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The Gainey era

Mike Boone — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:50:39 -0500

Let's not judge Bob Gainey on the basis of Janne Niinimaa or Sergei Samsonov.

And let's not compare him to Frank Selke or Sam Pollock.

The team Gainey took over had gone 30-35-8-9 in 2002-'03.

The Canadiens haven't been that bad since.

Nor will they be that bad in Bob Gainey's last season – unless Pierre Gauthier REALLY screws things up over the last 22 games of the regular-season schedule.

Unlikely, but it could happen.

The Canadiens' freshly-minted GM was director of pro scouting when the team signed Samsonov.

• Mike Farber's take

• Renaud Lavoie

A speedy winger who could score seemed like a good idea at the time.

So did Niinimaa. The Canadiens headed into training camp in 2006-'07 with two injured defencemen: Mathieu Dandenault and Francis Bouillon. Gainey thought he needed help on D.

He didn't know Niinimaa was damaged goods – but that ignorance is on pro scouting, run by that Gauthier guy.

We can pick over all the significant moves of Gainey's tenure, and each can be debated until the bar closes.

Sheldon Souray? A pylon, and Bob decided to show Markov the money instead.

Cristobal Huet? He'd played himself into a long-term contract. And with Carey Price in the wings, Huet wasn't going to get what he thought he deserved.

Mark Streit? Gainey made a reasonable offer that morphed into a lowball as Streit played himself into huge $$$.

Last season's pending free agents? Gainey believed insecurity would spur great performances. And it probably works that way in Harvard Business School case studies.

Not in the Canadiens' room ... not when the core group of promising young talent, painstakingly assemebld by Gainey and Trevor Timmins, were happily partying themselves into a eight-place finish.

Unlike Pollock, who was able to send Frank Selke, Jr. (no chip off the old block) a bag of pucks for the draft choice that yielded Guy Lafleur, Gainey had to compete with general managers who knews what they were doing.

Pollock snatched Lafleur with the first overall pick in 1971. The Canadiens' fourth choice that year was Larry Robinson.

The Canadiens drafted Steve Shutt, Bunny Laroque, John van Boxmeer and Bill Nyrop in 1972. The next year's first-round choice was a Left Wing from the Peterborough Petes whom no one knew much about: Bob Gainey.

In 1974, Cam Connor, Doug Risebrough, Rick Chartraw and Mario Tremblay.

Those bountiful drafts are a distant memory. Bob Gainey inherited a team that spent the 1990s drafting Brent Bilodeau, David Wilkie, Brad Brown, Terry Ryan, matt Higgins, jason Ward, Eric Choinard and Alexander Buturlin.

Oh yeah, and Saku Koivu in '93. Even a blind squirrel finds nuts once in a while.

Again, we could pick over the drafts (David Fischer?), trades and free agent signings until the cows and Pat Hickey come home.

Gainey made mistakes.

Perhaps the biggest was the handling of Carey Price.

The Canadiens brought him up too soon, rushed him along and, worst of all, left a 20-year-old hick from the backwoods of B.C. to disport himself in Old Montreal.

If billeting was good enough for the Sidney Crosby, the first overall choice of the 2005 draft, why not for the fifth?

The team did not take proper care of its most precious young asset. And the cost of that neglect will be a bill tha falls due on Pierre Gauthier's watch.

But in a league jam-packed with smart general managers – Ken Holland, Darcy Regier, Lou Lamoriello, Doug Wilson, Brian Burke, Dean Lombardi and David Poile would be on my short list – Bob Gainey kept the Canadiens competitive.

Competitive isn't good enough .... not in Montreal, the city of a million hockey coaches and 500,000 general managers.

Gainey was second-guessed on a daily basis by a motley collection of pundits, unemployed hockey coaches, former NHL goons and sports radio blowhards.

To his credit, he was able to soar above the fray.

But it bugged him, as attested to by the infrequency of Gainey's media availabilities.

Factor in family sadness that would have crushed a lesser man and one can imagine Bob ganey reaching the point of "Who needs the aggro?"

The timing saves the Canadiens some embarrassment.

Gainey's contract is up in June. If the Canadiens miss the playoffs, the Molson group might have been obliged to fire him.

That shouldn't happen to a man of Bob Gainey's stature.

But keep that axe honed for Pierre Gauthier.

About this afternoon ...

Mike Boone — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:56:03 -0500

Starting the second half with an onside kick.

That's just the kind of coaching decision Jacques Martin would make.

OK, that was a joke.

The Super Bowl was fun ... and we needed that after the afternoon's downer.

Not much to say about the hockey game. The Bell Centre couldn't have been any more subdued if the Who were playing.

Had they lost, the Bruins would have matched an 85-year-old record for futility.

That wasn't going to happen ... not if Tuukka Rask could help it.

The Boston goaltender pulled a Halak. Rask made 36 saves, and the Canadiens were goose-egged for the fourth time at home this season.

The shot total was misleading. There were few second chances, no sustained pressure .... not even during the second period, when the Canadiens had a 15-3 shot advantage.

The Boston goaltender saw everything, and his D kept the slot clear ... not that anyone in a red jersey was inclined to venture there.

Tomas Plekanec had nine shots on goal, Scott Gomez seven. But while Sergei Kostitsyn and Brian Gionta showed some O-zone jump, there wasn't much help from Peter Principle wingers Mathieu Darche and Travis Moen.

The fourth line of Hamilton call-ups, who were spectacular against the Penguisn on Saturday afternoon, couldn't do much against the Bruins. Ryan White, David Desharnaid and Brock Trotter played against Steve Bégin, Milan Lucic and Shawn Thornton, a match-up that favoured the big, physical Bruins.

Lucic, plagued by injuries this season, had five hits and keyed a ferocious Boston forecheck that kept the D off balance. The Canadiens give away inches, pounds and truculence to physical teams: I'm not looking forward to the pre-break home-and-home against Philadelphia.

