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.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
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.
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!
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?
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?
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
You know you're a Habs' fan when...
I was thinking about this today, and came up with a list. Here are my top ten reasons you know you're a Habs' fan:
10. When you blow out the candles on your birthday cake, your wish is for a big, right-handed centre.
9. When the clue in crossword puzzles is "A city in Finland," your first response is always "Turku."
8. You actually have an opinion about the summer workout regimen of a 21-year-old fat goalie.
7. When playing pickup, you will not wear the numbers 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12, 16, 18, 19, 23, 29 or 33 because they're retired.
6. The number 21, 273 means something to you.
5. Bob Cole's call of the final minute of the 1993 Stanley Cup Final can still make you choke up a little. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcGsHvjMS00
4. March 17 is the anniversary of the Richard Riot. St.Patrick is a Conn Smythe-winning goalie.
3. A Habs' loss has been known to put you out of "the mood." A win, on the other hand...
2. You refuse to write "leaf" with a capital "L."
And, the number one reason you know you're a Habs' fan:
1. You do not actually speak good French, but you watch eighty-two games a year, plus playoffs, on RDS and completely understand what Houde, Demers et al. are talking about. And you wouldn't trade it for anything.
10. When you blow out the candles on your birthday cake, your wish is for a big, right-handed centre.
9. When the clue in crossword puzzles is "A city in Finland," your first response is always "Turku."
8. You actually have an opinion about the summer workout regimen of a 21-year-old fat goalie.
7. When playing pickup, you will not wear the numbers 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12, 16, 18, 19, 23, 29 or 33 because they're retired.
6. The number 21, 273 means something to you.
5. Bob Cole's call of the final minute of the 1993 Stanley Cup Final can still make you choke up a little. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcGsHvjMS00
4. March 17 is the anniversary of the Richard Riot. St.Patrick is a Conn Smythe-winning goalie.
3. A Habs' loss has been known to put you out of "the mood." A win, on the other hand...
2. You refuse to write "leaf" with a capital "L."
And, the number one reason you know you're a Habs' fan:
1. You do not actually speak good French, but you watch eighty-two games a year, plus playoffs, on RDS and completely understand what Houde, Demers et al. are talking about. And you wouldn't trade it for anything.
R-E-L-A-X
I hate preseason hockey. It's the first taste of the sport we get after the loooonnnggg off-season, so the excitement around such a meaningless event is way out of proportion. Then, when the team gets pasted, as it did last night in Halifax, we see the first chunks of airy blue hit the ground around the sky-is-falling crowd.
Sure, it's not fun to see the team come out on the wrong end of an 8-3 score, to the Bruins of all teams, (okay, maybe the Leafs would have been worse) even if it is only preseason. But to let the result colour expectations of the coming season is a bit silly. Yet, some fans are already saying Jaro Halak isn't as good as we all thought he was, that Sergei Kostitsyn's poor game means he's set for a sophomore slump and Alex Tanguay disappeared after the team got down by a couple. Of course we know those things are probably not true in the big picture, but the fear is there that a loss like that might sow even the tiniest seeds of doubt in the minds of the players that they might not be as good as they think they are. And in a season when the team needs every single ounce of confidence and energy it can muster if it hopes to live up to its own and its fans' expectations, even the tiniest doubt is too big.
The truth is, the Habs played a Boston team much more pumped to prove something than they were. And many of the Canadiens' players, particularly defencemen, will not be on the Centennial opening-night roster. It was a lousy effort by half a team playing its first game in four months after just two days of "training camp" and a same-day arrival in Halifax. Big deal. It doesn't mean the Habs will be disfunctional this year. It doesn't mean Halak is weak or Tanguay heartless. It does mean...exactly nothing. Which is another big reason why I hate preseason hockey.
I don't like sending out players on whom the team depends to contest these pointless battles. Last night, Roman Hamrlik left the ice with a groin injury as a "precaution" according to Coach Carbo. He's a player the Canadiens can ill afford to lose for an extended period of time regardless, but his loss would certainly hurt more if the injury happened in a preseason game. The Penguins are feeling the truth of that with the loss of PP quarterback and general pack animal on defence, Sergei Gonchar, for an undetermined part of the coming season...all due to a shoulder injury sustained in a meaningless game.
I understand the players need game time to build line chemistry and to get up to speed for the coming season, and the preseason is a good chance for prospects to get a taste of the big leagues and show what they can do. But so many games pressed into such a short period of time, especially after only two days of on-ice work, seems to me to be a little irresponsible on the part of the teams who arrange these things. The games are an additional source of league revenue of course, which makes the case in favour of them a strong one in the eyes of NHL management and owners. However, there should be a more responsible way of scheduling them.
In the end, for reasons of tradition or economics, preseason games will go ahead as they always do. I'm not hoping for a great record or for the Habs to prove to the league that they're Cup contenders. I just want them to find their feet for the start of the real season. And I hope they come out of the preseason healthy and mentally ready to make a splash when it really counts.
