Peter Puck

Not many people have liked this trade (Yashin and #1 pick for Ribs or other junk or nothing) but I think I might do it. There is lots of discussion here about which free agent we want. However there are 30 teams with many having cap space looking for UFA's. The top few will mainly resign with their own teams and there will be bidding wars for the rest. Personally I'd love to get Selanne or Peca because they are playing so well. But the ones playing well are the ones that are the most likely to be resigned. I am not sure we will be able to use the cap space we saved by trading Theo (except for a few minor improvements -see Dandinault). If we are going to get a top player, I think it will have to be one who is unpopular, expecially with his own team. If this is correct we will be taking a risk whomever we sign. Just think, would you sign Jagr for 8 million a year? Would you have done that one year ago? Gainey needs to decide whether Yashin will ever return to anything like the level of his Ottawa days. But maybe all he needs is a change of scenery. If so this trade could be the biggest steals of all time!

I thought I heard an interview with Kirk Muller in which he said that he wanted to stay at Queen's and learn to coach for a few years. He acknowledged that he would like to coach in the NHL, and that he expected to hear from Gainey & Carbonneau but he wanted to wait a while. Did I dream this?

If the best player available is not a defenceman and and we really want one one of the defence prospects then we should trade the pick and move down in the draft a few spots. Plenty of first round picks, especially around number 16, are busts. The draft is risky enough without skipping the best player available (in our scouts' opinion) in order to get a Dman.

I can't help but notice that the pope himself seems not to have produced any progeny. Or maybe he has?

ROFL It's pretty difficult to move right to left across the crease and keep you legs together all the time. Also the 5 hole the puck went through was very small. I still think one must be very creative to blame that goal on Theodore.

Actually if you watch closely you can see that both of the Colorado players diving to block the shot deflect it with their sticks. The first one deflects it upward off the ice and the second stick deflects it back down. Really can't blame Theo for not stopping it. But what was Brisebois thinking????

It seems to me like your considering at one of the following: Bullis_the_Capie, Bullis_the_wildie, Bullis_the_leafy, Bullis_the_preditoree (doesn't really roll off the tongue) Bullis_the_Hawky (Bullis_the_hockey?) and Bullis_the_Rangy.

My predictions: EAST (1)Ottawa vs. (4)Buffalo: Buffalo in 7 (2)Carolina vs. (3)New Jersey: New Jersey in 5 WEST (5)San Jose vs. (8)Edmonton: San Jose in 6 (6)Anaheim vs. (7)Colorado: Anaheim in 6

Yeah, these tax cuts are almost enought to off set the rise in gas prices. Not quite but almost.

Of course, I am hoping for the best and confident of a win tonight and hopeful for a win in game 7. But, I am going to enjoy myself tonight. We have a good team with lots of good young players. We have a bunch of very good prospects and the Habs future looks better than it has looked for a long time. We have a great GM and coaching staff. We could lose tonight if the refs make more mistakes or if we get some really bad bounces but it won't matter in the long run. We have a bright future and I am about to enjoy a Habs playoff game!! If things don't go as well as we all hope tonight or on Thursday, just think how infinitely happier we are than Leaf's fans as they cling to their 1967 memories. :king: Go-Habs-Go!!!!

I don't know. I tried to find out but couldn't get any info. He seems to be using Sergei since he came to North America.

Here is some good news we could all use. Segei Kostitsyn won the playoff showdown with Matt D'Agostini. The London Knights tonight defeated the Guelph Storm 4 games to 1 in the OHL semi-final. In the final game the Knights won 5-4 in OT with Kostitsyn getting 2 goals and 3 assists including scoring the overtime winner. The Knights tied the game on a powerplay with their goalie pulled with 15 seconds left in the 3rd when Kostitsyn's shot was tipped in. Sergei has 12 goals and 20 assists for 32 points in 15 playoff games. This puts him third in CHL playofff scoring behind his teammate Robbie Shremp (5g + 33a = 38pts in 15 games) and Alexander Radulov of the Quebec Remparts (12g+21a = 33 pts in 14 games). D'Agostini is 6th in CHL scoring with 8g + 20a = 28 pts in 15 games. Both these guys are doing much better than expected and have really raised their games for the playoffs. Its only CHL but we couldn't ask for more.

Yes this is the rule but the refs almost never call it. I can't remember that call being made even once this season. Was that the true reason they waved off the goal, or was it that one of the refs had already blown the whistle. Did anyone hear the official announcement?

Plekanek has really stepped up. He is playing his best hockey of the year. I think Gainey shoukld give him a couple of shifts with Higgins and Ryder. Before the game huzer predicted that would happen by the end of the night.

We gave up way too many odd many rushes in the 2nd. We need to be more disciplined. I'm not very confident about the outcome of this game. Unlike the first 3 games of the series we have been clearly outplayed tonight.

This is looking bad.

We need the next goal. I'm not liking the flow of the play.

Boy these broken sticks are killing me.

Okay, I have made my decision. I'm going to wear the away jersey. Go Habs Go

This has been on the Canadiens site for a while. You can hear a clip of Gainey explaining his confidence in Bonk.

Interesting. I actually like this. More Kovalev is good. More Kovalev with shorter shifts is even better. It would have been interesting to give Kostitsyn a shot though.

I think Gainey will try to minimize the reshuffling of lines. I suggest we might see: Bulis Ribeiro Kovalev Ryder Higgins Zednik Perezhogin Plekanek Kostitsyn Murray Bonk Sundstrom or the following which I think is less likely: Bulis Ribeiro Kovalev Ryder Higgins Kostitsyn Perezhogin Plekanek Zednik Murray Bonk Sundstrom

Thank you Beliveau1 for this sane and calm statement. Losing is upsetting, especially the way it happened in game 3 but we need to keep some perspective. How many people predicted we would beat Carolina in 4 straight? Koivu's injury is especially distressing but we can all hope for the best: a full recovery.

I think you may see Kostitsyn used. Of course he played a couple of games this year and we need some offence.

This is my feeling exactly. Ottawa is very good (maybe too good for us) but I prefer them to Buffalo.