Oh boy, did things ever look bad for the Habs in the first period last night?! Everything the team does wrong...every weakness it has...converged in an eight-minute sequence from hell. Aggressive Capitals forechecking had the Canadiens pinned in their own zone. The defence couldn't clear the puck, Price gave up a weak goal and the Habs fell into the dumb penalty trap. It looked like a recap of every loss from the first part of the season, compressed for your viewing displeasure.
That's when the captain took the team by the 'nads and shook it. P.K.Subban (who was really good on zone clearances) put it best when he said, "Our leaders lead."
Brian Gionta looked really good playing on Tomas Plekanec's wing. Pleks found him in the open several times, and Gionta didn't hesitate to shoot. Sometimes, you have to think it's a relief for a guy to get off Scott Gomez' line for a few games. Gomez has the speed to break into the offensive zone, but he so often does inexplicable things with the puck once he gets there, it has to get frustrating for his linemates after a while. Whatever the reason for the connection between Plekanec and Gionta, it made the difference.
The Canadiens, once again showing they're not a team to give up the ghost easily, managed to get their zone in order and play better defence after the Caps' initial onslaught. They also got their feet under them and began to skate. Price shut the door on the chances the Caps managed to get after the first two goals and the checkers kept Ovechkin and company from doing harm.
The win was a testament to determination. They could have panicked after going down by two so early. They could have started thinking ahead to another game the next night and tried to save something for that one. They didn't, though. Led by the gritty captain, they clamped down and ground out a win.
That's not to say everything was great after the first eight minutes of the opening period. The power play had opportunities, and managed to control the puck pretty well for long sequences, but nobody was shooting. Subban, in particular, seemed reluctant to let it fly. Neither he nor Wisniewski were threats, and with none of the forwards going to the net, the man advantage was effectively neutered. That has to change down the stretch, as games get tighter and results more important in the standings.
The latest rotation of Gomez wingers, Kostitsyn and Eller, looked like they didn't know what the hell their centre would do on any given play. Someone (Muller?) needs to show Gomez precisely what he's doing wrong...cutting himself off from his wingers and limiting his options on the rush...and shake him until it sinks in. The unfortunate truth is the Habs are stuck with Gomez for the foreseeable future, so it's in their best interest to get him going. The good news is he seems to pick it up as the games get more crucial, so we can hope to see better from him.
On the plus side, though, David Desharnais is looking more and more comfortable with Pouliot and Darche. He explained a couple of weeks ago that he's got a system for gaining acceptance, despite his size, at each new level of hockey. He goes in with a deliberate plan to play solid defence and do good work on the PP. Then, when he earns a spot by providing those pluses, he opens up and starts taking more offensive chances. That's exactly what he's doing in Montreal. He's playing a responsible defensive game and winning the majority of his faceoffs. He's also offering a creative option on the PP. It would be interesting to see him with Pacioretty more often to see if the pair could recreate some of the magic that had them first and second in AHL scoring before Christmas.
The two points were hard-earned last night, and proved the Canadiens aren't necessarily done for the night, even when they suck their way out of the gate. Still, the team can't come that close to the fire very often without getting burned some night. Better starts and more consistency throughout games are vital down the stretch.
One thing they don't have to worry about? The captain will show up and if the rest of the team follows his example, they have a chance to win against anyone.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Habs vs.Caps - Stormy Weather Edition
Notes on the second:
-What a waste of a man advantage. That was worse than the Village People failing to score on Queen.
-Lars Eller has a really long neck. I'm calling him "Ostrich" from now on.
-Gionta looks like the break did him good.
Notes on the first:
-Just hoping to not get owned tonight. That's not too much to ask, is it?
-Pyatt left his hands wherever the mob left Jimmy Hoffa.
-Price was softer than snowflakes on the Perreault goal. Maybe tonight would have been a good time to give the kid a rest.
-When the Halpern/Pyatt/Moen line is getting the best chances, it's going to be a loooong night.
-Hammer's totally winded in the box six minutes into the game. Did he spend the All-Star break drinking?
-Habs PK is suddenly a cure for everyone else's lousy PP. Knuble kills the Habs every time.
-Plekanec needs to be a whole hell of a lot smarter than he's been playing lately. The cheap penalties are hurting his team and it's got to stop.
-Habs PP (Hey, they're allowed to have one!) looks decent, but nobody shoots and nobody goes to the net.
-Does anyone else want to send a memo to league announcers, telling them the "S" "H" in Desharnais' name is NOT pronounced "shhh?"
-Habs forwards are actually doing some nice things, but they have less finish than the Titanic's maiden voyage.
-Subban's reluctance to shoot is like the reluctance of a minister to fornicate on Sunday.
-Starting the second on the PP. Why am I not excited?
-What a waste of a man advantage. That was worse than the Village People failing to score on Queen.
-Lars Eller has a really long neck. I'm calling him "Ostrich" from now on.
-Gionta looks like the break did him good.
Notes on the first:
-Just hoping to not get owned tonight. That's not too much to ask, is it?
-Pyatt left his hands wherever the mob left Jimmy Hoffa.
-Price was softer than snowflakes on the Perreault goal. Maybe tonight would have been a good time to give the kid a rest.
-When the Halpern/Pyatt/Moen line is getting the best chances, it's going to be a loooong night.
-Hammer's totally winded in the box six minutes into the game. Did he spend the All-Star break drinking?
-Habs PK is suddenly a cure for everyone else's lousy PP. Knuble kills the Habs every time.
