DON Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 On Dach & Laine benchings; Canadiens weekly notebook: Laine and Dach benchings, Guhle injury and Xhekaj’s emergence - The Athletic "As bad as that looks for the Canadiens and what they aspire to accomplish this season, it makes the benching of Laine and Dach that much more commendable and that much more important. Either you have standards or you don’t. They are either non-negotiable or they’re not." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfredoh2009 Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 53 minutes ago, Prime Minister Koivu said: The whole point is that if we are in a position where we do trade all of the UFAs then it means playoffs aren’t possible. isn’t that like looking at it backwards? Wouldn’t it be something like: if playoff are not a possibility by the trade deadline, trading al of the pending UFAs is more probable to happen. Not nitpicking, just saying the the organization would be more forthcoming in their usual press conference right after the trade deadline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 19 minutes ago, DON said: On Dach & Laine benchings; Canadiens weekly notebook: Laine and Dach benchings, Guhle injury and Xhekaj’s emergence - The Athletic "As bad as that looks for the Canadiens and what they aspire to accomplish this season, it makes the benching of Laine and Dach that much more commendable and that much more important. Either you have standards or you don’t. They are either non-negotiable or they’re not." And to be fair, MSL *did* say that he would be tougher this season. Everybody was warned...and a guy like Dach was given tons and tons of rope in the first half. Put on your work boots or f**k off Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHT120 Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 22 minutes ago, The Chicoutimi Cucumber said: Put on your work boots or f**k off Exactly ... it wasn't production related, it was effort related Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 41 minutes ago, alfredoh2009 said: isn’t that like looking at it backwards? Wouldn’t it be something like: if playoff are not a possibility by the trade deadline, trading al of the pending UFAs is more probable to happen. Not nitpicking, just saying the the organization would be more forthcoming in their usual press conference right after the trade deadline In my mind what I wrote is exactly what you wrote. Not making the playoffs is the deciding factor 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habs Fan in Edmonton Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 6 minutes ago, GHT120 said: Exactly ... it wasn't production related, it was effort related Yup, in order to get respect of the entire team the coach can't play favourites when it comes to effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Dach's dumb x-checking penalty didnt help. Maybe Black Hawks pro scouts knew him better than thought. Dont expect Laine to turn into a 2-way winger, but he has had some horrible lazy-looking plays, reminds me alot of Hoffman. See if benching and likely discussion with coachs can encourage him to give a bit more when without or turnover the puck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXx..CK..xXx Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 I’ve read a few comments, articles and seen a clip from a podcast where everyone seems to agree with Laine’s benching. Personally, I disagree with it in the final minute. Once again, specifically after St. Louis removed the top line after Anaheim iced the puck. Tapping Gallagher on the back as the 6th man out will never change Laine into becoming a Gallagher. He is what he is and Laine didn’t specifically choose this game to be a passenger. He’s literally playing the same as he has been since he’s been here at 5 on 5. While one can argue that it hasn’t been good enough, he is coming off a long absence with injury and this likely will have the opposite effect on him if anything. A consistent argument is that the team cannot be shown that players will be given a favour after a lack of effort and that it shows his teammates that some players can be given a free pass. My argument is that as a teammate, they should all be rooting for Laine and not against him (à la Pettersson vs Miller) and that placing myself in their shoes, as a teammate, I would have been happy for the team to see Laine on the ice rather than the bench during crunch time. As a teammate, I am not going to begin dragging my feet from here on out “because Laine can”. The fact that he only had one shift prior to the last 30 seconds, and didn’t go out there with the top line with the extra man, was already enough of a message. While I do not have the expectation that Laine would have necessarily scored had he went out there, it was obvious to me, that we wouldn’t score with the unit that was sent out there. Sure, their effort was there but at that point in time one needs talent and like some are making the argument that playing him “shows the team” that anything can be given a free pass for certain players, I could argue that this “showed the team” that we were not going for the win. Both of those points are simply speculation as to how the other players would have reacted. As is often said, if a fan like me could tell beforehand that we weren’t going to score with the players we threw out there, the people in charge should have known as well. I am also a coach in another sport so I can relate to having to deal with certain personalities and consistently demanding effort, but this is more of an old school approach and don’t believe it was the way to go in this specific instance. Bite the bullet, and go for the win. It’s the NHL, where wins matter, not a teaching moment. Laine wasn’t playing well? Well, this was a 6 on 5, kind of the perfect situation for said player. Finally, as I said in another thread, if there was something else going on behind the scenes that St. Louis knows about as the reason for his benching, then it is a different story. Let’s also hope not as that would be a whole other issue in and of itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Laine - Evans - Armia Today’s practice line Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 2 hours ago, xXx..CK..xXx said: I’ve read a few comments, articles and seen a clip from a podcast where everyone seems to agree with Laine’s benching. Personally, I disagree with it in the final minute. Once again, specifically after St. Louis removed the top line after Anaheim iced the puck. Tapping Gallagher on the back as the 6th man out will never change Laine into becoming a Gallagher. He is what he is and Laine didn’t specifically choose this game to be a passenger. He’s literally playing the same as he has been since he’s been here at 5 on 5. While one can argue that it hasn’t been good enough, he is coming off a long absence with injury and this likely will have the opposite effect on him if anything. A consistent argument is that the team cannot be shown that players will be given a favour after a lack of effort and that it shows his teammates that some players can be given a free pass. My argument is that as a teammate, they should all be rooting for Laine and not against him (à la Pettersson vs Miller) and that placing myself in their shoes, as a teammate, I would have been happy for the team to see Laine on the ice rather than the bench during crunch time. As a teammate, I am not going to begin dragging my feet from here on out “because Laine can”. The fact that he only had one shift prior to the last 30 seconds, and didn’t go out there with the top line with the extra man, was already enough of a message. While I do not have the expectation that Laine would have necessarily scored had he went out there, it was obvious to me, that we