We got rushed back from our summer vacay for this?????
Jaroslav Halak traded for…Lars Eller and Ian Schultz!!!!!????!!!!!!!
I HATE THIS AWFUL DEAL. I HATE IT. I HATE IT. I HATE IT. I HATE IT.
Why do I hate it? Glad you asked:
1 – Gauthier could have gotten more if he had let Halak walk as an RFA!!!
* That’s right! Gauthier NEGOTIATED AGAINST HIMSELF. Seriously. Brian Burke had to give up two first rounders and a second round pick for the RIGHT to sign Phil Kessel. Had Boston just let Kessel go, they would have been awarded a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd pick.
* Gauthier didn’t even get that in this deal. He got a former 1st rounder and a former 3rd rounder. That’s it! Seriously???
*UPDATE: Yes, I know Halak was arbitration eligible, and thus, he has more leverage. But as a negotiating point, Halak is still an RFA. The Habs could have pushed him to take a low contract if they really wanted to.
2 – Why didn’t Gauthier wait until the draft to pressure other teams into giving more?
* There is no way you can convince me that this is the best deal Gauthier could get. No way. No how.
* You know what else this tells me? Because there were so many other goalies available this season, Gauthier was scared of losing out on a good trade. He was scared all the other teams would move faster than him. But Gauthier had the best two horses in the business. That was his only leverage. And it was excellent leverage. He should have had faith in his leverage. Instead, he blinked. And after giving up a second rounder for Dominic Moore weeks before the trade deadline, all the other GM’s now know that Gauthier is weak. The next trade will be even tougher for Gauthier to make.
3 – Why didn’t Gauthier consider trading Price for a greater bounty?
* I don’t know who the better goalie is between Halak and Price, but I do know that Gauthier could have gotten more for Price. The Flyers, Oilers, Lightning, and yes, the Blues, were all interested. Tsn.ca says the Sharks were too. All of them would have surely given up more for Price, closer to the draft.
* I know, I know, money had a part to play in this. Halak would cost more. MUCH MORE. OK, I understand that. BUT STILL – was there a deal to be had for Jeff Carter for Carey Price and others? I am betting that there was. What about a trade for Patrick Sharp? The Hawks needed to dump salary. Now, he will end up on the Leafs! Hell, what about Oshie? Backes? NATHAN FUCKING HORTON? Any of those guys are better than what Gauthier got!
If any of these available centers come in, Gauthier doesn’t have to sign Plekanec.
* which brings me to…
4 – Gauthier is about to get raped by Thomas Plekanec.
* Pleks and his camp now know, for a fact, that Gauthier has no choice but to sign Pleks. Because Gauthier was unable to land a Jeff Carter in the trade that the entire league knew was coming, Gauthier’s best and ONLY option is to sign Pleks. And now Pleks doesn’t have to rush. Every day that he waits to sign, he can add another 100K to his annual salary. At least. How does $5.5 million sound to you?
5 – Gauthier will also have to over-pay for Marty Biron.
* Gauthier knows he needs a strong, reliable back-up to help Carey’s development: emotional, professional, and on the ice. It’s a thankless job in front of a porous defense that won’t have Andrei Markov back until November.
6 – Why prospects? OK, why THESE prospects?
* Lars Eller and Ian Schultz!!!! Seriously, had anyone ever heard of these guys until today? Listen, I totally get why Gauthier would not want to trade a young goalie like Halak for an aging veteran. I understand why he would want to focus on youth. I understand why he would want to send Halak to the Western Conference too. But these “prospects” haven’t even played a season in the NHL!!! They weren’t on ANYONE’S radar. Except for maybe the robo-scouts / video cameras the Habs are going to use instead of real live human scouts.
* These guys are going to start the season in Hamilton. But Hamilton HAS NO COACH. How can Gauthier be sure that these prospects are going to develop, when the Guru is gone to Tampa, Muller is in flux, and player development is a known weak point of the Habs organization?
