HOCKEY: HABS 101

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Let’s just get right to the point: the Montreal Canadiens‘ 2010-2011 hockey season has begun. If you live in Montreal, you know this already. If you’re visiting the city, we’ve put together a quick cheat sheet to help get you caught up…

The Habs are one of the cornerstones of Montreal and have been for over 100 years. They are the longest continuously operating professional ice hockey team (not to mention one of North America’s oldest sports franchises) and have won more Stanley Cups than anyone else. As such, there’s no shortage of resources to help you get all the way into the Bleu-Blanc-et-Rouge. Given this fact (not to mention a goaltending situation that is better left undiscussed at this point), let’s just skip right to the bullet points:

Montreal Canadiens History: This comprehensive and interactive display of the team’s history contains video, text and all sorts of inside stuff. It’s pretty freakin’ cool.

Habs Inside/Out: This is the definitive resource for all Habs fans. “Absolutely everything about the Montreal Canadiens” is the blog’s tagline and it lives up to it. It boasts an incredibly active online community and its Puckcast is definitely worth checking out.

Habs Hub: In an effort to compete with Habs Inside/Out, CTV Montreal has ramped up their coverage and added some new bloggers.

Tickets : As you can see if you click that link, everything is pretty much sold out already. You can put yourself on the waiting list but here’s the hot tip: on the 15th of every month they release a small batch of tickets for the following month through the website. Scalpers are also always an option but you’re rolling the dice there and things will definitely get pricey.

Where to Watch the Game : My Montreal Buzz colleague Meg put together this list- it’s got the perfect place for every possible hockey fan. Check it.

Twitter: As the HabsTweetup proves, there are Twitter-addicted Habs fans everywhere.You (and over 70,000 other people) can also follow the teamor individual players like Mike Cammalleri (@MCammalleri13), though anyone who has ever heard an athlete being interviewed knows you won’t get much dirt out of them. Or maybe you just need a Canadiens background for your own account.

Text to pick Game MVPs : The Habs are the first NHL team to allow fans to pick the Three Stars of the game, via cell phone or internet. And yes, they’ve already thought of how to prevent you having “your friend’s mom” win in a landslide. And yes, of course, there’s a Habs App.

Habs in 3D: One of the two NHL games being broadcast in 3D this year features a classic Montreal vs. Toronto game. Now, have I found a bar (or even a friend) that has a 3D TV? Not even close, but it’s still pretty cool and I’ll keep looking…

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