Liam Hendriks’ growing appreciation for hockey and active support of the Montreal Canadiens began a few years back, when he started going to Florida Everblades games.
The Toronto Blue Jays right-hander spends his off-seasons in Fort Myers, Fla., and his wife Kristi, a Montreal native, had a friend who worked as a cheerleader for the ECHL club. Hendriks, a native of Perth, Australia, loved the sport’s pace, started watching NHL games, and quickly became a fan.
“Around the time I got to Toronto (last season), I started getting into following a team, which was the Canadiens,” he says. “That really sucked me in.”
So much so that when the Canadiens eliminated the Ottawa Senators in the first-round of the playoffs, he and Russell Martin were cheering together on the team bus. Hendriks obviously thinks the Habs are going all the way, although he went 4-4 picking the first round, last among the five Blue Jays polled by Sportsnet for their picks.
Mark Buehrle, disappointed again by his hometown St. Louis Blues, Brett Cecil and Drew Hutchison each went 6-2, while first base coach Tim Leiper went 5-3.
Hutchison and Leiper both have the Tampa Bay Lightning winning it all, which should make for some interesting banter with Hendriks and Martin, while Cecil’s pick is the Washington Capitals.
Here’s how they see the second round unfolding:
Anaheim Ducks vs Calgary Flames
Buehrle: Ducks
Cecil: Ducks
Hendriks: Flames
Hutchison: Flames
Leiper : Ducks
Minnesota Wild vs Chicago Blackhawks
Buehrle: Blackhawks
Cecil: Blackhawks
Hendriks: Wild
Hutchison: Blackhawks
Leiper : Blackhawks
Montreal Canadiens vs Tampa Bay Lightning
Buehrle: Lightning
Cecil: Canadiens
Hendriks: Canadiens
Hutchison: Lightning
Leiper : Lightning
New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals
Buehrle: Capitals
Cecil: Capitals
Hendriks: Capitals
Hutchison: Rangers
Leiper : Rangers
