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About Mike Boone
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Mike Boone
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http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/columnists/mike_boone.html
About
I grew up in Park Extension, within walking distance of Dickie Moore's Dairy Queen on Jean Talon. Moore had a place on L'Acadie Blvd., and we used to see him driving around in his convertible with a Samoyed and a very dishy wife.
While "studying" at McGill University during the 1960s, I used to attend games at the old Montreal Forum. My fellow undergraduate reprobates and I would scramble up the stairs to get centre-ice spots in the top standing room section, where aged ushers didn't know or care what we were smoking.
I stood out in the cold for six hours to get tickets to the 1975 New Year's Eve game between the Canadiens and Central Red Army. With the exception of the birth of my daughter, the 3-3 tie was the greatest event I've ever seen in my life.
The Canada-U.S. Gold medal game comes close .... but I wasn't there.
I've been a professional journalist since 1974, when I joined the Montreal Star sports department. I've covered the 1976 Olympic Games, the 1979 Expos, pop music and MSO tours of Europe and Asia (classical musicians are WAY more fun to drink with than athletes). I wrote a TV & Radio column for 20 years and, since 2000, have written a City column for The Gazette.
The best part of being a Habs Inside/Out contributor is attending games at the Bell Centre. I think it's a great building: noisy, raucous and packed to the rafters with Montrealers and visitors who live for hockey.
And I still get goosebumps every time Michel Lacroix booms out "Accueillons nos Canadiens ..."
Having seen the Boston Red Sox win two World Series and the Pittsburgh Steelers add a couple Super Bowl titles, I suppose I can die happy ... but not before another Stanley Cup parade. And I'd really like my daughter to see a historic New Year's Eve game.
I like all the players. Covering baseball gives me a profound appreciation of pro athletes who aren't jerks.
My weltanschauung was summarized by the late great Bill Hicks when he said "all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream and we are the imagination of ourselves."
Have a nice day.
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Sedins have been resigned with the Nucks.
I watched Ryan McDonagh at the world juniors. He was not very good defensively and his poor play directly caused a goal or two against at critical times.His stats speak for themselves as far as his offense goes.
PK Suban is 5 times better and a Canadian. Go PK!
I refuse to put much, if any, stock in the World Junior tournament. It is at best a competitive all-star game where the kids actually care about winning.
But commenting on players' abilities based on a 2-3 week tournament, often playing with guys with whom they are only passably familiar, is a shell game. There is a reason that McDonagh is considered a much more attractive prospect by most scouts than Subban. If you watch Subban in the OHL, he is often lost defensively. He has the tools: he is strong, lightning fast and has a laser beam shot. But his hockey IQ and positioning are questionable....he is a Mike Green type defender that has to show that he can be as good as Green offensively.
The WJC favours offensive players because one-on-one skills are either there or they are not...you can't teach them. What it does not do is show how a player can perform in a system...so defensive stalwarts don't always shine on that stage. I'm not at all worried about McDonagh who is getting lots of ice time against bigger, stronger and faster players than anything the World Juniors has to offer. His jump will be much more seamless than Subban's, who is going to have to learn how to play in a league where his blazing speed only gives him a half- to full-step advanatage instead of the 3 or 4 steps he has in the OHL. I've seen both guys play a lot in the OHL (plus some Memorial Cup games for Subban) and Subban is not nearly as good of an all-around defenceman as Drew Doughty. Take that for what you will.
The guys on NCAA D-1 teams don't give a rat's *** damn about that tournament and their coaches would rather they not participate.
Yeah, pretty much done defending Gainey after that move. Even worse disaster than the LeClair trade back in the day. Memo to Bob - Scott Gomez is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a 'big centreman'. So by your own admission we still need one of those, except you traded one of our best prospects and took on one of the most bloated contracts in the NHL, attached to an underachiever. Fantastic.
I've been assuming that Gainey had a plan for what he wanted to do to improve the team. At this point it seems like the critics were right, he has no idea what he's doing, and the Habs will suffer for as long as he's in charge.
Hey, Bob, can you please trade Koivu now so I have no excuses to not watch a single Habs game next season? Maybe you can get another rat for our latest acquisition to pal around with. How about Koivu for Avery? Tootoo?
I know. Trade Markov and Price for Chara.
