Neech

This group badly needed the win. Back to the regularly scheduled tank now. We need Andy's trade value to tick up, Drouin's already a lost cause.

All I want from this game is Slaf to pick up a point or show some signs of life.

Hey at least we didn't get shut out, and Armia finally got on the board. The tank continues. Nashville and St Louis win, which helps positioning on the Florida pick.

The second one was lucky deflection off the defender, the first was a great shot and the Czech player was first on the rebound. Made for some fun in OT and Canada still won. Great game! The Czechs look like they finally might be back to being a hockey power again.

Well Montreal lasted a half hour before getting blown out. We better at least not get shut out. Our race to the bottom four continues, I think we can finish below Arizona and San Jose.

Carolina gets to add Pacioretty to a first place squad. It finally might be their year.

Bad turnover by Slaf on the powerplay leads to a Rangers shortie. He also passed up a good shooting opportunity earlier. Shoot it Slaf!

The difference now is that our NHL coaching team is specifically focused on development. It was absolutely the wrong move back in the day with Price and Latendresse etc and the sink or swim mentality, but at this point the NHL level might actually be the best place for Slaf to learn. Again, we really don't know, but I give the benefit of the doubt to the new regime which is explicitly prioritizing development.

We really don't know if it's a mistake or not. It may look bad to us but we don't have the inside information. He's such a long term project that I don't care what happens this year as long as he doesn't get hurt or lose his confidence.

I say heck no, 2 shots at superstars is better than one, and there's a decent chance whoever we snag at 6 is better than a couple of the guys picked before. Studs like Guhle and Caufield are available at 10. That said we're a long way from the final rankings and it could coalesce into a clear top 3-5. The Russian factor is at a longterm high in terms of toxicity - I could see Michkov falling past 3.

Great response from Canada. Two controversial overturned goals for the States will leave them pissed off to say the least. Roy and Beck look like solid, complete players who have an NHL future.

Canada getting outclassed so far by the US. Are we just a powerplay team that runs the score up against the minnows?

Jeez let's not go overboard here, people. Slaf at 18 isn't a disaster by any means, especially on this turd of a roster. The AHL is a fine level for him to get more minutes against pros. I still don't get why we didn't send him to the Juniors, but I don't think it makes much of a difference in the long run.

Barron looks like he needs to marinate in the minors for a season or three. Hopefully he can turn things around a bit before Guhle or Matheson replace him.

There was talk of making this an interview thread, so here's a PK podcast interview with some former NFL players. He shines as a media natural of course, and most of it isn't that relevant to the Habs, but around the 50 minute mark he talks about the way Bergy handled the contract negotiations and the times he was struggling in Montreal.

Gally just fully rehabilitated his trade value, move him now Kent!

Still four more years on it after this one. The only way out I see is if he takes the LTIR route like Shea and Carey, or we dump it with a huge retention for another awful contract.

Caufield goes to the room after a knee on knee collision. First Guhle, now Cole with this very risky injury... about the worst thing that could happen!

The Habs look to continue their pointless streak but in a more dignified manner. Keep it within a goal or two boys. Savard and Richard return to the lineup, replacing Kovacevic and deadweight Armia. Elsewhere in the league, Arizona plays Florida in a big match for our draft positioning.

Sad I missed this game, looked like a classic! Won't be making the same mistake for the game on Wednesday against the Yanks. It's pretty disappointing we don't get to see the Russian team out there with Michkov showing how he stacks up against Bedard.

What are the odds for that?

I love the idea of Dubois at second line C going forward, provided he takes a bit of a hometown discount coming off a strong UFA year. If Dach is a top six winger and not a centre, we still won that trade big time.

Bedard was certainly noticeable out there with 11 shots. Canada was unlucky and sloppy but they should be able to bounce back if they get some decent goaltending.

He's not at peak value this season, at least let his numbers rebound before trading him. But no rush because he's one of our few good defensive forwards.

I have a feeling that we'll be looking for our replacements for Lekhonen and Danault as long as we've been looking for our replacement for Markov.