-Plekanec needs to be a whole hell of a lot smarter than he's been playing lately. The cheap penalties are hurting his team and it's got to stop.
-Habs PP (Hey, they're allowed to have one!) looks decent, but nobody shoots and nobody goes to the net.
-Does anyone else want to send a memo to league announcers, telling them the "S" "H" in Desharnais' name is NOT pronounced "shhh?"
-Habs forwards are actually doing some nice things, but they have less finish than the Titanic's maiden voyage.
-Subban's reluctance to shoot is like the reluctance of a minister to fornicate on Sunday.
-Starting the second on the PP. Why am I not excited?
The Weakest Link
My ten-year-old asked an interesting question yesterday. She, like most ten-year-olds, thinks in terms of social hierarchy. Is that person the coolest kid? Who's the smartest in the class? Everything and everyone has a category, and it's all very black and white. So, in ongoing efforts to spark in her even a mild interest in hockey, we were talking about the Habs. (Which conversations, I must admit, inevitably begin with a sigh and polite, though bored, attention.) She listened to me going on about my concerns regarding Carey Price's workload. Then she asked, "Hey! Who's the Habs suckiest player?"
I started to answer, but then realized, that's actually a pretty hard question. If you're talking about scoring goals, I explained, it'd have to be someone like Hal Gill, who never scores. Then again, Gill is excellent at killing penalties, and that's important. My daughter said, "Well who's the worst at letting the other team score then?" I thought about that, and told her Scott Gomez is on the ice most often when the other team scores (you can't count Wisniewski because most of his numbers come from the Islanders), so I guess it's him. On the other hand, he's also fifth in team scoring.
I don't know, I said. What would you call "suckiest?" Well, she answered, who's the guy who isn't much good at scoring goals or stopping them? She headed me off at the pass when she quickly added, "And NOT a goalie!"
The question is a good one, because if you believe the old axiom that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, then a contending hockey team is only as strong as its weakest player. A team might have a superstar like Jarome Iginla, but if it also carries a waivable guy like Ales Kotalik, it's probably not going to win the Cup. Look at Philly. Not only do four players already have more than forty points, but their worst forward, Daniel Carcillo, plays a versatile role and adds value.
With that standard in mind, my ten-year-old's question is really who's the low-water mark on the Habs? In other words, if everybody on the team is better than "X", the team itself will be better, so "X" is what player? Immediately, Alexandre Picard comes to mind. He's not a consistent defenceman, and the team is certainly weaker with him in the lineup. However, one cannot pass judgement on the team's construction based on his presence because of the injuries on defence. Instead, we must look at regulars; guys who are in the lineup every day, even when everyone is healthy.
The team's lowest-scoring forward is Tom Pyatt, with four points, including one goal, in 39 games. He's a solid contributor on the PK, but he still stands at -4 in his plus/minus rating. Travis Moen has three goals and nine points in 49 games. He's a -3, and although he's the only Hab who's won a fight in recent memory, he's not particularly effective in crashing the net or making the big hits that a fourth-line guy should be contributing if he doesn't score.
The good thing about those two guys is that they're an upgrade on the depth players the Habs have been able to dress in the last few seasons. They're better quality than Georges Laraque (shudder) or Marc-Andre Bergeron playing as a fourth-line forward. It's no coincidence that as the lower-tier players improve, so does the team as a whole. Better players mean a more even distribution of ice time throughout the lineup, and more goals scored while allowing fewer.
The Canadiens have respectable, hardworking bottom-line players and they're a respectable, hardworking team. If one buys the "weakest link" theory, they won't really be a contender until the "suckiest" player on the team is better than Moen or Pyatt.
In the end, I answered my ten-year-old's question with the best truth I could distill: there really aren't any truly sucky players with the Canadiens this year. Even when Gomez isn't playing the way he should be, he doesn't outright suck (most of the time). That's a huge improvement over the last few years when we could easily point to a roster player with absolutely no redeemable value. Going forward, though, it must continue to get better. Right now, the "suckiest" players on the team are solid. When those guys are actually valuable contributors, the Habs will contend.
I started to answer, but then realized, that's actually a pretty hard question. If you're talking about scoring goals, I explained, it'd have to be someone like Hal Gill, who never scores. Then again, Gill is excellent at killing penalties, and that's important. My daughter said, "Well who's the worst at letting the other team score then?" I thought about that, and told her Scott Gomez is on the ice most often when the other team scores (you can't count Wisniewski because most of his numbers come from the Islanders), so I guess it's him. On the other hand, he's also fifth in team scoring.
I don't know, I said. What would you call "suckiest?" Well, she answered, who's the guy who isn't much good at scoring goals or stopping them? She headed me off at the pass when she quickly added, "And NOT a goalie!"
The question is a good one, because if you believe the old axiom that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, then a contending hockey team is only as strong as its weakest player. A team might have a superstar like Jarome Iginla, but if it also carries a waivable guy like Ales Kotalik, it's probably not going to win the Cup. Look at Philly. Not only do four players already have more than forty points, but their worst forward, Daniel Carcillo, plays a versatile role and adds value.
With that standard in mind, my ten-year-old's question is really who's the low-water mark on the Habs? In other words, if everybody on the team is better than "X", the team itself will be better, so "X" is what player? Immediately, Alexandre Picard comes to mind. He's not a consistent defenceman, and the team is certainly weaker with him in the lineup. However, one cannot pass judgement on the team's construction based on his presence because of the injuries on defence. Instead, we must look at regulars; guys who are in the lineup every day, even when everyone is healthy.
