Mont Royale

You're no fun at all.

This suggests they'll be given their top line spots back - but have to be worried about keeping those spots. Globe & Mail Carbonneau was hardly reassuring on that front. While he acknowledged the injured veterans would be back in the lineup, he said they will have to work to keep their spots on the top lines and their ice time. "The way we're playing now, I'd be a little worried if I was one of the injured guys," said Carbonneau. "It shows we have players who can step in." Higgins has the most to worry about, especially the way he started the season. There is no way the Habs don't have room for Koivu in their lineup. Anyway, internal competition is good!

Enthusiastically agreed.

Dumping on coaches again, eh? I might agree, but this is the Sens 3rd coach in a year and a half. They started off great under Paddock, but then nose-dived, and neither he, nor Murray, nor Hartsburg seems to have found the problem. Are all these guys incompetent? The Sens have lost a number of quality d-men over the last couple of years; without a certain level of talent, the best coaching in the world can go for naught.

Haha, her stick is for a lefthanded shot, but she's a righty. Wait, why the hell am I looking at her stick?

I disagree - he's very suspect defensively. His positioning is off too often, and he sometimes attempts unnecessarily risky passes to get it out of the zone (leading to turnovers). There's just a lot of other players on the team who have a better understanding of what to do in the defensive zone, and they get the icetime when there's a lead to protect. I hope and believe he'll get better with experience.

I'm surprised to see Pacioretty on so many lists - obviously he's carrying high expectations for such a young player. Although he's playing well now, I have to assume this is mostly based on his potential. To me, he isn't really untouchable if he's the required piece to bring someone back that could put us over the top this year (a la the oft-referenced Niewendyk-Iginla trade). The return would have to be high, but I wouldn't say he's untouchable, because the future is now for this team.

Not sure if it's true or not... but "only" Markov? He's one of the best defencemen in the league! And given Montreal's needs (which are defence more than offence), this trade wouldn't make sense for Montreal.

Agreed on all points, and add A. Kostitsyn to the list with Maxpac. I'm disappointed - I had high hopes for that game. Between poor officiating and most of our best players having an off-night, it was a downer. It wasn't even that exciting - the trap will do that, I suppose. Oh well.

Given that the reason for this trade would be Tampa Bay's financial difficulties, I can't imagine Gainey would have to give up so much (or that he would agree to). Looking at potential suitors for a Lecavalier-sized contract, who's out there? The fact that many of the league's teams are struggling financially (or rumoured to be) reduces the list. Then knock out those teams already saddled with one or two players with big contracts who wouldn't be inclined to further concentrate their cap dollars (NYR, Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh, and Vancouver come immediately to mind). Then knock out those teams who don't have the depth to make the kind of deal Montreal can... The point is, if TB truly wants out of this contract because of their financial condition, their options would be very limited, which leads to the conclusion that Montreal shouldn't have to overpay. Given the quality of the other pieces involved (Pleks, Higgins, Subban, draft picks), I can't see how Gorges would need to be involved; arguably it's overpaying without Gorges. As for fan reaction, Tampa Bay fans aren't going to like the deal any better because Gorges is part of it - they'll know they're getting screwed regardless. Someone like Bouillon or Dandenault could be added instead to make the dollars work this year (which TB will like because it's an expiring contract). There you have it, Bob, now get this thing done!

So... word on the street is, Leafs Suck.

Those who disagree are automatically homers? I thought the game was refereed reasonably well under the circumstances... the fact that both sides have cause to be disgruntled about the refs implies there was some balance. I'll agree with the others about Markstrom. Sure, there was some uncalled contact (as there was at the other end), but his flopping and flailing at every turn was disgusting.

All together now: "I never wanted him anyway!"

It's ridiculous how much the CBC has deteriorated from the quality colour work of, say, Dick Irvin Jr. Obviously Irvin was most knowledgeable about the Habs, but he never hesitated to credit the other team, or to call out the Canadiens if they deserved it. Milbury just sounds like a bitter fool with an axe to grind. I can only hope that Milbury was a temporary experiment which will quickly be abandoned.

