Zowpeb

While I agree that MOST analysts on our national mediums are brutal Leaf protaganists...McGuire is not a Leaf fan. And yes, everyone will now have a book on Huet(and Ward, and Lundqvist, and Thomas, etc). The difference IMHO is that Huet is 31 and has bounced back and forth from the minors for years. I hope to god that Huet does well, but I'll be surprised if he comes close to repeating his numbers...especially because if he does for a full year he'll own the Vezina. Sure, Aebischer is a good back-up but he's just that...a back-up. I don't see why it's worth getting upset about those comments. As for the size concerns, the Habs are fine. The smaller players are all hard working spark plugs and there is more size now then in the past decade. The real concern is durability...will Lats hold up for a full season? Will Koivu, Bouillon, Samsonov, Higgins, Plekanec all be able to stay healthy? There are enough smaller players that injuries and depth could become a problem if many occur at once... The Habs are depending on 3-4 guys who either are rookies or have part of a years experience. At least 2 will be in our top 6 forwards. We have a goalie who came out of no where at age 31. We don't have a stellar D corps...solid but not spectacular. We don't have a prime time scorer but depend on a balanced attack. I can easily see why analysts look at us with concern... Having said that, I think Huet/Aebischer will be okay, I think our D is solid and I think our scoring will be up. Personally, I think the Habs will finish between 4-6 in the conference...but if 2 of our rookie/sophmore guys choke/slump, and Huet/Aebischer is an issue we're in big time trouble.

I figure: Probable winner: Malkin - even if he misses 20 games... Sleeper Pick: Tony Salmelainen - When Ruutu does his best Eric Staal impression, plays with his former junior line-mate who also happened to be the finnish league MVP last year and had over a point per game in a tough Finnish SM liiga.

I still don't get people putting Latendresse on the 2nd line...I still believe the organization would be stupid to keep him this year. I'd rather we send him to junior and improve our chances of having him signed for cheap during his prime years then let him spend 2 years learning in the NHL and being forced to sign him to big $$$ at the beginning of his prime. I'm still hoping we move Ribeiro...hopefully in a deal for a D upgrade and a depth F. If the lord smiles on us and we move his lazy, over-rated, arse then: Higgins-Koivu-Kovalev Samsonov-Plekanec-Ryder Perezhogin-Bonk-Johnson Murray-Begin-(from deal) If we are unfortunate enough to be stuck with Ribeiro then I'd do this: Higgins-Koivu-Kovalev Samsonov-Ribeiro-Ryder Plekanec-Bonk-Johnson Murray-Begin-Perezhogin

The original post compares Lats to the Brassard. And no, Lats is not 2x the player that Perezhogin is...could he be? Yes. Is he currently? No. Your comparing the two players when Lats hasn't even played a pro hockey game...and all you've probably seen are Perez's games against NHL level competition. For the record, I am not comparing Lats to Spezza in terms of talent. Just pointing out that letting guys develop with proper playing time and low pressure is crucial...AND that we don't need to lose the kid to UFA before he even hits his peak. Ottawa was VERY smart in how they handled Spezza...if they had brought Spezza up when everyone wanted they would be paying boatloads for him now and probably couldn't have re-signed Redden this year...

IMHO you do not rush anyone from the CHL but the uber prospects like Crosby. I never said the Canadiens would keep him. The fans are not the organization and I'm debating with fans. I'm stating my opinion on why I think it would be stupid to even consider it as many fans here are...I believe that many arguments for him staying are biased because he's a french kid and the fans are homers. Toronto/Ottawa fans are no different in that respect. Guess what, there are probably at least 2-3 guys in our system that are higher rated prospects. Some of whom are even closer to warranting regular NHL duty. But most of what I read from fans is how Lats should be on the team... From all reports I've read, and the games I've seen, the kid needs work on his skating, and needs to show he can play consistently for long minutes. He certainly shouldn't be doing this with limited time in the NHL... Spezza is a prime example of a kid who spent time in the minors, worked on his game and is now a real superstar. He was/is also MUCH more talented then Lats. If Spezza came up earlier like many wanted he wouldn't be as effective today AND he would've been a FA by now and Ottawa would've probably lost him, or be paying through the nose to keep him. Spezza is a prime example of a kid who spent time in the minors, worked on his game and is now a real superstar. He was/is also MUCH more talented then Lats. If Spezza came up earlier like many wanted he wouldn't be as effective today AND he would've been a FA by now and Ottawa would've probably lost him, or be paying through the nose to keep him.