* Also – how does Gauthier trade for prospects when almost every single heralded young forward on the Habs struggled under Jacques Martin? The Kostitsyns, Lapierre, Pacioretty, Latendresse / Pouliot, D’Agostini, they ALL struggled last year. At some point, you might want to hedge your bets.
I guess Hamilton will have a hell of a team this year, though.
* UPDATE: It seems Gauthier is really high on Lars Eller . He projects him as a “Number 2 center” and thinks Eller may even start the season with the big league Habs. The operative word here is THINKS. Eller is not money in the back. And the Habs don’t really handle young talent properly. And Halak was in the Conn Smythe discussion before the 3rd round loss to the Flyers. You tell me who you would rather have on your team?
* UPDATE 2: I fully and freely admit that if Eller becomes a great player, maybe this deal won’t look so bad. Maybe a few years down the road. Right now? It sucks.
We can’t remember a season that had so many unexpected twists and turns, so many new faces, so much fast change, and so much over-achievement. And I’m just talking about Lost!
Kidding. The Habs delivered and then some, outlasting 26 other teams to make it to the final four. This despite finishing 19th out of 30 teams in the regular season!
Yes, with few exceptions, the Habs went from a band of castaways to a group of heroes. And if you want an inside view of the great character inside that Habs locker room, I URGE you to check out Brian Wilde’s post game efforts.
We all know the particulars of this season. Eric and I will rehash them, over and over, and throw in our three cents, in our podcast this week, and we’ll talk about what comes next too.
But for now: “Merci beaucoup at a l’annee prochaine”.
What is there to say that hasn’t already been said? Here’s a team that, on paper, and in terms of injuries, should no way no how be in a position to eliminate the defending Stanley Cup champions, this after taking down the best team in the regular season in 7 games as well!
Whatever happens, the Habs have caught lighting in a bottle and it’s been an amazing run.
But one thing sticks out: How so many of the Habs have really stepped it up to a level beyond what we thought possible, and how some “champions” have reverted to boy status. So here, on a slow day, is a totally subjective list of the MEN vs BOYS in this series:
THE REAL MEN
1. Hal Gill: Playing mucho-minutes, shaking off the early-season boos, and doing nothing less than holding down the two best players in the game. Yeah, Hal is MAN #1. If he pulled himself out of Game 6, it’s because the pain threshold was just too much. Which means it would be enough to make us mere mortals faint. And he’s a damn leader.
2. Mike Cammalleri / Brian Gionta: These pint size forwards are getting it done down in the corners, in the crease, and in front of the net. And no one has an answer for them yet.
3.Jordan Staal: Coming off a foot laceration? Are you kidding me?
"I don't hurt, I swear"
4. Josh Gorges: This guys bangs into the boards, into the corners, smacks into the goalpost, and he just shakes it off, over and over again. He’s the energizer bunny / indestructible pop up toy. Seriously – I think you would need to hang some garlic around your neck and drive a wooden stake into his heart for him to even realize what pain feels like. This guy is unbelievable.
5. Jaroslav Halak: He’s a “small” goalie, but he shakes off net crashers, team-wide doubt, Carey Price’s “Franchise” status, and the crazy pressure of never having played in the playoffs…what heart. WHAT A MAN.
6. Bill Guerin / Max Talbot / Chris Kunitz: They go about their business quietly, cleanly, with class and calm. All are banged up, Guerin more so, and they deserve the manly salute.
7. PK Subban: He was in Hamilton two weeks ago. He played 30 minutes last night. He also stuck to Crosby like glue, in the absence of Hal Gill in Game 6. Talk about stepping it up.
THE WEE BOYS
1. Sidney Crosby: Yeah, he’s a champ. He’s a national hero. And the face of the NHL. He also still lives with the team owner. Sorry, but at his age? He whines at every call. And that cross check against Pleky after the game? “It’s only Plekanec” says the champ. What a gutless dick.