He won't have to trade Koivu, just not offer him a contract, which is what he's doing right now. :(
No Higgins, no Koivu, no Komi, no Tanguay....
who do I cheer for next year?
How about cheering for the crest on the front? It's a business. Players come and go.
Everybody needs to relax. The Habs got the better established player here in Gomez and it's not even close. He's a superior skater and proven playoff performer with two Cups. I've seen him play down here a lot. Higgins will get better numbers in NY, no doubt. And it will be some time before we know if McDonough was the talent the Habs built him up to be.
Egads folks....Gainey did not destroy the future for the Habs in all aspects as you are saying....did he eat up a lot of cap space that may or may not haunt the team? Yes....but did he get rid of EVERY prospect? No...so if getting rid of one blue-chip prospect, one KHL player and a spare part is clearing the cupboard, then the team had no future in the first place.
I said this earlier....prospects, blue-chip or not, may or may not pan out, that will always be up in the air, for as long as hockey exists....when Valentenko left for the KHL, many of you wanted to help him pack his bags and Janik was a spare part that you all dumped on for being acquired in the first place. And remember, you were all willing to give up a lot more of the cupboard for Lecavalier...so in the end everyone wanted to give up prospects and draft picks, we cannot really complain about that aspect, Gomez is no Lecavalier but if he can find his NJ days then the team will be better for it.
One thing for sure, NYC will be a better attraction to get Valentenko out of the KHL...so we'll see if he comes oback and how he handles NHL play.
If Gainey can add more pieces today, then the cap hit will be more palatable....the bright spot is that the term is half of Lecavalier's.
Also, many of you complained about Koivu being a perennial 50 pt. player, now we are complaining about having a perennial 65 pt. guy.....
In the end, if you want to rage about the cap hit, by all means, it is a legitimate beef...but the prospects? Not really....until they play in the NHL, of course...
"Even Roy can be run out of town after 2 Stanley Cups."
Boone...if you jinx us again with a "Vewey, vewey quiet" post, I might have to put in a call with the Kostitsyns to have you "talked with". I don't know whether to be sad or appalled that I am actually hoping the Habs are quiet today... :)
Here's what TSN has to say:
The Rangers win this deal, hands down, if only because of the financial implications of the trade.
Perhaps Montreal has more moves in store that will make this deal more palatable, but it's still not going to justify including a top prospect like McDonagh.
Gainey has an inside track on Hossa - Jacques Martin and Pierre Gauthier Ottawa connection.
That's the move!
Make it happen Bob, and then we'll all forget about Mcdonagh very quickly.
As if Rejean Houle didn't cripple this franchise badly enough with his stupidity, now Bob Gainey finished the job.
Can they please hire a REAL GM and a REAL coach next time around and not just guys that were good players at one point in time. Gretzky proved that even the best players don't necessarily make decent coaches.
This team just got set back 5 years, sadly the Leafs will be contenders before the Habs ever get a sniff again with this idiot ruining the show (spelled that way intentionally).
FIRE GAINEY ALREADY!!!!!!!! If it's not already too late, it's surely getting close to it.
"Can they please hire a REAL GM and a REAL coach next time around and not just guys that were good players at one point in time."
Newsflash: Gainey has a cup under his belt as a GM.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
7 mil a year for a few more years ... this guy ?? ,,, 50 point scorer .... a lot of molla ..I'm keeping my fingers crossed. We seemed to have given up a lot, hopefully it'll work out ...or Gainey's sake ...
I like Bob but this one has me a bit dumbfounded..but I'll give him he benefit of the doubt .
How about going after Chris Neal ... gritty and will stand up for his teamates and scores a bit...
The team needed a big center so they went out and got... another guy that needs to go on tippy toes to reach 6'. They needed a consistant performer with heart and they get another over-paid super bust and bailed the Rangers out of their own Cap jam.
The team SHOULD have spent that money on locking up some important pieces such as Komisarek, and instead they let him walk and threw McDonagh out with him.
This is like trying to fix a hole in the floor of your boat by taking it out into the ocean and blasting it several times with a shotgun!!!! Apparently Bob's been making himself a bit too familiar with Molson's products after their recent purchase from Gillette.
Question now is, if Bob's drunk, why do I feel sick?
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. This is what toronto must have felt like when we got Russ Courtnall for John Kordic. Or what I felt like whet we got Thibault. But that was Cliff Fletcher and Rejean Houle, both proven idiots.
