East Final Preview: Bonjour, Je m’appelle Mitsou
Montreal. What a beautiful city. If you’ve never been, what’s wrong with you? If you haven’t been recently (like yours truly), well then drop me a line and we’ll go. I don’t like poutine, though. Sorry. Hope that isn’t a deal breaker for you. I like being pretentious and snobby, though. Back to Montreal for a second. Sadly, I’ve only visited the city once. I went to check out The Forum before it shut its doors. C’est magnifique! Le hockey history. Not knowing what I was doing when I purchased a standing room ticket, imagine my surprise when the beautiful ushers opened the doors and a flood of people started running up stairs. Not wanting to appear anti-French, I started running, too. Did I know where I was going? No. But I sure know where I’ve been.
Turns out there were two or three levels of standing room access. Unaware of this when I started up the tight staircase, I veered off into one of the corridors and found myself standing at one end of the rink. Pretty high up, too. I didn’t really care about that, though. I was just happy to find a spot on the rail that wasn’t obstructed. Looking back, why didn’t that broad who gave us the tour of The Forum earlier in the day mention this? I thought she liked me. Turns out she thought I was stupid. Most french girls do. During that tour, I did grab a practice puck that I found in the stands. Still got it.
Which bring me to the East Final. The B.C. Lions (or is it the Baie-Comeau Lions?) take on the Montreal Alouettes (Sunday, noon, TSN). At first glance, picking this game seems easier than picking your nose. I mean how could how look past the Als here? The best team in the CFL with the best quarterback and an all-star studded line-up. It’s a lock, right? Maybe, maybe not. Consider that geriatric QB Anthony Calvillo has only played like a half of football in two weeks. Could be a little stiff. Consider that the Lions have the best secondary in the league. Could be a factor. Consider that the game is not at Stade Molson (it’s at Stade Olympic). Could be the jinx on the unbeaten home record this season. Consider that Lions QB Casey Printers looks like a million bucks these days. Could be the X-factor. Consider that Montreal head coach Marc Trestman is being rumoured for the Buffalo Bills gig. That could be a distraction. Consider the spread: Willing to lay down 10.5 for the visitors? Could be a factor, too. OK, not really, but for some (like me), the opportunity to make a little scratch might be the biggest pull towards the jungle cats. Look at the straight up line. It’s +375…Cha-ching! See how easy it is to talk yourself into taking the Lions? Screw you, common sense.
