Wait a minute, who are you?

That's actually a very good question. Who are we? What authority do we claim to have over other Habs fans, that legitimizes the existence of this blog? Actually, probably none. But we're here doing it, which must count for something.

Time for a brief(ish) rundown. In the third person, because that's how I roll these days, apparently.

No bandwagoners here. ~czechtacular has been a Habs fan since 1998 (which she recently proudly declared on CKAC while Dave Morrisette, yes him, sat next to her as a witness). This is by no means close to any sort of dynasty era. She remembers the Turner Stevensons and Craig Darbys that most try to bleach from their memory. She had several opportunities to move to other teams' fanbases, starting with the departure of Mark Recchi, but never could, not even in the worst of times. Meanwhile, Rookie was aware of the presence of hockey in her early years, mostly because that's what the whole family watched when together on the weekends, then sort of ignored it throughout high school (she knew the basics, though, although she knows it's not much). A good friend of Rookie's from cegep is a huge hockey fan, and would be the one to take Rookie to her first NHL game while they were in university. Rookie was faced with a problem: she had grown to like hockey, and saw the entertainment value in it, but her knowledge of the Canadiens was kind of shameful. As a joke, some mutual friends suggested she ask ~czechtacular for a team rundown, and she thought it wasn't a bad idea. The next day, she was provided with three pages of information, some of which she didn't understand, but she was hooked. The Writers Guild of America strike a few months later would separate her from her first love, well-written television, so she turned to hockey like a rebound boyfriend and she's become committed.

...That doesn't mean no other teams are allowed. While the CH may be the be all and end all of every hockey debate in their hearts (and this includes after 5 game losing streaks, thank you very much), ~czechtacular and Rookie do indulge in extracurricular activities (oh dear, already HIHW's first euphemism - don't take it the wrong way, gents, as there's a tall bespectacled gentleman who works in Rookie's office and she sneaks glances at him when she can). They are fans of the game above all else, and can look to a number of other teams, and players from other teams, as their own personal highlight reel that enable them to love hockey even more (if that's even considered possible).

No looks-based rating system. The puckbunny stereotype is one of, if not the biggest pet peeve the authors of HIHW could ever claim to have. While they are no strangers to crushes on hockey players (what did you want them to do? Cut off their estrogen?), it's the on-ice skills that reign above all. They know you think they're just saying that, but it's one of the rules they swear by in their day-to-day hockey enjoyment.

Bleu blanc rouge, but no pink. Continuing in this theme: HIHW are not big fans of the post-lockout eruption of "women's apparel" that contains appalling amounts of pink. Neither of your star bloggers here would be caught dead wearing a belly shirt or a bejeweled trucker hat, or anything with vinyl and sparkles on it, just because it was available at the Bell Centre Habs Zone. ~czechtacular in particular remembers her numerous trips to the Zellers' children's department in search of a boys' extra-large hoodie. (Another bonus of that: only $12.97!!) The Rookie will admit that her big sister owns a pink Habs T-shirt, and that she was present at the time of its purchase, but she disapproved of it strongly and will make sure that it is the last pink shirt to enter her house.

11 > 27. Might as well put this at the forefront of the Habs'-specific issues. The "every other year effort" motto does not fly here. The ladies at HIHW are willing to concede that Alex Kovalev is one of the most skilled players in the league, but he was prone to take a few too many nights off last season, which is not a first for him. This did not prevent a rally from being held in his name to persuade management to do everything in their power to keep him on the roster this summer, however, and for this HIHW is less than supportive. Even with the circumstances that unfolded surrounding his departure, and who might be to blame for it, he somehow manages to retain some support in Montreal, even more than others he left behind in 2008-09 trainwreck (notably someone ~czechtacular holds dear to her heart). Meanwhile, Saku Koivu had no such rally, and he did more for the fans of this team than most could ever claim to have appreciated before his time ended here. And his community involvement is only the half of it, as much has been said about it already. Much has also been said about the amount of injuries he has had over the course of his captaincy and the so-called "inability" to be a consistent player. At HIHW, consistency is not a number. It is not measured in goals, points, or plus-minus. It is what is brought to the table night in and night out, regardless of the stat-sheet. Saku was a hero, he brought all he could and more, and now he's gone to the West without so much as a protest or even a blink of an eye. He took a lot of heat for the most ridiculous reasons here in Montreal, and with that in mind HIHW doesn't blame him for leaving. They just wish it wouldn't have come to this, and that more fans shared the same opinion.

Here, no one's shy to drop the gloves. Fighting has its place in the NHL, and also in the hearts of ~czechtacular and Rookie. Bonus for the small, gritty fighters who don't seem to stand a chance but manage to hold their own, or even beat the odds and win. Bonus as well to the "less traditional" fights that break out (Spezza vs. MARKOV? Seriously?) and spur all hockey fans into a frenzy. ~czechtacular's first YouTube subscription was to the hockeyfightsdotcom channel and she regularly checks up on her faves, as well as some of the fights from the eras she was too young to appreciate. Rookie's pacifistic tendencies make her choose her fights a little more carefully (she's been known to follow up "Hit him!" with "But be careful!") So when, um, push comes to shove (HA!) these girls would rather see fisticuffs than a filthy, unprovoked hit.