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Apparently Pleky and Sekac are having abit of problems in the locker room.

http://www.gohabsgo.com/en/2015/02/17/problem-between-two-european-players-in-habs-locke/

I don't know how accurate this is but it wouldn't surprise me if it were true.

It'd surprise me considering Plekanec reached out to Sekac to try to get him to sign with Montreal. They also both routinely go for dinner with other Czech opponents when they're in town, they did so not all that long ago if memory serves. That last part is something that wouldn't happen if they had any sort of 'beef'. Some people like to paint Plekanec as some sort of anti-team villain given the alleged rift between he and Subban (which isn't legit though I don't think they're best buddies either) and are looking for any sort of reason to speculate whenever Sekac sits. Thus, you see stuff like this tossed together.

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All good! But I did read somewhere else awhile ago that Pleky thought Sekac should spend more time in Hamilton like all the other players.

Plekanec said that all rookies should spend time in the minors (a sentiment I largely agree with). I wouldn't interpret that as something against Sekac specifically but rather a general statement.

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All good! But I did read somewhere else awhile ago that Pleky thought Sekac should spend more time in Hamilton like all the other players.

I don't remember that being said publicly anywhere (where he specifically named Sekac) so probably chalk that up as a rumour.

There was a lot of... crap reported around the time Sekac came aboard, much of it developed by a certain area of Habs fans who felt like Sekac was going to be entitled to go straight to the NHL. This despite Sekac saying he had no problem playing in the AHL and chose the Habs because he knew it'd be a better team and harder to crack. Interesting enough, the people who were trying to paint Sekac as entitled were the same people who pushed for Magnus Nygren to go straight to the NHL and not play in the AHL because he didn't like the city of Hamilton and they believed his European play was good enough to go for the NHL immediately (unlike Sekac). So basically they were trying to make the argument of "Nygren should be right in the NHL unlike Sekac" and saying whatever it took to try to diminish Sekac.

None of these people talk about Nygren now.

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Apparently a large contingent of the Habs front office was at the Toronto - Florida game tonight. Presumably scouting both teams. Rest of the week could be very busy indeed. And not just with games.

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Apparently a large contingent of the Habs front office was at the Toronto - Florida game tonight. Presumably scouting both teams. Rest of the week could be very busy indeed. And not just with games.

"A large contingent from the Montreal Canadiens' front office was in attendance at Air Canada Centre Tuesday night to survey potential trade candidates in the Leafs' 3-2 loss to the Florida Panthers."

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Boy...Kessel is a ton of scoring talent and speed...wouldn't look bad on our squad, not at all. Get him out of the toxic waste dump of TO, put him in a real organization where he is not asked to be the face of the team, watch the red light go off quite a bit. A very, very tempting thought.

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I agree Cuke, it makes me wonder what a 1st line with Max and Phil as wingers could do for our scoring woes... but that contract is pretty heavy?

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Of the eight years on PKe's contract, I think you could reasonably expect at least fair market value in at least five years, likely more. He's gonna score what, 240 goals in those eight years? That's production at a fixed cost. It all depends on the purchase price.

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Honest to God I think this is the best time to get Kessel.

Toronto is looking to tear the house down andbKessel is public enemy #1. His reputation in Toronto is that he isn't a team player and that he is an out of shape narcissist that only cares about himself.

The fact that he has been negatively casted during the last two all star games has done nothing to help his image throughout the league.

Bergevin might just have the cojones to offer Eller and Thomas for him; while convincing Nonis to take on some salary. Spare parts will also be attached to help balance the trade.

Where there's smoke there's fire my friends...I think he may just be the piece we need.

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No way would I move a young affordable Beaulieu, for a lazy, fat and overpriced Kessel. He has never shown he can produce when counted on in crunch time. When things get tough, doughboy goes into his shell. That's not the type of player you want to pay $8m or be stuck for 7 years with.