The Bruins took one minor penalty. That's not very much when you're giving up 36 shots, and it indicates the Canadiens' general ineptitude in the O-zone.

Jaro Halak ran into some bad luck.

Two of the Boston goals were deflections, off Ryan White and Josh Gorges.

The good news on Super Bowl Sunday: all the Canadiens emerged with their Achilles tendons intact.

And now two days to prepare for the best team in the NHL.

Canadiens Halaked

Mike Boone — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:26:55 -0500

No barber poles.

More to the point, no finishers.

Mike Cammalleri and Benoit Pouliot were sorely missed.

Still in sixth place, but no breathing room.

The Bruins broke a 10-game losing streak and moved within three points, with three games in hand.

And a fourth shutout on home ice despite 36 shots on Tuukka Rask

About this afternoon ...

Mike Boone — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:24:49 -0500

The kids are alright.

"Who dat?" will be the rallying cry of Saints fans during the Super Bowl tomorrow night.

This afternoon, at the Bell Centre, Canadiens fans were wondering "Who dey?"

Three emergency call-ups from Hamilton – Ryan White, Brock Trotter and David Desharnais – formed the best fourth line the Canadiens have had this season.

I know: That isn't saying much.

But suffice it to say the youngsters did a lot more skating and hitting than we'd seen from Georges Laraque in two years.

In assessing the work of his former Bulldogs teammates, Mathieu Darche said hamilton coach Guy Boucher teaches and preaches the kind of take-no-prisoners hockey we saw from White, Desharnais and Trotter.

"(Boucher) wants his players to be relentless," Darche said.

Relentlessness dominated the Penguins every time the kids were out there. The AHLers drew three Pittsburgh penalties and we were consistently first on the puck in the Penguins' zone.

Desharnais and Trotter played more than 11 minutes. White would have but for a late-game fight with Bill Guerin that cost him a couple shifts.

Making his NHL debut, Trotter led the Canadiens with five shots on goal. White had four hits, and Desharnais displayed the O-zone skill set that has carried the diminutive centre up the pro hockey ladder from the ECHL.

Coach Jacques Martin compared Desharnais's gifts – his vision and ability to read plays – to Martin St. Louis. High praise indeed, but for one day at least, the kid deserved it.

There were inspired efforts by the reconstituted Tomas Plekanec and Scott Gomez lines, who outplayed the Sidney Crosby and Geno Malkin trios.

Martin thought the addition of Darche and Travis Moen (who played his best game of the season) to the Pleks and Gomez lines, respectively, added some grit and defence without detrating from scoring punch.

Keyed by the kids, the Canadiens outhustled the Penguins – exemplified by Brian Gionta turning on the afterburners to beat Mark Eaton and score the goal that gave the undermanned (in theory, at least) home team a lead they would not relinquish.

The Canadiens outskated and dominated the Stanley Cup champs en route to a 32-21 shot advantage.

21 shots?

That's like a day off for Jaro Halak. He didn't need a shower.

But the team's number one goaltender was good when he had to be.

Playing without Mike Cammalleri, Andrei Kostitsyn and Benoit Pouliot – that's 51 goals out of a lineup that has trouble scoring – the Canadiens played what their coach considered the best 60 minutes of the season.

They did so because Martin was able to roll four lines, pressure the mistake-prone Pittsburgh D, spend long stretches in the Penguins' end and drive an Olympic goaltender to the bench.

The guy I consider the best player in the league was minus-2 on the game.

Gino Malkin was a non-factor and took a dumb penalty.

A good indicator of who had the puck for most of the game: Pittsburgh took six minors to three for the Canadiens. That's happened rarely this season.

Seeking an explanation for the champs' rather lacklustre effort, I asked Pittsburgh hockey writer Dave Molinari whether the Penguins, who got to Montreal yesterday afternoon, may have savored the delights of the city last night.

"They played," Molinari snorted, "like they were out this morning."

• • •

For anyone keeping track of Jacques Martin's Ontario franglicisms, today's press conference yieleded some classics.

The coach said the Canadiens were able to "out-shooter, out-chancer et out-worker" the Penguins.

He praised David Desharnais as a player who had "bat les odds" to make it to the NHL.

Upset of the season

Mike Boone — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 08:33:37 -0500

Did anyone see this coming?

That's why they play the games.

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:48:55 -0500

What are the Canadiens going to do with Jaro Halak?

Forty-five saves through regulation and OT.

Another three in the shootout.

The Bratislava Beetroot is singlehandedly keeping the Canadiens in playoff contention.

He's not elegant.

His technique won't be taught at goaltender school any time soon.

But Jaro stops pucks.

And wins games.

Without him, the Canadiens would be ...

Well, it just doesn't bear thinking about.

Halak has 16 of the Canadiens' 26 wins this season.

In seven of his starts, Halak has faced more than 40 shots.

He's won them all.

So, WSBD?

What should Bob do?

Six weeks ago, Gainey nearly traded Halak to Philadelphia.

More recently, Canadiens president Pierre Boivin told some dining companions that Halak would be traded soon.

Now what?

He's carried this team into sixth place.

The Canadiens needed Halak at his best because they were not good in Boston. Playing against a team that's a shadow of the one we saw win the Eastern Conference last season, the Canadiens managed only 25 shots on Tuukka Rask.

Almost half that total was produced by three players. Scott Gomez, Andrei Markov and Brian Gionta had four shots each.

And Gionta saved his best for last: a shelf-daddy backhand that won the shootout.

Thomas Plekanec's line played well. His wings, Benoit Pouliot and Sergei Kostitsyn, have some of the best skill-sets on the team.

Mathieu Darche crowded Rask on the goals – scored within 39 seconds – that erased a 2-0 Boston lead. Darche's play won him promotion to the Scott Gomez line, replacing the largely ineffectual Ben Maxwell.

