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About Mike Boone
Full Name
Mike Boone
Web site
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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Point of information. I have been busy all day getting ready for a party so I haven't been able to find out where local hometown boy, Ethan Werek went. Can anyone help me out on this one?
Ethan Werek (Kingston Frontenacs, OHL) Center from Markham Ontario, 6'1" 190lbs was drafted in the 2nd round, 47th overall by the New York Rangers.
47th overall to the NYR in their compensation pick for Cherepanov.
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049No... Which makes no sense at all. From what I heard, they gained no compensation for Bourdon because he actually played in the NHL, which is a retarded excuse because Bourdon had massive potential and was a much bigger loss than Cherepanov who may have never came over anyway.
Wait... not to be totally callous, but why should the Rangers be afforded a "free" pick? They drafted the guy, and he "didn't work out".
What it the Habs' first pick (god forbid) shatters his pelvis in an accident and never skates again? Should the Canadiens then get a compensation pick in an upcoming draft?
The league doesn't allow the rule for compensating picks for drafted players that don't work out,they call it the HOULE RULE.
Thanks, Andrew. For a moment there, I couldn't find his name and started to panic. He's not the best skater in the world but there is some room for upside. Going from Stouffville to the Big Apple may be a life altering experience. Shades of Carey Price, no doubt:-)
My wife and I are celebrating our 25 anniversary tonight so there's not much time for hockey today!
...does this mean tomorrow morning ...your Nic changes to 25 Cups ?
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049Let's hope he does well, but not against us of course!
False rumour. :(
Ya, it's been squashed...... I also just read that the Havlat thing has NOT happened.
Phew. Last thing we need is another high skill, soft body, injury prone player eating into our cap while playing at 60% all season.
Martin Havlats Rights traded to Montreal!? Does anyone have any info on this?
Hmm, what if his rights would be acquired to flip to Tampa?
Tampa needs to dump salary. Signing an elite UFA doesn't help in that category lol.
Very interesting, indeed.
I so hope this is true, Havlat would be such a huge impact! Can you imagine a line consisting of
AK46-Koivu-Havlat, That makes me drool a little...Wow, fingers crossed!
Makes a lot of sense. Havlat has gone on record saying he loves the city. There has been rumours about Montreal's interest in him for a few years. The Jacques Martin connection from his Ottawa days with him.
Just read that it seems to be so. From HockeyBuzz (Mark Christopher), so take it for what it's worth. Hasn't been confirmed as of yet.
Havlat wants to stay in Chicago as per his official Twitter site.
unfortunitly i don't think they can afford him if they wish to sign others.
Where'd you hear that???
It doesn't surprise me that much though if it is true. Havlat has been known to spend his offseasons in Montreal.
_____________________________
Koivu for Prime Minister :)
Drive for 25!!
30 years from now, Louis Leblanc will be the GM of the Habs with his Harvard pedigree :P
Now that all teams have all of their assets the real horse trading and signings can begin. It is going to be very busy behind closed doors on every team talking to players agents, signing free agents, and trading players to make cap space.
There should be a lot of players on the move this year. I just wonder what our starting roster will look like in September?? Maybe as many as 8 new faces in the line up.
It certainly is an exciting time to be a Hab fan, Ian. The next week should go a long way in determining the success of the coming season.
Your right about that Chuck, we can surmise and guess, but no one has a clue what is going down in the next couple of weeks, not even Bob. So we just have to wait and see if he can improve our club so that we can compete with the better clubs. We have a lot of ground to make up in order to close in on the top squads this year.
"Pittsburgh also traded a seventh-round pick (No. 211) in 2009 to the Montreal Canadiens for a sixth-round pick in 2010."
Source: http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=432005
It seems that 7th round pick was not a gift.
Sounds like it was a formality in getting Montreal the last pick. Following the draft rules I doubt that a team can simply give up a pick for nothing, so Pittsburgh exchanges the picks in order to give Montreal the last selection in this year's draft.
It's still a classy move, though one that they will regret when the goalie that we chose with that pick stones the Pens in the conference finals 12 years from now. :)
I figured as much,not a bad thing to pick up a 6'6" goalie from a goalie making country like finland with the last pick in the draft.
I'm pretty satisfied with the way the draft worked out for us.I would of liked to see us move into the end of the first round or the top of the second round by trading our 2nd pick in next years draft and our 3rd rounder from atlanta from this year but it is quite difficult to do. I think leblanc would of actually went higher in the draft if he was playing junior hockey in quebec instead of the ushl. Of course the most interesting pick will the big russian who sounds like he has ridiculous skill to go with his size. Probably would have been at worst a top 2nd round pick if there wasn't such an issue with the khl.
Wow, that is amazing, just giving up a pick like that for free, classy classy. Maybe it has something to do with us taking TJ Kemp off of their hands earlier this year, hah.
That was just a rumour. The 7th cost a sixth next year. Would have been classy, but was just a business move. http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=432005
NHL players are not drafted, they're made.
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049... Transactions for June 27/09 : .....
CalgaryAcquired defenseman Jay Bouwmeester from the Florida Panthers in exchange for defenseman Jordan Leopold and a 2009 third round draft pick; traded defenseman Jim Vandermeer to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for forward Brandon Prust.Los AngelesTraded forward Brian Boyle to the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2010 third round draft pick.PittsburghTraded goaltender Chad Johnson to the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2009 fifth round draft pickIsn't Brian Boyle like 6'7? Centerman playmaker aswell who knows how to get physical.
