I'm spending the waning hours of my 30th birthday blogging for you, because yes, I'm delayed til 1:00 am out of Fort Lauderdale. Life could be worse... I did play seven rounds of golf in pristine weather since Thursday.

I caught the whole Habs-Sens game before departing Thursday, and though I can't admit the game against the Devils was worth the 45 minute drive to Hallandale Beach, I was perfectly happy to wrap a great day of golf up with my second favourite pastime.

There was so much to like about the Canadiens win over Ottawa. It was a complete and dominant performance from the team, particularly Lars Eller. What a move in the shootout to wrap up what had to be his best game of the season. Chemistry with Alex Galchenyuk--author of brilliant shootout move number one--and Gabriel Dumont was palpable.

The short term loss of Michael Ryder presented another challenge for Saturday's game, added to the challenge of playing the Devils in Jersey, which usually proves to be a rather steep one for the Canadiens.

How much easier is it to win hockey games when you score first all the time?

21 times this season, the Habs have opened up leads on their opponents. Customarily, they've pushed heavy on the gas to build on those leads. In New Jersey, Carey Price had to be sensational for the Habs to wrap it up. I'd say sensational describes Price's performance pretty accurately.

The goal Tomas Plekanec scored of Jarred Tinordi's stick was the kind of opportunistic moment you pray for in a game like that against the Devils.

And what a pleasure to see Colby Armstrong find the back of the net. You can bet all his teammates were beyond thrilled for him. Knowing how hard he was taking this drought despite so many quality chances, even I was thrilled for him, as I'm sure everyone in the Montreal media was.

With 60% of the season in the wind, the Canadiens are sailing with the best the NHL has to offer. We've officially gone from labelling them good to admitting they're great. With some depth additions, the c-word will be flying around town in no time.

And they deserve the praise. Marc Bergevin, take a bow. Michel Therrien, what an impressive miracle you've turned. All the players who endured the misery of last year, you deserve to enjoy this. All the new players, you guys that have heard for so long that it's a pleasure to be a Canadien when you're winning, so happy you haven't experienced the other side of the coin yet.

It's been a caveat since I came to the conclusion this team was good, they will struggle at one point or another, but when that time comes the process will bring them back to prominence. Such is the fortune of a well-balanced, cohesive unit the Habs have proven to be.

Character--that was what was what Bergevin so desperately wanted to inject into the arm of this team. Character is flowing from top to bottom. And we aren't mentioning it all that much, but the follow through on the extensive, pressurized search Geoff Molson conducted for a new GM is nothing short of commendable. Here's a guy who publicly admitted that there was responsibility to be shared for the travesty that was last season, not to mention that he committed to making any hard decision that would lead to a quick turnaround.

That the Habs bought out Scott Gomez the first day of training camp, that they've shelved Tomas Kaberle as a seventh defenceman--bold moves. Worth every penny,wouldn't you say.

I'm not sure where this all ends, but 15th to 1st (I know they're currently 2nd, but on pace for 1st) isn't just remarkable, it's one of the best sports stories of the year; the resurgence of the Montreal Canadiens. The subtext is about the restoration of age-old values of one of the most prolific franchises in all of pro sports; the revival of the almighty Habs brand.

And it's been such an exciting ride. Great hockey, winning hockey and smiling faces in a winter-torn city. There's much to look forward to this season, with already so much in pocket to be proud of. And the future is so bright, anyone can see the potential of this team.

Big game tomorrow...more then.

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