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2023-24 Montreal Canadiens Discussion Thread


GHT120

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37 minutes ago, huzer said:

Habs after 49 games last year:

20-25-4 - 48pts, GF: 130, GA: 179 GD: -49

 

After 49 games this year:

20-21-8 - 48pts, GF: 136, GA: 175, GD: -39

 

Just thought it was interesting comparison. Will the Habs bomb the rest of the year like they did last season?


There is a slight improvement but I was expecting more. It SEEMED like we were playing much better this season but stats don’t lie. 
 

A terrible second half and we should pick #5 which might net us another stud RD! 

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2 hours ago, huzer said:

Habs after 49 games last year:

20-25-4 - 48pts, GF: 130, GA: 179 GD: -49

 

After 49 games this year:

20-21-8 - 48pts, GF: 136, GA: 175, GD: -39

 

Just thought it was interesting comparison. Will the Habs bomb the rest of the year like they did last season?

20-25-4 would be 44 points, not 48, would it not? Which would mean that the Habs are on pact to finish with 7-8 more points than last year.

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1 hour ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:


There is a slight improvement but I was expecting more. It SEEMED like we were playing much better this season but stats don’t lie. 
 

A terrible second half and we should pick #5 which might net us another stud RD! 


the injuries crippled them. After the trade deadline they will sink to the bottom. 

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22 minutes ago, tomh009 said:

20-25-4 would be 44 points, not 48, would it not? Which would mean that the Habs are on pact to finish with 7-8 more points than last year.

 

Yep, meant to type 44, but put the same pts for both. Oops. Better at OT losses this year. :)

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3 minutes ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:

How is Slafkovsky doing this season?

 

His stat card matches the eye test - Slafkovsky needs to shoot the puck more, much more. 
 

He also looks good in the Ozone and this is only year two of his development. 
 

 

IMG_0292.jpeg

Yup everying else is getting there... but he needs to trust his shot more 

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1 hour ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:

How is Slafkovsky doing this season? His stat card matches the eye test - Slafkovsky needs to shoot the puck more, much more.

How recent is that?

 

Here is another JFresh summary but from December, before he really picked up steam--and Cooley's card by comparison.

 

image.jpeg

 

image.jpeg

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57 minutes ago, tomh009 said:

How recent is that?

 

Here is another JFresh summary but from December, before he really picked up steam--and Cooley's card by comparison.

 

image.jpeg

 

image.jpeg


JFresh posted the one from my post yesterday I think but I don’t know the timeline he used. 
 

I think Hughes picking Slafkovsky is going to pay dividends. He is doing many really great things already 

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21 minutes ago, DON said:

Assume Hughes liked seeing what Canuck offered for Lindholm.

Wonder if Hughes had discussions with Canucks on Monahan, i would assume Yes?

 

The Vancouver Canucks just reset the market for Sean Monahan (habseyesontheprize.com)

 

Good write-up.

 

Regarding your question, media chatter in Vancouver very rarely mentioned Monahan. (One afternoon drive host listed his top-5 Canucks trade targets, and Monahan was not on the list). Since media commentary seldom occurs in a vacuum and often reflects what the word is within the organization - and Rutherford is anything but tight-lipped - I think we can conclude that they were not all that interested in Monahan.

 

What I kept hearing was that they were not interested in a bottom-6 piece or a tweener. They wanted a clear-cut top-6, impact player. I suspect they saw Monahan more as a #3C.

 

Rutherford has a history of going after big fish at the deadline; Lindstrom was perceived as the best piece on the market, and true to form, he did what it took to get him. I think he and Allvin were focused on that.

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2 hours ago, DON said:


looks like Galaga, the arcade game, doesn’t it?

image.gifadded

Edited by alfredoh2009
added image of galaga
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Great write-up 👍 I really appreciated the comment that improvement is coming from the right players - i.e., the big four of Suzuki, Caufield, Slaf, and Guhle.

 

It seems clear that the Habs’ philosophy is to keep seeing small, gradual progression, and at some point the dam will burst and the team will start racking up wins. When they do so, it will probably come as a surprise to a lot of commentators (especially in the absence of a superstar “talisman,” as this well-written article puts it). If, however, the foundation has been carefully lain - instilling in the players the fundamentals, the right mindset, etc. - then once it does arrive, it should prove durable.

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So the thing that I worry about most is trading the wrong player. But the time is coming. Matheson, Harris, xhekaj, ghule, now struble is looking very promising, and hutson is 1 to 2 years from joining the team. That's 6 nhl calber defenseman for 3 positions on the left side. This team is weak up front. They have 1 offensive line,  1.5 offensive lines with dach and maybe newhook, and no help coming from the farm. It's obvious that the trade winds they're a blowin. Eventually a couple of these quality left d will need to be traded. 

 

If you're the gm, do you trade a dman in the summer for help up front, or do you give it another year to make sure you're keeping the best players?

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15 minutes ago, BCHabnut said:

So the thing that I worry about most is trading the wrong player. But the time is coming. Matheson, Harris, xhekaj, ghule, now struble is looking very promising, and hutson is 1 to 2 years from joining the team. That's 6 nhl calber defenseman for 3 positions on the left side. This team is weak up front. They have 1 offensive line,  1.5 offensive lines with dach and maybe newhook, and no help coming from the farm. It's obvious that the trade winds they're a blowin. Eventually a couple of these quality left d will need to be traded. 

 

If you're the gm, do you trade a dman in the summer for help up front, or do you give it another year to make sure you're keeping the best players?


My guess is that one way or another HuGo are going to have a new top 6 forward on this team to start next season. 
 

Combination of picks and/or one of those excess Dmen we have are likely but Hughes might surprise us. 

