The hockey Gods strike back

It's insane just how dearly the Habs are paying this year for being so spared by the injury bug last season.

This morning news comes that Christopher Higgins has become the latest to succumb to a virus and is doubtful for tonight's game against the Blackhawks. Though his role has become less prominent this season, losing Higgins tonight would be a pretty big blow because the Blackhawks top line anhored by Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane (their regular left winger Troy Brouwer was injured in Sunday's 4-0 loss in Vancouver) requires some shadowing.

It appears that every time a new line seems to pick up a little steam this year, someone gets hurt or sick, and this is just the latest example. I guess that means we should expect something to happen to someone on the top line, but maybe they'll be spared.

I'll be interested to see how Cristobal Huet reacts to the Bell Centre crowd tonight who will most definitely be all over their former love child. Huet was unflappable in the face of success while in Montreal, which was really impressive to see, but when things weren't going so well he didn't hide his emotions quite so well.

Huet has an opportunity to send a personal message to Bob Gainey tonight that he was wrong to have traded him at last year's deadline (I think even Bob can see that now), and former Habs goalies who arrive in Montreal with something to prove have a tendency to do pretty well.

But I would like to believe that the guy in the Montreal net has something to prove as well, that trading Huet and handing him the reins last year was a good move despite the disastrous results, that the Canadiens are well-heeled in nets as it makes a push towards the playoffs, and that the gaping holes in his game have been sealed off for good.

Carey Price needs to kick off the magical portion of his 2008/09 season, and tonight would be as good a time to start as any.