Link67

Some nagging issues plaguing this team in defensive zone coverage, but boy is this offense somehow potent as hell so far. I still can't believe the same group of forwards as last year essentially, without Pacioretty and Galchenyuk, but with Domi and Tatar, is capable of THIS.

This D right now is playing so loosey goosey that they are allowing 4 goals or more no matter who is in net. So lets put the pitch forks away for awhile longer, until I see these goalies letting in softy after softy, instead of watching this defense allow time and space like its on a black Friday deal, I will be blaming the structure in front of the net, and not the ones in the net for now.

SABRES (7-6-2) at CANADIENS (8-5-2) 7:30 p.m. ET; TSN2, RDS, MSG-B, NHL.TV Sabres projected lineup: Jeff Skinner -- Jack Eichel -- Jason Pominville Vladimir Sobotka -- Evan Rodrigues -- Sam Reinhart Conor Sheary -- Casey Mittelstadt -- Kyle Okposo Patrik Berglund -- Johan Larsson -- Zemgus Girgensons Jake McCabe -- Rasmus Ristolainen Marco Scandella -- Zach Bogosian Nathan Beaulieu -- Rasmus Dahlin Linus Ullmark Carter Hutton -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Canadiens projected lineup: Tomas Tatar -- Phillip Danault -- Brendan Gallagher Jonathan Drouin -- Max Domi -- Andrew Shaw Kenny Agostino -- Jesperi Kotkaniemi -- Artturi Lehkonen Nicolas Deslauriers -- Matthew Peca -- Charles Hudon Jordie Benn -- Jeff Petry Karl Alzner -- Mike Reilly Xavier Ouellet -- Victor Mete Carey Price Antti Niemi ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Game Notes -Goalie Linus Ullmark will make his second start in three games for the Buffalo Sabres against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Thursday. -Ullmark is 3-0-1 with a 2.00 goals-against-average and .934 save percentage in four games. -Buffalo is 1-2-2 in five games since Oct. 25, when a 4-3 win against Montreal extended its winning streak to three. -The Canadiens have alternated wins and losses in their past 10 games. They have allowed at least four goals in four of their past five games. p.s. First ever crack at this GDT thing, hope it is up to par, info gathered from nhl.com

Sure, but the problem is constructive criticism is not what we are seeing generally, its over reactions and toxic behavior. In Hudon's case, in Price's case, there is no consideration for the big picture, no consideration that Hudon looked like the best forward the game prior and his real ability as a player is somewhere between both performances. Or that Price is not going to stop a cross seam one timer from Stamkos very often, or keep getting Glove saves off even when a turn over 20 feet from his net results in a guy staring him down 2 seconds later and firing a laser beam just under the bar. Like I said, there is no construction to the criticism, always irrational negativity no matter what the big picture actually looks like. There were big portions of the 1st and 2nd where we were flying and clearly giving them fits on the ice, no consideration given to that. We were playing a legitimate cup contender, mistakes of any kind would likely be costly, and they were, no consideration given to that. Minus a couple bad penalties and a couple uncharacteristic breakdowns, we played well overall. Our PP was snake bit yet again and didn't give us the timely goal we needed to get back in it, but no consideration given to those points either. So yes, I agree, constructive criticism is great, but in this case, and in most cases when it pertains to Hab fan reactions in general, it was non existent, yet again.

What a contrasting difference from the GDT for Washington and this one, we go from wow what a team, to this guy is shit, that guy is dumb, the goalie is no good. Boy, we really are the bi-polar fanbase everyone makes us out to be aren't we. What I saw was a team trying and competing, a couple ill timed penalties swinging the momentum, and a couple individual bad plays leading to goals. Because guess what? We were facing one of the real elite teams in this league, and those things I mentioned, coupled with a few players having an off night, is usually enough to land you a big old L. Hudon had an off night that snowballed on him, doesn't make or break him as a player, he had the game of the season against Washington and an off night against Tampa, but he is judged and executed by the Tampa game only? Funny how that works. Price literally has no chance on the first few goals, rockets coming at him off cross seam plays or bad turnovers, only had a chance on the 4th goal with 4 min left in a game that was already over, but of course he was garbage somehow. We have a team that was supposed to be garbage, we wind up with a team that plays a fast entertaining game, some players really playing impressive hockey. But still, we can't figure out how to watch these games without allowing ourselves to be over reactive and toxic. It is frustrating as hell to watch us, and this fanbase in general, act like this despite the season we are having, and the game they just played against Washington. We can start acting like a roid raging, angry group when these guys are in the midst of a 5 game losing streak where they lost to teams they shouldn't have, playing uninspired,and lazy hockey we wouldn't be accustomed to this season. Until then, look in the mirror as a fan, and realize the toxic reactions are not warranted at this stage, and do better.

