habscout

I've put up a preview for tonight's game on the HW front page: http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=1384 I like getting feedback, especially when you leave me an email address.

You know, I regret Samsonov signing with the Habs too, particularly because of the way Kostitsyn has been playing in his last few games. For a guy who is supposed to be a shooter, he is showing off his playmaking skills. Last night's performance of his with three assists, especially on that beautiful set up on the last goal, was impressive. I'm seeing more confidence in his play lately, and if benching Samsonov for the rest of the season gives Kostitsyn the chance to play regularly, then so be it. I was especially surprised to hear Chris Higgins comments a couple days ago, about how he thought Kostitsyn and Ryder were the Habs two best shooters! For a rookie who has not played that much with the Habs, that's a very big statement to make. As for the waiver issue, I don't think that will happen. What Gainey may consider doing is buying out Samsonov's contract. I believe he can do this a few days before the start of the UFA session, which should be July 1st this year. The NHL CBA has a clause that will allow a 2/3 buyout of a player's salary, but it appears that the 2/3's of Samsonov's salary would count against the Habs' cap for 2007-08. If the cap goes up the projected amount of between $3-4M, then it may be a worthwhile move.

You can add Ted Nolan's son, Jordan to this list.

I found this reference on the Tricity webpage. It says that he took part in a post game skte, and that he'll be revaluated by the team's trainers today. Let's hope it's just a minor problem. http://www.amshockey.com/news/article.src?ID=2159

While I like Perezhogin [his Perogi nickname is one of the better ones I've heard lately on the Habs], I was extremely disappointed with his last shootout performance. Up until then, I don't believe I've ever seen an NHL player shoot *wide* of the net on a shootout. For now, he fits in very well on the 3rd line, especially when he uses his speed on the forecheck against the opposition. Earlier in the season when he played that way, he often caused some turnovers in the opposition's or the neutral zone, and sometimes they turned into decent scoring chances for the Habs.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20070308...5128/CPSPORTS01

Amen brother! I think Dandy's play has deteriorated a lot this season. In fact, right now, Streit plays a better game and is clearly more valuable to the Habs present and future than Dandenault is. Streit plays a better forward than Dandenault, and is a smart defenceman. Sure, he is not very big, but neither is Dandenault. I've seen several times this season and last where Mathieu has been outmuscled by an opponent in his own zone, and he's put himself in a position to use his stick to foul him and be penalized. Streit is much smarter positionally, with an without the puck. When you add the high value that Streit adds to the PP, versus the low value Dandenault adds to the PK, Streit is the clearly the better player.

Yeah, it "exists" but from what I've since read, it's source cannot be proved since the original author conveniently does not have the original recording. That person is also claiming that the article they had submitted to their newspaper/magazine was out of their control, implying that it was significantly editted. So, the Russian media went overboard with a semi-fabricated interview from Kovalev, and the Quebec French media also went overboard, by not checking their sources [other than what was online]. Considering the source was an unknown foreign country, any first year journalist would have called the source to get a confirmation. But no, that would have taken more time, and another tabloid, errrr, newspaper would have published it first then. Blech!

Courtesy of Team 990 http://www.team990.com/audiofiles/audioarchive418.mp3

To add to this fire, I heard recently that there is a clause in the contract the Penguins signed with the Isle of Capri that has some impact on this stay-or-go affair in Pittsburgh. The Penguins promised to pay the Isle of Capri $10M if the Penguins had a new arena built in Pittsburgh by someone else. When the governor of Pennsylvania met with the Pittsburgh recently, they brought up this $10M payment, and asked for the state to cover that expense! The governor balked at it, and is now using this as ammunition against the Penguins ownership, to show their greed. If I were a betting man, I would say the Penguins will leave Pennsylvania, and KC is their most likely destination, based on the sweetheart deal on that mid-western table. It will be interesting if they end up in Missouri, because the group behind this offer and the new $276 M arena, is the Anschutz Entertainment Group, which currently owns the LA Kings. I'm not certain if the NHL will allow one owner to control 2 franchises, especially since both will likely end up in the same conference. I cannot see the Penguins, or whatever they will be renamed to, staying in the Eastern conference if they reside in Kansas City. As for the ability for KC to support the Penguins, according to a 2006 survey from bizjournals.com, KC is the 5th most overextended sports market. They stated that the area has a collective annual income of $65 Billion. The 4th most overextended sports market is...you guessed it...Pittsburgh, with $61 Billion. http://www.newstribune.com/articles/2007/0...aa6penguins.txt

I haven't forgotten Emelin. I would love to see him come over to Montreal, but there are a few obstacles in his path. First, the Habs have been waiting for a transfer agreement to be signed between Russia and the NHL, to set the standards for what NHL teams will pay Russian clubs for their players. Without it, players like Malkin are forced to "defect" their teams and flee the country. Next, Emelin plays on a Russian squad where his dad is the coach, and he's getting good ice time. His pay is very good, between $500K-$1M. The financial incentive to leave Russia is low, since it's very likely he will start in the AHL until he can show he's ready to start in the NHL and/or a position opens up for him in the bigs. NHL teams are not willing to promise any prospect a starting spot in the NHL, regardless of the demands of that player, which is pretty common with Russian prospects lately. GM's will remember the disasterous start in Ottawa this season of Alexei Kaigorodov, someone who left the team rather than accept a demotion to the AHL, despite his terrible play for Ottawa. However, there is O'Byrne, a rookie defenceman in Hamilton, who's play has been improving as the season has progressed. He may surprise some by earning a spot on the club next fall, likely in the #7 spot.