The D made some gaffes, but Halak kept bailing them out. And Boston is the lowest-scoring team in the league. It's scary to think how many shots and great scoring chances Pittsburgh, Washington and Philadelphia will get in the games coming up before the Olympic break.

Mark Recchi, who's 73 years old, had SEVEN shots!

How many will Sidney Crosby get?

Geno Malkin?

Ovechkin?

As has been the case too often this season, the Canadiens took most of the penalties – six of the eight minors called in the game.

(No major in a Montreal-Boston game! WTF!!)

You can talk about inconsistent calls and fouls that were overlooked. But let's be honest about the reason for the disparity:

The Canadiens are penalized because their opponents control the puck. Even a crap opponent like the Bruins.

But a W is a W.

And without Mike Cammalleri or Andrei Kostitsyn, the Canadiens won a shootout.

• • •

Boston has lost nine in a row.

Their last home win was in Fenway Park.

Claude Julien's job may not be in jeopardy, but it should be. With a 4-on-3 power play in OT, Julien did not use Zdeno Chara, who has the hardest shot in the NHL. Plekanec, Hal Gill and Josh Gorges were brilliant, and the Bruins didn't get a shot.

Crazy!

• • •

The hockey world is buzzing about the Ilya Kovalchuk trade.

Here's one aspect of it that should interest Canadiens' fans:

Wise old owl Lou Lamoriello included Johnny Oduya in the package he sent to Atlanta.

If the Devils are going to make a run at the Cup – which was the point of acquiring Kovalchuk – they're going to need help on D.

Hmmmmm.

Wonder who might have a veteran Dman or two available at the deadline?

HALAK!!!!

Mike Boone — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:51:45 -0500

Two HUGE points

Plekanec: Save

Krejci: Leg save!

Gomez: Save

Ryder: Save

Gionta: Backhand shelf!

Savard: Save!

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:56:20 -0500

Truncated edition.

I have to keep my powder dry for the Puckcast that we'll be recording this morning.

So just a few bullet points to get discussion going:

• Jaro Halak once again gets his team two points. He doesn't look pretty doing it, but the guy stops pucks. And yes, this team plays better in front of him than Carey Price.

• Ryan O'Byrne played 21:48 of rock-solid hockey. He is thriving as Andrei Markov's partner and gaining confidence with every game. His size and willingness to use it were crucial against a very physical Vancouver team.

• Sergei Kostitsyn finally showed up. Man, those skills just make you drool. If he does it again in Boston on Thursday night, I'll believe SK74 has turned the corner.

• Tomas Plekanec does everything and does it well. This is not news, but I feared the workload would begin to take its toll on Pleks at this time of the season. Not happening. He's brilliant. How about the second, third and fourth effort on the goal that won the game?

• Whichever line Benoit Pouliot plays on becomes the first line. (Thanks, MrHazard)

• Mathieu Darche took a horrendous penalty – a neutral-zone stick foul with your team two goals up – but he's a heady veteran who is bringing Maxim Lapierre back to life.

• Ben Maxwell nearly got his first NHL point. Turned out he didn't touch the puck that Darche fed across to the crease for Max's goal, but the kid skated and did not look out of place against a quality opponent.

• Minus the guy who has scored 22 even-strength goals on a team that can't score even-strength goals, the Canadiens pop all three in 5-on-5 play. This team can drive a person bonkers.

• This team has character. When you consider the injuries – Markov, Brian Gionta, Andrei Kostitsyn, various and sundry Dmen and now Cammalleri – it's amazing the Canadiens have competed and competed hard nearly every night.

When you consider the "goaltender controversy" and all the off-ice sturn und drang (German for what falls out of the south end of a northbound horse) that is part and steaming parcel of playing in a hockey-obsessed city, the players have demonstrated admirable togetherness and team spirit.

As has been the case all season long, numerous scrums against the chippy Canucks did not lack for red jerseys.

Is it the coaching? Unity in the room? The professional pride and leadership of Gionta et al?

I have no idea. But say what you will about this star-crossed season – and our seventh-place heroes still face an uphill climb to the playoffs – these guys do not quit.

And the fans appreciate it.

There were sequences of up-and-down hockey against the Canucks that were as good as any we've seen this season.

The Bell Centre was rockin', and – for a change – everyone went home happy.

The Canadiens are 1-0 P.C. (post-Cammalleri).

They have four more home games heading into the Olympic break.

The Stanley Cup champs are coming to town. So are Boston, Washington and Philadelphia.

Gonna be fun!

MirHalakulous!

Mike Boone — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 07:05:14 -0500

Who expected that W?

Hello ... Bob ... anybody home?

Mike Boone — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 08:34:37 -0500

Brian Burke just blew up his team.

And the response from the seventh floor of the Belll Centre is ...

Jeez, kind of quiet in here, eh?

About this afternoon ...

Mike Boone — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:27:36 -0500

The Canadiens season just suffered a lower-body injury.

Losing Andrei Markov in the opening game was devastating.

The Andrei Kostitsyn injury hurt.

But if Mike Cammalleri is gone for a while .... well, could the timing be any worse?

This is a kick to the goolies on your honeymoon night.

We won't know the extent of the damage until tomorrow – if then.

But it looks bad.

Knees are just not supposed to bend that way.

(And Don Cherry is not supposed to recite poetry to a national TV audience on Hockey Day in Canada, but them's the breaks.)

And you can't overstate Mike Cammaleri's value to the team.

His 26 goals lead the Canadiens. Brian Gionta is second with 14.

Cammalleri's four game-winners tie him with Marc-André Bergeron for the team lead. He's taken 191 shots – 55 more than runnerup Tomas Plekanec.

Here's the killer part: 22 of Cammalleri's goals have come at even strength. No one else is in double figures except Plekanec, who has 10.

OK, other than that Mrs. Lincoln, did you enjoy the play?