Ways this works out for Bob:
1. MacDonough is actually a book entry player who doesn't really exist
2. Higgins decides to retire this year to get his phd
3. Gomez gets 90 points consistently for then next 5 years
4. Gomez gets traded for Lecavalier today
When you add cap to this equation, this is Higgins, MacDonough, AND whoever the Rangers sign with the $6M we just handed them. At least the Rangers are in the Western Conference so that won't hurt our playoff chances, right?
It was Gord Stelleck, not Cliff Fletcher. Fletch made the Gilmour deal with Calgary that sent the Leafs to consecutive semi-finals appearances (which for the Leafs was a huge accomplishment).
While lying in bed trying to get to sleep after hours of discussing this mind-boggling deal, I came up with my list of the most disappointing Habs personnel decisions for me as a fan. Obviously, everybody's will be different based on age and favourite players and the like, but here's mine:
1) Mats Naslund leaves Montreal to play in Switzerland
Naslund was my favourite player as a kid, and this one woke me up to the idea that hockey is a business and that fairy tale endings are only for stories. I knew he had a terrible, injury-ravaged season in his last year in Montreal...but I still wanted to see him retire a Hab.
2) Eric Desjardins, John LeClair and Gilbert Dionne traded for Mark Recchi and 3rd Round Draft Pick
Terrible, terrible trade over the long term. I was 18 years old standing in the checkout line at a sports store in the Quinte Mall in Belleville, Ontario with Habs jersey in hand watching the TV in the store when this trade was announced. The irony was that I was about to buy my first Habs jersey with a player name on it since Naslund's departure, and that name was going to be Eric Desjardins my favourite player at the time. Doh! I could handle this trade if it had not included Desjardins...people always point to Leclair's long-term development into a perennial 50 goal scorer as the issue with this one, but I really felt the back-breaker was the loss of the team's one elite defenceman, a loss keenly felt until recent years with the arrival of Andrei Markov. This trade set the team back for a decade and one could argue also started the avalanche that would ultimately lead to the Patrick Roy trade.
3) Chris Higgins, Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko and Doug Janik for Scott Gomez, Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto
We've covered this to death, but to give you a feeling of how much I despise this trade, it is only the presence of Desjardins, a proven elite defenceman, in the above trade that kept this one from becoming #2 instead. If McDonagh does become that defenceman that many think he will, this one could easily become #2 for me. A Habs trade has not been so widely ridiculed since the days of Rejean Houle as this trade is and will continue to be.
4) Patrick Roy and Mike Keane for Jocelyn Thibault, Andrei Kovalenko and Martin Rucinsky
The most widely despised trade in recent Habs history, I'm not as viciously against it as many others. I felt that Roy's fate was sealed and his public trade demand handcuffed Rejean Houle. The return of one of the top young goalies in the game (although Thibault would struggle with the glare and pressure of the Montreal spotlight) and a pair of top-6 potential forwards was about all anybody could reasonably expect. The disappointment for me was the inclusion of Mike Keane. Good teams do not let their captain go easily...yet the Habs of the mid 1990's traded or let numerous captains walk away with little or no return: Chris Chelios, Guy Carbonneau, Kirk Muller, Mike Keane, Pierre Turgeon and Vincent Damphousse...a continuous gutting of the team's leadership core that partially helped the team's descent into the NHL abyss for a decade starting in the mid-1990's. Which leads to...
5) Saku Koivu likely not re-signed as a UFA
Saku Koivu helped stabilize the ship and brought class and dignity to a team that did not deserve it during his tenure. His departure will only magnify the gutting of the leadership core of the team that has occurred the past three seasons: Rivet, Souray, Higgins, Komisarek, Streit, Huet and now Koivu were all guys around whom the team was centred in the room. Now they are all gone, leaving only the enigmatic and frustrating Alex Kovalev and the recently acquired Scott Gomez. Some will applaud these changes: that leadership group had accomplished nothing, and the line goes that they never would. The same things were being said about Detroit's core of Fedorov and Yzerman, but that situation ultimately turned the Red Wings from perennial also-rans and chokers into a decade long elite franchise that other teams have tried to emulate.
