Monday, December 22, 2008

Make or break

Well, ordinarily, the Canadiens' nineteen wins in the first thirty-four games of the season would be considered to be pretty successful. But in a season in which the Bruins, Devils, Rangers, Flyers and Penguins are keeping pace or bettering what the Canadiens have done, the Habs need to do more if they hope to not only secure a playoff spot, but also achieve a decent position. Home ice in the playoffs might not save a series, but it can't hurt.

In the last couple of years, the post-Christmas Florida road trip has been a pretty telling indicator of where the team is going. Two years ago, the team played three road games immediately after the holidays. They beat Washington on December 27, then played back-to-back games in Florida and Tampa on the 29th and 30th. The result? Back-to-back humiliating losses of 3-1 each night, on neither of which the Habs either showed up or seemed to care. That disgrace was followed by a 6-7 record in the month of January and a rapid slide down the standings ending in a playoff miss.

Last year, the team played three road games right after Christmas again. In back-to-back games against Tampa and Florida, they emerged with convincing wins of 5-2 and 5-1, looking stronger and more dominant as the games went on. They wrapped up the road trip with a 4-3 OTL to the Rangers, but the Florida wins sent the team on an 8-2-2 run for the month of January on its way to first in the eastern conference.

Of course, a couple of games in the Sunshine State do not a season make. But in each of those two years, the team followed the same pattern: fast start, slump in November and uneven play in December. The turning point of both 2007 and 2008...the point that turned out to be a microcosm of the entire years in question...was the Florida road trip. Lose those games in 2007 and miss the playoffs. Win them convincingly in 2008 and take the confidence and good habits the team exhibited in them into the new year, and win the conference.

So, here we are again. Quick start, rough November, up-and-down December. And back-to-back games in Florida on tap, following a less-than-convincing two points in Pittsburgh. I don't know if these two games will once again prove to be a turning point in the season. But I know one thing: This Canadiens team needs a couple of solid, convincing road wins against less-talented opposition. They've been playing up or down according to the level of their opponents' game all year, and if they're to do any damage in the playoffs, they have to learn how to dominate teams they should beat easily. A couple of wins in Florida will give the team a boost and help bank the points they'll need for later in the season when every game is a dog fight and a single win could make the difference between home ice or not...or even playoffs or not.

It'll be interesting to see what happens in the next couple of days. I know I'll feel a whole lot better about where things are going this season if the Canadiens end the year with a couple of solid wins in Florida.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

P.S. Sundin, the last word

I know I said earlier that I feel nothing for Sundin's signing in Vancouver. Well, shortly after I wrote that, I heard a telephone interview with him from Sweden. He said Vancouver was his first choice all along, and, get this, "it was an easy decision." When I heard that, I felt something alright. Disgust.

Either he's a complete liar (which is what I suspect because indications were that the Rangers were his first choice all along and Vancouver the consolation prize when the Big Apple didn't work out) or he's an egotistical ass who knew he was going to Vancouver and jerked all the other teams along for months, just to watch them beg.

So, whether the ultimate verdict is that Sundin is a liar, or that he's an ass, either way I'm disgusted with him. I still don't care that he chose Vancouver as a perfectly free free agent. I don't care that he'll play there and I don't wish him any ill. When the Habs play like they did against Philly, they're very very good without him.

But the way he handled everything was unfortunate, and his post-signing comments are both ingenuous and disgusting. Blech. And, to quote Forrest Gump, that's all I have to say about that.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Vanilla pudding

Well, I thought I would be irrationally angry at Mats Sundin when he signed with a team other than the Canadiens. Irrational because really, what did Sundin do wrong? Nothing of course. He was a free agent who entertained offers and chose the one he preferred. But angry despite its irrationality because he shunned Bob Gainey and the Habs to go for bigger money or, worse, the bloody free-agent vacuum that is the New York Rangers instead. But now that the deal is done, I feel nothing. Not anger, not relief the saga is over, not jealousy, not scorn. Nothing.

I think if Sundin had actually signed with the Rangers, I would feel the hate. Not just because we'd have to see him five more times this season, rubbing our noses in the fact that he didn't want our team. But also because the Rangers get everyone. I don't think I could graciously accept them unloading one previously-coveted free agent in order to make room for another one...both of whom picked New York over Montreal. But now that the big bald Swede has chosen Vancouver, I feel zilch. Well...maybe a mild disdain that he really wanted to play in New York. Even though they couldn't free up the cap space for him, the intent was there. For the actual signing in Canuck-land, however...there's nothing.

For me now, Sundin is just another phony hockey player who says one thing and does another. He's just another face in the faceless crowd that is the Vancouver Canucks. You just can't hate the Canucks. They can go on some hot streaks, and Luongo is usually great, but you just know they're not going to do anything dramatic, Mats or not. They're not likely to beat the Sharks or the Wings or the Ducks, so what is there to hate? I suppose if the Habs met the Canucks in the Cup finals, I'd have to work up some sort of emotion about them. But right now, Sundin might as well be playing poker on a cruise ship somewhere. I don't care. Vancouver is the vanilla pudding of the NHL, and Mats is welcome to dine on it for the rest of his indecisive life.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Hello, drawing board!

As Habs fans everywhere descend into the abyss of panic, it makes one wonder what Silent Bob is doing these days. Is he on his holidays? Is he taking art classes or music lessons? Perhaps building a cabin in the Laurentians? I like to think he's looking at his team and figuring out how to fix the obvious problems it's having. Or at least looking at his roster and deciding who's wheat and who's chaff in the great winnowing a GM must do each season.

I was trying to put myself in Bob's shiny wingtips and imagining who the big guy thinks is performing and earning George Gillett's shekles and who's not. Obviously worth every penny, of course, are Carey Price and Josh Gorges. The Habs' BFFs are still on very economical deals for what they offer, have improved their play since last year and are providing extremely steady coverage of the back end in pretty much every outing. So, if I'm Bob, those guys are making me smile slightly. Teeth are almost showing.

Andre Markov is pretty reliable on D, and it's not really his fault that he's not producing on the right point of the PP. That was never his spot and he's not good there. That he's still there is evidence of both the lack of a trustworthy alternative and Carbonneau's stubbornness. Overall though, Markov continues to provide his big, mostly mistake-free minutes. So does Roman Hamrlik, who's noticably worse when paired with Patrice Brisebois...mainly because he covers for a lot of Breezer's mistakes. But, paired with Gorges or Komisarek, I could see Hamrlik earning every cent of his money. Saku Koivu too. He's shown up in every game and is still the team's heart. He stays next year, if there's any justice. Maxim Lapierre has responded to benching by playing the best hockey of his career. He's been strong, aggressive and effective on the fourth line. If he only had better hands, there'd be other guys worried about their jobs today. Robert Lang is doing exactly what everyone expected him to do when he was signed. These five guys register a quirking of the lips and a glint in Gainey's eye.

Tomas Plekanec has been working like a dog in every game, but without results on the scoresheet. Jaro Halak has played very decently in goal, but with very little support. Alex Tanguay worked well with skilled, fast Koivu...not so well with less-skilled, slow Lang. Brisebois has filled in admirably on D in the absence of Komisarek, but still makes the occasional scary mistake. Mathieu Dandenault, Steve Begin and Francis Bouillon have been trying hard and fulfilling their roles to the best of their limited abilities. Those guys are getting a Gainey nod of acknowledgement.

On the other hand, we have the Kostitsyn brothers, who've had about six memorable moments between them all season. Unfortunately, those moments are flanked by long stretches of invisibility, punctuated by bursts of bad penalties. Chris Higgins has been as effective as a mesh condom (to borrow a phrase) when he's not injured. And Mike Komisarek was as afraid of the puck as everyone thinks he is of Milan Lucic when he wasn't injured. Alex Kovalev is trying hard, but he's become the King of Sucky Penalties and Giveaways...which, when you think about it, is a pretty long name for a kingdom, but you get the picture. Guillaume Latendresse is rapidly running out of supporters who defend him for his age and lack of first-line linemates as he continues to not become the power forward those supporters hoped he would. These guys are getting a lips-pressed-tight, stoney-eyed stare from their boss.

All of this means Gainey's choices for whom to keep and whom to release at the ends of their contracts are much murkier than they should be. At the beginning of the year, the informed observer would have said Lang, Dandenault, Brisebois, Bouillon and Begin were certainly not going to be re-signed. The biggest dilemma Gainey was supposed to be facing was how to fit the big new contracts Komisarek, Plekanec, Higgins, Koivu, Kovalev and Tanguay would be needing under the cap.

At this point, the throw-away scrubs are earning their money while, so far, five of six of the certain keepers are not...with the lone exception of Koivu. So I think Gainey's busy trying to figure out what the hell to do with these players in the big picture. The small picture is going to have to take care of itself for the time being, as Gainey watches and waits for evidence to help him in those big-picture decisions.

Meanwhile, with the holiday roster freeze on tomorrow, we can be sure it'll be at least January before we see any changes in the Habs' lineup. With three games in four nights before Christmas and the annual suckfest that is the Florida holiday road trip yet to come with the current cast, some of the evidence Gainey needs could be pretty...well...evident by then.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Ugh. Boston.

You know, for a Habs fan, I've always had surprisingly little hate for the Boston Bruins. I liked the way Ken Dryden described them in "The Game," as the worthy opponent against which a good team can measure itself. Over the years, if the Habs were good, Boston was the hardworking team that gave the Habs a test before gracefully submitting to defeat. When the Habs were bad, the Bruins were the team that provided the metaphorical mountain to climb on the way to unexpected glory. The Bruins always provided good competition, and even in the years when they beat the Habs in the playoffs, we could all say, well, it's the law of averages. After so many defeats, the worthy opponent...the Washington Generals, take your pick...is bound to win a few.

