Log in & Sign up
You are not logged in.
About last night ...
posted by Mike Boone at 7h13 EST on Mar 25
Halfway through the third period, when Heatley scored his second to make it 7-4, I turned to pressbox seatmate Michael Farber of Sports Illustrated and made a dire prediction:
"If Canadiens blow this, they won't win another game this season."
I was serious. The fragile confidence of a young team, a team that few predicted would make the top eight, could not have withstood the greatest collapse in the history of the franchise.
It didn't come to that. Canadiens killed a 5-on-3; and while Jason Spezza scored on a subsequent PP to make it interesting, Ottawa ran out of time.
A third period that was very nearly a season-sabotaging debacle could be chalked up, by Guy Carbonneau, as a learning experience. Canadiens saw what could happen when they deviated from the game plan and took bonehead penalties.
Twenty bad minutes did not cost them. Canadiens got the W anyway, and they won't make the same mistakes again.
A letdown was probably inevitable after 40 minutes of total domination. Props to the coaching staff for a great game plan that neutralized Ottawa's progress through the neutral zone and cranked up speed that the Senators' clunky defence corps couldn't handle.
Carbo started his fourth line against the F.s but then went strength-on-strength with Tomas Plekanec, Alex Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn. He varied the match-up to good effect through two periods.
Some observations:
• Two demons – New Jersey and Ottawa – exorcised. One to go, maybe Saturday at the ACC.
• Highest-scoring team in the whole F. league!
• Biggest goal of the night: Francis Bouillon, less than two minutes after Antoine Vermette scored to make it 3-1.
• Pass of the night: my man Sergei K., through a forest of sticks and skates to set yup a goal by fellow Hel's Bell Mikhail Grabovski.
• The power play is back.
• It doesn't show up on the stat sheet, but Chris Higgins' hustle clearing the zone in the dying minutes was a huge play.
• Carey Price could not be faulted on the goals, but I think he's at his best in close games.
• Ryan O'Byrne played 16 minutes and led both teams in hits with five.
• Saku Koivu had five shots and avoided hooking penalties.
• Maxim Lapierre did his job by really pissing off several Senators.
• Steve Bégin had only two hits but chased the puck aggressively all night.
• Tom the Bomb: a goal, three hits, plus-two.
• Where will Guillaume Latendresse fit in this lineup?
• Their D isn't very good. Andrej Meszaros had eight shots but was minus-2. Wade Redden had his bell rung and did nothing. Luke Richardson is old and Mike Commodore left his game in Carolina. They were particularly hopeless against the Russians and Belarussians.
• Gerber or Emery for the playoffs? That's like which would you prefer the night of the prom, a zit or a cold sore?
• François Gagnon of La Presse thinks that might have been Mick McGeough's last game reffing in Montreal. One can only hope.
So, mission accomplished: Canadiens are in the playoffs, which means team president Pierre Boivin won't have to trgger the "or else" ultimatum he delivered at the team's pre-season golf tournament. As if ...
But first in the Eastern Conference on March 25?
Pinch me, I'm dreaming. Any minute now, Bobby Ewing – or Pierre Boivin – is going to step out of the shower ...
Habs Inside/Out main RSS feed
As I said in the main blog about this game, ugly as it was, this was a HUGE win. Though there are some massive implications:
http://habsbros.blogspot.com/
Some funny stuff. The Plekanec/Kovalev story started off really well. I thought you had a good thing going until you lost me with the whole shower-hug bit. I think you could've just left us to believe that Pleks was a little weird, instead of cheapening the bit and having Kovy suggest that Pleks is gay. Everyone's a critic though huh?
posted in the wrong spot.
On a side, side, side note, how great does it feel NOT to have Bubblehead Sundin? What a relief.
People can say what they want about Gui's skating, but over the next few years this team desperately needs him to continue to develop into a power forward. Gui has shown that he has some decent scoring skills and he can hit people. If Gui does not become our power forward, and find a spot among our top 6 forwards in the next few years, than I fear for the future of the Habs. Yes, the Kost brothers and Plek will be among our top 6, but as the old guys (Kovy and Koivu) slow down, we need some other scoring forwards to emerge. It is not even clear yet whether Grabovski is a fulltime NHL player. And size is needed up front.
Max Pacioretty is our only other potential power forward. And right now, he's just a promising kid in college. That's a long way from being an impact player in the NHL.
IMO, they goofed by not sending Gui to Hamilton for at least half of this season to allow him some much needed development time. Donnie Lever could have helped this more down on the farm with his development than the Habs coaching staff, who were concerned about team itself.
