Montreal Canadiens fans have waited three long years to feel the electricity of playoff hockey. On April 16, their patience paid off: a hard-fought final-day victory sealed their place in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Their reward? A daunting first-round matchup against the top-seeded Washington Capitals. But while the series has brought high-stakes hockey back to Quebec, it’s also produced something else entirely — a fan-fueled, citywide obsession with Capitals enforcer Tom Wilson.
Game 3 at Montreal’s Bell Centre wasn’t just the Canadiens’ first home playoff win since 2021 — it was the night Tom Wilson officially became Public Enemy No. 1 in Quebec.
Late in the second period, following a heated bench brawl with Habs forward Josh Anderson, Wilson performed a mocking crybaby taunt toward a Canadiens player. The gesture, instantly immortalized online, acted like gasoline poured on a roaring Bell Centre crowd. It didn’t take long for fans to turn their boiling frustration into creative, often crude, tributes targeting the NHL’s most polarizing agitator.
Wilson Becomes a Bathroom Fixture — Literally
Perhaps the most viral display of fan rage? A row of urinals adorned with Tom Wilson trading cards. Photos of the cards circulating social media echoed a 2009 Capitals fan stunt involving Sidney Crosby, but this time it was Habs loyalists flipping the script — and aiming squarely at Wilson’s legacy.
Crying Wilson Masks and Homemade Apparel
Elsewhere in the arena, fans held up popsicle sticks featuring Wilson’s now-famous crying face — a DIY effort that waved mockingly behind the penalty box all night. One Canadiens supporter even produced a custom “Wilson Sucks” t-shirt hours after Game 3, confronting Capitals fans with Montreal’s raw playoff passion.
Among them was “Timmy from Toronto,” a bold visitor who braved Game 4 in a Screaming Eagle Wilson jersey. While many Habs fans were respectful — if sarcastic — others taunted him relentlessly in French. One encounter even led to police advising Timmy to turn his jersey inside out for safety reasons.
“I knew what I was getting into,” Timmy said. “But they definitely played their part.”
Wilson Strikes Back in Game 4
Wilson, of course, responded in the way he knows best — with brute force and timely offense. His third-period hit in Game 4 turned the tide in Washington’s favor, and he capped off the 5-2 win with an empty-net goal and a wave to the hostile Montreal crowd. As boos rained down, Wilson soaked in the animosity — a player who seems to thrive in enemy territory.
A Rivalry Rekindled by Chaos
Montreal’s playoff run has been about more than wins and losses. It’s about the return of relevance, identity, and pride for one of hockey’s most storied franchises. The Habs are young, fast, and fiery — and their fans match that energy pound for pound.
But Tom Wilson has become more than just an opposing player. He’s become a symbol — of playoff intensity, of grudges reborn, and of the lengths fans will go to defend their crest. Whether the Canadiens can force a Game 6 remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: no one will forget what happened when Wilson stepped into Montreal.
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