GDT: November 13th, 2010 - Canes @Habs

[Dalhabs]

Marc-Andre Bergeron for the PP anyone? D:

[BCHabnut]

Push for Bieksa anyone?

[BlueKross]

Push for Bieksa anyone?

Markov's injury trumps everything on this board. We are going to see what kind of depth we have. Too bad we couldn't have banked some more wins before he went down. Expect the contract extension discussion to re-surface.

[hab29RETIRED]

Push for Bieksa anyone?

They need to start thinking of making a blockbuster move for a top two type dman now. Bieska doesn't fit that role and would be a stop gap. Not sure how long he is signed for. I don't think I would want to commit long term to him.

[BTH]

They need to start thinking of making a blockbuster move for a top two type dman now. Bieska doesn't fit that role and would be a stop gap. Not sure how long he is signed for. I don't think I would want to commit long term to him.

Daaaaaaamn! 3 years in a row with a 3+ month injury to Markov!?

I wonder whether the Regehr/Bieksa rumours might actually have some legs now... You're right that Bieksa is a stop gap and not a top pairing d-man, but all we need is a stop gap, someone that can log 22 minutes competently and play on the PP.

Or we can just go with MAB!

[BCHabnut]

The suspense is killing me.

[lazy26]

:puke: 3 months as per RDS...

For the record, they state that they need to run some more conclusive tests. They figure it'll be 3 months, but nothing solid yet.

[nikohab]

I don't think that the habs are looking to trade or to acquire a defenceman. Markov will return in Febuary if what I'm hearing is correct and in the meantime we have a number of defenceman that we can call up. As for getting a top six forward I think it would be wise to wait until the trading deadline when we will have a wider scope of choices. We are very fortunate to be where we are in the standings which releases all of us from panic and depeartion. Imagine being the toronto maple laughs where they have to call up Naseem Kadri searching desperately for help. Go Burky Go! As for our Montreal Canadiens we can all rise up and give our team a standing ovation for giving back our pride.

Go BLEU-BLANC-ROUGE

Edited November 14, 2010 by nikohab

[JCPetit]

:puke: 3 months as per RDS...

I would not trust RDI on this one. It's too early to have a serious diagnostic IMO.

On the other hand, if it's three months, it means that it is less serious than the last injury.

As I wrote earlier, it's an opportunity for a young prospect (Weber or Carle, probably) to step in and show what he can bring to the team.

For the moment, if I was Gauthier, I would not try to make a trade. It would be a good idea either to sign MAB. He has the same kind of injury than Markov and would probably need something like ten games to get competitive.

Obviously, Picard will be paired with Gorges, at least for one game to see if they can complete each other. And if the PP struggles, it won't be long before Weber gets his chance.

What's done is done. Bad luck happens to all the teams. Now all we have to do is hope for the best.

Edited November 14, 2010 by JCPetit

[JCPetit]

Talking about something else than Markov's injury, has anyone noticed that Spacek has played very well in the last few games? He had been heavily criticized for his play earlier. Let's hope that he and Hamrlik can keep up the good work; we'll need them at the top of their game for a quite while.

Edited November 14, 2010 by JCPetit

[JCPetit]

Since Markov's injury will be the talk of the town for some days, I will add a comment to my earlier impressions:

Even though nobody knows for sure if the injury is serious right now, it is obvious that Markov's knee is not as strong as it should be. So, it appears to me that this time the doctors will want to make sure that he has got all his strength back before he plays again. So, serious or not, he will be out long enough to be in absolute shape. That's probably a question of months, whatever the injury. Too bad, really.

[dlbalr]

The RDS report is beyond premature - no tests on Markov have been done yet, so there's no logical way that they can predict exactly what he has - be it a sprain, ligament damage, or something else entirely. The only thing I think that can safely be said is that he's doubtful for Tuesday night - no point in trying to speculate beyond that. Once the swelling (if any) goes down, then he can have an MRI, X-ray, etc. Assuming that happens at some point today, we should have a better sense by tomorrow. Anything before that is sheer guesswork.

