Good evening everyone, I'm Dick Irvin and like hockey fans everywhere. I am awaiting what should be a great semi-final series The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens And we are eagerly awaiting it again as one of hockey's oldest and most heated rivalries is on a collision course to meet in the playoffs for the first time in 42 years and it's only happening because of the peculiarity of this pandemic season The Toronto Maple Leafs will finish first in the all Canadian North Division Created this season because of travel restrictions and the Montreal Canadiens are going to finish fourth Meaning these two story franchises are going to meet in the playoffs for the first time since 1979 and believe it or not It's just the 16th time in their history and that history is a span of 103 years and while there are many pivotal moments The point to why this rivalry is so important Anytime these two teams face each other Their fan bases get a little excited Okay back in 1917 before the NHL there was the NHA which stood for the National Hockey Association And there was this one owner by the name of Eddie Livingstone Who was having trouble getting along with the other owners now since the league's constitution didn't just let them toss living stone out And by the way, he was busy suing them anyway. They simply broke off and started their own league and they called it the National Hockey League Now there was still one problem the team Livingstone owned was based in Toronto and the NHL badly wanted a team in that city So they granted a temporary franchise to the Toronto Arena Company a team you now know as the Toronto Maple Leafs Now that first season they played without a nickname But it didn't stop them from defeating the Habs in the NHL championship with a two game total score of 10 to 7 Seven years later the Habs would get the revenge when they met Toronto who by this point were going by the name the same Patrick's again in the NHL championship outscoring them five to two now They would split semi-final matchups in 1944 1945 and then came one of those pivotal moments I was talking about in the rivalry between these two teams Leafs assistant manager Frank J. Selkie left the team To become the manager of the Habs now this may be commonplace in today's NHL But in 1946 with only six teams in the league it was gas on an already huge fire In 1947 we had the first matchup between these two teams where the Stanley Cup was on the line The now Toronto Maple Leafs came out on top four games to two the Habs would beat the Leafs for the Stanley Cup in 1959 and again in 1960 the latter not only being their fifth straight title But a Cup they won on Toronto ice and rocket Richard just couldn't help himself It's always nice to win the Cup outside of Montreal and the best place to win is to try to hear in Toronto because And although they would split four consecutive semi-final series they would meet in the final for the last time in 1967 the NHL's 50th season Yeah, the Leafs came out on top four games to two in what would not only be their last Stanley Cup to date But their last trip to the Stanley Cup final Now the Habs would sweep the Leafs out of the playoffs in both 1978 and 1979 but let's face it some argue that Habs franchise in the late 70s is one of the best in hockey history But that 1979 series would be the last time these two franchises met in the postseason and a big reason for that Was realignment between 1981 and 1998 the teams played in separate conferences Which means unless they were the last two teams standing they would not go ahead and the playoffs They came really close in 1993 but it was the Kings who ended up meeting the Habs in the final and here we are 42 years later And the rivalry is back in the spotlight and all it took was a global pandemic and an all Canadian division