mathieu30 Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Enjoyed reading this Jack Todd article in todays Gazette: Bright future beckons for young guns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Its nice to get knocked out in such heartbreaking fashion and come out on the other side with hope and optimism. I believe in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Excellent article, thanks I like what he has to say about going out and getting a Richards or Garborik. Thats nice to hear. Don't like the part where in the next sentence he says they may stand pat and see where Murray, Plekanec, Perezhogin and Higgins take them. They need to bring someone in now. I'd be pleased with either Gaborik or Richards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 i dont know exactly where gaborik would fit on the team... I guess that would mean that higgins would go back to centre? ryder-koivu-gaborik kost/zhog-higs-kovalev? richards, or any powerful centre makes it an easier reconfiguration. that being said... if you can bring in gaborik, right on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Absolutley you want Richards over Gaborik. No Question. Richards solves all kinds of problems. Hes the #1 center Montreal lacks, and he plays PP, PK, every situation you can imagine. Gaborik, is a #1 left or right winger. To get him, Montreal would have to give up one of their top wingers ( to make room for Gaborik) plus whatever Lemaire likes (two way players). As long as you keep Koivu and Plekanec, you probably don't have to move Higgins. Provided Higgins and Plekanec arn't sent for Gaborik. Its a tough situation. But yeah, ideally Richards or to a lesser degree Lecavalier would be sweet. Unfortunatley that won't happen. Word out of Tampa is that they are keeping the core together (Lecavalier, Richards and St. Louis) and will let go Kubina, Fedotanko and sign a shitty goaltender much the same as they did with Burke and Grahame. They don't wanna let them go. Its gonna be hard considering Lecavalier got around $6.5 to $6.7 Million per season. What is Richards worth? Has to be atleast that. He's a more complete player. Anyone think Richards would be worth 4 1st round picks? The max compensation for signing a RFA over $5 Million? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 i tend to think no RFA is worth the compensation... the restriction system is basically guaranteed to keep players with their original team. its kinda sad... lemaire would probably like bulis... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
habschris Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 No way is any player worth that. People who think this team is 1 or 2 players away are wrong. Other then the Bruins, who have they beat over the 6 or 7 years in the playoffs? Have they been more then a 7 or 8 seed in the last several years? The furure is the young players and a couple of vets, Koivu and Kovalev, mostly due to large contracts. Replacing veterans with some youth is the way to go. A hard working vet or 2 wouldn't hurt, like a peca. Signing a few key players coming into there prime is the way to go. Not getting older. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trizzak Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Anyone think Richards would be worth 4 1st round picks? The max compensation for signing a RFA over $5 Million? If he were signed for 4-5 years, sure. I'd be concerned over the depth at D taking even more of a hit over the years, but I do believe he would be the piece that puts the Habs high in the standings every year he's with them. Losing four 25th (or so) overall picks doesn't concern me much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 If he were signed for 4-5 years, sure. I'd be concerned over the depth at D taking even more of a hit over the years, but I do believe he would be the piece that puts the Habs high in the standings every year he's with them. Losing four 25th (or so) overall picks doesn't concern me much. Yeah I believe he, or someone like him is the missing piece as well. Kinda why I believe the Koivu for $4.75 Million hurts so much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 It's funny how Brad Richards went, in just one year, from being the most under-rated player in the NHL to being so over-rated. Don't get me wrong, he's a great player, and I would absolutely love to see a Koivu-Richards duo of centers, but some people talk about him like he's a franchise player. Personally, he reminds me a little bit of Koivu, except that he's bigger, has always remained healthy, and plays on a much stronger powerplay and a more offense-oriented team. In the exact same context, he would probably produce a little more than Koivu, but not that much. As for the 5 consecutive 1st round picks, I don't think I would give them up for any player in the league; just look how badly Montreal has done after the Houle era in which we wasted so many first rounders. Many late 1st rounders turn out to be good players: 2004: Rob Schremp, Wojtek Wolski, Andrej Meszaros, Cory Schneider 2003: Corey Perry, Mike Richards, Anthony Stewart, M-A Pouliot, Patrick Eaves 2002: Hannu Toivonen, Cam Ward (if only they had traded that pick!), Alex Steen, Anton Babchuk 2001: Colby Armstrong, Alex Perezhogin, Lukas Krajicek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 4 first rounders for Richards is worth it for sure. As Trizzak said 4 25th overall picks are not a great loss when you know you are getting a pure NHL superstar down the middle! Don"t get me wrong Cerebus but did the Bolts not have one of the NHL's worst power plays this season! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
