Many Questions Surround the Montreal/Vegas NHL Semi-Final Series

On the eve of the start of the NHL semi-final series between the Montreal Canadiens and Vegas Golden Knights many questions are being asked.

Will the matchup between the Canadiens and the Golden Knights be a David versus Goliath hockey showdown for the ages? This remains to be seen. It also remains to be seen if the gritty Habs have been playing over their heads during the first two rounds of this year's NHL playoffs. Based upon the way the Vegas Golden Knights were able to handle the Colorado Avalanche during the final two games of their quarterfinal series, it would be hard to imagine that the plucky Habs could muster much of a fight. Now that fans in the US are able to fill hockey arenas, US-based NHL teams will certainly reap the benefit of playing in their own barns. 

After facing the Tavares-less Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round and the depleted, Scheifele-less Winnipeg Jets in the second round, dealing with a healthy Vegas Golden Knights roster is sure to be an enormous challenge. Another obstacle could be shaking off rust accumulated during a week-long break between rounds. The Golden Knights will be firing on all cylinders when the puck is dropped having had only a couple of days off between games. The Habs, on the other hand, coming off a week-long break, will need to quickly reignite the fire come game time in Vegas tomorrow night.

The shoe was on the other foot in the series between Montreal and Winnipeg. The Habs took seven games to dispatch the Maple Leafs in the opening round, while the Winnipeg Jets swept the Edmonton Oilers in 4 games straight. It was obvious that the Jets, with their lengthy lay-off,  were not nearly as prepared to play game one as were the Habs. Can the Habs avoid this scenario against the Golden Knights? Game one will quickly answer this query.

Can Montreal goalie Carey Price continue his stellar play and backstop his team to another playoff upset? History would indicate that this is certainly possible. Can Montreal physically dominate the Golden Knights the way they did the Maple Leafs?  One would think that this is highly unlikely. The Golden Knights are an infinitely grittier team than the Maple Leafs. Golden Knights captain and leading scorer Mark Stone is cut from a different cloth than Mitch Marner or Auston Matthews. Stone will not be pushed around. Neither will Max Pacioretty, Alex Tuch or Ryan Reaves. 

Will Marc Bergevin’s masked countenance and quarantine-quaffed locks now frighten children on both sides of the border?

These questions and many more will be answered in the upcoming days, so stayed tuned hockey fans.