Random Habs Thoughts And Questions

[Trizzak]

A thread for topics that just aren't worth making a thread about.

1. Koivu: So far this season he has the worst PPG percentage in his career (0.73) since he played 3 games in the 01-02 season and got 2 assists (0.67). He also has the most penalty minutes in his hockey career (91). Is this a sign he is slowing down, or just an off season he can recover from?

2. Latendresse has 15 goals this season. Will he a) stay at 15 goals this season, b) match his rookie total of 16, c) beat his rookie record of goals but not reach 20, or d) hit or surpass 20 goals this season.

3. Who finishes with more points, top line talent Andrei Kostitsyn or recently called out Chris Higgins? Kostitsyn currently sits at 45, Higgins at 44.

4. Josh Gorges is the only Habs player that is not a goalie or not named Corey Locke to not score a goal this season. Will he?

Discuss and add, please.

[MAK]

A thread for topics that just aren't worth making a thread about.

1. Koivu: So far this season he has the worst PPG percentage in his career (0.73) since he played 3 games in the 01-02 season and got 2 assists (0.67). He also has the most penalty minutes in his hockey career (91). Is this a sign he is slowing down, or just an off season he can recover from?

koivu is slowing down big time. this year his stat are okay but next year could be devastating for him.

koivu can be a usefull player but he'll need to refine his defensive play and accept a lesser role in the team like yzerman did.

2. Latendresse has 15 goals this season. Will he a) stay at 15 goals this season, b) match his rookie total of 16, c) beat his rookie record of goals but not reach 20, or d) hit or surpass 20 goals this season.

I say c) radom thought here: who else but me thinks that Latendresse could benefit from a trip in the ahl ?? it worked for many young players like bergeron, staal, bernier...even spezza

3. Who finishes with more points, top line talent Andrei Kostitsyn or recently called out Chris Higgins? Kostitsyn currently sits at 45, Higgins at 44.

andrei will finish with more points. higgins can rack up numbers but he's not playing to the intensity level that his coach asks. we need a hard working Higgins during the playoffs. I thought it would be a breakout year for him and so far NO DICE.

4. Josh Gorges is the only Habs player that is not a goalie or not named Corey Locke to notscore a goal this season. Will he?

no he wont but he'll score a game-winner in the playoffs like langdon did in 04

Will Dandenault be bough out this summer ??

will streit be signed ??

[Trizzak]

Will Dandenault be bough out this summer ??

will streit be signed ??

1. I think Dandy stays, unless he asks to be traded.

2. Gainey isn't one to mess with a good thing. Streit will be signed.

[Prime Minister Koivu]

A thread for topics that just aren't worth making a thread about.

1. Koivu: So far this season he has the worst PPG percentage in his career (0.73) since he played 3 games in the 01-02 season and got 2 assists (0.67). He also has the most penalty minutes in his hockey career (91). Is this a sign he is slowing down, or just an off season he can recover from?

2. Latendresse has 15 goals this season. Will he a) stay at 15 goals this season, b) match his rookie total of 16, c) beat his rookie record of goals but not reach 20, or d) hit or surpass 20 goals this season.

3. Who finishes with more points, top line talent Andrei Kostitsyn or recently called out Chris Higgins? Kostitsyn currently sits at 45, Higgins at 44.

4. Josh Gorges is the only Habs player that is not a goalie or not named Corey Locke to not score a goal this season. Will he?

Discuss and add, please.

1. There are many opinions on Koivu ranging from he is slowing down due to age and injury history to his line mates not producing like they used to. I want to wait until the playoffs before I make my opinion on that. Koivu always has been an absolute beast when it counts. He led the league in the playoffs until he had his eye gouged out. The playoffs before that, he also led the league in points until Montreal got bounced. During the Olympics, Koivu was nothing short of a monster. I think the upcoming playoffs will answer those questions.

2. Latendresse seems to be a bit of a streaky scorer. I don't think it is out of the real of possibility for him to reach 20 goals this season. I also think it is possible that he will finish with the 15 he currently has. He needs to find a mean streak within himself and go to the front of the net and give and take some serious punishment to score more garbage goals.

3. I think that A. Kostitsyn will finish with more points. He gets far more PP time and he plays on a line that actually scores! Most of Higgins' 44 points were had in the first half of the season and he is not looking near as dangerous as he did then. He used to be all over the ice, hitting, digging in the corners for the puck and causing havoc in the offensive zone. He is not doing that at the same level right now.

