The Chicoutimi Cucumber

I hope there's another deal coming. But I won't COUNT on that. To me, Gainey has known all along he wasn't going to resign Huet, and had planned all along to unload him at the deadline. Fair enough. I also think the media reaction is undervaluing Halak, who, as far as I'm concerned, showed last season that he belongs in the NHL (not to say that he's a #1, just that he will be fully adequate to take some starts for us if Price flags). More bothersome to me is that Tampa obviously wanted a goalie, and Huet has far better credentials than Mike Smith. So...couldn't we have made a deal for Richards? THAT'S why I really hope the Hossa deal, or something comparable, is in the works. Because otherwise we probably should have gotten Richards back for Huet. Nonetheless: the benefit of the doubt always goes to Bob.

Might be worth waiting until Hossa hits the UFA market. How is Ottawa going to be able to afford him anyway, with all the dough they've invested in Heatly and Spezza? They don't want to be Tampa Bay redux, do they? So perhaps the waiting game is the way to go, rather than losing picks/prospects/players - especially if you consider that according to Pierre Macguire, Waddell wants 'a player of Higgins' calibre PLUS Ryan McDonagh or Yemelin, PLUS a pick. So much for Hossa...and Waddell, f*ck you.

Remember the stories about how GMs had 'learned their lesson' when it comes to rentals? Har har de har, what a joke.

You know what that scenario reminds me of? Trading Recchi for Desjardins and Leclair...then getting Recchi back for Zubrus :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: :puke: Next time you get frustrated at Bob, remember that little doozy.

With Tanguay out and Ottawa in the hunt for Hossa, I'm definitely among the pessimists. Ottawa is desperate for a Cup and we're not - therefore they'll be willing to sacrifice more of their future than us, and therefore they should get Hossa, not us. We seem to be out of the running for Richards too, and Jokinen rumours are sparse (probably for good reason - the price on him is liable to be extreme). Dollars to dougnuts Gainey shifts his sights to a defensive forward and maybe a solid defensive defenceman.

It's a weird decision. However, there's been some thought around here that you don't do your goalies any good by punishing them for a weak goal or two by threatening to let the other guy carry the ball (i.e., 'oh gosh, if I have a mediocre outing I'm condemned to be a backup'). There's something to be said for giving a goalie a few games in which to work his way back to form - what surprises me is that they're giving Price rather than Huet this chance.

When he played for us earlier this season, from what I saw, I thought that Grabs had a chance to grow into a player of the Briere/St Louis type, albeit of a lesser order - by which I mean a late bloomer who tends to get overlooked but ends up becoming a little offensive dynamo. I fear that WE are going to turn out to be the team that overlooked him. Ultimately, though, we may be in the process of becoming what the Habs of the early '70s were - a team with so much depth in prospects that they could scatter their seeds throughout the league while retaining the best and using the rest to improve the club. If we do deal Grabovski I'll try to think of it in that light.

Sundin's 'no' is the best 'no' since the 95 referendum! That really shoots TO in the foot What a great time NOT to be a Leafs fan.

Sounds like Chipchura should be called up. We need a player like that even more than we need a scoring machine.

If that's all the want, we should all send Wadell a thank you bouquet Unfortunately Eklund is a blithering moron, remember?

Bob will make a well-calculated risk and I don't expect any serious blue-chippers to go. A high draft pick, along with roster guys like Ryder and Streit is much more likely. Remember, our GM doesn't get swept up in the mindless frenzies that consume lesser mortals at these key times. (Which is why so many people were pissed at him last year).

You have a point. Then again, while Hossa isn't a *franchise* player, he's certainly among the very elite - certainly a step up on Gomez or even Briere, who also got massive deals. I'm not adverse to carrying one guy like that, who seems to be a pretty consistent scoring machine and in his prime.

RDS confirms that Richards has nixed Montreal. (I can't fathom why. It used to be that we sucked; now what's the excuse? Too cold for his sissy ass?) On the other hand, the Thrashers have confirmed that they can't sign Hossa and will definitely move him. Potentially good news for us.

When did Tanguay say he didn't want to come here specifically? (I've never understood why a player would single out any given city as one he definitely doesn't want to play in, unless it's a total dive, or else a hated rival - as when Esposito threatened to jump out a window when Boston traded him to the hated Rangers )

I like Tanguay as a winger who can also play C and thus become an eventual Koivu replacement, but there is room for one bit of doubt on this front...which is whether we need another playmaker. Both Koivu and Tanguay can score goals, but it's not their bread and butter and both of them on the same line could cause chemistry problems in that their games are similar. It's possible that this move would help us more in the medium- to long-run (Tanguay replaces a declining Koivu) than *right now.* Something to ponder.

The playoff thing is a total red herring. This guy is a lethal offensive weapon all year long. I'd love to have him, but not at any price - he is still a rental, after all.

Who, me? No, I'd love an upgrade on Koivu. In fact I was arguing earlier this season that we should trade him for Marleau. What I was addressing what the unfathomable concept of hating Saku Koivu - which people on this board have claimed to do and which I find utterly insane - and also the endless attacks on him as supposedly a 'bad captain' and poor 'leader' by people who don't have a clue about what he's actually like.

I love how fans and (francophone) media commentators feel equipped to pronounce on Koivu's 'lack of leadership', while I've never heard anyone actually involved with the sport on the ice say anything bad about Koivu. Gainey praised him as a champion in waiting. Rivet (a leader in his own right) loved him. Recchi (another winner) loved him. Corson (blood and guts all the way) loved him. Kostopolous referred to him earlier this year as 'the best captain in the league.' He's also never failed to step up and score big goals (e.g., shootout wins, anyone?) and be a blood-and-guts playoff performer (how about outplaying Thorton with a bruised lung?). Yep, he's always suffered from protracted slumps that keep his stats down. Yep, he's having a turd of a season. Yep, he's developed this tic of stupid penalties (which I strongly suspect is related to his slowing down a bit). Yep, all things considered he's probably on the downside. And since that knee blow-out he's never really been a bona fide #1 C. But let's remember that many of the same things could have been said of Kovalev last season. And I still don't see how this bad season translates into 'hating' the guy or disparaging what he's brought over the years.

Tanguay's a great fit. Not why he wouldn't waive his NTC to escape Keenan's clutches. Hopefully the rumours are true; and he sees reason...

He was the right man until his knee was destroyed, but I agree with what you're saying. I just can't fathom how the fact that he was condemned to playing on garbage teams translates into 'hating his guts.'

Hoo boy. Dumping Koivu onto the 4th line in favour of Grabovsky, that's a real panic statement to this team at this moment. Forget it. Certain players - Koivu and Huet especially - simply have to play better. There's no magic bullet. It's as simple as that.

Remember that Phil Collins album, No Jacket Required? We need Bob's face superimposed over Phil's, with the logo: NO PANIC REQUIRED. Build on the last two periods. Erratic defensive coverage for 20 minutes per game and questionable netminding are our current problems. The former is a matter for the coaches to address, and the latter has to come from the players we've got. Blowing things up wpn't help a bit.

Sheesh. Maybe he's on the downside, hey? Not even Guy Lafleur declined gracefully. Saku was still our heart and soul for ten years...to 'hate his guts' really is a bit much.

Well, if it is 'creating monsters' to tell players they have to produce, there's something wrong to begin with. I didn't see Patrick Roy nervously looking over his shoulder because the highly-touted David Aebischer was being brought up.

Ain't it bizarre that Kovy has become our most consistent forward?? I wonder why none of these so-called 'experts' saw that coming?