dlbalr Posted November 20, 2015 Share Posted November 20, 2015 Just read a rumor on hockeybuzz.com by some blogger named Eklund. He said that Bergevin has held preliminary trade talks with Vancouver about Vrbata. No other names mentioned. Judging by the comments made by some readers, this Eklund guy might be a hack. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the Canadiens had interest in Vrbata. I'm hoping they don't do it. He's a potential UFA with a big cap hit and will likely be expensive to acquire. I'd rather see the Habs go after a more long term solution if they're going to shell good assets. The Habs did go after Vrbata a couple of offseasons ago when he was unrestricted so it's not crazy to think that they may have interest in him now. That said, Eklund's track record with Montreal (or virtually every other team...though he has hit on a few Philly deals over the years) isn't very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Elliotte Friedman last night in the Saturday Headlines segment mentioned (very quickly) to keep an eye on Montreal as it's believed they're trying to get a deal done. By the way, the Habs will, once again, have someone watching LA today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Scouts at yesterday's NYI-MTL game: Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago (2), Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Florida, LA, Minnesota, Nashville, NY Islanders, NY Rangers, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Vancouver (2), Winnipeg Obviously some were there keeping tabs on Hamonic but that only covers a few of the above teams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Scouts at yesterday's NYI-MTL game: Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago (2), Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Florida, LA, Minnesota, Nashville, NY Islanders, NY Rangers, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, Vancouver (2), Winnipeg Obviously some were there keeping tabs on Hamonic but that only covers a few of the above teams. Calgary, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, Nashville, Vancouver and Winnipeg probably fills your Hamonic quota.... (and thats on the generous side, it might be less) that said, sometimes scouts are there just to scout, doesn't mean a deal is imminent. If all your scouting is the last week before the deal, you are in trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 that said, sometimes scouts are there just to scout, doesn't mean a deal is imminent. If all your scouting is the last week before the deal, you are in trouble. For sure, this doesn't mean anything's imminent. I like to try to note it when we do get info about what teams are scouting Montreal (or vice versa) just to see if there are any patterns (such as the fact the Habs have had someone at a lot of LA games recently). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine of Loving Grace Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 LA Kings is the team to wonder about. We were scouting their game against the Isles, they turn around and scout our games against the Isles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine of Loving Grace Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 http://www.todaysslapshot.com/from-the-ice/friedman-watch-canadiens-on-trade-front/ Elliotte Friedman was on Calgary’s Sportsnet 960 on Monday morning. On his cliff hanger involving the Montreal Canadiens from his weekend ‘Headlines’ segment, where he intimated the Canadiens were about to make a big move: “Well, the reason I kind of did that is I’m not sure what they are going to do, but everybody is saying just watch out for them. They’re trying. They know their window is two years. Because then they’ve got to extend Price and they’ve got to extend Pacioretty the year after that. So I think they’re all in. “The name you hear a lot is Eller, but one GM said to me – he laughed and said, ‘You hear that name every three months.’ “But I do think that Marc Bergevin is smart enough to look at his roster and say, ‘We’ve got a couple of years to do this before we have to start doing some big-time contract extensions.’ “So I think they’re going to go for it when they see they’re as close as they are now.” On if they’re looking to add a defenseman or a forward: “I think they’re looking at both.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neech Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Eller's backloaded deal looks worse and worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Why, who cares if is back-loaded? Cap-hit is same every year isn't it, $3.5m and he is on pace for 22 goals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trizzak Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Why, who cares if is back-loaded? Cap-hit is same every year isn't it, $3.5m and he is on pace for 22 goals. Budget teams care: Arizona, Carolina, etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Sure, possibly the crap franchises might. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Why, who cares if is back-loaded? Cap-hit is same every year isn't it, $3.5m and he is on pace for 22 goals. Some teams have budget constraints. A back loaded contract is harder for those teams to trade for. He's on pace for 22 goals, and 28 points..... not good enough. Eller and Galchenyuk play together every night at even strength.... When we start our next game, they will have gone a full month teaming up for only 1 goal. Only 1 solitary goal in an entire month would have been Eller assisted by Galchenyuk (1st or 2nd assist) 0 goals are Galchenyuk assisted by Eller 0 goals are both Eller and Galchenyuk setting up someone else. An entire month and this duo produced 1 goal. I think its time to consider that Eller is not working on Chucky's wing either. He is what he is... and what he is just is not a top 6 capable forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neech Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Even good teams like Anaheim and Nashville are not spend to the cap teams. Eller's expensive years would probably be a factor for 10-15 teams in the league. The question is, if the window is open, are we willing to clean the cupboard for one of the best forwards on the market? In that case, we might keep a roster player like Eller (unless the demand for him is strong, which seems doubtful). Would we trade, say McCarron AND Scherbak, and a 1st and 2nd for someone really good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs30/31 Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Same guys that knock Eller non stop want a sniper for him in return. In this watered down league the talent is spread so thin that every team in the league has a ton of guys that are potential 20 goal guys, and play a role. Defense first. There is only so much scoring to be done. If you are not top six with pp time, good luck hitting 20 goals. For all intents and purposes Larry and the revolving winger are getting 3rd line duty. Chucky gets pp time on another line. lol.. Funny how some fans want larry to score like a first liner or he is a bust. We traded Halak the back up for him. What do you expect 30 goals a year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Eller and Galchenyuk are playing 3rd line minutes, not top 6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Eller and Galchenyuk are playing 3rd line minutes, not top 6. ITS BEEN A ######ING MONTH WITH ONE POINT Even at 5:00 a game, thats awful (and they get more than double that amount of ice time).... especially since they are given highly favorable zone starts. There is no defending this.... Eller should not be on a line that is expected to generate offense, (and given every opportunity to do so). