The Montreal Canadiens are flying high after finishing first in the Atlantic Division, getting ready to take on the New York Rangers in Round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Game 1 of the seven-game series gets underway at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday at the Bell Centre.
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This year’s team is markedly different from last season, when the Habs didn’t make the playoffs.
They were eliminated from a postseason appearance after a 5-2 loss to the Rangers in March.
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This time, the Rangers were unable to muster up a single win against the first-place Canadiens during the regular season.
Though the New York Rangers finished with 102 points in the regular season to Montreal’s 103, they enter the playoffs in the first Eastern wild card spot.
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To try and guarantee a successful Game 1, the Habs have enlisted the help of Lady Luck Ginette Reno, who will sing the national anthems ahead of Wednesday night’s game.
This will be Reno’s third year performing ahead of the playoff games.
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The Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cups in their history – are they finally on the drive to 25?
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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