The Chicoutimi Cucumber
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Posts posted by The Chicoutimi Cucumber
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Incidentally, I don't think the Penguins like us much. If a team, like a man, is judged by its enemies (Boston, Pittsburgh) we're doing OK
I think a lot of these elite teams feel they 'should' be stomping us. When they regularly fail to do that, it seems to gall them. Poor babies.
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No question, the refs awarded this game to the Penguins through that bizarre refusal to blow the whistle. Just a total blown play by the ref.
It happens. At least we got the point.
Price made his discontent pretty clear: throwing his stick in the ref's direction, then raising his arms in disgust at the ref as he marched off the ice. I wonder if he'll be fined?
Price was really making a statement this game, I thought. A shame it had to end like that.
EDIT: looking at that hit again on You Tube, Patches deserves to get suspended.It's shoulder to chin all the way. Whether Patches 'intended' it or not, whether or not he is a 'dirty' player, all of that is BS. Do the crime, do the time.
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It's nights like this that you start to think that if you put Desharnais between two big, skilled forwards, you've got yourself a really handy NHL centreman.
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One thing that keeps fans pessimistic is that they only get surface knowledge of how other fanbases are feeling. I encourage people to skim through other teams's boards on HFboards and read the panic and negativity on them. You'd never guess how many teams you envy have half their fans calling for the head coach to get fired. Surely, not two thirds of the NHL's teams can be in desperate situations at the same time. What's more likely is that hockey fans are just fickle and emotional. I've noticed the general tone on this board shift dramatically after each game, depending on if its a win or a loss.
What exactly are "eyeteeth" ???
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/eyetooth
One reason why I'm generally less negative and hostile toward JM and the team in general than some, is that I live in Vancouver, which means that I have the dubious privilege of following debates in Canucksland. Well, guess what. Every time this team - by any account a major NHL power and Cup contender - struggles in any way, we hear endless fan ranting about
-a coach who stubbornly insists on mixing and matching his lines
-a coach who imposes a boring defensive system
-a coach who can't develop young players (Cody Hodgkins)
-an organization that throws away young talent (Grabner) and wastes money on big fat UFA contracts (Ballard)
-a management group that is just GLARINGLY stupid in failing to recognize the need for team toughness
-a goalie (Luongo) who OBVIOUSLY should be shipped out of town in favour of unproven youngster Schneider
-a team that should be 'blown up' because it lost in Game 7 of the Finals
-and, until the last two seasons, steady bitching about 'the Sedin Sisters' who were 'playoff flops' and would never amount to anything
You start to realize that, as BTH says, every passionate fan base has superhuman expecations of its players, coaches, and management; and you realize that no matter WHO we brought in here, it would not be enough for the fans, unless we win the Cup - and even that will only buy everyone maybe one year's grace.
So ya gotta step back from all the hysteria and try to come to an independent and results-based assessment of things. With JM, for instance, it is impossible to quarrel with his results up to this point. As for the other stuff, bring another coach in and a new set of complaints would emerge (or, in the case of line juggling and player development, the same old complaints). The team is .666 since the big slump; this suggests we shouldn't fly off the handle every time we lose a game. Cammy is struggling now, but he is a proven clutch player; things will only improve when Markov gets back; etc.
The grass always looks greener. But in fact our own little patch might be pretty good.
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We're .666 since The Slump, gang. Let's keep some perspective here.
We're in tough tonight against what might be the best team in hockey. The secret will not be offence but rather to play the kind of hermetic defensive game we know we can, and then to get opportunistic scoring. I'd feel better about our prospects for the latter if Gomez were healthy and playing the way he was before he pulled his groin, and if Cammy were not in a sustained stupor. But we can win this thing if we bring our A game.
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I don't care if we're boring. That's what they said about Pat Burns's teams and I bet any one of us would give our eyeteeth to have those teams back.
Certainly it's harder to see these guys as 'contenders' after this rocky first quarter. Going in, I thought that with Markov back and Campoli adding high-quality depth to the D, with a strong 4th line C added in Blair Betts, with Gomez conceivably recovering his form, with the continued progression of the Holy Trinity (Price, Subban MaxPac), and with the key addition of Cole, we had a team that could go deep. That assessment was based, not so much through an examination of the team on paper, as an awareness of how strong the team had been in the previous two playoffs without MaxPac, Cole, and Markov. This group has always been more than the sum of its parts when the games really matter. Add three excellent players to that and in principle we should be major players come crunch time, whatever the experts say.