Sure, it's not fun to see the team come out on the wrong end of an 8-3 score, to the Bruins of all teams, (okay, maybe the Leafs would have been worse) even if it is only preseason. But to let the result colour expectations of the coming season is a bit silly. Yet, some fans are already saying Jaro Halak isn't as good as we all thought he was, that Sergei Kostitsyn's poor game means he's set for a sophomore slump and Alex Tanguay disappeared after the team got down by a couple. Of course we know those things are probably not true in the big picture, but the fear is there that a loss like that might sow even the tiniest seeds of doubt in the minds of the players that they might not be as good as they think they are. And in a season when the team needs every single ounce of confidence and energy it can muster if it hopes to live up to its own and its fans' expectations, even the tiniest doubt is too big.
The truth is, the Habs played a Boston team much more pumped to prove something than they were. And many of the Canadiens' players, particularly defencemen, will not be on the Centennial opening-night roster. It was a lousy effort by half a team playing its first game in four months after just two days of "training camp" and a same-day arrival in Halifax. Big deal. It doesn't mean the Habs will be disfunctional this year. It doesn't mean Halak is weak or Tanguay heartless. It does mean...exactly nothing. Which is another big reason why I hate preseason hockey.
I don't like sending out players on whom the team depends to contest these pointless battles. Last night, Roman Hamrlik left the ice with a groin injury as a "precaution" according to Coach Carbo. He's a player the Canadiens can ill afford to lose for an extended period of time regardless, but his loss would certainly hurt more if the injury happened in a preseason game. The Penguins are feeling the truth of that with the loss of PP quarterback and general pack animal on defence, Sergei Gonchar, for an undetermined part of the coming season...all due to a shoulder injury sustained in a meaningless game.
I understand the players need game time to build line chemistry and to get up to speed for the coming season, and the preseason is a good chance for prospects to get a taste of the big leagues and show what they can do. But so many games pressed into such a short period of time, especially after only two days of on-ice work, seems to me to be a little irresponsible on the part of the teams who arrange these things. The games are an additional source of league revenue of course, which makes the case in favour of them a strong one in the eyes of NHL management and owners. However, there should be a more responsible way of scheduling them.
In the end, for reasons of tradition or economics, preseason games will go ahead as they always do. I'm not hoping for a great record or for the Habs to prove to the league that they're Cup contenders. I just want them to find their feet for the start of the real season. And I hope they come out of the preseason healthy and mentally ready to make a splash when it really counts.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Chippin' away
As a Montreal Canadiens' fan, I'm delighted to see so many prospects almost ready for prime time that the team has to bring fifty-two guys to training camp. And I'm thrilled that so many of the regular roster spots on the big team are filled by players who are young enough to hold those spots for many years to come. The abundance of talent is balm to the afflicted soul of a fan who's lived through the last sixteen years of post-season futility. Those who clearly remember the great seventies teams say today's squad is the closest thing the Habs have had to that slick, savvy, fast style that was their trademark thirty years ago in...well...thirty years.
But if Isaac Newton is to be believed, for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, if the action is filling the big team with young talent, the reaction is the creation of a backlog that leaves good young players stagnating in the minors. And there we have another similarity to the last Habs' dynasty. Just as it was true that the seventies teams were ripe with youth and talent, and were great at drafting and holding onto their prospects, it was also true that those teams were the Waterloo of many a young player's career. Back then, if players had the skill and didn't want to sweat it out for years in the minors, they could go to the WHA. Now, it's Europe or the KHL, or a move to some bottom-feeding NHL team with few prospects competing for big-league roster spots.
We've seen some of that effect in the Habs' current system already. Corey Locke and Mikhail Grabovsky were high on the Canadiens' prospect lists for years, and do, in fact, have skills. Whether those skills will translate to NHL careers of any note is still to be determined. But there's Grabovsky, not strong enough to crack the Habs' roster last year, now pencilled in as the Leafs' number-one centre. All of which brings me around to Kyle Chipchura.
Chipchura was drafted in the first round for the express purpose of developing into a big, strong, smart, shutdown centre. He's got a lot of the natural tools, as well as being known as a good leader on every team on which he's played. He was good enough to make the Canadiens last year out of camp because he busted his butt to do so. But then, a mid-season drop in energy and the need to work on his faceoffs resulted in his demotion to Hamilton and replacement on the big club by Maxim Lapierre. The demotion, coupled with the acquisition of Robert Lang as a third-line centre, not to mention the plethora of players fighting for fourth-line spots in Montreal, seems to have sucked the hope out of Chipchura.
No one is saying he's injured, so when every report out of camp from reporters and from fans, reveals a disheartened, apparently disinterested player, it's more than a little surprising. For someone like me, who was there in Montreal to see Chipchura score his first NHL goal, it's a big disappointment. Just when the guy needs to work even harder to prove he's progressed and deserves a spot over a guy like Dandenault, he seems to be dogging it a bit. Meanwhile, Dandenault is skating his feet down to the ankle bones in an effort to hold onto his spot.
