IN THE HEARTS OF MEN

the fact that we drafted him and he was on the verge of being a UFA after school is a loophole enough. we should be able to retain his rights for the same amount of time as chl players post schooling...

great news... didnt want to lose this prospect. suprised this loophole didnt get fixed in the new cba

with armstrong out indefinitly (leg/ hip?) we do need another bottom 6 player. torres could be option

i was one who thought tinordi would stick with the team this year... i was wrong... i was right that jagr could be had for nothing though! it seems the value of UFA rentals has significantly dropped over years past. just think how UFA's went for multiple picks and prospects as late as last year. (kaberle for a 1st, 2nd and 1st round prospect in the BOS run)! the more i ponder moves the more i just want to stay pat. who was the last major rental player to help win a cup? kaberle? ray bourque? it seems this move although it happens every year very rarely produces Lord Stanley! i know theres been alot of suttle moves, but i'm talking big trade deadline moves of the iginla, sundin, kovalchuk type? im sure im forgetting someone?

when you consider what postions need to be improved up front and what it will take, i think we have to look at gionta, DD and galchenyuk's spots! that is the only way we are improving this team right now! i am in no way suggesting getting rid of galchenyuk (unless of course stamkos tavares nugent hopkins or eberle etc. is coming if you get my drift.) but his contract is easily managible! if you think sitting him or sending him down in order to improve the team right now is going to hurt his development thats crazy talk. kids gonna be great no matter what. the only question is how soon? are we worried about burning a year? that stuff takes care of itself longterm...... plex, ryder, patch, gallagher, prust, eller, and armstrong moen and halpern are all playing well in there roster spot in relation to wage/ age/ production and moves to upgrade them would not be significant enough when condidering the compensation needed to do so. DD's size for a center will always be in question as is the captains size and points contribution compared to salary! galchenyuk is a super talent but is one year behind gallagher and it shows.... people dont agree with me as he shows this super talent in flashes but he is our weakest link in the top 9 right now!! Can we really upgrade our 4th line considering the costs? moen and armstrong have been exactly what we want and through the media (24CH etc.) it seems armstrong is a real character guy in the dresser and is hab fan at heart! halpern is a prototype of what a 4th line center should be.. moen is defensively sound and has been a staple on our PK.. so what do we do? with bourque's return on the left i think the habs are already deep enough.... so unless we are going 2 for 1 in order to upgrade we should stay status quo! character in the room is good.... team has played well through injuries... w edont need a name brand right now as this team is built on "team" with that said, always look to improve at the right price............... jagr for nothing we should do and with gainey and co. advising it could actually happen.....

absolutely nothing except prust is a way better hockey player right now... and its not "if he's cold" ... he is cold! im not advocating he be up there long term. i just think he needs to take a step back, take a week off to reset his mental state of mind. it will remind him that this isnt the OHL. talent alone aint gonna cut it cause everyone is talented in the NHL! its who wants it most who will fight for every inch of the ice... see brendon gallagher. plus as it stands white has got a hurt back so we might never be fully fit! are we all really worried about stunting this guys growth? geez MT just benched PK for a dumb move. guy turns around and bags a brace. its the thinking that he is obligated a spot because hes Alexxxx Galchenyukkkk! when in turn he should earn and fight for one. this is the same bad thinking that earns him the #1 star in a game that he has no business being except for fan fare. we were all up in arms when Eller got a handful of games and in hindsight it was the best thing for him

dont think MT is going to break up patches and DD and then demote Gallagher to the 4th line. rene will more then likely push armstrong down to the 4th with moen. and he'll probably just play on the 3rd to see if theres any sparks with eller. but ideally you would move ryder there so everybody is on their proper wing its gonna get tricky when prust gets back as well as diaz if tinordi continues to excel gallchenyuk sits for a bit i think as i stated in another thread

galchenyuk is not wayne gretzky or sidney crosby or malkin as an 18yr old . yes he is a blue chip player but the fact is he's the weakest player in our top 9 right now. he is looking lost out there and has for the better part since gallagher was taken off that line. bourque's re-entry will surely remove dumont from the line up and return armstrong to the 4th. but in no way is prust going to the 4th line. he will not be demotted by MT. He will play in upwards of 18minutes a game and cannot get those minutes on the fourth line. he will most definitly be playing with eller on the 3rd. No 18 yr old rookie should be granted a free ride when there struggling. it sends all the wrong messages to the player, and in fact can hurt their growth. im not suggesting we send him down to the minors. im saying when prust gets re-inserted and the habs get healthy. someone will have to come out and galchenyuk is the one who is struggling most. he simply comes out of the line up when the team is at full strength and he works on a lot of the little things that are lacking in his game. in the meantime this team (you know the one fighting for 1st overall) goes about there business. the first chance MT gets to merit his re-insertion, galchenyuk gets another chance. he plays well (ala Eller) everybody is happy... thats championship teams my friends. inner competition! Just because he was 3rd overall means nothing. the truth is he is being completly out played by gallagher and to a lesser extent tinordi (even if for just a handful of games.) i cant see any other player in the top 9 that should go to the presser before him. and MT wont juggle all 4 lines. there is nothing wrong with letting the kid sit and actually practice and earn his spot back. I guarantee he'll be a better player for it. he's played alot of hockey this season already with sarnia then USA and now the habs, add in his extensive rehab regimen from his ACL over the summer and you got a tired kid!!! * i moved ryder so as to give him a chance on his good wing!

