Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Habs vs. Caps - Captain Ovechkin Edition

Notes on the third:

-Spacek is a good D when it comes to handling the puck (most of the time), but he's just not a strong man.

-Remember when the PP used to be good? Misty water-coloured memories...

-The Habs' defence is really, really terrible. Which makes no sense because they've all played well elsewhere. Could it be The System?

-Price hasn't played badly, but his numbers are going to be attrocious. I guess if there's a silver lining, it could be that he won't be able to ask for as big a raise?

-Well, back to .500. This team is going nowhere fast.


Notes on the second:

-This is the kind of game that makes you think the luck can't last forever.

-A team like Washington is good because when Ovechkin, Backstrom, Semin and Green aren't killing you, they can pull out a guy like Fleischmann to do it.

-Arena seems kind of quiet there, even though they're selling out.

-This might be blasphemy, but I don't think Markov has been as good in the last two or three games.

-Pacioretty gets hit on harder than the head cheerleader.

-Fortunately for us, Fleischmann giveth and Fleischmann taketh away. Josh Gorges is pleased.

-Gill makes a better door than a window. And a better doorstop than a defenceman.

-I hate pointless scrumming after a goal. Really, what does it accomplish.



Notes on the first:

-I was hoping the pressure of being named captain would throw Ovechkin off his game.

-Price is the embodiment of the "better lucky than good" theory tonight. Not saying he's not good, but I'll take lucky at this point. The poor kid can't have much worse luck than he's had so far this year.

-Argh. The only time Gionta ever passes up a goalmouth shot and Pouliot's stick is in the air on the pass.

-Laraque is in his 24th game this year and has yet to register a shot on goal. Yet, he manages to be minus six playing less than six minutes a game. On the good ship Canadiens, he's just ballast at this point.

-Plekanec's line really misses Andrei Kostitsyn. AK was using his size well and helping keep the puck in the offensive zone. Pax just doesn't have the same presence.

-I think the Habs get confused when playing other teams in red uniforms. I should do a statistical analysis on giveaway ratios depending on the colour of the opposition's shirts.

-Habs were doing a decent job keeping the game tight, but if they let the Caps open it up, they're in trouble. The Washington guns are of considerably higher calibre than Montreal's.

-Good discipline by the Canadiens for once...until Pouliot's brain fart. Nice PK though.

-Plekanec is firing rockets tonight. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. I think it means he doesn't trust his linemates to finish.

2 comments:

dusty said...

Am sick and tired of watching the Habs get manhandled by non physical teams. This edition of the Habs is just not good enough for the NHL. Can't score and never intimidate the opposition. If not for Moen there would not be any push back on this team. As sick as I feel watching them I can only imagine what Bob is thinking.

dusty said...

J.T. I think that the reason Canadiens defense stinks even though the players were good on other teams is because the forwards are weak. It's not a system problem it's an overall personel problem. With few exceptions (Gionta, Moen) few other forwards know what to do in their own zone let alone have the stones to do it.
Just listened to Bob on HIO and he pretty much said the Habs are not very good. He said a game against the Caps is a measuring stick to see where the team is and that wins will have to come against the 8 or 9 other sad sack teams in the east battling for the last 3 playoff spots. I just hope he can pick up some physical forwards before he gets canned or quits in disgust.