How the heck did Domi only score 9 goals last year? The kid looks dynamic as hell, plays with an endless amount of tenacity and speed, has great hands, great vision, all skills that could easily see him being a major contributor to any team's top 6. He honestly makes me not even miss Galchenyuk in the slightest of ways, I can't imagine how it was possible for this kid to stagnate like he did in Pheonix. Amazing what a change of scenery can do for a player sometimes.

Me, whenever I hear DragonForce

Just an fyi to those trying to throw the piano down from the top window on this thing with the games played card, how many games played has no bearing, what so ever, on whether or not you think the moves and decisions listed in the OP are good moves or not. That is the point he is making, and even I, who has pretty much disliked everything he has done since trade deadline Ott and King, can admit this whole offseason has looked like a pleasantly surprising basket of competency. I truly believed if we kept him at the helm he would continue to find new ways to ruin things for us, but he proved other wise,. Despite the obvious fact that the mess he had to clean up was his own doing, his 2018 offseason has largely been a success, if you evaluate it as its own separate entity from the rest of his body of work.

Who cares about his size, or what his projections are, he can't freakin produce at the NHL level, not even minimal 4th line production was he capable of while he was in that role. Of every forward available to put in the line up he is the least productive option, literally. People on social media with their panties in a bunch over this waiver claim are being a bit ridiculous, he showed us all he is gonna show us, an inability, year after year to progress offensively. In a spot where guys like Deslaurier, Byron, Shaw, even Mitchell were capable of decent 4th line production over the years, he was not. So lets stop pretending Detroit just claimed the next Zetterberg, and see it for what it really is, a physically ready, yet completely unproductive NHL forward was put on waivers and was claimed. DLR is a good kid, but his contribution to this team will not be missed, because it was very minimal, he was leap frogged easily by Kotkaniemi and Peca, and can be replaced from within easily for the same reason. Just because an asset is young, doesn't mean its worth a damn, he was on the block for some time and no one was willing to bite, not even for throw away assets, what does that tell you? But somehow the sky is always falling in Montreal for the most foolish of things, this is the very definition of crying over spilt milk. Matthew Peca was just a healthy scratch not long ago, and didn't deserve to be, and we are worried about keeping De La Rose on this roster? Give me a break..

And the Train known as this year's edition of the Canadiens, keeps on rolling. Still can't believe what I am seeing out there, what an impressive 180 from last season's play.

Armia is just a winger version of Eller, he certainly is a useful hockey player, he cannot be relied upon to consistently produce at a top 6 rate however. If we establish his role/niche, and let him play his game, while expecting a 3rd line player capable of several flashes of brilliance throughout a season, we will all be happy to have him on the team. I don't know why the pop shots at him, was anyone expecting the next Blake Wheeler or something? This is a big bodied 3rd line player with some hockey skills who can fill in on an offensive line from time to time. Double digit goals and 30 something points is about the max we can expect from him, and that is perfectly fine coming from the 3rd line.

Obviously too early to get wrapped up in this debate already. With that said, Domi has looked great, no comparisons and arguments and especially rekindling of old debates needed, the player I see is a player I can appreciate having on this team. A playmaking version of Gallagher is exactly what I was hoping for, and it looks like what I am seeing at the moment, and if that's the player we are getting all year, I don't need to compare him to anyone I will just be thrilled to have him here..

I think people are doing the typical Hab fan thing in the case of Drouin, overreacting to a bad night, like any player doesn't have those, or like he didn't have any off nights last year. Let me see him perform with no drive, and lack of commitment to the team game for a handful of games in a row, and then maybe i'll think Houston we got a problem. Otherwise it's just a bad day in the office you just gotta flush down and move forward from by coming back better and stronger next game.

I am not sure what I just watched tonight, but this team looked interesting, feisty, quick as hell, and not at all what I was expecting. They were literally out there like... And I am not sure anyone was truly ready for how they were going to bring it.

The bit about his Dad was pretty comical. The man deserves every bit of the nomination, Gallagher would have too, Shea is just the safer more experienced choice, there was no wrong answer here, and I assume no one in that locker room, in the front office, or around the league for that matter thinks other wise.