Picks and prospects would be the cost I reckon. Like Beaulieu, Thomas, this year's first and next years second.

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Boy...Kessel is a ton of scoring talent and speed...wouldn't look bad on our squad, not at all. Get him out of the toxic waste dump of TO, put him in a real organization where he is not asked to be the face of the team, watch the red light go off quite a bit. A very, very tempting thought.

Sadly, there's the other side of the coin to this story - in which a small toxic waste dump is dropped rather unceremoniously in the dressing room. Rumours and innuendo, I know, but Kessel seems the kind of guy that could just as easily blow a great team apart.

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I think the key to guys like Kessel is to see them as lethal, added elements to a strong foundation. Kessel is like an idiot savant - a gifted natural talent. The problem comes when you try to turn him into the usual NHL robot. Let him do his thing, which is to score goals. I really doubt he is going to come into the room and overpower personalities like Price, Subban, Markov, and Patches. Indeed, I think those guys are going to look at the talent he adds and salivate.

His downsides (questionable personality, poor defensive game, low commitment to fitness, massive contract) are what make him available in the first place. In that sense, they are working FOR us at this point; they also drive down his value. The key is for Bergevin to keep those weaknesses in mind - and I am confident he will. This should protect us against a dangerous overpay. Kessel could be the missing ingredient, but if we don't get him, guess what? We're still first in the Conference and legit contenders to make the Finals.

Beaulieu as a trade part? Absolutely not, and not quite for the same reason Habs29 gives. To me, Beaulieu is organizationally essential: the successor to Markov's role on the current team. If we trade him, we will then be looking desperately to find exactly that kind of player in 2-3 years, and there's no one else in the organization who can do it. Tinordi may also be untouchable (although his getting KO'd in an AHL fight raises a certain unease about him), because, again, there's no one else in the organization that projects to be anything like him.

I would happily give up pick(s) for Kessel, plus other elements (e.g., that clown Eller). I just wish Phat Phil were a little younger. He's what, 27? And I don't see him being an elite producer into his late 30s given his questionable habits. Any deal we make should be made with a 5-year window in mind for Kessel.

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What are you talking about? Kessel has been a PPG player for three years running and a reliable 30-goal man, minimum. Eberle has not approached that level of production, except in 2012. That said, I would certainly prefer to acquire Eberle, because he's younger and doesn't bring Kessel's baggage. But I AM getting a bit irritated and this tendency among some fans to pretend that Kessel's offensive totals have not been elite. He is absolutely an elite offensive winger, like it or not.

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As enticing as Kessel sounds on the wing for the Habs, I shudder at the thought of getting ripped off down the road trading with our Canadian rivals. Whether it be whoever we send them becomes a star or Kessel starts to stink up the joint with his massive contract. That being said, he is pretty much exactly the type of player that we need.

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Eberle 64.46 points/season

Fat boy Kessel 64.55

OK, Phil wins by a nose, but Eberle is just 24 and has 330games under his belt already, no even close who I would choose.

(Eberle $6m/yr, Chunky Monkey costs $8m/yr ugggggggg!)

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Eberle 64.46 points/season

Fat boy Kessel 64.55

OK, Phil wins by a nose, but Eberle is just 24 and has 330games under his belt already, no even close who I would choose.

(Eberle $6m/yr, Chunky Monkey costs $8m/yr ugggggggg!)

Contrast their numbers over the past three seasons. It's no contest.

That said, yes, I would prefer Eberle, for many reasons. But he has NOT produced at Kessel's level.

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Habs need grit, or elite goal scorer, or both, not a softy like Eberle for a playoff run, although Eberle is a great talent, he is not in the mold of an organizational need imho...

Every Hab fan must agree we are shy on grit no?

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No, we are most shy on scoring in top 6. Pacioretty has snuck in top 30 and other than that Subban is 7th of d, more offense would help.

The era of Cherry hockey is done and passé.

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