All I can say to those that think we need to sign Lats is "wow, glad you don't run the team". I am shocked that people believe we should bring a kid in, who is very likely not ready, and put him on the 3rd or 4th line. Who in their right mind thinks its a good idea to take a good young prospect and stunt their development by giving them 10-12 minutes a night? Who in their right mind wants to see the organization sign this kid and put him in the NHL only to see him owed a boatload of cash(assuming he does develop with such minimal time) by the time he's 25/26...because bringing him up now would make him a very young free agent. The team needs to let him play the year out in junior and then next year he can play his FIRST pro season in the AHL with a late season call-up(assuming he's doing well). This way he gets 18-20 minutes a game and actually develops... I am also getting the impression that many want him on board because he's a young Quebec kid... Perezhogin, Higgins, Pleks, Kosty, and likely Grabovsky are all ahead of Lats right now IMHO...sure Latendresse may end up being the most valuable of all of them(MAYBE) but to rush a prospect from the QMJHL is DUMB.

Why would the team want to bring Lats in now and risk losing him as a free agent right as he's about to enter his prime? Face it, he's not going to be a 90 point, impact, rookie...he'd come in and struggle and learn. Let the kid get to the AHL, play a year there or at least let the organization have the ability to move him there if he struggles. When Lats is ready to truly contribute in a meaningful way then he should get the call up... Perezhogin is a good young player with upside and PRO experience. I don't think he's got "star" potential but I do think he could be a 50-70 point guy who is effective at both ends of the ice. I do think he's almost ready to perform at that level now...

I fail to understand the reasoning that we need to bring in French players. There are no good reasons as to why this is important. The team's attendance is very strong without Francophone stars, there are also probably more Habs fans that aren't french at all when you look across the country(and world). Sooo...what does being French have to do with anything other then appease the local media who might have someone to speak to in their own language. Woopdedoo.

I love it when a clown like Ribeiro responds with name calling and then contradicts themselves all through their response by saying they won't respond anymore but do respond to every part of my post. 1) Media presence doesn't mean living close to a bloody station you moron. It means that the media is presented specifically to a demographic and culture. There can be no doubt that basketball is marketed to young black men/kids more then anyone else. Hence, more of them play the sport on a percentage basis...meaning more of the top black athletes play basketball then many other sports that white kids play. Christ, it ain't difficult to understand... 2) You do realise that regional evolution takes centuries right? So I don't give a shit that Ridnour and Roy are from the same state...I'm saying that a black guy from Kenya likely isn't going to make a great basketball player but can run forever...same as why you see so many northern european white guys dominating strong man competitions. The regional deviations, over many centuries, has meant that people from a region have developed a certain way...has NOTHING to do with skin colour you ######ing ass clown. 3) Your first comment in this thread was this: "First rule in basketball: Don't pick the white guy." No where does it say white american guy...you can't change mid-thread when you realise you actually sounded like a tool. So go ahead and repeat yourself again and again...everyone knows your full of shit and back tracking. BTW, Ribeiro sucks...lol

Yeah, loads of white kids play in the NCAA but there are about 5-7 major sports that many white kids spread their time across. How many young black men grow up playing anything other then Basketball and Football? Almost all of the top black athletes are focused on primarily 2 sports. Really, the point is that it doesn't matter one bit what colour a guy is...you draft the best talent available. This year that happened to be a white kid from Italy...so live with it. The fact is that there is no reason to believe that black athletes are better basketball players because they are black. To ignore all the other factors that are present is incredibly ignorant and borderline prejudiced. There are economic conditions, cultural and social, media presence, available opportunity, regional evolutional deviations in the species(ie, size, weight), etc...all of these will have a much greater impact on what sports certain groups excel in. What's funny is that in North America it seems to be a division of race due, I believe, to the level of marketing and media towards those ethnicities. In Europe I think it's more about geographical regions...but I could be wrong. Consider, if black athletes were so much better then wouldn't the African nations dominate the World Cup every year? Wouldn't the US continue to dominate international basketball(where they continue to lose ground to "white" Euro teams)? Face it, race and skin colour have nothing to do with it...

Bleh. Money better spent elsewhere. Let the Leafs sign the old useless players.

That is funny and largely a myth...we are all products of our environment. That's not to say that there aren't some differences in muscular structure across people from different regions but again, that's more an environment issue then anything. There are more black players in the NBA because of the style of game, how it's glorified in their culture, etc. Same as baseball and hispanics. Same as hockey and Canadians. Same as soccer and Brazilians, Italians, etc. And so on. It's pretty obvious that socio-economics and regional evolution play probably a bigger part in this then any specific skin colour or other dumb arse generalization about an overall race.

