How much did the Canadiens lose when they failed to sign Swedish prospect Fabian Brunnstrom?

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The answer might well be: Not much.

Mats Naslund, the former Canadien who's here as Sweden's team leader, has been telling people he can't understand the fuss over Brunnstrom, who is coming off a nine-goal, 37-point rookie season with Farjestad in the Swedish League.

Brunnstrom was the subject of a bidding war among NHL teams, including the Canadiens, who see some potential in the undrafted 23-year-old.

Former NHLer Rickard Wallin, who played with Farjestad this past season, said Brunnstrom could play in the NHL - if he's in the right situation.

"A lot depends who he plays with," Wallin said. "He has to play on one of the top two lines. In my opinion, he can't play on the third or fourth line, because defence is not his strength. He needs to play with someone who can get the puck to him.

"He joined us this year after playing in the third division and there wasn't much expectations for him," Wallin said. "He has good speed and played very well, especially at the beginning."

That might be a polite way of saying Brunnstrom scored only one goal during the second half of the season.

Fans set example: During the Canadiens' playoff run, I was distressed to hear tales of fans being abused by rival fans. A Canadiens' fan beaten and left

lying unconscious in a gutter in Boston. Bruins fans doused by beer or having their cars rocked as they were caught in post-game traffic. Flyers fans chased down a stairwell at the Bell Centre.

That's why I was happy to see several hundred fans enjoying themselves and celebrating the game of hockey at Le Colisée yesterday. With eight minutes to go and Sweden holding a comfortable 8-0 lead over Denmark, an impromptu conga line weaved its way through the stands. A drummer wearing a Danish sweater led the way as red-clad Danes and the Swedes, in bright yellow, danced their way around the arena.

DiPietro eyes Olympics: There are only a handful of active players from the Canadiens' last Stanley Cup team in 1993. Defencemen Patrice Brisebois, Sean Hill and Mathieu Schneider are still playing in the NHL. Oleg Petrov is back in Russia with AK Bars Kazan. Mike Keane is with Manitoba in the American Hockey League.

Then there's Paul DiPietro. More than a decade removed from his last NHL appearance, the Sault Ste. Marie native is playing for a surprising Swiss team that suffered its first loss of the world championship last night, dropping a 5-0 decision to a loaded Czech team.

"I've still got the legs, sort of," said the 37-year-old DiPietro, who had 12 goals and 29 assists for Zug in the Swiss League this season. "I'm having fun and as long as I'm having fun, I'll keep playing. I'd love to be (in Vancouver for) the Olympics in 2010."

With Mark Streit out of the lineup with a sore back, DiPietro and goalies Martin Gerber and Jonas Hillier are the only Swiss players with NHL experience. The team works hard, but they were no match for a team with a dozen NHLers, including Montreal's Tomas Plekanec.

"We stayed with them for a while, but they got the first goal and then killed us with the two power-play goals in the second period," DiPietro said.

DiPietro split the 1992-93 season between Fredericton and Montreal. He had four goals in 29 games with the Canadiens, but doubled that in the playoffs.