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We need your A game tonight buddy. Habs can’t afford a win…

"My son weighs about 25 pounds and I struggled to hold him in my arms for more than a minute without discomfort," he said Tuesday morning during a lengthy interview with La Presse. Despite a "daily routine" that allows him to cope with pain, sitting or standing for a long time is now painful. Air travel, therefore, is "difficult". "I got to a point where I couldn't go on," he says. "I spoke with the medical staff of what my life after hockey could look like if I didn't stop. There was a lot of doubt about how it would affect me in the long run. When we started talking about it, it became real. Life is long after the end of a career."

Keep in mind any comparison is a stylistic comparison, not a talent one.... so just cause someone is compared to Aho doesn't mean that the point totals is what we are comparing. He's a centre IMO. Yes, I see him in the NHL in 25-26, but I wouldn't say regardless of who takes him. Every team has different philosophies on what they do for development, but I'd think barring injury and lost development time in 2024-25, he'd be in the NHL by then. Some teams might even put him in the NHL 2024-25. What are people missing? I think he has almost no weaknesses. He does everything you need a player to do at an above average level, while still being elite in a few areas

Arizona should celebrate with winning their last two games 🎉

WHY in the world would the Habs want to "ice their best lineup"? Wins only have the potential to worsen their draft position. Hutson is getting at least one game because that burns a year of his ELC ... THAT and getting some $$$ in his pocket immediately is why he signed now ... there was always the "possibility" of his waiting and ultimately deciding to play another NCAA season. Struble is with the Habs because they only have 7 healthy defencemen and one of them could be injured/get sick before the game roster is submitted. @dlbalr made it clear that Baby Xhekaj is playing because Stephens can't, not to "give him a game". So, not the management screw-up you seem to so often hope for.

As much as it pains me to see another year of rebuilding hockey, it's been way overdue in Monbtreal. It's been about 20 years of just ok teams, that may or may not make the playoffs, but had no real shot at a cup. The shots they did have, nobody really saw coming. For the sake of 10-15 years of high quality hockey as the prospect, I'm happy they're staying committed to the full rebuild.

That's good since Molson made it clear the other day he will not grant Gorton permission to talk to other teams.

Mailloux has a new number. I hope he scores and looks good in a losing effort.

And may be the smallest Hab d-man. Another fun game with lots of positives. Hutson 23:32; Mailloux 21:11 Matheson 27:32 5 shots, nice finish and I saw he recently said he knows his defense is an area for him to work on. Be nice to see him paired with a bonafide top pairing RHer at some point.

Players hiding injuries is something no training/medical staff can prevent and it means they can't protect the players.

I think it's just a case of alternating the goalies like they have been doing and it's Primeau's turn.

For me, I have a copy of the CBA and the MOU extension on my computer. I rarely go more than a couple of weeks without needing to consult it for something whether it's for something here or on PHR so some of the obscure stuff sticks after a while. And as most here know, I'm a bit of a cap guy so I have some odd facts on that front in my head.

Some unknown rookie supposedly playing tonight. More details when available.

What's particularly interesting is that Tuch got a one-way AHL deal. Usually it's ATO/PTO deals at this time of year. I assume that lets them pay him more, offsetting some of the foregone money by not signing an ELC that starts this season.

Hoping the Habs pair Mailloux with Hutson. They can score four goals and let in six, it would be perfect. Yes I know it’s not happening

Right now it's fun. Going forward he has some things to work on and might need to start in the AHL next year.

Nice to see Gallagher score, maybe he will get a hatty tonight. Just awesome! Why draft 5th when you have a chance at 7th? Don't mind me, just rambling, I don't expect the players to quit. Actually 14 goals is not a terrible year for Gallagher, still obviously vastly overpaid but he is out there working.

Yes. But PK will be needed in in 2025-26 as well. Possibly after that, too. 🙂 My point really is that players like Evans and Armia do have value beyond their point production. And that we'll need some capable PK players as well. We'll see what Hughes decides to do in this regard.

