The Chicoutimi Cucumber

A good idea and a good explanation of why this idea likely will not come to pass. In truth, I don't think the Habs ARE unattractive to free agents anymore. While I have no doubt that SOME players are scared away by all the insanity, Montreal is the BOMB when you're doing well, and the fact remains we had no trouble running the table on UFAs in 2009-10. The real problem for the previous decade was most likely that the Habs just plain sucked ass. Since we now have a rep as a team that reliably makes the playoffs and is always competitive, I don't see UFA appeal as too big an issue going forward. Perhaps the only difference is that UFAs make the Canadiens compensate for the tax differential in their contracts, which they presumably don't do in places like NY.

This seems like a no-brainer. If he fails or emerges as a plodding 4th liner, you've sacrificed nothing. But the thing about this team - at least as presently constituted - is that it's been reduced to using a Darche on the scoring lines and PP simply because Darche is the only guy who is willing to drive the net and take the punishment on a regular basis. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Darche as a heart and soul guy and he's done well in that role. But really, too few commentators have remarked on how aberrant it is to have him out there in that role, which really should be going to a bigger and more talented player than him. This Berger guy probably won't be NHL ready until the current core has moved on (if ever), but he may be able to play that sort of role going forward. In principle, we need more players like this in the system. Therefore this is an impeccable move. This may also reflect Gauthier's (apparent) penchant for seeking size. If so, we can expect more of these sorts of moves down the line.

Can't believe they're playing Hammer... :whatchutalkingabout_smile: Fer chrissakes, give the guy all the rest you can!!

I pull for guys like Desharnais, who so often are denied their opportunity simply because GMs and coaches make a fetish of size. But beyond this sentimental consideration, the guy can play hockey, and his intelligence on the ice - he's notable for his ability to angle and position his body so as to minimize the impact of the size differential - compensates for many of his physical limitations. With a little more seasoning, he may be worthy of a serious chance as a 2nd-line C, either with us, or some other club. And if he gets that chance and succeeds, then there's no reason he won't make a nice career out of it. He'll be harder pressed to stick around as a utility guy but I wouldn't write him off in that respect either.

There's no question in my mind we need a backup who is actually competent to play a decent number of games. Yes, Price is a beast - but if you're planning on a Cup run I still think it wiser to be in a position to rest your starter in some sort of meaningful way. Vancouver discovered this with Luongo. Plus there's always the chance of injury. You should strive for depth at every position, including goal, and Auld ain't it IMHO.

Interesting that the Habs pay basically the same as the Rangers, but the latter is a haven for UFAs while taxes are traditionally cited as one factor that works against Montreal. I suppose New York City has its own massive appeal, an appeal that Montreal can't really match despite its superior bagels and smoked meat. Also we are only marginally worse (3%) than LA, San Jose and Anaheim, also teams that seem to be perfectly attractive to UFAs. Equally interesting: for all that Canadians like to THINK they pay higher taxes than Americans, this graphic suggests something quite different. Don't tell the Conservatives and their right-wing allies that.

Because players like that are frustrating!!!

I dunno, we seem to be talking past each other. One guy accuses me of wanting to keep Gomez and dump AK. If anything, I would argue for just the reverse. Wamsley points out that Gomer's 33-goal season was a fluke. But if you re-read the post where I bring it up, you'll find that that was precisely my point ('freak' was my adjective of choice): I can't see Kosty ever performing at an elite level except by some freak circumstance, as happened with Gomez and Gio that season in Jersey. Because he does have raw talent, it could happen some year. But it will not happen regularly. Now Wamsley, you point out that Kostitsyn has had OK numbers under unpromising circumstances this season. Which is fine, but what was his excuse in 08 and 09, under a different system? Also, what is the point of defending his production as comparable to Cammalleri's, while simultaneously saying we're crazy if we expect Kostitsyn to produce like a top-3 forward? I agree that Kostitsyn is not and probably never will be a top-3 forward. (I do expect Cammy to be one, which is why he has been a disappointment this season. But then again, unlike Kosty, Cammy stepped up for us when it counted last season/playoff, and he has years of near-elite production under his belt. That buys him the benefit of some doubt). So if I agree that Kosty is not and likely will never be a top-3 forward, why am I somewhat grumpy about Kostitsyn? Is it because I expect him to produce like the high draft pick he was? No. It's because, offensively, he's a tease. Yes, he's got 15 points in 20 games. He also had 6 points in the preceding 25 games. Right there is Kostitysn in a nutshell. You can say, 'well, I accept that he will be an offensive nonentity for 2/3 of every season, and I'll take the bad with the good.' I respect that, especially considering his modest cap hit, although the frustration of enduring his prolonged slumps shouldn't be minimized. What does NOT make sense is to simultaneously make excuses, as though he *could* be an 80-point guy if only he had just the right linemates, never got injured, had more PP time, etc., etc.. Either he's a #6 forward or he isn't. What he really is, if you ask me, is a guy who plays like a top-3 forward for maybe 20-25 games/year, and then plays like a third liner the rest of the season ('good at even strength' etc.). It's that dichotomoy that makes him fundamentally frustrating. And it's naive to expect that pattern to change. In this sense, Wamsley's right - the difference is that I refuse to overlook the aggravation involved in players of this profile. That's all.

