About last night ...

Coming up: Nashville - 12th in the west (20-20-3)Thursday Ottawa - 12th in the east (15-21-6) Saturday Atlanta - 14th in the east (14-25-5)Tuesday Games that we should win. No big flashy games just play solid in the neutral zone and take advantage of mistakes by the other team. Hopefully this week will get some injuries healed and we can get back to the lineup that will bring us into the second half and the playoffs. That is of course if we are not making room for a player with a suntan?

Chara's Papa Bear... Thomas's Mama Bear... Savard' Baby Bear... Lucic's... made into three bowls of porridge. ---------- "We all wore the same costume as Maurice Richard did; the red-white-and-blue costume of the Montréal Canadiens, the best hockey team in the world." - Roch Carrier

Once again, nice job Boone on PrimeTIme Sports Join the Fantasy Sense Revolution @ http://fantasysensehockey.blogspot.com/

I honestly don't see how anyone can complain about the boarding penalty. It's the sort of thing that SHOULD be 5 minutes. I know it's not fun when the major is against us, but does someone seriously have to die of a head injury before crap like that is eliminated from the sport? Besides that, you can't even blame the boarding call because the PK killed off the vast majority of it. If Roman "I am a giant bleeping liability" Hamrlik hadn't taken his 10498230th idiotic penalty of the season to make it a 5-on-3, the Habs would have killed off the whole thing and the momentum would have been back with us. That said, since someone referred to me as a "hater" the last time I commented, it should be noted that there were a LOT of positives against the Bruins. - As Mr. Boone mentioned, the first period was awesome. They had absolutely no answer for the Canadiens' speed and forechecking. - Tim Thomas is an excellent goalie (underrated before this year, to be fair)...but he's not going to have that night every night. - I think it's heartening that none of the Bruins goals were directly caused by hideous defensive mistakes, which may be the first time we can say that in quite a while. On the first one, the forwards were all covered and Chara had to gamble and pinch all the way in. If one of our guys had gotten a stick on it first, it's out of the zone and could be a 2-on-1 the other way. He just made a good play. The second goal was an unstoppable shot (the penalty was dumb again, though), and the third one was a 3-on-1 because it was late and Carbo had to push everyone forward looking for the tying goal. Other than that, the Bruins didn't have all that much...and shockingly, Breeze had a lot to do with that. Other than one giveaway, he was fantastic. - I also think it's telling with regards to how talented the kids are when we think that was a bad performance from them. Half of them are too young to even vote here in the US, and if they're playing well enough overall for that to be a bad performance, we're kind of sitting pretty right now. - Jaro Halak, while cardiac-inducing at times, has done an admirable job filling in for Price. This stretch of the year could have been ugly, but he's stepped up and kept us in games...that's all you can ask of the No. 2. If the Habs can take this defensive strength and marry some discipline to it, the offense will take care of itself and games like this will become a lot more winnable. As long as they peak at the right time, I'm not too worried about them losing games like this. It's a learning experience. Canadiens, Arsenal FC, NBA, MMA, Boxing: The Ship Be Sinking

Well, I suppose. Whatever "for real" means. Ottawa looked pretty "for real" at this time last year. At the end of the year, we looked kind of "for real". Eliminated the Bruins in the first round and then the wheels fell off. Boston has a good team and they are playing well. No argument. They don't need a whole lot of help but they got some anyway. Oh well. I've been saying all along that we don't have the team that can win it all this year. I believe that those who don't think a Vinnie LeCavalier would help this team, are mistaken. Maybe we'll get to find out. One thing for sure, is you got to give to get.

Team 990 reporting Carbonneau saying AK46's hit has been removed from "the list" of major penalties in the league office. I think what that actually means is that players are put on "repeat offenders" list after having more than 1 major. AK46 would have been added to that list, but he is not. This is an admission by the league that it should not have been a 5 minute penalty. Go Habs Go!! "I can't hear what Jeremy(Roenick) is saying because my Stanley Cup rings are in my ears" - Patrick Roy Habsrule

I'm gonna cry! RDS is saying that Pricey is going to forfeit the All-Star game! I was sooo looking forward to seeing him among the greats of the NHL! And I voted my *** off for him! Truely sucks!

What is with the short pages again, sure is tough to carry on a conversation. My legs are short enough and it keeps snowing!!!