"But I Wanna the Puck"
2. Sergei Kostitsyn: The whole team hates him now. What a pity.
3. Matt Cooke: Crosby without all the talent. Or charm. Or usefulness. Go away already.
And tomorrow night, we hope for the best in what will be a Game 7 classic for sure.
But no matter what happens, the MEN listed above, and so many more, have proved themselves worthy of their sweaters, and the adulation they’ve been getting from their hero-starved fans.
This series has left a lot of very important people utterly speechless:
* Alex Ovechkin and Bruce Boudreau don’t know what to say.
* Ted Leonsis, and the good people of Washington, who all thought they had a winner: They do not know what to say.
* Alex Semin does not know HOW to say.
* Gary Bettman is crying in his wine cooler. He also does not know what to say (but he sure as hell knows what to do: While Boston-Philly doesn’t start until Saturday, the Habs play the Pens TOMORROW FRICKIN NIGHT!)
*Vice President Joe Biden – who was in attendance: For once, he really does not know what to say.
* Bob Gainey, also in attendance, knows EXACTLY what to say, but he’s not saying it.
* Ditto Pierre Gauthier.
* The highly-leveraged New Molsons are THRILLED they get to bank extra coin, but they’re not gonna say that.
* Jacques Martin never really says anything, anyway.
* Ditto Jaroslav Halak, and we love him that way.
* Carey Price doesn’t know what to say ….but I think if he did, it would go something like this: !!!@#@#@^%$#**!@#@??#@#***&^%$#@!!!!!!!?????!!!!!!!!
* Roman Hamrlik ain’t sayin’ nothin’ and you can’t make him!
* Mike Cammalleri, as usual, would have plenty to say. And he’s earned the right. Ditto Brian Gionta, Hal Gill, Josh Georges, Tomas Plekanec, Tom Pyatt, Maxim Lapierre(!!!), Dominic Moore and Andrei Markov. But apparently, the locker room was all business and hush-hush after last night’s game, the players already preparing for Friday’s game against the Pens.
So since no one else is saying it, allow us: “Hey Ovechkin: Did you have fun shaking Halak’s hand?”
There is an excellent piece of writing by Mike Wise of the Washington Post describing what it felt like to be an outsider at the Bell Center during last night’s 4-1 Habs stolen victory over Washington. The goods are here.
The golden nugget I want to talk about:
…if you could hear this unbelievably charged building at this very moment — the symphony of sound, some 20,000 screaming raucously as Halak was announced as the game’s No. 1 star — only one emotion could be felt by an authentic fan who followed the Washington Capitals’ record-setting, ridiculously good season thus far: Panic.
Montreal Canadiens / Bell Center fans have plenty to be embarrassed about this season. They’ve booed the American anthem, arrived in blackface (okay just two fans did, but….really???), whined incessantly over calls the refs made against the Habs. They’ve booed their own players as early as the first period, not to mention their coaching staff and general manager. Just last week, Sal the Angry Habs Fan went on a guido- tirade on Team 990, sounding both stoopid and remarkably cogent at the same time.
In truth, I feel like most sports fans just aren’t as classy as they used to be – if they really ever were. But somehow, in the eyes of the mainstream Canadian and American media, Montreal Canadiens fans are still depicted as classy, knowledgeable and accommodating fans who support their team to the final whistle no matter what. “The best fans in the league” is what we hear over and over, with apologies to Minnesota, Toronto, Edmonton or Detroit.
Well, rose-colored glasses aside, last night the Habs fans were SENSATIONAL.They were so good that I tivo’d the game and I am going to keep it saved just so I can show my American friends how awesome a real hockey game can be. They were so good that after I finished watching the game, I had a caffeine-buzz running through my veins that kept me awake all night. They were so good my own neighbors in Los Angeles were shaking in their apartments.
