The Sports Page

Going into training camp, most of the experts, observers and prognosticators (myself included) felt the Canadiens didn't have a chance of making the NHL postseason. Bob Gainey signed Tom Kostopoulos, Bryan Smolinski, Patrice Brisebois and Roman Hamrlik in the offseason. Hamrlik was a welcome addition but came at a high price, while the others did nothing in the early going to excite hockey fans in this city.

The season started and it appeared the Ottawa Senators were going to run away with the Northeast, while the Bruins, Leafs, Canadiens and Sabres were left to fight it out for position.

Slowly but surely, the Habs emerged as a youthful, fast-skating team with plenty of upside. They were surprising people, they were winning games and they were fun to watch. What was happening?

More surprises -- Alex Kovalev was, indeed, a superstar. He dazzled fans from day one this year. His long, flowing locks often danced in the wind as he dipsy-doodled past opposing defenders.

Andrei Kostitsyn finally started to emerge as a talented draft pick, one that was criticized when the choice was made a few years ago. More amazing was how Andrei played once brother Sergei was called up to the big club. The Brothers K pushed each other and it was delightful to watch.

Tomas Plekanec had a breakout season as the team's most consistent centre, winning faceoffs and making plays, all while maintaining his defensive responsibilities.

Andrei Markov was an all-star and Mike Komisarek was a beast -- both men complimented each other perfectly on Montreal's blueline, providing stability and assurance to a young squad. Markov demonstrated great vision and Komisarek was a bodychecking, shot-blocking machine.

With Carey Price waiting in the wings, Cristobal Huet was showing everyone that he wasn't just a flash in the pan. The Frenchman was putting up great numbers and gave his team a chance to win every night.

The power play was on fire, the goaltending was red hot and the Canadiens were making their way up the standings as playoff aspirations started to build.

On the other hand, it proved to be a tough and frustrating season for a few others. Michael Ryder couldn't find his form and was the biggest disappointment for me this past season.

Chris Higgins was given every opportunity and despite some decent numbers this year, things never unblocked for Higgy. Fans expect so much from him and for some reason, he had trouble finding the back of the net with any real consistency.

His linemate, captain Saku Koivu, also had some consistency problems and wasn't putting big points on the board. He faced a lot of criticism and it didn't appear to some that this was HIS team. That opinion would change in the playoffs...we'll get to that in a moment.

Mathieu Dandenault and Mark Streit were bounced around in the lineup, Bryan Smolinski and Tom Kostopoulos weren't exactly making headlines and the Canadiens still appeared to need an impact player.

With the Canadiens well-positioned, that what's Bob Gainey attempted to do at the trade deadline. He came up empty in his bid for Marian Hossa and no one else was available by the time the deal went dead. The only deal that was made sent fan-favourite Cristobal Huet to Washington. I still think that was a mistake.

Nevertheless, the Habs finished first in the East with 104 points and surpassed all expectations, even their own.

A first round date with Boston was supposed to be easy...it went 7 games and the Canadiens got outworked and outhustled by a determined Bruins team. The power play went dead, the scoring was gone, the goaltending faltered and Habs fans were starting to worry a little.

Montreal finished off the Bruins with a convincing 5-0 win in game 7 and everything appeared to be fine. A last-minute win in game 1 against the Flyers was more proof that things were going Montreal's way, but that's where the luck would end.

Every bounce went Philadelphia's way and the Canadiens couldn't figure out Martin Biron. The series ended in a hurry, shocking the fans after what was supposed to be a mere speedbump en route to the Eastern Conference semifinal.

The good news...Koivu was dynamite after returning from a fractured foot and the Kostopoulos-Smolinski-Begin line was real revelation and Patrice Brisebois played his best hockey in Habs uniform. Ultimately, it wasn't enough. The offensive guys didn't score enough big goals and despite some incredible moments for Carey Price, the goaltending wasn't good enough in the big games.

Bob Gainey will face a lot of questions at his post-mortem tomorrow and it promises to be another long offseason but I'm curious to see how the majority of people will react in the coming days and weeks. After all, they weren't even supposed to be IN the playoffs.

Who are we to judge their postseason failure after such a glorious season that was full of surprises? Sure it was disappointing, but it was a fun ride and those guys deserve a lot of credit. Those 12 playoff games will do a lot for the experience and confidence of those young men who sent this city into a frenzy this year.

Not since 1993 had there been that much excitement and we owe them a pat on the back. It's easy to be negative, it's easy to be critical, but it's important for us to recognize accomplishments, especially when completely unexpected.

My memory for 07-08...the comeback of the century. A 6-5 shootout win over the New York Rangers after trailing 5-0. I've never seen anything like it and I'll never forget it. For me, that represented the competitiveness of this young team of overachievers. The NHL wrote them off and they didn't care.

A close second for me... the noise level at the Bell Centre in game 1 against the Boston Bruins.

What's your memory from 07-08? Will you only remember the disappointment against the Flyers or will you hold on to the memories of a very exciting 82 games?