So, for twenty-five years, I've always kind of begrudgingly respected the Bruins. Sure, there have been some not-so-admirable players wearing the black and gold. But overall, the team has a long history of being the testing ground for our guys. Now, suddenly, I find the respect turning to hate.

It's not that they're off to a pretty great start. It's not that they're nine points ahead of the Habs just before Christmas, or that they've beaten the Canadiens in the last two meetings between the teams. It's not even that Milan Lucic is a cult hero to Bruins' fans and the guy who beat Mike Komisarek onto the IRL for six weeks. It's because the Bruins are having the Candiens' season.

Coming into this year, the Habs were a first-place team full of young, talented players, who added more talent and experience in Robert Lang and Alex Tanguay, and much-needed toughness in Georges Laraque. They were supposed to be unstoppable. The number-one PP in the last two years was supposed to just continue to click along, despite the loss of Mark Streit on the point. They were supposed to have learned playoff hockey and come back more determined than ever to be successful after last spring's ignoble loss to Philly.

But here we are in December with a rash of injuries, no PP to speak of, a half-dozen scoring threats sputtering and a coin-toss mentality regarding whether half the team shows up in any given game. Boston, on the other hand, has received stellar goaltending from Tim Thomas, their young players are breaking out and big guys like Lucic and Blake Wheeler are talented and scary. Kessel and Bergeron have made what was a slow team faster, and Chara is looking like a sure-fire Norris candidate...and maybe winner. Their team looks unbeatable. They're strong, talented, and determined.

In short...they're the team the Habs were supposed to be this year. Of course, I know it's rare for a team to roll through an entire season on top of its game. Every team slumps sometime or other, and we can hope what we're seeing now is a depleted Habs' lineup going through the slump process, while Boston's comparative dominance is making our team look worse. I'm not sure it is, though. There seems to be something intangible fundamentally missing from the Habs this year, and Boston seems to have it.

So, for now, I kind of hate the Bruins. It's not really logical or fair. But I want the season they're having. I hate to think that the Habs had a real chance to win last year, with all the stars aligned, and they blew it. Unfortunately, I think a team is only gifted with the right chemistry and the lack of injuries along with the talent once in a very rare while. I wanted the Habs to have it for the big hundredth year drive. If they had it last year and it's actually Boston's turn during the Centennial, it'll be just too bad. Of course, this is written after only thirty games. Tim Thomas could come back down to earth at any point. They could have injuries. The Habs could pull up their socks and get the PP working. There's a lot of hockey to play.

But the Bruins have been playing it very well so far...and I hate that.

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Intractable!

I should start this by saying I think Guy Carbonneau is a smart man. I think he's a good hockey man, and if Bob Gainey thinks he has what it takes to coach the Montreal Canadiens, then I'm probably not well-informed enough to question that. I support Carbonneau because the coach always takes the fall when things are going wrong. But that's unfair in this case because the same coach with the same players managed to lead the team to the top spot in the conference last season. As Carbonneau has said himself, the coach cannot go on the ice and play for the team. And I don't see how his methods of motivating the players have changed so drastically since last year. No, the fault for this lousy stretch has to lie with the players. That said, though, Carbonneau isn't perfect, and while I believe he's not the root cause of the current troubles...I think his biggest weakness is what made him such a great player: stubborn intractability.

The team played a great game against Detroit, despite missing Tanguay, Latendresse and Komisarek. Predictably, everyone talked about what a well-coached game that was. Carbonneau was forced to juggle things, and was inspired to play Tom Kostopoulos on Higgins and Koivu's line after Tanguay went down. It worked well because Detroit plays a strong defensive game and Kostopoulos gave the first line a good forechecking presence to counter that. Now, I have a hard time believing Carbonneau and company arrived in Washington and said, "What the hell guys...you must be tired from playing the Wings, and these guys are icing a bunch of minor-leaguers. Take it easy out there." Of course he told the team to play the same game they'd played in Detroit. But the problem is, Carbonneau doesn't adjust to differences between opponents.

Sure, the Kostopoulos thing worked in an emergency situation in Detroit...but that was a case in which the whole team was pumped about playing the Cup champs and stepped it up a notch to cover for their missing teammates. We all know TK is not a goal scorer, and what worked once...through hard work and great good fortune...was unlikely to continue working for the long haul. Yet, Carbonneau stubbornly refuses to change the lineup if it won the game before. Facing a depleted team with a very young, inexperienced defence in the Caps last night, Carbonneau didn't need to have the team play the smothering game they played against the Wings. He could have put Andrei Kostitsyn on the top line instead of Kostopoulos and his brother on the Plekanec line and let the offence push the Caps' inexperienced D. It didn't work out that way. I saw three occasions last night when Tom the Bomb just couldn't complete the play that Koivu started.

It's easy to second-guess of course. But it seems to me that Carbonneau's ability to make quick adjustments in-game, and modify his lineup to meet the particular circumstances of each opponent is lacking. He's not stupid, and sometimes he makes very good choices. But often he just stubbornly throws the same players out in the same situations because it worked one time before. How long will he keep forcing Tomas Plekanec to play with a dispeptic Alex Kovalev? It's frustrating for us, but worse is that it's not helping motivate the players.

Worst of all is when Carbonneau has to face the fact his moves aren't working and he admits he doesn't know what to do. That's scary for us and must be worrying the players. They're trained from a very young age to listen to the coach above all else. And like all basic training, it's what you fall back on when things are at their worst, when you can't see a solution to the problem yourself and when all seems lost. It's one thing to be winning and feel like you're talented, smart and fast. But when you're losing, even if you're a millionaire, you look to authority to solve the problem. In this case, though, when the players fall back on their blind faith in their coach to give them answers...they're just getting more questions.

Carbonneau needs to make some assertive decisions, like identifying the player who's hurting the team the most and benching him, regardless of age, status, salary or numbers. If the player in question is angry about that, Carbonneau needs to stand up and rip him a new one. He can't keep letting the same guys make the same mistakes over and over. It's not getting better and he's the one who has to find it in himself to make smart changes as required. Intractability in a coach is a fatal flaw. If Carbonneau can't solve that weakness in himself, it will inevitably lead to his demise behind the bench. And that's too bad because he's got a lot of other traits in his favour.

The question now is, if Carbonneau can't make that inner adjustment, what will Bob Gainey do?

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Draft Graveyard

You know what's frustrating? I was reading the NHL's Central Scouting ranking of the best young prospects for the coming draft, and while I was salivating over the potential of some of these guys, I was also irritated to know the Habs won't get any of them. The young players who'll be ready to jump straight from junior to the NHL because they're that talented won't be in Montreal unless they fall down the rankings for some reason or join the Habs after their indentured servitude in Florida ends. Worse is knowing that it's often pointless for those players to go to those remote outposts of the hockey world. The teams that get them won't build up enough to be contenders. They'll just continue to be poor teams with a few good players in exile.

Look at Atlanta for example: They drafted Dany Heatley second overall in 2000. He wasn't happy in Atlanta, so the Thrashers traded him to Ottawa for Marian Hossa. Hossa wasn't happy in Atlanta, so they traded him for a package of non-stars to Pittsburgh, just to avoid having him bolt with no return at all. Now the one-two punch of Hossa/Kovalchuk has become just Kovalchuck, and guess what? There's talk that Ilya's not happy in Atlanta. He's consistently the subject of trade talk, because the perception across the league is that he'll bail as quickly as he can the minute he's a free agent in 2011. Atlanta's the worst team in the east again this year, so they'll get another top-five draft pick. What's the point? The franchise is disarray, with only one playoff appearance (and no wins) in its history.

Founded in 1999, the Thrashers picked either first or second overall in their first four entry drafts. Of those players (Heatley, Kari Lehtonen, Kovalchuk and Patrick Stefan), only Kovalchuk and Lehtonen remain with the organization, although Lehtonen was placed on waivers last week. The others were traded before they made a difference in the organization, and the players the Thrashers got in return did little to help turn the franchise into a winner. The number eight-overall pick in 2003, Braydon Coburn, is now anchoring the Flyers' defence in Philadelphia. The Thrashers got Alexei Zhitnik in exchange, and have since bought out his contract.

Most of the high picks awarded to the Thrashers have managed to escape from Georgia after years of futility. But again, what's the point? Why are players of such high ability forced to languish in obscurity, waiting for an ill-advised trade or free agency? The answer, of course, is because Gary Bettman wants these pointless franchises to survive, and the draft system as it is allows the worst teams to pick the best players. It rewards lousy GMs with pick after pick in the top five, most of whom go to waste, mired in defeat on useless teams. Good GMs, like Bob Gainey, get the mid-to-late round picks that may or may not pan out. The only time the Canadiens got to pick in the top-five in recent years was the post-lockout draft, when they got Carey Price at number five. Can you imagine the damage the Habs and Trevor Timmins could do with a couple of high picks? You can be guaranteed they wouldn't be traded away for the likes of Alexei Zhitnik.

I think the first round of the draft should be lottery all the way. Luck of the draw. It's still a crap-shoot in some ways, because even having a top-five pick doesn't mean you'll choose a guaranteed star. But, if a team like Detroit, that, with careful management and wise drafting, has produced a perennial contender, gets the first overall pick...good for them. Or if a consistently late-round team gets it...it could be the difference between always finishing eighth or becoming a contender. Better take the chance of having a great team get stronger than hand the best prospects over to the likes of the Atlanta Thrashers to misuse and disillusion every single year.