The team battled hard in Ottawa.

After another lousy first period, the Canadiens rallied from a 2-0 deficit to send the game into OT and salvage a point. That's not easy on the road – and it's more difficult against a superbly-coached team (did you see Cory Clouston doing chalk talk with Daniel F. on the bench?) that had won eight games in a row.

Again, it was the power play that put the Canadiens back in the game.

The team's last even strength goal was scored a week ago against the Rangers – by Mike Cammalleri.

The Canadiens are among the worst 5-on-5 teams in the NHL. Today's game showed why:

Clouston was able to roll four effective lines all through the game. No matter who was on the ice, the Senatorsforechecked effectively, won battles in the corners and made life miserable for the Canadiens in their own end.

Until Cammalleri was hurt, his line – bolstered by the addition of Sergei Kostitsyn – was able to exert sporadic pressure on the Ottawa D.

Despite a mediocre game by Scott Gomez, his linemates – Brian Gionta and Benoit Pouliot – had a few even-strength chances.

But that's it.

Get past the top six forwards and the Canadiens have no one who can score ... or hit ... or go to the net ... or do anything that might wear down the goaltender and opposing D enough to make things maybe a tad easier for the top lines.

Can anyone remember the last time Glen Metropolit did something useful?

Travis Moen?

Maxim Lapierre?

Look, this is not a knock on their dedication. The aforementioned pluggers – along with Mathieu Darche – hustle their butts off and give 100 per cent on every shift.

The problem: Everything they've got isn't enough.

The Canadiens don't have a Chris Neil or Jarkko Ruutu, ass-kickers who can get an important goal. They don't have a Peter Regin or Chris Kelly or Jonathan Cheechoo, skilled players who can skate and win some puck battles and eat minutes on the cycle.

They certainly don't have a Mike Fisher, a take-no-prisoners physical centre who can score ... and did, to win the game.

And now Cammalleri is injured – probably out until after the Olympics, maybe longer.

Who's going to play wing with Pleks and Sergei?

Moen?

Darche?

Lapierre?

Maybe Ben Maxwell?

Then there's the D, where the Canadiens have a superstar who's struggling. Markov is still the team's best puck-mover and passer (and Carey Price motivator, but I digress), but he's become error-prone and inconsistent.

One positive today: Ryan O'Byrne played well as Markov's partner, reinforcing the theory that Marky brings out the best in big galoots, see KOMISAREK, Mike and SOURAY, Sheldon

The Roman Hamrlik-Josh Gorges (is my man Josh the poster boy for over-achievement, or what?) pairing was solid.

But Hal Gill and Yannick Weber?

As Benoit Brunet so eloquently put it: "Oy-oy-oy-oy-oy!"

Another positive: Jaro Halak – 34 saves, and not much he could do about the goals. But I bet we'll see Price against Vancouver.

There are two weeks until the Olympic break, and the Canadiens have a killer schedule:

A rare visit by homeboy Roberto Luongo – plus Henrik Sedin, the league's leading scorer – on Tuesday night.

The Canadiens are in Boston on Thursday, then they're home to the Penguins, Bruins and Washington before a home and home against the Flyers.

With Cammalleri, a steep mountain to climb.

Without him ...

As we say in Québec, les carottes sont cuites.

• • •

L'Artiste:

A goal and an assist, six SoG, almsot three minutes on the PP.

He's playing excellent hockey – and that's a tribute to Clouston.

• • •

I swear, next referendum I'm voting Yes.

I just can't be part of a country in which the greatest celebrity – by five kilometres ... like, who's second? Ben Mulroney? – is Don Cherry.

It's embarrassing, no?

Canadiens lose more than a game

Mike Boone — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 08:15:35 -0500

That Mike Cammalleri injury looked brutal.

As did Andrei Markov's defence in OT.

Mike Fisher shifted into overdrive and cashed a backhand that ended a pretty good hockey game.

Thursday Video Theatre III

Mike Boone — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 11:21:07 -0500

Bring Samuel L. Jackson in to run practice.

(Jarred Friedman never sleeps)

Thursday Video Theatre II

Mike Boone — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:05:15 -0500

Bob Gainey, cleverly disguised as Martin Sheen and accompanied by the Canadiens' full amateur and pro scouting staff, is summoned to the Crisis Room of the Bell Centre, where vice-president of PR Donald Beauchamp, cleverly disguised as Allison Janney, is attempting to explain the team's suckitude to the media.

Thursday Video Theatre I

Mike Boone — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:00:21 -0500

Fight of the Year!

Mark Fistric vs. Eric Nystrom

Here's your hat, what's your hurry?

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:32:10 -0500

Guest analyst Jimmy Ruffin puts the latest debacle in perspective.

What becomes of us broken-hearted Canadiens fans?

Can we ride this roller-coaster through the end of the season without sustaining serious psychological damage?

Jaroslav Spacek had the right approach:

He got sick BEFORE the game.

(Shout-out to Jarred Friedman for the video)

How does a team beat the Devils in New Jersey, plaster the Rangers 6-0, enjoy a day off in southern Florida and then drop two games to playoff rivals by a cumulative score of 5-1?

A cliché we've heard since the beginning of the season:

In order to win, the best players have to play their best.

Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos scored for Tampa Bay.

The Canadiens' best?

Well, Andrei Markov played 26:11 ... and he didn't yell at Carey Price once!

Scott Gomez fought a big Swedish kid.

Tomas Plekanec and Brian Gionta each had four shots on Antero Niittymaki.

So did Mathieu Darche.

Do we still count Carey Price among the Canadiens' best?

He made 27 saves, including several beauties. And despite the elaborate analyses that you'll find in the Comments section, Price could not be faulted on any of the Lightning goals.

Through the ups and downs of the Canadiens first 53 games this season, I don't think anyone could question their character or heart. Deprived of their best player in the season opener, the team scratched, battled and clawed in almost every game they played.