The team's lowest-scoring forward is Tom Pyatt, with four points, including one goal, in 39 games. He's a solid contributor on the PK, but he still stands at -4 in his plus/minus rating. Travis Moen has three goals and nine points in 49 games. He's a -3, and although he's the only Hab who's won a fight in recent memory, he's not particularly effective in crashing the net or making the big hits that a fourth-line guy should be contributing if he doesn't score.
The good thing about those two guys is that they're an upgrade on the depth players the Habs have been able to dress in the last few seasons. They're better quality than Georges Laraque (shudder) or Marc-Andre Bergeron playing as a fourth-line forward. It's no coincidence that as the lower-tier players improve, so does the team as a whole. Better players mean a more even distribution of ice time throughout the lineup, and more goals scored while allowing fewer.
The Canadiens have respectable, hardworking bottom-line players and they're a respectable, hardworking team. If one buys the "weakest link" theory, they won't really be a contender until the "suckiest" player on the team is better than Moen or Pyatt.
In the end, I answered my ten-year-old's question with the best truth I could distill: there really aren't any truly sucky players with the Canadiens this year. Even when Gomez isn't playing the way he should be, he doesn't outright suck (most of the time). That's a huge improvement over the last few years when we could easily point to a roster player with absolutely no redeemable value. Going forward, though, it must continue to get better. Right now, the "suckiest" players on the team are solid. When those guys are actually valuable contributors, the Habs will contend.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
All Stars
Well, if there's one thing we learned from the All-Star weekend, it's that when All-Star defencemen stop playing defence, the result is scarily similar to a regular Montreal Canadiens game. The number of opponents sailing unmolested into Carey Price's crease and the reluctance of the Ds to move them out of there was familiar stuff for the Habs goalie. On the forward side, the desire to pass instead of shoot by the majority of guys in the NHL's prepackaged version of shinny must mean the Habs are really a bunch of All Stars in disguise.
At the end of All-Star weekend, we can be proud that both Carey Price and P.K.Subban acquitted themselves well. They were gracious in interviews, skilled...and, in Subban's case, funny and endearing...on the ice and seemed to be having fun in the company of the best players in the game. (Or at least the ones without concussions, family concerns or other reasons for skipping the love-in.) Neither player got hurt and Price's workload hopefully wasn't great enough to have much effect on his real games this week.
As for the weekend itself, it, as usual, left something to be desired. While there were certainly highlights, like Subban donning Skinner's sweater, Chara's amazing slapper, Sedin's brilliant accuracy and goalie races(!), the one moment that will stand out for many fans was one that made us squirm. Anything that makes a Habs fan feel sorry for a leaf is not a good thing, and that's what happened when we watched Phil Kessel get picked last in the draft. There had to be a better way to do that, whether by drawing the names out of a hat or, if they really wanted to play pond hockey, by throwing the sticks in a pile and picking them randomly. There was nothing enjoyable for fans in watching a man be embarrassed before his peers at an event that was supposed to be honouring him.
Other little things, like the wires all over the ice, the malfunctioning radar gun and the failure to give players a clear signal when to start their skills events, weren't as serious, but contributed to making the super skills feel a bit disjointed and amateurish.
The biggest problem with this year's edition of the All-Star game, however, is that it was part of a mildly disturbing trend toward creating a hockey myth that doesn't really exist beyond the imaginations of NHL marketers. The idea of young players spending all their spare time playing hockey on a frozen outdoor surface, with every kid on the street entering and leaving the game according to various supper times, is a lovely story. It was true once. The generation of players in the NHL now, however, really never lived that. They were taken to scheduled practices by their parents or neighbours, and they played in scheduled games in intertown tournaments. They grew up in suburbs, with postage-stamp backyards not big enough for a rink, and the ponds didn't freeze until sometime after Christmas and thawed again by March.
The true stories behind these All-Stars are, for the most part, boring. Sure, there are exceptions, like Martin St.Louis' tale of perserverance in the face of naysayers, and Tim Thomas' roundabout route to the NHL. Those stories, though, are about overcoming great personal barriers. They're not about the shared national myth we're being told they're reliving at events like the "pond hockey" All-Star game.
The NHL's desire to play outdoors at the Heritage and Classic games, and to have All-Star captains choose their teams, comes from a plan to steal our fathers' hockey history and sell it back to us in a slick, sentimental package that's meant to convince us NHL players have the same story as we do. They didn't, for the most part, live that story, and neither did we.
This re-branding of the hockey dream doesn't really hurt anyone, of course. It's just a bit off-putting to know that the warm and fuzzy recreations of the game's roots the league is feeding us are really designed to sell us something.
It's good to have the festival of non-contact hockey over with for another year. The Canadiens will hit the ice again this week as the stretch drive draws closer. There will be defensive breakdowns that leave Carey Price hanging, and there will be one too many passes on 2-on-1s, just like the ones that happened in his twenty minutes of All-Star play. It doesn't matter though, because the games, despite their imperfections, will mean something. The players will be trying their asses off to win, and that, NHL, is what hockey is really all about. That's what fans want. The honesty of effort, sweat and giving it all for your team is the real story of hockey. It'll be good to see it again.
At the end of All-Star weekend, we can be proud that both Carey Price and P.K.Subban acquitted themselves well. They were gracious in interviews, skilled...and, in Subban's case, funny and endearing...on the ice and seemed to be having fun in the company of the best players in the game. (Or at least the ones without concussions, family concerns or other reasons for skipping the love-in.) Neither player got hurt and Price's workload hopefully wasn't great enough to have much effect on his real games this week.