I agree, i'd be lying if I said some of this regime's incompetent decisions in the past have not got me slightly worried they may mishandle Kotkaniemi as an asset. However, I still stand by the ideology that he plays in the NHL as long as he looks like he clearly belongs. His overall game must remain looking like that of a young top 6 forward, the ups and downs will be normal and expected, they should also not be the cause for his demotion, its his overall game that must remain the deciding factor. The combination of his playing prowess, his physical adaptation to the NHL, his mental adaptation to the NHL, and to a certain degree, his ability to produce at an NHL level, that should culminate the final decision throughout the process, does he stay or does he go. As long as the management side of this doesn't start keeping him around despite obvious signs over a period of time where he can't physically handle it, or he sticks around on a 4th line or even has a couple games in the press box, i'll assume they are handling it correctly. Because so far I seem to see what they see, that the kid has earned his right to start the year here, he has earned his right to get a really good look at what he can do in the top 6, against other team's top 6. That doesn't mean he should get a free ride the rest of the year, it simply means, as of right now, playing here is the best option for his development because he should be playing at the highest level he can handle while being an impactful player. Right now that appears to be the NHL, we'll see what the future holds in that regard, whether its 9 games or 41 games, Kotkaniemi's play should be dictating the terms, and nothing else.

i'm gonna have to disagree here. Mete was not negatively impacted for playing here last year, he played pretty well for us, had any normal amount of ups and downs a young dman will have throughout a season. He also looks to have grown tremendously from that experience now in this training camp, which also suggests keeping him here because he proved he could handle it was the right play, it always is. It is when you keep them around even though they show signs they are not ready, because of status or you want make them NHL ready on the fly that things get screwy. Kotkaniemi has shown he is ready to play at this level, we all watched him, we all saw his incessant growth day after day, we all saw how well he performed against major matchups with Matthews and Tavares, that is as into the fire as it gets. If he came out of this camp looking like he would need to be sheltered to play in this league, i'd say send him back, but this kid looks like he can play here and even have quite an impact completely unchained. Contractual strategy does not get to play a role when it comes to the development of your top prospects, the kids show you when they are ready, and when they are you let them run with it. You send them back or keep them on for one reason and one reason only, their individual performance, and as far as I can tell, sending him away would be a huge injustice to all the work he has put in during this camp, and his very good performances. The kid has looked better than most of our vets for most of the pre-season, are we seriously talking about sending him off because we want his UFA status to be at age 27 instead of 25? I got quite a hunch if he keeps going the way he is, he is going to get paid handsomely very early in his career and for a long time. So don't worry about his UFA status, and lets figure out whether or not we are going to have to sign him to a big 8 year deal coming out of ELC like some of these other top young players are getting. At that point his UFA age matters not, because the contract will take him past his UFA years anyway. He stays in the NHL because he looks NHL ready, or he goes back because he doesn't, that's it, that's all, in my books on.

Eric is way over blowing this situation, a bottom pair of Alzner and Oulette will be more than enough of a replacement to Alzner - Schlemko. Geez

ill just repost my twitter reply to this line up here

Oh...I've seen GLARING NEGATIVITY on this forum many times before, the frustrating kind that just eats away at you like what you are expressing. This thread however is far from an example of that, I get where you are coming from, I really do, but I see a lot of concerns being expressed, and very few pitch forks, a big difference imo.

Actually its really not that weird, no one seems to have an issue with the cap hit, its pretty modest, its the term, for a speed reliant player that scares people a bit. Also, no one has a problem with Drouin's contract because, for one, he was given the contract coming off a 50+ point season in Tampa. Secondly, everyone knows Drouin isn't really a 13 goal scorer, he had a down year production wise because he was thrust into a precarious position and did the best he could with it. His true self, playing in a favorable position, is an easy 20 goal guy, with a ceiling no one even knows yet, he will show us where it is in time. Ultimately I think using Drouin as an example is just poor judgement, everyone who knows anything about this situation, knows he was thrust into an impossible situation and performed admirably, but inadequately in the grand scheme of things. Most of us also know he is on the verge of a breakout, and has the potential to be a Bargain contract for 50% of his term.

right now I am thinking.. Drouin - Domi - Byron Tatar - Danault - Gallagher Lehkonen - Peca - Armia Hudon - Plekanec - Scherbak Rielly - Petry Mete - Julssen Alzner - Schlemko

I use the Rogers NHL Live subscription, and use the app on my PS4, makes for easy man cave hockey nights.