He was playing some D as well, but for some reason he never got a real shot. He is huge though.
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049Okay, if we really want him, we need to start driving Hybrids to help bankrupt all the Russian Oil Barons who are throwing the money around over there.
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049Nice move by Pittsburgh with the free draft pick at the end. Too bad the Islanders were selfish and didn't do that with No. 1
Dave Stubbs
Habs Inside/Out
Sports Columnist/Feature Writer, Montreal Gazette
Imagine if the kid turns out to be the next Dryden. :)
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049(Habs) Petteri Simila (G) last pick overall #211
He is not ranked by NHL Central Scouting.
boone,what did we give up to get the last pick in the draft from pittsburg?
it was a gift from Ray Shero....very classy of him
And Bob was so touched that he gave Shero the Habs sixth round pick next year as a delightful parting gift.
Thats what I want to know, seems like an odd move.
here is the line on him anyway
730211MTL PETTERI SIMILA Apr 9, 1990 OULU FI 6' 6" 189 FINLAND-JR. KARPAT JR.GBoone states above that Pittsburg gave us the pick as a thank you for hosting
Seriously? Wow.....that's awfully classy
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049According to NHL Central Scouting, we picked up the 13th,40th,146th,153rd and 166th ranked North American skaters and the 10th and 18th ranked European skaters.
Michael Cichy ranked 166th of North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting
Michael Cichy
Seventh round has got to be the most exciting... only 30 picks left and so many kids dying to have their name called.
Habs doing as much as can be expected and Leafs (who were expected to do much) are flaming out.
Works for me.
I'm still waiting for Burke to trade Blake. You know, too old. Quality doesn't matter to him so long as they are young and hyped. I'll be laughing when it happens.
Blake is quality? Give your head a shake. The guy is overpaid, too old and very inconsistant. They'd be morons not to cut him loose.
As this draft is winding down, I must say that I feel really sorry for Nazem Kadri. He must be dying inside.
I'm sure he is already considering turning down the leafs offer to sign the normal 3 year entry level contract and re-enter the draft in 2 years.
Don't worry. In time he'll be traded to us and he'll get his revenge. Be happy there's a player out there who desperately wants to join the habs. It will happen some day.
I like all the picks except for the other Quebecer pick. 5'9... ugh
I'm loving this draft so far. I was all against drafting Russians in the earlier rounds just because who knows if they want to come over to North America and play, but I like the Alexander Avtsin pick. High risk, high reward in a later round. As for everyone else anything I read sounds great, lots of bigger kids that drive the net, compete, play hard and care about winning.
Dustin Walsh: "A big and fluid player who has a great understanding of the game. He is a slick player with tremendous passing ability. Has shown good poise around the net and can be strong on the puck. He has great hands and the puck seems to have the ability to follow him around the ice. He has elite and power play potential." - from Dartmouth Sports.
So far, 4 centermen drafted.
Dustin Walsh: 6-2 Another big center :P
Ranked 146th North American skater at NHL Central Scouting
Long time reader first time poster (sounds so cliche) -
Has Burke done ANYTHING this draft? He traded all his players away who could play for a bunch of picks that *might* make him happy? A hab fan dressed in a leafs jersey? Nice going Blowhard! Guess you won't make the playoffs for a few more years.
You're right... got so caught up thinking the Habs might do something that I forgot the Leafs were supposed to do something...
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049I find it hilarious that the habs drafted Leblanc and got massive fan support while the leaf fans are all wondering if their GM has lost his mind. Nothing like drafting a player who hates your team!
http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=283055
gillis not planning to sign the sedins?
gaborik is building a hosue in vancouver so maybe demitra will move up to be their first line center with gaborik on the wing...where have i heard that before...oh ya in minnesota! where it didn't work out.
would rather keep the sedins than sign gaborik...but hey if the sedins are in play! let's do it bobby G.
- Pride + Envy = Second Place
...Or he just didn't make a counter-offer. Maybe Gillis is fine with Sedin's ask or he's preparing an offer after meeting with Barry. It seems impossible that he doesn't re-sign them...
Interesting. Last night he was pretty adament that they weren't going anywhere.
Gabriel Dumont is ranked 153rd of North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. And NO JT! , this does not count as another scoop.
interested in the rooskie...is he reckless like arthyukin? i think the artichoke could take the luchicken in a fight any day.
- Pride + Envy = Second Place
same here, 6'3" and almost 200 lbs at 18. When he is done growing he can easily be 6'4' or 6'5" and 220 to 225 lbs. Huge gamble considering our history with russian players,hopefully by then the khl will have folded.
I heard he's absolutely insane offensively, much like Ovechkin - but he plays in a very weak league so we don't know for sure if that'll translate well to the KHL/NHL.
if he's 18 and ripping up the 3rd division...by 21 he could be ripping up the KHL...and by 30 he might actually play in the NHL.
- Pride + Envy = Second Place
Mike,
Good on you for being so nice to Robert L and stating 'fresh start'. It was a misunderstanding a while back but I'm glad you made him feel welcome again. I don't always agree with you on things but I respect your writing style and your wit. I've said before that "About last night" has always been one of the first things I religiously read after the Habs play.
Thanks,
Sulemaan (aka Big Bird)
Bravo!
Cheers Cheers
Drummondville kid :)...5'9 ARGH
You didn't think that after passing on this year's Minnesota Mr. Hockey they would not (throw) pick at least one midget, did you?
I hope THIS Russian can pan out. His numbers are insane... Even though probably not against top competition.
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