As for the weekend itself, it, as usual, left something to be desired. While there were certainly highlights, like Subban donning Skinner's sweater, Chara's amazing slapper, Sedin's brilliant accuracy and goalie races(!), the one moment that will stand out for many fans was one that made us squirm. Anything that makes a Habs fan feel sorry for a leaf is not a good thing, and that's what happened when we watched Phil Kessel get picked last in the draft. There had to be a better way to do that, whether by drawing the names out of a hat or, if they really wanted to play pond hockey, by throwing the sticks in a pile and picking them randomly. There was nothing enjoyable for fans in watching a man be embarrassed before his peers at an event that was supposed to be honouring him.
Other little things, like the wires all over the ice, the malfunctioning radar gun and the failure to give players a clear signal when to start their skills events, weren't as serious, but contributed to making the super skills feel a bit disjointed and amateurish.
The biggest problem with this year's edition of the All-Star game, however, is that it was part of a mildly disturbing trend toward creating a hockey myth that doesn't really exist beyond the imaginations of NHL marketers. The idea of young players spending all their spare time playing hockey on a frozen outdoor surface, with every kid on the street entering and leaving the game according to various supper times, is a lovely story. It was true once. The generation of players in the NHL now, however, really never lived that. They were taken to scheduled practices by their parents or neighbours, and they played in scheduled games in intertown tournaments. They grew up in suburbs, with postage-stamp backyards not big enough for a rink, and the ponds didn't freeze until sometime after Christmas and thawed again by March.
The true stories behind these All-Stars are, for the most part, boring. Sure, there are exceptions, like Martin St.Louis' tale of perserverance in the face of naysayers, and Tim Thomas' roundabout route to the NHL. Those stories, though, are about overcoming great personal barriers. They're not about the shared national myth we're being told they're reliving at events like the "pond hockey" All-Star game.
The NHL's desire to play outdoors at the Heritage and Classic games, and to have All-Star captains choose their teams, comes from a plan to steal our fathers' hockey history and sell it back to us in a slick, sentimental package that's meant to convince us NHL players have the same story as we do. They didn't, for the most part, live that story, and neither did we.
This re-branding of the hockey dream doesn't really hurt anyone, of course. It's just a bit off-putting to know that the warm and fuzzy recreations of the game's roots the league is feeding us are really designed to sell us something.
It's good to have the festival of non-contact hockey over with for another year. The Canadiens will hit the ice again this week as the stretch drive draws closer. There will be defensive breakdowns that leave Carey Price hanging, and there will be one too many passes on 2-on-1s, just like the ones that happened in his twenty minutes of All-Star play. It doesn't matter though, because the games, despite their imperfections, will mean something. The players will be trying their asses off to win, and that, NHL, is what hockey is really all about. That's what fans want. The honesty of effort, sweat and giving it all for your team is the real story of hockey. It'll be good to see it again.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Habs Notebook: All Star Edition
A few thoughts as we stare down a weekend without real hockey:
-P.K.Subban's attendance at the festivities in Raleigh could have a beneficial effect on his reputation around the league. He'll get a chance to show off his skills in a setting where showing off is welcome, but, more importantly, he'll have the opportunity to share ice in a casual setting with some of the guys who've been critical of him. Perhaps if someone like Mike Richards sees Subban up close, without the blinders of competition limiting his view of the kid, he'll realize Subban is not an ass; he's just an enthusiastic rookie.
-It's unfortunate that Carey Price has to give up a week of R&R to take part in the All-Star weekend. As one of the busiest goalies in the league, and his team's most valuable player, he really could have used the time off. The really unfortunate side effect for fans is that we now will get suckered into watching the "draft" by the all-star team captains, just to see who picks Price and when.
-Most real fans deplore the All-Star game because it's not real hockey and it adds to the workload of the league's best players. There are a couple of side benefits for the players, though. For one thing, south of the border, where hockey is often the fifth or sixth most popular sport, it's a rare occurrence for even star players to get the spotlight all to themselves. The red-carpet treatment is a nice perque in exchange for giving up their weekend to glorify the league. This kind of event also gives the players who will one day be the movers and shakers behind the scenes a chance to make contacts and develop relationships that will serve them well when their playing days are over. Brendan Shanahan and Rob Blake were once the guys who networked at All-Star weekends. So were Joe Nieuwendyk and Steve Yzerman. In the insular world of hockey, where it's not what you know, but who you know, those connections can be important.
-Even if you're not a Sidney Crosby fan, you have to be appalled that the reason he's not at the All-Star game is because he's dealing with a concussion...and even more appalled that there seems to be so little reaction to that by the NHL brass. In a time when head injuries are forcing players out of the game, it was irresponsible and stupid for the Penguins to allow Crosby back on the ice after the original head shot from David Steckel. It was negligent of the league not to make an example of Steckel in this situation. Crosby, love him or hate him, is the face of the NHL and probably the best all-round player in the world. If he can be hit in the head and knocked out of the game with relative impunity, what chance does the average player have? Crosby's injury gave the league an opportunity to act decisively on the matter of head shots and it failed miserably. Colin Campbell's ineffective and unpredictable meting out of justice is doing nothing to help stem a problem that's destroying some fine hockey players.
