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The loyalists' " I can't take O'Byrne anymore " thread


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Hamilton on not, we can pretty much all agree to this (hopefully), O'Byrne is an NHL defensemen but the injury to Komisarek basically forces the Habs to rush this kid into a situation he's not entirely ready for.

If he is going to Hamilton, which I doubt very much, he'd have to be playing 30 minutes a game to even make it worth the while to send him down. Quite frankly, he won't be getting those kind of minutes since guys like Weber and Carle alone need a whole bunch to round off their games.

As many pointed out, Komisarek and Gorges were once in the same boat as Ryan. It's not always about making mistakes, it's about giving a consistent effort every shift. It's funny how quickly we forget that people lynched Gorges and wanted him going to Hamilton. Now he's the guy that's stepping up with Komisarek not playing. The Habs were patient with Josh by slowly building up his ice time, that's exactly the same scenario that they should put O'Byrne in to get him going again.

As I said before, I believe O'Byrne can play in the NHL. He was a project prospect when he got drafted and he's still a project NHL defender at this point. You simply don't give up on a kid with his size and mobility so quickly.

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OMG, it gets worse??? :angry: All he had to do was turn and fire the puck out the blueline. Who cares if the Isles player gets control and the extra attacker play is gone? Better than a goal against!!! To make matters worse, maybe O'Byrne thought it would be best to get the puck out of the zone so there would be no defensive zone faceoff to start the powerplay. Hey, dumb dumb - the powerplay now always begins in the offensive zone!!!

He needs a basics clinic on simple moves!!!

All he had to do was pay attention. If he didn't know there was a penalty, then everything you said becomes moot.

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People keep trying to use Komisarek and Gorges as examples of why O'Byrne shouldn't be sent down. Those arguments aren't valid. Both Komisarek and Gorges were sent back to the minors multiple times before finally sticking in the NHL. Gorges would have spent even more time in the minors had we been able to demote him when we traded for him, as he was basically the 7th D-man at the time and would have been better served in the minors.

Since being called up last season, the only time he was been back with Hamilton was when he was rehabbing his broken thumb. Yes, his 100 AHL games played is similar to Komi and Gorges, but it really isn't a lot considering the fact that all along he has been described as a "project". He didn't play collegiate hockey at the top level. He played in a conference that hasn't sent a team to the finals since 1989. Taking into account his injury last year, the guy has only played a year and a half of professional hockey. That is not a lot of experience playing against solid opposition.

Also, sending him to Hamilton is not giving up on him. Right now his confidence is shot and he isn't helping the team. He needs to go back to Hamilton and get his head back on straight. He needs to get his confidence back up. Continually messing up at the NHL level is not going to help his confidence. He can still benefit from the AHL.

All that being said, you can't place all of the blame on Ryan. It is asinine, even with Komisarek injured, to give the kid so much responsibility. I realize they want Hamrlik to tutor him and protect him, but that isn't going to help him if he is in over his head. He should only be playing 10-12 minutes a game, not the 18 he's been getting. Brisebois or Bouillon should be taking some of Ryan's shifts.

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Poor Kid. I don,t even think he has 60 games experience in the NHL, and he's being crucified by ignorant fans like he was a 10 year veteran. I just checked it out, and last night was Ryan's 50th NHL game. He has 10 points in 50 games played and is a +5. Not too bad if you ask me.

True, he's struggling this year, but that's mostly becuase he's playing on the 2nd d-man pairing... when he should be playing as a 5th or 6th d-man. (12 to 15 minutes a game, instead of the 16:30 minutes he plays today) Also, as a 5th or 6th d-man, he wouldn't have to face the better players on the opposing teams. He would play against 3rd and 4th liners, which is what he needs.

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Poor Kid. I don,t even think he has 60 games experience in the NHL, and he's being crucified by ignorant fans like he was a 10 year veteran. I just checked it out, and last night was Ryan's 50th NHL game. He has 10 points in 50 games played and is a +5. Not too bad if you ask me.

True, he's struggling this year, but that's mostly becuase he's playing on the 2nd d-man pairing... when he should be playing as a 5th or 6th d-man. (12 to 15 minutes a game, instead of the 16:30 minutes he plays today) Also, as a 5th or 6th d-man, he wouldn't have to face the better players on the opposing teams. He would play against 3rd and 4th liners, which is what he needs.

You are absolutely right about everything you said.

The sad thing is the fans at home games will boo and ride him every time he makes a mistake. I hope he has broad shoulders or he won't make it.

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Even with Komisarek in the line up, the team had a glaring need for a top 4 dman. Plugging our current 6th man into that spot was a recipe for disaster. His mistake last night does complicate things, as had the Habs been thinking of demoting him prior to this incident (which isn't an impossible thought), that decision is a little tougher now. Sending him down now would just reek of a knee jerk reaction.