Making the first round a lottery would also help eliminate the Tampa Bay Syndrome. A team, like Pittsburgh or Atlanta, who chooses in the top five every year...especially if it's a real blue-chip year...could end up with three or four budding superstars who all have big contracts coming due at the same time. They end up keeping them all, and shelling out a fortune to do so, which leaves them with little to fill the rest of the roster. Picking draft positions by lottery means the superstars are spread around the league and the salary on each team more evenly distributed.

I just want to see good, prudent general managers have a real chance to draft a star without tanking. That's particularly important for the Habs, where the pressure to draft hometown boys is enormous. Unfortunately, the Q often tends to turn out big stars or good pluggers with little in between. Imagine if the draft lottery allowed the Canadiens to pick Vincent Lecavalier? With the jury still out on Price's long-term impact, it's been a long, long time since the Habs have been in the position to add a real franchise player without mortgaging their future in a trade.

The current draft system is supposed to encourage parity, by allowing poor teams to improve themselves by adding young talent. What it really does is keep middle-of-the-pack teams stuck in the middle. And that's really frustrating.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Revelations


Watching yet another Debacle on Ice in Carolina last night, I came to realize several truths, which I hold to be self-evident. Among them:


-Andrei Kostitsyn is a right winger. He has always been a right winger, and the only reason he was a left winger last year was because Alex Kovalev is a right winger. On Lang's line, Kostitsyn is the right winger, and it was evident in his play, as one of the very few bright spots in a dismal display, that he prefers to play on his natural side. He's better there, and he should not be moved back to the left.

-Alex Kovalev, for whatever reason, is the Kovalev of 2006-07 vintage. I believed then that part of the reason for his lousy play was injury. If that's the case this time around, and if those knees need a surgeon's attention again, it's best for him to do that now rather than later. As it stands, he's managed to mess up the Plekanec/Kostitsyn combo. With him on the wing last night, the Koivu/Tanguay duo had its worst game of the year. If he's going to drag down whatever line he's on, he's either going to have to look after his health/mental issues or sit. Since no one wants the consequences of sitting him, it may be time for Bob Gainey to ask him out for a stroll. Where is Bob Gainey, anyway?

-Guy Carbonneau wants to send a message, but says his hands are tied because he waiver rules and roster limits prevent him from moving players between Montreal and Hamilton. But he says the fourth line is the best one every night. Problem solved: bench the guilty parties (I'm thinking Sergei Kostitsyn and Chris Higgins to start.) Make the third and fourth lines Begin-Lang-Kostopoulos and Dandenault-Lapierre-Laraque for a game. Better have two working fourth lines than three non-productive offensive lines.

-If they refuse to hire a proper defence coach, which I think is needed, they should get Josh Gorges to do a seminar on playing D the San Jose way. Remember when he first came over in the Rivet trade? He said he thought the Montreal and San Jose systems were vastly different in that San Jose's method involved challenging forwards at the blue line. Gorges has been playing his heart out and living up to the challenge of filling in on the first pairing. If he remembers the San Jose style I'd let him teach the rest of them how to do it.

-I saw Tomas Plekanec forechecking with aggression and speed last night. But when he hassled the Carolina defenceman off the puck, there was no Hab in the zone to take a pass. It was a brilliant illustration of the failure of the one-man forecheck. If Guy Carbonneau can look at the tape of that game and suggest otherwise, his hockey smarts aren't as highly developed as I think they are.

-The idea of placing Tom Kostopoulos on the second line might have been good in theory, in terms of getting some hard work and aggression there. But after the first whiff by TK (also known by his Indian name, Big Wind No Goal) the experiment had to end. Three whiffs later, the combination was just dismal.

-Carey Price is an NHL goalie, and a darn good one. Anyone who thinks otherwise has an agenda or astigmatism.

-If the Canadiens continue playing this way, they will not only be deeply humiliated on Roy Night on Saturday, but they will be in grave danger of ending the Centennial season on the playoff sidelines. But, speaking of the post-season, if there's one thing we should have learned from past years is the team is capable of playing a game completely different from how they're playing now. I remember last November they looked as bad as they did last night and then turned it around to look very, very good on many other nights. Right now it's hard to believe that could happen this year. But, if we don't have faith when they suck, we don't get to celebrate the good times quite as exuberantly either.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Getting back on track

I woke up at 4:30 this morning, and even in my state of half-sleep I was furious. As I rose to the surface of consciousness, I remembered why. It was because of the complete anihilation of the Habs by their arch-rivals from Beantown, less than a week after the complete anihilation of the Habs by their arch-rivals from Hogtown. Mmmm...pork and beans. And the Habs as mincemeat on the side.

The cool and trendy thing to do today is to flip out and stress about what's wrong with the team. How far will it slide before something makes it stop? How badly can it actually play? How embarrassing will it be if the six All-Star starters are Habs and the Habs are in the tank by the time the game rolls around? What if they miss the playoffs?

Anyway, I did all that last night. Today I'm breaking from the cool and trendy ranks of frenzied Habs fans and looking for a bit of perspective. Of course, there's no doubt that the team stunk... terribly...from Price out. But, if you remember some of the lousy losses from last year's first-place season, it's not as smelly as it could be.

Recall the 4-1 game against Dallas, with Ribeiro scoring four points? The 3-0 lead against the Rangers that miraculously turned into a Rags' comeback and a Habs loss? The 3-0 loss to Columbus on Bob Gainey Night? The 4-1 complete ownership handed down by the Wings? The back-to-back humiliations delivered by the Sabres, including a 3-0 shutout, last November? The 4-0 shutout by Jersey, courtesy of Brodeur the Nemesis? The 6-1 pounding and utter domination by the Sens?

The point is there were many horrendous games last year as well. We stressed and gnawed and worried, and they still finished on top of the conference. That's not to forgive last night's game, because it's a good sign the team is doing many things wrong. But they did last year as well, and the same group managed to pull it together and right the wrongs. I don't like what's happening, but it take some crap to grow a bouquet, so I'll have patience and hope things turn around.

Tomorrow's game against Philly will tell us a lot. If the team can come back and play well, even with a loss, I'll have hope things aren't as badly wrong as they appear right now. If not...well, Bob may have to start his post-season planning a little early. I have to believe it won't come to that.

I need some sleep.

Monday, November 3, 2008

The Bi-Polar Habs

This is the weirdest season so far. The team looks fantastic in the standings, and very often like crap on the ice. They float for periods at a time, but they still win. They play a game or two, then they're off for a week. I know every year is compared to a roller-coaster ride, but this one is like the Six Flags Great Adventure.

I know I'm sounding alarmist with these doomsday posts, but if there's one basic truth in physics, it's that what goes up must come down. I guess the reverse of that happened on Saturday, when the Habs' precipitous drop in interest and effort in the first two periods was replaced by awesome-to-behold passion and firepower in the third. But even with seventeen of a possible twenty points in the bank, you have to wonder when the laws of nature will assert themselves and the team that's been racking up half-hearted wins will start to see heart-breaking losses on the scoreboard instead.

Don't get me wrong...I loved the Islanders' game. Hockey's entertainment, right? Right. And it was bloody well entertaining to watch a game you thought was certainly an ignominous loss become a humdinger come-from-behind powerhouse victory. Watching the Plekanec line emerge from its torpor to light the rink on fire was pure adrenaline-pumping thrilling. But when the dust settled, and the glory of the victory faded to a pale golden glow, the nagging worries are still there.

The team was 0-for-5 on the PP, and gave up two goals on the Isles seven man advantages. Worse, they were a really weak 37% on the draw. As Kovalev said after the game, they were lucky they were playing the Isles and not a team like the Devils. They should have been killed in that game, and would have been if the Islanders had had more experience holding a lead and a better goalie in the net. As a Habs' fan, you can't help wondering what another five-day break will do to the fragile momentum that brilliant twelve minutes in New York sparked on Saturday. Staggering out of the blocks on Friday could mean a couple of losses in a little more than 24 hours, if they're not very careful to be disciplined and come up with a better all-around effort than they've shown in many games this year. There's no doubt the talent is there...it's the will and attention to hard work and detail that seem at issue right now.

You know, even though the Islanders' game was a great outcome for a team that didn't really deserve two points, I thought at the time it might have been better if the Habs had lost that one. They seem to be leading a bit of a charmed life when it comes to winning games without really functioning at full capacity, which can make a team feel like it's pretty invincible even when it's not playing great. Then I thought, no, they'd better steal whatever points they can now because the roller coaster will certainly head for a plunge at some point and when that happens it's better to have "lucky" points in the banks to cushion the fall. One way or another, lessons will be learned. I just wish the team would learn them while things are going undeservedly well.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Whinging and whining

I actually almost feel guilty about not being happy with the team right now. I know, I know: they're 6-1-1. They've got thirteen of a possible sixteen points. Blah, blah, blah. The fact is, the wins aren't really satisfactory because you come away from them with a strong feeling of "Whew, they were lucky to win that one with the way they played." Of course, they're doing some things right. Faceoffs are better than they were last year, and their goal-differential has improved dramatically. Goaltending has been generally strong. But the problem is, despite the record, it's easier to list aspects of their game that aren't going well than it is to name those that are.

I don't like the long passes on the rush. Last year, passes were shorter, crisper and more efficient. The long passes are off the mark much too often, resulting in a lot of turnovers and odd-man rushes for the opponent. I don't like the way the PP is looking. I think it was a mistake to move Andrei Markov to the right side. He's propelled the powerplay to the top of the league's standings in each of the last two years by performing the left-side set-up role better than anyone in the NHL. The PP's lowly success rate seems to be proving that it's a lot easier to replace the shooter than it is the set-up guy. I'd like to see one of the Kostitsyns or even Hamrlik or Gorges on the right point instead of Markov. But...whatever way you slice it, the PP isn't clicking right now, and a team can't win without a powerplay indefinitely.

