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Great to see Reinbacher get a dozen games in Laval under his belt, on smaller ice and intro to NA pro game. Laval Rocket eliminated from playoff contention with loss (habseyesontheprize.com) Luke Tuch stood out for me quite a bit among the forward group. He plays somewhat of a thankless game that probably won’t show up on the scoresheet a lot, but he back checks like his life depends on it, and is very capable in the dirty areas. If he keeps bringing that level of effort at both ends of the ice, he’ll eventually find himself getting a chance in the NHL. David Reinbacher is just so quietly effective. Outside of his assist, what really stood out for me was his puck distribution in his own zone. He seems to have an innate sense for where his teammates will be, and his first pass on the breakout is almost always right. He’s on the right track, and it will be interesting to see how he develops next season.

It may have taken me 18 attempts but I am glad I was able to finally pull it off. It didn’t look promising after the second to last game because the Habs needed only 1 point but Detroit’s miraculous comeback with 3 seconds left, followed by the the Habs’ overtime/shootout loss in the final game sealed the deal. Thank you @alfredoh2009 for the congrats and @Peter Puck for hosting, as always. GHG

Go Bruins, Sweep it up.

I heartily endorse the general sentiment. The Bruins are an authentic rival, and a truly great (and duly hated) opponent over the years; the Leafs are a creation of the TO hype machine. No amount of suffering is too much for them. And I know that if they win, we will NEVER hear the end of it - celebrated over and over on HNIC and the national media as the Greatest Day in Hockey History, universally beloved, blablablablah. Over and over, year after year, until we die. No thanks. The two worst things that could possibly happen to me as a hockey fan are these: 1. The Habs fold and leave town. 2. The Leafs win the Cup. I'm pulling for the Bruins 100% in this series. I'll cheer against them thereafter.

No it's not. It's an easy decision. I find it easy to cheer for the Bruins in this series.

Did Atos Koivu move in the rankings since Christmas ?

Cant say i ever considered it, would always pull for Canadian teams, aside from Leafs (which havent threatened forever anyways). Go Bruins!

I used to despise the Canucks. Moved to the Vancouver area during the "West Coast Express" era and was appalled when the fan base rallied in support of Bertuzzi when he viciously ended Steve Moore's career. Then I heard endless fan moaning about "the Sedin Sisters" (until 2011, when that garbage finally shut up). I wanted no part of Canuckleheads Nation. However, I find myself feeling these days that they've suffered enough. This is a traumatized fanbase, rife with pessimism and a sense of perpetual doom and gloom; and to lose the devastating way they did in 2011, to be followed by over a decade of complete managerial ineptitude, has been years of unremitting agony for these fans. Even this year - a magical year by any measure - huge chunks of the fanbase could not bring themselves to even hope that the team was for real. It was almost comical; I made money by betting my friends that the Canucks would make the playoffs. Naturally they couldn't make that bet fast enough. This fanbase is always waiting for the anvil to fall on its head. This team also has players on it that are right up my alley - particularly Quinn Hughes, who is a real artist. But they have a lot of quality players I either respect or like, including Demko. So yeah, I wouldn't mind seeing them go all the way this year. It's not going to happen now, IMHO.

No way we could afford Stamkos without a major overpay on $ and term. Tampa can pay him a lot less than us because of the tax advantage. So even with Marty/Cousin Vinny here, I can’t see Stamkos coming over on a contract that would make sense for us. I also think we are a year away from when it makes sense to sign a major UFA, and I think we’d want someone younger than Stamkos - We are probably 2-3 years away from being able to become a legit contender. It’s too soon to get a guy Stamkos age.

I dont end the rebuild with a 35 year old in stamkos or Kane. That doesnt make a lot of sense. I think you need someone who will be at least close to the age of your core and grow with them. Ending the rebuild isnt signing a 35 year old to a one year deal to try and win now and see them retire in a year or two. The goal.of the rebuild is to build a team that will be competitive for a longer window than they have left.