This has been discussed previously, but I thought I'd post it anyways. It props up the reason for the Kings moving of Mattias Norstrom, to make some salary room for Souray in the off season. http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/rumors/post/So...-?urn=nhl,25742 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/panthers/cont...extra_0304.html

Way to go Carbo! Maybe that will give the tabloid-oriented media in Quebec something new to write about. ;-)

I don't believe that Kovalev said what the newspapers claimed he said. It just doesn't make any sense why he would bad-mouth the team, coach and organization so blatently, and believe it would not get back to him. As Kovy himself said (I'm paraphrasing), "I'm not that stupid". I can't help but believe that the so-called "journalist" noticed that the Habs had 4 days off after their March 3rd game, and figured he would stir things up by in Quebec by fabricating this trashy article. It's no wonder that some of the media in Quebec have a reputation acting like members of the tabloids.

http://www.ontariohockeyleague.com/news/?id=3310 It looks like this kid is on an offensive roll! Nine goals and 26 assists for 35 points in 11 games. He scored at least one point in all 11 games in February.

I'd have to say that White is a better skater too.

I like the fact that the Habs will have 2 first round picks, regardless of what position they are in the round. There are a number of potentially good NHL players, but the draft is not as likely to develop any superstars. That's been the general concensus amongst the media & scouts, but every year there is always an exception or two. The way I like to look at the draft is this: the more bullets you have, the better the chances you'll hit the target.

For a guy who's draft stock fell last summer, allowing the Habs to take him in the 3rd round. he's doing very well this season. He's been one of the top scorers in the WHL this season as an 18 year old, challenging for the overall lead at times. I also enjoyed reading how the Canadiens have been communicating with White from time to time. This guy could have a very bright future with the Habs in a few years. http://whl.ca/en/members/action/viewArticle/id/6383

Yes, please update us with any news. There was a news article by Pat Hicky on Souray in today's Gazette ['Unfinished business' for Souray]. In the last part of it, the article mentioned that Souray's "estranged" wife is pregnant with his child, that is due in May. As much as I hope Souray wants to stay in Montreal, I can't help but think that if either L.A. or San Jose makes him a good offer after July 1 at 00:01, that he will sign with them. Now, I don't blame Bob Gainey for not trading Souray before the deadline. For starters, there's been talk that the offers were not significant enough for him to move Souray. Also, I believe that the Habs could not make the playoffs without him this season, period.

On Habsinsideout.com they posted that Downey cleared waivers earlier today, and will be sent down to Hamilton. I'm not terribly surprised, given the improved play of other 4th line players. http://www.habsinsideout.com/2007/02/downe..._hamilton/#more

Does anyone know if the first round pick we obtained in the Rivet trade, was San Jose's or New Jersey's [from their previous trade for Malakhov] ?

He may have played well in those 2 games, but then he gave up 3 goals in 12 shots against Toronto, in a little over 14 minutes. Then he sat out the next straight 4 games, and then played the Maple Leafs again. That time, he only gave up 5 goals on 30 shots for the whole game. That must have been enough for the Flyers to see to know they had to make a move to get Biron, who will be a good challenger for Niitymaki, who ultimately may be the better goalie. Overall, I'm a little disappointed in this move, only because I had hoped that Halak would remain with the big club for the rest of the season. But, I do not mind Leighton as a goalie. I watched him play a number of games when he was in junior, and have seen him play well a couple of times in Chicago. However, this will be his fourth NHL team and he's only 25; to me he's just a stop-gap acquisition. For that reason, I still would rather have seen the Habs play Halak. Hopefully, Leighton won't be able to get to New York in time for tonight's game, and Halak will get one last chance to show what he can do before they send him down to Hamilton.

Coffee, as a weapon? I guess it's a step up from some accounts of road rage, where people have been shot. http://www.wtkr.com/Global/story.asp?S=614...mp;nav=ZolHbyvj

Here's a sign that the Habs really want to keep Lapierre up with the team for the rest of the season. They put Downey on 24 hour waivers today, as a move to free up space for the return of Alexei Kovalev. I guess the improved play of Garth Murray has helped his cause to stay with the pro club, since he was put on waivers earlier this month, without any takers amongst the rest of the league's teams. http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/R...ortsHockey/home

This article by the IIHF gives ample praise to Red Fisher, an 80 year old journalist who has covered the Montreal Canadiens longer than anyone else alive. Let's hope he can do the same for another 20+ years. http://www.habsworld.net/out.php?3940