The 2008-09 Montreal Canadiens struggled mightily, but I refuse to believe that the team had to be blown up. Regardless of my opinion on the matter, though, blown up it has been... Now we will all have to sit back and see what rises from the ashes. But it sure seems to me like the Centennial Curse has managed to rear its ugly head this summer too, just when we thought we had washed our hands of that taint we had hoped to never see again.
... Agents must of got together and signed a pack, don't let your clients sign until after July 1. Many GMs are quiet worried right now, their dreaded salary cap.
It has been eerily quiet....next year has a lot of GM's spooked, but the agents are being paid to get their clients the kind of money being handed around freely the past couple of summers.
One of those two positions has got to give.
C - As you posted earlier , we will find out at this time next year , time will tell.
We have 10 signed players and 3 of those are forwards - how long do you want Bob to wait? September? Was the trade ideal? - nope! But to suggest that Gomez isn't a star is ridiculous. If he were to setup 60 goals or 70 goals, I could care less how many he scores. Saku is going to Minny and both he and Alex are getting long in the tooth (love them both) but I would much rather have a 30 year old Gomez than Saku at this point in their respective careers. For 7.3 million? Not really the ideal situation - giving up youth for experience - that I like. Giving up Higgins? - I love him but it was time to move since his name was continous in the rumor trade mill - you can't play under those conditions.
Gomez will be a great fit in Montreal - he played for ex-habs in Jersey already and understands the expectations. I really think you should see what else transpires tomorrow, and give the guy a shot to prove himself before you throw him under the bus.
DD...
Besides, our main concern as fans should be whether or not the team that the Habs would ice is better today that it was yesterday. By adding Gomez and subtracting Higgins, that answer is "yes".
As long as Bob makes the team better and makes it fit under the cap I don't see why any of us should really care who the highest paid player on the team is.
I have NEVER subscribed to the notion that we as fans should only care about whether the team is better today than it was yesterday on paper. I am a firm believer that as fans, we should hope for the team to be a contender for years to come, because it is pretty rare that a team wins a Stanley Cup in its only one or two shots. This move reeks of going for it this year or next, and I simply don't think they have the horses to accomplish the goal.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Rangers used that strategy for 10 years beginning in the mid-1990's. It did not work. They were in the mix, but never got over the hump. What's worse, they crippled themselves when the salary cap came in and are two systems that are still struggling to re-stock with talent.
We helped the Rangers out of their predicament.
C - A very expensive way to get better.
Going....Going...Gomez! The Domino Effect Of A Bad Deal!
http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/2009/7/1/931640/going-going-gomez-the-...
How much is Kovalev going to want now that we have an $8M 15-goal man?
He is now going to get the puck to shoot now, and not have to set himself up all the time!
Wow I hope Gainey and the other Habs players don't read this site - I can't believe how negative the posts are even when we pick up a star player. I know a players value based on how I feel playing against that player - and I hated playing Gomez - oh yeah and 2 Cups! Don't ever underestimate the value of winners! Of the 210 gaols scored all last season from the Rangers (one of the lowest in the leauge), Gomez figured in to 27% of them. He's 30 and in his prime and by the time he leaves, we will have 2 or 3 other blue chip prospects to replace McDonagh. Give me Stanley Cup experience over blue chip potential anytime. If Bob did nothing, there would be pages of bitching about him sitting on his hands!
Go hard after another front line scorer so we have 2 lines that can bury hte puck - Price you have to be a bit better (Now that Rollie is gone, mayne the next coach will get your *** out of the net and start to challenge more. You are big and quick - use it! I'm glad Rollie is gone).
Defense is going to be an issue as we need a Schieder type puck moving a PP defenceman. I would LOVE to have him back along with one more FA or a Subban coming out party would be great!
Don't get to upset about this trade gang - Gomez is a SOLID two way winner with lots of heart - something this team lacks in my opinion!
DD...
Anyone here who wants Gomez to fail just to be proven "right" is an idiot and not a real fan. I hope he gets 95 points.
But Sather had his nuts firmly up against the cap, and Gainey gave him a get-of-jail-free card.
"Let's see Glen, you've got a 15-goal man who makes $8 million a year. How about I offer you a second-round pick to help you ease your cap woes?"
"But Bob, remember those pictures I took back when we played that one year together in '74-75?"
"Ah, I see. How about I give you a younger, cheaper, former first-round pick with leadership qualities who has three times as many 20-goal seasons in his career as your man. And I'll throw in a 20-year-old, cheap defenceman that we took with the No. 12 overall pick just two years ago - and is rated as one of the top 20 prospects in the game?"