[JCPetit]

The RDS report is beyond premature - no tests on Markov have been done yet, so there's no logical way that they can predict exactly what he has - be it a sprain, ligament damage, or something else entirely. The only thing I think that can safely be said is that he's doubtful for Tuesday night - no point in trying to speculate beyond that. Once the swelling (if any) goes down, then he can have an MRI, X-ray, etc. Assuming that happens at some point today, we should have a better sense by tomorrow. Anything before that is sheer guesswork.

I agree with you: it's beyond premature. IMO we can at the very least assume that the knee will need time to heal and get stronger. I would be surprised if the team took a chance with him; he won't be in the line-up for quite a while.

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

It does raise the question of whether Markov's knee was really ready. And whatever happens going forward, they'd better be sure his knee is as close to 100% as possible before he comes back.

I understand the injunction against premature diagnosis, but it's frankly hard to believe this isn't serious. The minute we saw Markov bang his hand against the boards in frustration, we knew that he thought it was.

Neither Bieksa nor Regher (or Brent Burns, the forgotten man of Habs trade rumours) are Markov-replacements. But despite our early-season success it may also be a bit much to expect the team to pile up a good record for three months without Markov. (Of course, the results will reinforce those who insist this is a mediocre 'bubble team,' who will conveniently ignore that we're missing our General. Grrr).

So...what to do?

If somebody like Weber is anywhere near ready to come up and contribute, that'd be my first preference; go with a platoon system and hope depth can paper things over for a while. The closer you get to the deadline the more affordable a bigger name becomes in cap terms. So try to hold the fort until either Markov returns or you're in a position to move on somebody like (gulp!) Kaberle. Or whoever.

A mid-range offensive defenceman is another possibility. I notice this Vlasic guy is on the outs in San Jose, maybe someone like that.

If help from the farm and affordable midrange help are not realistic, then all things considered I'd rather see the Habs go out and get a Reghr, who can really stabilize the defensive zone, than a Bieksa, who is a high-risk high-reward type (sort of a low-grade Sheldon Souray). This may seem counter-intuitive - don't we need a guy with offensive upside to replace Markov? - but the point is you're not going to replace Markov. Regher could offer a quality physical, stabilizing presence, the perfect counter-point to Subban and a perfect fit for JM's system of totally shutting down the middle of the ice. He won't bring goals but he might allow us to squeeze our GAA even more tightly shut. Depending on who we send back, I like that idea: don't replace Markov, but rather go out and get a guy who further enhances our choke-hold defensive approach - thus reducing the need for Markov's offence and lessening the impact of his loss that way. Plus, considering the impending possible loss of Hammer, Regher would be a perfect fit for JM's system going forward.

Anyway. My 2c.

[Seb]

It does raise the question of whether Markov's knee was really ready. And whatever happens going forward, they'd better be sure his knee is as close to 100% as possible before he comes back.

I understand the injunction against premature diagnosis, but it's frankly hard to believe this isn't serious. The minute we saw Markov bang his hand against the boards in frustration, we knew that he thought it was.

Neither Bieksa nor Regher (or Brent Burns, the forgotten man of Habs trade rumours) are Markov-replacements. But despite our early-season success it may also be a bit much to expect the team to pile up a good record for three months without Markov. (Of course, the results will reinforce those who insist this is a mediocre 'bubble team,' who will conveniently ignore that we're missing our General. Grrr).

So...what to do?

If somebody like Weber is anywhere near ready to come up and contribute, that'd be my first preference; go with a platoon system and hope depth can paper things over for a while. The closer you get to the deadline the more affordable a bigger name becomes in cap terms. So try to hold the fort until either Markov returns or you're in a position to move on somebody like (gulp!) Kaberle. Or whoever.

A mid-range offensive defenceman is another possibility. I notice this Vlasic guy is on the outs in San Jose, maybe someone like that.

