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Halak traded to the St. Louis Blues


Easy Ryder

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WOW :blink::blink::blink:

I am blown away. Absolutely stunned.

Gauthier has balls. That much is abundantly clear. He simply does not give a sh*t what the fans think - definitely a virtue in a GM, but whoo boy, he's putting himself on the line with this one.

This move makes lots of cap sense. As others have said, this frees up $$$ to sign Pleks or a replacement for Pleks; or else a decent W, which this team desperately needs.

It also makes some sense in hockey terms, inasmuch as the Habs' system is weak. In one swoop we've added a substantial, possibly-NHL-ready forward with some jam and what looks to be a less talented, but definitely tough-assed young forward. This is a major infusion to our system at F. It's a classic act to deal from an area of strength in order to address and area of weakness. Having said that, if neither of these guys cracks the top-6 next year, Gauthier has just hurt our team in the short-term.

This would *seem* to be confirmation of a hypothesis I floated early this season, i.e., that the UFA frenzy last year was the platform for a stealth rebuild. But if Ellis makes an impact next season, this trade will be more than that.

That's the good news. Like others, though, I am worried about Price, who has NOT responded well to the challenges the Habs have given him so far. Now they're giving him another one, putting him in a make-or-break position. Obviously we need to sign a Raycroft-type to bring some kind of stability to the nets should Price and the guy from Hamilton stumble.

I think Gauthier is gambling that the team can play better D in front of Price now that it has a season of chemistry under its belt. But this raises the next question: given the now-absolute imperative of protecting Price from destruction, are we forced to keep Hamrlik at least until Markov returns? If so, does that *really* represent an improvement of our cap situation? Food for thought.

Again...colour me stunned.

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no one was going to trade players like Carter or Girioux for a RA goalie who had one good year in the nhl...would u trade Antti Niemi for Cammalleri or Subban....lol i didnt think so...U guys are over pricing halak worth to other gms....

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If we moved hammer we could have Carter and pleks. The only positive with this deal is that we don't have to face Halak 6 times a year or in the playoffs. But I still hate it. I would rather have let both goalies battle it out o

until next January or next years trade deadline.

Carter-Plekanec-Gomez down the middle and no D? I couldn't see that happening.

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WOW :blink::blink::blink:

I am blown away. Absolutely stunned.

Gauthier has balls. That much is abundantly clear. He simply does not give a sh*t what the fans think - definitely a virtue in a GM, but whoo boy, he's putting himself on the line with this one.

This move makes lots of cap sense. As others have said, this frees up $$$ to sign Pleks or a replacement for Pleks; or else a decent W, which this team desperately needs.

It also makes some sense in hockey terms, inasmuch as the Habs' system is weak. In one swoop we've added a substantial, possibly-NHL-ready forward with some jam and what looks to be a less talented, but definitely tough-assed young forward. This is a major infusion to our system at F. It's a classic act to deal from an area of strength in order to address and area of weakness. Having said that, if neither of these guys cracks the top-6 next year, Gauthier has just hurt our team in the short-term.

This would *seem* to be confirmation of a hypothesis I floated early this season, i.e., that the UFA frenzy last year was the platform for a stealth rebuild. But if Ellis makes an impact next season, this trade will be more than that.

That's the good news. Like others, though, I am worried about Price, who has NOT responded well to the challenges the Habs have given him so far. Now they're giving him another one, putting him in a make-or-break position. Obviously we need to sign a Raycroft-type to bring some kind of stability to the nets should Price and the guy from Hamilton stumble.

I think Gauthier is gambling that the team can play better D in front of Price now that it has a season of chemistry under its belt. But this raises the next question: given the now-absolute imperative of protecting Price from destruction, are we forced to keep Hamrlik at least until Markov returns? If so, does that *really* represent an improvement of our cap situation? Food for thought.

Again...colour me stunned.

Raycroft type backup? Please NO!

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Listening to Gauthier's conference call, it seems clear that

1. The longer term was absolutely a key calculation here. He said that again and again. This was definitely a deal to boost our system, while taking a calculated gamble that Ellis in particular can help next season. (You know, Ellis was a 13th-overall pick who had a promising first pro season; it's worth underlining that that represents a MAJOR infusion to the system at F. We should be reasonably excited about that given our desperate need for quality top-6 talent, and quality at C in particular).

2. Price was the organization's guy all along. They regard his resumé to date as very impressive and believe he is the guy for the future. Expect him to be #1 and the Habs to sign a quality 'complement' as a UFA - Gauthier said this explicitly.

