And their youngsters have taken a huge step forward in their development. But with Tampa Bay leading 3-0 in a series in which Montreal has been outscored 14-5, the Cinderella run is finally running its course.

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The question is what this means going forward.

Is this the start of something special in the way that it was for an Edmonton Oilers team that got swept by the Islanders in 1983, and then won five championships in the following seven years? Or, like the Canucks team that lost to the Bruins in 2011 and then went eight years without winning a playoff round. Is this another one-off?

It’s quite possible that it could be the latter. After all, Montreal will be back next year in an Atlantic Division that had four of the top10 teams. On paper, the Habs are not better than Tampa Bay, Toronto, Boston or Florida. There’s no guarantee that they will be able to build on this season’s success — much less even qualify for the playoffs.

And yet, it doesn’t mean that the team is turning back into a pumpkin.
Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, who have been the team’s best forwards in the playoffs, are both under the age of 22. Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who has shown flashes of being a top-two centre, is only 20. Alexander Romanov, who got lost in the numbers game on defence, is 21. There’s a bright future there. But there is also a window that is closing.

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As good as Price has been in the playoffs, he will be 34 next month and has struggled for years to put together a solid regular season. Defenceman Shea Weber, who also turns 35 next month, is on borrowed time.

And with a large chunk of the roster heading to unrestricted free agency, including Phillip Danault, Joel Armia and Corey Perry, no one knows who will even be on the team next season.

“It’s a journey, right?” said Lightning head coach Jon Cooper, whose team before getting over the hump, lost in the Stanley Cup final, lost in the conference final and got swept in the first round. “I’m sure that there were a couple of teams out there that went right into winning, but I can’t think of any of them off the top of my head. You’ve got to remember: Only one team can win. So, there’s a lot of teams in there that get gut-punched.”

Right now, it’s the Canadiens who are doubled-over, gasping for breath. Once they recover, maybe they will punch their way back here.

Or maybe, we’re in for another 28-year wait.

mtraikos@postmedia.com

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