If help from the farm and affordable midrange help are not realistic, then all things considered I'd rather see the Habs go out and get a Reghr, who can really stabilize the defensive zone, than a Bieksa, who is a high-risk high-reward type (sort of a low-grade Sheldon Souray). This may seem counter-intuitive - don't we need a guy with offensive upside to replace Markov? - but the point is you're not going to replace Markov. Regher could offer a quality physical, stabilizing presence, the perfect counter-point to Subban and a perfect fit for JM's system of totally shutting down the middle of the ice. He won't bring goals but he might allow us to squeeze our GAA even more tightly shut. Depending on who we send back, I like that idea: don't replace Markov, but rather go out and get a guy who further enhances our choke-hold defensive approach - thus reducing the need for Markov's offence and lessening the impact of his loss that way. Plus, considering the impending possible loss of Hammer, Regher would be a perfect fit for JM's system going forward.

Anyway. My 2c.

Quite frankly, if the Habs could pluck Regehr out of Calgary, they should do it. He's a durable and reliable defenseman with size (6'3", 225), and he has a cap hit of 4.02M for two more seasons beyond this one, which is definitely manageable.

And, as an added bonus, he's born in Brazil. Maybe he can convince the Habs to get some big bootied Brazilian cheerleaders shaking their behinds in little red thongs.

[JCPetit]

Quite frankly, if the Habs could pluck Regehr out of Calgary, they should do it. He's a durable and reliable defenseman with size (6'3", 225), and he has a cap hit of 4.02M for two more seasons beyond this one, which is definitely manageable.

And, as an added bonus, he's born in Brazil. Maybe he can convince the Habs to get some big bootied Brazilian cheerleaders shaking their behinds in little red thongs.

No way that Gauthier will make a trade to fill the spot. We will have to make do with our depth, at least for the time being. If Picard or the other prospects aren't able to fill the gap, then a trade will become unavoidable.

[JCPetit]

Hey! BTW, as a participant to these boards, I am still at the AHL level. How long to get to the NHL?

[brobin]

I thought Picard did a good job before Markov came back. I don't think the PP woes were completely due to Markov being out. I think if we give Picard a bit more time he will be fine as a PP guy and bottom pairing D. Spacek has gotten better, let's hope he can keep it up.

[JoeLassister]

Hey! BTW, as a participant to these boards, I am still at the AHL level. How long to get to the NHL?

I think it's 1000.

[Habsfan]

and did you see Stall's reaction? PRICK God I hate the Canes!

I didn't see Stall's reaction. What did he do?

MArkov going donw is a bad thing for this team, a very bad thing. But We'll have to hope that Picard and/or Weber can do the job.

[l<OV4L3V]

Andrei Coliacovo?..the guy's apparently the new team band aid...always injured!

[BCHabnut]

His first 13 or 14 seasons, he was very durable. Look at his numbers. Sinse he was a kid, he played near full seasons. 09 playoffs is the beginning of this. That's a year and a half ago. I think it's a little early to call him a band aid. He is leaning in that direction though.

[BCHabnut]

I said this last week, and Boone agrees. (I know, that's not saying much) Plekanec has quietly become the best player on the team. The sample size is still a bit small, but over the last year, he has taken over. He disapeared in the playoffs you say? Shut down role against Crosby and OV is far from disapearing. So IMO, the best player on the team is AOK. Losing Marky hurts bad, let's see what the team can do about it.

[ForumGhost]

Maybe this will give a chance to Weber or Carle, who have both been playing very well in the AHL from what I understand.

[JoeLassister]

Tired to talk and read about Markov's injury so I'll point something out that happened yesterday.

Dunno if some of you watched the game on RDS, but Joël Bouchard (former NHL dman) is part of the game description crew along with Pierre and Benoit. He is standing between the team benches for home games and he noticed and shared something really cool yesterday.

When the Canes made it 2-2, he heard Josh Gorges, who, as per Bouchard, was surprisingly upset at the team's play, shoot to the bench "Comon' guy, it's enough, we got to wake up."

And BOOOM Habs scored 2 quick goals to put it 4-2. Talking about a guy who can stick for his teammates and be a leader of its own. I would totally give Gorges Markov's "A" during his absence.