I'm not thrilled with the defence. There are too many shots against, and the D are too soft in giving up their own blueline. They're just not challenging opposition skaters.

And the number of penalties they're taking is too high. The PK is only middle of the pack, so spending too much time in the box will inevitably come back to burn them.

Oh, and last year's third line has become three guys trying to score goals by themselves rather than make the nifty little passing plays they did last year. It's become a rare thing to see the three of them breaking out on the rush together.

Worst of all, there are periods in which it looks like the team is regressing back to the lazy, take-a-period-off style they played two years ago.

The good thing here though, isn't the team's record, which I think they're lucky to have. I think it's that the poor play is very likely being caused by the weird schedule, combined with the fact that there have been quite a few injuries to start the year. It's very strange to see five days off between games this early in the season, and the Habs will face that twice in a month. That makes it tough for the players to get their rhythm going. We've all heard how difficult it is for players who've been sitting out for a while to get their "game timing" back. They say it's one thing to practice, and quite another to translate those skills into an actual game. I think the team played much better when they played three games in four nights than they did playing two games in eight days. Hopefully, after next week's five-day break, things will start to even out with the schedule and the team can get some kind of groove going.

And, hopefully, the rash of injuries the team has weathered to date is over for a while. (Hoping against hope Hamrlik is all right after that shot off the knee last night.) When all the players get a chance to work out with their real linemates for a few days, we probably will see an improvement in their game performance too. Right now, it's hard to see how their play could get any rougher, considering the lineup they have. Minnesota is going to be a very big test, and I'm not that optimistic the Habs are ready to play the game they need to play for a win in that game.

On a positive note, though...how about that Tanguay?

Sunday, October 26, 2008

DE-fence (clap, clap, clap)

Well, the team has finally lost in regulation after getting away with some bad habits since the season started and surviving on the strength of their potent offence. With the loss to a stronger, better-organized Ducks team, no one can hide the bad habits under the proverbial rug anymore. The Habs have a problem on defence, and it's more obvious when playing better teams.

Part of the problem last night was Patrice Brisebois. When he was re-signed in September I didn't complain too much because I thought the team needed some veteran presence, and you won't find anyone who's more dedicated to the Montreal Canadiens than Breezer. He also came cheap and said publicly he was willing to accept a seventh-man role on defence. Add those facts to the truth that he can still make a decent outlet pass, he's helpful on the second wave of the PP and isn't completely embarrassing when used sparingly, and I was okay with it. But last night was the perfect example of why it was a mistake to bring Brisebois back, and it's not Breezer's fault...it's the coach's.

Basically, Guy Carbonneau insists on treating Brisebois like a viable top-six option on a nightly basis, and he isn't that player any longer. He's played in every game so far, although up until last night because of injuries. Fine. That's why he was hired. But when Carbonneau used the opportunity of having a full lineup last night to prove a point by sitting Ryan O'Byrne in favour of Breezer, it went too far. Brisebois was awful. He was weak in front of the net and in the corners, he gave the puck away repeatedly and he screened Halak on the first Ducks goal. In short, he was the wrong man to have on the ice for twenty minutes against an aggressive, strong team like Anaheim. O'Byrne might be making mistakes, but he has the potential to learn from them and improve. And last night showed he isn't worse than the guy who took his place.

The second problem I saw was Mike Komisarek. Komisarek is blocking shots and hitting, as usual. But he's mishandling the puck very often and he's getting exposed for his over-reliance on his partner, Andrei Markov, in the transition game. The opposition has figured out that Markov is the puck mover of the pair, so they're dumping it in on Komisarek's side, blocking his cross-ice pass to Markov and forcing #8 to make decisions that were traditionally Markov's to make. It may be that he's going through an adjustment period, but right now, it's pretty rough.

Of the others, Roman Hamrlik is as steady as he was last year, Francis Bouillon is as tough and Josh Gorges is showing just as much intelligence and heart. But, if O'Byrne truly isn't ready to be the number-four D on the team and Gorges is considered too small, then Gainey needs to bring in a defenceman. Because as likeable and useful as the current D-men are, they didn't win last year and without help they're not likely to miraculously improve enough to win this year either. I saw Scott Neidermayer, Chris Pronger and Francois Beauchemin (let's not go there) stymie the likes of Kovalev seemingly effortlessly last night, and outside of Markov, the Habs don't really have a comparable answer on defence.

It's not just the defencemen, though. The forwards were lax in getting back and covering their own zone. The PK was ineffectual in clearing the zone and there seemed to be a general amnesia when it came to challenging the rushing Ducks. They gave up their own blueline much too easily. Some of that can be rectified with a better focus on hard work. I mean, if the leafs can beat Detroit with hard work, the Habs surely can beat the likes of Anaheim, whom everyone was beating to start the season.

The irony of last night is that the team, in its worst and most-exposed defensive effort, gave up its fewest shots against of the season with 25. Previously, they were giving up an average of 32 per game...third highest in the league. I don't buy all the talk about the shots being from the outside and relatively harmless. A high shots-allowed total reveals a problem with the team's defensive coverage, no matter where those shots are coming from.

I know every team will lose games, and not every loss will be closely-contested enough to be palatable. But I haven't seen the team have a real, convincing, 60-minute win yet this year, and last night shone a glaring spotlight on their weaknesses. So, if we're recognizing this, you can bet Bob Gainey is too. There are several options he can exercise to address the defence problem. There's assigning the existing players to focus on D more, reducing the freedom the defencemen now have to support the offence on the rush. And there's the previously-mentioned idea of bringing in another top-four man. (Although I do understand Gainey's reluctance to give up valuable futures for what would likely be a rental.) Then there's the idea of hiring a proper defence coach.

Doug Jarvis isn't necessarily doing a bad job with the D, but I can't help thinking it would be better all around to have a guy who's actually played the position offering instruction. It's hard not to imagine the insight a guy like Larry Robinson (yeah, I know he's taken, but you know what I mean) could give Mike Komisarek about using his size to control guys like Getzlaf. Or how he might help devise strategies for the defence to use to beat the tight forechecking that seems to bedevil them against big teams. In a year as important as this one, what's the harm in bringing in someone to help the defence? At least we'd know the team is willing to try anything to improve.

One thing's certain: they're going to have to try something. And it's going to have to start on the back end.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Chill...it'll come

So, the Habs are six games into their season and have yet to lose in regulation. Their even-strength goal differential is the best in the league for the first time in recent memory. Both goalies are rocking the crease, and the Captain's line is rocking the opposition, including the long-awaited Latendresse in an emerging power forward role. Everything's going according to plan, right?

Wrong. These are the Habs, and we are Habs' fans. There's always something that's not perfect. I'm on record myself as saying I'm impatient for the night when everyone's healthy and all three offensive lines are firing. It's going to be fun, and we haven't seen it yet. But you have to think it'll come...especially to last year's first line. Unfortunately a lot of fans aren't very patient, and they're starting to get on Alex Kovalev's and Tomas Plekanec's cases already. I'm assuming Andrei Kostitsyn gets a pass because he took a serious blow to the head last game.

It's true the team's erstwhile first line isn't tearing up the ice like it did last year. But consider this: some smart coaches have figured out Kovalev is the engine that drives that line. They've realized double-teaming him doesn't work...he just finds space around his shadows and dishes the puck to his linemates. So instead they're having their players cover Pleks and AKost. That means Kovalev is left holding the puck and has no one to receive a pass. He's able to hold the biscuit for a while, but inevitably ends up coughing it up when the opposition checkers move in.

Now, this is an interesting dilemma because of the question of who will ultimately solve it. It seems obvious that it should be the players' problem. They're the ones out there on the ice and the ones who must find a way to get around the lane-clogging defence of the other team. But I think the coaches have a role here too, when it comes to helping the former first line find a way to cope. I think it's up to them to designate another puck-carrier on that line for one thing. Andrei Kostitsyn is well able to lug the puck up through the neutral zone. If the opposition is keying on Kovalev, that'll throw them a little. And, I think when that line has the puck, the defence should be on alert for more opportunities to sneak a pinch in. If the opposition is covering Plekanec and Kostitsyn when Kovalev has the puck, who's going to cover a pinching Markov or Gorges? It would give Kovalev another option to pass, and more moving targets for the other team to cover.

It'll be intriguing to see what Carbo does to help his players out in terms of strategy. So far, he's come at them with the old "don't rest on your talent...work harder" line. Sure, that's fine. But these guys' bread and butter isn't grinding on the boards and in the corners. They need options for their slick style to work, and it's up to Carbonneau and his staff to help them find those options. It's up to Kovy and Co. to listen and follow the coaches' advice, as well as come up with some creativity (and, yes, hard work) of their own.

The bottom line is, it'll come. These are smart guys we're talking about, both on the ice and off it. They know the game and they'll figure it out. We just have to be patient and give them a chance before we start ragging on them. It's a test, both of the players and of the coaching staff. But, isn't that what a championship season really is? A test of skill, and will, and strategy? There's no point in criticism yet...it'll only frustrate us as fans and annoys the players who get to hear about our frustration in the press. A friend says you can't judge a team until the 26-game mark. I think that's a good idea. Let's give them 26 games, and if the Plekanec line is still struggling, then we can ask stressed-out questions about what's going on with them. Until then, let's just chill. It'll come.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Lineup ferris wheel

I was at the Coyotes/Habs game on Saturday night, and I was so impressed with the Koivu/Tanguay/Latendresse line it's difficult to explain the impression of compact unity the three gave every time they hit the ice. I said once before, but it bears repeating, that Alex Tanguay was made to play for this team. His speed, vision and passing ability are at an elite level. And, despite scouting reports to the contrary, I find him to be neither reluctant to shoot or weak in traffic.