Now, I don't know if Chipchura isn't making a great impression so far because he's just better in games than in drills...maybe that's the case. But by all reports, he's not even hustling in the drills. I mean, you can make mistakes at this point in practice, but you have to at least look like you're trying hard while you're making them. He'll get a shot to show some enthusiasm in game situations in the next few days, and hopefully he'll step it up and fight for his place.
If he doesn't; if he allows the packed roster in Montreal and the younger Trotter and Maxwell breathing down his neck in Hamilton to get him down, he'll go the way of Grabovsky and Locke. And that would be too bad, because I think Chipchura will eventually fulfill the promise the Habs saw when they drafted him in the first round. I just hope he has the mental fortitude to chip away at the stone into which the Canadiens' lineup is set, and wedge himself in there. And, if he can't; if it's Hamilton for another year for him, I hope the demotion doesn't break his spirit.
While it's true he'd probably already be in the NHL if he was a Leaf or a Thrashers' prospect, being a Hab will be worth the wait. He just can't quit in the meantime. Because, make no mistake, Kyle Chipchura is a test case for what we're going to see in the next few seasons. With Andrei Markov, Roman Hamrlik, Josh Gorges, Ryan O'Byrne and (presumably) Mike Komisarek holding down blueline spots for the next few years, young D-men like Pavel Valentenko, Mathieu Carle, Yannick Weber and Alexei Yemelin, who are all almost ready for the show, are going to be spinning their wheels while they wait for a chance in Montreal. There's going to be a need for patience on the part of the players, and the big team's management is going to have to handle them with care, making sure there's enough hope to go around.
But if Isaac Newton is to be believed, for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, if the action is filling the big team with young talent, the reaction is the creation of a backlog that leaves good young players stagnating in the minors. And there we have another similarity to the last Habs' dynasty. Just as it was true that the seventies teams were ripe with youth and talent, and were great at drafting and holding onto their prospects, it was also true that those teams were the Waterloo of many a young player's career. Back then, if players had the skill and didn't want to sweat it out for years in the minors, they could go to the WHA. Now, it's Europe or the KHL, or a move to some bottom-feeding NHL team with few prospects competing for big-league roster spots.
We've seen some of that effect in the Habs' current system already. Corey Locke and Mikhail Grabovsky were high on the Canadiens' prospect lists for years, and do, in fact, have skills. Whether those skills will translate to NHL careers of any note is still to be determined. But there's Grabovsky, not strong enough to crack the Habs' roster last year, now pencilled in as the Leafs' number-one centre. All of which brings me around to Kyle Chipchura.
Chipchura was drafted in the first round for the express purpose of developing into a big, strong, smart, shutdown centre. He's got a lot of the natural tools, as well as being known as a good leader on every team on which he's played. He was good enough to make the Canadiens last year out of camp because he busted his butt to do so. But then, a mid-season drop in energy and the need to work on his faceoffs resulted in his demotion to Hamilton and replacement on the big club by Maxim Lapierre. The demotion, coupled with the acquisition of Robert Lang as a third-line centre, not to mention the plethora of players fighting for fourth-line spots in Montreal, seems to have sucked the hope out of Chipchura.
No one is saying he's injured, so when every report out of camp from reporters and from fans, reveals a disheartened, apparently disinterested player, it's more than a little surprising. For someone like me, who was there in Montreal to see Chipchura score his first NHL goal, it's a big disappointment. Just when the guy needs to work even harder to prove he's progressed and deserves a spot over a guy like Dandenault, he seems to be dogging it a bit. Meanwhile, Dandenault is skating his feet down to the ankle bones in an effort to hold onto his spot.
Now, I don't know if Chipchura isn't making a great impression so far because he's just better in games than in drills...maybe that's the case. But by all reports, he's not even hustling in the drills. I mean, you can make mistakes at this point in practice, but you have to at least look like you're trying hard while you're making them. He'll get a shot to show some enthusiasm in game situations in the next few days, and hopefully he'll step it up and fight for his place.
If he doesn't; if he allows the packed roster in Montreal and the younger Trotter and Maxwell breathing down his neck in Hamilton to get him down, he'll go the way of Grabovsky and Locke. And that would be too bad, because I think Chipchura will eventually fulfill the promise the Habs saw when they drafted him in the first round. I just hope he has the mental fortitude to chip away at the stone into which the Canadiens' lineup is set, and wedge himself in there. And, if he can't; if it's Hamilton for another year for him, I hope the demotion doesn't break his spirit.
While it's true he'd probably already be in the NHL if he was a Leaf or a Thrashers' prospect, being a Hab will be worth the wait. He just can't quit in the meantime. Because, make no mistake, Kyle Chipchura is a test case for what we're going to see in the next few seasons. With Andrei Markov, Roman Hamrlik, Josh Gorges, Ryan O'Byrne and (presumably) Mike Komisarek holding down blueline spots for the next few years, young D-men like Pavel Valentenko, Mathieu Carle, Yannick Weber and Alexei Yemelin, who are all almost ready for the show, are going to be spinning their wheels while they wait for a chance in Montreal. There's going to be a need for patience on the part of the players, and the big team's management is going to have to handle them with care, making sure there's enough hope to go around.
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