Thursday Habs Headlines: With several players in their prime, this is the best opportunity at a Stanley Cup

Montreal Canadiens News and Notes

• With Carey Price in his prime, this year may represent the Canadiens’ best shot at taking home the Stanley Cup. [TSN]
• This year’s playoffs will give Max Pacioretty another stage to showcase his resolve. [SN]
• Pacioretty was honoured yesterday as well, as he received the Jean Béliveau Trophy. [Twitter]
• A first-round series with the New York Rangers means a tremendous goaltending showdown between Price and Henrik Lundqvist. [InGoal Magazine]
• According to Sportsnet insiders, the Canadiens are heavy favourites in round one. [SN]
• Claude Julien took a quick jab at Alain Vigneault, his opposite in the Habs’ first-round series: /

#Habs: Shots fired by Julien! On being teammates with Alain Vigneault "... he wore size 6 skates.. we used to tease him about that."

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) April 12, 2017

• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to Twitter to voice his support for the Habs before Game One yesterday: /

Playoffs start tonight! Great to see 5 Canadian teams trying to #BringStanleyHome. (#GoHabsGo)

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) April 12, 2017

• The Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal received a bit of a makeover thanks to some Habs fans. [Montreal Gazette]/

Around the League and Elsewhere

• The NHL Draft Lottery is now just two weeks away, with the Colorado Avalanche holding the best odds at first overall. [Twitter]
• The first head of the Vegas Golden Knights will be former Habs assistant Gerard Gallant. [Las Vegas Review-Journal]
• Doug Weight has been named head coach of the New York Islanders after serving as interim head coach to end the season. [LH]
• Very few members of the Arizona Coyotes have made as much of an impact on the team as Zbynek Michalek. [FFH]
• Mike Darnay looks back at some incredible playoff moments, urging fans to sit back and enjoy. [Pensburgh]/