FOG BLOG SPORTS LOG: STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS BEGIN TONIGHT:

Return of Stanley Cup Playoffs extra special after challenging pandemic season...Throw the windows open, turn on your television and soak in that sensation: The buzz is back after the long lockdown winter.

There’s something special about the arrival of the Stanley Cup Playoffs every spring; about games bubbling over with intensity and emotion and swings of momentum that elevate hockey to its stomach-twisting best.

But it’s bound to hit differently this time around, in part because we’ve waited a little longer and endured a bit more. These playoffs mark the culmination of a challenging 56-game regular season that required the NHL to be nimble in navigating the COVID-19 pandemic -- complete with stops and starts for several teams -- while staging games predominantly in empty arenas.

The reward is a two-month chase for the Stanley Cup that coincides with North America starting to come back to life.......TONIGHT THE BRUINS AND THE CAPITALS SQUARE OFF, MEANWHILE THE FIRST CANADIAN CONTEST IS......THE JETS AND OILERS ARE WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THE LEAFS MEET WITH THE CANADIENS THURSDAY NIGHT!