CerebusClone

PK Subban and Jonh Tavares seem to have become great friends, Bob Gainey should do everything he can to re-unite them in the very near future I wonder if a package including Higgins, McDonagh, O'Byrne, and our 1st-rounder would be enough...

Gorges was 22 years old, and already had nearly 100 games worth of experience in the NHL (and another 100 games in the AHL). He was already a decent player for the Sharks when he came over here, and just blossomed once he got the opportunity to play regularly. Without taking all the credit away from the Montreal coaching staff, I wouldn't exactly put his success on their track record. Ryan O'Byrne is a better example. He came to Montreal last season after some strong play in the minors, and played quite well in the second half of the season. Unfortunately he struggled early in camp, and has never been able to regain his confidence, and I also doubt he was giving all the tools and support he needed to get back on track. How much was it his fault, and how much blame can we put on the coaches, it's very hard to tell, but I have no doubt that O'Byrne would have done better earlier this season with a Robinson-type defensive coach to rely on, and help him.

I don't really care about Hainsey's messy appartment, the Montreal media like to turn every one who's not a proper little boy into some kind of cocky, arrogant jerk with attitude problems, like Ribeiro and Theodore. Ron Hainsey said his goal was to become the best defenseman in Montreal instead of the more politically-correct "I'm gonna work hard, and do my best" crap that the Bouillons and Begins give us, and everyone turned on him from that point on calling him an arrogant jerk. My point was that the Canadiens drafted an offensive defenseman in Ron Hainsey a few years ago, and they did everything they could to break his game while never really allowing him to demonstrate the skills that made him an early first round pick. It's like a woman marrying some jerk thinking she'll turn him around... if the Canadiens wanted a gritty defensive defenseman, they should have selected Brooks Orpik. Like Hainsey, Subban will be coming to Montreal with high expectations, but more importantly his share of strengths ans weaknesses... I just hope we allow him to master his strengths - what will make him a successful NHL player - while working on his flaws.

Hockey has also changed since then, you miss a spinorama against the Red Wings, and they'll likely get a breakaway or 2-on-1 opportunity before Subban has time to realize what happened. Hockey has become a well-oiled machine with structure and various strategies, and players are trained almost like robots to react instinctively to all possible game scenatrios. Spinoramas also work a lot better against teenagers than againast pros who play the body a lot more. I really like Subban, he's an exciting player to watch, and he's got a great personnality that will attract a lot of fans. However he'll need some time to mature in the minors before becoming a NHL regular because right now his decision making is weak at best (relative to the NHL level). With some work I have no doubt that he can become a very good player at both ends of the rink, and not only a powerplay specialist. The biggest question is whether the Canadiens will allow and support him in becoming a great player, something we didn't do with a guy like Ron Hainsey. The organization spent so much time criticizing his defensive play while never allowing to do what he did best, therefore all we ever saw from him was mediocre play, and without a doubt that affected him psychologically. PK Subban will come to Montreal with his fair share of flaws, and I hope we give him enough freedom to express himself and show us what he does best WHILE supporting him to become a more complete and effective player. On a final note I really hope that the Canadiens hire a proper and proven defensive coach because I'm not sure the current coaching staff has what it takes to support the McDonaghs, Fishers, Subbans, Webers, Emelins, and the others that are coming to Montreal over the next couples years... no offense but what the heck do Carbonneau, Muller and Jarvis know about turning a diamond-in-the-rough offensive defenseman like Subban into a gem? They failed miserably this season with Ryan O'Byrne (while Don Lever and his staff seemed to have prepared him well), and I don't want this to happen with the others.

The Americans are producing more and more great individual talents, however their international coaching/management staff seems to be having a lot of trouble building and managing competitive teams to face other countries. For the last few years the Americans have had some of the best teams on paper, some years perhaps the best, but they always seem to lack something.

Unless you're the Flyers, and your entire defensive squad is made up of lefties

What do you mean by "keeps scoring goals"? Lapierre has played decently as of late, but he only scored in one of his last 11 games. I don't see how there will be tough decisions ahead, when everyone is healthy that Lapierre line should become our forth, and a great one at that.