-This week on the run-up to the All-Star game, Kirk Muller was in the news because some of the Montreal media have clued into the fact that some other team will probably hire him as a head coach this summer. The only surprise there is that it's taken so long for that realization to surface. Muller had a big role in preparing the team for last year's playoff run, which didn't go unnoticed by GMs around the league. He's a serious competitor who doesn't see himself in an assistant's role for much longer. And he knows as long as Pierre Boivin is running the show, anybody in line for the Canadiens head coaching position must speak French. The only thing that could make a difference to Muller's decision to depart, should he, as expected, get coaching offers this summer, is Geoff Molson's arrival as club president. Molson is young, a Habs fan as well as an owner, and an astute businessman who's more likely to choose the right man as coach, rather than base his choice on language. If he can give Muller reason to believe he will succeed Martin behind the Habs bench, Kirk might be patient and stay. Otherwise, he's gone and the Habs will be poorer for it.
-At the All-Star break, the Canadiens are ten points better than they were at the same time last year. A lot of people are getting really excited about that because it must mean the team is better than it was then, right? As it turns out, the Habs' 59 points in 50 games is actually on par with their performance for each of the last five years, barring last season. The team was lucky last year that the rest of the Eastern Conference also performed poorly, and the Canadiens were able to scrape into eighth with a low 88 points. This season, even though the Habs are putting up more points, so is the rest of the conference. After an anomoly last year, things have returned to normal in the East which means the Habs are still fighting for a playoff spot. The Canadiens will likely need about 35 points in the remaining 32 games to secure a berth in the postseason as a low seed. They'll probably need 40-44 to catch the Bruins for the division.
-After the All-Star break, the next big item on Pierre Gauthier's agenda is the trade deadline. If the Canadiens are on track for a playoff position, he's got to decide whether to spend the money he's got because of Andrei Markov's injury and become an asset buyer. It's likely Gauthier won't be interested in a rental player. If he does move at the deadline, it will be for someone whom he can likely re-sign and who fits a pretty stringent list of criteria including youth, cap number, character and skillset. If there's nobody Gauthier can get to add to the team beyond this spring, he won't likely make a big move just to fund a playoff run that may or may not get out of the first round.
-P.K.Subban's attendance at the festivities in Raleigh could have a beneficial effect on his reputation around the league. He'll get a chance to show off his skills in a setting where showing off is welcome, but, more importantly, he'll have the opportunity to share ice in a casual setting with some of the guys who've been critical of him. Perhaps if someone like Mike Richards sees Subban up close, without the blinders of competition limiting his view of the kid, he'll realize Subban is not an ass; he's just an enthusiastic rookie.
-It's unfortunate that Carey Price has to give up a week of R&R to take part in the All-Star weekend. As one of the busiest goalies in the league, and his team's most valuable player, he really could have used the time off. The really unfortunate side effect for fans is that we now will get suckered into watching the "draft" by the all-star team captains, just to see who picks Price and when.
-Most real fans deplore the All-Star game because it's not real hockey and it adds to the workload of the league's best players. There are a couple of side benefits for the players, though. For one thing, south of the border, where hockey is often the fifth or sixth most popular sport, it's a rare occurrence for even star players to get the spotlight all to themselves. The red-carpet treatment is a nice perque in exchange for giving up their weekend to glorify the league. This kind of event also gives the players who will one day be the movers and shakers behind the scenes a chance to make contacts and develop relationships that will serve them well when their playing days are over. Brendan Shanahan and Rob Blake were once the guys who networked at All-Star weekends. So were Joe Nieuwendyk and Steve Yzerman. In the insular world of hockey, where it's not what you know, but who you know, those connections can be important.
-Even if you're not a Sidney Crosby fan, you have to be appalled that the reason he's not at the All-Star game is because he's dealing with a concussion...and even more appalled that there seems to be so little reaction to that by the NHL brass. In a time when head injuries are forcing players out of the game, it was irresponsible and stupid for the Penguins to allow Crosby back on the ice after the original head shot from David Steckel. It was negligent of the league not to make an example of Steckel in this situation. Crosby, love him or hate him, is the face of the NHL and probably the best all-round player in the world. If he can be hit in the head and knocked out of the game with relative impunity, what chance does the average player have? Crosby's injury gave the league an opportunity to act decisively on the matter of head shots and it failed miserably. Colin Campbell's ineffective and unpredictable meting out of justice is doing nothing to help stem a problem that's destroying some fine hockey players.
-This week on the run-up to the All-Star game, Kirk Muller was in the news because some of the Montreal media have clued into the fact that some other team will probably hire him as a head coach this summer. The only surprise there is that it's taken so long for that realization to surface. Muller had a big role in preparing the team for last year's playoff run, which didn't go unnoticed by GMs around the league. He's a serious competitor who doesn't see himself in an assistant's role for much longer. And he knows as long as Pierre Boivin is running the show, anybody in line for the Canadiens head coaching position must speak French. The only thing that could make a difference to Muller's decision to depart, should he, as expected, get coaching offers this summer, is Geoff Molson's arrival as club president. Molson is young, a Habs fan as well as an owner, and an astute businessman who's more likely to choose the right man as coach, rather than base his choice on language. If he can give Muller reason to believe he will succeed Martin behind the Habs bench, Kirk might be patient and stay. Otherwise, he's gone and the Habs will be poorer for it.