The goaltending was consistently good-to-excellent.

Tomas Plekanec played his heart out.

Roman Hamrlik stepped up big. He's not Andrei Markov, but Hammer tried.

The PK was among the best in the league ... mainly because it had so much practice.

Marc-André Bergeron helped the power play.

Scott Gomez came to life, and his resurgence happily coincided with the acquisition of Benoit Pouliot and the return of Brian Gionta.

It all came together against the Rangers at the Bell Centre.

Then it all fell apart in Florida.

Second to the puck and losing every battle.

Soft, badly coordinated defensive zone coverage.

Long-range, easily-stopped shots. Nothing from the slot, no net presence, no forward willing or able to play in the dirty zones qwhere most of the NHL's goals originate.

I could go on, but what's the point?

We're serious hockey fans.

We know what we're watching ... and it ain't pretty.

The Canadiens are in ninth place. The teams above and below them in the Parity Division all have games in hand.

On Saturday, the Canadiens will be at Scotiabank Place to face the Senators, who've been on fire since Daniel F. – their captain and leader – returned to the lineup.

In his postgame press conference, Jacques Martin looked like (choose one):

a) Jimmy Carter during the worst of the Hostage Crisis

b) Guy Carbonneau during the February road trip last season

c) A guy who wishes he could stay behind in Florida

Martin thought the Canadiens played better in Tampa Bay than they did against the Panthers.

He praised the contribution of Sergei Kostitsyn.

Can we add another possibility, then:

d) Keith Richards during Happy Hour.

On to Ottawa.

Jaro Halak will get the start.

And Jaro Spacek should be recovered ... unless he watches this game tape.

• • •

Carolina pastes the Rangers in New York.

Sergei Samsonov: Two goals

Tom Kostopoulos: Two assists

Oh, and Gui! got one ...

0-for-Florida

Mike Boone — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 10:07:30 -0500

Tough call on whether the floundering Canadiens were worse against the Panthers or the Lightning.

Discuss ... and oh, you will.

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:02:59 -0500

Karl Marx would have loved the game:

The Triumph of the Proletariat.

The Florida Panthers slapped on their hard hats, laced up their steel-toed boots, grabbed their lunch pails and went to work on your Montreal Canadiens.

And when the proles punched out after a job well done, the Panthers had clawed their way into the top eight and the petit bourgeois found themselves out of a playoff spot.

Is this the way the players thank Jacques Martin?

After the Canadiens played excellent hockey against New Jersey and the Rangers, the coach rewarded them with a day off in sunny Florida.

It didn't work.

In a crucial game against a team fighting for a playoff spot, the Canadiens had 17 shots on goal, blew a third-period lead for the first time this season and began their three-game road trip with a loss that dropped them from seven place to ninth.

And 24 hours later, they face Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos.

I smell 0-for-Florida.

No Nathan Horton.

No David Booth.

No franchise defenceman.

No problem.

With a 1-0 lead, Glen Metropolit turns it over and is trapped up ice. Shawn Matthias breaks in and is hauled down.

Penalty shot. Goal.

Neutral zone turnover and Panethers swarm the net. Matthias's shot ticks in off Roman Hamrlik.

Game.

Peter DeBoer is a really good coach. He had his guys play a patient, disciplined – and yes, very boring – style of hockey.

The Panthers owned the neutral zone. Their fierce forecheck bottled up the Canadiens for long intervals.

The Canadiens' attack – if you can call 17 shots, and 12 minutes of the second period without one, an attack – was the hockey equivalent of football's three-and-out.

On the occasions they were able to fight their way through the neutral zone, the Canadiens tried feeble dump-ins that the Panthers retrieved and wheeled their way back up ice, in numbers and strength.

It was a crucial game – and Florida wanted it more.

Minutes after the game ended, I got an angry e-mail from a disillusioned fan:

Worst frigging team ever. I can't stand to watch another minute. These guys have sucked me dry the last two years. They have enough talent - barely - to be in 7th or 8th. The execution is horrid and I give up. Worst thing is that we have to live with so much of this squad for so long with little reason to believe given the salary cap. Oh, and that guy Plekanec who showed up? Gainey too much of a pansy-ass to have put a bet on ANY player on his roster, so he'll lose that guy too.

The mystique is gone and I'm sick of being a Habs fan. I'm only happy when they're not playing, so the playoffs - for other teams - can't possibly come fast enough. Good riddance, Montreal Canadiens. You SUCK.

OK, a bit extreme.

But that was a brutal performance.

And it laid Martin open to some second-guessing.

Mathieu Darche was excellent in New Jersey and good against the Rangers. He played 9:49 against the Panthers.

Maxim Lapierre, who came alive playing with Darche on the weekend, was moved to wing on a line centred by Ben Maxwell.

Tomas Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri were joined, at various times, by Travis Moen, Brian Gionta, Ben Maxwell and Sergei Kostitsyn.

None reminded anyone of Andrei Kostitsyn.

There were moments, on D, when Andrei Markov didn't remind me of Andrei Markov.

Look, it was a stinker.

Best forgotten.

But the loss in Sunrise make for a must-win situation in Tampa Bay.

So who starts in goal?

I think it will be Carey Price.

And sweet mother of pearl, he'd better be great.

• • •

Eli Wilson is Carey Price's personal coach during the off-season.

Wilson was Ottawa's goaltender coach.

Since the Senators fired him, they're 7-0.

Plop!

Mike Boone — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 09:39:42 -0500

Dropped out of the playoffs.

A very bad time to blow a third-period lead for the first time this season.

Outshot.

Outhustled.

Outworked.

Sunday Video Theatre

Mike Boone — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 10:08:03 -0500

Two games do not a season make – especially a season that's been as screwy as this one.

But the Canadiens looked great last night, and the sun is shining in Montreal.

Pittsburgh-Philadelpia then Jets-Colts then Vikes-Saints.