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 You said Eller isn't a top 6 forward, which may be true; however, he never has played top 6 minutes and still isn't and 22goals as a 3rd line winger is acceptable (above average?) isn't it? And some beat the small Habs cant play in playoffs, but Larry does fine and if I remember correctly, in 2012-13 there was one line that excelled with 2 rookies on it...cant remember who centred that one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine of Loving Grace Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 You said Eller isn't a top 6 forward, which may be true; however, he never has played top 6 minutes and still isn't and 22goals as a 3rd line winger is acceptable (above average?) isn't it? And some beat the small Habs cant play in playoffs, but Larry does fine and if I remember correctly, in 2012-13 there was one line that excelled with 2 rookies on it...cant remember who centred that one? Lars Eller has had one good season (12-13) and one good playoffs (13-14). That good season was three years ago. That playoffs was two years ago. The first 10 games of the season, the Galchenyuk line was given every opportunity with tons of offensive zone time to score. They didn't. The "third line" did, and that's why they have been given more minutes. It's what you earn. Galchenyuk still plays on the PP because he's one of our best offensive forwards. Eller has shown absolutely nothing that he's the second best left winger on our team (at even strength that's Tomas Fleischmann) and he's shown nothing to suggest he deserves more minutes (Torrey Mitchell has been outpacing him in points since the start). This is the NHL, not the baby needs a hug league. Eller needs to earn his minutes and he has not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Same guys that knock Eller non stop want a sniper for him in return. In this watered down league the talent is spread so thin that every team in the league has a ton of guys that are potential 20 goal guys, and play a role. Defense first. There is only so much scoring to be done. If you are not top six with pp time, good luck hitting 20 goals. For all intents and purposes Larry and the revolving winger are getting 3rd line duty. Chucky gets pp time on another line. lol.. Funny how some fans want larry to score like a first liner or he is a bust. Eller is one of those 'tweener' players, not really good enough to be a regular 2nd liner but a strong 3rd liner (I know some disagree on that last part but I think he's better than most 3rd line guys around the league). While there's value there, that type of player isn't entirely untouchable either. And given how long he has been around doing more or less the same each year, he's a logical piece to try to move in an upgrade scenario. A sniper probably doesn't happen but if you find a team that values a big centre with some offensive potential (sporadic as it may be), you might be able to get more of a second line type of player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 So tired of fans clinging to this fantasy that Eller is an impact offensive player who hasn't been given a chance. He has PROVEN to be an offensive mediocrity. It's over. Get over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commandant Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 3.5 million is a lot for an offensive mediocrity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine of Loving Grace Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 The problem with Eller as a strong third liner is that we're not trying to run a first line, second line, third line and fourth line. We run a first line, two second lines and a third line based on deployment. The Flynn/Byron - Mitchell - DSP line in October and much of November has played just as good, if not better than the third line we had from last season. Both the Galchenyuk and Desharnais lines are supposed to be scoring lines. The Plek/Patches/Gally line is supposed to be our top line. This is how a top NHL team deploys players. If Eller is going to be a "strong third liner" then he's like Torrey Mitchell and needs to play on the fourth line. Galchenyuk needs 40 point guys on his wing, not 25-30 at best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neech Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 It's a shame for Galchenyuk, because he really has improved this year, and there's no top-6 scoring option to play with him. When healthy, we're a team with 5 top-6 forwards, and three of them are centres. Not the worst configuration, but we definitely need help. I had dreams of Sekac making a good duo with Chucky, but Andrighetto at least has the speed, tenacity and creativity to help his linemates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs30/31 Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 So tired of fans clinging to this fantasy that Eller is an impact offensive player who hasn't been given a chance. He has PROVEN to be an offensive mediocrity. It's over. Get over it. Dont know where you live but around here I have never heard one fan call Eller an "impact offensive player" And back then, today or in the future on Halaks best day he would not, could not ever be traded for "impact offensive player" . To think other wise i agree, is pure "fantasy" Larry is not over achieving or under achieving. Those who think so should yes...."get over it" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs30/31 Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 The problem with Eller as a strong third liner is that we're not trying to run a first line, second line, third line and fourth line. We run a first line, two second lines and a third line based on deployment. The Flynn/Byron - Mitchell - DSP line in October and much of November has played just as good, if not better than the third line we had from last season. Both the Galchenyuk and Desharnais lines are supposed to be scoring lines. The Plek/Patches/Gally line is supposed to be our top line. This is how a top NHL team deploys players. If Eller is going to be a "strong third liner" then he's like Torrey Mitchell and needs to play on the fourth line. Galchenyuk needs 40 point guys on his wing, not 25-30 at best. Chucky Eller and Semin (or who ever) "is suppose to be a scoring line" Wishful thinking at best. So much so that at powerplay time the line gets broken up and Chucky becomes winger on DD line. Why is that? Because with Eller and Semin the coahes are not thinking "scoring line" When Chuckys line (he has played with 7 wingers in the first 20 games) scores its a bonus. They are in fact the third line. DD line, and Pleks line are the "scoring lines" But Chucky with 3, Eller with 6, Semin 1 and the rest with none. 10 Goals. 40 goals pace from the third line. That is low. But nobody is giving MB a winger, and he is not giving anything to get one..............so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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