-At the All-Star break, the Canadiens are ten points better than they were at the same time last year. A lot of people are getting really excited about that because it must mean the team is better than it was then, right? As it turns out, the Habs' 59 points in 50 games is actually on par with their performance for each of the last five years, barring last season. The team was lucky last year that the rest of the Eastern Conference also performed poorly, and the Canadiens were able to scrape into eighth with a low 88 points. This season, even though the Habs are putting up more points, so is the rest of the conference. After an anomoly last year, things have returned to normal in the East which means the Habs are still fighting for a playoff spot. The Canadiens will likely need about 35 points in the remaining 32 games to secure a berth in the postseason as a low seed. They'll probably need 40-44 to catch the Bruins for the division.
-After the All-Star break, the next big item on Pierre Gauthier's agenda is the trade deadline. If the Canadiens are on track for a playoff position, he's got to decide whether to spend the money he's got because of Andrei Markov's injury and become an asset buyer. It's likely Gauthier won't be interested in a rental player. If he does move at the deadline, it will be for someone whom he can likely re-sign and who fits a pretty stringent list of criteria including youth, cap number, character and skillset. If there's nobody Gauthier can get to add to the team beyond this spring, he won't likely make a big move just to fund a playoff run that may or may not get out of the first round.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Aftermath: Stupid Is As Stupid Does
Forrest Gump's mama wasn't wrong when she told her boy stupid is as stupid does. If she had felt the need to illustrate that statement, she could have shown him the latter half of the first period of last night's Habs vs.Flyers game. As has become typical when these two teams meet, play started out fairly evenly, until the Canadiens took three stupid penalties in succession, gave up two goals on a couple of 5-on-3s and gave up the ghost shortly after.
The pattern is clear. The explanation for it isn't. The easy answer is the Flyers are just simply a better team. They have three lines of scoring depth and a dirty, hardworking fourth line. They have two solid defensive veterans in Pronger and Timonen and a couple of young blueline studs in Coburn and Carle. Their goalie's rarely threatened because the forwards have the puck all the time, so all he has to do is be decent, which he is.
That's the easy answer. Rarely, however, is anything as simple as the easy answer. The Canadiens, after all, shut out that same Flyers team in their first meeting of the season. The Canucks, too, are probably a better team than the Habs overall, but they got the same result. In both cases, the Canadiens prevailed because they worked like dogs. Everybody skated, everybody tried. They got great goaltending, they scored powerplay goals and they scored first. That's the formula the Canadiens need to follow if they're going to win against better teams.
What we saw last night was the Habs succumbing to laziness; Kryptonite to a game plan that requires outworking the other team. The simplest, and probably most effective, way to tell which team is skating harder is to look at who gets to loose pucks first. Last night, most of the time, it was the team wearing eye-scalding orange. That meant the Canadiens were trying to catch up and take the puck off a team that's very good at holding onto it. Those lazy, stupid penalties were the result of all that skating from behind. Going down two PP goals was pretty much game over for the Canadiens.
It's tempting to get frustrated after a game like that because it seems to underline the Habs' weaknesses and prove they're not a contender for the Cup. While we know they can beat the Flyers, we also know it's not likely the Canadiens would prevail in a best-of-seven series unless they can consistently outskate, outwork and outgoal them. So while we may be frustrated, we can hope Pierre Gauthier sees a game like this as a measuring stick as he tries to address some of his team's needs.
The comparison between the Habs and the Flyers is most glaring at the centre position. Jeff Carter is big, strong, crashes the net and scores a lot of goals. Mike Richards is tough, strong and crashes the net. Daniel Briere is crafty and fast and is well able to score. In comparison, Tomas Plekanec matches up well with Briere. After that, the Habs are weak. Lars Eller is a big boy, and he showed some jam against the Flyers. He's just a kid, though, and needs seasoning before he's playing a bigger role on offence. David Desharnais is gritty and goes to the net, but he's small. Scott Gomez is expensive and too often a liability.
Looking at that comparison, it's clear Gomez has to go. His ill-advised penalties cost the Habs in the playoffs last year and continue to do so. His production is dropping as well. He put up fewer than sixty points in the last two seasons, and is on pace for less than fifty this year. A team in a cap world simply cannot have more than seven-million dollars worth of salary tied up in a single player who puts up only fifty points.
The chief argument in Gomez' favour is that he's one of the few Canadiens who can take the puck through the neutral zone at speed. The problem is, when he gets where he's going, he does nothing with it. It happens so often that you have to wonder what's the point? Look at him next to Jeff Carter: Carter's younger, bigger and is on pace for 35 goals. Right there you see one of the major differences between Montreal and Philly. The Canadiens need a centreman who can score goals and really lead the first line. Plekanec is a great two-way man, but his split focus means his offence probably isn't as potent as it could be. There are rumours Gauthier is after Jason Arnott, but that's a temporary fix and possibly not even a fix at all. Brad Richards will be UFA this summer, but chances are good the Stars will re-sign him because there's no better centre coming onto the market. Louis Leblanc might be a guy who can compete against teams like the Flyers, but he's likely two or three years away in his development. It's possible to send an offer to an RFA centre like T.J.Oshie or Brandon Dubinsky. That, however would open the Habs to relaliatory offers on guys like Max Pacioretty and Benoit Pouliot.
The weakness at centre must be addressed, and if it can't happen through free agency, reasonable trade or from within the organization, then Gauthier must get rid of Gomez and bolster the centres he's got with better wingers instead. He'll need Gomez' cap money to do that. Either way, Gomez is not bringing enough to the team for what he costs, and must go if the Canadiens are to improve right now.