Life is good!

And video scout Jarred Friedman thinks this classic captures the mood ...

Max-Packed off

Mike Boone — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:14:00 -0500

Mathieu Darche punched Max Pacioretty's ticket to Hamilton.

Against St. Louis on Wednesday, Max-Pac played 14:05 and veteran Darche 9:05.

In New Jersey, Pacioretty played 6:23 and my man from McGill 9:49. Darche scred a goal, added an assist and was named the game's first star.

Last night, Darche had another assist, added three hits and played 10:11. In his last game at the Bell Centre for a while, Max-Pac played 12:36 but didn't do much.

I'd still rate Pacioretty well ahead of Matt D'Agostini on the depth chart. But Max-Pac can be farmed out without waivers, which is not the case for D'Ags.

Pacioretty may not see it that way, but this is a positive move for his development.

He has size and some wheels, but Max-Pac's game is very raw.

Let's see what Guy Boucher can do with the kid.

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 23:32:44 -0500

Don't read this to understand what happened in the game.

Instead, listen to Jacques Martin.

I usually wouldn't recommend the kindly old coach's media briefings to anyone but the most desperate insomniacs. But Martin – who usually knows much bt says little – was in a voluble mood after watching his team play their best game of the year.

Martin said candid and interesting things to about his goaltenders, about Benoit Pouliot, about Mathieu Darche and about team toughness in the post-BGL era.

Martin was in a good mood, and why not?

The Canadiens swept two weekend games, a happy eventuality that would have been predicted by only the most delusional optimists .... and then only if their glasses were half full of tequila.

And Martin had outcoached two formidable rivals: a renowned strategist, Jacques Lemaire, and a celebrated loudmouth, John Tortorella.

All of Martin's coaching stratagems clicked in victories over the Devils and Rangers:

• He started Jaro Halak in New Jersey, which was an easy call. But then, to paraphrase Steely Dan, he went back, Jacques, and the Slovak did it again 24 hours later against the Rangers.

Halak kept the Rangers off the scoresheet through a first period in which the Canadiens were outshot 13-10 ... and the margin of good chances was wider. The Canadiens blocked five shots in the first period, and the Rangers missed the net 8 times. The corresponding numbers for the home team were 10-1-3.

The Rangers fired pucks from all angles, and Halak stopped them all. He kept the Canadiens in the game until the second-period offensive explosion – three goals in less than four minutes – settled the issue.

Jaro is 14-7-1 with three shutouts. He is (please ignore satanic connotations) a .666 goaltender on a .500 team.

• Martin juggled his lines, got a win in New Jersey, and then juggled them again to beat the Rangers. Brian Gionta has jump-started Mike Cammalleri – two goals, five of his 36 this season against the Rangers – and Tomas Plekanec, who had a goal and an assist.

To be honest, I lost track of who was playing wing, at various times, with Scott Gomez and Benoit Pouliot. It doesn't really matter.

Gomez is skating like like Gilbert Perreault and making brilliant plays. Pouliot is, on the evidence to date, the best acquisition Bob Gainey has ever made. Man, the kid has sweet skills! And as Martin said, Pouliot is taking his size, reach and quick hands into the dirty areas, where the combination of skill and sand produces scoring: 10 goals in 15 games for the Canadiens. Project that pace over a full season – as Arpon Basu did for The Daily Hab-it after the Devils game – and Pouliot is a 56 goal scorer.

Mathieu Darche won't score 50-plus. But I'd love to see the 33-year-old vet finish the season with the Canadiens.

Playing with Darche has brought Maxim Lapierre to life. Max got his first goal since Nov. 24 as a consequence of going to the net to cash in on Darche's determination.

Darche's comments are worth a listen. He heaps praise on Guy Boucher for instilling a strong work ethic among players n Hamilton – something we'd seen in Tom Pyatt and Ryan White when they were up here.

Apart from his non-stop motor and catalytic effect on Max, Darche should stick because he's a McGill alumnus. The Canadiens haven't had anyone from my alma mater since Ken Dryden went to McGill Law while he was playing.

• Martin was also adept at managing minutes. In back-to-back games, Jaro Spacek played 18:52 in New Jersey and 20:09 against the Rangers. He responded to a reasonable workload with two of his best games of the season.

What I liked last night was Spatch's ability to get pucks on the net against the Rangers. That's what gainey got him for, but the skill was not evident earlier in the season, when Andrei Markov's injury had Spacek playing 24 minutes a game – out of position on the right side.

The luxury of laugher meant Hal Gill – Hal Gill! – led the ToI parade with 21:09. Workhorses Markov and Josh Gorges played 20:35 and 18:21 respectively.

• Martin did not want Georges Laraque on his team. The NHL's "heavyweight champion" had less ice time than Youppi!

Through two games, the Canadiens have not misserd BGL. The Devils aren't a rock 'em/sock 'em team. The Rangers try to be, but Sean Avery was not a factor, and Ryan O'Byrne landed the better shots in a lively throw-down with Aaron Voros.

Does the team need an enforcer? Ask me again after back-to-back games with Philadelphia on Feb. 12-13.

For now, the Canadiens head to Florida with the faint stirrings of wind in their sails.

They've climed back into eighth place, but Boston is a point back and the Bruins are in Carolina on Sunday afternoon.

The ever-shifting Eastern Conference standings are on a white board beside Jaro Halak's stall in the room.

Having given their fans the first happy Saturday night at the Bell Centre since Oct. 31, all the Canadiens can do is try to win this weeks road games and let the rest of the mess sort itself out.

A good old-fashioned butt-kicking

Mike Boone — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:39:51 -0500

And Canadiens were the kickers.

So many heroes

Especially the goaltender, who gave his teammates a chance to get rolling

Torts Top 10

Mike Boone — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 08:30:29 -0500

Shout-out to Jarred Friedman for this compilation of John Tortorella's greatest hits.

