The Chicoutimi Cucumber

JM is a fine coach but his track record as GM suggests it's the Jacques Demers syndrome. Keep him out of the GM's chair. I will say that, seeing as we ended up dumping a primary agitator against his coaching regime, and that the results have if anything been worse under his replacement, he probably should not have been fired in retrospect. For my part, I've become convinced that Gauthier needs to go. I don't think he's made any catastrophic individual errors, but the overall pattern is one of sheer reaction, confusion, and contradictory messages. We're at a similar point as when Gainey took over in the specific sense that the organization is crying out for a firm hand who can come in, implement a vision and have that sense of order and competence fliter downward through the whole structure. On Dregher's list, I suppose Julien BriseBois would be the most plausible candidate. Pierre Lacroix would certainly bring immense credibility however. Given that Riseborough was a total dud in Minnesota, he'd make a strange one.

This is absolutely 100% correct. It's amazing how many commentators miss this simple truth. In the run-up to Martin's firing, I kept pointing out that statistically we were a near-elite team in many other key aspects of the game: even strengh goals, PK, shots against. THE reason we were losing was the lack of power-play production. None of that stopped people from either calling for JM's head - pointlessly as it turned out - nor from drawing sweeping conclusions about how we just suck, all our players are garbage, etc. Willey is dead right that this team was built to win on special teams and goaltending. Martin understood this. Gauthier, apparently, did not. In allowing Wiz to walk and losing his gamble on Markov, Gauthier destroyed the key element that made this team above average. I thought Kaberle might help to staunch the bleeding, but he has 3 PP points for us in 17 games, so I guess I was wrong about that. (Interestingly, his 3 PP points came under Martin, which may or may not tell us that JM was on the right track). This team no doubt has other problems, but none of them are unmanageable if we can fix the black hole of the PP. That two coaches have failed to spark it suggests (as I insisted all along) we simply do not have the horses to execute a dangerous PP. The top priority in the offseason should be to make a determination on Markov's likelihood of coming back, and if the answer is 'no,' trying to bring a power-play quarterback in here. Even Bergeron would do.

But what's that based on? Gainey said he needed to step back. Considering the personal trauma he went through in addition to the terribly disappointing outcome of the team he patiently assembled (the 2009 team) and a brutal rupture with a life-long friend in Carbo, I think the probabilities support him doing what he said he was going to do, i.e., advise and play a role, but accept a reduced role. Beyond that, the confusion emitted from Gauthier's office this season is not what we were accustomed to seeing from Bob. (Not saying Gainey was a genius, just that he tended to operate with a sort of dogged, principled consistency, the exact opposite of what Gauthier has done this year). The blame here lies with either Gauthier or Molson IMHO.

That boggles the mind considering that the first thing JM addressed when he came on board was, you guessed it, the fact that our players were out of shape The more I think about it, the more I think the Martin firing - taken in context - is glaring evidence of incompetent management, either due to ownership interference or simply GM panicking. Think about it: -the team does well in most areas but the PP is awful. As a result, we're losing too many games. -the inadequacy of the PP is clearly tied to the departure of Wiz and the ongoing injury to Markov. The coach makes repeated, veiled reference to this need for blueline help when he identifies our 'rookie defence' as the reason for losses. -Gauthier FINALLY listens to the coach and goes out and gets a competent PP defenceman in Kaberle. -only a few games later, way before the Kaberle experiment can be said to have been given a fair shake, Martin is fired. -the reason for the firing, we learn, is that half the players were in rebellion against JM. Cammalleri is the most obvious culprit. -a month later, after the team has fired the coach because of the (apparently) Cammy-led rebellion, Cammy is traded. This is the very picture of managerial incoherence. If a coach tells you he needs player X, you don't acquire player X and then immediately fire the coach. If you fire a coach because of a player rebellion, you don't fire the coach to accommodate the players and then immediately trade key the player who you were trying to accommodate by firing the coach. The Habs have wasted a year in panicky 'reaction' mode. They need a new plan, a quick.

I agree 100%. I like some players more than others but ANYONE can play on the Habs if they help us to win. The thing is, a team in 'rebuild' mode that trades a franchise defenceman in his sophomore season is simply not a team that will win - unless the return is staggering. Rather, it's a team that has gone NY Islanders/Ballard Leafs stupid. When Houle was destroying my beloved Habs, I endured it because after 50 years of unbelievable success it seemed to be 'our turn' to hit rock bottom, the way all franchises eventually do. When Gainey came on board, the price seemed to have been paid and I rekindled at least some of my lost faith that the Habs could again become an elite franchise. We've flirted with that status here and there over the past few seasons, but never really attained it. I'm not sure that I can face a return to the dark ages of horrible management and blindingly idiotic decisions. If they trade Subban for anything other than a jaw-dropping return I'm gonna have to re-evaluate whether I can continue to invest so much passion into this team.

