Leaderboard

Okay, enough is enough. Clearly, the light approach isn't working as it continues to escalate on both sides. Alfredo, why you continue to poke the bear makes no sense. All you're doing is asking for trouble and making the mods' lives harder. Give it up. Put him on ignore, or don't engage. I don't care what you choose, I just care that it ends now. Commandant, while I realize you have been provoked (quite a bit), your response also clearly isn't acceptable, just as the provocation on the other end wasn't either. I barely have time to be on here and I'd like what little time I have to spend actually discussing the Habs, you know, the purpose of this forum. Like many on here (as we're receiving feedback with complaints about both of you), I'm fed up with this as I'm sure you guys are as well. We tried the polite way and hoped that this could be a squabble that cooler heads would eventually prevail but that's not happening. I have no interest in getting into the behind the scenes discussions of proportional suspensions that will only stall the problem and again, I also don't have the time. So while you are both valuable posters here, this is a final warning. If this continues, from either of you, it's not going to be a suspension but a more permanent departure from the board. It's not the outcome I want for sure, nor admittedly is it fair; this is more heavy-handed than I want. But this can't continue to be a drag on the forum and one way or the other, it needs to stop and this is the most direct way to do that.

Been to more than my share of games here in Boston. As much as I wholeheartedly dislike the bruins I equally respect the team and their history as well. Treat them with respect and they will return the favor. (Having my kid with me helps too)

With the season set to start soon, it feels like a good time to remind everyone of the terms of use of the board as we do from time to time. If everyone can abide by these, that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance! HabsWorld Forum's simple rules for success The Montreal Canadiens franchise is one of the most respected organizations in sports. Its legacy and renown reaches people from many countries around the world. HabsWorld was created with this in mind, to create a website where fans from all around the world could come and meet, and express their passion for their cherished team. The HabsWorld Community Project was created in 2002, and its first message board opened on May 12, 2003. The main website was launched a couple months later, on October 6. The Project was started from scratch and was built by an enthusiastic team of Habs Fans. Over the years, nearly 100 Habs Fans have contributed articles, translations, drawing, programming, designing and more to this Community. HabsWorld is an occasion for fans to use their skills in various area while showing their passion for their favourite team. Here are the simple guidelines that help make HabsWorld a harmonious Forum: Rules Have fun! We're here to have fun and talk hockey, not to fight with each other. Respect your fellow members. Personal attacks and flaming will not be tolerated. No racism. Especially in a world-wide community such as this, racism of any kind will not be tolerated. Keep language within reason. We employ a filter to help deal with this. Members who attempt to circumvent the word filter will have their account locked for 1 day or more, depending on the recidivism. No sexual content or links. No sexually suggestive or sexually oriented image/content will be accepted. This is a hockey forum, not a models or porn site. No spamming. Do not post links to BS websites or repeatedly post links to your own site. Quality before Quantity. Don't pad your post count with irrelevant messages or repeating the same messages over and over again. One account per user. Violation of this rule will result in a permanent ban. Posting tips Other basic guidelines can be found here. These are just general posting tips that will only get you in trouble if you repeatedly don't follow them. Rules and guidelines might be edited as required. HW Admins reserve the right to delete/edit your account/posts at any time. When it comes to enforcing the rules, our mods team tries to be as fair as possible. Minor violations can result in warnings and brief suspensions. More serious violations or repeated violations can result in longer suspensions or permanent bans. We don't like having to do that kind of stuff, so please don't make us. Thank you for your cooperation and have fun!

Guys… this has all dragged on too long (the little bout between @Commandantand @WildTurkeyXX) I respect the fact you both have strong opinions and are willing to defend them. But this whole thing is childish, this is a forum to talk hockey not berade each other for character in which neither of you truly learned any of the others. Please drop it so this forum can stay pure hockey. 👍 &nbsp

We fleeced them... badly.