It's easy to look good when you're playing with no expectations on your shoulder, and most of the time againsts weaker lines. I often hear that this line has been our best, but again we're giving a lot of credits for guys who are merely working hard, doing some forecheking, but really not doing much for the team (besides killing penalties). Before last night, Lapierre and Kostopoulos each only had a lousy assist in their last 9 games (and a -4 record each). As for Latendresse, this was his first even-strength point 15 games for a total of 4 points during that span (one game where he got 2 points on the power play, and another game where he scored on a penalty shot). I'm not saying they've been mediocre, they actually looked decent and it's been a step in the right direction for both Lapierre and Latendresse, but to continually state they they have been our best line is simply a massive exageration.

That means very little at this point as we faced mediocre teams, is anyone really impressed that he got 4 points and was a +6 while Canada destroyed Kazakhstan? I'm a lot more interested in seeing how he does against the US, Russia, and Sewden.

Actually quite a few people seem to think his career has been overrated because he's been playing behind such a great system in New Jersey for nearly his entire career. Heck there's even this guy who seems very dedicated to proving just this: http://brodeurisafraud.blogspot.com/2007/0...-overrated.html

Well people who have been saying that Martin Brodeur's career has been highly overrated because of the Devils' system are probably having a field day because a no-name like Scott Clemmensen is putting up numbers that are just as good, if not better, than Brodeur has over his career. The Devils are doing just fine with Clemmensen putting up a 12-5-1 record with a 2.15 GAA and a .924 save percentage... numbers he's never put up in the past, not even in the AHL. Of course that doesn't mean anything, especially over less than 20 games, but this is not helping Brodeur's reputation as a legitimate elite goaltender that is as good as his numbers suggest.

Actually there's also Mike Smith in Tampa Bay who could end up being the Lighting's lone representative. Statistically he's having a great season, and no one else on that team deserves to make the All-Star team this season (although Lecavalier might be selected based on reputation). Henrik Lundqvist is also having a very strong season while leading the East for most wins. Like Lecavalier he also has an All-Star reputation, and besides perhaps Zherdev no one else in New York deserves to be an All-Star. If the Canadiens have both Markov and Komisarek on the starting roster - and perhaps even Kovalev - and if Fleury beats Carey Price for the starting goaltender position, then I think Price can forget about becoming an All-Star this year.

Merry Christmas, happy Chanukah, and happy Kwanzaa to everyone!

Latendresse is finally playing well, and to me it doesn't matter whether he picks up a few extra points or not. Both Lapierre and Kostopoulos are playing with a lot of hussle, and Latendresse has no choice but to do the same. I also like this line for his development because he's the biggest talent on that line, this gives him a chance to take charges and display some leadership on the ice; it's a little bit like he's playing down in the minors, but at the NHL level. This gives him a chance to break from the marginal player mold he's been stuck in, where he would stick to basics and dump the puck so a better linemate could control it, and start building confidence by carrying the puck, and displaying more creativity. Latendresse is only 21 years old, and as I've mentioned before I don't think it really matters how many points he puts up, and he sure shouldn't be counted on to carry the offense. The most important thing is that he concentrates on playing well, improves from there, and then the points will come naturally. Also nexct time he'll get an opportunity to play on a more offensive line, he'll be much more ready and hopefully effective.

Actually I would say that the Canadiens could have two very strong depth centers in Chipchura and Lapierre. Lapierre is playing great, and his combination of size, speed, and continuous hustle makes him a luxury 4th line centre. It's too bad he doesn't have any hockey sense, and only limited offensive skills. As for Chipchura, he's a victim of management's conservative instincts as both Gainey and Carbonneau are more comfortable with several depth veterans on the roster. I still believe he can become a great shutdown centre with the hockey sense, passing skills, and offensive abilities to score 30-50 points per season (depending on his wingers and use). Maxwell and Plekanec also provide us some depth for the second line centre position. Neither a genuine offensive leaders that can carry an offensive line, but both could complete high-scoring wingers to form a more than respectable offensive line. What Montreal really needs from this point forward is a strong number 1 centre, especially since Koivu hans't been able to fill that role since the lockout and won't get any better with age.. but then again there are a lot of teams looking for such a player...