habschris Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Doesn't Montreal have to have the 6th best record in the league to have the 24th pick? They have averaged in the last 5 or 6 years picking 8-16. Let's see who they picked, higgins, perez, komisarek and kostitsyn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CerebusClone Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 4 first rounders for Richards is worth it for sure. As Trizzak said 4 25th overall picks are not a great loss when you know you are getting a pure NHL superstar down the middle! Don"t get me wrong Cerebus but did the Bolts not have one of the NHL's worst power plays this season! It was good enough for Richards to get 46 PP points. Actually, Koivu's biggest weakness (besides being injured so often) could be his lack of premier powerplay production. He did much better this year Unless he gets injured again, I'm actually expecting some bigger numbers from Koivu next season. Until the end of January, he was actually producing at a very good level, above even Sakic, Modano, Richards, Lecavalier, and a few other big-name centers, but while Sakic and Richards kicked it up a notch, Koivu went through his worst career slump; then he did better, then he had another small slump, and then he finished strong, making Higgins and Ryder look like genuine first liners. I thought Koivu played his worst hockey ever this season, but I'm ready to call it an off-year (like Modano 2 years ago). However, considering his brand new contract and the increased level of talent on the roster, if Koivu doesn't step up offensively, I will stop defending... No more excuses, we want results, and we want Olympic/Playoff Koivu all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Great article. As far as moving first rounders go, you never know what you're going to get so I'd leave them their. Worst case scenario is to trade them when their showing sign of being a bust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 (edited) It was good enough for Richards to get 46 PP points. Actually, Koivu's biggest weakness (besides being injured so often) could be his lack of premier powerplay production. He did much better this year Unless he gets injured again, I'm actually expecting some bigger numbers from Koivu next season. Until the end of January, he was actually producing at a very good level, above even Sakic, Modano, Richards, Lecavalier, and a few other big-name centers, but while Sakic and Richards kicked it up a notch, Koivu went through his worst career slump; then he did better, then he had another small slump, and then he finished strong, making Higgins and Ryder look like genuine first liners. I thought Koivu played his worst hockey ever this season, but I'm ready to call it an off-year (like Modano 2 years ago). However, considering his brand new contract and the increased level of talent on the roster, if Koivu doesn't step up offensively, I will stop defending... No more excuses, we want results, and we want Olympic/Playoff Koivu all the time. I think it's impossible to ask this of Koivu - he's too small and fragile and damaged to play at that level all the time. What we've seen over the last decade is what we can reasonably expect from this guy: he will give you around 20 goals and maybe 50-55 assists with decent linemates over a full uninjured season (never likely). Throw him a couple of really good wingers and he might approach the 80-85 pt mark, barring injury. He will never be dominant, but he DOES make everyone around him better (as we saw this playoff) AND he has a track record of raising his game in playoffs and championships. Frankly, I don't think a player of that profile needs 'defending.' But asking for more seems silly at this point in his career. Edited May 4, 2006 by The Chicoutimi Cucumber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTH Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 4 first rounders for Richards is worth it for sure. As Trizzak said 4 25th overall picks are not a great loss when you know you are getting a pure NHL superstar down the middle! Don"t get me wrong Cerebus but did the Bolts not have one of the NHL's worst power plays this season! Tampa's PP ranked 29th and it's AWFUL. I can't watch it without puking. I mean, they've got lots of skilled