habscout

At the bottom of this article, it mentioned Andrei's groin injury. Looks like Hamilton is finally admitting that it could be a tear, which would likely mean surgery. At least he has a few months to recover from it properly. http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/cs...l=1112274690756

Roy MacGregor put together this excellent piece. Many of us will know some or most of the history about his life, but I'm sure there are a few bits that will be new. I posted a link on the HW front page: http://www.habsworld.net/out.php?4217 or you can find it directly here: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...y/National/home

This is good news. I hope that Johnson will stay and that Gainey wants the same, since he fits the 3rd line checking role just fine. However, two years should be the maximum for any 32 year old (actually he'll be 33 in October) player. As long as his salary demands are very close to what he earned last season, I will have no problem with the Habs resigning him.

Here's a story from the Hamilton Spectator about Sergei joining the Bulldogs on an ATO (amateur try out) contract. It said that he's currently negotiating for a professional contract with Montreal, but it stated that he is only 5'11" and 199 pounds. The article als mentioned that Mathieu Carle is also expected to join Hamilton today. The news about Carle is welcome, as the Bulldog's JP Cote has been injured with a badly sprained ankle. http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/cs...l=1112274690756

This experimental, yet simple, treatment helped get Tim Connolly back to playing for the Buffalo Sabres, after a 11 month layoff. The simple part of this approach is that it specializes a very gradual exercise program for the athlete, where they slowly build up the time they exercise. I wonder if this would help Alexander Perezhogin, who was off for a full month without any signs of improvement after his concussion. http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/529513/

Looks like Kovalev wasn't that happy after all playing on the 4th line with Lapierre & Latendresse near the end of the season. http://www.habsinsideout.com/2007/04/koval...ontroversial_h/

For the position the Habs will be making their first, first round selection, I really like C James O'Brien. I believe he has the potential to become an excellent #2 centre. He already has excellent defensive skills, and has good tools to round out his offensive side.

http://www.amazon.com/Boston-Bruins-Montre...1108079-8477544 The downside is that it's only available to U.S customers. There are also a few other Stanley Cup games involving the Habs.

I love this nickname for Price that this person from the Rochester media gave to Carey: Iceman. I t really suits him, and I hope it sticks. Bulldogs' 'Iceman' stops Amerks http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/p...370/1007/SPORTS

I believe his style is similar to Kasparitis. If so, I hope he doesn't develop into such a dirty player. I remember watching Emelin play in the WJHC against Canada in the finals a few seasons ago. He played a great game, and even chipped in a goal, which I believe was the Russian's sole tally.

The Buffalo Sabres rookie Drew Stafford won the monthly award, but the recognition of being a finalist is certainly a feather in Halak's cap. http://www.echl.com/cgi-bin/mpublic.cgi?ac...=1&id=10747

I'm very confident that Markov will resign with Montreal. I'm only 2/3's as confident about Souray remaining there.

That's a great scoop, and article. Thanks Dan! I hope that the Habs get Emelin under contract sooner than later. If they can get both Valentenko & Emelin signed, that will be even better. I am not certain that either defenceman has the potential to become a true #1 with the Habs, but both could easily fall into the #2-#4 slots. My hope is that someone like David Fischer or Mathieu Carle can rise to that level in the future.

I'd like to know what you're basing that on? By all reports, he's at 190 lbs. He stands a good chance at eventually getting to 200 if he trains properly, since his brother is at that level, with two years head start.

Well, mathieu30 beat me to this scoop. I put the link to the article from the Bulldogs website up on the front page of HW: http://www.habsworld.net/out.php?4139 I am surprised but pleased that he's getting to start an AHL game this soon. I thought they would let Carey get acclimatized to the minor pro game by participating in a few practises. I can't help but think that Yann Danis' future with the Habs organization is going to end this season, as I cannot see them bringing him back next season.

