InsaneHABSfan

Insulting people well, thats just not nice....well borderline insult. Montreal is a top 5 team in "D" with Huet in net means good goaltending, not necessarily good "D". (Not sure if that is how you wanted to word it) I do like to talk about defence and if you wish to not participate in my posts, then just ignore me. Simple problem solved. I do like your posts as you are very informative with your hockey knowledge and contracts and will continue to read them. Outside of Elias and Arnott, I don't think there really is a top forward available with imediate impact for the Habs. I like Legwand and players that are more cap friendly while developing the young forwards. Peca maybe for a playoff run as he is not a serious offensive threat. The young guys with more playing time will produce more offense.

Yup, some teams cannot draft properly and their odds of picking a good player are bad. (See Leafs farm team) This draft pick just may be lousy. Colorado, Detroit usually have to pick in the 20s-30th pick range and look at their teams selections. Even Buffalo had two second round guys from a couple years ago in their lineup this year. Roy and I forgot the other guys name. They played well, so draft choices to me are important in championship runs.

beliveau1 and jetsniper you both bring up an interesting arguement. How many times (And I believe jetsniper's Colorado observations) does the puck actually get tipped and the refs only saw the opposing team pointing fingers. Of course the penalty will be called more times than not. (The Bettman Law of penalties) I believe I read one of the members of this board say just make the players on the team that shot the puck out stay on the ice. Now, not being a penalty this would be a great idea as the dumb dumb (about the harshest thing I ever say anymore) who shot the puck out has to stay on the ice with his buddies. Maybe a better solution than a penalty?

I think there is a little over reaction to the rule. How can a ref tell if it was shot out on purpose or not? They do not have our advantage of being an armchair referee and this is not always easy to tell. This is why the rule was set in as the Refs do not have every angle or video review. They could not even call Justin Williams for obvious high sticking calls on Koivu and Markov and there are 2 sets of eyes watching the play. Players have no need to shoot the puck that high when in trouble.

We will never know how intense the trade talk was, but I still think trading first round draft choices for a question mark is a risky gamble. I was against it and I am wrong so far. Edmonton still has one series to win before giving Lowe the absolute extra applause he deserves. It will be up to Rolonson to prove he is the elite goalie that everyone thinks he is. I measure this move in the years following when he signs a big contract and lives up to it, otherwise it was an expensive rental. First round picks are very important to add depth to a franchise.

Ah but the questiion is of Kuba, Mitchell, Kaberle, Kubina which one would Fit the Habs best and which one would settle for $3-4 million? I like Mitchell but didn't he balk at a $3-4million offer and was traded to Dallas? I do like Kaberle as he is very creative with the puck and moves it out of the defensive zone quickly. (From the few games I saw of him) With all these salaries going up quickly (Thanks Tampa and Toronto for messing things up) I would think Montreal would stand pat now. I do not for one want to see Montreal get trapped in a high priced player contract and end up with a dud. Who was that guy that Gainey while managing Dallas traded to Montreal who had a big salary only to turn out to be a dud?

Yup. Liked this response as too many times in the past guys just shot the puck over the glass on purpose. It was obvious! The game has to progress by eliminating slow, useless players that just hook, dump the puck and clog the nuetral zone. I lost interest in hockey including playoffs until this year. It is by no means perfect but the rule helps speed up the game. This rule killed my two favorite teams both Habs and Avs this year in a few games but guys just have to smarten up. Of course this is just my opinion...

Thank you for the effort Komisarek the Cruncher. Yes it does make sense now, much better than before. Just trying to understand it was a challenge and your effort to wade through it is appreciated.

Yup, something I forgot to add, thanks Tony. The NHL CBA is a tough one and for me confusing. Anybody on Habsworld.net a Capoligist? (Careful I did not say proctologist) I did find this and it is somewhat helpful: http://proicehockey.about.com/od/thenewnhl...ry_cap_expl.htm

All right how about some fresh ideas or rehashing old suggestions? Not too many people liked my Redden idea and I have to agree now that McCabe broke the bank. I seem to remember shortcat1 making some interesting suggestions on defence that was not too expensive. I know summer time, people partying, people dating, people doing all kinds of summer stuff. But it is always HOCKEY TIME and I want to know what the Habs are up to! :hlogo:

I would certainly hope your vote counts as your signature has: "HWL's Tampa Bay Lightning & Most Entertaining GM" And that aint all that bad for credentials.

Me too. Robinson as an assitant coach with the guys would be fabulous. His work in New Jersey was excellent. Hall of famer, knows defence, won cups as a coach and might like a toned down role. I have the ultimate respect for Mr. Robinson and would love to see him back in the Habs family. Tremblay, no thanks.

