[Carey Price..Hart Trophy?]

Sorry I thought this was about the team we actually have. So we can just make one up to answer this question?

On my fantasy team I want Price, you can have whoever you want. Carey Price is our MVP.

So then your argument is that a hockey team would be in trouble without their starter? I think most would agree with you.

He's right. In your argument, if the Habs didn't have Price they'd have a Luongo or Hiller or someone else of at least decent class. Organizations don't usually go from a Price to an Enroth as a starter overnight. Even Vancouver went from Luongo to Schneider to Miller. If you're saying that we're in trouble if Price gets injured and Tokarski has to start down the stretch then all will agree. It happened last year.

[Nashville Predators at Montreal Canadiens | January 20th, 2015 | 1930 EST]

Looking forward to this game tonight. Have a feeling Ribeiro will look good but hopefully we keep him off the scoresheet. Forsberg and Neal are dangerous as well. Try to beat Weber with speed and don't give him the lane for too many shots, especially on the PP.

It's a home game though so I think we can take it. Hockey 101, get a lot of shots at this Hutton fella. Without Rinne, the timing is right for the first real hiccup in their season.

If those are the lines, the first line has to have a big night. patches has to be better than Neal. The second lines are more evenly matched but I think they might take it, at least this season. The thing about our third line is that they are capable of having an 8 point night, but I'd only expect it one out of five games which definitely isn't a good thing. We'll see how it goes.

GHG

[NY Islanders at Montreal Canadiens | January 17th, 2015 | 1900EST]

Boy it has gotten sad, you can't even suggest that Le Genius is less than perfect, cause out come the defenders. There are a lot of people who get paid to observe Hockey games and they have no idea what his system is, you can use the old cliche's but really what is it? Hope Price keeps you in the game till you get a goal? Eric Engels is a guy i enjoy reading, a smart hockey man. He really doesn't understand Le Genius plan. You guys see something a lot of us don't, at least not in the traditional way. I am very happy with the results, I worry about how we got them. Maybe he has a real solid system that works. I hope so.

There are definitely some things the coaching staff can do better and definitely things they have done wrong. If any of us were behind the bench, we would make mistakes as well. Since this is a fact, the question becomes whether or not the coach is capable of learning from his mistakes. When analyzing the team, my main purpose isn't to focus on Therrien. With that being said, for the most part, as cliche as it sounds, I think Therrien has definitely learned from the mistakes he made in his first tenure here with the Habs and has changed as a coach in his second tenure with the Habs. There were some people who weren't happy with his signing because of his first stint with us, but I think this shouldn't come into the equation much at all when assessing the current club and its coach.

On to the present. I think for the most part on this board, at least the vocal ones, there are actually probably about 20% who genuinely love him, 30% who despise him and then 50% who think he's decent but not any better than another 10-20 other coaches in the league. These numbers are somewhat arbitrary and perhaps interchangeable (let's say it's 25-50-25) but the main points are that first of all, there are very few Therrien "lovers" or "haters". So if you think you're fighting the masses, on either side, you're really not. I will agree that say those numbers are correct, then most people (70%) probably give Therrien the benefit of the doubt rather than attack him right away and so this might add to the thought process that so many people adore him.

When it comes to Therrien on the current club, I think many would agree that there are things he has done which have been questionable. As stated, all coaches make mistakes. I think it is one thing to call out the coach for doing something wrong but I think it is another to not even allow him the benefit of the doubt and see whether or not the coach will learn from his mistakes. There is a difference between reading "Therrien is a moron for reason *A*" 25 different times by the same poster without ever hearing them give him credit for other areas and someone who may insinuate that the team is lacking in an area that the coach is responsible for without specifically reminding the reader of the coach's name. I guess it comes down to tone. I think Don does make a very good point that the coach is with the players in person and is certainly aware of many of the same things people love to complain about. Not only that, he might agree with many of the things that are discussed.

