illWill

That's hard to believe since Keane is a multi-cup winner, captain and played into his 40's. I don't really want to go on an anti-Darche rant for the next hour but I will if I have to.

Wow, a game thread done up the day before. Somebody is on the ball......or really bored

Darche is terrible, even at league minimum. If you are of the opinion that he warrants a regular spot on a successful NHL team, then your judge of talent is skewed. If you are satisfied with him dumping it in as soon as he hits the red line, good for you. He has zero offensive awareness and hands of stone. Sure he skates his french ass off, but so would thousands of other scrubs who would if given the chance. He is a classic kiss-ass and I have never in my entire life disliked any Hab as much as him.

The thing with Roy coaching is that he is so loved by everyone that his leash will be alot longer than any other possible candidates. He could go through a losing streak without everyone jumping down his neck like most. We all want him to succeed here. We all want him to right his wrongs. He is arguably the greatest goaltender of all time, a homegrown talent and a winner. Even though he would be a rookie NHL coach, I think that the fans would be patient enough for him to turn things around if they started off sour. How much worse could it be than this year? You don't think the "professionals" would respect a guy with FOUR Stanley Cup rings? That is bullshit. If they don't respect that then they need to go play on a different team because here in Montreal, we are winners. Roy made everyone accountable when he was a goaltender on the ice and you better believe he would do the same behind the bench. There is no definition on what makes a successful NHL coach. There has been both "hot heads" and "emotionless statues" leading their team to the Stanley Cup. It is all about what is the best way to motivate the players that you have and get the best from them. And from what I've seen with the 2012 Montreal Canadiens, they have lacked passion. They didn't have the killer instinct. They could never come from behind and tie the game and conversely, never close one out. They would get shoved around with no retaliation. IMO they need a coach with some fire. I am of the belief that hockey is entertainment first and foremost. What else is it? Entertainment means different things to different people. To some it is watching an exciting game or following drama and to others it's the thrill of winning. Personally, I would like to see an exciting brand of hockey day in and day out, then make the playoffs and then hope for the best. There are 30 teams in the league and also 30 teams that want to win it every year. Fans put too much onus on winning the whole thing. Anything but and the year is an utter failure. What a crock. You mean to tell me that the President's Cup winning Vancouver Canucks from last year, who made it to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals but lost, was a failure? You can build a winning team but it doesn't mean you will win it all. Let's retool, fire the coach, get a lottery pick, lock up our core, hope prospects step up, sign a big free agent and THEN life will be good. There are so many variables that go into winning the Cup that it is impossible to control. If you are not happy with anything but a Cup every year, then I'm sorry, because your life will be full of disappointment. There's more to hockey than hoisting an oversized trophy over your head. Put an entertaining product on the ice, make it competitive, have some beers and enjoy!

I don't have anything to back this up but I can't think of one person that made the jump from being a GM in junior to the NHL. Another reason why it is a big move is the salary cap. Roy has zero NHL salary cap experience, not even as a player. I'm sure there are capologists and assistants around to help but Mr. Ego would have the final say. It just seems like a waste to me to have a guy who is as passionate and revered in the city of Montreal sitting with his feet up watching games from the press box. I'm excited just thinking about Roy arguing calls with the ref, yelling at a player who missed an assignment and angry sound bytes after the game. All it comes down to is winning. It's a perfect time for him to come aboard. Next season can't be worse than this one, so it will be seen as an improvement, which fans will more likely tolerate. Let alone if he got them into the playoffs or won a round.....they would rename St.Catherine's street, St. Patrick's street.

Sure have. I live directly across the street from the home of the PEI Rocket and have sat within ear shot of Roy coaching. I have never seen him play live to compare, but the man is full of passion. And surely you remember the incident when Roy allegedly threw punches at the owner of Chicoutimi after a game. Or how about when he signaled to his son to leave his crease and beat the bejesus out of the other goalie. I'm not too sure what your point is.

I have the opposite opinion. I would prefer Roy to be coach instead of GM. His short fuse and huge ego is much more dangerous in the GM position, being able to ship out a player at the drop of a hat. Or perhaps letting a player walk during contract negotiations because his agent high-balls him with a deal. I think the fire that Roy possesses is much better suited in the trenches of the war zone, like a General leading his team to battle.

Booooo, I was hoping I had seen the last of Darche with the Habs

3-0-2 in our last 5 is probably not what the majority of Habs fans want. We all hope the Isles score here soon

Okay, I have a comment. Excellent play by Subban to set up the tying goal.

haha, I just came on and said " WTF, no thread"? Way to step it up! Ummm, haven't really been paying too much attention to the game so far, so I can't add any useful comments. I've been waiting for most of the game for the girlfriend to get ready so we can go out and celebrate our Irish heritage.