4. Whether Gorges scores or not doesn't matter to me. I love everything about him. He is like a younger, faster, more talented version of Bouillon. They both have hearts of lions.

5. Streit - I expect that Bob will make him a fair offer. I do not see Bob as a guy who makes low offers to try and get a "steal of a deal". I think he will offer fair market value for Streit and if that works then great. If Streit wants big money or a long contract then I think Bob will let him walk.

Something to add: The Habs have some serious cap room available for next season. What do you think Bob will do with it? I don't think that we have one single position open if you consider that we have a young NHL ready guy to fill it from Hamilton. I don't want kids rotting in the AHL or sitting in the pressbox. Perhaps Bob moves some of them for a quality right winger?

[MAK]

Something to add: The Habs have some serious cap room available for next season. What do you think Bob will do with it? I don't think that we have one single position open if you consider that we have a young NHL ready guy to fill it from Hamilton. I don't want kids rotting in the AHL or sitting in the pressbox. Perhaps Bob moves some of them for a quality right winger?

not waste it on UFAs.

impact players in the team will get bigger contracts. the kostiisyn, plekanec, komisarek and of course Price !! unless we talk about a lecavalier in 09, we dont need UFAs.

I dont think we need a quality offensive winger. we need meat and grit on the bottom two lines. guys like palhson, neidermayer, madden, neil...

[Neech]

Yeah, if we signed one UFA next summer, I hope it will be a gritty third liner.

[Dirty Harry]

5. Streit - I expect that Bob will make him a fair offer. I do not see Bob as a guy who makes low offers to try and get a "steal of a deal". I think he will offer fair market value for Streit and if that works then great. If Streit wants big money or a long contract then I think Bob will let him walk.

Something to add: The Habs have some serious cap room available for next season. What do you think Bob will do with it? I don't think that we have one single position open if you consider that we have a young NHL ready guy to fill it from Hamilton. I don't want kids rotting in the AHL or sitting in the pressbox. Perhaps Bob moves some of them for a quality right winger?

Personally I'd like to see Streit go and Bob sign an upgrade over him. A really smart 2-way forward who could play point on PP and be better defensively as a forward (Streit is terrible in our zone) role. I think one day S. Kostytsin will be this guy on the PP but he's not yet, anyways its not bad to have one for both PP lines.

[Neech]

Personally I'd like to see Streit go and Bob sign an upgrade over him. A really smart 2-way forward who could play point on PP and be better defensively as a forward (Streit is terrible in our zone) role. I think one day S. Kostytsin will be this guy on the PP but he's not yet, anyways its not bad to have one for both PP lines.

Guys like Streit aren't a dime a dozen. Most teams would be happy with him playing the point on their PP. 'A really smart 2-way forward who could play point on PP' is exactly what Streit is, and he's not as terrible in our zone as you seem to believe. He's a bad defenseman, but he's a good defensive forward. There are probably a handful of guys in the league who fit the description you gave, and they would be more expensive.

[Dirty Harry]

Well we have the cash for at least a few years, which is why Gainey could find a vet who doesn't expect a 5 year contract. I think Gainey has been looking for this for that past few years with Bonk and Smolenski, maybe this time he could stop going into the bargain bin and get a top shelf role player like a Fedorov/Modano calibre vet roleplayer.

I really think Streit is overrated personally. I know a lot of people here are pretty keen on him so I don't feel like getting into a huge arguement, but he is definitely the weak link on the PP, something we have seen teams focusing more and more on lately, we will continue to see this like we saw against Ottawa and Anaheim.

If we're looking to improve our team, a really smart two way 3rd line vet who could play the point on the PP and PK.

[Neech]

Well we have the cash for at least a few years, which is why Gainey could find a vet who doesn't expect a 5 year contract. I think Gainey has been looking for this for that past few years with Bonk and Smolenski, maybe this time he could stop going into the bargain bin and get a top shelf role player like a Fedorov/Modano calibre vet roleplayer.

I really think Streit is overrated personally. I know a lot of people here are pretty keen on him so I don't feel like getting into a huge arguement, but he is definitely the weak link on the PP, something we have seen teams focusing more and more on lately, we will continue to see this like we saw against Ottawa and Anaheim.

If we're looking to improve our team, a really smart two way 3rd line vet who could play the point on the PP and PK.

