The long-rumored return of the NHL to Quebec City has hockey fans thinking ahead to a rekindling of one of hockey's greatest rivalries. The Battle of Quebec between the Montreal Canadiens and Quebec Nordiques raged memorably through the 1980s, stirring up passion that went beyond mere hockey games to become a symbol for a province's political and cultural divides.
Of course, Quebec isn't the only Canadian province to feature an intense rivalry. The Battle of Alberta was every bit as hard fought at its peak, and more recently the Battle of Ontario produced its share of dramatic moments.
But which provincial battle burned the brightest? Let's take a closer look at all three of Canada's greatest hockey rivalries.
Familiarity
Battle of Alberta: The teams played each other so often that fans knew the other side's roster by heart.
Battle of Quebec: The teams played each other so often that bench-clearing brawls would sometimes occur before the game had even begun.
Battle of Ontario: The teams played each other so often that Bob Cole came really close to learning a few of the Senators' names.
Playoff predictability
Battle of Quebec: You could always expect a hard-fought series with plenty of bad blood.
Battle of Ontario: You could always expect a close-checking series in which goaltending would be the deciding factor.
Battle of Alberta: You could always expect the series to end with an Edmonton player scoring the winning goal.
Star players in the spotlight
Battle of Alberta: Wayne Gretzky would look across at the Flames and know that he was in for a difficult game.
Battle of Ontario: Daniel Alfredsson would look across at the Maple Leafs and realize that he'd need to someday beat them in the playoffs to cement his legacy.
Battle of Quebec: Patrick Roy would look across at the Nordiques and think, “Man, it sure would be fun to win a bunch of Stanley Cups with those guys someday.”
Memorable overtime moment
Battle of Quebec: Dale Hunter's overtime winner in 1982 is memorable for the momentary confusion over whether the puck had actually crossed the goal line.
Battle of Alberta: Theo Fleury's overtime winner in 1991 is memorable for his enthusiastic rink-long celebration.
Battle of Ontario: Cory Cross's overtime winner in 2001 is memorable for the sound of 19,000 Maple Leafs fans simultaneously mumbling, “Wait a second, Cory Cross actually scored a goal?”
Behind the bench
Battle of Ontario: Senators coach Jacques Martin was constantly reviewing game film in search of opportunities to improve his players' defensive positioning.
Battle of Alberta: Oilers coach Glen Sather was constantly looking for ways to keep his star players motivated as they chased yet another championship.
Battle of Quebec: Nordiques coach Michel Bergeron was constantly wondering why Dale Hunter kept asking him whether he had any tips on coaching overpaid Russian head cases.
Clutch player
Battle of Alberta: No matter how bad the situation seemed, Oilers fans never stopped believing that Mark Messier would come through when they needed him.
Battle of Quebec: No matter how bad the situation seemed, Nordique fans never stopped believing that Michel Goulet would come through when they needed him.
Battle of Ontario: No matter how bad the situation seemed, Maple Leafs fans never stopped believing that Patrick Lalime would come through when they needed him.
Notable villain
Battle of Alberta: A Dave Semenko sucker punch on Tim Hunter very nearly caused both benches to empty.
Battle of Quebec: Louis Sleigher's sucker punch on Jean Hamel helped to touch off a brawl that actually did cause both benches to empty.
Battle of Ontario: Darcy Tucker was a classy player who felt so strongly about making sure the benches didn't empty that he would set a positive example by occasionally randomly leaping into one.
Red Wings connection
Battle of Ontario: Toronto's Curtis Joseph went on to become a popular player in Detroit when he chose to sign there as a free agent.
Battle of Alberta: Calgary's Mike Vernon went on to become a popular player in Detroit when he helped them win their first Stanley Cup in over forty years.
Battle of Quebec: Montreal's Claude Lemieux went on to become a popular player in Detroit, we assume, since every time he played there the Red Wings players would line up in the parking lot to personally greet him.
Superstars switching sides
Battle of Quebec: Canadiens' legend Guy Lafleur finished his career with a brief stint with the Nordiques.
Battle of Alberta: Oilers' legend Grant Fuhr finished his career with a brief stint with the Flames.
Battle of Ontario: Maple Leafs' legend Mats Sundin did not finish his career with a brief stint with the Senators, yet. Although the idea only occurred to him a few years ago, so let's all give him some time to make up his mind.
Potential return of the post-season rivalry
Battle of Quebec: An existing franchise moving to Quebec City could set the table for the province's first post-season battle in twenty years.
Battle of Ontario: With both teams rebuilding and featuring talented young rosters, a return of their post-season rivalry seems inevitable.
Battle of Alberta: Uh … any chance we could interest you in a pre-season rivalry?