The other potential reality we might have to accept is that this edition of the team was never meant to win a Cup. We have to consider that Bob Gainey brought in the free agents he did two years ago in order to keep the team respectably competitive as it waits for the players who are the real hope of the future to develop. Subban, Pacioretty and Price are all players who could be a big part of a contender in the next five years. Josh Gorges and Tomas Plekanec will be valuable veterans. Pouliot, Weber and Eller are young enough to develop into important pieces of the puzzle. Then there are the unknowns; the guys who will make the difference between more "almost" years and real contending seasons: Leblanc, Danny Kristo, Aaron Palushaj, Jarred Tinordi. If those guys come through, along with whomever the team picks this year and next, the Habs will be better ready to meet teams like the Flyers.
In the meantime, the Habs are what they are: a better-than-average team with a depleted defence and weakness up the middle. If Gauthier can find a way to address that weakness on the top line by using Gomez' money to strengthen the forward corps, the Canadiens might compete sooner rather than later. If he doesn't, the team won't improve until the new wave of players arrives. That means we'll have to put up with games against good teams, when our guys aren't outworking their opponents. When that happens, we'll get outcomes like last night's, because, as Mrs.Gump said, stupid is as stupid does. And taking it easy against a team like Philly is pretty stupid.
The pattern is clear. The explanation for it isn't. The easy answer is the Flyers are just simply a better team. They have three lines of scoring depth and a dirty, hardworking fourth line. They have two solid defensive veterans in Pronger and Timonen and a couple of young blueline studs in Coburn and Carle. Their goalie's rarely threatened because the forwards have the puck all the time, so all he has to do is be decent, which he is.
That's the easy answer. Rarely, however, is anything as simple as the easy answer. The Canadiens, after all, shut out that same Flyers team in their first meeting of the season. The Canucks, too, are probably a better team than the Habs overall, but they got the same result. In both cases, the Canadiens prevailed because they worked like dogs. Everybody skated, everybody tried. They got great goaltending, they scored powerplay goals and they scored first. That's the formula the Canadiens need to follow if they're going to win against better teams.
What we saw last night was the Habs succumbing to laziness; Kryptonite to a game plan that requires outworking the other team. The simplest, and probably most effective, way to tell which team is skating harder is to look at who gets to loose pucks first. Last night, most of the time, it was the team wearing eye-scalding orange. That meant the Canadiens were trying to catch up and take the puck off a team that's very good at holding onto it. Those lazy, stupid penalties were the result of all that skating from behind. Going down two PP goals was pretty much game over for the Canadiens.
It's tempting to get frustrated after a game like that because it seems to underline the Habs' weaknesses and prove they're not a contender for the Cup. While we know they can beat the Flyers, we also know it's not likely the Canadiens would prevail in a best-of-seven series unless they can consistently outskate, outwork and outgoal them. So while we may be frustrated, we can hope Pierre Gauthier sees a game like this as a measuring stick as he tries to address some of his team's needs.
The comparison between the Habs and the Flyers is most glaring at the centre position. Jeff Carter is big, strong, crashes the net and scores a lot of goals. Mike Richards is tough, strong and crashes the net. Daniel Briere is crafty and fast and is well able to score. In comparison, Tomas Plekanec matches up well with Briere. After that, the Habs are weak. Lars Eller is a big boy, and he showed some jam against the Flyers. He's just a kid, though, and needs seasoning before he's playing a bigger role on offence. David Desharnais is gritty and goes to the net, but he's small. Scott Gomez is expensive and too often a liability.
Looking at that comparison, it's clear Gomez has to go. His ill-advised penalties cost the Habs in the playoffs last year and continue to do so. His production is dropping as well. He put up fewer than sixty points in the last two seasons, and is on pace for less than fifty this year. A team in a cap world simply cannot have more than seven-million dollars worth of salary tied up in a single player who puts up only fifty points.
The chief argument in Gomez' favour is that he's one of the few Canadiens who can take the puck through the neutral zone at speed. The problem is, when he gets where he's going, he does nothing with it. It happens so often that you have to wonder what's the point? Look at him next to Jeff Carter: Carter's younger, bigger and is on pace for 35 goals. Right there you see one of the major differences between Montreal and Philly. The Canadiens need a centreman who can score goals and really lead the first line. Plekanec is a great two-way man, but his split focus means his offence probably isn't as potent as it could be. There are rumours Gauthier is after Jason Arnott, but that's a temporary fix and possibly not even a fix at all. Brad Richards will be UFA this summer, but chances are good the Stars will re-sign him because there's no better centre coming onto the market. Louis Leblanc might be a guy who can compete against teams like the Flyers, but he's likely two or three years away in his development. It's possible to send an offer to an RFA centre like T.J.Oshie or Brandon Dubinsky. That, however would open the Habs to relaliatory offers on guys like Max Pacioretty and Benoit Pouliot.
The weakness at centre must be addressed, and if it can't happen through free agency, reasonable trade or from within the organization, then Gauthier must get rid of Gomez and bolster the centres he's got with better wingers instead. He'll need Gomez' cap money to do that. Either way, Gomez is not bringing enough to the team for what he costs, and must go if the Canadiens are to improve right now.
The other potential reality we might have to accept is that this edition of the team was never meant to win a Cup. We have to consider that Bob Gainey brought in the free agents he did two years ago in order to keep the team respectably competitive as it waits for the players who are the real hope of the future to develop. Subban, Pacioretty and Price are all players who could be a big part of a contender in the next five years. Josh Gorges and Tomas Plekanec will be valuable veterans. Pouliot, Weber and Eller are young enough to develop into important pieces of the puzzle. Then there are the unknowns; the guys who will make the difference between more "almost" years and real contending seasons: Leblanc, Danny Kristo, Aaron Palushaj, Jarred Tinordi. If those guys come through, along with whomever the team picks this year and next, the Habs will be better ready to meet teams like the Flyers.