"Deal? Deal."
What concern of Bob's is the Ranger's cap situation? The Rags could have $35 million in cap space, but that wouldn't change the terms of the Gomez contract.
Bob wanted Scott, and had the cap space available to sign him. Is it worth more than what Bob would have wanted to sign him for? Probably, but if he wanted Gomez that badly then he has no choice but to pay.
Also, it could have worked the other way around: Bob was shopping Higgins with no takers, and at the same time wanted Gomez, but the Rangers would only take Higgins if we tossed in a prospect or two. Sometimes that's the price of getting the player that you really want.
Please,
The Canadiens just picked up arguably the most overpaid player in the league. 7.3million dollar cap hit for 63 points. He's scored more than 20 goals ONCE, and it's not that he doesn't shoot, he just can't shoot. Higgins is a much better scorer than Gomez is. By the time Gomez leaves McDonagh will be on the Rangers top pairing.
The Habs are not even close to winning a championship, they have become the Maple Leafs of the 1980's and 90's... Make the Playoffs!
The Habs "assets":
-One obviously bad GM in BOB
-Jacques Martin, who is coming off a WONDERFULLY unsuccessful stint in Florida
-The softest D-corps in the league, with the hardest hitter departing ASAP
-A current top line of KosTIT Gomez and KosTIT
-A whole bunch of cap room that will be filled up with second rate free agents becuase no one in their right mind would really want to sign here.
Gomez may be paid like a star, but he's not a star. He scored 7 goals in 47 games in their two Stanley Cup years. Wow. I interrupt my previous "time for Koivu to go" rants to point out he could produce the 15 goals and 55 points we'll get out of Gomez next year for one-third of the price.
Gainey won't last the year.
I've stood by and maintained a strong belief in Gainey for a long time now.
He is a classy guy and was a great player for the Habs.
He has made some good trades (Kovy for a song) and some bad ones (Ribeiro to Dallas), but who hasn't.
However, this one is so inexplicably bad that I think something is wrong, and that thing is Bob.
If I were his boss I would have fired him this afternoon and when the Molson Bros take over in September that might very well happen.
Wtf is with Heatley! That is a shocker. I've gotta say, for all the bad hockeykarma stuff he's doing, I would NOT mind seeing him in montreal red...
Oh wait, how much is he getting paid?
I'm not sure if this has been said before consider this situation:
Higgins tells Gainey he isn't going to resign with Montreal. Rather than losing this player Gainey puts together this deal and moves Higgins before he loses him. Thus, as Higgins would have been lost at noon today anyways, our only loss would be the two prospects. I think we can all agree that McD and Jan are worth Gomez et al, even with the cap loss considering we have so much to spend. Free-agency isn't where you pick up enough players to make your team a contender, it's where you pick up players for the future or to add one slight touch to bring your team into cup finals contention.
This isn't an unrealistic situation and should it be the case Gainey made an amazing move. Perhaps he plans on picking up that big centre at a later date when better opportunities arise. I'm not very satisfied with that options I've been presented. Remember that Gainey drafted big impact centres in the draft - perhaps rather than pick one up now he's going to move these guys up in the future. Clubs have to think long term. Remember that Gainey said this year that we won't win next year (being 09/10)? Don't be so quick to bash him. Gomez can be moved, and in a couple years when we're actually a cup contender (don't fool yourself and think we will win this year or probably even next) Gomez will be easy to move because teams will have to pay him less than he gets now.
Think long term. We won't win this year.
Yeah ... Higgins is an RFA. He couldn't have just walked away.
And Gomez will not be any easier to trade in a couple of years ... his cap hit remains the same regardless of his actual salary.
Why are you tying yourself into knots to defend this move? "Think long term"? Long term is where this deal is worst for the Habs!
Higgins doesn't play smart and has not improved. Also, there seems to be hints of him being a boozer.
Gomez is contracted for 5 years that is about right for his age. Gomez seems much more of a scoring threat than Higgins who had his best years with a healthy Saku and Ryder.
I assume Montreal was no longer high on Mcdonut. Is there a sleeper in the trade?
i would rather have traded fisher over mcdonaugh.. anyone else agree?