of course trades aside***

is this the 2nd straight game eller led centers in ice time? or the first? any how this kid is growing by the game. at this rate he'll be our #1 in no time. his poise with the puck is staggering compared to last season (although he showed flashes at times). kudos to MT for allowing the kid to finally start to blossom right before our very eyes. is it me our does he play similarilly to peter foresberg in stlye (just not even close to as clinical offensively) patch DD gallagher ryder plex gio bourque eller galchenyuk arm white moen bourque ple gio patch DD gallagher prust eller ryder armstrong white moen galchenyuk sits when healthy. he is the odd man out right now in the top 9. he hasnt been to good and he needs a break from action to reset his mentality, he needs to start driving to the net with and without the puck! id also like to see tinordi play his left side with PK as he gets more games in. tinordi is staying with this team make no mistake about it, with hamilton's season virtually over he sticks.... markov emelin tinordi PK gorges diaz will be our line up going into the playoffs boullion kaberle weber bold= puck mover our defense is looking really deep right now. they move the puck out of our zone with ease it seems overall

lets agree to agree.... we won.. dumont didnt hurt us... he didnt really help us... all is peachy... blunden is better!

so white is 53.9% plex 49.5% eller 49.1% DD 47.5% Gally 44% (now at wing) (dumonts 2 games doesnt count). im not a number cruncher but plex and DD compared to the other 60 #1/2C can't be good in comparison! to me plex under 50% is no where near what a number 1C should be. so statistically he is #2 on our team at the dot but the fact he takes the most important faceoffs during games like that first PP and PK face off in there respective zones as well as the FO in the biggest moments of our games and loses that faceoff more often then he wins it is the sole reason "he" needs to improve and drives our number down

not sure i see the out playing you see this year. besides the 8 points dumont has on blunden, they are the both plus players on a bad team. they take the same amount of shots as each other but blunden hits more and has dropped the gloves blunden also has more PPG career wise then dumont mind you just by a hair .49 to .41 the big difference to me is blunden is like 6-7 inches taller like 35 pounds heavier and is a much faster/stronger skater who doesnt get bullyed off the puck with many more NHL games experience. he made the team out of camp this season and didnt get a chance to dress once before being sent down. he should of been called up first. just saying.... dumont's stats in now his 3rd full AHL season do not merit top 6 nhl minutes by any stretch. and that is his AHL role. with prust out of the lineup blunden seemed the way better choice to me to fill in. granted we won both games so kudos to MT for the call rather then me... merely an armchair GM i dont think even in hamilton, dumont's play was worthy of a call up even if just to see what he has to offer...

have to agree here. dumont is not better then white. in no way. i saw nothing to merit dumont coming close to top 9 minutes. when prust returns he will be sent down. im still surprised MT went with dumont while blunden sits

when it comes to faceoffs its pleks that drives our numbers down. he's our #1C and is horrible at faceoffs. its like he doesnt even try at times... i'd like to see him change his approach to a more guy carbo peter zezel yannick perrault style of face off winning by holding the stick with the low hand backwards and really close to the blade. digging in those skates and winning through his legs! hes got the body frame to do it. he just needs to commit to improving and not just going through the motion.

-i think us losing to philly in 2010 wasnt so much that we got bullyed around by a bigger tougher team then merely playing back to back gruelling 7 game series and losing our best and most important player in markov. the run was over. philly was a better team in 2010! -clowe even with 0 goals i would still be interested in.... buy low sell high boys -am i the only one who thinks that prust is in fact very talented and doesnt belong on the 4th line? i like prust with eller and gally and he should be playing 14-16 minutes a game. those are not 4th line minutes - i dont think TO and bos have given us the most trouble either. we played boston twice and should of came out with 4 points if not for a 3 minute meltdown. against TO the last game was more indicitive of how we can play against them. i thought OTT gave us the most trouble so far!

mikko is a pipe dream! we would have to part with a significant roster player not 2 prospects and our smallest center. minny would be asking for one of the rookies and a pick or patches/ PK in that deal. -clutterbuck although on injured reserve right now would be a target for me on the 4th line. to replace moen he is one of the biggest hitters in hockey. -a package to get clowe from SJ would be nice as well. a big 200+lb boy who is tough. there isnt many of those guys around though.

ryder was brilliant with boston at least against the habs. also, id think it makes perfect sence from a kid out east to play for the habs(the most popular team out there) and boston (the 2nd most popular ive heard)? i think MB made this move himself. he wants a young team with solid vets not ageing ones!! as he analyzed the Cole situation and said "hmmm guy is struggling after 11 months off and soon to be age 35. i gotta give him 4.5 for more 2 years. he also complains about everything... i have an oppurtunity to shed his salary and bring back a hot goalscorer to help my team now on the scoreboard. we dont need help in the hits catagory as we have alot of guys who throw the body. if it doesnt work out i hit the UFA market which is loaded. MB has confidence in his abilities and has built a large staff of ex players who know people.... any blackhawk UFA's he might be interested in?