It may still be true. brobin's post above is interesting, though. Other than Markov, it's true that our currently injured guys aren't really core pieces. Yet the team is bobbing along at .500. What to make of this? One argument might be that the team is middling, period. Another is that team chemistry has been adversely affected by the endless round of injuries. Myself, I would say that the PP has been the secret of our struggles this season and that Markov's return will ramify hugely for the PP. You could look at that and say, therefore, that once he rounds into form we will start really doing damage. So the optimist can still take a glass-half-full approach.
Nonetheless, there is a certain point at which two players in particular - Cammalleri and Gomez - just do have to start producing (and if not Gomez, then either Eller or DD, not that it's fair to demand this of Eller at this stage of his career). MaxPac, Cole, Gionta, and Pleks have all pulled their weight. Cammy has been letting down the side and Gomer has been AWOL due more to injury than will, it seems.
A wishy-washy post, I suppose. But I'm still not quite ready to conclude that this group cannot contend if healthy.
EDIT: note also that we're 9-6 since the catastrophic early-season slump. That's a .666 winning per centage despite injuries and personal slumps. Let's keep that in mind.
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In some threads, there's talk of logjam at centre...in this one, there's talk of adding a centre.
This illustrates the difference between quantity and quality.
I don't think you need to officially designate the Baked Alaskan's 'replacement.' Just rotate Eller and Desharnais in the role, depending on who has the hot hand. And yes, Eller should get first dibs since he more clearly projects to be a top-6 forward.
Incidentally, I guess I'm the only one who thinks it a shame that Gomez got hurt when he did. I know he played poorly against the Canes, but he had looked like dynamite the previous 3-4 games. A productive Gomez would be a massive asset to this team. Too bad.
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I could see bringing Leblanc up for 1-2 games. It's not infreequent to see a talented young kid come up and make an impact because he's so out-of-his-mind excited to be there. That dissipates after a game or two when he is exposed as way overmatched; but my point is you might be able to get a great game or two out of him despite his lack of readiness.
Doubt it'll happen, though - the Habs are far too sensible for such a freewheeling approach to things. -
You noticed that we won the game, right?
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Yeah, we should be realistic about Markov. The guy has hardly played in two years. He's mortal; he wil need to be eased in, and it wouldn't surprise me if it takes long enough for him to round into form that fans will start griping about his being 'damaged goods' and 'washed up' - which of course will lead immediately to the usual strident demands for the firing of Martin and Gauthier and cries for the team to Tank and get a high pick. Indeed, I expect the Habs to struggle for a few games upon his return, because that's a frequent scenario when a star player comes back.
And then, after several games of struggles and hysteria, the Markov Machine will gradually begin firing on all cylanders and the Habs will suddenly start looking better. The fire-them-now crowd will grow more subdued...until we suffer our next batch cataclysmic injuries, or until we are eliminated in the playoffs, in which case even a loss in the Finals will be taken as resounding proof of JM's or the organization's utter incompetence.
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Exactly my thinking with Gomez, looking at their cap situation... and the fact they have the internal budget. They are one of the few teams who might take on Gomez. The fact that Gomez's salary is much lower than his cap hit over the next two seasons could help the Avs artificially hit the cap floor.
So Gomez would absolutely be part of the package.
Now that said, Gomez has little to no actual "trade value" so while he's part of the package that makes the salaries work, he's a small part. Now its finding the other pieces that actually make hockey sense to the Avs. And I don't see guys like Spacek or AK who are UFAs making sense to them. I think you need to include a defenceman (either a Tinordi or a Weber, depending if they want offence or D) plus a prospect like Dany Kristo plus a 1st rounder.
Like I always say - if we trade for a #1 C, it's gonna hurt.
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On another note... I've found the centre we should do everything in our power to go after.
Team dropping down the standings.
Rumours he's disgruntled there.
Huge contract thats probably not working on their internal cap and he's currently the number 2 guy on his own team, with a number 3 nipping at his heels.
Frequent trade partner of the Habs.
Paul Stastny.
Now what would you give up for him?
I'm a bit uneasy about his 57 points last season followed by pathetic totals this year. But these kinds of struggles may simply be artificially deflating his value, which works for us; and assuming he's not damaged goods, damn, he'd make a sweet 1-2 punch with Pleks.
Yet I really, really, really don't want to move MaxPac or Subban, and obviously Price is untouchable - but you KNOW one of the first two is the Avs' asking price. I would certainly be willing to move Kostitsyn + (Weber, picks, whatever) to get a 26-year-old player who until last season was a point-per-game centreman with adequate size.
Great observation, Commandant.