Red Fisher?
everyone
Hell, most of the folks on here have never seen either one of them play, so how they could make an informed opinion on which one should be traded?
Everyone, who has seen McDonagh play or has f'n brain. But, not the usual band of jackasses on HIO who can't even spell his goddamn name.
Saw him play in the world championships for Team USA - he was solid.
Look out, he's gonna blow!
lmao
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
Have you ever seen the guy play? Let me guess, no. Yea, and Leblanc is going to leave Harvard after two years.
Wtf am I supposed to do? I'm just a fan. I don't attend games anymore because I can't afford to. I'll watch the games just the same. Who knows, maybe it's time to take a page out ot Pittsburgh's book and tank to get a first round pick. McDonagh is just another commodity that has been bought and sold. I can't do squat about it. Thank Bettman and his boys for that.
Like I said, I'm just a fan.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
You're not just a fan... you're a Zep Fan!
2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
If you admittedly don't know what the f'k your talking about, you could at least provide a Surgeon General's warning at the top of your posts so that we could all just skip them.
Wtf is your problem?
Since your so f'cking smart. Apply for the GM's job or shut your pie hole.
Get over yourself, Peabody. YOU like me are just another fan that can't do *** about the situation.You're not the second coming of Toe Blake.
Like I said, go piss and moan some more on a messageboard if it makes you feel better.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
lol
Hope it works our for you guys and the Impact get promoted to the MSL.
hahaha. Yeats, haven't heard from you in a while. terrible trade. Looks like you'll get to watch higgins as much as u like in NY next year.
And, Komisarek after noon tomorrow!
Yeats, if you get a chance ask Higgins if he actually practiced hitting goalposts and endboards!
No, that came naturally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The patience that Bob Gainey showed me when he could have gotten rid of me years ago, I am just really grateful for it." - Mike Modano, June 30, 1999
It's not about Higgins, Chuck. It's about losing McDonagh when your d looks like crap. Get a load of this: Gomez got just five points more than Ryder last year and $3.3MM in additional comp. Dude knows how to get paid!
The kid wasn't going to be a comodity on the Habs for another three years, in which time his spot on the D depth chart can be replaced by Weber or Subban, or through another draft or signing.
Fact is, the Habs needed to retool their lineup this year, and in that context McDonagh was viewed as expendable.
1) Most of the reports I have read had McDonagh weighing his options as to whether to jump to Hamilton this summer or stay in the NCAA. I remain sure McDonagh is closer to making the jump and will in the NHL before Subban does.
2) Most important: Subban and McDonagh are different players! McDonagh is a stay-at-home defenceman that can make an outlet pass. He likes to hit. He's a great positional defender. He is exactly what the team needs, and represented the only player of that variety in the Habs system with Valentenko gone and Yemelin seemingly not coming over.
When you have Subban, Weber and Carle (plus the recently drafted Bennett) all being offensive defenders with questionable defensive skills (and only those who put their entire scouting emphasis on the farce that is the World Juniors can somehow avoid questioning Subban's defensive skills in his own end...if you watch him on the Belleville Bulls, he has improved but still has a LONG road ahead of him to respectable NHL defender), I would be much happier giving up one of those four than McDonagh, even though I think it was unnecessary to include ANY of them to get Gomez.
Its that fact that kills me: there is no way that anybody can convince me that the omission of one of our top prospects was a deal-breaker in this case. Who would have crucified Sather? The fans weren't happy with Gomez's production in New York. His contract was widely held up as a laughing-stock. The Rangers were desperate to make a splash... It does not add up that they HAD to have McDonagh to make this work. This is the same team that traded Kovalev for Josef Balej STRAIGHT UP. In this case, we give up a good roster player and an infinitely more highly-touted prospect for a lesser (but still very, very good) player with salary-cap handcuffs attached to him.
I wonder if there's any solace at all to be taken in the fact that, despite a cap hit of $7.4M per year, he's on the books for $8M next two seasons, then $7.5M, $5.5M, and $4.5M.
It doesn't make him any more tradeable from a cap perspective and doesn't make a buyout attractive, but at least we could be out of hell from this good news in 4 years instead of five. Talk about looking for a silver lining.
Teams with no cap issues wont care about the true cap hit of his contrac..... on the other hand they will appreciate the lower hit against profit represented in the last two years of his contrac.