Utah is not going to be run the same way phoenix was, talking everyones bad contracts. That ends with the new ownership who are going to spend on actual players

Price is on LTIR so trading him would not actually provide additional cap space, just flexibility in cap management.

He has already bathed in that cup and I blame Vancouver for letting that injustice happen. We can’t have that majestic trophy be further soiled by leaf stink.

I'm 40 yo. I've never seen the Leafs have any success, I've never been upset at the Leafs for beating us. I will never understand the hate until they elimintate us. This is why I want them to clear Boston. Once this is done, they can get beaten by anyone else, but I don't want the Bruins anywhere near another Stanley Cup.

At first glance without giving it much thought: Xhekaj: 2 x $1.4 (the Harris deal) Barron: 1 x $900K one-way Guhle: If extended, 8 x $6.5 Slafkovsky: Don't think he'll extend, think Habs will offer 8 x $7.5-$7.75. That's on the low end for #1 picks so his agent may suggest waiting. Ylonen: Takes a year at the minimum or is non-tendered. Could also go overseas and Habs then retain his rights with a QO.

Exactly. I like Dach but to say there is no room for a top 6 centre... hogwash. Imagine we win the lottery? Are we passing on Celebrini cause he's a centre? Kidney, Mesar, Beck, Kapanen are all maybes... and the fact is Beck and Kapanen are most likely to make it but are also unlikely to be top six centres. And its not Newhook can play wing. Its hes better at wing than at centre. There is a difference. So all of this means, if you think our top 6 centre spots are set... that means you are counting on both Suzuki and Dach to be in those spots. And if you add one more and those two are healthy and productive, great... you can have the equivalent of the Oilers having RNH, or you can put one on wing. You cant have too many good centers. No such thing.

Anaheim is stocked on LD. Im also not sure Mtl is done at C. Consider that Newhook is probably better on the wing and while we all hope Dach will come back and take the next step hes missed like 2.5 seasons out of his last 4. It wouldnt be wise to put all the eggs in that basket. Zegras also can play wing. Im not crazy about giving a lot for him and Ive said why, but I dont think we are so stocked at C to look away from that.

I suspect Kovacevic will be worth more to the Habs than in a trade.

I'm hoping for a Bruins sweep, with all 4 games being lopsided . I want maximum pain and suffering for the Leafs and their fans, creating absolute chaos for the Leafs organization over the offseason.

I was disappointed that Freidman went full "cruise control" just to get a mention of the Habs in the column ... ClickBait30 could have done as well.

Didnt say its the kiss of death but its the third season in a row hes been sent there to work on his defensive game. Does that mean he can never have an NHL career? Of course not. But it certainly has to mean his trade value is not the greatest. Anaheim has a ton of prospects in their system and a lot of draft picks, they arent going for quantity over quality right now.

This sums it up for me. My hate of the bruins comes from decades (minus the last ten years) of intense competition against a worthy (dirty) foe. The hate of the leafs is based only on the media and their fan base. If I was hate cheering properly, I would be hate cheering against boston, because I truly hate many players who have played for them. Including rat boy and their president Neely. And a huge list of their alumni. I don't actually hate anyone on TO. I actually like Matthews. But I still want boston, who I have reason to hate, to beat the leafs just so the media and fans can be let down. They won't shut up, but at least I can revel in their pain.

Islanders are playing a great game down 2-1 mid third. I kind of want Roy to win

Sure I mean we are talking about bottom pairing Dmen here. I just think both fans and some media don’t appreciate how good these guys actually are - for bottom pairing guys

Sometimes, it's not just the coach who decides who plays. Management will want the prospects in, not the veterans as that's what's best for the organization.

I also like Hughes' drafting logic: not drafting the best player today, but the one that will be the best in five years' time. So far, this looks to be working out with Slafkovsky.