They were so good I was practically clutching my Habs Jersey and Expos cap in unison, sobbing tears of nostalgia, grateful like a stranded Israelite after getting manna from heaven.
No, I don’t think I am getting carried away here, because THAT, people, is the power of the Seventh Man!
Seriously, watching the game last night, it was clear that the Habs ran out of steam at about, oh… say, fifteen minutes into it (except for Halak, and a handful of skaters).The fans didn’t boo their own players, they didn’t whine, they didn’t despair. Not once.
Instead, the were LOUD.
Instead, they actually cheered for their team.
Instead, they gave Jaroslav Halak a standing ovation AFTER HE GAVE UP A GOAL.
“Hey – we got your back because you are amazing” they were telling him. And amazing Halak remained, turning away a barrage of Ovechkins and Backstroms as the rest of the Habs underwent cardiac arrest right there on the ice. The fans (and Halak) willed their team to victory. There’s no other way to look at it.
And they gave the Habs all the encouragement they need to go to Washington and steal this damn series.
THEY MADE IT! (Barely). Monday’s podcast will dissect the weaknesses, but for now, I’m thankful for the following:
1. PLAYOFFS, Baby!
Don’t kid yourself. This is a major achievement, specifically because of the injuries to their best players. Plenty of other teams in the league lost their best players to injury or trade – Atlanta, Calgary, Carolina, Anaheim – and you don’t see them in the dance, do you?
Plus, these Habs had to start all over from scratch this year, deal with all the changes, fight back against ridiculous expectations from some boorish fans…..yeah, I’d say the Habs persevered quite nicely, all things considered.
2. Excellent Goaltending.
I don’t know what happens in the off-season and I am so glad I don’t have to make that decision, but Jaroslav Halak was nothing short of excellent. And Carey Price was much MUCH better than last year, if a lot more unlucky.
Another word on Carey, because it bears repeating: Maybe his confidence is shaky, but the kid can play.
3. Andrei Markov.
The only elite player in the lineup.
4. Moving Forward
The Habs may not be big, and some of their talent is overpriced / underperforming, but this year saw a nice group of forwards that just never quit. There’s energizer bunny Brian Gionta, the no-longer-girlish Tomas Plekanec, 50-stitch man Travis Moen, heroic and gap-toothed Glen Metropolit, and I maintain brother Sergei had a nice rebound. And I am positive that mega-watt Cammy would have hit 40 had he not been injured. Hopefully, he’ll explode in the playoffs.
5. Hal Gill / Josh Georges
Every fan and so called expert was tough on Gill in the first 15 games. But dammit if he didn’t become the best penalty killer on the team. And he settled the room. He talked Carey Price through his slump, cajoled Georges to be more aggressive, and sniped back at the boo-bird-dummies after Price was awarded the third star with calls of “trade him”.
That’s called leadership, and the Habs needed it.
Speaking of Georges, I have six words: Mike Green slapshot to the head.
6. Benoit Pouliot
Yes, he is in a slump now. But he’s never played a full season (before this, his top total was 37 games!). He’s never been a top-six forward. He’s also only 23 years old. And he’s big, mobile, got guts, and lightening quick hands.
When he gets really healthy, properly conditioned for a full season, and gets used to the responsibility, man is he going to be good. Doesn’t matter if Guillaume is tearing it up. This was one of Gainey’s best trades.
7. Guy Boucher
Unlike the major league bench boss, Guru Boucher showed an uncanny ability to squeeze the most out of his young charges. Guys like Tom Pyatt, Mathieu Darche and Ryan White aren’t going to scare anybody too much, but they came prepared and confident. Sergei came back with his attitude in check (I won’t credit the Guru with PK – who was just sublime – because I think a sock puppet could coach that guy).
Compare that with the dismal performances and sinking confidences of the young players who started the season with the big-league Habs: Guillaume, MaxPac, D’Agostini, MaxLap, the Kostitsyns…….that’s a lot of talent not living up to its potential. They can’t all be duds, eh coach?