Dobber Hockey's take on the deal - suffice to say he does not like it from the habs perspective:
The Canadiens get: a skilled, but expensive pivot who is often miscast as a first liner. Gomez is probably at his best on the second line, posting 70 points (even though he had 84 once). That being said, if he clicks with a sniper this could work out. The other two players will probably not be NHLers, although Pyatt is ranked 283 among forwards on the DobberHockey Fantasy Prospects List.
The Rangers get: more than they could have imagined. This deal is unbelievable. A $7.3 million (cap hit) player who has averaged about 62 points over the last three years would normally get a team an obese contract in return and very little in terms of quality. Not only do the Rags get Chris Higgins, who will probably command similar money as Dave Bolland (around $3.5), but he has the ability to get 62 points and add leadership. Uh, isn't 62 points the same offense that they just gave up? And they got youth and a salary cutback too? Sign me up!
That's not all. That's not even the KEY to what the Rangers got here. There are some scouts who feel that McDonagh is - er, was - the best prospect in the Montreal organization. And that's if you include P.K. Subban and Max Pacioretty in their thinking. He is an all-around player and leader who will be in the NHL in two or three years as a No.3 guy. He'll be a 30 or 35-point defenseman, but he'll be that guy that every team craves to own.
We're not done yet. Pavel Valentenko is in Russia for good. At least, so the Habs think. But does anyone believe that the Rangers can't get him back across the pond? Anyone? This is the one team in the NHL who doesn't fear a lack of a Russian transfer agreement.
Wow, Montreal just solved a lot of New York's problems. Somebody had to have been drinking - the Habs have a lot of cap money to spend, but that doesn't mean it should be wasted. If you can't find a better free agent than that for a similar price, then just forget free agents and build through the system. There are a lot of great kids there. Well, two fewer now.
Wow, Dobber IS Pierre McGuire.
"Music is the best." - Frank Zappa
That's it in a nutshell. A must read for every Habs fan. We got SCHOOLED.
The Rangers get: more than they could have imagined. This deal is unbelievable.
ENOUGH SAID!!!
We're definitely seeing the beginning of a radical overhaul. Tomorrow will be a tough one for Habs fans to get through. See everyone tomorrow evening to sort out the carnage.
I feel like this trade has united all habs inside/out posters, I mean, does ANYONE think this trade is worth it...? Give up a great prospect and an extremely solid young roster player for a talented but massively overpaid and underperforming player... I`m willing to give Gomez a chance, and who knows, maybe he`ll get back to elite form, but I see no need for this trade unless the Rangers have promised to give Montreal another asset in the future for cheap, because Tanguay is a better playmaker than Gomez and comes way cheaper, and Gomez is all of 1 inch taller than Koivu. I like the playoff experience gained but I don`t believe we should have had to pay such a premium when the rangers were so desperate to move Gomez. Is there anyone on this site who sees this as a good overall move for Montreal? I love Gainey and I know he`s a great hockey mind, but I can`t help but question this move.
- strengthens NYR cap position vs. the Habs'
- compromises the future of our defensive core
- abandons a long-standing Russian prospect
- doesn't help our biggest weaknesses (toughness, defense)
It's as if Gainey had a stroke of something... What's going on?!Not surprised... as I see it... it's business as usual at Gainey's...
Perhaps I am alone, but I see this as a positive trade for the Habs. Not very positive, but we have improved our team. Everyone is complaining about his cap hit. Yes, it is a lot for a player that just scored 58 points last season. The one place where we differ drastically is on the trade components. In terms of the actual trade, it's a great trade. We're giving up a player who would be playing on our 4th line plus a prospect who could or could not bust for a proven scorer. We have loads of defensive gems. Giving up one really isn't that bad. The bad part is the salary, but even then it isn't terrible. We still have 27 million! Second only to Atlanta by the slimmest of margins! Though it is highly unlikely, we can still add major players like the Sedins. I doubt Gainey will go into next season with the tandem of Plekanec and Gomez. He will bring in another big centre. Whether it be Jokinen or Antropov or someone we haven't duscussed, there is still plenty of money to be spent on the 09-10 Habs. Playing with solid players in a defensive system like in New Jersey, he can certainly reach 80 points again. Another thing to remember is that his contract has 5 years on it as opposed to the much lengthier ones of Lecavalier and potentially the Sedins, who will be signed until they are near 40. Gomez is a horse. He is excellent on faceoffs and despite the fact that he is only 1 inch taller than Koivu, he does have about 30 lbs on him. He hard to take off the puck, he plays solid in his own end. He is the player we need in the new Martin era. He will be an example for the others on our team to follow. He has boatloads of playoff experience and he is CLUTCH. The biggest reason why I like this trade is because I compare it to the rumored Lecavalier trades. For Lecavalier, we would have likely had to give up the same deal plus Markov and picks or other roster players and picks. For the differnce between Gomez and Lecavalier it is not worth it. For the extra 5 years that we'd have to keep Lecavalier it is not worth it. We asked. Bob delivered. I'm sure there is plenty more en route.
