Isles do just enough, beat Habs 3-1 (game recap)

[Habs77]

Here's the game recap on HabsWorld:

http://www.habsworld.net/show_big_news.php?id=146

Feel free to comment on the game, or the article.

[Quebecois]

Well I'm usually one of the more patient fans, usually looking on the positive side of things. But i have to agree with your article, this team needs some serious offensive help to say the least. Clearly the start of the season was a mirage for us fans, because this team won't be scoring many goals with it's current personnel.

Souray had a brutal game from what i saw, mostly highlights. And when you can pick out 4-5 bad plays by a guy in a highlight package, there is something wrong. He has had a great season thus far though, so it is a little more excusable coming from him, but still not something you like to see.

I would expect Gainey to make a deal in the coming week or so, unless by some miracle we start scoring.

I guess a couple positives would be that we are not giving up 35-40 shots consistently anymore, and Theodore has played great. We just need to provide him with 2 goals on most nights and he is going to get us at the very least 1 point. We just haven't been able to give him 2 goals that often, which is pretty sad.

[Natural Habs Fan]

I agree, the :hlogo: need a major shake up. I'd go so far as to give up on of our defensive prospects in order to get us a good power forward. Problem is, I doubt there are many teams who have a spare power forward for trade.

I wouldn't mind losing so much as long as the games were exciting. I had to change the channel and watch some Most Extreme Elimination Challenge to wake up!

[Bonavistaman11]

i dont understand julien.

Why the hell is he constantly changing the lines.

The team played very well in two games against the Sabres last week, winning a game and losing a game that they should've won. What happens in the next game against the bluejackets??

The lines are changed.

The game against the Jackets wasn't too bad, and finally Ryder breaks out of slump with some luck and gets a goal, what happens in the next game???

The lines are changed.

Julien was giving Ryder the opportunity to score, and when he finally breaks out of his slump how was he rewarded??

He's put on the 4th line with hardly any ice time, and for no reason at all gets benched in the third period, and of all people Nik Sundstrom is then double Shifted. Confidence back for Ryder one game, and then Completely gone the next!! Great job Julien.

For god sakes Claude, go back to the Minors!

how do you expect players to play well together in instant? Pick four lines and keep em together IDIOT!

Oh and i guess he felt like a genius when Dackell scored a goal. Well guess what, the line sucked aftter that goal and made no sense at all to play em together, pick the teams three softest players and put them together against one of the hardest hitting teams in the league???

Well this goes out to Julien for his latest line juggling

:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^:-^ F*CK You!

:ghg:

[Habs77]

Ryder's goal in the last game was a complete fluke, and should have no bearing on whether to demote him or not IMO.

The fact is he hasn't done much for quite a while, and the truth is we shouldn't expect much anyway. This guy was in the AHL last year, his spot on the top lines is far from a lock.

Perreault, Hossa, Audette, Dackell, Sundstrom, Langdon, have all been benched at some point during this slide... Ryder hasn't. So he's actually been treated better than most.

You could see his move to the "4th" line as a demotion but the fact is he played 12 minutes as did Hossa & Bégin, Dackell & Kilger played 13, Sundstrom 14, Bulis & Perreault 15, Juneau & Ribeiro 16.

So the fact is Julien used everyone pretty evenly, except Koivu 18 and Zednik 20.

I see it as Ryder was put on a line with perhaps our most consistent player, Bégin. And Ryder is the kind of energy guy that with Bégin could potentially have been really good together. Add Hossa and this line had great potential, and for one shift just following the Dackell goal they almost gave the Habs the lead with their aggressive play.

So when you put things in perspective, Julien didn't screw Ryder at all IMO. In this game, or this year so far.

I agree putting Dackell on the 2nd line was a stretch, but I think we're taking those "1st line" "2nd line" designations too seriously.

The fact is on some nights the "4th" line has played more than the 2nd, and so on. Julien is putting 4 lines together, then adjusts playing time to how they are performing.

I would go as far to say Julien probably set up the 2nd line for failure by putting Dackell on it... because he was planning to use the "4th line" more against a tough NYI team.

But when the Ribeiro line did better than expected, and actually scored the only goal... Julien re-adjusted.

I've seen him do this a few times this year, where he seems to set up a line for failure by reuniting struggling players... so that he can limit their ice-time if they continue to struggle and play the 4th line more instead.

It's actually a way to punish the bad apples in terms of ice-time without the public humiliation of sending them down to the 4th line. It's quite ingenious, if you ask me.

I have more of a problem with him not adjusting their style of play when they fall behind, continuing their passive play instead. Too many times this year it has lead to a 2-to-5 shot performance in the 3rd period of a game where we were trying to come back from behind.

The 2 times they applied pressure, the Habs scored one time and nearly again the other.

[Edited on 14-11-03 by Habs77]

[sakiqc]

The 2 times they applied pressure, the Habs scored one time and nearly again the other.

It looks very difficult to the Habs to maintain a pressure on the offensive zone. Forechecking isn't good at all. It's like if the team lose his mind and doesn't know what to do when they cross the middle red line. When there's a player going up with speed he finds himself alone in the offensive zone because the players were changing... I see a lot of bad timing for changing lines. Because of bad lines changes, Habs looks always to be short of players in the offensive zone. That result in a lost of puck possession.. at least the new players on the ice are ready on center ice to counter the opposite offensive threat and do good. But on the offensive side of the red line.. there's NOTHING happening. No coordination, no creativity, no forechecking..