Garbajosa is a 3/4 and it is not very likely he will see time at the 5. IMHO this clouds the situation even further...with Graham, C-Vil, Garbajosa able to see decent minutes at the 3; Bosh and C-Vil able to see time at the 4; Nesterovic, Bosh and Sow at the 5 the Raps really don't need EITHER of what is widely speculated as their top 2 choices in Bargnani and Aldridge. There really aren't enough minutes to go around the 3/4/5 spot with 3 starters and 2-3 decent back-ups already in place for those positions. I will be the first to say draft the best player available but the Raps really need a guard...too bad none of them are really 1st pick material. I believe the Raps will draft Bargnani(7'1" and 245lbs according to their Gherardini and he should know). He has the skill set, size and talent to learn a post game. He's very athletic for a 7 footer and I do buy into the notion that he's played more quality basketball then NCAA guys in an 82 game season. Then I hope the Raps make another deal. Maybe Graham(hate to lose him but we need to clear a F spot) and a 2nd to get a good PG in the 1st round. I hope also hope Colangelo finds a way to move Mike James for some value and finds a way to dump Alvin Williams contract.

I gotta believe that it comes down to Kostsytsin, Danis, Locke, Latendresse and Chipchura as the next call-ups. Danis has the edge if we move Aebischer...otherwise I think Kostsytsin is the next guy to make the club.

lol lazy26...I just reread that and had to laugh at myself. I guess I should have expanded that to say I'm not a giant homer like many francophones are with regards to Lecavalier. Kaos, 4 days ago? I work a lot and post when I can. If I have to dredge up a 4 day old post to respond to someone taking a shot at me I will...if you can't remember that far back then stop smoking the green.

These were Kaos responses and I'm too lazy to break it all down according to how he broke down mine so: 1) I don't really care if Lecavalier won a cup and Thornton didn't. This is a team sport and only goalies, or era changing players(a la Gretzky, Richard, etc) can carry teams on their backs to Stanley Cups. Frankly, I wouldn't want Thornton either...but I'll give the guy credit as being heads above Lecavalier. It's not even something you should attempt to argue. Any further comments you made about comparing T-bay vs. Boston's teams is garbage...look what Boston has without Thornton. 2) I also don't much care if you think I know little about hockey...I'm pretty certain I know a fair bit about the game AND I'm not a giant homer... 3) I never said Aebischer and Ribeiro straight up...I said they were almost worth enough and that we'd have to include a pick/prospect. If we're throwing around young players in the "new NHL" let's remember that they carry A LOT of cheap, good, value to a team like T-bay. 4) Yeah, because that goalie is the answer to all their problems...lmao...and you said I know little about hockey?? There is no way that they can put their entire season on this goalies back and feel confident...and yes, I do think the guy has some talent, but no one makes this move with the talent they have, at the age of their talent, and expects it to pan out. Francophone Montreal fans go crazy for Lecavalier but he's not worth trading half our depth, prospects and picks for...but hey, don't take my word...I apparently don't watch enough hockey to know that one good C can get you a Stanley cup. Just ask Forsberg this year he's got it locked up...

I would wonder if it would be difficult for Robinson to be an assistant to a less experienced head coach in Carbo... Don't much care for Tremblay...never did... I could see Jarvis being a good assistant coach. He knows the young players, has their respect and knows how to communicate with them well. With how many young players from our AHL team will be coming through(Higgins, Pleks, Kosty, Zhog, Locke, Danis, etc) it might be a good move for him and the team.

The most over-rated player by a Montreal fan...EVER...is Vincent Lecavalier. Damn, this is perhaps one of the worst threads I have ever read. I'm like a deer in the headlights and I just couldn't stop reading it...jebus help me. There is no way the Habs will trade 1-2 NHL READY prospects(Zhog, Higgins, Kosty, Pleks) in combination with Aebischer, Ribeiro and Souray and/or a pick and/or Zednik or whatever other hallucination people have on their video games. Enough of that crap already... Vinny is worth LESS then Joe Thornton...by a good bit too...and I'd love to hear why people think that they are worth the same or that any deal for Lecavalier should be similar to the Thornton deal...LMAO. Aebischer, Ribeiro is almost enough by themselves...a prospect or pick may have to be included but not as much as people are droning on about. Notes on Lecavalier: He has had over 70 points only TWICE in his career. He has only ever finished in the + side ONCE in his career. He is 6'4" and 207lbs Notes on Thornton: Has finished with over 90 points twice and over 70 points 2 more times Has finished in the + side 5 times in his career His is 6'4" and 227lbs Seriously, the hometown Montreal fans need to pull their head out of their arse and quit sounding like Leaf fans. I know Vinny is french and a hometown boy, but this is ridiculous. He's a GOOD player, not a GREAT player and any trade offer will reflect that.