So far, what I have seen is a coach who has learned from his first tenure. Now on his second stint he has certainly been better but has had to face a different league and therefore has made some different questionable calls and mistakes, if you want to call them that. What I continue to see is that he has made adjustments on pretty much every topic, or at least most of the topics that he has been criticized for this year. Could he be seeing eye to eye with some of those who question his decisions? The one thing I don't like is the constant line juggling, so like I said, everyone has their qualms. But I do believe that there are certainly benefits to having almost everyone familiar with playing with each other for the playoffs and I also give Therrien the benefit of the doubt that he will stop the juggling within the next couple of months and start allowing a few lines to develop some real chemistry. After all, he had to try Galy at center. Long story short, he's earned trust among fans and deservedly so.

[NY Islanders at Montreal Canadiens | January 17th, 2015 | 1900EST]

I think we need Bourque and Moen back for the playoffs.

[Jan. 14, Montreal vs Columbus, 7 PM]

I think the debate involving Eller, Plekanec and Desharnais is one that has been going on for at least 2-3 years now. As far back as then, I had been saying that out of the three, I'd like Desharnais to be moved. We have an abundance of centers, most of which are suited for a 2nd or 3rd line role. Is this a good problem to have? I honestly don't think so because it leaves question marks as to who should be playing where. I like the way MB has handled our team for the most part, in that he has either traded prospects (Colberg) for solid pieces or fringe players (Bourque, Moen, Diaz etc) instead of core pieces. With that being said, Desharnais might be closer to a core piece than the others mentioned but I would look to ship him out personally if not only to give our centers a better idea of where they stand. I don't think trading him is imperative by any means but out of anyone in our top 9, he'd probably be the player I'd be most willing to part with.

Compared to 2-3 years ago, I have less of a problem with Desharnais, as long as he remains a secondary part of the team on the third line. With that being said, shipping him out a few years ago may have been a better idea because he probably had a higher perceived value. He's capable of being a useful little fella to an extent, but my point is is that IF I'm going to ship out any of our centers, it would be him. My stance on that hasn't changed in years.

As for Eller, for some reason my patience remains strong with him. As for Plekanec, I'm convinced he'll surpass the 50 point plateau this season. There's very little doubt in my mind.

[NY Islanders at Montreal Canadiens | January 17th, 2015 | 1900EST]

OK tonite we have got to get this 18 wheeler back on the road. Big game for the boys. Come out early and fast. Hit em hard and keep doing it till they cry. Lets get that P/P going again, we now know they can do it so now we expect it dammit.

Yeah, usually I wouldn't be feeling so good when facing a team who has been doing as well as the Islanders have been this season and without Price to boot. But I want to see them come out with some intensity tonight and have our other star players shine. I really feel that if PK can have an explosive game, we should be alright in a semi high scoring 4-3 affair.

On the other hand, if they come out flat, it won't be so pretty like Chris alluded to.

[Jan. 14, Montreal vs Columbus, 7 PM]

Yeah I completely agree. I guess I personally have a habit of defending most of our players and staff just because I support the team. With that being said though, I don't think Plekanec deserves any grief whatsoever. He brings an honest effort out every single game and I personally don't think he even needs the coaches to tell him what his job is in any given game. Depending on the people he is playing against, he will adjust his game accordingly. If anything, the biggest complaint I can come up with about him myself is that he is way too consistent and doesn't outshine this consistency for any given period. He rarely goes on any extensive hot streaks anymore but he'll still quietly put up points on a rather consistent basis and all while bringing many other elements to the team.

In short, every single time our problem at center is brought up, I don't think it's fair to single out Plekanec's name above all others. It simply isn't his fault that the team is structured the way it is. I don't know how many times this needs to be repeated but as of now, it's clear that we don't have a number #1 center. That's what many have been saying, and good for you, but this reality should not have us place the blame on Plekanec's shoulders.

Finally, for what it's worth, I do believe that Plekanec actually could be a lower tier #1 center on a few teams out there, he just needs to have elite #1 line wingers to play with. The way the Habs team is structured, once again, just doesn't allow for this. It's certainly been awhile and I don't base my reasoning on this whatsoever, but the Kovy, AK, Plek line is probably the most skilled line I've seen on the Habs in the past 15 years. I know Plekanec is older now but his game is still pretty similar to how it was back then and his style isn't so tough and gritty that a huge rapid decline should be expected. All he needs is a 2 point game to be in the top 30 in scoring for centers. Don't worry though, the purpose of this post was not to proclaim that he's a #1 center; It's that he shouldn't be blamed for the way the team is structured.