Gomez is a very good player. However, I disagree with your post. I do think, in the long haul, this will be VERY bad for the Habs, but I am biased toward McD and anyone from MN, so take that for what it's worth. I hope you're right and I'm wrong. At any rate, you make a good point about Gomez fitting in well under Martin. And if we bring Kovy back, I like the odds that Gomez can get him the puck. As for the Sedins, I'd feel good if we get them, but I've somehow become very pessimistic about ANY decent free agents coming here.
Thank you sanj91 for your very well thought out and thorough analysis. I've been wanting Bob to gamble a little bit and I guess I got my wish. For now, I'm off to bed. Try to hang in there tomorrow. I think we're in for a rough ride.
GO HABS!
Thanks for some positivity, I needed that even if I don't entirely agree.
Back? Gomez never was an elite center. He has a career season, otherwise he's a 65-70 point second line center.
Sather had is back against the wall, we should have nailed him there. No quarter. Heck I would have made an offer to Dubinsky instead.
_________________________ Scream for me Montreal.....
so we get a slightly more durable, slightly younger, but way more expensive koivu, and lose a player and a top prospect, and the team (and organization) is better how?
I bet koivu would have stayed for $4-5M, and we could have kept higgins as well. then probably got gomez next year, or whenever sather was more desperate.
gainey just overpaid to get out of the jam he's created by having too many UFAs.
i don't like it.
Gomez is Saku's replacement...plain and simple...
For that money, I'll keep Saku.
It's just not right: no Gomez should have Scott as a first name. It sets a bad example for the younger players in the room. What's next? Are they all gonna start getting new culturally mismatched first names? Like Wolfgang O'Byrne? Patty Kostitsyn? Pavlov Stewart?
This bodes ill... Ill I say!
Hey, one of my stable mates just told me the Habs got the rights to aquire the rights to options on some Swedish dude named Sats Mundin! (Hic!) I know that I have been out drinking, but this sounds like a deal that could put them (or Gainey) over the edge!
Jokinen --> Plekanec, D'Agostini
Bertuzzi 2 year 4M
Ohlund 2 year 9M
Barker 5 year 22.5M..have to give up a 1st and 3rd rounder
Lang 1 year 2M
Latendresse 4 year 8M
Kovalev 2 year 10M
Stewart 3 year contract similar to Lapierre (0.6-0.8M)
SK74 Gomez AK46
Pacioretty Jokinen Kovalev
Latendresse Lapierre Bertuzzi
Stewart Lang Laraque
Markov Ohlund
Hamrlik Barker
Gorges O'Byrne/Weber
Price Halak
1st pp would be Jokinen, Kovy, Lang with Markov Barker
2nd pp would be Gomez with the Brothers K and Ohlund Weber/Hammer
My read on Gomez:
Negatives- I thought that 8 million for Lecavalier was a lot of money. This is obscene. And for FIVE more years, too. I don't see enough upside to justify the expense.
And giving up McDonaugh? Do we have that many defensive blue chip prospects in the pipeline that we can just give them up? As much as I like Higgins, I agree, it's the loss of McDonaugh that really stinks.
my friend just told me this...this has to be complete fabrication cause this sounds like something to be seen in the movies
"massive rumor i heard today
about when kovalev was sent home for two days
was because gainey found out the koististen brothers were at some sketch bar with ties to the russian mafia and told carbo to get them out..he refused and so he called kovalev who went to the bar and told them to get out and told the people in the bar to leave them alone..but the sketch people in the bar are russian mafia so they threw kovalev in the trunk and drove him around montreal
and he stayed home for the two games because he was rattled by this"
- Pride + Envy = Second Place