Ah training camp. The one time in the hockey season where the individual performances are actually more important than the final score. It’s in that spirit that we’ve come together once more to record another Habs podcast.
Just an hour before Pierre Gauthier and Jacques Martin made their first round of cuts, the three sages (Pat, Eric, and Tal) came together to discuss what they have seen so far and what they expect in the near future. In typical Tal fashion, Aaron Palushaj was cut by the Habs barely an hour after T. Pinch predicted he would push for a final roster spot. So you might want to ignore his advice the next time you play the stock market.
Nevertheless, this pre-season has already been ripe with intrigue. So just two weeks before opening night, les boys come together with plenty of discussion and a whole lot of booing. And not all of it for Carey Price.
Pierre Gauthier’s first trade as GM of the Habs: The Habs 2nd round pick in 2011 for Florida C/RW Dominic Moore.
PG has gone on record a number of times now, saying the priority this year is for the Habs to make the playoffs. So I can’t say I’m surprised by this move. Though it would probably be best for the franchise, PG doesn’t want to unload salary and stock up on prospects. So let’s not expect that.
***let’s not get too excited***
A lot of people don’t like this deal because:
* The Habs give away a future high-ish pick for an aging journeyman who will see limited ice time.
* Moore is a UFA at season’s end and will likely not return to the Habs.
* Considering Moore was picked up on WAIVERS last year, a 2nd rounder seems high (even though “everyone” is saying 2011 is a weak draft).
Here is what people are saying Moore brings to the table:
* Good faceoff skills, can relieve Pleks on the PK, smart positioning and decent skater. An upgrade on Maxwell.
I agree that in some critical situations, Moore might be of benefit. I also agree that a 2nd round pick seems a little high for this guy. But here is one reason why this deal MIGHT JUST WORK:
* It allows Max Pacioretty to stay down in the minors and develop with Guy Boucher.
Face it. Coach Jacques either doesn’t have the time or the ability to take our young forwards by the hand. Coach is many things: fair, protective of his players, cagey with the goaltenders, a believer in hard work. But one thing he hasn’t done well this year is TEACH. The young forwards who started this season with the Habs have slumped BIG TIME. And I remain convinced that the only reason AK-46 broke out is because Pleks kept encouraging him. Gui was traded. SK-74 is only now showing signs of life. Laps has sucked. Dags has sucked. Chipchura sucked. MaxPac has sucked.
The young ‘uns who have performed well on occasion (Pouliot, Pyatt, White, Desharnais) did not start the year with the Habs. They were traded for or CALLED UP.
So barring another trade or even more injuries (plus AK-46, Benny, and Cammi are all coming back soon), MaxPac, who was downright lost in the big leagues, gets to stay in Hamilton with the Guru. MaxPac has loads of potential, he is only 21, and has yet to have a full season in the AHL. I say the longer he stays down there, to learn and develop his skills away from the pressure, the better he will be in the future.
Would you trade a future 2nd rounder if it meant Max Pacioretty could unleash his true potential next year?
I definitely would.
And IMHO, that’s the real reason why this trade might work out in the end.
***Tune in on Tuesday for our final Habs Podcast before the Olympics***
Our inaugural, end-of-year-2009 podcast will be posted on Friday. Eric and I have a lot of goodies planned.
Until then, some notes:
The margin of error for the current Habs is, and always will be, razor thin. Injuries, penalties, slumps, goaltending, special teams…all these factors have to break the Canadiens way for them to pull out the win. Why? They simply do not have enough top-line talent across all positions, so they can not afford any off nights.
It is going to be hard for the Habs to get less penalties as the season goes on, for three reasons:
1 – The Habs play an aggressive style on the backcheck, and a lot of their d-men are a little slow. That translates into a lot of hooking and cross-checking penalties. No one wants to be the one to cough up the puck to the enemy.
2 – Now the Habs have a reputation – so it is difficult for the refs to look the other way. For a variety of reasons, refs are sometimes hesitant to call a penalty if its close (if it’s late in the game, if its against the home team, if they don’t want to unduly influence the outcome, etc). But the Habs’ bad reputation will only reinforce the refs’ thinking when they see the Habs misbehaving: “there they go again”. It’s very tough to change a reputation in mid-season.
3 – Fatigue: As Eric Engels notes, there may be a fatigue factor setting in. Again, the compressed schedule, injuries, penalty kill and coach’s penchant for playing 3 lines instead of 4, could all add up to fatigue. Which means mental mistakes and stupid penalties. Interesting to note that coach has not been running practices on off days lately.
The Department of ‘Please don’t trade Halak, AK-46, or D’Agostini’: I don’t think Bob is going to be able to get equal value for AK-46 right now. Same with Halak. These players are worth much more to the Habs than they are to another team.They know their roles, they know the system, and on the Habs, they know the pressure is on them to play their best every game. And they are CHEAP, YOUNG, and SIGNED, so they have no leverage against the Habs. Not to mention, their good play puts pressure on other young players to play their best (see Carey Price and Max Pacioretty for examples). So why is there any urgency to trade these guys?