Latendresse appears to be coming into his own and fulfilling all that promise he showed in his first two training camps. Of course, it's only been five games, but his skating is better, he's hitting, and, most importantly, he's going to the front of the net and being rewarded with points for his efforts. It seemed in the past that he felt himself to be more like a Tanguay than the power forward Habs' fans coveted. But now he looks like he's finally got the message that his quick hands and slick linemates will click when he puts himself and his large mass in difficult areas in the slot. The most marked difference for him this year is his start. It took him thirteen games to record a point in his rookie season and quite a while to get off the mark in his second too. Better conditioning and better linemates are finally giving him the opportunity to take advantage of his skills that playing spotty minutes with fourth-liners did not. I think he's going to take a lot of heat off himself this season, and I'm glad for it.

And Koivu? Wow. He's involved, he's smooth, he's energetic. He's also playing less than fourteen minutes a night, which is brilliant use of the captain by Guy Carbonneau. For the first time in years, Koivu looks like the enthusiastic kid he was when he was awarded the "C" back in the '90s. I think it's partly due to fewer minutes keeping him fresh, and partly due to playing with the best linemates of his career. If hockey is supposed to be fun, playing with guys who compliment you and take advantage of your best attributes to score goals has to be right up there as the most fun you can have.

The thing that frustrates me, though, is that old lineup ferris wheel. It seems to always be turning, and when one line is at the top, the other is at the bottom. Looking at the roster, I've been waiting since the Lang signing to see the three top lines all click to completely decimate the opposition. The Koivu line is fulfilling its promise, but the Plekanec line is not. They're not playing badly, but they haven't been the awesome dominating force they were last year either, and Plekanec has yet to pot his first goal. And now, with the Andrei Kostitsyn injury, they're going to be broken up for a while. The Lang line has looked good and worked hard, but poor Tom Kostopoulos just doesn't have the finishing skill that line needs and with Chris Higgins hurt too, we haven't seen that line completely up to speed either. Still, it baffles me that there only ever seems to be one line delivering, even when there are three lines perfectly able to do so. The injuries are accountable for some of it, but Andrei Kostitsyn didn't get hurt until Saturday, and their line wasn't nearly as dangerous as the Koivu line.

Some of it may be simply because the other team tends to put their best defensive players out against the most dangerous line, and based on last year, that would be the Plekanec line. But you'd think that the attention would shift to the Koivu line based on how well they've played, which should have opened up some ice for the Plekanec line. Or maybe the other teams just haven't adapted to the new Habs yet.

Either way, I can't help hoping when everyone is healthy we'll finally see it. We'll see wave after wave of dominance as the three offensive lines all find their chemistry and put the fear of God into the rest of the league. In the meantime, I'll just have to enjoy the happiness of Koivu, the emergence of Latendresse and the perfect fit of Alex Tanguay. The wheel has stopped for a little while, and they've ended up on top.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Game Two: Habs vs. leafs

Notes on the second:

-Gui! looking great tonight. I wonder if there'll be a spot for Higgins on the second line when he comes back?

-Breezer's best quality is his porcelain skin. He bleeds like a hemophiliac, which is going to get his team lots of four-minute PPs.

-Speaking of the PP, Tanguay's like a cat burglar with the keys to the Crown Jewels. He was made for this team.

-I wonder what Gainey was writing on that pad after the second Sergei Kostitsyn goal? Maybe "Ole, ole, ole, ole..."

-If I ever make a Habs drinking game, it's going to have "Lapierre passes on a 2-on-1" as the trigger to chug the bottle. Only problem is, you'd come away sober.

-Faceoffs and the PK...two big questions before the season started...both looking good early.

-Halak is slick as the wake of the Exxon Valdez. I hope the team can keep him happy enough to keep him.

-I want Cujo.

Notes on the first:

-Okay, I'm keeping a running tally on Komisarek's bid for a new contract. I'm starting with a base figure of three million per, and after the first, he's hovering around 2.8 now.

-Gui! lost weight, learned how to skate and apparently got an injection of hockey sense along with his B12 over the summer. What a pass on the Hammer goal! Only thing with him is even though he's got skills, he always seems to be shocked to find himself in a position to use them.

-And, speaking of which, Hammer has decided to become a more offensive tool. Seven shots last night and a goal tonight. I hope he keeps it up.

-The fourth line is doing what a fourth line should...keep the opposition pinned in their own end while the good players get a breather. Can't ask more of them than that, really.

-Plekanec playing keepaway with the leafs' D has made this game worth watching, all on its own. It's like watching a bunch of kids be amazed when the birthday-party magician pulls a bouquet of roses out of his sleeve.

-Halak is smooth as fresh ice, and just as cool. I don't know what it is, but he reminds me a bit of Roy.

-Kovalev can probably pull a loonie out of Toskala's ear while he's scoring on him...he's that magical.

-Lapierre isn't convincing me he misses the smell of diesel exhaust. He might get a sniff of it on Steeltown buses if he's not careful.

-Grabovski doesn't look as little like an NHLer with the leafs as he did with the Habs.

Friday, October 10, 2008

In-Game Summaries

Well, I don't know if this'll work because you're all so busy during intermissions, but I'm going to attempt to post period-by-period summaries for your enjoyment if you're around to read them. Let's see how it goes. Meet you here, Saturday, first intermission of Habs/leafs 2008, Take One.

Likin' the Langy, not so much the Tangy

First game, first loss. Yeah, yeah, I know it's not "technically" a loss because they got the loser point. But it's still not the glorious start to the Centennial we were all hoping for. In the first game, loss though it was, I thought Carey Price played pretty decently, lousy high shots to the stick side in the SO notwithstanding. Pleky tried hard, but Kovy and AKost were MIA. And Lang was grand...scored a beauty and made some heady plays later in the game.

The captain didn't look like he's all that concerned about earning another contract and Komisarek seemed to be Back to the Future in his own rookie season, especially on the Sabres' goal. I'm not sure Markov was aware the season has begun. And Latendresse may be faster, but not so much gooder.

All in all, not the bang I was hoping for when it comes to opening hundredth seasons of legendary franchises. And the leafs aren't going to be total pushovers. Ron Wilson has taught them to play western style "choke you till you give up the lousy puck" trap, and they forecheck like rabid pitbulls. So, if our boys get out of this weekend with three points, it'll be pretty good.

Let's hope the "A" squad shows up for the leafs. I just can't bear the taunting if they don't.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

The economy and the cap

As we watch stock markets plummet to three-year lows and the value of the Canadian dollar against the greenback drop, most of us probably have more important things to worry about than how all this will affect the NHL salary cap. But the fact is, the cap will feel the economic crisis and most GMs are not doing anything to protect themselves.

I ran into Julien BriseBois, the Canadiens' capologist, last week, and I had a chance to ask him what he thinks is going to happen. It was an interesting conversation, not least because he says the economic crisis won't be felt at its worst by NHL teams right away. That's because the cap for next year is based on this year's league revenue. If you look at the collective bargaining agreement, you'll see "hockey-based revenue" described pretty specifically. It includes things like ticket sales, merchandise sales, television and radio deals, advertising on boards, ice and arena buildings, concessions, team publications like magazines and programs, and special appearances by team personnel and mascots. BriseBois says most teams have already sold their season tickets for this year, and many healthy markets have sold out individual games as well. So, once the tickets are sold, fans tend to buy the concessions and programs at the games, and some will continue to pick up a hat or jersey while they're there. BriseBois also explains most of the advertising deals, like those for naming rights on arenas, as well as broadcasting deals between teams and their radio and TV carriers include escalating clauses, so they pay a little more each year of the deal to retain those rights.

What that all means is that much of the league revenue on which next year's cap will be based was generated before the worst of the financial crisis hit. So when the capologists at the NHL get together this summer, they'll calculate the cap for 2009-10 according to how much the league made this year, without taking into consideration the fact that next year's revenue is quite likely to fall. Which means the cap two years from now will be forced to either stand pat, or quite possibly drop.

BriseBois explains that the NHL survives on the middle class spending money. They're the ones who buy the jerseys, the game tickets and the ten-dollar beers. They're the ones who buy the Centre Ice package to watch their team's games. But when they're worried about their investments going into the tank and losing their jobs as companies tighten their belts, they stop spending on luxuries like hockey games. Then you take the companies themselves. They're the ones buying season tickets and corporate boxes to entertain clients. They're the ones paying for advertising on arena boards. But it's been proven in the past that when economic times get tough, advertising and entertainment budgets are the first expenses to be slashed. Of course, existing advertising and broadcasting contracts will continue to provide increasing revenue to league coffers. But there's concern that those up for renewal will disappear.

Then, you must consider the Canadian dollar. With huge increases in the dollar's value last year because of skyrocketing commodity prices and a depressed US economy, the six Canadian franchises contributed thirty-one percent to the NHL's total revenue, according to a leaked league document. Now, with sinking oil prices and a rallying US dollar, the loonie's value against the greenback is falling. Experts predict the downward trend will continue for the next several months. So the huge hockey revenue earned in Canadian dollars and converted to even more US dollars will take a hit this year.

The inherent problem with this is that next year's cap will likely go up slightly because the money it's based upon has already been made. So, when teams like the Canadiens sit down to sign their players this summer, players and agents will look at an increased cap and the big, juicy contracts their peers signed last year, and expect no less. However, GMs have to know a cap crunch is probably coming the year after next. So, if they sign players up to or over the cap like they did last summer, especially on long-term escalating contracts, they're going to end up having to dump players the following year, just to get under the cap when it fails to go up or falls. The problem is, many teams will be in the same boat so there won't be a market for the players everyone's trying to dump. Teams' financial hands will be tied and we'll see respected players waived and demoted because their clubs can no longer afford them. We'll also likely see good young players stagnate in the minors because teams can't afford their contracts.

