Let Samsonov go ?

[johnnyhasbeen]

Here is what I am thinking, when Higgins and Begin are back go with

Higgins Koivu Ryder

Lats Plek Kov

Perez Bonk Johnson

Lapierre Begin Streit

Downey Murray

Komo Markov

Souray Rivet

Cube Dandy

Ninimaa

Do you think someone like Chicago or Pheonix will give us a 2nd round pick for Samsonov? Then next time we have an injury we bring up another young gun and work him in. Samii B) was a good pickup and we would have been weaker starting the year without him. Nothing against him, but if a rookie is ready to go I say let him. We have lots of them to break in, No time like now. He was a UFA signing and if we get a pick for him and his help so far this year it is a great deal for us.

On the other side of the coin. I believe that come playoffs we would be very happy to have him on our side. He is a game breaker.

[JMMR]

Samsonov will not be traded, Bob brought him here for a reason and said he would not expect big things from him until after the halfway point.

Samsonov has been working hard and has looked great the last two games.

Chicago signed Bondra so they no longer have any use for Sammy.

PHX is as good as out of the playoff race already why would they want to add cap.

[gohabsgo252006]

I would rather deal Ryder than Sammy.

Ryder has been awful offers little in terms of anything but scoring. While Sammy has struggled he still has the ability to take over a game (see tuesday vs. bruins) and he is still extremely fast. I think his struggles have been the result of his line while Ryder's struggles have been despite the awesomeness of his line.

When HIggins was in the lineup theline looked great even though Ryder did nothing, without Higgy, Ryder hasn't scored despite 2 -3 primo scoring chances per game.

I've had enough of him, I would put him on the fourth line but I don't think he works hard enough. He certainly has the equivalent of 4th line puck handling skills.

[Mont Royale]

I would rather deal Ryder than Sammy.

Ryder has been awful offers little in terms of anything but scoring.

Actually Ryder has improved his all-around game significantly this year, and still contributes offensively despite struggling to score at times.

[Chris]

Plus Ryder is the ONLY habs player that consistantly gets scoring chances. Other forwards are invisible alot of the time. So as Mont Royale points out, Ryder is a much more complete player and does play hard every night.

As for Samsonov, he plays hard most nights and shifts. He just hasn't found his spot yet. Once Higgins comes back i think you'll see Carbo start to shake some lines up to get more production.

[habs_in_the_blood]

Here is what I am thinking, when Higgins and Begin are back go with

Higgins Koivu Ryder

Lats Plek Kov

Perez Bonk Johnson

Lapierre Begin Streit

Downey Murray

Komo Markov

Souray Rivet

Cube Dandy

Ninimaa

i would put Lapierre in center, hes right handed and

Begin rather play on the wing

[Easy Ryder]

I was wishing Samsonov could play good two games in a row and create a streak in order to make a good traid bait half season.

We're stuck with him...

And for Ryder yes he missed a zillion chance tos bury it this year but he still goes in the crease and try hard, can't blame a guy for that.

[BTH]

Alas, no. Samsonov can not be moved. It wouldn't make any sense, first of all. We all whined about our offence last year. Bob told us he'd get some offensive help on the UFA market. He got a pretty big name in Samsonov. He's began playing well recently. And now trade him? By mid-season we'd all be whining about our offence again.

Another thing is that Bob doesn't like admitting that he was wrong. When he brings in a player he hangs on to him until he eventually becomes a valuable part of the team (see Bonk, for instance).

Plus, I don't think a 2nd rounder is enough for Samsonov. If Roloson managed to cost a 1st then Samsonov can get us that as well. Or if we're really so intent on trading him, I imagine he can get us a solid second pairing defenceman.

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

Not a fan of 'dumping' players, myself. Occasionally it makes sense in a cap system. But Samsonov is a proven NHLer and has great wheels. (Just like Bonk was a proven NHLer, albeit not one with great wheels). When players like that struggle, it's better to ask WHY and, if you have a plausible answer, ride it out, rather than hit the panic button. It's not like we're performing poorly with him in the lineup. That's the luxury of having a good team - you can have patience with struggling players.

[lazy26]

i would put Lapierre in center, hes right handed and

Begin rather play on the wing

I agree. Begin is better utilised as a winger, mostly because he dishes out the big hits. If he does that playing center, he gets out of position and provides scoring chances for the other team.

[beliveau1]

People need to have patience when it comes to athletes - something few it seems really have?

It's a damn good thing the average fan isn't a manager, or the NHL office would be swamped with ridiculous player movement of all forms....

Besides, people here are already grumbling about how hard it seems to be to lure players to Montreal during the Free Agent bonanza every summer - imagine what it would be like next year if Gainey were to up and unload one of the few he signed just a few months after doing so?

And just because some of the fans are all so impatient & disgruntled...

[huzer]

Another thing is that Bob doesn't like admitting that he was wrong. When he brings in a player he hangs on to him until he eventually becomes a valuable part of the team (see Bonk, for instance).

Um, Audette in Dallas was a Gainey signing who was gone before the quarter mark in the season.

Regardless, I don't see any reason to move Samsonov. He's played well, just can't find the net.

[Dirty Harry]

I dont care what samsonov's point per game ratio is, he is an exciting playmaker who is incredibly entertaining to watch and it is a joy to see a guy in the CH with speed & moves skate circles around the opposition's d after so many years of watching cement handed stiffs. He creates chances and the goals will come, maybe it is a bit of a slump, or maybe he is just lacking a complimentry linemate (a finisher like ryder or higgins perhaps?) but the guys who are saying we should've kept Ribero over Samsonov cuz Ribs has 8 more points through 30 games are nuts, probably the same type who said Gainey was dumb to give Koivu a good long term deal last season. Samsonov is great and thrill to view.

[BTH]

Um, Audette in Dallas was a Gainey signing who was gone before the quarter mark in the season.

Audette was already over the hill at that time though. No reason to give up on Samsanov so quickly though as he's in his prime and has just been having trouble adjusting.

Anyway, that's an exception. Most of our team was brought in by Gainey and most of those guys were bashed at some point. Most people still want many of them gone. Kovalev, Bonk, Samsonov, Niinimaa, Aebischer, Murray, Streit... many fans would have unloaded these guys a long time ago.

[Pierre the Great]

I like Samsonov. He's an asset we must keep.

Guys come on look at the standings! WE ARE DOING GREAT!!!

[dark_faerie87]

I like Samsonov. He's an asset we must keep.

Guys come on look at the standings! WE ARE DOING GREAT!!!

So do I. Especially because in his younger days he looked like Leo DiCaprio!

[geolink]

Ill answer no.

and ill leave the reasonings to the cool people of this forum.

[InsaneHABSfan]

Wow, tough crowd. Get rid of Kovalev, get rid of Ryder, get rid of Samsonov.

Whats Up With That????

The team has to stay together to see what they can do this year. Next year there will be changes as guys will not get new contracts so this is not the time to panic. The entire league is starting to show the salary cap woes which means on some nights, teams will look horrible.

Montreal penalty killing is outstanding, Power play doing great and team speed is excellent. Like them for who they are and what they are doing. They are playing better than most other tems so I have to give them an "A" for their efforts.