OT 00:58:
They're just stronger on the puck in the canadiens' end
OT 1:18:
Gomez out for one more crack
OT 3:37:
How can they play MAB in OT?
OT 4:05:
Long-range chances
OT 4:47:
Tomas F. Kaberle
OT 5:00:
No joy in this one, no matter how it ends
3P 00:58:
Wouldn't you just know it? Grabovski. Embarrassing
3P 1:04:
Leafs timeout. Very tense here
3P 1:45:
Hangin' on barely
3P 3:28:
A little early for the Goodbye song?
3P 4:20:
Another great shift for Gomez
3P 6:05:
LOVE watching Max-Pac and Moen
3P 6:38:
I've really liked Gui! tonight. An awakening game
3P 7:25:
Jaro good .. and lucky
3P 7:47:
Top line is dominant on every shift
3P 7:56:
Loudest applause of the night: Komo icing
3P 8:49:
The chant: "67!"
3P 9:57:
Prediction: a Leaf will run Cammalleri
3P Break:
Man, the PP was due. That was a 5-on-5 but may as well have been PP.
3P 10:10:
Gomez: a genius!! 4-2
3P 12:18:
Komo and Max. Remember they got into it in practice last season?
3P Break:
Jaro will have to be VERY good. D is collapsing in on him. Leafs are buzzing. They look like the faster team
3P 14:00:
Grabovski running a clinic on MAB
3P 15:00:
Halak will have to be very good
3P 15:28:
Orr sticks Spacek in the face
3P 16:21:
Cammalleri playing truculent
3P 16:50:
Gomez brilliant on the PK.
3P 18:51:
Again??? You gotta be kidding!!
3P 19:31:
Spatch nicely set up
Murray Wilson says ...:
Komisarek is playing his best game of the season
3P 20:00:
Crazy game. It's not Pittsburgh-Detroit out there, skill-wise. But it's entertaining. Next goal is, of course, so huge mere words cannot adequately describe it.
2P 00:00:
Gionta causes a scrum. Should be a lively third period
2P 1:50:
Scrambly, but exciting
2P 4:44:
That didn't take long. Michel Lacroix was still announcing the penalties. Stempniak 3-2
2P 5:08:
Replay shows Cammalleri getting away with one. Goal shouldn't have counted. Refs suck.
2P 5:08:
Gill scores. Beauchemin goes after Cammalleri. Great fun at the old ballyard
2P 7:12:
O-zone hold. Not good, Mitchell
2P 7:36:
Yes! On a sequence that starts with him belting Komisarek, Gui! cashes Pleks's rebound 2-1
2P 8:25:
Jaro survives a big fat rebound
2P 11:34:
Cammy! Calm down!! Retaliation gets called every time
2P Break:
Amazing they killed that.Leafs have very good set-up on the PP. Everything is patient and feeds the blueline, and the shots are accurate.
2P 13:00:
Great kill, but tense
2P 15:06:
That bloody penalty! Every game!!
2P 16:19:
Komo flattens Metro, declines Moen's invitation to go. Leaf PP
2P 16:45:
Boo alll you want: Komo is getting his shot on goal
2P 16:49:
MAB is killin' me
2P 17:33:
How did that sneak in? Metro's hard work rewarded. Toskala brutal on the short side 1-1
1P 18:26:
First time this season Leafs open the scoring. Wow!
1P 18:48:
Am I a sage or what? Kaberle blaster, Ponikarovski on the rebound 1-0
1P 18:58:
Prediction: they score on this PP
2P 20:00:
Kinda boring so far, eh? I love Mtero, but when he's the most dangerous Hab ... And MAB in his on end? A turnover waiting to happen. On the plus side, Max-Pac and Chipchura continue to develop into reliable NHL players
Stats:
Canadiens had 12 shots, Leafs blocked 10 and there was a miss for 23. Comparable numbers for visitors: 5-5-3 ... Hits were 8-4 Toronto and the Canadiens had 12 giveaways ...Canadiens are 16-9 on faceoffs, Metropolit 8-3
1P 00:00:
Big edge in shots, for all that's worth
1P 00:40:
Stewart and Komo. No biggie
1P 00:54:
First line buzzing Toskala
1P 1:20:
Good PK .. but I wouldn't want to give them too many chances
1P 3:24:
Komo nearly gets his first. And the league's third-best PP gets a chance
1P 4:30:
MAB is scary on D
1P Break:
Not the worst Hab forward: Gui! Looked good on the PP, doing what he's supposed to.