You think that’s bad ass.. Get a load of this! Security came up to me right before the game and asked if they could “borrow” my kid.

my kid..(and me next to him)

Next season is a stronger draft, but I reiterate if we keep getting good, young talent for picks I’m happy for them to be dealt. I think HuGo have demonstrated that they are looking long term to build a sustainable contender. If they were trading picks for older players I would not be happy unless we were a serious threat to win the Cup

It doesn’t matter how you rank them. Montreal simply has too many draft picks and prospects not to use them in the strategic way that they did in this draft. We need to keep in mind that there is a 50 contract limit. From getting Dobson for Heineman and two picks to giving up picks to get the player they were targeting, HuGo ran a masterclass on leveraging picks and areas of strength to make the team stronger. You say you hope they don’t continue to trade picks. I hope that they do as long as the trades continue to be measured, strategic and bringing back excellent value. Picks are not the end goal. Using picks to build a Stanley Cup contender is the goal and picks and prospects need not always be retained to achieve it.

I expect pretty close, maybe only one zero less!

From Pierre Lebrun's athletic column today Habs GM Kent Hughes is leaving no stone unturned in surveying the forward market and trying to line up potential trade scenarios for this week and perhaps into the summer. The search for a No. 2 center might be too hard this offseason, so a compromise might be a top-six winger with pop. Some of those calls Hughes is making are in that direction. Montreal, armed with the No. 16 and No. 17 picks Friday night, is trying to find a partner who would be interested in a picks/prospects package. But the Canadiens aren’t going to force it. If the price to attain a top-six difference maker is out of their comfort zone and hurts their long-term planning, they’re willing to stay patient, whether that means an in-season trade or even next summer. The No. 1 priority, as Basu wrote, is to become a long-term contender that takes multiple swings at a title over time. The priority is absolutely not about making sure they make a short-term swing just to make the playoffs again next year. The longer-term view wins out.

One of the potentially greatest outcome would be him winning a cup in Montreal!! Not only would we get our 25th cup, but imagine the angst and outrage in Toronto of seeing Tavares win in Montreal - they would be furious at Toronto management and ownership!!

Draisaitl is one of the most clutch players in the NHL. The counter argument seems to be that no one is clutch but only great. From that standpoint, it’s easy to dismiss every statement in regards to him because in reality he is a great player. With that being said, one can be a great player and clutch at the same time. The conversation seems to have taken a specific route into the definition of clutch relating to how someone performs in the regular season versus the playoffs but it’s more than that. It’s the mental state of how someone performs when there are key moments within a specific game. In one sense, all 60 minutes are equally important. In the other sense, there’s the shift where the game is on the line for both teams. There are plenty of good and skillful players who one wouldn’t necessarily want out in those moments. On the other hand, there are also less skillful players who one would want out on the ice because they seem to perform in those moments. To me, it’s not purely about a statistic but more-so a mindset. Because that mindset is not necessarily quantifiable, it’s easy to dismiss that it exists. There are plenty of players who suffer from mental health issues in professional sports, so it’s a lazy argument to state that the world has weeded out the mentally weak once it comes to professional sports and not true because once again, there are many different variables that make up a professional player. One may have the skill but not the mental ability to perform under pressure. One may have skill but lack the tactical and strategic defensive mindset of a clutch player on defense. There’s no one definition of what a clutch player is, but they do definitely exist. In terms of who is clutch, I could see how that is debatable. Here is a list of players who scored important goals this year. “Game ending goals”, “late game winning goals”, “game winning goals”, “late game tying goals”, “game tying goals” were some of the criteria used in determining who was clutch when it came to scoring important goals for their team this year. Are they all great players? Sure. Are players like Wilson, Rossi, Boldy, or even Nick Suzuki top 10 players in the league when it comes to “greatness”? Possibly? Swinging back to Draisaitl. He is at the top of the list. He is a great player but so is McDavid who doesn’t appear. The next player on the list was Marner, and that’s where the debate surrounding what clutch means comes into play because some argue that players like Marner cannot elevate their game in the playoffs, however it turns out that he scored important goals for his team this year, and he also scored an important overtime goal for Canada in the 4 nations cup. McDavid also scored the game winning goal for Canada at the 4 nations vs USA but is he clutch, or was being surrounded by other great players beneficial to both players discussed in this paragraph? I do believe there could be some variance when it comes to clutch related statistics and that it can be a somewhat difficult thing to measure. With that being said, I do believe it exists in sport and denying it is like saying not a single player feels pressure prior to the game. Yes, even professionals feel pressure and while some thrive off of it, others can be impacted. Just off the top of my head, Hellebuyck is an example that comes to mind in the reverse sense of being clutch and handling pressure. Anyway, like you said it’s a topic that has been beaten to death but it all stems from one’s perception of what clutch even means. If it’s based off of a specific mindset, then it exists. There are simply toooooo many circumstances where clutch can be used to deny that it fully exists. Clutch can be elevating your game when the games are more important (playoffs, game 7, etc.). It can be a player who seemingly makes key defensive plays when the game is on the line. It can even be a player who raises their game when the going gets tough, period. While all NHL players are professional athletes, not every single one of them has a growth mindset. A player with a fixed mindset, will think things like “I can’t” whereas a player with a growth mindset will believe “they can”. I already know that the rebuttal will be that all professional athletes have a growth mindset and that’s why they are professionals but considering my profession is being an athlete turned coach, I can say with 100% certainty that it isn’t the case. Most are, but some got where they are with pure skill rather than that elite mindset. If these negative thoughts creep into a professional’s mind, and they do, then the reverse is possible as well.