This. It is a sad testimony to our lack of confidence in the curent management that we're taking this rumour seriously. No team in its right mind would trade Subban. Period.

This is not happening...this is not happening...

Bah, he's on Columbus - possibly the only franchise with worse injury luck than us.

The most jaw-droppingly disgusting thing inflicted upon us by the so-called professional media was last season's continual dissing of Subban while that guttersnipe Brad Marchand, the most classless piece of sh*t on earth, continually got a pass because he wears the correct jersey. I called subliminal racism at the time and stand by that, but the most overt reason, of course, is that HNIC is a glorified chearleeding section for the Leafs and Bruins. The absence of either analysis or simply professionalism is repugnant to even minimal standards of sports journalism, let alone those we should expect from our disgrace of a national broadcaster. EDIT: while I'm ranting, one thing that has always bugged me was Boone's repeated calling for Carbo's head, and then immediately turning around and attacking Gainey for firing Carbo. I like Boone and would never call him a 'douche,' but that was looooow.

I like what you're saying here. I diagnosed the problem all right, that's for sure. But then again, my preferred solution - keeping Hammer - probably would have been an error for the reasons you state. Really, it all comes down to Markov. This season was destroyed for one main reason: the impotent power play caused by the loss of Markov and Wiz. (I won't reiterate all the data I cited repeatedly in defence of Martin - top-5 PK, top-10 even strength, top-5 shots against, etc.). That's partly why I argued that we should seriously push to keep Wiz, knowing it was a long-shot, but really feeling that a D with Markov AND Wiz would be world-class, and that Wiz would offer elite-level insurance should Markov not return. But again, had he been healthy, Markov alone would almost certainly have been enough. Add Campoli in as some extra depth and we'd have been just fine. Quite likely even stronger than last year. I also think it's unfair to say Campoli is a bust. He's suffered through one of those injury-ravaged 'lost seasons' that players sometimes endure. Had he been healthy from the start, he might have found his game, won the coaches' confidence, and offered some reasonable supplemental offence from the back end. So I can't really blame Gauthier for what he did. He thought Markov would be back. And if that had happened my ravings about Wiz would be forgotten. What I WILL say, though, is that the refusal even to suss out Wisniweski about what it would take for him to stay seems all too typical of the Habs. We had at least an outside chance of assembling a D that would be an absolute offensive juggernaut. Rather than turn every stone to make it happen, we placidly let the guy walk. I doubt Philly, Boston, or one of those other super-aggressive 'WE WANT TO WIN AT ALL COSTS' franchises would have done the same. They might not have been able to sign him but they sure as hell would have tried.

OK, OK, maybe he just has an awkward skating stride or something!! I must have been bananas.

Yeah and I'll bet some of those were from the same people who have been assailing Campoli as a worthless piece of crap The guy took 20 minutes a night last playoff with the Blackhawks, he's got some kind of value. 4th-5th, methinks.

Ha ha, well, we're a pretty fast group so maybe he just looked slow by comparison

Good game last night, yeah, but those praising Cunneyworth's 'system' should keep in mind those ridiculously long stretches where the Rangers cycled the puck in our zone seemingly at will. I have seldom seen the Habs so utterly outclassed in their own end for such sustained stretches of time - this wasn't the JM 'collapse around the slot and keep them to the periphery' thing, it was headless chicken stuff. Playing keepaway. So that's a bit unsettling.

Price was reportedly ecstatic NOT to be traded when the Halak deal went down. I think he likes Montreal and recognizes that for him to win here would be the ultimate. Unless he sees an organization in total disarray, not just right now but going forward, I think he'll want to lock up. This doesn't mean he won't drive a hard bargain though.

Well, I've been speculating for a while that there were serious chemistry problems on the team. When almost every important player on a team under-performs that is usually the case. It could be that Cammy was a key component of all that - certainly the evidence is pointing in that direction. This doesn't mean that we should deny that the return for Cammy was distressingly low. I may be in a minority, but the Bourque I saw looked motivated but unsettlingly slow. He's just a fraction away from being a plodder, I suspect.

Commandant is right. Players generally need time to find their sea-legs. Give Gomer a few games before organizing lynch mobs; but for the record I thought he looked OK last night.

Trust me, if we rack up a pile of first-round picks at the deadline, I will happily eat that crow and his entire family. I just have trouble seeing it.