Gui could have got some big minutes playing the PP, the PK & lots of ES minutes, while working on his timing of hits & learning to plant himself correctly in front of the net, where his size is needed.
I think Gui is progressing nicely and will definately become the PF we need. He is getting to be very good digging the puck out of the boards and to my eyes anyway, improving his skating as the 2nd half has progressed.
Did anyone else other than me think that after Bryan Murray's profanity filled, spit flying, screaming session at Mick McGeough, that held up the start of the third period, enabled Ottawa's slow footed defense to get away with a Hell of a lot more than they did in the first two periods???
Plus, doesn't Richardson & Commodore make Brad Marsh look like a speed skater???
Murray's tenure in the league allows him more leverage than any coach in the league. He gets far more respect than he deserves from officials. It looks like this Sens team climbed as high as they're going last year. Now, they're fighting against a long, slow, inevitable decline. They will definately need some new pieces to get to the top again.
GO HABS.
quick trivia question
who leads the Canadiens defenseman in plus/minus for the second half of the season?
oops forgot about this... Ryan O'Bryne +10
O'Byrne ?
Ok now, time to tell us....
Ovechkin on Markov:
Q. When you and your other guy friends go to a sauna, what does your friend Andrei Markov usually sing?
Usually he sings “Pour some, we’ll talk.” [Russian: “Nalivai, pogovorim”]
Q. Is it true that Markov is an amazing chef?
Yes, he can make an amazing burnt omelet in the morning.
The rest of the interview is here
thanks for the link. absolutely love that guy. i think, when talking about geroge w., he meant the opposite - "hey dude, what's up?" then watch him pretend to act like he KNOWS who i am. . . . guarantee that's a mixed up translation. . . and hilarious.
Q. Have you ever jumped with a parachute?
No, it’s very risky. But I did do diving [high platform]. I am getting ready for the Beijing Olympics in that discipline. Maybe Markov and I could do a synchronized dive.
Hahaha! Thanks for the link and the laugh, sidhu!
Maybe it's just me, but after many years of miserable teams, and then mid-season collapses in the last couple years, I think many of us developed the habit of staying a little cynical or maybe nervous. Despite the great season this team has had there was always a little bit of doubt in the back of our minds, waiting for the moment when this team, too, would fall apart and leave us all disappointed. Well, we can finally sit back and smile and enjoy what has happened here. For the first time in a long time the team has clinched a playoff spot early, and not been either out of it, or fighting for the eighth spot until the last 30 seconds of the season. On top of that, they have almost guaranteed themselves one of the top two spots, being 7 points up on Ottawa with only 5 games remaining. It feels great to see, and it's fun to watch.
The third period last night is not revealing at all. It's hard, especially for a young team, too keep their heads in the game when up 7-1 after two periods. The game was pretty much over at that point, and they played like that. There are going to many 7-1 leads in the playoffs.
yea i'm still cynical..
i half-expected us to crumble at least 300 different times this season.
i'm still cringing at the thought of a first-round exit...but i think we're better than that.
depends on who comes in 8th. I'm praying it's Boston and not the Capitals.
On a side note, how great is it that we didn't get Hossa?
Well last night he was third in total ice time behind Gonchar and Malkin and he finished a minus 3 for the night.
I'd take a signed Higgy over a rental Hossa any day.
The upside of the Canadiens let up in a blowout game: the opposition did not resort to goonery because they still had a shot.
lol just noticed that Mike already wrote that
.. but it's true and worth repeating.
Guys/Girls what do you think Carbo's gonna do when Komisarek gets back? Should he find a way for Streit to stay on as a defenseman (he's looked great there) and maybe work out a rotation with him and O'Byrne? Or, should he put him back up front?
Playing Streit on defense (even if only for a few games, here and there) would open up a spot up front for someone like Lats.
I just think that Streit if a far better defenseman than forward. He just looks more comfortable there.
Good problems to have...
Go Habs!
My guess is Streit will return to his role as a checking forward, but it would be intersting to use 7 D and to double shift a forward, like Kovy.
I honestly wouldn't care we never see Latendresse in a Habs uniform again.
That's a little harsh. He definitely needs some work and could've used more time in Hamilton, but I don't think it's fair to completely write him off!
To bad you don't know anything about this game with a statement like that GARBO.
Mike, are you crazy???
Lats for Lapierre? NO way!. Lapierre is too valuable on the PK and also gets tops marks for being a first rate "pest" on opponents backs.
We need this guy for the playoffs!
Here's an idea, why not rotate Lats (who is a good player on his own right with either Kostopoulos and / or Begin (when he gets injured again) on the fourth line (centered by Smokes)?
Go Habs!