1P 6:00:
Leafs have 3 shots ... but come close
1P 7:00:
Best chance: Max
1P 8:00:
Ah, Hammer ... you make me miss Markov
1P 9:00:
First Komo scrum
1P 9:31:
Birthda boy overhandled the puck on the P. Not good
1P 9:46:
AK46 hustles Schenn into a penalty. And after a commercial break, Gomez and crew will be very rested
1P 10:01:
Some nice muscle and hustle from Moen, Max-Pac
1P 11:00:
Good PP, won a couple faceoffs and MAB had a shot. Gui! went to the net
1P 13:02:
Kaberle, interference on Gomez in alone
1P Break:
No clear advantage. Halak has had the more anxious moments
1P 14:30:
Chipchura, Stewart, AK46
1P 14:51:
Hamrlik blast causes anxiety as Moen goes to the net
1P 15:26:
Giving up the blueline too easily
1P 15:45:
First shot: MAB, bad angle and from a distance
1P 16:44:
Chant of the night: "Leafs suck!"
1P 18:00:
Not much time in Leafs' end
1P 19:00:
Pleks, AK46, Gui!
1P 19:50:
First touch booed
1P 20:00:
Always fun against these guys, national TV, yada-yada
Starters:
Top line reunited
Hope for a civilized game:
No Jay Rosehill, no Jamal Mayers, no BGL
Oldtimers on the big board:
Réjean Houle and Claude Lemieux, each bleeding and scoring
Komo announced as starter:
Loud boos ... but I've heard louder. Grabovski starting also ... and booed
Happy birthday, Pleks:
27 today
Anyone have a feeling about this one?:
First costumes I've spotted:
Four guys in Section 404, wearing hospital scrubs
The barber-pole unis:
I hate 'em, especially in contrast to the nice Toronto blue-on-whites
Komo on the ice:
And the boos begin
Halak confirmed:
And Gregory Stewart in for D'Agostini
Scalpers say ...:
Worst sales for a Leafs game in six years. $150 tickets going for $125. Everyone home with the kids for Halloween?
FA gems?:
Mike Komisarek and François Beauchemin: 1 goal, 2 assists (all scoring by Beauchemin), minus-11 total, 27 PiM (all by Komisarek)
Interesting stat:
From François Gagnon: In 199 career games, Andrei Kostitsyn has scored 53 goals. In 222, with significantly less PP and Top Six time, Guillaume Latendrese has 47. A difference of 6 goals. I would have guessed 20.
Sobering, but a good read:
Réjean Tremblay's La Presse column makes the case that Habs fans shouldn't be scouting out seats for the parade any time soon. He cities stats, compiled for Michel Villeneuve's CKAC show, that suggest the Canadiens have no player 24 or younger who could crack the top three lines of 27 other NHL teams. Yikes!
Win one for the Gopper:
Shout-out to New Yorker writer and lifelong Canadiens fan Adam Gopnik, who's in section 119 with son Luke tonight.
Goalies?:
The buzz is Halak vs Toskala. I was sure it would be Price. What's the message: we blame you for the loss in Chicago? I dunno ...
First-hand report:
Nahlsy, who posts often to Habs Inside/Out, was at an OHL game last night. This is what he posted:
I didn't see the (Canadiens) game, I was at the Kitchener
Rangers/Erie Otters game tonight. I did see the head shot on
D'Agostini, which unfortunately wasn't the most terrifying or brutal
head shot that I had the misfortune of watching tonight.
I can't remember ever crying at a hockey game but, what I saw tonight..... it's just not , I dunno anymore
There's a 16 yr old kid fighting for his life in ICU in a Hamilton
hospital, where they send life threatening head injuries in Ontario
after a god awfully brutal cheap shot. The attacking forward had a
defenceman facing the boards behind his net, he jumped in the air and
elbowed him in the back of the head and drove his head into the boards.
They stopped the game while paramedics tended to the unconscious victim
on the ice for 40 minutes with the players of both teams out at center
ice praying for him.
This all lies squarely on the shoulders of people like Brian Burke, who
when he's not putting bounties on crippling kids like Steve Moore, is
fighting the notion that head hunting should be outlawed because he
likes it and it would take hitting out of his game. (Guys) like Colin
Campbell that look at figures stating 800 different NHL players have
had concussions since 2000 and he claims they're just faking it for the
insurance money so there's no need to do anything about it. These kids
in jr hockey see that the NHL loves this stuff, they watch tv and see
the way to get on the hilight reel is to pull a Ladd and jump up in the
air with a flying elbow to the forhead, trying to cripple D'Agostini
and they do it to a 16 yr old kid in jr hockey, while his parents
watched in the crowd. His mother passed out, his father had to tend to
her while watching paramedics trying to save his kid's life
frantically.... because Brian Burke and Colin Campbell don't think this
head hunting B.S. it a problem.