I agree with the patience philosophy, but he'll have to earn his ice time like everyone else (or like all the other young players, at least). Being scratched occasionally is part of the learning curve for him, which emphasizes accountability for playing the way his coaches want. Putting up decent numbers is just one part of the equation - he has to be effective on both ends of the ice. That said, if he continues to play like last night, hopefully he can get those kinds of minutes. In spite of the penalties, it was really good to see him implicating himself in the game. However, history tells us he won't play that way for long, and he'll be watching games from above again at some point. This will be frustrating, and we'll hear the familiar calls for him to be traded for the obligatory bag of pucks - but it should be viewed as part of the continuing development of the 'raw' talent (as described by Allan Muir) he has.

I can see it now: everyone at the Bell Centre is booing him, and the megaphone voice is saying "you're doing great, Ryan. Keep up the good work! Yay, Ryan!"

Yep, it's all a conspiracy. From the owner to the GMs to the coaches to the players - obviously they're all in on it, as they won't support him. Nothing wrong with Avery. He happens to be on his 4th team in 6.5 seasons (soon to be 5th, perhaps), but all those teams made mistakes. He's a great teammate and is just misunderstood.

Good to see the Habs have recently figured out the defensive system they're going to play, and it's working well. I didn't think it would be the classic trap style, but whatever works. It made for a pleasantly boring 3rd period - which I prefer when we have the lead. He's been taking some heat from some on this board, so I would like to give kudos to Carbonneau and his staff for vastly improving the defensive play.

As far as I know, the 'Olé Olé' is more of a rally song to be used anytime as required to get or keep the team going. Definitely the Goodbye song means game over, and shouldn't be used until late in the third unless it's a real blowout.

I agree with your guess of Morenz. The picks of Richard, Beliveau and Lafleur imply that popular sentiment (in addition to pure skill or contribution) plays a role in the selection - which is appropriate for this honour. The contributions of Harvey, Plante, Dryden and perhaps a couple of others can be argued to be similar to those chosen, but it's the aura that puts the others ahead. From what I've read, even though he was from Stratford, his style of play and skill (and yes, perhaps the way he died) give Howie Morenz that aura.

Harper is meeting with Michaelle Jean now. At the very least, I hope she makes the bugger's eyes water.

You're right. This has been a miscalculation of epic proportions by Harper. I agree with habs rule that the best scenario sees a change of Tory leadership and they continue to hold power; unfortunately this doesn't seem like one of the likely scenarios. The autocratic way that Harper has governed would surely cause many Conservatives to get rid of him if they could, but they're somewhat united right now in their bid for survival. A change in leadership would likely only happen if the coalition becomes the government; at that point, there will be nothing left to lose and Harper will suffer an inglorious political death. I wanted a Conservative government and voted for them (if only for lack of better alternatives), but I have no sympathy at all for Harper's plight. This is democracy in action. It's ironic that someone who belittled Joe Clark for governing as if he had a majority back in '79 is now facing the same fate for the same reason. Harper's actions (both the recent election and the fiscal update) speak to his lust for power and desire to destroy the opposition. This, combined with his centralized rule within his party, convinces me that he's uninterested in the accomodations necessary for democracy to prevail; basically, he's a wanna-be dictator, and would be if the circumstances allowed it. On the other hand, I'm concerned about the coalition. Having the support of the BQ isn't so much a concern (the Liberals have national aspirations and won't allow the BQ to advance anything too outrageous if they want to see power again, after all). I'm more concerned about their $30 billion stimulus package. Is this something that the country needs, or is this a scheme to be seen as doing something significant in these troubled economic times? In my opinion, it's the latter, and I'd be more comfortable with the Tories at the financial controls, with a minority so they're kept in check too. Y'know, how it is now.... minus Harper.

He's not breaking any law, and therefore he's not going to jail. I'm sure the NHL has a code of conduct which his comments violated, and he's being punished by the NHL. In the business world, you can be disciplined or fired for making tasteless, disparaging jokes or comments like that; this is no different.

I'm sure our respective ages explains a lot of this, but I don't often hear ordinary people making comments like that. Whether we like it or not, Avery and all NHLers represent a professional organization and have to be held to a higher standard (not to mention that they are looked upon as heroes to many youngsters). These juvenile statements reflect poorly on the team and the league, which is why no one is coming to his defence. Avery is a good player who seems to be constantly battling his own stupidity.

C'mon, Jets... you spend a fair bit of time here, you know you want to be a Habs fan (at least as a 2nd fave). Sens are on the downswing. What would it take to convert you?