3. Gawky looks aside, Gauthier is the alpha male - unflappable, refusing to be interrupted by reporters, forming his own assessment of player value without bothering with agents, etc.. That's only significant because it suggests that he has what it takes mentally to be a GM in Montreal. Also quite articulate.

4. In projecting Ellis as a #2 C, is he tacitly preparing for the loss of Pleks? I doubt that that's Plan A, but listening to that conference call, you could definitely get that impression. Hmmm....

5. The cap was a key consideration, of course. He compared Ellis to guys on Chicago, a cheap quality young gun who can give us a few seasons with minimal cap hit. Clearly he has faith in this guy as a key part of the core going forward. But does that come back to point 4, the possible 'redundancy' of Plekanec in a cap system? That if we're gonna win, it's going to be with cheap youth supplementing Gionta, Gomer, etc.? We shall see.

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Listening to Gauthier's conference call, it seems clear that

1. The longer term was absolutely a key calculation here. He said that again and again. This was definitely a deal to boost our system, while taking a calculated gamble that Ellis in particular can help next season. (You know, Ellis was a 13th-overall pick who had a promising first pro season; it's worth underlining that that represents a MAJOR infusion to the system at F. We should be reasonably excited about that given our desperate need for quality top-6 talent, and quality at C in particular).

2. Price was the organization's guy all along. They regard his resumé to date as very impressive and believe he is the guy for the future. Expect him to be #1 and the Habs to sign a quality 'complement' as a UFA - Gauthier said this explicitly.

3. Gawky looks aside, Gauthier is the alpha male - unflappable, refusing to be interrupted by reporters, forming his own assessment of player value without bothering with agents, etc.. That's only significant because it suggests that he has what it takes mentally to be a GM in Montreal. Also quite articulate.

4. In projecting Ellis as a #2 C, is he tacitly preparing for the loss of Pleks? I doubt that that's Plan A, but listening to that conference call, you could definitely get that impression. Hmmm....

5. The cap was a key consideration, of course. He compared Ellis to guys on Chicago, a cheap quality young gun who can give us a few seasons with minimal cap hit. Clearly he has faith in this guy as a key part of the core going forward. But does that come back to point 4, the possible 'redundancy' of Plekanec in a cap system? That if we're gonna win, it's going to be with cheap youth supplementing Gionta, Gomer, etc.? We shall see.

Psst... it's "Eller" ;)

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Psst... it's "Eller" ;)

I am just relieved that Gauthier is a guy who doesn't listen to media/fans and that he understands the value of young cheap players and that he makes decisions based on a whole body of work, not 10-12 months.

He kept things in perspective and made a strong/controversial decision and removed the emotion.

You can't be a good GM without the ability to swim against the stream.

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NO NO NO NO NO....and just in case you disregarded the previous 5.....NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

Buy out Hamrlik!!! and as somebody previously mentioned the logical move would have been to resign price first then see where Halak stands...

Unless this sets up some sort of blockbuster trade, I do not like the logic behind this more for various reasons

1) Halak proved himself on an NHL/International/Playoff stage

2) I'd like to know the names of some prospects the Habs have gotten in previous trades that ever panned out to be something? (minus Gorges..he is a blessing)

3) I could have mistaken Gauthier the GM of the Bulldogs instead of the Habs... is he setting the Dogs up for a Calder Cup run next year :wacko:

4) This is one of those trades that can only be analyzed after 82 games are played next season..but I think St. Louis won

5) Inevitably, somebody who is NHL experienced would have been a much better return (Backes or Perron+pick)

6) there's still TWO weeks before Halak hit the market..the closer the Canadiens got to July 1st, the more they would have been likely to return

I wish Halak all the best in St. Louis, he really was a franchise player and never turned his back on the Habs with partying shenanigans (unlike some players); worked his butt off from training camp right through to game 5 of the eastern semifinals, and stole the spotlight rightfully so. If this isn't a wake up call to Carey, nothing ever will be. A move of this magnitude is make or break. I firmly believe the Canadiens got the shorter end of the stick on this one. jmo, but I think it's a pretty valid one.

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I am just relieved that Gauthier is a guy who doesn't listen to media/fans and that he understands the value of young cheap players and that he makes decisions based on a whole body of work, not 10-12 months.

He kept things in perspective and made a strong/controversial decision and removed the emotion.

You can't be a good GM without the ability to swim against the stream.

Meanwhile, someone just posted that Halak is a 'franchise player' :rolleyes:

I agree 100% with your post here, Wamsley. Gauthier showed that he has the right character to GM the Habs. Now he'd better be right about the players acquired and dealt.

