Chris Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 It was only a pre season game, but you can't go out there and get bombed. I always wonder how people say this guy looks great, but the score was 8-3. regardless of the rosters a team should not get blown out and give up 8 goals. The first 3 games should look pretty similar, i think The team is broken into 3 different squads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brobin Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 One thing to keep in mind is that there are so few spots available, the young guns are not really gunning for it. Most are resigned to play a game or two then head home. The Toronto game was wide open because they have a ton of room. Their young guys were all playing with the do or die mindset and it showed. I suspect that our exhibition games are going to suck this year. Most of it will be vets taking it easy to slowly ease into the season and young guys with no hope of making the team, hoping to get autographs after the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 (edited) Begin is a heart and soul kinda guy and is respected for that by his teamates and his fans. He be a 3rd liner on most teams, and a solid 4th liner on some. But unfortunately for him, he is with the Habs Begin isn't a 3rd liner, he can't play at that intensity level 12-15 minutes, 82 games a year. Begin is a great asset for any team when he plays 40-55 games, and 8-12 minutes in those games (depending on how many penalties he has to kill). Every time we gave him more responsabilities, he faltered as his body couldn't keep up with his heart, and eventually it lead to injuries. I love Steve Bégin when he's used as a luxury reserve player, but I do have a problem when he plays regularly, and over 12 minutes a game. The same can be said for Bouillon, who's a fairly solid defenseman when used in a limited role as a 6th defenseman, and not asked to log over 20 minutes every game; he just can't do it physically, and like Begin we've seen him falter when asked to mdo more. ps. What I said remains true, while playing like a headless chicken - trying to hit eveyone all the time - can be very entertaining for the fans and even his teammates, it does lead him to be caught out of position or take a very dumb penalties at sometimes vert bad times (like checking from behind). However, that's the price to pay when you have a guy like Begin, just like a big physical defenseman like Komisarek and O'Byrne will get called for roughing because of their style. Edited September 23, 2008 by CerebusClone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habsfan Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 I'd rather lose 5 out of 6 games in the pre-season rather than lose the first 5 games of the REGULAR season! Nothing to worry about! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l<OV4L3V Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Why would you say that to the Montreal media? So now if he doesn't do anything the first 5 games they'll hang him, or if he screws up his groin they'll have a hay day talking about how he didn't prep. Oh Boy here we go. Relax, Kovy needed that much rest time to gear up for this season (considering how he carried the torch for the 07.08 habs so many times last year). He's a veteran, which means he doesn't need to bust his balls in the training camp/preseason. Just because he hasn't been on the ice very much doesn't mean that he threw in the towel and said the hell with training over the summer. Off ice training is very beneficial; and Kovalev works very hard at it...don't believe me, hit up youtube. He'll be ready come Oct 10th in Buffalo. And as far as the media goes...you really think Kovy cares what they think? For all we know he could have said that so they start the criticism only to prove them wrong AGAIN with 90+ points in 08.09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habsfan Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 For all we know he could have said that so they start the criticism only to prove them wrong AGAIN with 90+ points in 08.09 That would be damn sweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Relax, Kovy needed that much rest time to gear up for this season (considering how he carried the torch for the 07.08 habs so many times last year). He's a veteran, which means he doesn't need to bust his balls in the training camp/preseason. Just because he hasn't been on the ice very much doesn't mean that he threw in the towel and said the hell with training over the summer. Off ice training is very beneficial; and Kovalev works very hard at it...don't believe me, hit up youtube. He'll be ready come Oct 10th in Buffalo. And as far as the media goes...you really think Kovy cares what they think? For all we know he could have said that so they start the criticism only to prove them wrong AGAIN with 90+ points in 08.09 not to make to equate the two, but IIRC for his last 2 seasons the Rocket didn't join in the pregame skate (to preserve his energy). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Relax, Kovy needed that much rest time to gear up for this season (considering how he carried the torch for the 07.08 habs so many times last year). He's a veteran, which means he doesn't need to bust his balls in the training camp/preseason. Just because he hasn't been on the ice very much doesn't mean that he threw in the towel and said the hell with training over the summer. Off ice training is very beneficial; and Kovalev works very hard at it...don't believe me, hit up youtube. He'll be ready come Oct 10th in Buffalo. And as far as the media goes...you really think Kovy cares what they think? For all we know he could have said that so they start the criticism only to prove them wrong AGAIN with 90+ points in 08.09 I agree, I don't understand why people even care at all about the results of pre-season games. Those games are there so that veterans get back in game shape, for young players to impress the coaching staff and know what they need to work on to become NHL-ready, and for the coach to do some fine-tuning on his roster and his strategies. NHL preseason games are nowhere near the level of competition of regular season games, just like regulars season games aren't at the same level of playoff games. I would even say that there is a significant difference between the first month of the regular season, and the rest of the season because coaches are still making adjustments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Does