You're focusing on the negative. He didn't get 50 points by being the weak link on the powerplay. He is the number five threat out there in my opinion, I'd agree about that, and this makes me annoyed when he tees off indiscriminately. But he's a good passer, and fits in very well with our other versatile guys on the PP. Our PP is tops in the league because everyone can pass well, move well and be comfortable in any position. Modano would look like the old man he is in our unit.

The point on the PP is not our problem area. We do need a smart and gritty high-calibre third liner, but he doesn't have to be a guy who plays on the powerplay at all.

[Dirty Harry]

Well yeah but the point is for a really good vet 3rd line winger we probably wouldn't be able to re-sign Streit.

Again keep in mind S. Kostytsin played the point on the PP in junior and they're using him there on the 2nd PP pairing with Hamrlik. I'd say he is both a better shooter and passer than Streit. I don't think Carbo really wants to break up Markov-Streit yet this year, but if our playoff adversaries really start to key in on Streit on the PP he may have to.

[Neech]

Well yeah but the point is for a really good vet 3rd line winger we probably wouldn't be able to re-sign Streit.

Again keep in mind S. Kostytsin played the point on the PP in junior and they're using him there on the 2nd PP pairing with Hamrlik. I'd say he is both a better shooter and passer than Streit. I don't think Carbo really wants to break up Markov-Streit yet this year, but if our playoff adversaries really start to key in on Streit on the PP he may have to.

Yeah, S. Kostitsyn will probably be replacing Streit in the future, but I haven't seen enough of him at the point yet to say that he's better than Streit. We do seem to have D-men in the system who can play the point, but we don't know how long it'll be till they're ready to do it in the NHL.

If the choice was between keeping Streit and getting a very good shut-down third-liner, I'd go with the third-liner, but there's no reason to believe that we'd have to choose between the two. And anyways, trying to get a good shut-down player who ALSO plays the point on the powerplay is a stretch, and not a priority for this team.

[smon]

I think Koivu can bounce back. Latendresse may hit 20 if he stays on the second line, but he has really lacks the will to take punishment and drive to the net on the ice, once he gets that going, he'll by dynamite. Kostitsyn will beat Higgins in points. Gorges, who knows? Streit will be re-signed most likely.

[CBHabs_fan]

1) I have an idea about why Koivu has looked off the last half of this year (as I think he had more jump earlier on). It maybe the same reason we have seen it in earlier years, as well.... Obviously he has had serious injury problems in the past. I have always thought that it was because of the way he played, despite his size. His aggressive play was conducive to offense, but also to injury.

What we see now is a more tentative Koivu at times. He keeps it to the outside alot, and isnt as aggressive. I think part of him is really conscious about injury and really wants to stay healthy for when it counts. We've seen how he plays when it counts ( playoffs etc.)...and I would expect the same this year. Sometimes I feel like he saves himself, so he doesnt get hurt, or burned out from his past injuries/illness.

2) Definitely Gui can get 20 with Koivu, and we saw a taste last night.

3) Kosti will have more points, but wouldnt it be nice if Higgins did. This would mean he picked it up. He definitely showed flashes last night.

4) Gorgey-boy will probably be scoreless, but maybe the boys will try hard to get him one..

[Habsfan]

I do believe Saku has slowed down. But we will get a definitive answer come playoff time. We all know Koivu usually plays his best hockey in the playoffs.

Guillaume will probably finish the seaon with 19 goals(if he says on the same line with Saku). In any case, he's scored as many goals as last year, and that's pretty good considering he only plays 12 minutes per game and 0 minutes on the PP.

I think Big Tlts will finish with more points. He plays with Kovy and Plex. Big Tlts will finish the season with 51 points! HIggins with 49pts.

Gorges isn't there to score goals. He's there to play a solid defensive game. That's all we ask of him, and I think he's doing a decent job.

I think Bob will buy out the last year on Dandy's contract...either that or Dandy will ask Bob to trade him. Dandy has won 3 cups, and is only 32 years old. He doesn't deserve to be bench 1/2 the time.

I also think Bob will sign Streit to a 3 year 5.5 million$ contract. Streit has shown to be versatile and is very usefull for the Habs. Bob will re-sign hiim!

[Trizzak]

Anyone else wonder where this team would be if Ryder was a 30 goal scorer again this year? Perhaps battling for 1st in the league with Detroit instead of first in the East with Pittsburgh? Or was Ryder's decline S. Kostitsyn's gain, call it a wash, and we'd still be at about the same place?