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Martin St. Louis didn’t need to step inside the Bell Centre to gauge what kind of atmosphere was coming.
The Montreal Canadiens coach could feel the buzz during his regular game-day routine — thanks to an unusual sight.
“I walk in this morning, get a coffee, and there’s, I don’t know, 20-30 porta-potties outside,” St. Louis said. “I mean, this place is ready to erupt.”
The Canadiens host the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 3 of their heated first-round NHL playoff matchup Friday night, with the series tied 1-1 after two games in Florida.
Beyond the 21,000 fans inside the Bell Centre, thousands more will pack the streets at watch parties outside the building, filling the area between the Bonaventure and Lucien-L’Allier Metro stations, where voice recordings from four Canadiens players are currently announcing the next stops in French.
“It’s just the magnitude of this market,” St. Louis said. “Being front and centre, being part of it, it’s not something I take for granted, [I’m] trying to earn that every day. But there’s nothing like being behind the bench of the Montreal Canadiens. And you magnify that with the playoffs, it’s pretty cool.”
Canadiens winger Cole Caufield said downtown Montreal road closures in anticipation of the massive party slowed his drive to morning skate, but he’s not complaining.
“The city, the fans, the building. There’s really no words,” he said. “Just coming here this morning, seeing all the towels out there, it’s pretty cool. I think everybody’s pretty fired up.”
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After the Habs’ 3-2 overtime loss in Game 2 against Tampa Bay on April 21, some fans criticized Kirby Dach on social media for a couple of costly mistakes that led to the Lightning’s winning goal. The comments got so bad, Dach and his wife deactivated their Instagram accounts.
The visitors, meanwhile, know exactly what’s waiting for them.
Lightning coach Jon Cooper experienced the ear-splitting decibels with the fans on his side while standing behind Canada’s bench at last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off. He said he’ll never forget the rocking ovation for Mario Lemieux in the tournament opener against Sweden, or the frenzy during three fights in nine seconds against the United States.
This time, Cooper is bracing for a hostile reception, one he’s confident his veteran group can handle. The Lightning already got a taste on April 9, when Caufield scored his 50th goal of the regular season in a scintillating 2-1 win for the Canadiens.
“We’ve played in some pretty hostile environments this year, I’m not worried about any of that,” he said. “I’m a big believer in embracing the environment. The dimensions of the rink don’t change, the amount of players on each team don’t change, and the fans, that’s part of the environment. I don’t know, embrace it.”
Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky is seen battling for position with Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli during Game 2. (Chris O’Meara/The Associated Press)
Hockey as a religion
It’s often said that the Canadiens in Montreal — and the province of Quebec — are a religion. The Cathedrale Saint-Jean-l’Evangeliste in nearby Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., is backing up that reputation, hosting watch parties with hundreds of fans lining the church pews.
“It literally is [a religion],” Caufield said. “That’s a story that makes it make sense. I mean just everybody’s so committed and passionate. No matter what kind of lifestyle you live, I think everybody’s on the same page with their hockey team.”
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Fans are cheering on the Montreal Canadiens from the pews of the Cathédrale Saint-Jean-l’Évangéliste, 40 minutes outside Montreal. The church in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., is a heritage site that hosts mass as well as cultural and artistic events.
Caufield’s letter to fans
Caufield penned a letter to the Habs faithful in a Players’ Tribune article released Thursday, thanking the fans in advance for “going absolutely ballistic” Friday.
The Canadiens forward also dove into his backstory of long road trips with his dad, Paul, as a youth player in Wisconsin.
“I did it last week on the phone, so I thought that was pretty cool to share those stories and memories,” Caufield said. “It’s kind of them reaching out and wanting to talk about not only [scoring 50 goals], but my story of how I got to where I am.”