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:31:55 -0500

Jacques Martin may have won his gamble.

We'll wait for the Rangers game at the Bell Centre before delivering an early verdict, but for now it looks like the coach has made the right decisions ... at a very critical time of the season.

Georges Laraque: Gone.

Matt D'Agostini: Five shifts, 2:37

Max Pacioretty: 10 shifts, 6:23

Martin got rid of his useless enforcer, shortened his bench and played the guys who he thought would give him the best chance to win – including Mathieu Darche, a 33-year-old journeyman playing for his fifth NHL team.

So far, so good.

Do it again against the Rangers and the bandwagon will get very crowded very fast.

This might have been the best 60-minute effort of the season.

After Zach Parise opened the scoring on a breakaway goal identical to the one he scored to beat the Canadiens in OT at the Bell Centre, I was sure the rout was on.

Wrong.

The Canadiens did not fold.

They did not play the kind of nervous, tentative hockey that has driven fans – and, undoubtedly, their coach – crazy all season long.

Jaro Halak made 31 stops. He handles the puck like it's a live grenade, but he makes the stops. And, most critically, he doesn't give up easy goals.

After Benoit Pouliot's goal tied the score, Jamie Langenbrunner had a good look and fired a slap shot from the left faceoff circle.

I don't want to wade into the goaltender debate, but there's no help for it:

Given the situation of the game and the nature of that shot – a riser to the glove side – would the other guy have stopped it?

Halak was beaten 6-2 last weekend in New York. He wasn't good, and his teammates were worse.

I think Martin has to come back with him at the Bell Centre. But we'll see.

There are other, easier predictions:

• Darche will play against the Rangers. Mathieu the Mature plays a simple game predicated on hard work and tenacious checking in all three zones.

It's not exciting, and Darche has a grand total of nine NHL goals in parts of seven seasons. But he's not the kind of player who's going to hurt his team. And like Glen Metropolit, Darche provides an inspiring example of how dedication can transcend skill limitations.

Speaking of transcendence, how about Pouliot?

Since the season began, we've been talking about the importance of locking up Tomas Plekanec. I'd also making signing Pouliot a priority. He's playing himself into a nice, three-year second pro contract.

Pouliot came to Montreal with the reputation as a head case. Enough talent that he was drafted ahead of Carey Price in 2005, but a poor work ethic.

Credit Martin with adroit deployment. When Pouliot's wrist finally healed and he was ready to play, the coach could have broken the kid in on the third or fourth line.

Granted, desperation is the mother of deployment. But Martin put Pouliot and Scott Gomez together, and there was instant chemistry.

Gomez, emerging his early-season lethargy, is a fast-skating playmaker. Pouliot is a physical triggerman with the best hands on the team.

Add Brian Gionta and ... Magic! A line that gives opposing defenders fits.

What was interesting in New Jersey was the subtraction of Gionta. Martin moved the diminutive spark plug in an effort to re-ignite Tomas Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri.

If Sergei Kostitsyn is ready to go against the Rangers, martin will have some flexibility in staffing his two top scoring lines.

Play Darche with Travis Moen and either Metropolit or Maxim Lapierre on the third line. Slap together a fourth line with whatever's left and play them six minutes.

Despite Martin's juggling, which included shifting Marc-André Bergeron back to defence after Paul Mara was injured, no one had to play crazy minutes, so there should be plenty in the tank for the Rangers, who undoubtedly spent their Friday night in Montreal reading the boble in their hotel rooms.

Ryan O'Byrne should be back in the lineup subbing for Mara. Josh Gorges (four hits, four blocked shots) and Andrei Markov played perhaps their best game since becoming the team's number-one pairing. Markov's pass to Cammalleri for the insurance goal was instant, instinctive and absolutely inspired.

Jaro Spacek played one of his better games (maybe because his ToI was a manageable 18:52). And Roman Hamrlik was, as always, quietly competent.

Because the game was a solid, 60-minute effort, it would be churlish to point out that Matt D'Agostini continues to play himself off the team. And Max-Pac has yet to offer any indication that he should be coached by anyone other than Guy Boucher.

The Canadiens moved past idle Florida into 10th place. They have 53 points, same as the Flyers, but Philly has three games in hand.

The Rangers game will tell us much about the Canadiens. Are they primed to make a pre-Olympic push toward a playoff spot? Or was a road win over Martin F. Brodeur just a brief respite from the death spiral?

The game may also provide some indication of whether Laraque will be missed.

Minus David Clarkson, New Jersey is not a tough hockey team – although Mark Fraser was plenty tough enough to clean poor D'Ags's clock.

The Rangers have Sean Avery. They have Aaron Voros. They have Donald Brashear, if John Tortorella wants to really load up on muscle against a team that just fired its enforcer.

Then again, Laraque had the best seat in the house to watch the Rangers manhandle his teammates in New York.

As one wag described the BGL fiasco, the Canadiens "thought they were signing the NHL's best policeman but what they got was a mall cop with a bad back."

Playing tough but smart – the Canadiens took only three minors, and one was coincident roughing – the Canadiens are undefeated in the post-BGL era.

HUGE!

Mike Boone — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 10:25:00 -0500

Big night for Mathieu Darche and the other forwards who played regular shifts.

Big night for Josh Gorges.

And that Slovakian goaltender.

Friday Video Theatre

Mike Boone — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 07:25:37 -0500

John Tortorella reacts to Dan Carcillo hammering Marian Gaborik.

The writer he takes on is Larry Brooks of the New York Post.

They bring their act to the Bell Centre tomorrow.

Requiem for a heavyweight

Mike Boone — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:35:03 -0500

BGL talks!

And in contrast to the peevish interview he gave TSN this morning, when he called the Canadiens "classless", a kinder, gentler and more diplomatic Georges Laraque says he loves the Canadiens, loves Montreal, loves the fans and loves his teammates.