[Edited on 2003-11-14 by sakiqc]

[Bonavistaman11]

He did screw Ryder. The only reason he had 12 minutes of ice time is because of the few shifts he had on the powerplay.

He played just as good as any other habs player last night, so why was he benched in the 3rd?? Because Julien doesn't have a clue.

Why did he seperate the 2nd line that played so well against the Sabres for two straight games (Hossa Ribs and Ryder)?? it didnt make sense at all. Ryder and Ribs had good chemistry together and were creating chances, sooner or or later they had to get some luck and the pucks would have started goin in and it started against the Jackets, fluke or not, it was a goal.

My point was not about Julien screwing Ryder, it was just about the Stupid things that he's doing lately. Why tamper with things when they go good.

And come on, why in the hell would an NHL coach put together a line so they could fail??? Do you actually think that Gainey would have a coach behind the bech who was putting together lines so they could look bad??

not a chance.

The reason he put that line together is because he thinks for some reason that his stupid moves are going to work. They did score the only goal but they did nothing else after.

If he did put that line together to fail, I have a little hint for him. Try to put together lines that will work!!

:ghg:

[Habsaku]

I agree, the  need a major shake up. I'd go so far as to give up on of our defensive prospects in order to get us a good power forward. Problem is, I doubt there are many teams who have a spare power forward for trade

This is ridiculous and useless, not only is a major shake up not in Gaineys plans(he said it since he came), but trading one of our three top defensive prospect will only set us back again. We'll still try to adopt the win now mentallity and fail. One player will absolutly not change the 22 others.

[Habs77]

Originally posted by Bonavistaman11

He did screw Ryder.  The only reason he had 12 minutes of ice time is because of the few shifts he had on the powerplay.

He played just as good as any other habs player last night, so why was he benched in the 3rd?? Because Julien doesn't have a clue.

Ryder is a first year NHLer, who hasn't done anythign in the league yet. Compared to other kids we've had in Montreal he's lucky he's had so much time on the top lines this early... so gimme a break about him being screwed.

He hasn't produced at all for a long time, and that goal he did score lately was a total fluke.

Why did he seperate the 2nd line that played so well against the Sabres for two straight games (Hossa Ribs and Ryder)?? it didnt make sense at all.  Ryder and Ribs had good chemistry together and were creating chances, sooner or or later they had to get some luck and the pucks would have started goin in and  it started against the Jackets, fluke or not, it was a goal.

That line wasn't doing anything special, the bottom line is it wasn't producing and that's the only thing Julien is looking for right now.

My point was not about Julien screwing Ryder, it was just about the Stupid things that he's doing lately.  Why tamper with things when they go good.

When things are going so good?... LOL

And come on, why in the hell would an NHL coach put together a line so they could fail???  Do you actually think that Gainey would have a coach behind the bech who was putting together lines so they could look bad??

He put three slow soft players, two of them having been benched lately... while putting one of his favorite players, 4th liner Bégin, with Ryder & Hossa.

That was not a coincidence.

He probably planned to use the Begin line more, and had set up a line he would play less in order to do it.

But the Perreault-Ribeiro-Dackell line did ok, and that was fine with Julien.

But he's giving himself options.

It's not as much setting them up to fail, as it is challenging them to step up and having a backup plan if they don't deliver.

[Bonavistaman11]

Habs77 I congratulate you for sticking up for our wonderful coach, I was so stupid to question his intelligence!!

But now after his latest line juggling im convinced we have one of the best coaches in the league!

I can smell the Stanley cup heading for Montreal right now all thanks to Julien promoting the offensively blessed Joe Juneau to the top line!!

I'll even predict a hat trick for the him tonight and three assists on Zednik goals to go along with it!!!

hahahahahahaha!!! what a joke!!

if that line works tonight, i'll be shocked!

another :-^ for Claude!

:ghg:

[Habs77]

It's easy to blame Julien... but the fact is you or I wouldn't fare any better.

It's so easy for us for bitch from our couch. but the fact is he's stuck with a pathetic group of fowards right now.

So when I see a guy attacked from all sides, I tend to want to stick up for him... even if there are some moves I don't agree with either.

Julien started the year with "normal" lines, but the damn team just stopped scoring. Since then his "recipes" for success have more & more out there... but at this point can you blame him?

If I'm critical of anyone right now, it's Gainey... for waiting so damn long to get us some much needed help.

Now I know it's not easy to swing a deal, but that's what this team desperately needs so he has to make it happen.

[Habsaku]

We don't play traverse anymore, we don't have dykhuis anymore. Players that deserve to we're benched. The shots against and goals against are way down. Our scoring chances up. The team is boring, but so was last years team and the year before, thank god for Theo. Players get ice time by merit and not for interpersonnal relationships(Traverse). CJ finally has the guts to say Theo is our number 1(unlike MThead). Ron Hainsey actually stayed with the team even with a bad performance at camp. Ribeiro was given 2nd line duty. Sorry but for a team that's supposed to finish in the bottom standings, CJ has been doing a good job. People just need a scapegoat and they figure that since CJ is ugly and funny looking, they'll throw rocks at him.