Edit: Just to add to all that, Plekanec is a career 53.5 point player. This year he is on pace for 53.4 (really trailing off) points. Where does 40 point player come into the equation here at all?

[Jan. 14, Montreal vs Columbus, 7 PM]

Yeah it's not like Plekanec has more points than Duchene, Nugent-Hopkins, Landesgog, Eberle, Jagr, Eric Staal, Vanek, James Neal, Oshie, Brad Richards, Stastny, Huberdeau, Koivu, Doan... I don't know, the list goes on. How many of those players would you trade Plekanec for? My guess is that a lot of those trades look enticing. I'm not going to argue either way but he has more points than all those players and offense isn't even his strength. I know that's basically the issue to some but he's also not that weak at offense when you compare him to others. Most of whom are one dimensional for the most part to boot. He also has the same amount of points as the player who some want to be our first line center right now. If you look at Plekanec from a league wide standpoint, one could see how he'd be enticing to other teams himself. Some might say we should take advantage of that reality, but I'd rather have him on my team.

[Jan. 15, Montreal vs Ottawa, 7:30 PM]

I can't lie, I hate the Senators for some reason. Okay, many reasons.

I had a bunch of thoughts to talk about prior to tonight's contest, including the constant line juggling, but there's not enough time now before the game!

I will say that I like the lines tonight more than last night but hopefully we can keep some lines together for a few games so they have time to build some chemistry for the future.

Habs win 4-1 and Galchenyuk and Price are 2 of the 3 stars.

Edit: I guess Price isn't in the net... I know most think it's a good call but I would have felt a lot more comfortable with Price in net vs the Sens despite the back to back.

[Jan. 14, Montreal vs Columbus, 7 PM]

Emelin said himself he's been lacking in confidence so if someone is telling him to play a different way, it could very well be true that it would be affecting him in a negative way. I think Emelin definitely needs to play on the edge to be able to play up to his potential. Subban, not so much. It's exciting when he plays that way but Subban can still be extremely effective while playing a lot of different types of roles. Emelin's dimension is that role.

As for whether or not they've actually been told to hold back, it's quite possible and even likely. But Emelin got injured a lot playing that style and maybe he learned a lesson or two himself without having to be told anything. That, and you end up taking a lot of more penalties playing that type of style (Subban).

[Penguins At Habs, 7 PM]

This team is not bottom-3 in terms of offensive personnel.

Therefore, it should not be bottom-3 in terms of the power play.

How much of that is the coach's fault? At the risk of equivocation, I have to say: some of it, not all of it. It's not Therrien's fault that PK Subban suddenly forgets how to gain the zone when we have the man advantage, for instance. And because I think confidence is a big variable on the power-play, I believe Therrien has generally taken the view that he will use allow his best players to grind their way out of the PP slump and slowly build confidence. But at the end of the day, when a team under-performs in some area of the game relative to its talent, the coach has to wear it.

Every time I hear an opponent's coach describe the strength of our team, they talk about the transition game being a strength of ours. We're good at creating turnovers and scoring off of the rush. These situations don't happen as often on a power play with the defensive mind state of the other team. We go through phases of having a pretty good cycling game a few games here and there but it's never really consistent. I'm not convinced that our offensive talent is so amazing specifically in power play situations. I do agree that certain offensive players on our team seem to be snake bitten on the power play though and hopefully that should even things out once they snap out of it because we do have the personnel to be better than where we stand.

As for the coaching thing, it's part of the reason for our struggles but all the other possible reasons always get thrown out of the window by those who want to repeatedly blame the coach. That's all.