8. Jacques Martin
I know it looks like I has needling him just now. I was. But the man coached the hell out of this team. Let’s remember, there was a stretch of games there where the Habs lineup was the best in all of the AHL. This was his first year, on a team that was brand new, in a smoking-hot cauldron of a market that was calling for the decapitation of the very man who hired him. Hello? Can you say pressure?………..Don’t agree?……I’d like to see you coach the Habs for even one day. You wouldn’t last the first period.
So the Habs are in. Tonight, let’s be happy.
Tune in Monday, when Eric and I really take out the scalpels.
Welcome Boone readers. The Man of Extra Class has given us some shout-outs, and we are very appreciative. Boone has once again shown us why he is the King of the Habs Blog Hill.
Some of you have been wondering why there haven’t been any posts or blogs lately. I have two answers. The first, I have been visiting family in Montreal, including Eric, and um….enjoying it. The second is that, based on the Habs recent play, there is nothing we can add right now that we did not say in the last post. The Habs still lack killer instinct. They are still soft at the wrong times. And quite possibly, they are very very confused about what they need to do.
The Only Dependable Hab
And who can blame them? On a team where the only constant from last year to this year has been the mascot (new owners, new GM, new coach, new players), this team remains a great scientific experiment, the likes of which the league has never seen. A lot of us, myself included, have been grumbling about coach’s decisions, especially in recent weeks. And I maintain that they have only added to the confusion.
But none of that matters tonight. Once again, les boys must summon their manhood and just win. If they believe, truly believe, they deserve a shot at the post season, they need to send a message tonight. But how can they pull together after such a tough week? That’s up to them. But if they back into the playoffs, or fail to make them, they will be embarrassed by their efforts. And Habs nation will be calling for all the Canadiens scalps – save for the aforementioned mascot.
Enjoy the game, but hold on tight, it might be a bumpy ride.
Check back here on Monday as Eric and I post our season-in-review podcast and (fingers crossed) our playoff preview extravaganza.
Imagine, if you will, the Habs are protecting a lead of 2-1, or 2-0. Imagine they are playing a team like say San Jose, Florida, or Buffalo. In fact, don’t imagine, actually look at the last 15 minutes of those recent contests.
What happened?
The Habs lost the lead in all of them. Against San Jose and Buffalo, they lost the lead and then the damn game. Why? Because their opponents roared back with their best efforts in the 3rd period. They were aggressive, they sustained their play, they willed themselves to the win.
They showed killer instinct.
The Habs? I can only think of one recent game, against Anaheim, where the Habs forced themselves into the W column after falling behind. Don’t get me wrong, there are some good games where les boys jump out ahead and are dominant. But when challenged late in the game? When the outcome is in doubt, when its close, the Habs just can’t beat their enemy.
Doesn’t matter if they are down 2-1 or ahead, the Habs aren’t nasty and they ain’t tough.
They DO NOT have killer instinct.
We saw it again tonight against Carolina. After taking a 1-0 lead in the 1st period, they fell behind 2-1 in the 2nd period and came out like zombies in the 3rd period. Can you imagine guys like Claude Lemieux or Bob Gainey or… Mike Keane for heaven’s sake, letting this happen over and over again?
Not on your life. And not on Paul Maurice’s or Eric Cole’s either, apparently. You can tell Carolina’s been to the playoffs. They know what it takes to win at this point in the season. Not just fights and body checks. Team toughness. Aggression.
Or like David Mamet wrote: BRASS BALLS.
I don’t now if it’s injuries, lack of size, or defensive-crouch coaching. But if the Habs want to make the playoffs, and actually be a factor in them, well, they should trade in their Maxim Lapierre tin heart for some of that Alec Baldwin rage in Glengarry Glen Ross.
