When the Montreal Canadiens players exited the ice following the 3-2 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on opening night, they did so with heads held high. That’s not just because it was a battling and enterprising performance against a legitimate contender, but also down to the fact that we saw something different from what we became accustomed to last season. Something exciting.
Granted, that was just one game out of what is undoubtedly a very long and strenuous campaign, and there were question marks about whether the team would be able to keep up that kind of intensity.