Agree with Prof. Boone. The refs sucked, but that wasn't the difference. All about the forecheck. Good times. Pre-Game: > Carbo wearing a good tie. Works with the striped shirt. Julien's is also good if it's 1995. Demers freaked out – in a positive way – about Julien's staying ability. I like when Demers gets worked up. Super guy. This year looks really good on Claude. Awesome for him. Unfortunately, Julien still looks like that Julien-lookalike neighbour on 'King of The Hill' – the worst cartoon on television – and I 'effin hate the Broonz, but his team is working for him and workin' hard. Forecheck hard, backcheck hard, day in and day out. > The camera angle seemed too close-in for the game. Don't know if RDS had any control over it, other than directing cuts, but me not happy with it. Felt like I was watching Cloverfield all over again, albeit without the big, weird-looking monster. On an unrelated note, Lucic was out. > I'm guessing RDS' audio plan was to hand some guy in the crowd a microphone. WTF was going on with that last night? Sounded like a drunk gathering around the 3rd hole at some PGA event. My guess is the mike was handed to Olympic hero Michael Phelps who proceeded to chew gum in an overcrowded homeless shelter. Game: > Forecheck. Boston forechecks hard. Although we dominated for a good portion of the game, Boston consistently forced the play in our end and it led to a notable number of mistakes, starting with Halak's numerous back-of-the-net fumbles. The good news is that the Habs demonstrated they can respond to an aggressive forecheck and maintain their transition game, missed passes and all; this wasn't the case earlier in the season. Good news. > Both teams demonstrated good “Got Yer Back” chemistry. Chipper took one for the boys and Thomas billysmithed Andrei. Someone should remind Chips that there are two steps to fighting: (1) form the fist; (2) swing the fist. Took some time getting to step 2. Word is Alexander Semin is still working on step 1. > The new Tim Thomas. Used to flop around like Grant Fuhr on crystal meth. Now playing like he's actually been coached. Has done wonders for his confidence level. Good for him. Never thought I'd think of Thomas as a cocky bastard. Cocky bastard. > Ridiculous call on Andrei. Wasn't worth two minutes, let alone five. Having watched the replay, even Thomas basically admits as much. Ward is out with a charley horse, FFS. Note to Habs: If you get hit and hurt your leg, hold your head. Particularly effective in front of risk-averse, juvenile refs with a penchant for overcompensating. > Love him to death, but Kovy was not really into the game last night. On a positive note, I expect him to grab the All-Star shootout competition by the throat. Yay. > Over his career, Chara has averaged 0.5 points per game against the Habs. Not bad for a defenceman. Man, would he be a crowd favourite in the bleu-blanc-et-rouge; too bad it'll never happen. When Murray gets canned in Ottawa before the end of the month, he should remember this as the biggest one that got away, literally. > Note to Savard: Watch Grabovski. You absolutely must wait until the linesmen have tied everyone up before yappin' at a guy who can pound you through the ice. That way, the viewers don't have to wince with the realization you're probably prairie-doggin' as the big guy wraps his glove around yer throat. Post-Game: > For the love of all that is holy and the sake of humanity, could someone at Chrysler please explain the point of those staggeringly inane Dodge Ram ads. Trucks hooked to cranes and swinging around, exploding buildings, drivers hopped up on goofballs? Has an automaker ever more effectively captured the anti-zeitgeist? To paraphrase my good friend Bugs Bunny, what a bunch of maroons. Bring on the Preds! JD

It was a good effort by the Habs last night. I liked how they had so many shots on goal in the first period but was disappointed by the shut down in the third. Boston knows what they're doing. Crazy how they went from losing 8 in a row last season and a playoff round to us last year to being the biggest baddest in the East.. and they're roster isn't even that different... look what discipline and dedication get you!

after last night's slap fest on Chips, I would hope that if BGL isn't going to play, the least he can do is offer clinics to his teammates on 'how to fight', so they don't look like my Aunt Philomena. (Actually, put her near a clearance bin at Walmart, and it's every man for himself) I've watched my daughter beat down her male cousins better than what Chips could muster last night. Also and I've said this before, we seem to fall down a lot more with tougher teams and last night was a reminder of how we cope with playoff hockey, and if BGL is still out with a paper cut or sore fingers from blogging, then heaven help us.

if anyone is thinking of packaging the brothers k for vinny somebody please shoot them now

off topic but: i'm glad we didn't trade for brad richards last year "ONE CUP, ONE PRICE."

kovalev should be benched whenever our team is down a goal with 10 to go. he just goes and tries to do it alone all the time...trying to skate through 5 black sweaters...drives me utterly insane...then he extends his shift so he can try again down by a goal...give me saku koivu...drives hard to get the puck to the net and to make the play up by a goal...kovalev is a pleasure to watch. "ONE CUP, ONE PRICE."

