Are You A Habs Fan Or Leafs Fan?

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This is not only the most intense, but the oldest rivalry in hockey. The Leafs and the Habs are the only two hockey teams that actually pre-date the NHL, and they've been building the rivalry for almost 100 years.

In the beginning, it was easy to pick a side. Canadians that spoke primarily French cheered for the Habs, and those that spoke English supported the Leafs. As the years went on, it became less about language, less about religion and politics, and all about the two hockey teams and the people who live in the two cities.

The rivalry really ramped up after the 1940s. The two teams faced off six times in the playoffs between 1940-1960, four times in the Cup Final, and twice in the semis. They split the series 3-3, each winning two Stanley Cups.

From the NHL's expansion in 1967 onward, it's been much more lopsided. Montreal continued their winning ways, capturing ten more Cup titles, while the Leafs haven't even had the opportunity to play for one. Montreal has won 14 straight games over Toronto, the longest streak in the rivalry's history. Montreal leads the all-time series 397-314-88-8.

It cannot be understated the distaste these fans have for each other. It's more than Leafs-Habs, it's Toronto-Montreal. Which side do you belong on?

Question 1

What's your favourite colour?

QUICK! Everyone seems to have a preference between red and blue. They seem to be the colours pit against each other the most. Table hockey almost always features red vs. blue, air hockey is usually red vs. blue, heck, even politics seems to be red vs. blue. At least, in North America it is.

Question 2

Poutine or Ice Cream?

One of the more regional aspects of a city’s culture is their food. In different areas of the world, people have different ideas of what foods are good. One of these teams cities popularized the Canadian delicacy poutine. The other, is known for crazy ice cream spots that people wait hours in line for.

Question 3

What month were you born in?

This may seem arbitrary, but it isn’t. Your birth month can give away a lot about your personality. If we match that with the characteristics of these two teams, we should be able to get another step closer in determining which team you should cheer for. At least, that’s what the astrologist told me.

Question 4

What’s a reasonable response to losing?

Everyone loses from time to time, even the Habs. As we’ve seen over the years, there are different ways to cope with your favourite team losing. You can blame the refs, throw something at a tv, say “we’ll get em next time”, acknowledge it was close game, or just burn everything down.

Question 5

Do you shoot right handed or left handed?

While the overwhelming majority of people are right-handed, hockey is different. There is almost an even split of left-hand and right-hand shots, and it's actually the lefties that are in the majority. One of these team's coaches cares about having a balance more than the other does.

Question 6

Are you bilingual?

Canada is a bilingual country, meaning it has two official languages. One is French, the other is English. One of these two cities is primarily English-speaking, while the other is a closer split between the two languages. French is actually the dominant language in many parts of the province.

Question 7

Fighting or drawing a penalty?

Finally, a question that centers around the team’s philosophies on the ice. While the team that fights and the team that draws penalties has switched over the different eras, it’s pretty clear where the allegiances lie now. One team fights frequently and idolizes the fighters, while the other team never seems to go out looking for one. Instead, they employ smaller players who draw penalties as opposed to take them.

Question 8

Hot or Cold?

Because of the difference in geography, one of these cities gets much colder in the winter than the other does. This is important in Canada because it gets really cold pretty much everywhere. If someone tells you it’s colder than really cold, it might turn out to be an issue.

Question 9

Past or Future?

There are two ways to deal with a city that’s getting up there in age. You can either relentlessly replace old buildings and construct new ones, or you can claim that those old buildings are part of the city’s history and should be left alone. These two cities took opposite approaches.

Question 10

Business or Arts?

Similar theme to the last question; one of these cities is a modern business hub, while the other is a booming cultural center. Toronto gives off a rich, New York-like vibe while Montreal is much more classic European feel to it, cafe’s and all.

Question 11

Fiction or Nonfiction?

This question is a bit of a stretch but it’s based on the team’s mascot. One is a polar bear, which we all know is a real thing that exists. The other team’s mascot... I mean look at it. I have no idea. They call it Youppi. It’s weird.

Question 12

Beer or liquor?

This is obviously a judgement call considering it’s not like either of these are illegal in either of the cities, it’s just a percentage thing. The people that I’ve met from these cities are generally much more into one of these types of alcohol than the other. Why this is the case? I don’t know.