So, knowing this, you might wonder why GMs wouldn't take the sensible approach and try to save cap space in anticipation of an approaching drop in the ceiling. An NHL source explained it simply this way: "Most GMs don't care. They know they won't be in those jobs in five years' time and they want to win now. They'll spend as much money as they think they need to to beat out the other GMs with little thought to future consequences."

BriseBois compares the situation to the US banking crisis, in which institutions lent money they couldn't hope to get back out of recklessness and greed. Hockey teams, driven by the same vices, will spend more money this summer than they can realistically expect to have in hand in two years' time. But there's no US government to come to the aid of the NHL. We might see the teams come on bended knee to the NHLPA for a one-time across-the-board salary reduction in their own version of a bailout. Or the teams may just try to cut where they can and muddle through.

Which, as Habs' fans leaves us with two pressing questions. One, will Bob Gainey join the spendthrift club when he faces re-signing his ten unrestricted free agents and four restricted ones in the coming summer, or will he try to be prudent and let someone go if their demands put the team's financial future in jeopardy? And, two, will the Canadiens' free agents settle for lower money or less term in order to keep the team together when the cap crisis comes? Pressing questions...with unpredictable answers. But one thing is certain: the NHL may be able to delay the reality the rest of the business world is dealing with, but it can't escape it.

Can't wait!

Only three more days before we can all crack a beer, tune in RDS (or, if we're really lucky, take our seat in the Bell Centre) and watch some honest-to-God meaningful hockey again. This off-season has felt like it's lasted about a year, probably because when there's really something to look forward to, like Christmas or a trip abroad, the time drags interminably. And, for the first time in a very long time, we truly have a hockey team that makes us impatient for the season to start.

There's so much to look forward to this year, I'm sure everyone has their personal expectations. I like the little things...the things that tell us these are the Habs and no one else; the team for which we've been waiting all summer. So, as the Centennial season opens, I'll be watching for:

-The first time Alex Kovalev gets cut across the beak. It seems like whenever he plays a particularly good game, he comes out of it with a big cut right across the bridge of the honker. Bonus if he gets his first hat trick in a Habs uniform and does the moonwalk on Bell Centre ice. The place would go crazy.

-The first time Saku Koivu takes a candyass hooking penalty, followed by Carbo rolling his eyes, ostensibly at the ref. It's just not a Habs game without a Koivu hooking penalty. Especially if it comes in the offensive zone when the team is on a powerplay. We love Koivu, but his penchant for those is maddening. I'm hoping he'll have it under control this year, but I'm not really expecting it to happen.

-The first powerplay goal. Will it be a blast from the point by Markov? Or a tic-tac-toe from Kovy-to-Pleks-to-Akost? Maybe Koivu behind the net to Sergei sneaking in from the point? All the possibilities are there, and all of them are beautiful.

-The first big 5-on-3 successful PK that turns a game around. I don't think there's much as exciting as watching a beleaguered goalie shut down the other team's PP and crush their spirit at the same time.

-The first time Andrei Kostitsyn skates through the whole opposing team and makes their D look silly.

-The first time the team is down by two late in a game and we see the line of Koivu-Lang-Laraque on the ice because Carbo has already tried every other possible combination.

-The first game against Jersey to see if they've really solved Brodeur or not, and the first game against the Bruins to see if they've really solved the Habs or not.

-The first time Komisarek crushes someone and creates that little gap in the space-time continuum in which everyone in the building can only stare open-mouthed at the destruction he leaves in his wake.

-The first Habs blowout. I love a good blowout. It's fun to get tense over a close game sometimes, but there's nothing like sitting back and enjoying the deluge of goals the Habs can produce when everything's going well.

-The first ceremony. This is going to be a season of moments, and no one does them like the Canadiens.

And, oh, so much more. I just can't wait for the season to start. Here's hoping it's a healthy one and the boys do what they need to do to be ready for the second week of April. Until then, it's going to be a helluva ride.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Fisher's vendetta

I wonder if there's anything more pathetic than an old man who spends his precious dwindling time adding kindling to the flickering flame of a grudge most others let burn out long ago? I caught up with my reading today, after having been away at the 'Dogs camp on the weekend. I usually read all the Habs-related coverage in the Gazette, including Red Fisher's Red Line, even when I don't necessarily agree with all he has to say. I respect the fact that Fisher has had a very long and distinguished career covering our great team and continues to write when most others have either retired or died. But his vendetta against Patrick Roy has got to end.

The headline on this week's Red Line, if you haven't read it already, is: "Schneider Made Right Decision When He Didn't Quit Canadiens After Fight With Roy." The column is about how much Fisher likes and respects Mathieu Schneider and is surprised the Penguins didn't snap him up off waivers because of their injuries on defence. But Fisher takes the opportunity afforded him in writing about Schneider to recount a dressing room incident from the early nineties, in which Roy and Schneider nearly came to blows. Predictably, Fisher as relates it, Roy started the whole thing and Schneider had to be talked (by Fisher, the article implies) into staying with the team and bearing with the arrogant goalie's behaviour.

Okay, Red, we get it.

He dislikes Patrick Roy intensely. He may even hate the man. But guess what? A lot of us don't. Some of us see this week's column as yet another small-minded attempt to discredit a guy with whom Fisher's got a problem. Frankly, I'm sick of it. I'm tired of reading the same rehashed column about Roy and how he "quit" on the team every time he's honoured. Literally, the same article. I swear it's just stored in his hard-drive and hauled out whenever Roy needs to be brought down a peg. Fisher wrote it when Roy was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame, and printed it again when the Habs announced number thirty-three would be retired. Yet, Fisher then attended the official announcement of the jersey retirement, only to sit there and stare at Roy rather than ask a question when he was called upon. How miserable is that? If Red hates Roy as much as he writes that he does, why would he bother to show up at the announcement at all? The very smallness of attending that event for no other reason than to show Patrick Roy his disdain for him does little but discredit Fisher himself.

In this week's story about Schneider's intent to walk away from the Canadiens after a fight with Roy, Fisher fails to condemn Schneider for threatening to quit on the team. That's the very fault he cites to justify his utter condemnation of Roy's legacy in Montreal...yet he mildly prefaces the Schneider story with a fond, "I like Schneider. Always have..." So, apparently, if Red Fisher likes you, he sees little problem with your "quitting" on the team. If he doesn't, then readers have to be subjected to story after story about your failure as a human being for years.

The obvious answer is, well, don't read it. But the problem I have is that I do often enjoy Red Fisher's reminiscences, especially about the great Habs who have passed away, and whose memories have so few witnesses remaining. He's a link to the team's past.

But that link has its pitfalls. When Fisher is living in the past, he continues to dwell on crimes that have long been forgiven by others. If the Montreal Canadiens have grace and class enough to welcome Patrick Roy back to the fold, and Roy has class enough to return, then Red Fisher does himself and his readers a disservice by feeding the feeble fire of his petty vendetta.

It's time to write about something new, and let the ghosts rest. After all, when you're pushing ninety, it might be time to devote some time to wondering how people will remember you. And I'm betting no one wants the words "bitter," "petty," and "small-minded" to figure in the stories that are written when they're gone.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

At the Bulldogs' camp

Well, the 'Dogs are fast, I'll give them that. I had a great view of their game versus the Manitoba Moose, (which they lost, 3-2) sitting directly behind the Hamilton bench. There are a lot of little speedy guys in the lineup, but the one who stands out, by a fair margin, is David Desharnais. After watching him practice, and seeing him in the game last night, I think if there's a small man in the Habs' system with a real chance to make the NHL, it's him. He's short, but he's solidly built and he's a very good skater. He's also strong and, with his low centre of gravity, tough to knock off the puck. I ran into him in the hallway, and he was busy sawing three inches off an already shortened stick...smiling, quick and sure-handed. In the game, he scored one goal by driving the net with the puck and continuing his forward momentum after being tripped, pushing the puck ahead of him and through the goalie. He then assisted on the 'Dogs second goal with a sweet pass from the left of the net right onto J.T.Wyman's tape as Wyman slid into the slot from the point. In today's game, (the championship versus the Marlies...4-3 'Dogs in OT) Desharnais had another two assists to finish the mini-tournament with six points in three games. He was named tournament MVP as well. I really like him, and I'm rooting for him to get a shot at the NHL. If he puts up points in Hamilton like he did in Cincinnati last year, it may be tough to deny him a spot.

Speaking of Wyman, I was surprised to see him on defence in the Saturday game. I'm not sure if he was there because the team was short on D with Henry and Weber still in Montreal, or if it was an experiment Don Lever was trying. In any case, he looked comfortable on the point during powerplays...less certain at even strength. But he didn't look awful by any means, and he did fire a very nice shot for the team's second goal. I don't know if we'll see that happen again, but it's interesting.

Pavel Valentenko looked strong for much of the game, but he took some big hits. In practice, he wasn't working that hard, at least to outward appearances, but he was a horse during the game. At one point he got tired of being targetted by some of the Moose's bigger guys, and he pasted one of them to the right of the Manitoba net. He ended up getting a boarding penalty for his trouble, but they left him alone for the most part afterwards. He's a good skater and had a couple of nice shots on the PP.

I was looking forward to seeing Ben Maxwell after being impressed with him in his pre-season games with the Habs, but he was scratched. He practiced in the morning, but I saw him afterwards with what looked suspiciously like an ice pack under his t-shirt in the middle of his back. I hope he's not injured again this year. The big knock on him is that he's hurt a lot, and is possibly a fragile player. Otherwise, he's great though.