wouldn’t score with the unit that was sent out there. Sure, their effort was there but at that point in time one needs talent and like some are making the argument that playing him “shows the team” that anything can be given a free pass for certain players, I could argue that this “showed the team” that we were not going for the win. Both of those points are simply speculation as to how the other players would have reacted. As is often said, if a fan like me could tell beforehand that we weren’t going to score with the players we threw out there, the people in charge should have known as well. I am also a coach in another sport so I can relate to having to deal with certain personalities and consistently demanding effort, but this is more of an old school approach and don’t believe it was the way to go in this specific instance. Bite the bullet, and go for the win. It’s the NHL, where wins matter, not a teaching moment. Laine wasn’t playing well? Well, this was a 6 on 5, kind of the perfect situation for said player. Finally, as I said in another thread, if there was something else going on behind the scenes that St. Louis knows about as the reason for his benching, then it is a different story. Let’s also hope not as that would be a whole other issue in and of itself. I don't think MSL is that kind of inflexible hardass. He has shown a lot of patience with players that are having issues of confidence or health, without publicly humiliating them. To my mind, this is more likely a considered decision on MSL's part about how to deal with Laine specifically, than about imposing some uniform and inflexible set of rules. I would infer that he has asked specific things of Laine and Laine has shown no interest or effort in implementing them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 I like these moves by St. Louis. Put Laine with two talented two way players and Laine will be forced to play in defensive roles - and he might snipe some goals too. Anderson is playing well enough to warrant second line and I like the speed and added edge he brings. Let’s see if these lines make it to an actual game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Reinbacher in top six, didnt see that coming, but OK. Dach 19pts 51 games Newhook 13pts 51 games 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hab29RETIRED Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 28 minutes ago, Prime Minister Koivu said: I like these moves by St. Louis. Put Laine with two talented two way players and Laine will be forced to play in defensive roles - and he might snipe some goals too. Anderson is playing well enough to warrant second line and I like the speed and added edge he brings. Let’s see if these lines make it to an actual game. I don’t get why we are playing Pez - he needs to be dispensed with. They need to bring up someone from Laval that can play a regular shift and won’t take dumb penalties. I’d leave Beck in Laval, but they need to give a chance to a better energy player that actually may become a legit NHLer down the line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomh009 Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 4 hours ago, DON said: See if benching and likely discussion with coachs can encourage him to give a bit more when without or turnover the puck. I think his therapist is the one most likely to be able to make an impact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHT120 Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 2 hours ago, DON said: Reinbacher in top six, didnt see that coming, but OK. Dach 19pts 51 games Newhook 13pts 51 games LOL ... I assume he was Anderson's placeholder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHT120 Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 1 hour ago, tomh009 said: I think his therapist is the one most likely to be able to make an impact. Would have been nice (I-M-O) if he had some time away from the game instead of playing with Finland. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlbalr Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 2 hours ago, hab29RETIRED said: They need to bring up someone from Laval that can play a regular shift and won’t take dumb penalties. I’d leave Beck in Laval, but they need to give a chance to a better energy player that actually may become a legit NHLer down the line. Right now, Laval is down to a skeleton crew due to injuries so that might be playing a role here as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomh009 Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 1 hour ago, GHT120 said: Would have been nice (I-M-O) if he had some time away from the game instead of playing with Finland. If playing with Finland (rather than playing on his PlayStation) will bring back the joy of hockey, it will all be for the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 Hope San Jose is an easy victory, kinda doubt it but hope so anyways. Habs Weekly: Stuck in Another Rut – HabsWorld.net "Tuesday at San Jose – The Sharks enter the week in last place in the league and just traded away their leading scorer (Mikael Granlund) and one of their better blueliners (Cody Ceci). They’re also missing seven forwards due to injuries including former Hab Tyler Toffoli and Logan Couture, who has yet to play this season. Alexandar Georgiev has had a rough go of it since being acquired, posting a GAA of 3.99 along with a .879 SV% in 13 games after coming over from Colorado." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 So after 52 games the Habs are a sad sack three points ahead of where we were last season after 52 games. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomh009 Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 Made possible by that brutal start to the season! I think last season we were further away from a wildcard spot, were we not? Or is my memory playing tricks on me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 https://montrealhockeynow.com/2025/02/03/montreal-canadiens-dach-laine-newhook-benching-habs-lineup-analysis/#google_vignette It also doesn’t help that Dach is a poor playmaker. He’s producing 0.09 primary assists per 60 minutes of 5v5 ice time, which is less than defenceman David Savard (0.19). To put a fine point on it, it’s actually the lowest primary assist per 60 pace of the entire team, and among the worst results in the entire league. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomh009 Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 4 minutes ago, DON said: https://montrealhockeynow.com/2025/02/03/montreal-canadiens-dach-laine-newhook-benching-habs-lineup-analysis/#google_vignette It also doesn’t help that Dach is a poor playmaker. He’s producing 0.09 primary assists per 60 minutes of 5v5 ice time, which is less than defenceman David Savard (0.19). To put a fine point on it, it’s actually the lowest primary assist per 60 pace of the entire team, and among the worst results in the entire league. Full-year stats will indeed show him as absolutely brutal, but his injury recovery is more recent. It would be more valuable to look at his stats for the last 10-15-20 games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 1 hour ago, tomh009 said: Made possible by that brutal start to the season! I think last season we were further away from a wildcard spot, were we not? Or is my memory playing tricks on me? OR made possible by our 9 wins in 12 games - depending on your perspective. We could be dead last without that winning streak 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanes World Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 To be honest, Montreal isn’t ready to compete. Another high end draft pick, or trade the pick for someone who is a bit older Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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