That's easier to say now with hindsight but at the time, Primeau had a 2.00 GAA and a .932 SV% in 70 NCAA games with many suggesting that there wasn't much benefit sending him back to school to play a 35-game season against weaker competition, similar to the argument of why the Habs needed to sign Fowler this year as there wasn't much left to prove. A goalie turning pro at 20 is normal if he was drafted out of the CHL so was turning Primeau pro at 20 really rushing him?

He handled the question with some class, I would take Tom Wilson on my team any day of the week.

1. If you’re going to disregard the rule book for an admittedly egregious error, then you have to find some fairness. Laine should have been able to shoot again. I would expect there to be significant discussion, if Montreal misses the playoffs, about compensation for how this went down. I could see an extra pick sent our way. 2. I’m stunned by all the bitching by fans about MSL and the players and what we should have done, could have done etc etc. Go back to late November and ask yourself how you would have felt seeing this team fighting for the playoffs in the last games of the season. The *only* reason we’re here is MSL and his coaching and enabling of the players both on and off the ice. This team is, what, the second youngest in the league? We’ve done, by far, the best rebuild of any team I’ve seen recently. Three years from garbage to a team that’s on the cusp of great things. Stop whining and enjoy the ride!

What I don’t get is the implication that contempt for Putin and Trump, and disgust for these players who kiss their asses, is somehow controversial. This isn’t like Carney vs Poilievre. Putin is a murderous dictator who has caused untold death and suffering through a completely unjustified war of aggression. Trump is wreaking huge damage on Canada with idiotic tariffs and repeatedly threatening our very existence as a sovereign state. I can’t fathom why it would be controversial to call out these a**holes and their supporters on this board. That being said, I didn’t mean to make a big thing out of this. I’ve made my point and won’t keep banging on about it.

Looking forward to this game. Will be there with my son. We have seats in the lower bowl, 1st row just to the right of the home side. So we will be on the Habs attack zone for two periods. First chance to see Hutson live. Hopefully he will get a 2-3 point game and the first line racks up some points. Will be pulling out my Habs away jersey that I haven’t worn in a long time Mitchell & Ness vintage 1992-93 season, Patrick Roy all star jersey, with the Roy “the wink” socks! My son will be wearing a Price jersey.

Trade deadline is the saddest day of the year for some hockey players. They learn that their childhood dream of winning the Stanley Cup is delayed another year when TSN announces that they have been traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The fans didn't boo the players. They booed the anthem of a country that is waging economic war on us and threatening to annex us.

