xXx..CK..xXx

If we were to resign Markov, it would/should have been to be at the very least a top 4 (if not 2) dman. If he wasn't capable of handling that role, smart choice to let him walk. The only issue I have with that is that I'm not fully convinced whatsoever that he wouldn't have been able to be a top 4 dman and secondly it wasn't the initial plan not to resign him. Since we were going to resign him, I don't believe we let him walk due to the reasons we are discussing. Markov as a top 2-4 could (have) add(ed) huge value to this team.

Edmonton doesn't have Desharnais anymore either and I wanted him traded for years but for all Desharnais did do for us it seems as though it (Davidson) turned out to be a pretty underwhelming return in the end. I have a feeling there are some Edmonton fans who don't mind seeing this but with the Habs, I rarely saw it, and he never seemed to really get going here.

Dessslaurierssss

Nice burst by Byron. 1-0 Habs.

Alright well you can continue to debate your theory or ask yourself why no other team paid the second rounder for him. I would have loved some help last deadline as well but it was the worst deadline in recent memory. People also would have complained had we done nothing at all. We can ask if it was better to acquire Ott, King and Martinsen or nothing at all and that would be a more realistic comparison than Dwight King or Radim Vrbata. If there's a mistake made there, 15 other teams made it as well and it's very minute, not the difference between winning and losing a series. Many analysts actually had the Habs as having done well with what was available. We toughened up. If anyone thinks that Ott, King or Martinsen were brought in to score goals, they weren't so apples are being compared to oranges here. Again, if you don't like any of the moves, we can ask if it would have been better to do nothing at all. Perhaps it would have, as I could just as easily plead the case you are making by stating that Andrighetto would have scored one more goal for us against the Rangers had he stayed on our team. Again, hypothetical based on many factors. Same as Radim Vrbata, Hanzal or Eaves.

No, it's really the other side of the argument that makes no sense. Radim Vrbata wasn't even traded last year which can mean one of a few things. The asking Price was too high, no playoff team viewed him as a help to their contention, or Phoenix wasn't trading him. He was only "available" for the sake of argument, not because Bergevin was the only GM who didn't acquire him. We're fooling ourselves if we think the Habs are the only team who only needed "one more goal". The deadline crop, especially the players who actually got moved was crap last year.

The situation did remind me a little bit of Grabovski years later because they were both skilled players. It's probably no coincidence that I've brought up both players in this thread. I guess I didn't really dislike Ribeiro at any point, come to think about it. But he had his moments, like faking getting hurt against Boston. But I guess it is instances like that are what build a true rivalry and I appreciate the emotion. There were a few times I felt as though he embellished against us after the trade, but that was just part of his demeanor.

Looks like it was the case and other players who had assists that game included Plekanec, Higgins and Ribeiro, from what I can remember. I think there was one more. So how about Ribeiro? Has his name not come up simply because people already hated him while he was on our team? I think his name deserves a mention as there were flashes of him having some skill early on with us.

Byron battles, Lehkonen battles, Shaw battles, Weber battles, Benn battles, Schlemko battles, Alzner battles, Gallagher battles... Carr battles, Deslauriers would battle if he could... As for never quit mentality, you could add Pacioretty, Galchenyuk, Danault, Mete, Hudon to that list... Pacioretty and Galchenyuk have scored numerous huge goals for us over their career. Galchenyuk had something like 6 overtime goals last season and Pacioretty has daggered the Bruins more than enough times. As much as people like to criticize, those things have not magically disappeared this season. People confuse Pacioretty's style of play with "effort level" and Galchenyuk does give effort most games lately.

Nice save by Jerabek.

I was at the game that he scored his first goal. Pretty sure it was against the then Phoenix Coyotes. Now to look it up to see if I remembered correctly....

Make that 8 (6-7 for Detroit) and I'm getting frustrated here.... Price is dominating

Byron needs to get better at his two on ones.... So do the 6 other players who have had one on either side ... Make that 7

I even stopped adding to it a few ears ago

Just saying, there are only a small handful of people preaching leadership and character on a constant basis (sarcastically or not) in relationship with the Habs. Just because the Habs made one trade for a guy with more experience and leadership than Subban doesn't mean it's all the Habs are preaching, or even an irrelevant thing to target. If you guys think we traded Holland for Cracknell for leadership and character then you're mistaken.... and it's it's supposed to be a joke, oh.

The Habs have great leadership on the back end and in net. I like Pacioretty more than most but it's up front where it's truly lacking. For whatever it would be worth...

Darcy Tucker for me as well. Recchi was my favorite player as a kid (bad era?) but I didn't think much of him when he was on the Bruins so he went down a few notches as well. I still remembered fond thoughts rather than negative ones when I first saw him yesterday but do agree that the reception for him wasn't very loud. I disliked Grabovski when he went to the Leafs as well. There seems to be a trend for me...

I'm fine with Bergevin being fired but I don't want to associate that with some emergency rebuild that many people are calling for. If a new GM were to come in, I would have the exact same expectations of them as I have of Bergevin right now. It's entirely possible that Bergevin screws up his next move but I don't think it's necessarily likely that he does. Any hypothetical proposals from people who don't like him seem to be unrealistic proposals that he wouldn't actually make such as Galchenyuk for Jerome Iginla. It's not likely that this type of move will be what actually happens. The point is that while Bergevin is here, it's not that I trust him, but I expect him to make a helpful move for our team. I also think it is possible that he can make a move to bolster the lineup. It's not really up to me when he gets fired. I would have likely done it prior to the season. Now that he's remained, I personally would give him the season to demonstrate what many thought would need to happen anyway (more moves) and then reassess in the off season. The main counterargument is that he's going to completely destroy the team if he's "allowed" to make any moves. This is not likely to happen. The second is that our prospect pool is thin. If people expact a new GM to come in and improve our prospect pool at the snap of a finger, that's only going to happen one way; by trading some of our key players for prospects and picks. Somewhat of a fire sale. This is the route I'm definitely not in for because it will involve even more years of mediocrity even if our new GM is "better". Playoffs or bust.

