The Bell Centre will welcome 2,500 fans for Game 6 between the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, marking the first NHL game in Canada with spectators since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
It's a small fraction of the rink's 21,302-seat capacity, but both teams are excited for a return to something close to the usual atmosphere of the league's oldest rivalry.
"It's going to be electric," Canadiens rookie Cole Caufield told Josh Clipperton of The Canadian Press. "You can just count on those fans to be passionate and dedicated to being behind us, giving every ounce of excitement they can."
Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner said his squad is also eager to play in front of fans.
"I'm sure there'll be some blue and white in there as well," he told NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger. "We've played in front of fans before. It's going to be fun playing in front of people again and hear people actually cheer, so we're excited for it as well."
Quebec recently lifted the COVID-19 curfew that had been in place since January. Fans in attendance for Game 6 must socially distance themselves from people outside their groups, and the first 12 rows of the lower bowl will remain empty.
