MONTREAL \u2014 Montreal is bracing for a defining night of hockey, and for many fans, Game 7 of the Canadiens\u2019 playoff series is as much about ritual and memory as it is about the score.<\/p>\n
Hours before puck drop, the energy is already building across the city, from fully booked sports bars to families making their way downtown for the winner-take-all playoff game between the Montreal Canadiens<\/a> and the Tampa Bay Lightning<\/a>. The Bell Centre, home of the Canadiens, will open its doors for a public viewing of the game on the big screen, with tickets priced at $12 \u2014 an offer that sold out quickly, with 21,000 people snapping up the chance to be part of the atmosphere.<\/p>\n For M\u00e9lissa Paris\u00e9, a 46-year-old from Montreal\u2019s South Shore, the evening will turn into a multi-generational celebration.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s actually a triple birthday celebration,\u201d Paris\u00e9 said. \u201cMy sister-in-law Julie\u2019s birthday was April 28, mine is today, May 3, and my daughter No\u00e9mie\u2019s is tomorrow, May 4.\u201d<\/p>\n The usual cake has been set aside. \u201cWe\u2019re all Canadiens fans, so we traded the birthday cake to celebrate with 21,000 people,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re hoping they can give us a great gift tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe managed to get 32 tickets,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019ll be spread out across sections 106, 107, 110, 120, and even up in 321.\u201d<\/p>\n Her group includes her partner, their children, extended family, and close friends \u2014 many of whom gathered at her home to watch the previous game together on Friday night. <\/p>\n On Sunday, they\u2019ll travel into Montreal from Saint-Philippe and Sainte-Catherine, suburban communities on the South Shore across the St. Lawrence River, taking the REM \u2014 the city\u2019s automated light metro system \u2014 in the mid-afternoon to soak in the atmosphere.<\/p>\n Among them is her 75-year-old mother, who will be visiting the Bell Centre for the first time.<\/p>\n The group will be dressed for the occasion. \u201cAlmost everyone has their Canadiens jersey,\u201d Paris\u00e9 added. \u201cI usually take my partner\u2019s jersey, but tonight I\u2019m giving it to my mother. I\u2019ll wear last year\u2019s playoff T-shirt instead.\u201d<\/p>\n That sense of marking time through hockey is shared by other fans making their way to the Bell Centre.<\/p>\n Marc Fournier, a 54-year-old from Terrebonne, will attend the game with his three sons, his 81-year-old father, and a few friends.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was too expensive to go see regular games at the Bell Centre, but this is almost as good,\u201d Fournier said.<\/p>\n