Seb

Hahah I was like sh*******t! Then read your second line. You got me. But man oh man, seems like this draft class has been ravaged with injuries. I've decided I'm okay with either Galchenyuk or Grigorenko (given Galch comes back for the playoffs and plays decently). I mean a solid D isn't bad either, but the cupboards are well stocked there. Time to address an organizational need.

No 1st overall NHL draft pick had ever proven himself in the bigs when they were drafted. Think about it. You are literally putting the carriage on top of the horse, and strapping it to an ass walking backwards.... Or whatever that crazy english expression is (I always screw those up.) Yeah, and two of those players could be (given they are healthy and have decent-to-good seasons) considered all-world defensively. For a 28th place team, things are rosy as shit.

Samesies.

50 contract limit, no?

If the Habs can get both Roy and Grigo, I feel like they have to do it. Obviously let the new GM make the decision, but I allowing a top draft pick to come to the NHL as an 18 yr old and play for a coach who had him the season before would be a huge boost to Grigo. I wasn't sold on Roy as coach at first, but man, the more i think about it, the more I realize he is just the kind of guy the team needs.

A big winger, huh? The Habs' biggest need? No, this sounds like Hickey laying the groundwork for an "I told you so" (or an "Itodaso") by relating (though indirectly) Plekanec to Nash. In the long shot case the Habs get Nash and Plekanec is involved (which isn't too crazy to believe), Hickey can point to this as evidence that the Earth turns around the sun at the precise speed that he desires. I mean, come on. When do we ever hear of the Habs shopping anyone? This is more about the guy writing the piece than the guy the piece is written about.

It's Marinaro. Like Brian said, if you can't disprove it, it must be true. Molson holds all the cards because he owns the team. It's not difficult to understand. Huge scoop though. Huge.

How does Howson have a job?

I feel like the D market is hotter than the forward market, but the only thing to base that on is the Moore trade. I guess we'll have to wait and see. Given this, though, I would think PG is capable of convincing someone Campoli can be of use. He could reasonably fetch a 3rd, or a 2nd if things get crazy. (I'm looking at you, Stan Bowman.)

Ah yes, knew I was forgetting one.

One thing I worry about, and there's no way for outsiders to know, is what do coaches ask of a guy like Kostitsyn? Does every coach come in with the same "you don't backcheck, you don't play" mentality, thinking they would succeed where other coaches failed? He's extremely inconsistent, yes, but if he's still getting benched because of it, that's ridiculous. A coach should know his players, and a coach for the Habs should know that AK is dangerous, but inconsistent. Give him his share of ice time and let him do his thing. When he explodes for 5 goals in games, enjoy it, and when he's in a 15 game drought, well, you knew it was coming, let him play through it. He always does.

I hope this is a sign that PG is doing what he should be doing and doing it right: that is making it known to other GMs who is available and making sure to squeeze every ounce of value out of the deals by waiting till close to the deadline. It helps that the Habs are showing signs of life, but in the end, he needs to have the testicular fortitude to pull the plug and take what he can get.

Man, I'm excited for next season's Bulldogs. Gallagher, Holland, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Ellis, Pateryn and the leftovers from this year's team. Can't say I get down to the Hammer to go see them, but I like to hear about how they're doing. It'll be fun to hear how they all develop playing against the big boys.

Great points. The next part of the argument was that Eller was a 3rd liner at best. Which is completely debatable, something I won't do here, but when he was acquired, he was a big, fast, playmaking center with a great ceiling. Plus we got their 3rd round pick in Ian Schultz who was considered a long shot enforcer. What has changed? Eller's been improving with the Habs over the last two seasons. Heck, he scored 4 goals the other night. Because he hasn't had a 60 point campaign makes him a failure? It'll come.

I hear the faint sound... could it be? Oh my, it could be... Yes, yes it definitely is! Yes, YES, it's here! YEEESSS! OMG YES THE ROFLCOPTER! YEEEE... (voice drowned out by the violent ROFLing of the ROFLCOPTER's blades cutting through the thick bullshit-saturated HW air trapped in this thread) .......................__ ............ ......<ROFL ROFL ROFL ROFL>. ........................| |........... ................... __\||/____...... .\\...............|'-|--| .\\....\..... ..\ \_...........|--|---|..\\ ....\.... ../ L \____,/-------\___\___\ .|LOL|-------------O----- ----,\.. ..\ L /______,---''-----------, /... ../ /.............\_________ ,/.... .//.............____//___ __\\__/.

Trading Subban is idiotic (unless, like it was mentioned above, you receive Crosby, Malkin, Stamkos or Ovie). People still struggle to see the value in experience. Exhibit A is right in front of you: Alexei Emelin. Guy spent 8 years playing in the KHL. Look at him go! Subban played one season in Hamilton. Give him some time, a leash to learn from his mistakes and some suppport, and he'll reward you in the long run.

Pretty basic economics at work when Halak was traded. There wasn't much of a market for goalies. Even less had Gauthier waited until July 1st when a bunch of cheap older guys would have been available (the market for goalies is still flooded, see Vokoun this year). Yes Halak is young and all that, but he had never played more than 40-something (I think it was, no time for research) games in a season. I specifically remember the market for goalies being garbage, which was compounded by Philly playing Chicago and both teams having patchwork goaltending. Teams were not prepared to bust the bank on an undersized, untested goalie following a good playoff run. Gauthier felt he HAD to deal with the Halak/Price situation (plus Halak needed an extension). So a deal HAD to be made. He took the best one. Varlamov was traded a full year later, in the next off-season. That, by definition, means the marketplace for goalies was different. Add to that that Washington didn't HAVE to trade Varlamov, but Colorado felt they HAD to make a move to shore up a goalie, you can explain the braindead trade to get Varlamov. Bottom line: if there are no teams willing to pay to acquire an asset, that asset isn't worth much in a trade, regardless of what the fans say. Considering PG felt he HAD to make a move, then Halak had almost no perceived value on the team. If he's worth a 1st and 3rd pick in a trade, then that's what he was worth to PG. So he took the deal. End of story.

I can't stand Sportsnet's people. They're really bad. Kypreos, McLean.... Ugh, gives me shivers. I can deal with Bob McCown, he's good, but he does any sport, not just hockey.

This isn't helping the Grigorenko Crusade... But it's fun to watch!

Who will give me 5 to 1 that the Habs blow this?

But that's a lot of rational thinking for a fanbase that "is extremely passionate and knowledgeable about hockey", as they say.

He's been hot of late if I'm not mistaken. Hope he finds his groove this time around. Good luck to him.

The hate has definitely slowed down, but I think for the Toronto/Boston/not physical reasons you mentioned, it's probably here to stay. He had 9 pts in 29 games with Carolina, and he has 11 pts in 19 games with the Habs. Nothing wrong with that from an offensive defenceman. He'll push 40 pts for the year. Whether the Habs can win with Kaberle at that cap hit is a whole other debate, but we can agree he isn't the primary reason they are losing. The Habs had that down pat before he got there.

I picture that last line being said by the guy in your avatar with that exact look on his face. Pure gold.

Before this spirals out of control, Lebrun said: Tweet 1: Tweet 2: That is very clear. He's saying that no one told him that they know first-hand that Subban is available. So it's 100% speculation at this point. My stance is that PG can't be dumb enough to think he can trade Subban to improve his reputation enough to keep his job.