l.moustakas

I recently called the "loser point" silly. This article sums up some of my feelings http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/39172-THNcom-Blog-NHLs-useless-loser-point-creates-detrimental-confusion.html

Calling up a Henry essentially says that the Bruins' physicality has gotten into the organization's head and does little to help the team. Montreal's speed and transition have long been the Achilles heel of the B's and there is no sense for the Canadiens to try being something they are not at this point in the season. The Habs are just not the most physical group and that's fine.

In the vein of my continued gripping about the league's recent take on discipline, I absolutely love how, at the GM meetings, they took a long hard look at spin-o-ramas and video review for highsticking. Really? This is what we are worried about? Also, other this new cockamamie video review, the referees were apparently told to watch out more for charging and boarding. Yes, let's shovel all the blame and responsibility towards the referees, who are constantly given varying and near contradictory directives. We all know, at one point during the playoffs, Darren Dreger will come out and say the refs have been warned about goalie interference. Or hooking. Or late hits. Take your pick. If the refereeing leaves us scratching our collective head at times, I certainly do not blame the referees, who for the most part are quite good. Rather, I blame the league and their seeming inability to properly apply the rules as stated. In the end, I suppose it's no wonder Stephen Walkolm left his post as Director of Officiating after only a year. He must have had his fill.

So, I didn't get to see the game last night. I was wondering, what are your impressions of Dawes and Palushaj?

Lucky you, people of this thread. I chose it as the subject of this week's Around the Boards (have to move the focus away from Chara and the NHL's "discipline" at one point...) http://habsworld.net/article.php?id=2426

I always look forward to seeing how callups perform and, honestly, Montreal's fortune in that respect has been astonishing. Pacioretty, Weber, Desharnais and White have performed admirably and have gone a long way to solidfying their place in the NHL, albeit to varying degrees. Having said that, this lineup is a bit too green for my taste. Too green even for St. Patty's day.

Let's see. I will put my arm and elbow up about 'yay' high. Wonder what will happen? Maybe we should hand out suspensions for sheer stupidity. Like, don't they teach how to hit when you are like 3 and 1/2 years old? But you are in the NHL and can't figure it out. Great. As my dad is fond of saying, I was born at night, it just wasn't last night.

Well, Im going to the Sens-Devils tonight, so we will see

Funny, the Devils remind me a lot of the 07-08 Capitals who stormed back to win their Division after being a miserable 14th in the East early in the season. Honestly, I will go out on a limb here, but I say they make the playoffs.

Two comments. First, Montreal will finish sixth. It's pretty set at this point. The other teams in front have a fair edge and, save for Pittsburgh, far healthier teams. The team behind Montreal are in a dogfight for the final two spots and, save for a major meltdown, are of no concern. Second, should the Devils storm to a playoff position and face Philly in the first round, I predict Philly goes down. The matchup does not favour the Flyers at all, in my opinion.

In the video from the Marchand hit, Andy Brinkley of NESN describes the hit as "From behind a little bit". Okay, what then would "From behind a lot" look like? I mean, how could you possibly be more behind a player? Then the commentators go on to discuss the play as legal because the opposing player had the puck, so it wasn't interference. The league takes about fining players, owners, coaches. I say we should also fine the NESN broadcast team. P.S For those of you who wish to hear this scintillating description:

The Bruins love to talk tough about the Habs. Remember, way back when Glen Murray said, prior to a first-round matchup with Montreal, that the Bruins had 'more important things to worry about then the Canadiens' (paraphrasing, but that is esentially what he said). How did that work out again?

Really? I should keep up with the Dawgs more. I thought only Dawes was out. Convenient. The two Randys in Hamilton must be pulling their hair out.

Question: Given the potential injury situation with Halpern and Pleks, is it possible to call-up Dustin Boyd under that "emergency" rule which exempts him from re-entry waivers?

Tooting my own horn here, but: - Crosby on head hits: "I mean, if a guy has enough time to line someone up, then he’s got enough time to decide whether he can hit him in the head or not." - Me on the Chara hit: "Yet, night in, night out, we watch these players take precise shots, make clean hits and realize amazing dekes with very little time or space afforded to them. But, all of a sudden, we are supposed to accept that such an action was purely in the realm of accidental or incidental contact. It seems unfathomable that an elite player would not be aware of his aggression level and position on the ice."

Homer Simpson: "Oh, people can come up with statistics to prove anything, Kent. 14% of people know that."

Good point.

Yep, this is the kind of image and publicity the league needs. Paints a pretty picture doesn't it?

You are right. Many people side with Chara and the league on this issue. Just like many did with Mike Richards, David Steckel and Matt Cooke. Isn't that the whole problem? Sometimes the majority just means all the fools are on the same side. As for Habs fans overreacting, that is an enticingly easy argument to make. In the end, I fear it's rather a case of people underreacting. A player looked near-death after a violent act that left him, luckily, with only a concussion and a damaged vertebrae. Really, regarding violence and hockey, collectively we have been underreacting for years. All of us, Habs fans included. We watch almost indifferently as Steve Moore had his career ended, Chris Simon wacks people on the head, Games turn into 300 PIM sideshows. And now, this year The Chara incident, the loss of the games best player and another 71 wonderful concussions thus far. The league needs to step in, set clear guidelines regarding punishment and mette out harsh discipline when unnecessary violence occurs. That means banning fighting as well. Don't get me wrong, I admire and enjoy a good tilt. I applaud White or Mara for sticking up for their teammates. But the fact the must stick up like that at all is kind of ridiculous. Proper rules and proper enforcement should remove such a need, right? I want safety and dignity restored to the sport I so love. I'm tired of it being the butt of a Rodney Dangerfield joke ("Went to a fight last night and a hockey game broke out") But, for all that to happen, we must stop collectively rationalizing these incidents as "part of the game" or "hockey plays".

Dan Ellis, who entered tonight's game with a .894 save percentage, is playing a real stinker for Anaheim. 4 goals on 21 shots shots and I suspect Ray Emery will start the third period. In hindsight, I guess I am pretty glad he is not Montreal's backup.

Seems like Stephane Auger reputation continues to go downhill: http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nhl/news/story?id=6211860

Yes, yes. Thank you for that.

Could you send me a copy of the "Code"? I put mine in the drier by accident.

In short, during the 2010-11 NHL season, here is what I have learned. This is disrespectful: This is a hockey play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1enycgSIWJ4 Of course. Makes perfect sense.

In this case, I think it's just a case of people booing one of our top players to take him off his game. Like Montreal fans regularly do with Pronger or Chara. Speaking of which, imagine to loudness of the boos next time Chara comes to town....