Plusieurs s'acharnent sur Koivu peu importe ce qu'il fait, donc ca changerait quoi? Au contraire ca pourrait enlever de la pression sur les épaules de Koivu et il pourrait ainsi occuper un rôle un peu moindre au sein de la formation, un rôle plus approprié à ce qu'il peu vraiment apporter (je crois que nous lui en avons demandé un peu trop au cours de sa carrière alors qu'il n'avait peut-être pas le talent, la force physique ni le caractère pour transporter presqu'à lui seul des équipes de second ordre).

Personally I've always felt Montreal did a relatively good job at tremoving snow. There aren't that many metropolitain centers that can remain virtually fully-functional during a huge snowstrom, anything above a couple of centimeters creates chaos in cities like Toronto, New York, ... I thought the city did great in "remote" areas when I lived in Westmount and NDG (by remote I mean not downtown), and I can't imagine hiow the city could be truly efficient in the city centre where streets are narrow, and so many people just selfish ans stupid with the way they park their cars. Are things perfect, of course not. However even though it's not always pretty, life goes on in Montreal even when we get 30+ centimeters of that merde blanche (for people who can read French, this is a must read: Merde Blanche). ps. I recently bought a house on the South Shore, so I have my own driveway. I also bought a snowblower last week, and I got rid of that last 25cm in about 15-20 minutes... ha ha ha...

It's great to finally see Guillaume Latendresse playing like a NHLer, and not some dumb marginal player. I didn't look at the stats sheet for the last 3-4 games, but it doesn't matter because you can see - on the ice, and not only on paper - that he's been playing much better. He's carrying the puck, using his body to protect it, he's making timley hits to gain puck possesion, his positioning without the puck has improved greatly, and is therefore getting more scoring opportunities. Obvisouly he's not quite there yet, you can easily notice a lack of experience and fluidity, so it's not always looking pretty, but it seems that he's back on track. He can now build from there, keep improving, build his confidence, and fulfill his potential.

Quand on connait toute la haine de Rejean Tremblay envers Koivu, disons que c'est à prendre avec un grain de sel... c'est aussi le même Réjean Tremblay qui le soir avant cet article félicitait Mike Komisarek pour avoir donner quelques coups au jeune Sergei Kostsitsyn pour le remettre un peu à sa place (le comparant même à Larry Robinson pour ca) et qui a sévèrement critiqué Saku Koivu il y a quelques années pour en avoir fait autant avec Mike Ribeiro. Cela dit je doute que ce soit le vestiaire de Saku Koivu... ni d'Alex Kovalev. Ils ont chacun leur petit groupe, celui de Kovalev est probablement plus grand puisque nous avons plusieurs Russes (mais aucun autre Finlandais), que nous avons ajouter son bon ami Robert Lang (à qui s'ajoutent probablement Plekanec, Hamrlik et Halak) et que les bons amis de Koivu ont presque tous été échangés. Cependant je doute que Koivu et Kovalev soient des rassembleurs pour l'ensemble du vestiaire. Personellement si j'étais Bob Gainey, je signerais Mike Komisarek à long terme le plus rapidement possible et le nommerais capitaine dès l'été et ce peu même si Koivu est de retour la saison prochaine. Un peu comme les Stars ont fait à Dallas avec Morrow et Modano. Il est temps dé débuter une nouvelle ère chez le Canadiens, celle de Mike Komisarek.. qui est très près de plusieurs de nos meilleurs jeunes joueurs comme Higgins, Price, O'Byrne, Chipchura, etc qui sans aucun doute est respecté par tous.