Guys! Go check out the story bout Komi on the nhl.com page. It's really really touching...I almost cried!

Obeying my self-imposed rule of never posting the night of a loss to the Maple Leafs, Bruins or Flyers, here's my two cents on the game last night. I really had no issues with that game at all. The Habs played well, with the exception of a bad 10 minutes at the start of the third period. The Bruins played well, with the exception of most of the first period. The game was decided on a 5 vs. 3 power play, so I really don't see it as a win or loss for either team, from a "sending a message" point of view. They are both elite teams, and they both have a good chance in the playoffs if they get hot and lucky. Halak played well. I share Mike Boone's wishes that Halak play the puck less...he tries to do too much sometimes, and that's when he gets in trouble. But he made all the saves he should have, and only gave up goals that would have been hard for any goalie. The Lapierre line was hands down the best line on the night for the Habs, in my opinion. They spent most of their time in the offensive end, generated some chances and controlled the boards. Lapierre and Latendresse are playing very well, and I'm pretty happy with that given that they are still only 23 and 21 years old. The Kostitsyns and Lang line was also quite good, and obviously did a great job creating the only Habs goal on the night. The Plekanec-Kovalev-Pacioretty line looked lost for much of the night...a couple of scoring chances, but also a lot of turnovers and running around. Pacrioretty is a keeper, but I still don't think he is ready to play on a contending team for the rest of the season...he is quite green at times. His play had nothing to do with the loss, but he might be better served with getting 20 minutes a night at a slightly lower level to build his skills. And I think it is pretty safe to say (although I do like Begin, and think he can alternate with Kostopoulos on the third line to keep them both fresh) that the Chipchura-D'Agostini-Begin line is a stop-gap until the Koivu-Higgins-Tanguay line get healthy, barring trades. I'm pretty stoked about the Lapierre line becoming EASILY one of the best 4th lines in the NHL, and Carbonneau having the chance to roll four solid lines without tiring out any of his veterans. This is an awesome luxury to have, and one of the reasons I am firmly in the no-trade camp (unless for a defenceman). As for the defence, they played a very good game...yes there were the odd giveaways, but overall they played the Bruins tough. The third goal was the result of pushing for an equalizer, so I have no problems with that, while the others were good plays by the Bruins. As for the Bruins, Chara is back to his usual self (wonder if he was injured last season) and Thomas is for real, folks. It might be ugly, but Thomas gets the job done as well as anybody else in the NHL. Also, it was great to see Martin St. Pierre interviewed by RDS between periods...he's a really great guy. The penalty: I think it was only a 5-minute major because Thomas cross-checked Kostitsyn in the ensuing melee. If Thomas stays in his net, its a 2-minute boarding penalty, but Lee didn't want Montreal coming out even up for a hit from behind. That's my interpretation of it. So yes, it was a bad call but suck it up...we benefit from calls sometimes, we lose other times....that's why we watch!

Here's my take on last night's game: -Mtl owned the first -the refs exercised poor judgment in the second -both teams looked average in the second -with a lead, Boston owned the third Standouts? Boston: Chara & Thomas stole the show while Krejci had some nice moments Montreal: ummmmm.... maybe Kovy for not showing up, Komi for being a star on the hit parade, and the Laps line played well but couldn't cash in when it counted That game was not really exciting to watch - nothing like the high-speed end-to-end action we witnessed on Sat against an equally strong team in the Caps. Both teams were capable of much better play. And, both teams will look & play differently with full, healthy rosters. Is Boston for real? yes. Is Montreal for real? yes. The results over the next 2 months will dictate the playoff standings, that's it.

You know what I really like about the Habs offensive play this year. They spend so much time making perimeter passes that I can take a leak, grab a beer and, unless there's a giveaway, the same player will have the puck when I get back! It's better than TIVO!!!