After the 2020 NHL Playoffs, an idea was born: this Montreal Canadiens team might be able to win. Then, after the re-dividing of the divisions, it became apparent: this team could win. That’s when the idea was cemented. The time to rebuild is over. The time to be built is now.
But, as T.S. Elliot said in The hollow men, “Between the conception and creation, between the emotion and the response, falls the shadow.” The Habs have shown that they are still between the conception and the creation. Last night was the shadow.