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This is the time of year when scoreboard watching is in vogue as fans ponder their team’s chances of making the playoffs and try to envision which matchup would best suit their team in the post-season.

The Canadiens’ chances of making the playoffs are very good — the computers at www.sportsclubstats.com rate their playoffs chances at 99.7 per cent — and we can start putting together a wish list for a first-round opponent.

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If the season ended today, the Canadiens would face the Rangers in the first round. On paper, this is an advantageous matchup for Montreal. The Rangers have 90 points — six more than the Canadiens — but Montreal swept the three-game season series with two wins at Madison Square Garden.

If the Canadiens falter against Ottawa — they play three times in eight nights beginning Saturday in Ottawa (7 p.m., Sportsnet, TVA Sports, TSN-690 Radio) — the most likely matchup would against the Boston Bruins. The playoff history between these teams is long and fierce and there would be added spice with Claude Julien behind the Montreal bench, Julien has the Canadiens on a roll since replacing Michel Therrien, but it’s interesting to note that the Bruins are 12-4 since dumping Julien. Montreal has a 2-1-1 record against Boston this season, but the wins came early and Montreal lost 4-0 in Boston on Feb. 12, which was Therrien’s farewell performance.