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8 hours ago, Prime Minister Koivu said:


My guess is that one way or another HuGo are going to have a new top 6 forward on this team to start next season. 
 

Combination of picks and/or one of those excess Dmen we have are likely but Hughes might surprise us. 

I think think we e make some big moves leading up to, or at this year’s draft. What happens at the draft lottery will impact anything we do, but I can’t see us starting next training camp with all our young D. One or more of them will be moved. As BChabnut has said though - we need to get it right. I think all of them will be NHL dmen for a long time - we just need to make sure we hold on to the best ones.

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9 hours ago, BCHabnut said:

If you're the gm, do you trade a dman in the summer for help up front, or do you give it another year to make sure you're keeping the best players?

If they wait another year, the Habs would likely have a better idea which young defencemen they want to keep ... but the ones they are then willing to trade might also have a lowered trade value, and lack the necessary to be a significant part of a trade to obtain that desired top 6 scoring forward ... of course, they could all have outstanding seasons and increase their trade value ... just pointing out that waiting to essentially reduce the risk of trading the wrong player, itself comes with a risk.

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A lot of commentary on the Monahan deal has suggested that HuGo will swing for the fences and try to package our picks/D-men for an impact forward. This isn’t just fan speculation, it’s media chatter as well. 

 

I think it could well happen, and frankly I suspect WiFi will be part of the return going the other way. 

 

1 hour ago, GHT120 said:

If they wait another year, the Habs would likely have a better idea which young defencemen they want to keep ... but the ones they are then willing to trade might also have a lowered trade value, and lack the necessary to be a significant part of a trade to obtain that desired top 6 scoring forward ... of course, they could all have outstanding seasons and increase their trade value ... just pointing out that waiting to essentially reduce the risk of trading the wrong player, itself comes with a risk.

 

Yeah, I had the same thought myself. With certainty on our side comes certainty on theirs.

 

The fear of making the wrong choice is well founded, especially after the Gainey years, when the Habs bet chronically on the wrong horses. However, you ultimately have to trust in your management group. They have a better, more fine-grained understanding of these players than anyone else in hockey. They have to gather all that intel, as well as their sense of what type of human beings they’re dealing with, and make the call. That’s why they’re paid millions. 

 

 

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I think Hughes is super analytical and calm negotiator. He has a better chance to get the right deal done since ... who? Pollock? Whether he does other things well or not, I have confidence in him as an astute negotiator, rather than a rash or emotional one.

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NO hurry, but is only so much icetime for young d to even show what can do with regular minutes.

 

With Hutson joining in spring, likely not play much/any but. (i dont think he can go to Laval if they 'burn' a year to sign him?)

Engstrom coming to Laval soon perhaps?

 

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46 minutes ago, DON said:

NO hurry, but is only so much icetime for young d to even show what can do with regular minutes.

 

With Hutson joining in spring, likely not play much/any but. (i dont think he can go to Laval if they 'burn' a year to sign him?)

Engstrom coming to Laval soon perhaps?

 

If the Habs burn a year on Hutson this season, he won't be Laval-eligible.  (He'll probably play at the Worlds instead so there's that at least.)

 

Engstrom is trickier because of the new language in the NHL-Sweden transfer agreement where it gets a lot harder to put a Swedish-born player in the AHL (Heineman was the last one to sign under the old policy).  That said, I don't think it's impossible to make happen but I'm not 100% sure of the exact language.

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20 minutes ago, dlbalr said:

If the Habs burn a year on Hutson this season, he won't be Laval-eligible.  (He'll probably play at the Worlds instead so there's that at least.)

Ineligible to play for The Rocket at all (i.e., including the regular season).

 

He almost certainly wouldn't likely be playoff eligible, as I believe he would need to be on the Laval roster at the trade deadline (March 8th) and BU's regular season doesn't finish until the next day.

 

NOTE: NOT suggesting he would be signed so he could play in Laval, just curious about the rules.

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1 hour ago, tomh009 said:

I think Hughes is super analytical and calm negotiator. He has a better chance to get the right deal done since ... who? Pollock? Whether he does other things well or not, I have confidence in him as an astute negotiator, rather than a rash or emotional one.

 

I think Hughes is an outstanding amateur hockey evaluator and able to project players' future better than anyone the Habs have had in two decades... maybe more

 

I think that the current state of the Habs rebuild allows him to be patient on trades, and that has allowed him to get great value on most trades. I am not sure how he will do under pressure, but it is looking promising.

 

I think Gorton is a good staff evaluator, able to hire the right people for roles. I am not sure how good he is with regards to talent evaluation, I have not been paying attention to the videos the Habs media has shared because they are heavily edited: hard to tell how much is a setup adn how much is real.

 

the future of the rebuild is looking good so far, the present (on the ice) is what was expected

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I feel new mgmt seems to be doing very well so far.

Still a weak team and got nowhere to go but up.

 

Is Allen the only likely Hab to be traded before March 8?

Or might someone want a 1/2 priced Savard?

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24 minutes ago, DON said:

I feel new mgmt seems to be doing very well so far.

Still a weak team and got nowhere to go but up.

 

Is Allen the only likely Hab to be traded before March 8?

Or might someone want a 1/2 priced Savard?

Pearson is pending UFA, they should trade him if they can get anything in return instead of loosing him for nothing.

 

Ylonen is a pending RFA, and Stephens, Xhekaj, Norlinder and Barron are up for contracts too. They may be willing to move any of them instead of signing them to a new contract if they can get something more suitable/fitting for the team's plans.

 

Sometimes teams prefer to trade RFAs so that they new team can sign them under their terms.

 

 

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