Yup you are 100% right which is why I won't buy a street bike. I played with dirt bikes many years and wiped out many times. Now I just get out on my Giant mountain bike which does not hurt as much if I fall off. The interesting part of this article is the Brian Colangelo effect on free agents. Jay Will wanted to try out for the Heat and I believe chicago because he wants to get in a winning situation. Bosh and Colangelo are a big draw for some free agents which helps Toronto's credibility. A funny thing happened on a Toronto radio station when a Leaf fan called in and said fire JFjr (Leafs GM for those that dont know) and hire Brian Colangelo! Priceless!!!

hehehe Love the article, thanks for posting beliveau1. McCabe is not 100% bad, as he does light up the powerplay for those pesky Leafs. I don't know the numbers but I bet the Leafs won more games due to the gift 2-man powerplays given them this year. They sure were a yuck team with 5 on 5. What I do not get is how the Leaf management does not see his defensive liabilities. Is it just me, am totally wrong here? His canopener move is illegal and it is the only defensive play he has. Oh well better to see this as a Leaf problem than the Habs trying to sign this guy YIKES. Now the Leafs have 5 dollars and a cup of coffee to go after a big name free agent. (P.S. Most Toronto media believe Kaberle and McCabe are 2 of the top 10 defenceman in the league, clueless)

Canes in 6. Why? STAAL! Oh to have him in the habs lineup would be a dream :hlogo:

I started reading this article too then just stopped. Guys write stuff just to get a reaction via email. I like Bob and respect his opinions, however I remember Montreal being burned by this rule including being two men down multiple times. I like the rule as it stops guys from making the game slow that shoot the puck over the glass because they are too old for the NHL.

From what I understand it is money held back from the players (a certain %) which is geared to the salary cap. If the league revenues are higher than projected than the escrow money goes back to the players and the salary cap is adjusted each year. Players hate esrow as it is their money being held back but it is in the CBA. I am sure kaos has this down pat. I understand the NBA cap crud better than the NHL one and this happens in the NBA every year.

Hey shortcat1 thanks for making me feel young! B) Jay Williams works out for Raptors: TORONTO (CP) - Three years after a motorcycle crash that forced Jay Williams to learn how to walk again, he believes he's finally ready to step back on the NBA court. He says he wouldn't mind if it was as a Toronto Raptor. Story: http://tsn.ca/nba/news_story/?ID=167584&hubname=nba

I highly doubt the Sox are going to be buyers when they tried to trade their best player at the end of the season and couldn't do it. Plus aging Wells salary does not help in acquiring an expensive talent. NOBODY outbuys the mighty pinstripes in desperation times. Plus getting a large acquisition works how often? Once boston can evaluate their pitching staff performance, they may make a change. I really don't see Boston making wholesale changes as it is a pretty strong lineup Defensively and can plaster the ball out of the park. With Coco finally in the lineup they just increased the pop in the bats. As a Jays fan I am more wary of Boston than New York. Since the curse has been lifted this is a team that is not uptight, has fun at the park and plays hard no matter what the score is. Ah I am off my soapbox....

Ooops. Me fingers were not typing what my mind was thinking.....

As much as this seems like a dream trade for the Habs, it does not seem real. (Like the Theo trade for Abby was a weird one for me) One thing to keep in mind is that the NHL has salary dump trades in order to fit the cap. If this is a salary dump, Abby for Lecavier straight up might be real because the financial bind Tampa is in. Habs may have to take a bad contract too. Very interesting....

When I watched Boston win its first World Series in a BILLION years (Jays have won more in that same time span right?) it was a team with heart, determination, talent and a city that was going nuts cheering them on. I certainly was cheering for them too as I like the Bosox even though Toronto is my team. Every team has holes, it is just up to the players if they want to win. Boston always fields a very competitive team. What helped Boston over the top was Pedro and Curt. Pitching, pitching, pitching.... This year Boston's pitching may not be as good as management wants it, however there are some guys like Beckett that could make a difference. In toronto Chacin, and if Burnet ever pitches should challenge all the way. I did not mention NYY as they always buy their way in somehow.

Thanks TheAussiePosse. I used to have pbase etc. and I am going to look at this. Are you into digital photography? Just curious as I am and used to put many pics up on pbase. -Jeff

Thanks shortcat1. I was waiting to hear something about this somewhere. This frees up some extra money for the Habs so maybe they can go after a very gifted offensive player most fans want here. I like how they want to reduce teh escrow so that the next salary cap will not go up so high.

This whole McCabe thing is really strange. Fan590 in T-Dot was all over this with arguement after arguement. At one point they said 70% of people emailing them did not like the deal. (No movement) A few Habs fans phoned in loving it which only upset the mostly BIASED hosts. Even Don Cherry is saying this is great. If it does turn out to be $6million per year, that is way too high and just handcuffed the Leafs for years. Rumors now have Lindros coming back for $750,000 per. No wonder, 2 defenceman and a centre have 1/3 of the team salary. Any defenceman Montreal was going to approach now will want an increase in salary demand because of this McCabe deal. Maybe you guys are right, stick with our "D", but do make offers and concentrate on offense.