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Great to hear Yemelin is doing well; Ian Shultz was also hitting everything in sight last year if i remember correctly (till he hurt shoulder and has kind of flopped since then) Who will be the 7th d-man once Markov is back (if he even misses games); Weber, Spacek or Yemelin? Weber most likely i assume ?

I only criticize Hamrlik for getting old and not a thing to do with the effort he brought to the rink every night. If Caps keep his ice time closer to 15 minutes/game then he may really help them in playoffs, but more likely he will get injured and be a non-factor. The Sopel signing was one i could of really done without and I would of just played Weber and Mara more ( i still would still like to see Mara sign a 2 way contract) If Gauthier does have to deal picks, i wouldnt be pissed, but i really dont see it coming to that anyways and i have a lot less worry about the d-core than the team's ability to score more, which is what really sunk the Habs in last 2 playoffs.

Old timer Hamrlik? he was gassed the last 2 years come spring and uneasy about d, they will be fine? Off-topic i know. I would guess the reason would be a bit of 1 and 3, but Gauthier seems to be very hard to read, but i have be pleased with almost every one he has made so far and dont see extra $ as a big problem or failure.

McFadden and Malka are the 2 i am most curious about and whether either one can play defense at all, or are just 2 more MAB types? Walsh will have at least 1 more year (most likely 2 more) at Darthmouth eh? Hab can use goalie depth for sure, so would be a bonus if Gusse shows something at camp.

Good Question/Topic. I am always pulling for younger players in the AHL, like Engqvist or Palushaj to get a real shot with Habs, but if that means they only get very limited ice time, they are likely better to stay in AHL and play key roles with top minutes. But instead of signing a retread player, i would prefer to see a Conboy play, who most likely would be fine with limited minutes and do fine on a line with White and whomever as 4th line centre, and let Engqvist/Palushaj/Trotter be call ups for injuries.

i know he missed time and all that, but i am biased and like i said i am not a fan of his at all and would trade him in a sec for a bigger younger top six prospect. But just funny that i dont recall hearing even1 negative comment on 13 and you get The Chicoutimi Cucumber who, like most it seems, is a fan and can seem to see no reason for any critism of 13? And as i stated earlier, i see him in a much different light and get sick of 46 being hammered relentlessly by media for actually bringing more to the table every night? Hey, i hope Cammalleri lights it up this year and i actually think he will get 30+, but when he aint scoring he is just a floater out there, but just my opinion.

In my opinion, he is one of softest players in the league. I cant remember him ever being in any corner, backchecking, nor winning any puck battles and ever being Tyrell Owens-like in his refusal to take any dangerous pass, if there is any chance he may have to take a hit to make a play and takes only soft dumb penalties. Overall i guess my perception of him is, a tad harse maybe but, very skillfull but gutless. And 19 goals for $6/year wont cut it (and Kostitsyn had same production at 1/2 the cost, but took/takes just a tad bit more criticism, explain that?) Why does he not show up for regular season games and play like he does for playoffs?? If he gets 30 to 40 goals/year, then i would shut up, cut him some slack and live with his lack of team effort, much the same as a Kovalev.

Not a fan of Cammalleri and i doubt anyone ever accused him of lacking confidence. But he cant get fewer than 19 goals can he, so like Gomer he got nowhere to go but up.

Not sure how you cant equate Pacioretty and Kostitsyn's comments, they had same message and again it cant be too surprising that Martin is not a 'players' coach, which can be fine for a coaching style, but i just feel he adds very litle to the Habs success, except he can do interviews in both languages.

I would hope it is more a sign Martin will be gone, cause i still feel Habs are doing OK "despite" having Martin as a coach. Good for Andrai to speak his mind, but not much a surprise that Martin is not a players coach

4 20+ scorers sounds about right, when factor in an injury or 2, but i think Gionta, Cammalleri and Kostitsyn will all bag over 30, because with Markov back, addition of Cole, a more experianced/advanced Subban, Weber, Desharnais, Eller and Pacioretty the scoring opportunities for those 3 wingers at both even strength and on the PP should be there for them to really do well. I really dont see a down year for Kostitsyn (even if playing slightly less ice time on 3rd line with Eller) and i am really looking forward to see if he and Pacioretty do push each other for top line shifts and PP time.

Who do you think will get 20 goals this year? Gionta, Cammalleri, Plekanec should be locks for at least 20 and i feel Kostitsyn will get 20+ as well; but Pacioretty, Cole, Subban may end up just under 20 goals eh?