anyone remember that year, sometime in the late 90s, when we led the league in preseason results? Oh, yeah, we went on to suck ass once the ACTUAL season started. Preseason, what a joke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wamsley01 Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Does anyone remember that year, sometime in the late 90s, when we led the league in preseason results? Oh, yeah, we went on to suck ass once the ACTUAL season started. Preseason, what a joke. I remember them going 8-1 in 2003 and missing the playoffs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeLassister Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Just for the record, last year Bégin : 44 games played, 48 PIM, 20 of these are for fighting (Reich, Hnidy, Jason Smith and Lilja), so we are down to 14 minor penalties in 44 games played. For a player who plays like Bégin does, it is VERY decent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Apparantly the line up tonight will be very similar to last nights with as couple of local additions. Hamrlik injured his groin and Dandy will move back and take his spot on D, NHL.com i got the info from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sledneck Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 i am already disliking the bruins again! did i read correctly that ference attacked AK46? i can't wait until we dust them again all year and big george rearranges some faces Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 i am already disliking the bruins again! did i read correctly that ference attacked AK46? i can't wait until we dust them again all year and big george rearranges some faces From the Bruins perspective, Andrew Ference dropped the gloves after a couple of questionable hits from Andrei Kostsitsyn, one on Marco Sturm (that also brought Phil Kessel flying), and another in the thord period on Ference, who then dropped the gloves. Similarly, the Thornton beatdown on Steve Bégin was retaliation for Begin cracking a bone in Marc Savard's back with a cross-check in late March last season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fanpuck33 Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Just for the record, last year Bégin : 44 games played, 48 PIM, 20 of these are for fighting (Reich, Hnidy, Jason Smith and Lilja), so we are down to 14 minor penalties in 44 games played. For a player who plays like Bégin does, it is VERY decent. I could be wrong, but it seems like the problem with a lot of his penalties is timing. It seems like a high percentage of his minors came in important situations, such as late in close games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 His timing isn't any worse then Kovalev and Koivu. They take dumb penalties all the time. They should definitely dress Stewart if Laracque isn't in during the preseason. You can't have people taking runs at your good young players. Fighting Scale 1. Laracque 2. Stewart 3. Begin, Georges and SK. I don't ever see anyone else step up. You don't want Komi doing it during the pre season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saskhab Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Henry and Flinn were both dressed last night, and they're both decent fighters. And don't forget O'Byrne. 8-3, 5 goals against on the PP. My god, how will they ever find the time to correct these issues? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Really? I had no idea there were other fighters, i wonder why they didn't jump in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 I remember them going 8-1 in 2003 and missing the playoffs. There you go. Funny, though, I thought our "great preseason/awful regular season" year occurred earlier than that... I guess those years of wretchedness all sort of blur together into a fuzzy horror-show. The ONLY grounds I would have for being worried based on that result is the possibility that the team is collectively overconfident, thinking they can waltz into this season and win games on their sheer talent. Sort of a collective Kyle Wellwood syndrome. But there's hardly any point in talking about such things until about 5-10 regular season games, really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Really? I had no idea there were other fighters, i wonder why they didn't jump in? Begin is an NHL veteran who should be able to defend himself, and who needs to back up his style of play, while I doubt that Flinn was on the ice when Kostsitsyn got into a fight; besides I think AK46 did drop his gloves too so there was little anyone else could have done. In a way, I like that Andrei Kostsitsyn is willing to drop the gloves every once in a while, he can't fight but it does show some grit and passion on his part. Also, the fact that Ference wanted to engage into a fight with him shows that Kostsitsyn was getting involved physically, and that they remebered his hits during the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canajun Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 I was at the game last night... Henry had a scrap (against some "Bitz" guy). Henry won. He's a decent fighter. In a nutshell, we iced basically an AHL defense last night (Hamrlik was out early with an injury). No wonder we gave up a million shots and 8 goals. The only defenceman to play half-decent was Gorges. The rest (especially Valentenko) were pretty porous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habsfan Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 The rest (especially Valentenko) were pretty porous. Damn! That sucks. I had high hopes for Valentenko. Looks like he'll need another year in Hamilton before he can make the jump! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 I'm sure the reason why Brisby was added is that BG and GC didn't think anyone was ready to make the jump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeLassister Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Damn! That sucks. I had high hopes for Valentenko. Looks like he'll need another year in Hamilton before he can make the jump! what if he's the best Dman in every other preseason games he play ??? let's not jump too early on Valentenko, i'd say. It was ONE game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canajun Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 True, it was only one game, and I'm sure he was fairly nervous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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