There's a difference between saying "Man our power play is atrocious" and allowing the reader to infer why versus saying "our power play sucks because our coach can't get it together" and stuffing that down the reader's throat; because in all fairness then you should be saying "our power play sucks because our coach hasn't made adjustments, the assistant coaches aren't helping out, the boys are squeezing their sticks, Gonchar needs to be more productive, Pacioretty and Desharnais aren't showing the chemistry they should be, we're not getting enough traffic in front of the net, etc. etc. etc." All of these things could be twisted into a coaching thing but it gets a little old after awhile. Yes, the coach is pretty responsible for things that happen out there. Most of those things have been good. That might bother some but it doesn't always mean that those who point that out love him. So I see little need to get all defensive and mention his name in a negative way at any opportunity.

[Penguins At Habs, 7 PM]

I don't think I am taking a sky is falling approach. I believe the P/P is a very important tool that can win us some games now and in the playoffs. How anyone can disagree with that I have no idea. The fact that our 5 on 5 is good does not mean we don't need a P/P. It means that our P/P should be a hell of a lot better than it is. So ipso facto by simple logic we have a problem which is probably coaching. I think that is borne out by the fact that Le Genius is now spending time trying to get it going. Good for him and damn I hope it works, cause it isn't our only problem.

Hope you realize that you're the only one bringing the coach into the equation. We're talking the power play here, not "Let Genius". Some people are overly sensitive on the topic. But I guess when there's a problem with the team, it's all about him. Just because people were saying the lack of power play wasn't a huge issue, this does not mean that "they are in love with Le Genius" because there are many variables that should cross your mind when assessing the team. I'm neutral on the topic, I think Therrien is decent but I'm indifferent. If he got fired, I'd probably be excited to see what the new coach had to offer. That's how much I care. Clearly though it's really the negative Nancy's who bring him up all the time. Rarely is anyone here praising him for every single decision he makes. It may seem that way to you but it's because you're obsessed about the topic.

I think our power play is terrible because of the personnel we have. I get upset myself when I see Desharnais out there on the PP but the graph that was posted the other day showed that he's our leading point getter on the power play among our forwards. What's a coach supposed to do in that situation? I don't want him to play certain people either but it's hard to justify when the options are so slim. I think our talent for the power play is overrated on forward. Markov is our true quarterback which is part of the reason I don't think we really need a Desharnais on the PP. Patches hasn't been doing well on the power play. Gallagher and Plex are meh on the powerplay. Some people want Eller on the power play to play Holmstrom style but if it didn't work after three games, they'd be calling it a waste of a pp. Sekac has done well, so give it a go and Galchenyuk is honestly the only potential power play weapon we have among the forward corps.

I'd be fine with giving Galchenyuk, Eller and Sekac some PP time together but really, is that a line we would have expected to rely on in the clutch at the beginning of the season?

You've been calling for that sniper winger habs rule, that's what we really need to get the power play going.

[Penguins At Habs, 7 PM]

It honestly seems like this entire discussion is a little unnecessary. We all want a better power play. It was terrible yesterday. How important it is to winning a cup is mostly hypothetical. I'm on the side where it doesn't seem to me like we're in a do or die situation whereby we absolutely need the power play to click in a huge way to win games. But at the same time, everyone wants it to get better. End of discussion.

[Penguins At Habs, 7 PM]

I wanted to post an image but HabsWorld wouldn't allow it from the website I was hosting the image on.

http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/stats.htm

Habs have no minus (-) players in the lineup today. Interesting to see how high Weise's +/- is as well with all this talk about his promotion in the lineup.

[Jan. 9, Comets vs Bulldogs + Tinordi talk, 7:30 PM]

Watched Tinordi get punched out last year by a guy on the Marlies whose name escapes me right now. Prust is the habs best fighter. Tinordi would be the habs largest fighter. Where his physicality will be most welcomed is along the wall and around the net. Has been known to throw the odd big open ice hit too.

I've seen Tinordi handle his own in fights as well. He may have got punched out by a Marlies player last year but he also pummled Ashton in the opening game of last season against the Leafs. I'd play the video but coincidentally, we all know what happened immediately after (Parros). Tinordi has about 8-10 fights in his NHL career and has played 45 games + a few preseason games. Prust has 8 fights in 40 games this year. It's safe to say that Tinordi would add to our team in that department and defensemen always find themselves in different situations than forwards. He may not be our best fighter but he'd be the only other player outside of Prust that I'd trust against decent opposition... as well as anyone over 6"2. But there he is, getting terribly injured in a fight and I agree that's not the primary reason he's around.