Come on, man. Jim Nill is THE best candidate. Whether he wants to leave Detroit is another question, but that's an organization fundamentally on the downside, so he might be amenable to a change. I heard Francois Gagnon on the radio a while back arguing that, from his point of view, the Habs need a bilingual coach because the coach deals with media and fans on a daily basis; but a bilingual GM is less important. This seems like a reasonable PR compromise to me. Hire Nill, have him bring a bilingual coach on board, and Bob's your uncle. Here's an eccentric choice for head coach by the way - Rick Bowness! Dismal coaching record overseeing horrible teams, but did pretty well with a strong Bruins club in the early 90s, has worked under Vigneault in Vancouver for years so has done very well as an assistant, and is (I believe) bilingual. Just spitballin'.

See, the same folks who on this board deride Gill as barely even a 6th defenceman, one who cannot take a regular shift, are expecting other teams to surrender a first for him. This way, of course, they can be outraged when we finally do move him for less than a first. I agree that it'd be nice to move him for a first round pick and that sometimes hungry GMs do dumb things. But REALISTICALLY you cannot assume that teams are gonna surrender a first-round pick for Hal Gill. As for Price, hoo boy, $7 million? Yikes. Sounds like he's got the Habs by the balls and is going to squeeze for all he's worth.

Rivet was a much better all around player than Gill is. There's a certain surreality to fans' wish list here. It's like the Cammalleri trade. We all feel Gauthier should have gotten more. Now that may be true, but it also may NOT be true. I also find it funny that posters who relentlessly rag on certain players as glaring pieces of crap nevertheless expect Gauthier to trade them for quality value. It's hard to get an honest, objective reading on just how much the players on your team are worth on the open market. Frankly, I think most of our guys could be moved for 2nd or 3rd round picks. More than that seems optimistic. -Gill is not worth a 1st-round pick under any circumstances. I can see him commanding a 2nd-round pick from a higher-end team looking to complete its roster for the playoffs, but even that's a stretch. 2nd round pick'd be great return. -AK46 *might* command a 1st-round pick if he gets super-hot leading up to the deadline, but again, I don't see it. Think 2nd-rounder. -Weber: the kid has potential but zero record of achievement. Maybe a 2nd rounder if you're lucky. More likely a 4th rounder, or a player swap (team that wants a young PP specialist trades a young potential FW, something like that). -Moen: 2nd rounder. In some ways, I think he will be out hottest commodity at the deadline. Cup winner, has produced in the playoffs before, adds grit and leadership, won't alter your 'core' or disrupt chemistry - a perfect deadline pickup. -Campoli: will be desirable, but his value's low. 4th-5th rounder. This is why I was counting on Gauthier to PACKAGE Cammalleri with some of these guys. Because I can't see any of them, taken in isolation, yielding a return that is sufficient to make a real impact on the future of this team.

Well, they played a spirited game last night, and against Boston. I'd expect some energy in the first half followed by a big sag in the second after the usual array of missed open nets, crossbars and posts, and assorted bad luck that follows this team along night after night like a cloud. I say, 2-1, going into the 3rd, final score 4-1 Rangers.

Good. Molson needs to learn two lessons here: 1. You max out your profits when the team wins. 2. The team wins when you leave hockey operations ALONE.

Carbo had one great year and two horrible ones. His teams played seemingly without structure. He probably learned a lot from that experience, but nothing in his track record as coach indicates that he's the guy to hire if you want to WIN.

The parallel with the Ballard Leafs is unsettling. We should all be worried. It's too soon to panic, though. The organization was thrown into an unexpected situation, when a proven team in a position to improve instead took a huge lurch backward. When that sort of cataclysm happens, weird stuff follows - look at 2009 and the whole Carbo circus. There was nothing wrong with Gainey's operation, widely viewed as top-flight. It was just that the operation was thrown into the hopper due to extreme circumstances. Now, the situation at the top clearly needs to stabilize. If the problem is Gauthier rather than Molson, then that's great news. We can, as Commandant has proposed, begin a comprehensive, rigorous and determined search for a GM - and I hope Jim Nill is the guy standing at the end - and hit 'reset,' with a team that is in vastly better shape than the one Gainey inherited. But even if we don't unload Gauthier, subsequent years may show this season's chaos to have been a big aberration caused by disastrous results. Remember, his hockey decisions have been in the main sensible, he did lure Cole and Emelin, and he *was* GM through our generally successful season last year. Gauthier has clearly failed to distinguish himself as the coolest, steadiest hand at the rudder in a crisis...but that's true of a lot of general managers. What absolutely cannot continue is the strong sense, felt by everyone from fans to players, that management is not in full command of events (as with the confused messaging around Cunneyworth) and that they are just reacting, reacting, without a plan. PG needs to make up his mind about what to do now that the original plan, which was to compete, is in the toilet, and proceed decisively, smoothly and competently in the new direction. That will settle everyone down and is his best chance of not being fired - unless Molson has already made up his mind, or is an idiot.