St. Louis won the Stanley Cup in 2004 as a Hall of Fame-bound forward with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He has fond memories of his boyhood, watching the Canadiens bring the city to life in the playoffs; it was the only time he was allowed to stay up past his usual bedtime to watch televised games.

The Montreal Canadiens said all the right things before the season started, but it’s worth wondering if they believed they’d claim a playoff spot. It’s hard to go from the league’s basement to the playoffs in one season,

Montreal, led by its young core, completed a late-season push to the playoffs that bodes well for what the future might bring.