Question 13

How important is winning?

Both these teams did their fair share of winning in the early days of the NHL, but after the 60s, only one team continued. Winning is the only thing to fans of this team. They’d sooner stop going to games than watch a loser, while the other will continue to shell out hundreds of dollars towards their team in the name of loyalty.

Question 14

Company Seats or Family Seats?

Good luck finding a person with Leafs seasons tickets that doesn’t write it off as a business expense. That really sums up Toronto’s business attitude in a nutshell doesn’t it? While MLSE makes money hand over fist off corporations, Montreal continues to sell to fans of the team, whose tickets sometimes get handed down generation to generation.

Question 15

Diversity or familiarity?

The language divide wouldn’t be so bad if people wouldn’t judge each other for their choice of dialect. The French-speaking community sometimes gets snobbish when spoken to in just English, and not give them the same service they would a Francophone. They’ve also discussed seceding from Canada many times, in order to help preserve their French heritage.

Question 16

Slap shot or wrist shot?

I’ve mentioned it before but these teams are both incredibly old. Another example of this would be that both franchises pre-date the slap shot. It was invented by a member of one of these two teams (Pictured in a different team’s jersey). In response to this, a true fan of the rival team would retort “Well the slap shot is overrated anyway, the wrist shot is much more effective.” I dunno. It sounds like some nonsense a fan would say.

Question 17

Protestant or Catholic?

This goes way back to the first conflicts between the French and English Canadians. The English speaking Canadians were Protestant, and the French were Roman Catholic. This divide continued with the creation of these hockey teams, given the supporters were not only from different cities and backgrounds, but they also had opposing religious views.

Question 18

God Save the Queen or O Canada?

As part of this team’s English heritage, they had a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II put up in the arena, and played “God Save the Queen” prior to their home games. The other team countered with something more patriotic, “O Canada”, the Canadian National Anthem.

Question 19

Do you deke to your backhand or forehand?

As far as I can tell neither of these teams had a player that invented the backhand, but a couple players from this team nearly perfected it. Mats Sundin and Dave Keon are both among NHL legends for their crazy backhand skill. The backhand worked because it was hard for the goalie to read. The shooter doesn’t give off any hints during the technique, and sometimes looks at the puck as opposed to the net.

Question 20

It’s the off-season, who do you sign?

All teams have different strategies when it comes to signing free agents at the start of the year. Some teams go after the highest profile players on the market, while others can’t attract that and have to shop elsewhere. Neither of these teams seem to have a problem luring big names, or finding cash to pay them, but they still operate differently in the summer months.

Question 21

50 goals or 100 points?

These are two milestones in hockey that signify an amazing season. Each is impressive in its own right. While you can have both at once, it is extremely rare, especially in today’s NHL. If you had to choose, would you be the one scoring all the goals and collecting all the fame? Or the one setting your teammates up for success?

Question 22

More important: Centre or goalie?

One team has been building around their goalies for the better part of their existence. They’ve had some of the NHL’s best: Patrick Roy, Carey Price, Ken Dryden, Jacques Plante; the list goes on. The other team believes in building down the centre of the ice, with players like Dave Keon, Mats Sundin, and most recently, Auston Matthews.

Question 23

Which type of defenseman do you prefer?

There are two schools of thought when it comes to a defenseman. You can have one that’s big, strong, and responsible defensively, or you can have a quick, smooth skating, puck moving d-man. In reality, your team probably needs both to be balanced and successful.

Question 24

CFL or MLS?

The NHL is the biggest league in Canada. By far. But its not the only one. Sure Toronto has an MLB, and an NBA team, but thats it. The MLS and CFL both have multiple Canadian teams, as well as a built in rivalry between the Toronto and Montreal teams. One is more successful in soccer, while the other is more successful in football.

Question 25

Billy Talent or Simple Plan?

If I was going to go with the biggest musical acts from either city, it'd be Drake vs. Celine Dion, and that's not quite fair. I decided to level the playing field by picking two alt-rock bands from the early 2000s. Chances are if you were a teen in the 2000s you have a preference, or you love these two equally.

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