Matt D'Agostini didn't do anything spectacular. He was good on the PK and made a couple of smart plays to clear the puck. He played a regular shift with Ryan White and Greg Stewart, and none of them were much of a threat on offence. I don't know if it's post-NHL-camp-cut syndrome, but those three looked like they weren't all that interested in the game for most of it. Towards the end, though, when the 'Dogs were down by a goal with a couple of minutes to go, they turned it on a bit. Stewart looked like he was really trying at that point, but it didn't come to anything.

I thought Shawn Belle did a decent job manning the left point with Wyman on his right. Again, he wasn't spectacular, but he didn't do anything glaringly bad either. Which, I guess is what you want from a journeyman.

Cedrick Desjardins was steady in goal. The second one he allowed was a result of going down too early, but he made some nice saves as well. I think he'll be surprising at the AHL level.

One guy who really surprised me was Chad Anderson. He was very steady as Valentenko's partner, and played a smart game on the PP, with some nice atypical passing decisions. I think he might end up being an interesting and useful pickup.

Other than those guys, I noticed Trotter a couple of times for good plays he made. No one else really made much of an impression on me, either in practice or in the game. I did get to speak to some of the players after practice though, and I'll have details of some of those conversations in later blogs.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

I don't get it

I tuned into the Habs/Bruins game on CJAD last night, hoping for a good old-fashioned Bear hunt. It sounds like the Canadiens managed that, scoring three powerplay goals while holding the Bruins to one, even without the Habs' top-three defencemen in the lineup. It should have been a nice, comfortable pre-season victory over an opponent that's going to challenge Montreal in the coming season.

But it wasn't quite as nice or comfortable as the majority Habs' fans would have liked. That's because their some of their brethern who packed the Bell Centre decided that it was a great idea to taunt Michael Ryder all night long, for...nothing? Every time he touched the puck, the boos and derisive chants of "Ry-derrrrr" cascaded from the cheap seats. It was disrespectful when there was no call for disrespect. And nasty when there was no need for nastiness.

Ryder is trying to start his career over again in a new city, after knowing no professional organization except Montreal's. In his time with the Habs, he led the team in goals scored in two of the last three seasons, and even in his disappointing campaign last year managed some memorable moments...like scoring the first two goals in the magical Comeback game against the Rangers in Februrary. Ryder has never disparaged the Habs or their management, even after his production dropped off when he saw his powerplay time...his bread and butter...disappear. He didn't say a negative word when he found himself in Carbonneau's doghouse and scratched from the lineup. He worked hard in practice and made sure he didn't become a distraction to his teammates. Except for failing to score thirty goals for a third straight year, Ryder did everything right last season. Yet, he was greeted on his return to Montreal with catcalls and disdain.

I was trying to figure out why fans acted that way. Was it because Ryder was wearing a Bruins sweater? Or because he became the city's annual whipping boy last year, and the derision carried over? Or maybe just because he failed to score very many goals last season? Whatever the cause, it doesn't seem to me that Ryder did anything worthy of the treatment he got. I heard one fan say he has the right to boo whomever he wants when he pays his money to see the team. Fair enough. But, why would you want to boo someone as innocuous as Ryder in the first place? Samsonov, who complained to the media, arrived at camp out of shape, took Gainey's money and produced nothing and dogged it on the ice...okay, yeah, I can see booing him, if you must. Chara? Okay, he's the captain and one of the Habs' biggest threats with one of their biggest rivals. But Ryder? Please. Someone else argued that Ryder threw paper airplanes in the pressbox after he'd been scratched one night, and appeared not to care. There was never any evidence outside a reporter's comment in a blog that that actually happened at all. But, even if it did...let he who has never given in to frustration and anger throw the first plane.

I found the whole thing really disheartening. Once upon a time, fans in Montreal were renowned for their grace and class...cheering a worthy opponent when he made a particularly impressive play, or one of their own who'd left and returned with a rival. Of course, that's not to say there was no such thing as booing. Any player who hurt a Hab or dogged it for the Canadiens would hear about it. But there was always a reason. I'm afraid, in this hundredth year of Canadiens' history, that the team will honour its greats and mark its Centennial with all measure of dignity and class...but their fans will let them down and be the only embarrassment marring the anniversary.

Flavour of the week

Did you just love Max Pacioretty in that pre-season game against Detroit? I did. He was fast, aggressive, smart and did everything right on both his regulation-time goal and his shootout beauty. He made a really good case for himself in his effort to prove he deserves an NHL job. It'll be hard to cut him...so hard that he might actually push a regular out of the lineup and steal a spot with the big team. Most likely though, the decision, hard as it is, will be the same one Bob Gainey made last year when Sergei Kostitsyn had a stellar camp and still started the year in Hamilton.

Because when it comes down to it, Pacioretty is nineteen years old with one college season and a pro training camp separating him from his US high school team. There's no doubt he's got tons of natural ability, and that he'll be a good NHL player whenever he gets his shot. But there's not a player of that age or background who can't learn something and refine his game with a stint in the minors, and with a teaching coach like the Bulldogs' Don Lever. As good as he looks right now, Pacioretty has the potential to be even better, which might not be realized if he's thrust into an NHL role right now. The coaching staff has to decide if it's in the best interests of Pacioretty to launch his first rigorous pro season under the bright lights and high expectations of Montreal. Sergei Kostitsyn did well after his call up last season, but he had an older brother on the team who could act as mentor and friend. Carey Price, on the other hand, experienced deep valleys in morale and had to learn on the fly how to take care of himself physically. Which speaks to the theory that just because a player's skills are ready for the NHL, the player himself may not be as prepared for that reality.

I think it's great to be positive about Max Pac's future with the Habs, and look forward to the contributions he will make to the team's success. But fans need to be a little more patient and not leap on the "play him now" bandwagon...lambasting the coaches if they choose to send him to Hamilton. Remember how everyone loved Guillaume Latendresse as an eighteen-year-old, after his first camp when he hit everything in sight? Remember the outcry when he was sent back to junior, only to come back with another great camp as a nineteen-year-old? Yet, when he made the team and the path of his development became rockier, the same fans who demanded to see him promoted were ready to trade him for ice shavings. Same thing with Greg Stewart. He had one great game last season, and now he's everyone's choice for the fourth line, ahead of Kostopoulos, Lapierre and Begin. I wonder how many ordinary games on Stewart's part it would take before fans are ready to discard him in favour of the next unproven rookie?

It's easy to understand in a way. The kids are the living embodiment of potential and hope. They still have the possibility to be or do anything, and they haven't yet proven they can't. So it's tempting to look at them as better than the players whose experience has exposed their human and hockey weaknesses. And rest assured, they all have them.

The other problem with promoting Pacioretty right now though, is determining where he'll play. He's too good to be limited to fourth-line minutes and a banging, checking role. Yet who of Higgins, Koivu, Latendresse, the Kostitsyns, Tanguay, Plekanec, Kovalev and Lang will move to make way for him? The easy answer is Latendresse, but that's too easy. You can bet the team isn't going to give up on the local boy who's worked really hard to improve on his decent first two seasons, and who's just 21 himself. Really, unless someone seriously plays himself out of a spot, and I mean Samsonov or Ryder-like, or there's a top-nine winger hurt, there just isn't room for Max Pac.

Matters are further complicated by Kyle Chipchura, who was drafted to be the team's shut-down centre and is developing nicely toward that, with some fine games...even if not as spectacular as Pacioretty... in pre-season as well. Considering the fact that his role would fit the fourth line and his NHL experience to date probably puts him a little closer to a full-time job, he's mounting a strong challenge for a big-league spot as well. And with 23 NHLers on staff already, the team would have to cut someone just to get Chipchura onto the fourth line. Finding two regulars who are expendable enough to make room for Pacioretty and Chipchura is much tougher.

As I mentioned before, this is the consequence of having a very good team and a very good development system. There will always be too many players for too few jobs. That means management will have to make some difficult choices about cutting good players. In Pacioretty's case, it's not so tough when you look at the big picture. He's very young and his chance will come when several spots open up next season. In the meantime, he can learn the pro ropes in Hamilton and be ready when he's called, whether for a couple of injury-relief games, or to replace someone who fails to perform. We fans should just be glad he's a Hab, and look forward to his (hopefully) long career in Canadiens' colours...when the time is right.

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Just a rant

Well, this one has nothing to do with the Habs, unless it's because I share Bob Gainey's disdain for Brian Burke, after the latter disclosed Gainey's private discussions during the draft two years ago. Or possibly because I deplore the fact that Gainey and the Canadiens have to operate in the same league as Burke and poor, senile Cliff Fletcher.

The news came out yesterday that the leafs tried to acquire Bobby Ryan and Mathieu Schneider from Anaheim for a conditional first round pick in 2009 and two prospects. Are you kidding me?? Bobby Ryan, who may be good one day, but hasn't been the dominating first-round power forward the Ducks were hoping to get, and Mathieu Schneider whom Burke regretted signing at age 39 with that giant salary, and whom he was willing to dump on waivers to anyone who'd take the veteran's contract so Burke could sign Teemu? I'm assuming the "conditional" on the first round pick was based on Schneider re-signing with the leafs.

In other words, Cliff Fletcher went, of his own free will, to Brian Burke and offered him two young prospects AND the (potentially) first-overall pick in 2009...Tavares...for a borderline bust and a veteran Burke wanted to dump anyway. And Burke rejected it. Which tells me two things. First, that Fletcher is either A: senile or, B: incompetent, because WHAT GM who's allegedly rebuilding makes that trade? And, second, that Burke will be the leaf's GM this time next year. Because WHAT GM would turn down that trade, if he intends to stay with his current team?

