Colin

Can't wait for our farm team to continue to suck and be almost completely incapable of developing talent.

Good riddance Beaulieu. I think that's a pretty good return for what he's become.

This is only a win if it brings the Cup, at least presuming Sergachev becomes the stud he's expected to become. If we don't get a Cup, Subban and Sergachev are Bergevin's legacy and the reason he's fired. I don't like that Drouin's acquisition seems to equate to Chucky's departure, because that feels like one step forward (in the present) and one step back. We need 1-2 high end centres and now at least 1 more top-4 D to be Cup competitive. If we move Chucky, i don't think we're any better. Maybe worse since Sergachev was projected to play. Im really on the fence here. If we aren't hoisting and parading soon, this could be a devastating trade.

Draisaitl and the 4th would be where I'd start. There would have to be something else in line for defence, because ours would not be playoff caliber without PK. Also, if we trade him because of Therrien, that's about the most embarrassing thing imaginable. That could send me to being a fan of another team. That would be the ultimate as bush league. Edit: Shattenkirk would be reasonable enough to make this interesting. MB would have to know he could make the deal with Shattenkirk signed before pulling the trigger on dealing PK. My son just said McDavid. I'd be good with that. Lol Second edit: maybe ignore Shattenkirk as I hear Klefbom could come over if we toss in the 9th. Fascinating.

Not a rumour, but Lucic is going UFA. Let's get Emelin to talk to him about joining..

Are they increasing roster sizes to, say, 50 to accommodate all the injuries from the compressed schedule?

Would Chucky have had that ppg had he played for, oh, any other coach in the NHL who would have identified his talent much sooner and played him far more than the Desharnais etc of the league?

Danny Gallivan. I win. *drops mic* (And yes: dead. But I'd still rather listen to him and Irvin any day.)

Lucic ain't coming here.

Sergent Pepper taught the band to play?

Shake the face of the team, Laraque? Enough to save MT? Trade Plexiglass and sign Backes and Okposo (and whatever wiggling needed to stay under the cap). With Captain Kirk, that's a Cup guarantee. Or as close as you can get barring injury.

Guy Lafleur has indicated a French speaking coach is not required. Only a guy who gets the best out of his players. Why does current management not see this truism? Fire Therrien, hire Cucumber and let's win some games.

I find it interesting that a lot of the discussion is about what Therrien is. And by that, it seems that he is what he is from beginning to end. What saddens me is that there's no talk about what seems to have changed. Not unlike, say, Galchenyuk adapting and improving his game, I see Therrien doing things somewhat differently, adapting and learning and modifying to stay current with the game. For instance, when was the last time he left lines together for 60 minutes - whether he was winning or losing - let alone 420 minutes and change. I think there has to be some credit given to the man for adapting his game to the new reality of his bench. The team are *not* relying on Price as much as they did. Sure, Price has probably stolen a game or two, but Montreal has been legitimately better than the opposition most of the time so far. That in itself is a large improvement on last year and a drastic one on two years back, particularly since the Olympics when Price became Super Price. Sure, you can argue all you want about Price, about the growing maturity of the players in front of him, about the decisions management has made and the players provided. But the players are showing a different game than they have at any point under Therrien. I would argue they're showing a different game than Pittsburgh did during their halcyon years under Therrien. The Habs are playing a more complete game. I would argue they're well-coached, and are not just a semi-talented team that's riding Price. The structure of their game is more defined at both ends of the rink. They take the game to the opposition in the third rather than praying that Price will win a point when they have a slim lead. For me, it seems Therrien has evolved to be a better coach. As much as Chucky has improved his game, so too has the bench boss. And I think the Habs are reflecting their coach's improvements.

From TSN: Blues coach Ken Hitchcock had high praise for Montreal, especially Mitchell's checking line. "This is the best checking team we've played against," he said. "They use their fourth line to check our top players. "They did a hell of a job. This is a well coached, disciplined, play-the-game-the-right-way team. They're going to be a bear all year for everyone." ~~ Has Therrien morphed into one of the best coaches in hockey, have the Habs just matured to a point where they out-play their coaching, some mix of the two? Something else? Discuss.

The best stats can give you is a guide. I'll grant that. But taken out of context - which they always are? Pointless.