It's funny how this goes. If Eller had developed within OUR system, all the fans would have canonized him long ago as a sure-fire star (and would probably have been saying silly things like 'let Pleks walk, we've got Eller!!' for some time now). As it is, everyone is in hysterics. Incidentally, as recently as January Halak was apparently worth only a 2nd-round pick. Five months later, he brings an excellent top-6 prospect and a valuable depth prospect back. Say what you want, but looked at objectively - factoring in not JUST one stretch drive/playoff, but the careers and overall profiles of all the players involved - this represents a terrific bit of asset management. Whether it works out is another question, natch :wacko:

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The goaltending market dictated this trade I think. I personally feel this is the deepest goalie market in years, with Nabokov, Theodore, Turco, Mason, Emery (if healthy), and Biron all veteran goalies that have been starters before. Right now, there's only a handful of teams looking for #1 goalies so in that sense, Gauthier dealt from a position of weakness. That said, it was also a strength in that whichever goalie got dealt was a young goalie, controllable for a few more seasons. With so many other potential options out there, I'm not sure the expectations of a top-6 forward and 1st round pick as a return were realistic like some had hoped.

I was giddy as soon as I saw Eller as part of the deal. As I noted in the writeup of the trade, he was on the AHL's All-Rookie team (with Subban), having 1/3 of the top AHL rookies can only mean good things for the organization moving forward. He may not be a top-6 forward this year in a perfect world, but he should easily be one in a year or two. Personally, I think this deal may wind up sealing Plekanec's fate out of Montreal, contrary to what Gauthier may say.

If Montreal is as high on Eller as they seem to be, they can use him as leverage, "We have a young C who could step in as early as next season in your spot." May not be the best leverage, but it's better than thrusting Maxwell in that statement instead. Eller will be a an impact player soon, it's only a matter of when. I think the Habs may now be focusing on improving the wing, the market (although still weak) is deeper there than up front.

I'm impressed with what I read/hear about Schultz, he's the type of tough forward the Habs seem to value high - he can and will fight, but he can also play a bit. He's not a heavyweight by definition, but collective toughness seems to rule the day. With him, Conboy, and White all in the system now, there's some actual grit for the first time in a while.

Long story short, couple the market with the off ice issues (such as the early season trade request and the headcase agent), this is a fairly good move. If Eller can make the team, he's a pretty cheap NHL forward and that's a good thing.

Also, for those upset that Hamrlik wasn't bought out, he still can be; the deadline's not for another week and a bit.

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Now that the blues have a Halak does anyone else think Chris Mason would be a pretty good option as a backup? Hes in the twilight of his career so no controversy (age 34), yet he still had a .913% and a 2.53 GAA last year. It was good enough to earn him the starting job for Canada at the worlds, so I think he has a little left in the tank.

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I still don't get why people act like Halak had a couple hot months while Price has years of results...

So far, I see Price as blowing the playoffs in his first year (I blame that on trading the vet goalie at the deadline and dumping it all on Price), then he sucked in the 2nd half last year and the playoffs. This year he was inconsistent with confidence problems and lost his job to Halak despite being given every single opportunity imaginable to stay as number one.

All Halak has done is be a consistently good to great goalie...

In any case, I knew they were going to keep Price, but I still think the timing of this is wrong and the way they treated Halak is not worthy of the Habs. They should have talked to both goalie's agents and seen what was on the table. Its called respect.

As for Pleks, I suspect he will be the player over paid who doesn't live up to his contract. I just hope its not with us. We can't afford a long term contract to him when we already have Gomez.

I have no idea who they get to backup Price, but I bet they won't get anyone worthy of challenging him for the job. Hopefully if they get a vet, its one who has a similar style of play to Price.

PS.. won't be surprised if they were offered more for Price or Halak, but from an eastern conference team. If he really had balls, he would trade him to Philly! .... LOL

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I still don't get why people act like Halak had a couple hot months while Price has years of results...

So far, I see Price as blowing the playoffs in his first year (I blame that on trading the vet goalie at the deadline and dumping it all on Price), then he sucked in the 2nd half last year and the playoffs. This year he was inconsistent with confidence problems and lost his job to Halak despite being given every single opportunity imaginable to stay as number one.

All Halak has done is be a consistently good to great goalie...

In any case, I knew they were going to keep Price, but I still think the timing of this is wrong and the way they treated Halak is not worthy of the Habs. They should have talked to both goalie's agents and seen what was on the table. Its called respect.

As for Pleks, I suspect he will be the player over paid who doesn't live up to his contract. I just hope its not with us. We can't afford a long term contract to him when we already have Gomez.

I have no idea who they get to backup Price, but I bet they won't get anyone worthy of challenging him for the job. Hopefully if they get a vet, its one who has a similar style of play to Price.