i believe we are better short term as well as long term with this move... although cole throws twice the hits, ryder is more defensively aware in his own zone. i think MT and MB are looking for someone to sullitfy the eller/galchenyuk line and realize that cole's style doesnt gel to well and we have to split the kids for now. they need a sniper not a crash and banger on that line and they may actually be right when you analyze them as group. just taking last years stats alone its fair to say they are equal, trading stats on hits for plus/minus. cole held all the cards and said he was done.... now we deal with ryder's UFA status and add a pick (cole was free any how). This is a sideways move with the potential to benefit us tremendously this year. Everybody thinks we are worse off short term, but we gotta be better. Cole has been non existent this season on one of the top teams in hockey to date (and we can all forget last seasons heroics on a horrible team as just that LY!) . we are playing good hockey over almost 20 games now, we just took dallas joint leading scorer and best sniper of last season..... did i mention he's also our new points leader and is currently on a 7 games point streak(9). forget all the cap implications as clearly its a no brainer for the future..... yes were smaller now but we could actually be more balanced and prolific? i think ryder finds the back of the net tomorrow in TO...... a season for optimism boys........

gainey is advisor of dallas and cole was his and PG's guy which made this deal easier. the fact they threw in a 3rd is laughable.. gainey always throws in the extra's.... cole was a hab fan growing up, with that said his american family not sold on the whole bi-lingual school system and all as the biggest reason for this trade. Personal family reasons are my bet.

i think so... the habs have been a solid unit these last 2.5 weeks. we havent lost a regulation game in a while and could easily be on a 8 gammer right now. why mess with all lines right now? i think eller and galchenyuk can be just as fruitious with ryder. gally needs someone to finish off his slick passes and ryder could be that guy. cole is a north south guy who drives the net when at his best as ryder slides into the middle finding holes to sit in and look for set ups. bourque will likely re insert into his spot with plex and gionta upon his return. since prust and his characteristics are suited for any line on our team, this makes for the easiest way to (re-introduce) ryder to the line up hence "the early line up" and likely start vs the leafs.

Early lines are: prust plex gionta patch DD galagher galch Eller and mike the snip moen white armstrong bourque* blunden noki*

cant wait to watch the next 24ch weekly..... interesting to see how this childhood hab fan from new foundland(i think) takes to his 2nd stint with les glourieux! ryder back after a memorable stint with our most beloved enemy.... Boston. he even swept us in the playoffs as he was probably there best forward in that series.

i went with the 5 people key to our resurgence so far this season.

1) MT- was a good coach in his first stint with us. Rookie mistakes are exactly that... rookie mistakes. He has clearly shown the ability to learn and move forward. He was a good coach in Pitt as well. Learn and move forward! we are playing a speed game, with high pressure and quick transition counters. he has basically taken the players we have and built the best system to make them successful rather then forcing a system/ style that isnt meant for "our" team as in years past. FIrst test: We lost 3 in a row, 2 collapses and the last being a drumming to TO. We responded by winning 3 straight ourselves, 2 in Florida (where we've been better at tanning then hockey in recent times) and one against a struggling philly team who we've struggled against as well. MT has done nothing to show he will have an epic collapse in the near future. i for one think he's going to get better as the season progresses he's still young, not a rookie but still treading the 500 games mark. next test: dealing with injuries (gallagher) the board was screaming for guy boucher once upon a time.... what's he done since his TB move? nada 2)Carey Price- he has now matured since his early career whoas and is emerging as the premier goalie in the universe. is there a goalie at only 25yrs old that has his career stats all time? his presence is so ever reassuring to the team and we can win any given night with him in the nets! any doubters of the habs this season should be eating a handful of crow having clearly underestimated how we possess i believe the best player in the world at his position and arguably top 5 player in the world overall (Gainey's best move: keeping Price and dumping Halak for sure) 3) Andrei the Giant- the general of the PP and leader of the defence is back and has brought a calmness to the back line. no longer relying on the kid PK to carry the load. he has brought a ripple effect to the D core. everyone from his partner emelin to diaz have elevated there game this season. Pk no longer is our #1 and can now focus on maturing into a future Norris candidate thanks to marky's return.... Welcome back Mr. Markov, and heres to healthy 2013 4) B. Prust- oh man how i like this guy! what a pick up by MB. He is the real deal! nothing the habs have seen since Keane left. tough as nails. fights every minute of every game to win. a heart and soul player who will do anything for his family "our habs"! 1 more guy like that and the sky's the limit for this team..... clutterbuck or clarkson anybody? 5) plekanec- all this talk of the rookie's and bourque but everybody forgets the habs most consistent forward over 5 years now. saddled with all the defensive responsibilities as well as scoring, he has stepped up to the table again. with a healthy line up and consistent line mates he's reminding us all how he is one of the best 2 way centermen in all of hockey. if only he can step up that horrible faceoff game which drags him down immensely