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Even with Komisarek in the line up, the team had a glaring need for a top 4 dman. Plugging our current 6th man into that spot was a recipe for disaster. His mistake last night does complicate things, as had the Habs been thinking of demoting him prior to this incident (which isn't an impossible thought), that decision is a little tougher now. Sending him down now would just reek of a knee jerk reaction.

We could use another top 4 D but I wouldn't call it a glaring need. I don't see a single defense in the East that tops ours. That being said, it is really the final piece of the puzzle for us. Our forwards have been struggling but adding a superstar would just be overkill and push guys like Gui and Sergei down to the fourth line permanently - but we could still use a defenseman.

I'm wondering whether Gorges isn't going to fill that void. I become a bigger fan of this guy every game. I think he's well on his way to becoming a second pairing defenseman, if he isn't already a strong #4.

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you know, about 2 months after I got my driver's license I go into a minor accident on the highway. I didn't see the car to the left to me - basically forgot to check my blindspot - and I forced him to swerve a bit. When he corrected he dented my left panel. The overall damage to both of our cars was minimal, but I was completely shaken - I don't think I had truly understood that any act I performed could have such a negative consequence. I thought I was paying attention and doing my best to drive, but I was obviously wrong. I had absolutely no faith in my ability to drive a car.

My father let me sit out the rest of the trip in the passenger's seat, but the next day he told me to get in front of the wheel and drive again. After maybe 10 miles, I was much, much closer to being OK and the accident faded out of my memory and never impeded my ability to drive. My dad knew that I had to get back on the horse, so to speak, before fear and doubt ingrained themselves on my psyche.

What if he had sent me back to driver's Ed or not let me drive for a month? Would I be able to drive competently today? Probably, but it would have taken me a lot longer...

O'Byrne needs to get back behind the wheel and put this behind him. There is no need to punish him, no need to send him down. I might have been OK with sending him down before this event, but now I think he needs to be in the NHL to replace the own-goal with new NHL memories that won't haunt him.

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It was just an unfortunate mistake! Though i have not been impressed with his play just because of the is mistake i dont think he should be sent down or scratched. We have to let him get back on the ice and what would be best for him would be to go out and get a big hit or make a play.

Its just too bad that this little mishap will mark his career for a while. Everyone still remembers McCabe doing that.

I wish him well and though i know the Habs fans will be cruel to him everytime he touches the puck i hope he makes a play or who knows scores!!!!(ps. on the oppositions net)

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Last night i was very pissed off with the kid but having had some time to think about it. These kind of things happened to me when I was playing hockey a lot of years ago. No one is perfect. We all make mistakes. He is a kid making a kids money (for a hockey player) Brisebois has made mistakes this bad and unfortunately for him was being paid Big Boys Money, so he will not be allowed to live it down. If this kid can pull up his socks start playing to his potential start knocking some guys on their ass then the fans will forget and he will be fine. I really hope he takes this error and uses it to his best advantage. Motivates himself to play to the potential we all know he has. He really needs to take this heart and knock the crap out guys coming into his end. Play tough and play smart. He has all the skill and all the tools now use this to motivate yourself dammit. He can't do that in hammy town.

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You may recall from an earlier thread that O'Byrne spent at least a portion of his summer vacation on the Greek island of Corfu. During that time, he was a total douchebag, pickling his liver and trying to nail anything on two legs (including my GF at the time).

Perhaps we should consider that O'Byrne's play of late may be due to inadequate off season training, be it mental or physical. The question is whether O'Byrne will take his poor play from the early season as shame-based learning and use it as extra motivation OR whether he will repeat these episodes. This is the major question that Gainey and Carbo have to answer.

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You may recall from an earlier thread that O'Byrne spent at least a portion of his summer vacation on the Greek island of Corfu. During that time, he was a total douchebag, pickling his liver and trying to nail anything on two legs (including my GF at the time).

You've just described about 99.9% of single males on vacation.

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speaking of which - I'm going to be in the Netherlands next month and was wondering if there was a place to watch hockey games there.

I was in Den Haag a few years ago, and I missed all the games during my stay. I had satelitte television in my room, but no hockey. You might want to try the casino in Scheveningen, perhaps they broadcast sports events from all over the world.

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I was in Den Haag a few years ago, and I missed all the games during my stay. I had satelitte television in my room, but no hockey. You might want to try the casino in Scheveningen, perhaps they broadcast sports events from all over the world.

I'm just going to be in Amsterdam for a few days.

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I was in Den Haag a few years ago, and I missed all the games during my stay. I had satelitte television in my room, but no hockey. You might want to try the casino in Scheveningen, perhaps they broadcast sports events from all over the world.

Too many things to do in Amsterdam to watch hockey... ;)

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