shortcat1

He has the speed and talent for it. Would be nice to see.

I think this guy studied in the Bob Dylan stream-of-consciousness school of composition. It probably could be understood but it would mean a good amount of study, especially of 11's literary history. That aside, the proposed TB/Habs trade ain't gonna happen and the main reason is that there's no way Gainey will part with a guaranteed solid goalie like Théodore.

I agree with what you say here. Not likely any more signings but a trade is possible. There's quite a few back-up goalies available, some of them UFAs. In any case, as always, I expect Gainey to do the beat he can.

By the way, a little angel told me that this is a failed Leafs plot to try to take the microscope from them. It was the ' Acer saccharum' virus. Didn't work.

That was almost six years ago. From what I've read, he's in the Brian Rafalski mode (maybe not as good) but good enough to be a team captain and have an outstanding contribution in his league. He may be 'just a depth player' but he promises to be a very good depth player at worst. :ghg:

And then some. CHFans is ok but the dialogue here is way more interesting. Thank you for coming back on line.

Geez, I go to sleep on the sofa for about an hour and this happens. ATTAGO! Now this was the one to get. The others would have been not near as good. This guy proved he can play with our gang and enjoy playing with our gang. And four years too. Very nice... very nice. :ghg::ghg::ghg::ghg::ghg::ghg:

I'd be massively surprised if he was back. On RDS TV, it was stated that he wouldn't be back. He appreciated what Bob Gainey did for him but he was tired of the treatment he got from the local press and, especially, the Bell Boo Birds. Can't say that I blame him

Always good to get it from the horse's mouth. Way more reliable than what if's and I'd likes and rumours are. Thanks for the article.

Of that whole bunch, Hamrlik is the most interesting. Of course Niedermayer would be great but that would mean breaking the bank for one player... not worth it.

Short term maybe this LOOKS better for Edmonton but mid and long-term, Edmonton loses out big time on this deal Brewer is more than adequate, Woywitka is a top end defensive prospect and Lynch is a solid third pair defenseman. The oldest of the three is 26. Lots of down the road stuff to work with here. Pronger may be a franchise defenseman but, if he's the only one of consequence in front of Conklin, then that makes for a big hole when he's resting on the bench. Aside from Semenov, the others are third pair or fill-in players. Pronger at 30 still has many years left in him but how many of these will be in Edmonton? Not many, I expect. As soon as this contract is done, he's gone somewhere else. I'm glad that Gainey isn't doing something like that. It's like what Toronto and New York Rangers have been doing for years. Ah... this generation of instant gratification.

I know that I mentioned this in the 'Gainey sleeping?' string but this is probably a more appropriate string. RDS-TV announced, this morning, that Montreal is intererested in acquiring Peter Worrell. As before, hmmm..... :ghg::ghg:

Good thing your name isn't George Gillette. I trust Gainey. He'll do the best he can for the team. He may make errors (like the rest of us do) but he will do what he deems best which is way better than we could do, I'm sure. :ghg::ghg: [Edited on 2005/8/3 by shortcat1]

I hope you're right, habs fan. To my way of looking at things, its the wisest way to go. To act for the sake of acting or to look good in the circumstances? Not the best. Gainey could likely get someone but at what cost (and I don't just mean money here, there's more factors involved than that).

Kovalev IS a better fit. He's already shown that he can play with some players on this team. When he got used to Julien's system and playing with Koivu and Zednik, he clicked well. I'd go for Kovalev for sure. As for Satan, I'd be reluctant to consider him even at the salary you suggested... very reluctant.

Well, to be honest, at the amount suggested, I wouldn't want him. 4.5 million for 70- 75 points, good grief. I can see paying that to Koivu because his value is way much more than the points he can give. Shoot, Zednik won't get that and he's somewhere in the same range as Satan. Bottom line, no way for this guy at that price!!!

Shouldn't this string be included with 'UFA season'?

There's an article on RDS.ca about Georges Laraque entitled "Je ne dirai plus non à Montréal" - "I'll never again say no to Montreal" It's a big long letter effectively saying what the title states. Along with a lot of talk about the collective agreement process, playing in Europe, Bob Goodenow, he says that though his heart is in Edmonton, it would be 'hot' to play a couple of years in front of his family in Montreal. The only thing is, I wonder if this really is Laraque or some sort of construct. Here's the link but it's in French, of course: http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/184821.html [Edited on 2005/8/3 by shortcat1]

To tell you the truth about this one... frankly guys, I don't give a damn. Has nothing to do with our Habs and baseball will take care of its own as best as it can.

We already have the veterans to help the rookies. Lots of veterans. Koivu, Sundstrom Souray, Bouillon, Markov, Zednik/Bulis, Bégin are sufficiently experienced and, if they have the ability to do so, lots to show the beginners. I agree about that suggested trade... NO WAY! On the whole, I'm not at all disappointed with what Gainey and his team are doing. First, I trust their wisdom in this area and second, I believe, like Kaos and streamer, we're not in that bad a shape and it's better to deal wisely right now in order to be able to get some other talents next year (when they get younger). :ghg::ghg::ghg::ghg:

Yes, that's true. As to his value to the Canadiens, I don't know. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/player_list.asp describes him as being, at best, a utility player. It seems, though, that this is primarily a media-fueled article. Also my take on it is that the interest is primarily one-way, that is Mathieu Dandenault's interests, not Bob Gainey's.

You're right. That's exactly what it says on ALL counts.

Not likely. He hasn't followed the 'way to do things' as a rule. I like that. :ghg:

I'm going to take an opposing position here and not to play the devil's advocate either. The only FA we should go for is Kovalev. The reason being that he's already been a part of the team and has definitely shown that he CAN play in Julien's system with Koivu and Zednik. There's no risk there. If he doesn't accept Gainey's offers then the Canadiens should refrain from getting into the FA chase for this year. As to the other positions, regardless of the Kovalev outcome, we should bring in our own prospects (Hainsey & Streit) and help them grow into Julien's system. It will likely not be the best way to become super competitive this year but there are mid and long-term benefits to this approach. The reason for this is, as Gainey alluded, finances should be kept for the FAs which will be available next year - that way the team won't be as cash strapped in that event. :ghg:

Patrick Lebeau... tore up the Q, got drafted by Montreal, spent the summer playing street hockey, not getting in shape for the training camp, came in overweight and faded away. I had high hopes for him too. Oh well...