Price will be invited to go to Hamilton, to act as the team's 3rd goalie. I don't expect him to play at all, but it would be helpful for him to be around some more experienced, professional players. http://www.canadiens.com/eng/news/redirect...newsItemID=5855

I've just posted a preview for tonight's game on the front page. As usual, I really appreciate receiving any feedback, good or bad. If there's something in particular you like or don't like about what I write, please let me know. And if you leave me your email address, I'll be glad to reply back. http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=1396

With regards to RobRock's scenarios, I would agree with the first 3 options. I believe that Gainey will try and deal him before the UFA market opens, but will be unlikely to find a buyer; the only possibility exists is for a team like Chicago to exchange their overpriced-and-underproducing veteran (Adrian Aucoin) to Montreal. However, the Habs would have to taken on 2 years of a bad contract instead of 1 in that scenario. The buyout is the most likely final scenario for Samsonov in the off season, and I believe it has to occur a few days before the July 1st start of the UFA period. From what I read in a Boston Bruins media article today, the two thirds of Samsonov's contract only has to be put against the cap over the next 2 seasons. That brings the figures down to $1,166,666 of a cap hit for those 2 seasons, which is much more palatable than twice that amount all on the 2007-08 season. For Samsonov, he'll gladly accept the buyout, and will still likely be given another chance by some NHL team, probably for somewhere between $500K-$1M depending on the state of desperateness of that team. http://bruins.bostonherald.com/bruins/view...rticleid=190337

I can't see the Habs signing any of their Russia draft picks until the NHL & IIHF have agreed to a new transfer agreement that includes Russia. Now, that will likely exclude Sergei Kostitsyn, since he is not any obligation to a Russian based pro team, since he's been playing junior in London. I believe this is an 'out' for NHL teams wanting to draft Russian juniors, since they don't develop under the Russian professional teams. He's also from Belarus, and I 'm not sure if they fall under the Russian jurisdiction or not. I did not include Russian prospects in this pool such as Emelin, Korneev, or Pavel Valentenko, because until that agreement is in place, I cannot see the Habs attempting to bring them over. Emelin appears to have a contract with his current club for the 2007-08 season too. I'm not 100% sure that the Habs still hold the rights to Korneev, since he was selected in 2002. Also, for some of these players, it will be difficult to entice them to play in Montreal. Many can earn guaranteed contracts between $500K-$1M, when compared to 2-way contracts that will have to be offered to all rookies entering the league. In Russia, they have a flat income tax of 13%, and some players are offered perks of free cars and automobiles.

If by "GF" you mean his ex-wife, then that's a positive sign he may stay in Montreal. By the way, I have not seen an official statement anywhere that indicates Souray and his wife are officially divorced. I believe they are separated, and given the fact that she's pregnant and due to have their 2nd child in May, there may be some hope that they two will fully reconcile their marriage.

Markov is good, but he's not $6.5M dollars worth of good. I believe that he's likely to resign with Montreal, for an amount that's close to what Koivu & Kovalev earn. The resigning of Souray will influence the final amount, as well as the increases that the Habs' own RFA's will be receiving (eg. Higgins, Ryder, Plekanec, Komisarek,Perezhogin). Resigning Bonk & Johnson will also be factors, as will their UFA replacements. The whole Samsonov mess may also affect next year's cap, as it's quite possible the Habs will buy him out and take the 2/3's of his salary as a hit against the cap. If you add the cost of Kostitsyn's salary to that 2/3's figure, assuming he will replace Sergei in the lineup next season, then it becomes more palatable. Also, this year's UFA premium defencemen will be a relatively small group, compared to the forwards, so Gainey will have more pressure to resign his own than jump into a higher than expected UFA market for a replacement.

Given the recent articles I read & posted recently involving Cote & O'Byrne, I thought I'd create this poll to see who everyone thinks will be the next Habs bluelin prospect to graduate to the pros (preferably the Habs of course).

http://www.radio-canada.ca/sports/hockey/2...gs-obyrne.shtml To have it loosely translated, go to this website and enter the URL for the article. http://www.freetranslation.com

http://www.radio-canada.ca/sports/hockey/2...-bulldogs.shtml To have it loosely translated, go to this website and enter the URL for the article. http://www.freetranslation.com

That observation about Savard at the draft is an interesting one. It would support the idea that Gainey believes in drafting a player by position and not by the 'best available player' theme that most team's support.