I miss both of these guys and the triple low fives too

My dad got some tickets via his job (he does guided tours at the Bell Centre as a retirement job) for the Sweden vs Finland game on Saturday. 106, CC (3rd row from the board), for free. Insane tickets !!!

Game was ok. They desperately needed to score on that PP with 10 min to go in the 3rd. Stuck in traffic so I can’t write much bur holy shit does Slaf look lost and disinterested. Here are two of the coolest moments of the day..

F$&k it. I’m making the 2hr drive to watch Lane. Worth every mile.

as per dlbalr "At first glance, it appears as if Lindstrom could fill the role we suggested for him back in July when assessing the rest of the UFA market for defencemen, that of a veteran blueliner to help Laval while being someone they can comfortably bring up as a seventh defender so as to not have a younger player serving as a healthy scratch."

Agree, but I'm totally happy with his decision to pound the living snot out of that bum. And I say this thinking the hit probably was unintentional. There *is* a deterrent effect to knowing that if you go after our stars, Xhekaj is coming for you. And that message was definitely sent last night.

Commandant isn’t being condescending or rude to you at all. Commandant is an intelligent, passionate poster that challenges other people’s opinions with reasonable arguments. Commandant deals heavily in facts and data and will challenge anyone that doesn’t. I don’t always agree with him and I have been challenged by him. I have never once felt attacked or talked down to by him and I don’t think he is doing that to you either. Keep sharing your opinions Butter as you have already generated lots of discussion, just don’t take things personally.

Could EVERYONE please just walk-away and stop discussing who said what about who, or about what, concerning this ... please

Kudos to MSL! I was deeply skeptical about this hiring given his complete lack of experience, but fortunately he has proved me wrong and beaten the odds - which is what he’s done his whole life. I should have known better than to bet against MSL!

The SKA contract ends on 31 May, so Demidov could arrive in time to help the Habs take on the Jets in the Final. 😊

In succession of Mr. CC’s valiant run as GDT host, I come to you with peace and victories in mind. The Habs have a tough opponent ahead and have yet to bring victories to the table while in a playoff spot late in this season. Tomorrow brings an opportunity where this could all change. Next Matchup Colorado Avalanche @ Montreal Canadiens - Saturday, March 22nd - 7:00PM EST (19h) - Centre Bell Montreal Canadiens Caufield - Suzuki - Slafkovský Roy - Newhook - Laine Anderson - Dvorak - Gallagher Heineman - Evans - Armia Hutson - Struble Matheson - Carrier Xhekaj - Savard Montembeault Dobeš Colorado Avalanche Drouin - Mackinnon - Nichushkin Lehkonen - Nelson - Necas Kiviranta - Coyle - Colton Kelly - Drury - O’Connor Toews - Makar Lindgren - Malinski Middleton - Johnson Wedgewood Blackwood Storyline Saturday’s matchup brings some familiar faces back to the Bell Centre in Artturi Lehkonen and Jonathan Drouin. Both players have seemingly carved out a niche of their own in Colorado and have been contributors for the team. Outside of the newcomers to the team, in Necas and Nelson, as well as Rantanen, who was traded away, Lehkonen finds himself only behind Mackinnon and Makar in scoring. Drouin has had some injuries this season but is similarly only behind Mackinnon, Makar, Necas and Nichushkin in points per game on the team, with 32 points in 37 games (or .86 points per game). To put this into perspective, only Caufield and Suzuki have a better points per game on the Habs (.90 and 1.04 points per game respectively). With Drouin and Mackinnon having a long history together, this comes as no surprise. Ironically, both Drouin and Lehkonen have won championships with Mackinnon. Drouin with the Halifax Mooseheads in junior: Lehkonen with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022: On Montreal’s side of things, Alex Newhook will look to defeat his former championship winning team. Despite criticism of the second line, Newhook has been playing extremely well as of late, utilizing his speed to obtain high quality chances which have lacked a combination of luck as well as execution. Still, if he keeps up his play he will be rewarded soon. This matchup against his former team may just be the moment. The starting goalies are a little up in the air for both teams. On Montreal’s end, there is a valid argument for both goaltenders to start. Montembeault is the guy right now, but he has played 3 consecutive games, and Montreal has not gone with a goalie 4 games in a row in this calendar year, and likely even longer than that. Dobeš on the other hand rarely gets home starts and has only played one Saturday home game this year, a 4-3 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils in late January. With that being said, Dobeš’ second career win was this year against Colorado, a 2-1 shootout victory where Dobeš stopped 22 out of 23 shots and left the game with a .957 save percentage. Mackenzie Blackwood is the starter in Colorado but Wedgewood has taken over the reigns as of late and performed well. Colorado’s starting goalie for Saturday is a bit up in the air as well. Both teams enter the game as two of the hottest teams in the league since the 4 Nations Cup. The Habs are 6-1-3 in their last 10 and haven’t lost in regulation in 2 weeks since their 1-0 loss to Calgary on Saturday, March 8th. Colorado is 8-1-1 in their last 10. They are playing their final game of a 3 game eastern Canada swing where they lost 2-1 to the Leafs but smashed the Senators 5-1 on Thursday. Let’s hope they got their goals out of the way last game. Finally, the Habs play their first game against a Rantanen-less Colorado Avalanche. Instead, we face them with Necas, who has been playing very well for them with 19 points in 21 games. Previous Meeting: January 4th, 2025: Montreal 2 - 1 Colorado (SO)