I don't know about anybody else, but I thought that tying goal with seconds left was exciting. And it's evident by the reaction of the players when they scored that they don't give a crap about this whole tanking mentality that most fans have. Edit: I didn't mean to quote Demon

1) You are assuming that he is always on the ice during the last minute of play. And just because we have a worse record this year and a lot of close games, doesn't mean that the opposition actually scored more empty net goals this year compared to others. Without facts your point is useless. 2) Having Pleks on the point was actually the brainchild of Martin. It wasn't a bad idea in theory to try out but should have been squashed after it repeatedly didn't work . Coaching mistake or not, it's still the responsibility of the player not to allow a goal against on the powerplay. Again, we don't have facts to back up your statement of these types of goals against that have hurt his +/-. 3) Pleks hasn't gelled with any line combo all year. Is it everyone else or is it Pleks? He couldn't make it work with AK, Gionta, Cammy and they are not the average scrub like you listed to try to manipulate your point. There are all kinds of players that make others around them better. A line either produces, or it doesn't and gets broken up. The fact is that Pleks hasn't had significant chemistry with anyone all year. 4) That is only true when the other team's players are better than the people trying to stop them. If Pleks is going up against the best night in and night out, he isn't doing a very good job at stopping them. Why? Because he isn't as good as the other team's best.

That's my point. Our supposed top point producing center is playing with "top tier talent" like Darche. If he is better than DD, than he should be in between Cole and Patches, or at least one of them. Our mentality as a team shouldn't be to shut down the other guy's best players, but for them to want to shut us down.

Wow, those are better odds than I thought at getting #1 for other lottery teams. I'm surprised it hasn't happened more.

1) Probably around the same as every other year 2) Probably a couple. But let's not blame Pleks for that right? It's someone else's fault. 3) Of course. He isn't producing offensively, you made my point. 4) So you are saying that the tough assignments are getting the best of him? Other team's best players are better than ours, plain and simple.

Again, my idea isn't necessarily based on disregarding what Plekanec can do, but more so the fact that we already have a #2 center producing 60 points in DD. And the fact that I believe Eller has shown he can be relied on in many different situations. IMO Eller isn't too far behind Pleks in ability right now, and will surpass him in time. Bourque-Staal-Gionta Pacioretty-DD-Cole -Eller- That looks more like a top contending team to me.

+1

I'm judging Plekanec based on his career as a whole. He has been inconsistent throughout. He has never been the go to guy when we need a goal. It bothers me how he has been protected from fan's outrage this season. We all throw our GM, coach, Cammy, AK, Subban etc under the bus, but hardly any mention of Mr.-22. Why should Pleks be slotted for 60-70 points per season if he had decent linemates? Shouldn't a player of that caliber be able to make those around him better? He shouldn't need others to make him better.

To again compare the two, since the lockout, Plekanec has averaged 20 goals and 52 points per year. So your 10-15 point difference in any given year is in fact 20-25 points in any given year. Staal has been the model of consistency throughout his career, while Pleks has been the opposite. How quickly we forget his stellar 39 point campaign a few seasons ago. Plekanec should not be considered a #1 center on any team in this league. My idea is based on the fact that we have too many secondary centers and zero studs. Yes, he would fit in nicely as a #2/shutdown role but the emergence of Eller makes me believe that Pleks wouldn't be missed as much as some think. Obviously trading away a top 5 draft pick is questionable because most develop into front line talent but that's the price it costs to acquire a PPG center, who is only 27 years old himself. How long will it take for a Grigorenko or Galneychuk to develop into a #1 for this team? To lead this team deep into the playoffs? More than a few years away. This team already has lots of young talent waiting to crack the lineup and the young core already in place is ready to perform now. Personally, I would rather not wait till 2016 to get excited.

I think you may be correct on that. I am guilty of hating the system and everything it represented. Results speak for themselves. Look at St.Louis ripping up the league playing a total team system, with no superstars in sight.

If my memory serves me right, I think he selected Ray Bourque as one of the shooters instead.......I don't think it mattered anyway, Hasek was unbeatable in that period of time, I don't think anybody was going to score on him. I think that it is a consensus that everyone would like a new coach for next season. There was a chance Cunneyworth could have been kept on, but his results have been terrible thus far. Not a knock on the rookie but with all the french controversy, he is more than toast. I would welcome Crawford with open arms at this point. But what I really want to see is Saint Patrick behind the bench. It seems like it is so perfect in so many ways. The timing is just right for him to make the jump to the bigs. I can hear his sound bytes now......even though he can't because his Stanley Cup rings are plugging his ears

Okay, we will disregard a 100 point season so we can further prove your point. Even if we take that out, he still averages 34 goals per year and 75 points. Plekanec to me is a reflection of this franchise, good but not good enough. He is having an absolutely abysmal year. He is supposedly so responsible defensively but yet sports a sparkling -22 +/-, which is miles ahead of anybody else on the team who have been there all year. I am comfortable with DD and Eller filling in the #2 and #3 spots down the middle, but an upgrade at #1 is needed badly. As far as other team needs, that is up for another discussion.

Staal since the lockout has averaged 79 points and 36 goals per year. He never gets injured, won a Cup and Olympic gold. It doesn't get much better than that.

With the high draft pick we hold in this draft, we HOPE to select a player who will eventually turn out to be as good as Staal. A clear cut #1 center who is big and can put up a PPG. We have plenty of draft picks in the cupboard, along with many prospects that are very close to jumping to the big league. Not to mention the young core that are already valuable pieces to this team now. Perhaps if our current roster composition was different, I would want to hold on to the draft pick, but I think the timing is right to make a big move like that. This team needs an identity. It needs players who can actually define their roles on the team. Go down the list, most of the players currently don't know what their role is, or who they will be playing with on any given night. I am sick and tired of having a bunch of good players, and not enough great players. I think a deal like this makes sense for both teams.