I hope not, cause it aint likely happening? Plakanec and Gionta may get 60-70 and i would be very with that. Pacioretty has only played a good 1/2 season, so i wouldnt say he is guaranteed to rack up a ton of points quite yet. But overall, i do see the Habs at least being in middle of pack for scoring and expect much more balanced scoring throughout the lineup. Kostitsyn will have his best year production wise and Cammalleri and Gomez cant do any worse can they? Palushaj will have a good rookie year and get 30 or so games in as a call up. quote name='bar' timestamp='1312412312' post='421322'] Thats fair enough Brian, do people speculate that the habs HAVE to have a player better than PPG to go far?

Why not sign Drury?

No big deal, Habs do well 'despite' having Martin as coach, good to see promotion from within. These guys have lots of experiance. I doubt losing Muller will have much impact neither (but he is a very classy and thoughtful guy, i know that much and wish the best for him); nice to see a vet coach moving into Hamilton as well, its all good. Maybe ol Jacques will be headed to upper management next year ?? I dont know about Deboer, but i dont think Habs were really chasing him were they?

Tinordi may be right there as well, when Beaulieu cracks the squad and who knows how much Nash, Ellis, Bennett, Diaz, Weber, Pateryn, Dietz and Nygren will improve over next 2 or 3 years? a couple should work out, couple will tank and couple will be traded no doubt, but Price should have a good core in front of him for next few years. patience is a virtue, on 19 July 2011 - 05:52 AM, said: If Markov has a long career, we may get to see that Big 3 for a season or three once Beaulieu comes of age, say 2013-14. He was the steal of the draft - good as a top-10 pick, IMHO. quote name='Wamsley01' timestamp='1311087340' post='421129'] That would be nice.

But enough that he wasnt going to offer ol Hamrlik 2 years. Weber should be competant as 4th d-man(if Martin will play him on a cnsistant basis) and Gill averaged just under 20 minutes last year with no signs of age, but again he cant really slow down any can he. Yemelin should get up to speed before christmas, as he is strictly a defensive d-man with lots of experiance, unlike Strait and Diaz is the true unknown, but if he like Weber that is fine with me.

Gorges is the obvious one to replace Hamrlik's minutes, but then you seem correct and 75,6, 68 or 74 will ned to play top 4 and Gill would surely be chosen to start there and we just have to hope Weber or Yemelin are capable to play 20 minutes to spell Gill? Is MCabe still a top four, if he ever was? or would Gauthier try and swing a deal and get a Zack Bogosian from Winnipeg?

Carle was being passed over by several d-men and with Diaz, Yemelin and Weber signings i am sure he saw the writing on the wall, so Habs trade a Picard type d-man for a more defensive d-man. See what the 2 Randy's can do with he and Stejskal's development in Hamilton this year i guess.

i think you are correct and if Gill wanted 2 year deal, wouldnt of been done, but i think Gill's intangilbles are a lot more than what Hamrlik's are, both on and off the ice (is there a better 5 on 3 d-man in the world??)? Hamrlik was solid the last couple years, but seemed to faulter (tired?) in playoffs and showed his age, whereas Gill cant get any slower and should (most likely) provide the same level of play again, especially with Gorges or Yemelin as his partner. From the outside looking in, Gill seems to be destined to be an NHL coach down the line, but just a wild assumption on my part.

Mara signing works for me, i thought he did very well last year and provided much needed grit on back end. And the top 6 d-men right now are a fairly soft crew, which is fine until liberties are taken with Price, Subban, top fowards or Markov. Would there be a chance Mara would/could sign a 2 way contract?? Hopefully Spacek spends more time watching games from press box than Weber does this year, but thats a bit off-topic. So St. Denis should be considered for call-up before Carle? Poor ol Carle seems to be getting passed by again?

yes good to see them give him 1 way contract, he should of started the season and played with Habs last year, I actually thought he would get more.

No not kidding one bit, again; i love his play and heart; however he is smallish, dosent clear front of net, dosent hit, dosent score, dosent fight, so to replace a smart shot blocker not that big a deal. Re-sign Komisarik would do it (even if he is a big loud-mouthed pussy).. Hey, just my opinion, when Gorges went down hurt the PK suffered for a bit, but not significantly, never gave up 1 PP goal vs Bruins (i know it was the Bruins,but still).

i know Belle was not with Bulldogs and couldnt even stick with a depleted oiler d-core, i was insinuating that i have been out to lunch regarding d-prospects in past, not just last year. But thanks for info, too bad for Carle, as he had good offensive #s in junior if i remember correctly.

Hey, i was all for calling up Shawn Belle and Alex Henry as well, so what the heck do i know, but i hadnt heard Nash struggled at all, and also i think St.Denis was voted their top d-man wasnt he? What is the matter with Carle? is he just not developing and keeps getting passed over, but of the few reports i hear, they alwasy seem good, but is he a career AHLer, or still too early to say?