redondo

His one playoff season was the first one, where he took them to the 2nd round. But look at that roster: http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/leagues...0000451998.html Recchi was at his prime then, so was Saku. Vinny and Corson were not, but were reliable still. Etc. I remember Lind, Whitehall, those guys you're talking about to me symbolize the darkest of depths we had to indure, but we were still several boneheaded moves away from that point in '98. And I remember the year he was nominated for the Adams we were getting killed and outshot in most games - but both Theodore and Hackett stood on their heads more often than not.

I was not a fan of Vigneault either. He's grown into a decent coach since, but some of his Habs teams looked just as lost out there as what Martin is serving up. Come to think of it, feels like we've been getting outshot for a decade now, doesn't it?

Well call me a heretic, but part of me is kind of glad that it's coming to the last game. I know these are all NHL teams and NHL rosters, blah blah, but when is enough enough? If they can't seal the deal against the worst Leafs team since Ballard, then I kind of don't want to see these guys in the playoffs. I'm still having nightmares of last year, I don't want another "hey, at least we made it" moment followed by an embarassement unworthy of this franchise.

Boston and Toronto going into OT.....

DON'T.......JINX.....

Exactly how I feel. And if we do sign him at reduced rate, I hope it's only for a year.

I'm calling 3:2 Habs, Moen, Cammalleri, Pouliot with the goals. GO HABS GO!

The true test will be the playoffs of course, when you get to face the same team 4+ times and see what you're made of in the process. I personally think they'll do fine, and the whole size issue is overblown. I also wish we had a guy like Moen in particular last year...... By the way the very Bruins team that put the final nail in the coffin of exposing the softness of the last year's bunch is being grilled by everyone from press to their fanbase back in Boston for the very same thing. The (non)reaction to the Savard thing is just the cherry on top, but it's been going on for better part of the year and needless to say I am loving it, but I'm also curious if and how they address it in the offseason........

+1

6th the hard way?

Exactly. Dumont and PK are examples of good things that can happen when you pay closer attention to local scouting. Of course it's not an exact science, and for every Gabriel Dumont you'll have several Marc-Andre Thinel's but i'd rather take a few high-risk high-reward shots on well scouted local guys, than blow picks on middling U.S. college talent.

I would like to see us give more attention to European scouting, and local (Q) scouting. With Euros in particular, it would be great to see more Mark Streit-type picks in the later rounds, capable young vets who have a fairly developed game but still have enough upside to take it up a level or two. Obviously not all of them will pan out the way Streit did, but Jersey, Detroit and Dallas among others have shown that it's a model that can work well. With local scouting, we're long removed from in the era of territorial rights, but we should really have a better grip on what's happening in our backyard than anyone else. Every now and then a guy can slip thru a la Bergeron, but we ought be finding those diamonds in the rough too.

This team needs to be the underdog, and they should be in just about any series they play, if and when they get there. They wouldn't be without their chances, as long as goaltending stays solid and they preserve the hungry mentality they've in the latest stretch (not counting last game), but I would hate to see unrealistic fan expectations add to their already uphill climb - make the playoffs first, no complacency, no calculations....

Bob did what was in his power to purge the old core and leave a healthier one in place, though between last year's gutless collapse and the declining vets it was an inevitability. So he should definitely get the credit for what this year's team does. On the flip side, come the offseason, if we can't keep guys like Plex or one of the goalies because Bob spent so liberally on his new core (and guys like Hal Gill), he should get some of the blame as well.

Both.