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It was an ECHL goalie who played against Pittsburgh
Sure, and if had played against us, all the talk would be about 'running into a hot goalie'
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Campoli is a bit of a wild card, isn't he? He's had stretches as a significant contributor and other stretches as a mediocre depth defenceman. High-profile giveaway notwithstanding, he was major element of the Hawks' blueline down the stretch and into the playoffs and is only 27 - conceivably only now rounding into his mature game. Clearly the Habs' brass thinks enough of him that they were counting on him to bolster the PP and tide us over until Markov's return. My feeling is that, assuming he comes back at 100%, there will be times this year and into the playoffs (if we make 'em) where we will be very glad to have him. That's not to say he'll be top-4 or even dress every night, necessarily.
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Unbelievable. What a beast the Kid is.
I love watching great players be great players. For all the Sid-hating that goes on (irrationally, to my mind) it is simply terrific for the game to have its best player back.
Still expect him to tail off and go through a cold spell after 3-4 games, though.
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A nice problem to have: too many talented players to fill the roster.
Don't worry, there'll be five other injuries before that happens
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Thomas is a great goalie, but I am not sure he was that good tonight. I give a lot of credit to his defense. The guys in front of him made a lot of small plays that made the difference between a great opportunity and a not so good one. Also, I believe that our shooters are too nervous. This team doesn't play with a lot of confidence. The good news is that it can change. Victories will do that. Let's AK46 and Markov come back in the line-up and we will see if the Bruins will look as good. Be patient guys. It's coming along...
I don't believe Thomas is a great goalie. He is an acrobatic pretty good goalie behind a devastating defence. Put any solid goalie in those nets and he will look lights out.
Confidence with scoring chances has been an issue for this team all year. But it's nowhere near as bad as it was during that horrendous 6-game losing streak. Let the walking wounded return, let Cammy find his game, and like I say, we're gonna win a lot of these close games - especially if Gomez continues to remember how to be Gomez. We remain .500 with a grotesquely inexperienced defence corps and that's damned good, frankly.
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I'm with Commandant, the PP has shown signs of real life. And Gomez is FINALLY rounding into form. Now's not the time to cut his ice.
Also, Boston has a death-vice of a penalty kill. Just as the Canucks, who lost the Cup because of it. It would be an overraction to blow up the PP because of this.
It's disappointing but there's no cause for rancour. The team played very well. This is the model with which we have a chance to win. If we can get our injured bodies back and keep playing this same way, we'll win these close ones rather than lose 'em.
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Fabulous news for hockey.
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Just ignore Bergeron. That's nationalist prattle, not analysis.
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Uh, just to be clear, the scenario I had in mind was one where, first, we had a tangible upgrade on Gomez available (e.g., Carter) and where there were absolutely no takers for Gomez's contract under any other circumstances. I'm not saying we should go and blow 3.5 mil off the cap just for the hell of it.
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All Gomez needs to do is become a $4M player. He will never be the $7M guy, but if he can earn half his pay, he won't be any worse then buying him out and will be an asset to the team.
Absolutely, I never claimed that Gomez was worth his salary - just that, up until last season, he was a good, exciting playmaker. If he gets back to simply being Scott Gomez that is HUGE for this team. I'm almost afraid to get my hopes up about it, but it's really an exciting possibility.
Ironically, the ridiculous injuries may actually be helping the team in one specific sense: the players are desperate and buying into the team system 100%. Crucially, the team is being rewarded: shown that this is how we can win even against long odds. If this adversity helps the team to coalesce into that NJ Devils-style total team play, which has been JM's vision all along, it'll yield only benefits in the longer run.
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Great win! Under arduous circumstances. A real team effort.
And kudos to Gomez, who played a terrific game. It's the first time in so long that he seemed to be having fun out there. I sure hope he can build on this to become the player he's capable of being.
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Wow, that play setting up Cammy was vintage Gomez - the good Gomez. THAT'S what we need so much more of. If he could just find that touch again, what a difference it'd make to this team...
Pittsburgh vs Montreal, Nov. 26, 7 PM EST
in Habs & Hockey Talk
Posted
I can't find it in me to criticize Plekanec. He's been heart and soul all season, game in and game out, for three years now. He's entitled to a dog of a game every once in a blue moon. Cammy is another story though. I like Cammy a lot, but the way he played tonight was totally unacceptable IMHO. A piece of crap. Maybe he's playing hurt. But something ain't right.
As for whether Patches 'tried' to get out of the way, I don't think you can let these fine judgements start creeping in if you want to get headshots out of the game. I'm not making excuses for the kid any more than I made excuses for Chara.
Habsy, both Penguins goals were rightly disallowed. One was batted in by hand, the other by knocking the goalie over after he'd made the save. All that proves is that the Pens had two scoring chances which they failed to convert.