players on it but there's just no co-ordination. I also agree with Trizzak that with Richards, tat draft pick will get higher and higher. It would give us the flexibility of having Koivu and Kovalev re-united on the 2nd while keeping a star on the 1st line, leaving Koivu on the firts line and letting Kovalev play with Richards and a Kostitsyn or making a Richards-Koivu-Kovalev line which would scare the hell uot of any team. Gaborik would be great too but he's more 1-dimensional than Richards is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 Unless he gets injured again, I'm actually expecting some bigger numbers from Koivu next season..... , We've been waiting for years now for bigger numbers. He's had one good year. When he played the full year coming back from cancer. The guy is good. Richards is 10 times better 2004: Rob Schremp, Wojtek Wolski, Andrej Meszaros, Cory Schneider 2003: Corey Perry, Mike Richards, Anthony Stewart, M-A Pouliot, Patrick Eaves 2002: Hannu Toivonen, Cam Ward (if only they had traded that pick!), Alex Steen, Anton Babchuk 2001: Colby Armstrong, Alex Perezhogin, Lukas Krajicek You can't say alot of these guys are good players. Many of them have barely any NHL experience, especially the 2004 guys. And I would easily trade the best for guys on the above list for Richards any day of the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zowpeb Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 No way is any player worth that. People who think this team is 1 or 2 players away are wrong. Other then the Bruins, who have they beat over the 6 or 7 years in the playoffs? Have they been more then a 7 or 8 seed in the last several years? The furure is the young players and a couple of vets, Koivu and Kovalev, mostly due to large contracts. Replacing veterans with some youth is the way to go. A hard working vet or 2 wouldn't hurt, like a peca. Signing a few key players coming into there prime is the way to go. Not getting older. This team can't add too many more young players...with Higgins, Plekanec, Perezhogin, Ryder, Komisarek, Kostsytsin all likely on the squad next year that's potentially 5 of our top 9 forwards with less then 3 years NHL experience. Not to mention that we have a few other good young forwards that will deserve a shot soon in Locke, Latendresse and Chipchura. This team needs 2 good forwards and 1 "top 4" d-man... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAussiePosse Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Subtract: Ribeiro, Zednik, Bulis, Bonk, Sundstrom + Rivet, Souray, Streit + Aebischer Add: Latandresse, Kostitsyn (2), Chipchura + Emelin, O'Byrne + Carey/Price Also Add: 1st line C, Number 1 Dman To: Koivu, Kovalev, Higgins, Plekanec, Perezhogin, Begin, Murray + Markov, Komisarek, Dandenault, Bouillion Multiply: 3-5 years = Habs Stanley Cups Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneHABSfan Posted May 18, 2006 Share Posted May 18, 2006 mathieu30 thanks for posting the article link. I thought it was just me seeing Ribero skate slow for the puck many times. There is an interesting core on Montreal to build on and I am looking forward to see what Bob Gainey does to tinker with the lineup. He did say on TSN that they will look at free agents for whatever that may mean. (Seeing as Montreal has free agents to resign) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalhabs Posted May 18, 2006 Share Posted May 18, 2006 Id rather want 2 first lines than just one. Bringing in Richards would give us that but I dont say that Richards will be a #1 center and Koivu a #2. And about the draftpick trade... NO WAY!!! You people say we have enough good prospects? Where are the defence prospects then? Komisarek is the only one I see and he is no longer a prospect. Our depth at D is REALLLY bad atm and we need to get some defence this draft I think. Markov, Komisarek, Rivet, Souray, Dandeneault, Bouillon, Streit.. then who? Who will play on this team in 5 years when Souray, Rivet and Bouillon is too old? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAK Posted May 18, 2006 Share Posted May 18, 2006 Id rather want 2 first lines than just one. Bringing in Richards would give us that but I dont say that Richards will be a #1 center and Koivu a #2. And about the draftpick trade... NO WAY!!! You people say we have enough good prospects? Where are the defence prospects then? Komisarek is the only one I see and he is no longer a prospect. Our depth at D is REALLLY bad atm and we need to get some defence this draft I think. Markov, Komisarek, Rivet, Souray, Dandeneault, Bouillon, Streit.. then who? Who will play on this team in 5 years when Souray, Rivet and Bouillon is too old? we have coté and emelin who'll be with us next year or in two seasons from now. if trading a pick helps us right now ( say richards), I'd do it...we can always find quality D Men in the later rounds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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