There's nothing better than a visit to the hockey mecca of Montreal.

Day 1- Thursday - March 23rd - The Leafs and the Canadiens at the Bell Centre in downtown Montreal. Game 1 of two over three days in one of North America's most electric cities. When the NHL decided to have division rivals play each other eight times a season they could have only dreamed of the kind of atmosphere in Montreal. Hockey's greatest rivals, the Leafs and the Habs fighting for their playoff lives. Simply incredible.

At the game day skate, the Habs players seem tense and on edge. Meanwhile, the Leafs are loose and confident after their win over Carolina two days earlier. Before the game I have the privilege of working with colleagues Louis Jean and Nick Kypreos for our live hits into Sportsnet News and Hockey Central.

By the time the puck is dropped the Bell Centre is positively rocking in a way the ACC could only dream of. Unfortunately for Leaf fans, Aki Berg plays a big role in the Habs scoring two goals in a 12 second span of the first period. Game over, thanks for coming out. The tension in the Leafs dressing room after the game is palpable. Losing goalie Mikael Tellqvist is positively despondent yet faces the music and says the loss is his entire fault. His teammates and his coach disagree. After feeding all of our post game stories I end up at an Irish pub on Crescent Street where I am joined by a number of other sports writers and sportscasters covering the series. My God, I love my job.

Day 2 - Friday March 24th - It's a practice day for both teams. Desperate for a work-out, I take a short walk from the hotel to a nearby fitness centre. In the gym are Montreal Alouettes all-star offensive tackle Uzooma Okeke and all-star defensive end Anwar Stewart. Okeke is true gentle giant and says he can't wait for training camp to get underway in May. Stewart is bench pressing 275 pounds like its nothing. Feeling completely and totally inadequate I decide it's time to leave. My cameraman Rick and I end up at the Verdun auditorium where both the Canadiens and the Leafs are practicing. What a classic old barn. I love the fact that it smells and feels like a hockey arena should. What a treat it must have been to sit in this rink and watch Pat LaFontaine as a junior. The Habs hold an optional work-out with only a handful of players. The Leafs throw every available body out there for an intense work-out. Mats Sundin and Darcy Tucker are unable to hide their frustration at the way the season is unfolding.

After dinner Rick and I end up a down-town sports bar where we watch local hero and Super Middleweight boxer Lucian Bute defeat South Africa's Andre Thysse in an excellent 12 round bout. Boxing is so huge in Montreal that the Bell Centre is sold-out for the fight. Afterwards we take in the sights and sounds of Rue Ste Catherine as we walk back to our hotel. Bars, hotels and restaurants are doing record business in Montreal this weekend.

Day 3 - Saturday March 25th - Leafs and Canadiens in Montreal, Game 2. After the Canadiens wrap-up their optional game day skate I join the media horde into the Habs dressing room. With all due respect to the rest of the 29 teams in the NHL, there's nothing that can compare to the feeling you get when you walk into the Canadiens dressing room. Like ghosts looking down upon the current players, photos of past Habs legends ring the top of the walls of the dressing room. There's a simple sign above the doorway to the dressing room; "Club De Hockey Canadien". In my feeble little mind it would be impossible for an NHLer of any nationality not to get chills every time they see that sign and the famous logo in the Habs dressing room.

Afterwards I drag my cameraman Rick to the home of the finest sandwich on planet earth, Schwartz's Montreal Hebrew Delicatessen. Its current cozy location on Saint-Laurent Boulevard has been around since 1930. If it wasn't for the fact it was so packed full of people on a sunny Saturday afternoon, Rick and I would have dropped to our knees and screamed at the top of our lungs that this is the Mother of all sandwiches.

Evening brings game time at the Bell Centre. As loud as it was in this place Thursday, it's even louder Saturday. At one point it reaches 118 decibels. Simply a tremendous atmosphere, one I feel lucky to be witnessing. Even luckier when I remember a scalper told me earlier in the day that a pair of centre ice reds are going for $800 to $1,000 dollars. The Leafs come out with some jump and Mats Sundin puts them on the scoreboard first. However, thanks to some laziness by the Leafs, the Habs score with eight seconds to go in the first period and go into the dressing room with a 3-1 lead. Merci, have a good time on Crescent Street after the game. Before this one ends the two teams will combine for six major penalties. Pat Quinn is at a loss to explain the 6-2 defeat. Darcy Tucker was nearly decapitated by an Alex Kovalev elbow but was far more wounded by the last two losses than anything else. Mats Sundin scored both Leaf goals and the captain was far and away their best player on the ice. Afterwards, the classy Swede faced the media hordes and attempted to put on a brave face. Despite his words you could see the pain in his eyes from these past two losses. General Manager John Ferguson is grilled by the assembled media horde about Pat Quinn's future and his own future. After feeding our post game interviews I bid adieu to the very talented Louis Jean and my trusty cameraman Rick. I cap off the night with another visit to Hurley's Irish pub on Crescent Street. Montreal is a great city.

Day 4 - Sunday March 26th - Travel day - I am heading back home - my wingman - Greg "Rossco" Ross is on his way to the stinking heaps of toxic waste that is scenic New Jersey for the second half of the four game road swing.

I can't wait to get home and see my amazing wife Patricia, and my two daughters Adriana and Cassandra. Adriana, my oldest, has a memory like a steel trap. Her favorite TV personality is not her old man; it's none other than Don Cherry. Adriana says she likes Don's ties and she loves his dog Blue. If someone says it, she remembers it. Cassandra, who turns 3 in May, is the Esa Tikkanen of the house. Armed with a sweet smile, Cassandra could agitate just about anyone on the planet if she sets her mind to it. Once she poked me with a fork in my arm at the dinner table; when I turned to say something; she gave me a kiss. Tikkanen would be proud.

Up next on the agenda? Senior cameraman Mario and I head off to Boston and Philadelphia in the first week of April for a two-game road swing with the Leafs.

Watch for Jim Lang regularly on Sportsnetnews and Sportsnet.ca.