I'm going to use discussing your lack of confidence out loud as a way of jinxing the outcome today. You don't seem as confident as usual. The Habs might be in tough tonight!

While I can't argue against the fact that you make a great point, I was also going to add in my post that I didn't feel as though the trade deadline market was that strong last year. Some people wanted Hanzal, Stafford etc. and then other "solid" targets were players like Eaves. I have felt as though Bergevin has mishandled things in the past prior to that season but I don't blame him for the lackluster pool last year. Martinsen was also acquired for Andrighetto who no one outside myself (who really liked him) seemed to care about losing. Maybe you were with me there? Regardless, while I'm not disillusioned to where the team is now nor to how I felt about our terrible off season, it seems silly to worry that Bergevin would be given credit for making a good move. At this point, we should hope he does. If it saves his job, maybe it should have, maybe it shouldn't have. I'm definitely more in tune with the line of thinking that I'd want our team to definitely get better than Bergevin maybe getting fired if he stands put. And if he were to damage our team further? He should be canned as well. I do have a hard time envisioning any of the doomsday proposals that see a player like Galchenyuk going the other way for a bag of pucks though. That's where the irrational, phobia-like thoughts are making an appearance.

I agree that the fans shouldn't buy into the narrative that all is well in the world, even if we were to string along a few wins in a row. With that being said, I find it interesting that you call your stance a strange experience because I've continuously wondered how some people could wish that The Habs do poorly, even if it were to ensure that our GM gets fired. It's a tough position because while the overwhelming majority of fans (including myself) seem to either be fine with the idea of Bergevin being let go or even demand it, there are also those who would not be so quick to jump the gun. This entire season, Carey Price's game has been one of the major reasons for the team's lack of success. For the most part, this has been in a negative way. No one is questioning that the team has holes. Without Carey having played to full potential, however, it can be a bit of an illusion as to what this team needs and what level they really are. If Carey stays healthy and plays up to standards, we'll have a better idea of where the GM can g from here. This is were my personal viewpoint differs. Although Bergevin has had a bad track record in many people's minds, I wouldn't complain if he were to make a solid acquistion or two prior to the trade deadline. In my opinion, with 8 million in cap space, Begevin HAS to do something in order to even keep a job. If he does nothing, then he was largely responsible for the way this season played out as a result of off season negotiations as well as zen like over-patience throughout the season. I was not happy with his off season but to say that one hopes that our GM won't make any moves is a bit of an irrational thought or, phobia. Whether I like him or not, Bergevin has made decent acquisitons in the past and I'm not going to complain if he makes a good trade or two in season. My opinion is that if he really does deserve to be let go, it should happen regardless of him "attempting to save his job" with an acquisition or two. I cannot go as far as wishing harm on the team just to see him get fired. In no way does that seem better than even a fan who would "blindly follow Bergevin" simply because of a great in season move. We should all still want our team to progress or do well, otherwise we have an external agenda. My hope as a fan is to make the playoffs. I said prior to the season that this was the first year I didn't think we could contend, but I've also always thought the team would get better as the season went on with a better understanding of Julien's systems and was hopeful that we could make an addition or two to the squad since the cap is not an issue. None of that derives from blind faith in Bergevin. It does seem, however, that it is a bit dysmorphic to not give credit to Bergevin should he make some savvy moves to help the team. Whether it saves his job or not.

I get the feeling that since Joe is attending the game the Habs should win but I also get the feeling that some of the more quiet Sens as of late will get some points tonight... I do feel a little uneasy about the game. 4-3 Habs (my most common prediction against the Sens)

PK is old news and Bergevin made it darn hard to keep both Markov and Radulov when he signed Alzner. I would have signed Markov and Radulov and left Alzner out of the equation but PK is not a substantially better player than Weber. If there's another way to put it, think about how you would feel if someone would have said "this team would be a whole lot better with PK Rad Markov Sergachev". Sergachev will be compared with Drouin and PK will be compared with Weber. I understand that Weber is a dinosaur but as much as everyone loves to say it, PK Subban having been traded from the Habs is not the reason for our struggles this season. It seems as though many people seem to forget or overlook the fact that Subban had a sub-par year prior to him being traded. The truth is that despite that reality, Carey Price being injured is why our team struggled then. Why has our team struggled for the most part this season? Carey Price has struggled and been injured. I did not enjoy our off season but I'm still willing to admit that his play has been the number one reason for our struggles. In sum, Markov and or Radulov are truly the X factors when discussing who could have made our team better. Both Sergachev and Weber are certainly serviceable players. But in essence, we lost those two players for nothing.

Even though I agree we aren't a contender, I'd rather make the playoffs than throw in the towel. Even though sports are changing in general, I'm never as a fan, going to be able to start "hoping" 3 years down the road will be better if we "do things the right way" this season. I also feel as though the playoffs are attainable should we choose to go that route. Price needs to play better, Schlemko and Weber needs to get healthy, and we need to spend our available cap space in a positive manner.

5th or 6th worst (they are 5th worst in the league as of now)