Are the Habs for real?

I have been coming to this site on a daily basis for the last 6 months or so and I finally decided to post an article. this is my first one so please be easy on me.

After about 20% of the season played already, the Habs have been playing some pretty amazing hockey for a team that many were predicting them to finish 13th in the East and I started to wonder, are the teams taking them seriously or should they? Lets look at a few stats.

Teams Stats
17GP 10W 4L 3OT

2nd in their division behind Ottawa
4th in the East
5th in the league only behind Ottawa, Detroit, Carolina and Colorado (pretty good company)
53 Goals For (Tied for 8th in the league)
42 Goals Against (Tied for 10th in the league)
29.6% Power Play (1st in the league)
81.6% Penalty Kill (16th in the league, got better lately)
7W 2L 1OT Last 10 games (Tied for 3rd in the league)

Goaltending
Personnaly, I think that they probably have the best tandem goalies in the league or one of the best.
Huet 11GP 6W 3L 2OT 2.07GAA (7th) .931SV% (8th)
Price 6GP 4W 1L 1OT 2.44GAA .919SV%

Defencemen
Andrei Markov
17GP 6G (1st def.) 9A (Tied 10th def.) 15P (Tied 2nd def.)
Michael Komisarek is not knowed for his offensive skills but he is probably the most underrated defensive defenceman in the league. His is at the top of the list for blocked shots and hits. And boy, when he hits he hits HARD.
Roman Hamrlik and Mark Streit are also playing some pretty solid hockey for the Habs.

Forwards
Alex Kovalev
17GP 9G (Tied 13th) 7A 16P (Tied 37th)
Saku Koivu 17GP 4G 11A (Tied 33rd) 15P
With almost a point per game, these two players are playing quite well, espacially Kovalev. Last year, I gave up on this guy like so many other fans. But this year, he is a hole different player. He’s got so much skill that he can change the game arround just by himself. He is so much fun to watch this year. Him and Thomas Plekanec have been more than good together. I am starting to wonder wich of the first two lines is the actually number 1. I think that Kovalev-Plekanec-Kostsitsyn should be line #1. Anyway, they are sure playing like it.

With many experts putting them 13th in the East, this could be a cinderella year for the Habs. I am not saying that they are cup contenders but I think that they are on the right track. The youngsters are coming along great. Probably no cup for this year but I am predicting one in the next 3 to 4 years.

Thanks for reading me and like I said, this is my first article so please go easy on me.

Your thoughts?