We have a great podcast for you…but unfortunately, Eric is still asleep in Vegas somewhere. Naw, just kidding. He is back home in Montreal, safe and sound. But he is still asleep, actually. So while we wait for Eric to wake up and post the podcast we recorded last week, here’s an actual cogent thought about why the Habs are winning lately, something I don’t see anyone else talking about.
I’ve been thinking about Malcolm Gladwell lately and his book, The Tipping Point.
I am a sweet, doe-eyed hockey fanatic
The book explores the idea that sometimes small changes / phenomena – like how a single person with the flu can start an epidemic, or how hush puppies became huge only after the right fashionable kids in New York started wearing them – can quickly result in big changes or trends. Applying it to hockey teams, a tipping point could be reached when some minor adjustments result in a big winning streak.
Since the Habs returned from the Olympic break,they’ve won 4 straight, and 5 of 6. They should have won all 6. At the same time, the play of the Habs’ third and fourth liners has been off the charts.
Coincidence?……Is it possible that the Habs have hit their very own Tipping Point as a result of the minor changes in the play of these “minor” players?
I admit, there are a lot of other reasons why the Habs have won 4 straight and 5 of 6 since coming back: The rest definitely helped, especially for the older guys. The Habs are healthier. The Gomez-Gionta-Pouliot line has played very well, and the goaltending has held up.
But all of that is just the price of admission. In order to just have the chance of winning, every team needs to be healthy, to have a good first line and get decent goaltending. But to win consistently, the Habs, and most teams, need everyone on the team to play well all the time.
Before we get to the Tipping Point of the Habs As The Theory That Explains All, look at the other teams in the East: Holes in almost every lineup (save Washington, Pittsburgh, and maybe, maybe, New Jersey). Buffalo has excellent goaltending and a few great front line players, but not much else. Boston, Tampa, the Rangers, Florida, all suffer from the same thing: Lack of steady players once you get past the excellent front liners of Bergeron, Chara, Stamkos, St Louis, Gaborik, Henrik, Vokoun etc. Ottawa and Philly have more good skaters, but for they don’t have standout goaltending. None of these teams have every player performing great. Because not all of their players are great. They don’t have enough depth (I’m simplifying a little bit with certain teams – injuries play a factor with Boston, team chemistry for Philly, for example – but you get the idea).
So why are the Habs winning lately? I believe it’s because their depth scoring has been INCREDIBLE. Metro has 2 points in 2 games (including a career-high 15th goal. I repeat, Glen Metropolit might score 20 goals this year). Brother Sergei had a goal and an assist last night – and he has been the best Habs forward in the last 4 games, save Gomez and Pleks. Down the list we have Travis Moen with 2pts in 2 games. Mathieu Darche: 2pts in 2 games. Dominic Moore: 3 pts in 4 games.
Glen Metropolit: Hockey Super-Hero?
That’s 5 skaters who have scored 9 points in the last 2 games.That’s an average of almost 2 points per game from the depth players. And that’s before we talk about the specialized skills, steady defense and special teams coverage they have been providing (Brother Sergei was on the ice for the final 3-on-3 scrum last night and has become a very steady penalty killer. Moore wins a lot of faceoffs, most of Metro’s goals come on the power play, etc).
Add all of that to the price of admission – the fact that the Habs best players, Gomez, Markov, Plekanec and (last night) brother Andrei – are performing to their skill level, and now you have a team that wins consistently.
Sometimes, it’s the depth players that are the glue that stick the team together (ex-Habs like Robert Lang and Frankie Bouillon are doing that for their teams). Sometimes it’s the depth players who can serve as the tipping point for the team, that extra catalyst or motivation that causes everyone else to step up their game.
In the past, I’ve expressed my doubts about the depth of this team, especially on defense. But that was before Moore came on board, Sergei started getting actual minutes and Darche won a spot on the team. Now it’s only been a week, and the real test is if they can keep it up. If they do,maybe the Habs have hit a tipping point for their season and will win with consistency.
If they falter, my bet is that this will be just another random hot streak.