[Penguins At Habs, 7 PM]

Andrighetto will score tonight.

I have a bad feeling about this game (mostly because of last week's game, followed by Tampa) but at least it's at home. Simple gameplan: limit Crosby and Malkin and we'll be fine in my opinion. Should be a good battle and I predict a 3-2 game.

[Jan. 6, Lightning vs Habs, 7:30 PM]

It'll be a not yet for Tinordi - he took a hard punch in a fight tonight and was bleeding a lot, he needed help getting off the ice. Needless to say, he didn't return.

As for the grades, we'll have our usual quarterly grades on the site...starting probably sometime next week for the 2nd quarter.

You know, I've never even thought twice about the possibility that removing fighting from hockey was in any way, shape or form a good idea. But if everyone's best fighters are getting severely injured, and I repeat, severely, injured, then the debate starts to make a lot more sense. Is it only us? Parros? Tinordi? He'd probably be our best fighter if he were up. Does this happen to other teams? The purpose of fighting is to remove liberties that are taken at our star players. Some of these liberties could lead to injuries, so we have fighting to prevent that if the refs won't do their jobs. But now the fighters are getting severely injured themselves. Are they any less human than the star players? I still want fighting and a lot of that probably has to do with the fact that I'm a traditionalist but let's think about it for a second. On the other hand, maybe it's always been this way.

[Big Bad Bruins NO MORE!]

Funny this thread got brought up. I had just checked the scores around the league and saw the score of that game. I then checked the standings and thought "man, the bruins suck". They're on pace for 88 points.

They're still a team who has the potential to do some damage but I can't help but feel like they're over the hill.

[Jan. 2, Habs vs Devils, 7 PM]

On PAP: Once he scores his big goal or three as a secondary scoring threat during the playoffs, the shootout winners will have been plenty contribution for the regular season. I know, a comment based on nothing but speculation and hope! But I still believe it.

I didn't catch as much of the game as I would have liked but I was surprised to see that the devils caught up after the 2-0 lead. Nice to see Bournival do well out there as well. Hope he keeps it up.

Finally, Jagr to the Habs? I think it's very unlikely to happen but I would do it. His size and strength on the puck would be a welcome addition up front. I'm definitely biased in about 30 different ways on that one though.

[Dec. 29, Habs vs Canes, 7 PM]

You know, I agree with everything you said. The thing is that it really seems like people are talking about our team's greatest strength and finding a way to use it to describe the habs in a detrimental way. Those who do that have already made up their mind and are going out of their way to look for their answer. I don't think it's a topic that's necessarily being looked at in a logical way. It can be argued that Price is the best goalie in the league. With goalie being the most important position, like you pointed out, I don't think there are many teams out there that would be able to say that Price wouldn't be their best player. Point being, he would make pretty much any team out there look like they rely on him. If Price makes an amazing save on a 2 on 1, should that very play be used to say that our team isn't very good since we gave up the 2 on 1? Or should we like you say, thank the heavens that we have him. I understand that you aren't saying the former yourself, but a lot of people are saying that Price made that save because of a lack of team structure instead of just being glad he's part of the team and made that save. Other teams give up 2 on 1s as well, I promise. The Habs are where they are in the standings because of Price and I'm fine with that. Honestly, any team would be.

[Dec. 29, Habs vs Canes, 7 PM]

Yeah I definitely agree with that BCHabnut and I was going to say something similar. It's one thing to be upset about being outplayed by a weaker team but it's definitely another to complain over and over and over again about the fact that our goalie is our best player. I mean, seriously? I can't fathom why anyone would prefer having a team that wouldn't be able to rely on their goalie to bail them out. Once again, I can somewhat understand where people are coming from but in all honesty the way it comes off, is seems though people are literally complaining that Price is so good. That just doesn't make sense to me.

[Remember hockey? Hurricanes @ Bell Centre, 7:30PM EST]

Pretty good game last night against weak opposition. I only got to focus intently on the first period and a half and then I tried to focus for the rest of the game but had a lot of distractions around me. I knew the score was 4-1 but didn't realize Chucky got a hat trick until I reviewed the boxscore after the game. Definitely good on him and I hope he keeps it up.