PS.. won't be surprised if they were offered more for Price or Halak, but from an eastern conference team. If he really had balls, he would trade him to Philly! .... LOL

Halak was a cap decision. Price = cheap, Halak = 4 million plus. Flash in the pan or legitimate #1, time will tell.

Plex at this point = a no win situation. We should have traded him at the deadline (IMO).

I bet Biron is the backup. Vet with the ability to talk to the media.

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Halak was a cap decision. Price = cheap, Halak = 4 million plus. Flash in the pan or legitimate #1, time will tell.

Plex at this point = a no win situation. We should have traded him at the deadline (IMO).

I bet Biron is the backup. Vet with the ability to talk to the media.

Barring a Bulldog taking the backup job, I'd put my money on Biron, Niittymaki or *shudders* Lalime.

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Biron, Nittymaki, or Ellis (CC may get his wish, lol) look like the best backup options in my books. Ellis probably costs the most, but still under $2m.

Eller is a good pickup. Remember in November, when Halak was offered to Philly, Gainey warned fans not to think much was coming back, and the consensus was some kind of project or a 2nd rounder. He upped his worth significantly to get two prospects back, one of whom is basically blue-chip.

Plekanec should still be kept. The playoffs have told us that you need not just 2, but THREE good centremen in your lineup, all of whom could score, and at least two of whom can play defence. Moore is a nice defensive centre, but he's not an offensive threat. Our third line in the playoffs needs to be one of four options, not one of three. Look at Philly: Richards, Carter, Giroux, Betts. We can offer up: Gomez, Plekanec, Eller, Moore/Lapierre.

You need great depth at forward and D who can move the puck on every pairing. We aren't there yet (we don't know how much Eller can contribute for the next two years) so let's not short change ourselves up front.

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Biron, Nittymaki, or Ellis (CC may get his wish, lol) look like the best backup options in my books. Ellis probably costs the most, but still under $2m.

Eller is a good pickup. Remember in November, when Halak was offered to Philly, Gainey warned fans not to think much was coming back, and the consensus was some kind of project or a 2nd rounder. He upped his worth significantly to get two prospects back, one of whom is basically blue-chip.

Plekanec should still be kept. The playoffs have told us that you need not just 2, but THREE good centremen in your lineup, all of whom could score, and at least two of whom can play defence. Moore is a nice defensive centre, but he's not an offensive threat. Our third line in the playoffs needs to be one of four options, not one of three. Look at Philly: Richards, Carter, Giroux, Betts. We can offer up: Gomez, Plekanec, Eller, Moore/Lapierre.

Absolutely. We can't hope to move forward unless Pleks returns, or we somehow nail Marleau. I thought about Ellis too, but he might command too high of a price tag. I'd be ok with Biron or Niitty.

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I've wrote a piece on the main page discussing the multitude of free agent options out there. I can't remember the last time I saw double digit decent backups out there all at the same time. This should clearly work to the Habs' benefit, hopefully they can get a decent G while saving a few bucks at the same time.

http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=2081

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I've wrote a piece on the main page discussing the multitude of free agent options out there. I can't remember the last time I saw double digit decent backups out there all at the same time. This should clearly work to the Habs' benefit, hopefully they can get a decent G while saving a few bucks at the same time.

http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=2081

Good article, Brian!

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Good article, Brian!

Ya, thanks Brian.

I don't know what to think about the trade, but I'd be very surprised if PG didn't know very well what he's getting , what he's giving up for how much and what otherwise might have happened. Eller certainly looks interesting.

Thanks beaucoup to Halak for the wonderful end of season he brought to us who love the Habs. Bonne voyage et merci. :clap::clap:

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I've wrote a piece on the main page discussing the multitude of free agent options out there. I can't remember the last time I saw double digit decent backups out there all at the same time. This should clearly work to the Habs' benefit, hopefully they can get a decent G while saving a few bucks at the same time.

http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=2081

That is indeed a terrific article. :clap: Biron, Ellis, and Mason all strike me as solid options, especially the first and third as they can play a lot of games if needed. (Theodore is a really interesting idea, but do we really want that circus?) When you look at the projected cap hits and the respectable quality and quantity of credible backups/#1A guys out there, you realize the cap-managment wisdom of choosing to move the likely-to-be-more-expensive Halak. A Price/Mason-or-Biron platoon should give good results.

At first glance you think it should be Biron, if only to take some heat off for the Halak deal. But then you stop to think - hold on, if Price hits a rough patch, can you imagine the media howls for French Superstar Biron to take over the reins as #1, and the concomitant bile spewed Price's way? (It'd be even worse with Theo).

Might be better to avoid all that and go with stolidly anglo Mason, probably the best of these choices off the top of my head.

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