This team can't add too many more young players...with Higgins, Plekanec, Perezhogin, Ryder, Komisarek, Kostsytsin all likely on the squad next year that's potentially 5 of our top 9 forwards with less then 3 years NHL experience. Not to mention that we have a few other good young forwards that will deserve a shot soon in Locke, Latendresse and Chipchura. This team needs 2 good forwards and 1 "top 4" d-man...

My prediction: Bulis will end up in Colorado...and he'll play on a line with Hejduk. I think Bulis is quite expendable and I'd rather see us spend that money elsewhere. IMHO these guys should be in our top 9 forwards for sure: Kovalev Koivu Ryder Higgins Perezhogin Plekanec Kostsytsin Between Ribeiro, Bonk, Zednik, our prospects and the FA crop we can find 2 more quality talents...personally I think this team needs 1 more sniper and a true 2nd line C. The savings on Bulis' can go there. I actually think this team has a very good foundation but that it does need some serious re-tooling. Another sniper, a good 2nd line C with size and a top 4 d-man...and that MIGHT get us deep in the playoffs if our goaltending is good enough. Without those things we're a 1st round exit waiting to happen next year.

Personally, I think the team should look at spending it's money shoring up our D. I'm okay with an Aebischer/Huet platoon in net if we have a great D corps...I'd like to see our rookies/young guns get their true shots at contributing up front. Higgins, Plekanec, Perezhogin, Kostsitsyn all deserve legit shots next year. With Koivu, Kovalev, Zednik and Ryder that could/should be 3 very good lines. With Chipchura, Latendresse, Locke, Danis all possibly deserving some minutes with the big club too. So, most of our money should be spent giving Markov, Komisarek and Souray some real D partners. Add in 2 $3-4 million dollar d-men and we'd have a great group on D...probably rivalling Calgary's.

It's important to note that most teams/businesses will hedge their exchange rates. The Habs likely have hedged their purchases of US dollars (for paying salaries) at a lower rate then the current exchange. While the improved Canadian dollar certainly helps the organization is probably still going at around an exchange of .78-.8...much better then years previous but still below the current exchange. If Gillette has indeed said he's losing money he's lying. Plain a and simple. The organization is probably making 25% more in revenue, then 4 years ago, even with a hedged exchange rate of .78...and if we're still losing money at 39million in payroll, with a 25% increase in revenues, for a team that leads in attendance, merchandise, owns it's arena, etc, then it's the worst run business unit in the NHL.

Well, maybe I should've posted this in the game thread but I figured it would get lost...and this is about more then just that game and includes some general comments. 1) Craig Rivet sucks donkeys balls. Jason Allison absolutely BLEW by him 2-3 times last night...what the hell is that? I've seen 13 years olds skate faster then Allison so I don't know what that says about Rivet. We need to trade him faster then Superman on speed pills. 2) Worst officiated match I've seen all year last night...I was at the game and even the Leaf fans couldn't believe how bad it was...'nuff said when the worst homer fans in the world agree with their arch-nemisis habs fans. 3) Koivu has been non-existant lately. 4) Kovalev is crazy good on the puck. Wow doesn't begin to describe it... 5) I friggin hate Ribeiro... 6) I'm hoping Gainey is getting a clear perspective on players so he knows what changes he wants to make. I'm hoping that Ribeiro, Rivet, Bonk and Theodore are all gone by next season... 7) I still hate Leaf fans, their team, their uniforms, the MLSE, Quinn, Domi, Tucker, etc. The fans at the ACC are either corporate snobs or trailer park trash...lol

Get ready to vote folks. I hope everyone is getting ready to kick the Liberals out of office. I'm hoping for the Conservatives myself but if you feel the need to vote left wing, and give your money away(lol), then vote NDP. I'm sick of watching these arsehole Liberals take our money and watch the apathy of our country towards the theft. Please don't use the tired standby of the "devil you know vs. the devil you don't" argument either. If someone does a bad job they get fired...the Liberals have had 3 chances and have done a worse job then most would have imagined with all of the scandals. No one can be as bad as them...and frankly the other parties actually have run better campaign platforms this time around...unlike the Liberal smear tactics. VOTE ANYTHING BUT LIBERAL DAMMIT. sorry, I just watched cpac for 2 hours straight...lol

LMAO!