I can't believe Fletcher was willing to trade a package like that...the most coveted first rounder since Crosby...AND two prospects of which the leafs have so very few worth talking about. Even worse, I can't believe Burke turned it down. It's so underhanded and so dirty...it's such a statement that Burke is out of Anaheim. He wouldn't allow Fletcher to further decimate the team he (Burke) hopes to take over next year. It's much easier, after all, to look like a hero if you're reviving a dead team with Tavares than without him. So Burke saved Fletcher from his own idiocy, for Burke's own unadmitted purposes.

I hate that the blatently incompetent and the underhanded operate under the same system as Gainey. It's so much harder to compete when you're trying to be within the rules and above board. But there it is. No one can say it wasn't an honest trade that just didn't go through. But, if Brian Burke isn't the GM of the leafs this time next year, I will print this and eat it.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Breaking up is hard to do

I think there's little doubt that the Habs' first line starting this season will be Alex Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn flanking Tomas Plekanec. The trio developed chemistry last year when the line's original centre, Mikhail Grabovski, proved he wasn't the right player for the position. Carbonneau plugged in Plekanec, and the line, except for the odd inevitable case of Carbo's mid-game tinkering, never looked back. Kovalev revitalized his career with his second-best offensive totals and Plekanec and Kostitsyn had breakout years with 29 and 26 goals respectively. They bumped the Saku Koivu line down the pecking order, and they were the three players called on to produce whenever the team really needed a goal.

So, it may seem a little crazy to suggest breaking up the line to start the year. Why mess with success, right? Even so, I think that's what should happen. The main reason I take that view is Andrei Kostitsyn, and the question of his development. The pundits and fans agree his very strong pre-season is a good sign that he's ready to better last year's totals with a monster year on the scoreboard. I think he's got a strong chance to do that. But I think it would be easier for him to develop into the dominant player we think he can be if he were playing his natural position.

Andrei Kostitsyn is a right winger, but to make room for Kovalev, he's been playing left wing on the Plekanec line. It's a testament to his talent that he's flourished on his off-wing. He's opportunistic and quick and he gets in there for the rebounds and redirections off his linemates' shots. He's powerful and has a great shot of his own too. But the truly great moments, the highlight-reel goals he's scored, the ones where he waltzes through an entire opposing team and makes you go Wow! have happened when he's playing right wing.

Exhibit A:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ahPGO8iuMvM

Exhibit B:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=UuIWwOKJv1k

Imagine an entire season of Kostitsyn on the right side, pulling those kinds of moves with greater regularity. If the Habs were fun to watch last year, I think switching Andrei back to his proper position would make the team even more exciting.

Of course, switching Kostitsyn would mean the inevitable breakup of the first line as it now stands. AK46 and Plekanec have undeniable chemistry, which could continue even with Kovalev off the line. The left wing position could obviously be filled by Christopher Higgins, with whom the other two had some thrilling moments when they were combined in the last third of the 2006-07 season. That leaves finding a place for Kovalev. We know about his past chemistry with Robert Lang, which might be worth a new attempt, with Sergei Kostitsyn or Guillaume Latendresse on the other wing. And the Tanguay/Koivu/Kovalev combination also has intriguing potential, at least on paper. The beauty of this year's lineup is that there really isn't a bad-looking trio in any combination of the top nine forwards you might want to create. So, with more balanced offensive lines, it's a perfect opportunity to try moving some players around and give Kostitsyn a chance to explode in his natural position.

And hey, it's Carbonneau we're talking about. If it doesn't work out, you can be sure the lines will be switched back before you can say "Kostitsyn scores!" anyway.

Friday, September 26, 2008

The Invisible Man

I think it's time for Bob Gainey to offer someone a serious, long-term deal. Not a DiPietro-type deal, but more long-term than Gainey is in the habit of offering. Say, six or seven years. With so many players...important, cornerstone players...heading for various forms of free agency, locking up one of the best of them now would help Gainey in his planning for the next few seasons. And, no, I'm not talking about Christopher Higgins or Mike Komisarek. I think Gainey's first long-term deal should go to Tomas Plekanec.

Two seasons ago, Plekanec was recognized by the NHL as being one of the best bargains in terms of bang-for-buck in a formula averaging points scored per dollar earned. I haven't seen that statistic worked out for last year, but I'm pretty sure it would be tough to find a better bargain than Plekanec's 69 points and 1.4 million-dollar salary. This season, Plekanec will make 1.8 million, and if the first two pre-season games he's played are any indication, he's coming into the Habs' Centennial campaign fit and determined to improve on last year.

The thing is, Plekanec is very often an afterthought when people talk about the Habs' good young players. He's turning 26 on Halloween, and in his three full seasons with the Canadiens has quietly improved from 29, to 47, to last year's 69 points. Maybe it's because he was a late bloomer, or maybe because he was pegged as a small, defensive-minded player and people have trouble changing their image of him that he flies under the radar. Whatever the reason, when the subject of the Habs' pending free agents comes up, Plekanec is rarely mentioned among the players most fans consider priorities for re-signing. Mike Komisarek tends to top most people's lists as the player most needed back next year.

I agree Komisarek is very valuable to the team, and I would like to see him signed to a nice three or four-year deal. The sole reason I wouldn't want him locked up for six or seven seasons is his style of play. He's a beast, without question, when it comes to hits, blocked shots and pure, menacing leadership. But blocking all those shots and hitting all those opponents takes a toll on the body, even one as big and strong as Komisarek's. His style opens him up for broken bones and shoulder and back injuries...the kinds of things that can mean long absences from the lineup. It hasn't really happened much yet, but the hip injury he sustained at the end of last season is the kind of thing that can nag and get worse as the years go on. I'd hate to see him signed to a six-year deal, and go down with a major injury after three or four seasons. As much as he's a long-term asset, he's also a long-term risk.

Plekanec, on the other hand, has been extremely durable. He's missed only two games in the last two seasons, both with flu bugs. He plays through minor injuries and although he plays hard, he doesn't put his body in jeopardy on a regular basis like Komisarek does. So, barring grave misfortune or fluke injury, Plekanec is a good bet to stay healthy and play most games.

Then, there's the matter of what he actually contributes to the team. He's recognized as a player who never quits, who gives his all on every shift and who is a shining example of the work ethic the team wants its younger players to display. He brings speed, skill, strong two-way play, determination, a great attitude and a will to win. And, most importantly, he's consistent, rarely going more than a couple of games without a point. In short...he's the kind of player who would improve any team he played on, and he's just coming into his prime. In seven years, Plekanec would still be just thirty-three years old.

Based on his inherent dedication to playing his best game every night, he's not likely to be a one-year wonder. And, if he continues to improve at the rate he has been, and if the market continues to explode in the way it has been, Plekanec is going to be very expensive if Gainey waits too long to re-sign him. A six or seven-year deal signed now, before this season is over, stands a great chance of turning out a bargain for the Canadiens.

Tomas Plekanec might not be the first name that springs to mind when fans talk about the Habs' bit stars, but hey, Bob! Give that invisible man a raise!

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Comeback Claude?

So, Claude Lemieux...NHL all-time superpest and Conn Smythe winner...wants to make a comeback. He says after five years away from the game, he misses playing and he thinks he's got the determination needed to polish some pretty rusty skills and give it another shot.

It won't be easy. He's forty-three years old and his last two years of playing hockey saw him skate in just seven games for Zug in the Swiss-A league in 2003, and before that, he split sixty-eight games between Dallas and Phoenix...racking up only 20 points...in 2002-03. It's going to take a hell of a lot of work to get into game shape at his age, and after that long away from the ice. And even if he manages to get the body in shape, there's no guarantee the old skills are still there. Not everyone is Chris Chelios, and even he's had to change the way he plays the game in order to stick around a little longer. I'm not sure Lemieux's all-out, abrasive style even can be reshaped without making the player redundant. He was valuable during his playing career because there was only one of him. If he's got to give that up, he might as well stay in retirement.

In the meantime, he says he's been working out for ten weeks now, and he's skating with the Phoenix Coyotes to help him get up to speed. He must see something encouraging in his progress if he's sticking with it. And he's not asking for an NHL spot. He says all he wants is a tryout with some team's AHL affiliate...a chance to prove himself and work his way back to the big league.

It'll be interesting to see him try this. (Idle fan speculation about gambling debts or some other cash shortage fueling the whole thing notwithstanding.) If there's any player who was able to push himself beyond the ordinary, it was Claude Lemieux. At least he could when he was in his prime, especially in the playoffs. What's really going to be interesting, though, is whether some team buys into this attempt and gives the old man a shot.

I'm almost tempted, if he can pass the same physical tests all the younger guys pass, to hope Bob Gainey extends Lemieux an invitation to the Bulldogs' camp next week. If Lemieux tried out and failed to compete with the prospects, well, no harm done. At worst, Gainey would look good for giving an old colleague a chance. But if he can cut it, Lemieux would be a strong veteran influence with the 'Dogs...kind of like his former teammate Mike Keane is with Vancouver's farm team. And when roster restrictions are lifted after the trade deadline, there would be nothing stopping the Canadiens from calling him up to help out during the Cup drive one more time.

In this very special year for the Habs, the groundwork for fairy tales has already been laid. How cool would it be to see the Habs going for their twenty-fifth Cup on their hundredth birthday...with one of the heroes of '86 back to share the glory? Could you imagine Lemieux dipping into the fountain of youth once more to score a massive game-tying or winning goal? I know that's not likely...far from it. It's probably more likely Lemieux' old bones won't be able to meet the challenge.

But remembering the rookie who challenged Patrick Roy for the Conn Smythe back in 1986 with his ten goals in twenty games, and the guy whose passion helped push two other teams to Cup wins as well...my heart says give him a shot. After all, the Canadiens have little or nothing to lose. And a fairy tale has to have a beginning, right?