Montrealers wonB次元官网网址檛 be the only ones to start celebrating next week as the Habs make a run for CanadaB次元官网网址檚 first Stanley Cup in 28 years.

Fans and beer drinkers from across the country will be lifting their glasses as hockeyB次元官网网址檚 winningest franchise seeks its 25th championship and first since 1993.

But the impact will likely be more muted than past finals involving a Canadian team because of restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

B次元官网网址淚n normal times youB次元官网网址檇 pack a bar or restaurant as full as you possibly could and thatB次元官网网址檚 just not possible anymore,B次元官网网址� said James Rilett, central Canada vice-president of Restaurants Canada.

Sales increased 20 to 30 per cent across the country when the Toronto Raptors headed to become the first non-U.S. team to win the NBA basketball crown.

But bars have been forced to close during lockdowns and many provinces have restrictions on indoor dining and limitations on outdoor patios.

Even fans have seen fewer opportunities to cheer on their favourite team in Canada. Some games have been played this season with no fans in attendance and the playoffs have seen limited numbers in the stands.

Rilett added that outdoor patios will probably be as full as they can get given the restrictions that remain, for example, in Ontario.

The exception could be in Quebec, where local fans are caught up in the frenzy of another run for the Cup.

B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e not fully open, but theyB次元官网网址檙e definitely more open than other parts of the country, so it happened at a good time for them that they can get more people in restaurants and bars there than before,B次元官网网址� he said in an interview.

Unlike past playoff runs, many fans will be celebrating from their homes instead of in bars and restaurants, which typically account for nearly 30 per cent of all beer sold in Canada, says Beers Canada.

Draught beer sales declined by 55 per cent last year due to COVID restrictions.

B次元官网网址淭his year, with continued limitations on gathering sizes and capacity restrictions in place at restaurants and bars across Canada, there will be fewer opportunities for brewers to grow sales in that channel during the Stanley Cup finals compared to previous years,B次元官网网址� says vice-president Luke Chapman.

B次元官网网址淭hat said, we do anticipate hockey fans to gather safely in small numbers, where permitted, to enjoy a few beers and cheer on the Canadiens.B次元官网网址�

As the official beer of the NHL, Molson Coors is hoping to profit from the final series that will see a Canadian team facing off against an American one for the first time since the Vancouver Canucks lost to the Boston Bruins in 2011.

B次元官网网址淢olson and hockey are inextricably linked and have been for generations,B次元官网网址� Brian Collins, senior manager of sports and entertainment partnerships, wrote in an email.

B次元官网网址淭here is a positively contagious feeling in Quebec as Canadians from all over are watching the HabsB次元官网网址� historic run and I have no doubt a lot of people have been celebrating with a Molson beer.B次元官网网址�

The Montreal- and Denver-based brewer said it will air ads promoting Molson Canadian across Canada and Molson Export in Quebec. It will also have a light show on the wall of its Montreal brewery.

B次元官网网址淭his is a great opportunity and collaborative effort to invite people back in on-premise locations and help the hospitality industry get back to growth via the public love for the Montreal Canadiens during the Stanley Cup finals,B次元官网网址� said Collins.

Ken Wong, a marketing professor at QueenB次元官网网址檚 UniversityB次元官网网址檚 School of Business and a Montreal native, doesnB次元官网网址檛 think the Habs will have a huge impact on Molson Coors or the Canadian restaurant industry as whole.

Very few people outside of Montreal associate the brewer with the hockey team, he said.

And unlike when the Raptors and the Toronto Blue Jays made their successful runs for basketball and baseball championships, the Habs are not necessarily viewed as CanadaB次元官网网址檚 team, he said.

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 nothing that would make me happier than to see them win,B次元官网网址� he said from Kingston, Ont. B次元官网网址淏ut I cannot help but believe that because they have won so often and because they are the old guard, the celebration wouldnB次元官网网址檛 be nearly what it would be if, say, Winnipeg won.B次元官网网址�

There could also be some lingering hard feelings from fans of the Leafs in Toronto and Jets in Winnipeg after the Habs eliminated those teams during the playoffs.

He pointed to the criticism after the CN Tower was lit up in red, blue and white after Montreal swept the Winnipeg Jets.

Wong also said the impact on restaurants will be almost impossible to detect because thereB次元官网网址檚 so much pent-up demand.

B次元官网网址淚 was on a patio last week. IB次元官网网址檝e never seen people so happy to be on the patio in all my life.

B次元官网网址淭hat has nothing to do with the playoffs. That really has more to do with peopleB次元官网网址檚 desire for social contact.B次元官网网址�

Ross Marowits, The Canadian Press

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