NHL playoffs feature West Island connection

Still bitter about your Montreal Canadiens not making the NHL playoffs? Looking for another reason to catch some post-season play while nursing a cold one at your favourite watering hole? How about tuning in just to cheer on the four West Island natives who learned their hockey in the Lac St. Louis Hockey Association and are currently participating in the post-season. Leading the way is Ile Bizard native and top goal scorer Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who learned his puck skills in the Lakeshore Hockey Association before going on the play midget AAA for the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask., and major junior for the Rimouski Océanic. Meanwhile, Hudson native Matthew Lombardi, who played in the La Presqu'Île Hockey Association before joining the midget AAA Gatineau Intrépide and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Victoriaville Tigers, is part of a Calgary Flames team that is in tough against the Detroit Red Wings. Out in sunny northern California, Beaconsfield native Marc-Édouard Vlasic, who grew up playing for Lakeshore before spending a year with the midget AAA West Island Lions before heading to the provincial capital to perform for head coach Patrick Roy's Quebec Remparts, is patrolling the blue-line for the San Jose Sharks as they battle the Nashville Predators. Finally, Pincourt native Alex Burrows, a West Island Hockey Association product, is a forward for the Vancouver Canucks, who are involved with the Dallas Stars.