See, this is exactly the sort of attitude to AK that I find implausible. No question, the guy has at least some of the tools to be a top-3 forward. Yet in four seasons he has never had more than 53 points and in reality has flatlined at about 45. In all four of those seasons he has shown runs of 10-15 games where he looks like he might actually become an impact player. And in all four of those seasons he has failed to ever come even close to becoming that player on anything resembling a consistent basis. make all the excuses you like, but the pattern is set. The reason may be that he is either mentally soft or that he lacks elite-level offensive hockey sense. I suspect both. Now, the guy's only 26. It could be that he will make the leap at some point to being more than a #6 forward. Myself, I'd expect him to put together maybe one really great season in his career - one of those freak years where it all comes together, like Gomez had when he scored 33 goals - and then revert back to type. And the same people who now hold out hope of his becoming elite, will spend the rest of his career looking back at that big season and say it's only a matter of time before he gets it back... I've seen guys like this before. They seem to have the tools, they tease the hell out of you. And they never really put it together. At this stage of the game it's up to Kosty to prove differently. Four years is enough to lose the benefit of the doubt.

Guys, I'm not denying that AK is an effective player at even strength, good value, etc., etc.. Nor am I saying we should get rid of him, string him up from yardarm, yadayada. All I'm saying is that offensively he is a vanishing act and that if you count on him to bring his 'A' game with some regularity you are delusional. Like I keep saying, he's a respectable #6 forward and no more than that, mainly because he is offensively nonexistent for 2/3 of every season. Which, incidentally, is NOT the career profile of Gionta, Pleks, or Cammy, notwthstanding their weak numbers this particular season. AK is a permanent offensive tease, not a guy you can count on to produce with some consistency.

I disagree. What you're describing are excuses. 'Oh, I got injured...then I never got it back.' Well, precisely. Good players don't rely on everything going right for 82 games in order to deliver the goods. There will ALWAYS be some reason why Kosty slumps for months at a time. And that's precisely why he is not and probably never will be a core player.

Sure. He gets hot for 10-15 games and he looks like an offensive star. Then he goes offensively cold and pretty much useless for, oh, about 30 games. Then he gets hot again, with no special rhyme or reason that anyone can discern. That's been his pattern his whole career. It ain't JM's fault. Anyone counting on Kosty to bring it at any particular time or for any particular game is setting themselves up for disappointment. Having said that, if you look at his seasons as a whole, you tend to to conclude that you could do worse than a guy with at least a modicum physical robustness who bags 20 goals annually. Like I say, a decent #6 FW overall, no more than that, and offensively unreliable from week to week and month to month.

Hey, I think there's certainly a chance that the Habs will come out invigorated and focused, too scared by their late season slump to want to risk their newfound cohesion and confidence. But I also think there's a chance - probably a better chance - that they will consciously or unconsciously decide to coast. Coasting will lead either to an unconvincing win or an embarassing loss. Be ready for that possibility, is what I'm saying.

I understand the case for Kostitsyn. He brings some physical dimension to the game and is extremely effective for the 25 games a year when he's offensively hot. So he's a useful #6 forward and well worthwhile at his price-point. Having said that, he is not a player you can count on to produce either consistently (Pleks, Gio) or when it matters most (Cammy and, hopefully, Gomer Pyle), and any team that sees him as a core guy is in trouble.