I'm a little confused... is this sarcasm or do you really think that Seidenberg is to blme because Bergeoron never learned to hit a player, and just skated head first into his shoulder?

It amazes me how seriously people take players quotes, 99% of the they're old clichés and a bunch of BS because they're forced to speak to the media. It's like when Kovalev said he liked playing with Ribeiro, people used that quote a lot, but really was Kovalev going to say otherwise in front the the Montreal media? Sundin only said whatever he tought the media wanted to hear, they were lucky he even took time to justify hios decision because truth be told he didn't have to. He signed with the Maple Leafs, and wanted to finish the season in Toronto... end of line. Also again this is a little different. Sundin didn't take an engagement with one team just to jump ship mid-way through the season. He's still a one-team man, except this time he joined them third-way into the season. This would also had been the case if he had been injured... we'll just call this a psychological injury...

Again this is not entirely the same thing. Sundin was invested with the Maple Leafs, he took an engagement with Toronto when he signed his contract, and it was is prerogative to follow it through. He decided to win or lose with the organization, in my opinion that's the complete opposite of an hypocrite. Don't people complain that players just don't care anymore about their organization, and are ready to jump ship at the first opportunity? In this case, Sundin is still taking an engagement with a single team, the only difference is that he's joining them in December instead of September. By the way it doesn't mention anywhere that teams have the right to dump players for draft picks during the last year of the contract... if anyone lacked class, it was the Maple Leafs organization for wanting to break their engagement with most of their veteran players.

I never believe Kovalev was a lazy bum who didn't care, the guy wants to do well, and he does want to carry the team. I've always said that he lacks the hockey sense required to be a true impact player; he has the skills, but rarely makes the right plays. For every spectacular move that generates a genuine scoring opportunity, he makes about 20-25 dumb plays that lead to turnovers and lost puck possession.

Again I never said that's the lineup we should start the next season with, my point was simply that we have a solid, relatively cheap base that will give us a lot of room to maneuver. Also I don't think that we should resign players just because we may not find any good UFAs to replace them, and my opinion any such deal would have to make sense for us. I don't want to see Gainey waste all that cap room to bring back players that will slow us down over the next few years. When I look at how this team has plated since the lockout, I'm not convinced we should go forward with Koivu and Kovalev as our offensive leaders... If we can't find anything, I would rather Gainey wait for trade opportunities over the summer and during the reguular season. There's always a few of those every season, heck if we're extremely lucky perhaps we could pull a Thornton-like steal with a deal for Lecavalier, who knows. In the meantime we could always add one or two decent veterans with 1-year contracts, just not to put too much pressure on our young players.

Unfortunately there won't be too many quality UFAs next summer, I'm talking about real offensive leaders on the ice, and not followersor "decent" players. We have plenty of depth and good players, we need guys who can make an impact, and help carry the team when we're in a bit of a slump. My guess is that we can forget about Zetterberg, and the Sedin twins, they probably won't even enter the UFA market. We should stay away from Sundin if he's again wondering about his retirement. Niedermayer will probably retire again while Beauchemin should resign with Anaheim. If we're lucky the best players available would be Marian Hossa, Martin Havalt (overrated in my opinion, and a bit of a gamble with his injury problems), and Jay Bouwmeester. Those are the guys who could help us, be part of this team for a few years, and are not too likely to become expendable because of young guys pushing in theit back (I'll be very happy if we have no room for either Hossa or Bouwmeester). If we want to push it there's maybe Erik Cole, we can always use a guy like that despite his struggles in Edmonton, but then again a guy like D'Agostini or Pacioretty will end up in Hamilton again. As for the rest, Todd Bertuzzi is better off away from Montreal, Cammalleri is highly overrated and not the Carbonneau-type, I wouldn't take a risk with Johan Franzen who like everyone else is looking great in Detroit's system, Mattias Ohlund is not so good that I'd be willing to risk not giving some of the kids a chance, and the others have nothing to offer to the Canadiens. In other words Bob Gainey may have to go through trades to acquire the type of player we need.