huzer

I read posts and feel like we're talking about the early 2000s version of the Habs. I still think (I'm loathe to bring it up) the 76-6 trade was not about "win now". That's why I didn't buy into the hype last season that the Habs were in win-now at all costs mode. Should they be? Sure, but I still don't think that the addition via subtraction trade was a move made to be an impactful roster move. Moving on... I loved Radulov. I don't think this is where Bergevin screwed the pooch. If you believe that adding Weber MEANT that management was win-now, then letting Radulov and Markov walk goes against this expectations. I think Radu simply fished for the best financial situation for himself, and playing with higher quality top liners doesn't hurt, either. Markov stings. I thought he'd be back. Salary cap. Not much out there, eh? It doesn't seem like there's much on the scrap heap to add to the roster. What I hope doesn't happen is some form of Galchenyuk/Duchene (insert whatever other pieces) to end up with a 1-2 of Drouin/Duchene, and a 1-2 RW of Gallagher-Hemsky. I'm guessing from the comments that Chucky is slated for a top 6 RW role. Maybe Sakic is looking to bring in Chucky for a reunion with Yakupov. Ha. I'm thinking the team is set on top 9 LW with Patches/Lehkonen/Byron. I could see Bergevin hanging his hat on Scherbak making the team in training camp and trading Chucky because of it, thinking that Scherbak+Duchene is better than Chucky. Sigh. Just spitballin' here. All in all, nothing exciting to report. The Habs have cap space, nothing readily available to fill it with, had clunky negotiations with two of their own FAs, acquired Drouin, and kicked Chucky again before the season by saying he'll never be a center, just as they did last year. If I'm Chucky, I'm nearly as annoyed about the yearly beat down about not being good enough as a C as Duchene would be in CO about, well, I dunno how mgmt kicks him every year, other than dangling him for trade bait. Overall, they've gone sidewise on offense with no real improvement there and backwards on D, while hoping that young bottom 6 and lower tier D make the roster. Wee. Yet somehow, I'm still excited for the season.

As a funny coincidence, my birthday was on Saturday. My wife got me a set of 4 Habs pint glasses, coasters that were made out of a puck, and a bottle opener made from a chunk of a hockey stick shaft. Hmm, it's past quitting time for me, I work from home...might as walk out to the garage fridge and grab a beer.

I'll play...the current beer in my fridge is: Corona (my wife likes to go between Corona and Modelo Especial) Oskar Blues - Mamas Lil Yella Pils Dry Dock - Apricot Ale (another of my wife's favorites) Deschutes - Mirror Pond Ale Denver Beer Co - Graham Cracker Porter New Belgium - Citradelic Exotic Lime Ale Bud Light - Brother in law's beer from last Thanksgiving I like to rotate through lots of different beers. The Citradelic (and the Tangerine IPA) were both good hot weather summer beers. I'm not a huge fan of the Apricot Ale, or most fruity beers, although there are exceptions, of course. During the summer, I keep the beers lighter, once winter hits, I tend to go darker. The exception being hockey, which I tend to stick with the Mamas as my "go to" easy drinking staple. I should try and rotate that a little bit more. Maybe I'll do the "build your own six pack" type of thing this season, and buy local brews from the teams the Habs are playing. I will admit to over indulging on Ex when I was in Brossard this summer. Can't get it here, and it's one of those nostalgic things for me.

Agreed on Hemsky. Despite the low price tag, he wasn't signed to be a 4th liner. I think at minimum, he'll be a 3rd liner with Plex/Danault centering him. I think he was a 12-13 minute forward in Dallas when he wasn't hurt, which to me would spell a third line role if his usage is similar under Julien. At least as a third liner, he has the ability to spot fill on the 1/2 lines if needed.

