Will $2600 be wasted?

Tonight, contrary to general belief, is the night, it's the night we find out who wasted $2 600 on a ticket to the highly-anticipated Leafs-Habs game in T.O on Saturday.

Forget all that Leafs-Habs showdown blablah...if things go a certain way tonight, there will be no need to buy the ticket that's going for $2 600 on eBay...

First off, the Rangers play host to the Canadiens.

I was personally there when the Canadiens blew them away 6-4, when the first-star of the week-Henrik Lundqvist-was pulled from the game.

Backed by hot rookie Jaroslav Halak, a surging offence to compliment a newfound team chemistry, and if fate allows it, the Canadiens seemed destined to clinch a playoff spot tonight in front of a sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd.

Saku Koivu (above) has confirmed that he can still score...he put in two highlight-reel goals against the Bruins on Tuesday, and more impressively, by going through the mammoth that is Zdeno Chara.

Sergei Samsonov (left) has been of invaluable help to the team.

No, no...not on the ice-are you joking?-but off the ice...he's sat for 11 straight games and it appears very unlikely he'll ever dress for hockey's most storied club ever again.

In those 11 games, the Canadiens have gone 9-2.

THANK YOU SERGEI!

Anyway, ahem, it's expected that the 28-year old forward's contract will be bought out at 2 thirds of the price at the end of the current campaign (and eventual playoffs).

Samsonov, Bob Gainey's then-prime offseason signing, has been nothing more than a branch in the mud for Guy Carbonneau's squad this season, he's only put in 8 goals this year, and more dissapointing is his point total: a measly 28.

But...we must not forget about those Toronto Maple Leafs either, who, fresh off a 3-2 overtime W over the Philadelphia Flyers, are on the other side of town, in Long Island actually, taking on the New York Islanders.

The Islanders looked like a playoff contender 2 weeks ago, but have fallen off a deep cliff recently and find themselves on the verge of missing the playoffs and making Garth Snow a mad man.

With one game in hand over the Leafs, Habs and Rangers, the Islanders must win tonight to avoid the same situation the defending Stanley Cup champs, Carolina Hurricanes, have innundated themselves in.

Wade Dubeliewicz, career minor-league goalie with the Isles' AHL affiliate in Bridgeport, seems like that last hope Charles Wang's team has of making it to the post-season.

With Rick DiPietro out with a post-concussion syndrome, induced by Canadiens enforcer Steve Begin a few weeks ago, Mike Dunham has responded horribly to his new role...this can be verified by taking a look at last Friday's Isles-Sabres box score: he allowed 5 goals in the first period alone...

The Leafs are on the brink of (yes!) missing the playoffs for the second straight season.

They sit in 9th place, one point behind the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge, with the risk of never giving fans (especially the ones who paid $2 600...) the "winner-takes-all" battle at the ACC on Saturday night, the eve of Easter Day.

To sum all this talk up: if the Habs win and Isles win tonight (in regulation), somebody out there will have wasted $2 600 on a worthless piece of paper.

If the Rangers win and Leafs win, the Leafs move into the 8th spot and the Rangers clinch their second-straight playoff spot in the last two seasons (and yes, it's a big deal, remember the pre-lockout terror-filled horror movies...sorry, they were the Rangers' dismal seasons).

I certainly hope that the first option is the one, otherwise, I will wake up tomorrow morning with a terrible headache...