First ever Habs vs Leafs game live… And on a Saturday night 🤌

Tonight I attended my first game in Montreal since Michael Ryder scored against us in April of the 2011 playoffs, winning the game for Boston (coincidentally) 5-4 in overtime, and tying the series 2-2 after they hadn’t led all game. We lost the series and Boston won the cup. After suffering through losses every game I attended for years in Los Angeles and Anaheim in the 2010s, it was nice to finally be there for a win. The Habs came out strong and then were a little quiet for a long stretch. With that being said, they didn’t play extremely poorly outside of a 1-2 minute stretch where Vancouver potted 2 quickly. There weren’t any passengers out there. Everyone has bought in. There is something that feels different and while nothing is written in stone, we can only hope the Habs can keep it up. Guhle was physical out there, and Hutson and Matheson are an extremely mobile pair. Struble laid the body as well. Caufield was good, Anderson used his speed and our fourth line was solid. Dach is indeed getting there. Gally has no speed but still has heart and can find success around the net. Suzuki with the snipe in overtime 🚨.

I think someone here said watch for the team to master the hybrid defensive system in late December/early January and the defence to look much better.

“We aren’t top tier contenders” - That has simply been a true statement almost every year since 1993 ... even in our one Finals run we couldn't have been described as "top tier contenders" ... that was a classic "make the playoffs and anything can happen (occasionally) scenario ”We are in a rebuild that will take 3 years” - this is really the first time the habs have been in a rebuild since 1993 ... most they ever did previously was bandage, at most re-tool ... but 3 years is an estimate from the quasi-realistic fans who know what is needed but lack the patience for it to come to fruition ... I-M-O that fits the major on-the-fly re-tool category. ”We are a bubble team at best” - see "top tier contenders" ”Tank for Frank” - those are people asking for a rebuild, we finally got one ... no guarantee of success, but the last 30 years have pretty much been the "make the playoffs and anything can happen" approach ... how is that any better ”Trade our veteran for a 3rd rounder” - nobody ever asked for a GOOD veteran that could realistically make the team even a legitimate contender to be traded, let alone for a 3rd rounder While “We aren’t ready to contend for a cup yet” can become a fixed mindset (may the case in Buffalo tanks to their poor hirings and constant turnover at GM/HC) in the context of the current rebuild I-M-O it is simply an honest assessment of the team.

I would be surprised if Barron is a Canadien next season. Just my unscientific gut feeling

Laine gonna score

Primeau is not going to get claimed right now. Send him down and call up Hughes.