A walk in the park! I'd expect the opposite to be just as likely, maybe moreso. The Habs now have nothing to play for except the principle of rounding out their game for the playoffs. If you want to see how this can work, check out the Canuckleheads' last two games, both losses to the pathetic Oilers. The odds favour Montreal taking a vacation out there tonight. 4-2 Sens.

JM has lost the room, and Price is a complete bust who was a waste of a high draft pick. There's a reason for the old adage that if you listen to the fans, pretty soon you'll be sitting up there with them. The 'room' issue is especially irritating because it was started by that impeccable Habs insider with no conceivable axe to grind at all: Georges Laraque. The media and blogosphere then ran with it like turkeys with their feathers on fire. If you need greater evidence of the inanity of discourse in a hyper-wired world, it's that.

Game 'o the year, and I have to miss it!! Still, sounds as though les boys pulled together for one of their classic 'bend-don't-break' performances, EXACTLY what I was hoping for coming out of the promising contest in Jersey. Maybe we have reason to believe this bunch can get it together in time for the dance: because if they bring their 'A' game they are a dangerous playoff opponent, and that's when it gets REAL exciting.

Kind of a big game - not because of the standings but because of the necessity of the Habs putting the slump behind them. This is a perfect opponent to build on the Jersey game: a significantly better team, but not an overpowering team (at least, not this season). Win or lose, what I want to see is the Habs building on the New Jersey contest, with really strong puck support, alert team defense. good goaltending, and some drive to the net and opportunistic scoring. Let's see Pleks and Cammy in particular stepping up their games. If the team puts in a strong overall effort I'll be happy that we're getting back to the fundamentals and that the results will soon follow.

I don't think a buyout of Gomer is a good idea, because unless you're ready to throw Eller or Desharnais in there, the $3 mil you save - plus some extra - will likely have to be invested in another 2nd-line C; while this would represent an upgrade at the position (almost anything would) it wouldn't represent any cap savings. Heck, it might end up costing more. The options with Gomez seem to me pretty clear-cut. Trade him, demote him and eat the salary, or keep him around. The third option is the worst option, and this gets to what I've been saying in this thread. It's time for the Habs to become what the elite teams generally are: absolutely ruthless bastards when it comes to cap management. Both Gomez and Spacek ought to be in the managerial crosshairs for 2011-12 as wastes of cap space that are preventing us from potentially becoming contenders. Move heaven and earth to dump those salaries. Don't resign Hammer (Wiz brings more, surely). OK. That saves what, $15.5 mil? Say another $4-5 mil added to an NHL-quality 2nd line C. $11 mil to play with. Not too shabby. Now I don't know how feasible that specific scenario is. But I am sick and tired of the Habs being a 'good team' with only a remote chance of actually winning the Cup, which has been the norm for the last 3 years, to say nothing of the dismal decade before that. Assuming that Patches recovers, we have three elite youngsters on the cheap and some good core guys who are getting no younger. It's time to take a step up. Trading draft picks is out of the question. Standing still is out of the question. Therefore coldly ruthless cap management is the only way to do it.

Whatever. Again, if it's not Wiz it'll have to be someone else - at least if we want to contend and not just spin our wheels.

If we lose Wiz, then any of the first three D-men would be wise acquisitions. Probably in that order. Niether of those forwards floats my boat, but likely would be useful additions. Don't know enough about Upshall to speculate on that, but Frolov seems to have the *wrong* profile for us: an unreliable talent akin to Kosty or Pouliot.

What I liked about that game was how tidily it fit the team identity ('New New Jersey' - remember earlier in the year, when that seemed to be an apposite label?). All kinds of puck support + team defence + saves from Price when needed + timely goals = a W and a steadier overall effort than the Atlanta game. Of course, the opposition was sketchy, but beggars can't be choosers. My hope is that our last two wins help to re-instil in the players' heads what this team needs to do to be successful. Pleks was feisty tonight but seemed a touch slower than his old self on that 1st period breakaway. Like Cammy, he's still hurting I suspect.

OK, 5-2 Devils. And it's Guaranteed Win Night - for the home squad natch.

NJ in town = Guaranteed Loss Night. 4-1 Devils.

This is one of those rare posts - I agree with every word.