As for those who mention that it took long enough for Galchenyuk to be placed at center, just stop. I don't know why no one has refuted those claims but just because he is doing well at center now does not mean that he was ready to play there even a month ago. There is no proof that he would have been doing well and therefore there is no reason to believe that anyone who said this even a month ago was "right". It can just as easily be argued that the timing was perfect now, and that the situation had been handled perfectly all along. In addition, there is no I in team and while Galchenyuk may be our future star #1 center (or maybe he'll be there for good), he does not make up the entire team. If we have an abundance of centers, like we do, and playing any of the other centers at wing makes our team inherently worse, then there would still seem to be very little logical reasoning behind playing him at center in the now. Galchenyuk may be our best center, and I agree that he probably is, but he is also a decent winger and perhaps Eller, Desharnais or Malholtra would be the worst wingers in the world. I'm not saying any of this is definite as well, but one has to look at the whole picture rather than looking through a microscope. There's no doubt in my mind that he will be a permanent center at some point, and it could even be right now, but there's also very little reason for me to believe that he should have been playing center his whole career, or even a few weeks ago, for more than one reason.

[Dec. 6, Montreal vs Dallas, 7 PM]

At some point in time your coach has to be held accountable for not getting his players ready for games.

It's pretty much an endlessly debatable topic but when you really think about it, there comes a point where you have to start holding the players accountable. If we're talking about it, you can be sure that Therrien realizes that people will hold him accountable for the slow starts. I don't think there's any proof that Therrien has had a chronic problem of getting teams ready for games as a general rule throughout his career. If it hasn't been a career long problem and he is aware that he can be held accountable for the slow starts, (and rightly so) but has made attempts to prepare his team, which one would think would be the priority on his list, then it has to fall on the players. There are only so many ways to get your team pumped up for a game and I don't think it's necessarily the game plan which isn't working. They just don't look like they come out with any intensity most of the time. That could fall on the coach but the longer it goes, the more likely I am to start pointing my finger at the players because the coach is not the one hustling on the ice.

[Nov. 23, Habs vs Rangers, 7 PM]

I have never watched a game where dd did not "work hard", watched him rip it up here in hamilton too. Have not heard any one accuse David of not "working hard" ........ its his position in the pecking order of centers that gets brought up. The issue has never been DD himself. He is what he is (an undrafted, very small, smart play making, non physical centerman, with no shot) The only issue is the Montreal Canadiens at this time do not have a better centerman than him. May not be a huge issue, but it's an obvious one.

Matter of opinion. I think Plekanec is definitely a better center than Desharnais. We already know you don't feel this way but like I said, matter of opinion. Teams are built different ways and I personally like the way ours is built. Would I like an Anze Kopitar type center man on our team? Without a doubt. It depends at what expense though. Would I prefer an Anze Kopitar type center at the expense of Price? No thank you. I'll take our team as it is.

[Who is the most untouchable Hab?]

I tend to agree with Lovett's... When I read the title of the thread, my thought process went something like this: "Subban, Price, Subban, Price, Subban" so I guess I have to go with my first instinct.

I accept and even understand the fact that Price will be the popular answer here but what I don't necessarily agree with is the thought process that the only way the Canadiens can win a cup is with Price in the net. Considering he has never won the cup before, I'm pretty sure there are other goalies out there who could win the cup in our crease. Would I ever trade Price? I can't see why I would but I don't agree that he's untouchable simply for the reason that it would be impossible to win a cup without him.

I don't think this is necessarily the greatest reason either but I do believe that as a result of Subban's personality, not only would he continue to flourish with his new team if we were to trade him but I believe that he would also punish our team to a great extent every time we would face him.

Long story short, I would never want to trade either player, and I think it's pretty much safe to bet neither of them ever will be traded. What I do know is that I would hate seeing Subban and his flashy personality on another team more than I would dislike seeing Price and his calm demeanor on another squad. I could see myself still rooting for Price if he were traded. Not so much Subban.