In the meantime, the Habs are what they are: a better-than-average team with a depleted defence and weakness up the middle. If Gauthier can find a way to address that weakness on the top line by using Gomez' money to strengthen the forward corps, the Canadiens might compete sooner rather than later. If he doesn't, the team won't improve until the new wave of players arrives. That means we'll have to put up with games against good teams, when our guys aren't outworking their opponents. When that happens, we'll get outcomes like last night's, because, as Mrs.Gump said, stupid is as stupid does. And taking it easy against a team like Philly is pretty stupid.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Habs vs. Flyers - Vacation Eve Edition
Notes on the third:
-This stinks. I'm going to bed.
Notes on the second:
-Measuring hope for a comeback in this is akin to measuring the distance between the hull of the Titanic and the iceberg.
-The 2003 draft looks the worst against Philly. Jeff Carter or Andrei Kostitsyn? Hmmm...who to pick?
-Excellent! Habs are even letting the Flyer goon in on the action.
-I hate seeing proof that the Canadiens aren't going to win the Cup again this year. Seeing it dressed in orange makes it worse.
-If Desharnais can score against the Flyers, he can score against anybody. Hope the Habs keep him.
-Laugh of the night: Gill congratulating DD. Looked like he had to kneel to pat the rookie on the head.
-Man, the Habs are just getting owned here, and I'm not betting it's because their minds are already on vacation. This is uglier than blasted Britney Spears with that snake around her neck.
-Oh, hey! Two minutes to go in the second, and Pacioretty just showed up! Good for him.
-When you're down to Gionta shooting from the point, it's not going well.
-To watch the third or not? That is the question. Being something of a masochist, and knowing there are no games for a week, I'll probably stay for the whole scourging.
Notes on the first:
-When you're *expecting* to get bitch-slapped, you can brace yourself for it.
-Why is it that whatever they're calling the Spectrum these days seems to have chicken wire instead of glass behind the benches? It feels like they should be singing "Rawhide" while drunk patrons chuck beer bottles at them.
-Oh, Wiz! You can't pass blind in front of the net like that! Sammy Davis would have made a better pass.
-Hey! It's a replay of the playoffs. Even start, then idiot Gomez takes an idiot penalty. Fortunately, this time an equally idiotic Flyer goes too.
-Awesome Spectrum crowd booing Subban. They have to be the nastiest fans in the league. I hope P.K. buries at least one goal and two Flyers before the night is over.
-Plekanec wants a goal badly. He secretly loathes these guys like the Queen loathes commoners.
-I don't know if I'm the only one who would dearly love to butt-end Mike Richards in the mouth. Just to stop the sneer, if nothing else.
-Weber's getting better with each game. He nailed Shelley a good one there.
-Yup. It's the playoffs all over again. Dumbass penalties, and OH, surprise! Flyers score on a 5-on-3. Twice.
-It'd be nice if our team would EVER win a crucial faceoff.
-I was wrong. Expecting to get bitch-slapped doesn't make it any easier.
-This stinks. I'm going to bed.
Notes on the second:
-Measuring hope for a comeback in this is akin to measuring the distance between the hull of the Titanic and the iceberg.
-The 2003 draft looks the worst against Philly. Jeff Carter or Andrei Kostitsyn? Hmmm...who to pick?
-Excellent! Habs are even letting the Flyer goon in on the action.
-I hate seeing proof that the Canadiens aren't going to win the Cup again this year. Seeing it dressed in orange makes it worse.
-If Desharnais can score against the Flyers, he can score against anybody. Hope the Habs keep him.
-Laugh of the night: Gill congratulating DD. Looked like he had to kneel to pat the rookie on the head.
-Man, the Habs are just getting owned here, and I'm not betting it's because their minds are already on vacation. This is uglier than blasted Britney Spears with that snake around her neck.
-Oh, hey! Two minutes to go in the second, and Pacioretty just showed up! Good for him.
-When you're down to Gionta shooting from the point, it's not going well.
-To watch the third or not? That is the question. Being something of a masochist, and knowing there are no games for a week, I'll probably stay for the whole scourging.
Notes on the first:
-When you're *expecting* to get bitch-slapped, you can brace yourself for it.
-Why is it that whatever they're calling the Spectrum these days seems to have chicken wire instead of glass behind the benches? It feels like they should be singing "Rawhide" while drunk patrons chuck beer bottles at them.
-Oh, Wiz! You can't pass blind in front of the net like that! Sammy Davis would have made a better pass.
-Hey! It's a replay of the playoffs. Even start, then idiot Gomez takes an idiot penalty. Fortunately, this time an equally idiotic Flyer goes too.
-Awesome Spectrum crowd booing Subban. They have to be the nastiest fans in the league. I hope P.K. buries at least one goal and two Flyers before the night is over.
-Plekanec wants a goal badly. He secretly loathes these guys like the Queen loathes commoners.
-I don't know if I'm the only one who would dearly love to butt-end Mike Richards in the mouth. Just to stop the sneer, if nothing else.
-Weber's getting better with each game. He nailed Shelley a good one there.
-Yup. It's the playoffs all over again. Dumbass penalties, and OH, surprise! Flyers score on a 5-on-3. Twice.
-It'd be nice if our team would EVER win a crucial faceoff.
-I was wrong. Expecting to get bitch-slapped doesn't make it any easier.
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