Gosh, he even loves the Montreal media.

The big guy did not address the degree to which he loves opponents he's making $1.5 million a year – with a no-movement clause – to fight.

BGL fought three times this season. He had two shots on goal, one of which went in. At that percentage, Mike Cammalleri would have 88 goals.

In fond tribute to a gentleman and vegan who brought a whole lotta love to the rink every night, we present this golden oldie by BBW.

As for his future, Laraque says he hopes to be back in hockey with another team next season.

In the short term, perhaps he'll spearhead a relief effort in Haiti under the banner of Bagarreurs sans frontières.

Laraque actually is involved in a project with the NHLPA (he was the Canadiens' player rep) and World Vision.

Bob Gainey had the Quote of the Day:

"I don't have a copy of George's code. I don't know what it is."

The general manager's code is you stand up for teammates ... which, sadly, we did not see New York on Sunday night.

• • •

More happy news: Mike Cammalleri and Maxim Lapierre got into it at practice today.

Fans may recall Max in an altercation with Mike Komisarek at practice last season. BGL was the peacemaker.

I guess it's only opponents Lapierre won't fight.

About last night ...

Mike Boone — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:48:07 -0500

Seems about right: Play one period, get one point.

Your Montreal Canadiens sleepwalked through 40 minutes, trying their darnedest to make the St. Louis Blues look like the San Jose Sharks.

Different saints, though, and the masquerade ended for the final 20 minutes and the first three minutes of overtime.

That's when the Canadiens played with the urgency that they should be displaying from the opening whistle, considering the perilous state of their playoff hopes.

The point – along with a loss by Florida – allowed the Canadiens to leapfrog over the Panthers into 11th place.

Glass half full view: The Canadiens are only five points behind fifth-place Ottawa.

Glass half empty: The night after the Senators looked great in beating mighty Chicago, the Canadiens were crap for two periods and lucky to salvage a point against the not-so-mighty Blues.

Positives:

Benoit Pouliot had seven shots on goal, two of which were lobely one-timers that went in. He is a sweet hockey player who's going to be good for a long time in a city that embraces French-speaking hockey heroes, especially ones who play with élan.

Andrei Markov played up to his elevated standards after a very ordinary weekend against Ottawa and the Rangers.

Carey Price got very angry after Cam Janssens bowled him over, and I thought Price was able to channel that emotion into a pretty solid performance. But check the Comments section for several dissenting opinions.

The PK killed a long 5-on-3.

Tomas Plekanec was flying all nigh and went 17-7 on faceoffs.

Negatives:

The D is undersized. I love my man Josh Gorges, but he's small and aggressive forechecking puts him in time/space dilemmas. Is there another team in the league that would have a 5 playing a 2?

(Is there another team that has two defencemen playing as forwards? But I digress.)

The defence and the backchecking forwards were brutalized by the big, hard-hitting and very tenacious Blues. I lost count of the puck battles they lost through two periods. St. Louis was able to maintain possession in the Canadiens' zone through long stretches, wearing out the D.

The third and fourth lines can't score. But on the other hand, they can't hit.

The Canadiens came alive in the third period because Jacques Martin shortened his bench. But if neither Tomas Plekanec nor Scott Gomez is on the ice, the Canadiens play at a distinct disadvantage.

Mathieu Darche did not re-ignite the Tomas Plekanec line.

The two winners of the So You Think a Dman Can Play Forward contest, Ryan O'Byrne and Marc-André Bergeron, were invisible ... which was probably a good thing.

Anyone watch Ottawa beat the Hawks Tuesday night?

Chris Neil was excellent. He ran at Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. He keyed a scoring play by steaming up ice with blood in his eye, and there wasn't a Chicago player inclined to get in his way.

The Canadiens don't have a Chris Neil.

They don't have a Mike Fisher.

And as was obvious for most of the St. Louis game, they don't have a David Backes or Keith Tkachuk.

The Canadiens don't have a mean, ornery SOB who forces opponents to keep their heads up and rush their passers.

They don't have an ass-kicker who's going to get booed in opponents' rinks.

Travis Moen? A willing warrior, but not big and/or skilled enough to create choas in the O-zone.

Max Pacioretty? The Canadiens bypassed David Perron, who scored his 14th last night, to draft a Connecticut high-school player whom they projected to become a power forward.

Max-Pac is young and he's raw. He should probably be in Hamilton. He has to bulk up, and he has to work on developing his hockey IQ.

But in assessing Paciorety's upside, I don't see the second coming of Cam Neely. Nor do I see forward who'll butt heads with Chris Neil.

With the Canadiens down 3-1 after two periods, I was shooting the breeze with Marc du Foy, the locked-out Journal beat writer whose stuff is on ruefrontenac.com. Du Foy asked if I'd made vacation plans for April.

"Yeah," I replied. "Jacques Martin and I are playing golf on the 12th.

"Loser has to coach the Canadiens next season."

A bit harsh perhaps.

Unlike the Manhattan Massacre, the boys didn't quit against St. Louis.

Markov is still a magician.

The Gomez line lifts fans out of their seats at the Bell Centre. How great would that line be if Benoit Pouliot had been at training camp and Brian Gionta's foot hadn't been broken?

The goaltenders are young and talented.

And Carey Price was eager to throw down against a thug who has 104 PiM this season. Maybe you don't want your franchise goaltender bouncing his hands off someone's helmet, but you have to admire Price's spunk.

But put my feet to the fire after watching 51 games and I have to say your Montreal Canadiens are not a playoff team.

Maybe the Boone Reverse Jinx will kick in on the weekend. Just to reinforce the notion that I don't know fecal matter from ice cream, the Canadiens will bag convincing Ws over the Devils and Rangers, thereby zooming several spots up these crazy Eastern Conference standings.

Maybe.

Heartbreak ... again

Mike Boone — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:43:17 -0500

Too little, too late