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This was going to be a story about numbers.

Numbers that don’t bode well for the Montreal Canadiens, GM Marc Bergevin and the slim hope of the team making the playoffs this year.

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Then Boston Bruins defenceman Zdeno Chara unloaded a shot late in the second period of Saturday’s game — and everything changed.

The Canadiens’ Phillip Danault was on the receiving end of the latest Chara howitzer and he crumpled to the ice.

Danault was hit on the right side of his head and had difficulty getting up. Precautions were immediately taken to immobilize him; he was put on a backboard and then removed from Bell Centre ice on a stretcher.

Players on the ice and fans in the stands alike were mostly silent has the player was tended to.

The Bruins’ 6-foot-9, 250-pound Chara loomed close to Danault with concern on his face.

He probably was reminded of another incident on March 8, 2011, when he hit Max Pacioretty, who ended up colliding with a stanchion at the end of the players’ bench at the Bell Centre.