I"m reminded of a conversation I overheard one day at a youth hockey game. (Full disclosure, my son is a ref.) A woman in her 70s was commenting to a coach/director of an association about the horrible officiating after a game. The director looked at her and calmly asked if she could skate. She said no. He asked if she had ever been a ref. She said, of course not, I can't even skate. He then said, well then, you don't have any right to tell any official or player how to do their job. It's harder than it looks out there. I will say that I used to be hard on refs until my son started reffing. Yes there are still obvious missed calls, but it's a heck of a job. It infuriates me to go to a game and hear a crowd start booing the refs during warmups. Anyway, hope the Habs can string together a few more strong performances. Sounds like this one was a step in the right direction.

In a way, this is a test of organizational sang-froid. You made a change. The team is struggling to adapt to it. If you truly believe that this is the way the team will need to play when it’s time to win, then NOW is the time to go through those growing pains. The last thing we want is to have our Cup window opening, then regress because we flipped the system. But the other consideration is: what if the adaptation struggles lead to a cascading sense of negativity and a loss of confidence among the young players who keep failing at it? Does that then grind against your wider organizational goals of player development? And there is a third factor. MSL seems very good at working with individual players, but what if he is just not very good at communicating/teaching systems? In this case, have you made the right decision, but left in place the wrong guy to execute it? Hard to sort all this out. But I would say, 14 games is maybe not enough. The Oil went back to their earlier system because they were in an absolute win-now crisis. That ain’t us. Bare minimum, I think the Habs and MSL need to do a better job of communicating that adjusting to the new system is a ‘process’ and that there will continue to be growing pains for a while yet. Get ahead of the fan/media narrative that the sky is falling. Really, they should have been emphasizing this from day one, rather than saying we were going to ‘be in the mix.’

Why be rude, he is 100% correct and you know it. Anyways, i like Brian's take on Wilson. 10 Thoughts: More Defensive Struggles in Washington – HabsWorld.net 2b) While we’re on the subject, count me in the category of those who think Wilson still would have hit him had Xhekaj been in the lineup. Tom Wilson hits people and has a history of toeing the proverbial line. He doesn’t just do that when the other team dresses a fighter, he does it when the opportunity arises, oftentimes when the other team’s fighter is on the ice even. Xhekaj’s presence wouldn’t have made a scintilla of a difference; Wilson was throwing that hit no matter what.

So, what does the survey say? --- Back in the playoffs --- 98 PMAC 97 Dalhabs 93 illWill --- In the mix --- 88 tomh009, brindavis 87 BCHabnut, hab29retired, revvvrob 86 alfredoh2009 --- On the outside looking in --- 84 Commandant 83 Habs Fan in Edmonton 82 Peter Puck 81 DON, GHT120 80 JoeLassister 78 Habsfan84 76 xXx..CK..xXx --- Actual results --- 76 2023-24 68 2022-23 55 2021-22 We're on pace for 82 at the moment--after just two games--let's see what it looks like next spring!

This picture from last night is cool AF

Wow, there is a name I haven’t seen in a long time 🎉 Welcome back

Both of you, please stop responding. Now. I will delete most of these posts.

There's a difference of favoring size when you are trading for Dach and drafting Slafvkosky and picking up Florian xhejac in the third line than drafting Mccrarron, or signing and trading for washouts like alzner and king, or zero hockey sense guys like Anderson. we are getting bigger, but we aren't doing it the cost of skill or hockey IQ, or over-reaching in our picks. the only big contract we acquired for a big (but highly skilled player) is Laine. But it's a short term commitment, with low risk and potential for high return.

I think he's someone who could benefit from a fresh start and a less rigid system. He's learned the defensive side to a point, now can he re-learn the offence? Harris also fits to a point but he's waiver-eligible and costs a bit more. But if they prefer someone more proven who can play now, the general idea still works. Not sure when the Struble piece will run, maybe sometime this week coming up. I'm trying to work ahead a bit when I can so I have a couple pre-written.