The emergence of 1. Slaf (by a bullet) 2. Suzuki as a legitimate #1C 3. Newhook as a speedy, dangerous 2nd line type 4. Primeau are really the good news stories of this season. They're kind of 2024's equivalent to last season's realization that we had legit young players on D. And 5. the second-half surge by Caufield offers some reassurance that maybe his shoulder surgery really did deflate his production, such that he is closer to a 40-goal guy than a 30-goal guy. (Not that there's anything wrong with being a 30-goal guy, but safe to say most of us harboured hopes that he might be an elite goal scorer. That hope remains credible, and next season will tell the tale). You know me, though - I'm a fretful sort. One thing that worries me a bit about all this is that much of the good news has occurred during "garbage time," with the Habs safely out of the playoffs and all pressure off. The Galchenyuk precedent reminds us to be cautious about reading too much into second-half surges by young players on terrible teams. I think, though, that our hopes in these five factors are well-founded.

Breaking the rules here but no GDT so here it is. Seriously, we need to lose this one

Andersson and Heineman score in the 3rd as Laval takes it 5-1. https://theahl.com/stats/game-summary/1026269 Laval is now two points behind Belleville. The Sens have a game in hand still but Laval has the tiebreaker.

Yup ... and just because he is evil doesn't mean he isn't sometimes right.

Have been thinking about what the Habs' D corps could look like for the next two years. Not the cup contender version, but the transitional team that should start competing for a playoff position. So, this is what I have on a (somewhat?) factual basis: Matheson has scored 60 points this season, no mean feat on a team that only has 224 goals, and does not look like he's slowing down Savard does look like he's starting to slow down Guhle is solid and reliable 1LD/2LD, now with some flexibility to play on the right as well Harris flexible on left/right, though better on the left Kovacevic is not stellar but quite reliable on the right Neither Reinbacher or Mailloux likely ready for NHL for another season or two Hutson is a wild card. He's only 20 and seasoning in the AHL would make sense but he'll surely be a target there Then we have Xhekaj/Struble and Barron I'm thinking that Matheson likely stays with the Habs, unless another GM is willing to pay a king's ransom to get him. For all his defensive warts, he is in the top 10 in D scoring in the league, and that's elite D scoring. Maybe pair him with Kovacevic for stability and balance? Our help on the right is a few years away, so does Hughes keep Savard? I suspect not, so that would mean that Harris and Barron need to be the other two RD, unless Reinbacher is stunningly good in training camp. I think very unlikely that they would bring him up at 19yo. So, need a defensive partner for Barron, and a more offensive one for Harris. Is that Guhle-Barron and Xhekaj/Struble-Harris? Or is Hutson really a viable option here? I would think not yet. Of course, if Hughes trades one of the young(ish) D, all this calculus will need to be redone. 🙂

Or the 2021 Habs!

It's funny how this goes. For some time, I've been excited about what I've heard about Hutson. He seems like a 'Quinn Hughes A' type, not a franchise player like Hughes but potentially a truly elite offensive defenceman. Now that he is on the Habs, my optimism immediately shriveled into anxiety: "What if he disappoints? What if he's overwhelmed?" Etc. Fan neurosis brought about by too many disappointing prospects over the years, I suppose.

It is sacrilegious but it's all about the greater good right now. Lose in regulation tonight, lose in regulation to Detroit on Monday, then they can win their final home game of the year. A perfect ending. Of course perfect endings rarely happen.

As sacrilegious as rooting for Ottawa sounds that’s is exactly what we all should be doing tonight.

I think Mailloux needs a bit more work on his defensive game. He's only spent one year in Laval and this is a guy who basically missed two full years of Junior Hockey due to Covid, his arrest and suspension, and then his shoulder injury. He hasn't made that up yet.

I don't expect 2 games by Lane will have any impact on Cole's draft positioning ... I also don't expect Lane to get anything more than a "dipping a toe in the shallow end" in terms of TOI these two games.

Maybe we should break the mould and play 3 defensemen and 2 forwards.

I’m looking forward to seeing if his game translates to the NHL. Not expecting to have that question answered over two games but it’s a start

I would like to see Pezzetta play 25 minutes on Saturday and give him a shot on the blueline.