7:42 to play in the third. Laval leading by one. They are managing the clock well

Syracuse is leading Utica 4-3 at the end of 2. Utica could be eliminated today

I think we all secretly or not secretly hope/wish/dream that will happen, just don't want to get my hopes up when the odds are 8.5%

Kovacevic is terribly underrated the same way Kulak was.

This was from April 15, I looked it over several times as I couldn't see Konsta Helenius in the 1st round. Am I going blind? How could you possibly not have him in the 1st round? Crazy. Then I did some research and this guy Jake Rill is a baseball reporter, maybe shouldn't write about things you don't have a clue about. 2024 NHL Mock Draft: Full Round 1 Projections for Every Team | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors | Bleacher Report

I'm thinking that Beck might be a better fit for an Armia-type role, although he might ende up playing centre. I expect we'll know much more for both Beck and Tuch a year from now.

Offensively, not a bad comparison. He's good on board work/cycling with a decent enough shot (not quite as strong as Armia's though). He might be a 10-goal guy in the NHL. Defensively, I'd be pleasantly surprised if he got to Armia's level.

that is a great observation on the Newhook line. Anderson was considered by many as a glorified 3rd liner that had an outliers season before getting injured in CBJ MB touted him a à player that helps you in the playoff and often pushed criticism on regular season dry spells he had. He was overpaid because the Habs needed that type of player during the Price-Weber window. In the current team’s context, Anderson is useless. Playing 3rd line will not raise his trade value, unless he has an unselfish centre like Evans to do all the dirty/defensive work for him. my hope is that the Habs get an uncontested top-6 forward that pushes Anderson out of the top-6 and out of the team on a trade

How wonderful would it be if Anderson returns to a 25 goal pace and plays with speed and power!?! If he doesn’t get his game back then I want Marty to stop coddling him and treat him like any other unproductive player.

He knows he sucked. From HEOTP: Josh Anderson has no excuses for his play this season.

He just.said yesterday that if D was the clear best player, hed take him. What are you talking about?

Good on MAF

As much as it pains me to see another year of rebuilding hockey, it's been way overdue in Montreal. It's been about 20 years of just ok teams, that may or may not make the playoffs, but had no real shot at a cup. The shots they did have, nobody really saw coming. For the sake of 10-15 years of high quality hockey as the prospect, I'm happy they're staying committed to the full rebuild.

That's good since Molson made it clear the other day he will not grant Gorton permission to talk to other teams.

It's true nobody saw Dach or Newhook coming. Is there a similar trade out there this year? Maybe, maybe not. I know Carolina has some tough decisions to make this summer with all their UFA's/FA's. If not then concentrate on the draft and try like heck to get an elite forward that way. I think if there is one thing everyone on this board would agree with is the need for another elite forward or two. We need more scoring. It's exciting we finally have a true number one line that is young and going to get even better. We all talked a lot about Slaf's improvement but I also thought Caulfield looked terrific the last couple weeks of the year. Maybe next year is his breakout year. And please, a healthy Dach.

Mailloux has a new number. I hope he scores and looks good in a losing effort.

And may be the smallest Hab d-man. Another fun game with lots of positives. Hutson 23:32; Mailloux 21:11 Matheson 27:32 5 shots, nice finish and I saw he recently said he knows his defense is an area for him to work on. Be nice to see him paired with a bonafide top pairing RHer at some point.

"My son weighs about 25 pounds and I struggled to hold him in my arms for more than a minute without discomfort," he said Tuesday morning during a lengthy interview with La Presse. Despite a "daily routine" that allows him to cope with pain, sitting or standing for a long time is now painful. Air travel, therefore, is "difficult". "I got to a point where I couldn't go on," he says. "I spoke with the medical staff of what my life after hockey could look like if I didn't stop. There was a lot of doubt about how it would affect me in the long run. When we started talking about it, it became real. Life is long after the end of a career."

I think it's just a case of alternating the goalies like they have been doing and it's Primeau's turn.