Next time we go back east, I can see doing a hockey camp at Clarkson, a D1 NCAA school. They do hockey camps as well, and it's about 5 minutes from my camp in NY. Even if it's a bit more than other camps, being on the water in NY is nice, and we won't have any hotel costs. The camps in CO aren't too bad cost wise, but after the exchange rate when we paid for it, I was just surprised that a camp with an NHL team was cheaper than one with his regular old coaches, especially since they give the kids a , Habs workout gear, Habs jersey and socks. I have to agree on season costs. Even at the 8u (mite) level, we'll be at probably $1,500 or so this year, not including gear. They're limited to no more than 24 games/season by the state. He'll be on the ice 4 times/week. Ice time is anywhere from 1-1.5 hours. Once he hits squirts next year, I'm pretty sure we'll jump over the $2k mark.

The pessimistic way to view this would be to ask, which team out there has an over 30, now overpaid C (not named Plekanec) that the scouts view as a top line C. Boom! Just kidding, hopefully.

So that means you've spent almost half your life on this site, launched in '03! Interesting enough, this site is definitely the internet site I've visited the most consistently over the past 14 years. So, about that 17-18 lineup!

As I said, I can see the reason why neither was re-signed, and I'm not as up-in-arms about it as others. It just seemed to me that the team didn't do much to improve, more lateral movements. Drouin/Alzner/Schlemko are hopefully upgrades on Radulov/Emelin/Beaulieu. We don't have a replacement for Markov. Streit is not that person and hopefully is not going to be asked to be. I don't pretend to be all knowing and get into the hypothetical debates of what Bergevin should have done, or that he was x dollars away from signing someone. Speaking for me personally, it seems the chairs on the deck have been moved around, but that's about it. I know the off season isn't over, hopefully additional moves can be made to shore up at last one of the roster holes that remain. I only commented that letting Markov/Radulov walk seems to go against what some folks perceive to be win-now mode.

Not that I'm thrilled with Bergevin's body of work, but that's from a fan survey. Based on message board opinions, I'm surprised Bergevin is ranked that highly. Just giving my own 2 cents, the lack of foresight is what's most surprising to me. I get not extending Markov or Radulov. (I'm not thrilled with it, but I can understand it). It seems, however, contradictory to the Subban/Weber trade. It's also surprising that the pieces Bergevin added thus far this summer should have been enhancements to the roster. If the Habs added Drouin and Alzner, while keeping Radulov and Markov, I'd be a bit happier. It appears, although I'm sure it's not the case, that Bergevin gets target fixated and can't multitask and each move is made in isolation of other moves. At least he took a picture with my kid a couple of weeks ago. Ha.

Fun fact, he played hockey in the same hockey association where my son is currently playing. Pretty sure he's the only NHLer to come out of Hyland Hills (Westminster, CO).

Damn, I would've taken Markov back for 1 year.

Remember when Plex got a two year extension for AAV of $6M, only to see a precipitous decline in year 1 of that extension? Maybe Bergevin is a bit gun shy at extending offers to older players? Could he have possibly learned?

Fun times. We ended up staying near the rink, at Alt DIX30. My son had fun at the camp. Took pictures with Mccarron and Plex. Simon Bourque and Mcniven were on the ice with them almost every day, too. Bouillon also was on the ice with them a couple of hours one day. His "big" picture was with Bergevin in his office. All in all, it was a good experience and priced decently, considering what camps cost here. I'd say my proud papa moment was when he came out for his first game, and they had put an A on his jersey. Pretty cool. Kinda neat seeing him line up with Mccarron too. While he was on the younger end of the spectrum, I'd say his skating was on par with other kids in his group. The USDM really focuses on skating at 8u/mite level. It's obvious the Canadian kids work much more with the puck.

It appears it's difficult to separate the exuberance Radulov showed on the ice from his desire to play for the Canadiens. I really liked him as a player last year, and he was entertaining, to say the least. A player has the right as a free agent to choose where he wants to go. He chose Dallas. By all accounts, Bergevin made a reasonable offer to Radulov. It's important to remember that point. He wasn't lowballed, and the term wasn't unreasonable either. I don't care about the rumors as to how it supposedly played out. A reasonable offer from Montreal was not accepted. It's time to move on. Given the Habs lack of scoring, Bergevin now needs to replace that offense some how with the available cap space. If I'm forced to judge the roster now, meh, it's hopefully a work in progress.

Wow seeing it right there, it's the Great Russian Exodus. Don't forget Emelin, too! Don Cherry for GM!