I just hope to hell that the on-ice death it's going to take for these
stupid (idiots) to finally pull their heads out of their backsides and
do something about this horrific problem doesn't have to be 16 yr old
Kitchener Rangers defenceman Ben Fanelli. Good luck Ben, please pull
through this so that you don't have to be a statistic.
Tonight, I just really don't give a crap about hockey or who won anymore.
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Last year's team was embarassing to follow. When it got into trouble, it had Kovalev to dig it out. And so, it usually remained stuck. Tanguay was always hurt, and Koivu was running out of legs after doing so much for so long.
It's no fluke that the worst performers are the established ones from last year. We can get onto the Habs for having no secondary scoring, but AK was primary scoring last year. Pleks has been amazing, in the company of team-mates who play like it matters. And the others seem to have fallen off, hopefully not for long.
I am enjoying the games this year. Yes, it's a middle of the pack team that fights epic battles with the bottom feeders. But it fights. It works. It has character and energy. It can only get better. Even the weakest signing, Gill, had a decent game last night. The positives abound, if you use your brain to recognize this is not a Cup shoo-in of a team. It is a very decent team with a solid work ethic and talent.
If Gainey had decided to stand pat, it would have been a weak character team imploding much like the Leafs have been. We could have been watching a 70 game death spiral. Instead, we get a season where the team battles against the weak teams, because it is one. I'll take a battling team. Sure, I'd love to watch a first place Cup contending machine. There are many things we'd love, we can't have yet, and hey, this is a fun team to watch.
Kind of ironic that Grabonski is higher in the pecking order on the Laffs than either of the Kostisin bros are on the Habs...sad really
I thought I'd Mention my full thoughts on why we should consider what's going wrong with the head hits, I posted this over on the Globe and Mail comments section regarding Ben Fanelli.
--------
This is what happens when the NHL treats head hits like minor incidents that have no long term consequences and players get rewarded for being as brutal as possible on bully teams with physical-first approaches and forget about everything else.
The Good Old Hockey Game is not becoming much of a good game for thousands of young players who may suffer life-altering injuries when many of them will never go on to play NHL hockey, but will suffer with the aftermath of neuorological damage or similar problems for perhaps their entire lives because of some mindless goon trying to look tough for an NHL scout.
This was a murderous hit, it was unprovoked and does not belong in hockey. People argue you have to keep your head up, the protection is better now, strap your helmet on tight but we are forgetting a major factor beyond that being a BS go-to excuse. Hockey players are packing on more muscle than ever, trimming away body fat to fit that muscle in and it's resulting in one, much, much harder blows. Players are getting faster and stronger, their impacts are heavier than ever and the most important fact of all? Our skulls and brains have not increased in resilience to damage in the last 30 years, not one bit. Stronger players, same density of bone and the protective equipment is not negating this and that's obvious by the number of players currently on the IR list. All headhunting hits must be met with strict 15-game suspensions from now on to start curtailing this and send the message to youth hockey, it is a game, enjoy yourself and don't behave like a thug because it will get you onto a "Tough" hockey team.
-----------------
Simply find one of those charts on the weight and height of NHL players and you can see the difference in weight but considering how today's young players talk about getting their body fat percentages down to single digits so they have much more strength and you can imagine how much more muscle is being packed onto an NHL player's body who weighes 200 pounds as opposed to 30 years ago.
- I shall always remember Captain Koivu.
Taken from an article I referenced earlier:
~
An ongoing study at the University of North Carolina found that the impact magnitude of hits delivered by youth hockey players aged 13 to 15 was similar to that of college football players. The average head impact among the youth hockey players was around 20 Gs, but some surpassed 100 Gs.
"The best analogy is from the automobile industry with the crash dummy testing that they do," said Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz, who heads the study. "When a car impacts a brick wall travelling at 25 miles per hour, the dummy inside the car impacts the dashboard or the windshield at 100 Gs."
~
We need to start protecting the head. We've lost far too many NHLers but, the kids are the ones starting to get badly hurt while emulating the guys they see on tv and on youtube. There are people out there blaming the victims and saying 'clean hit' everytime one of these head shots occur because it's gotten to the point now where, people really don't know what the difference is anymore.
"He should have kept his head up" as an excuse after someone targets an opponent's head to blame the victim and excuse the attacker is akin to the "she asked to be raped by this man because she wore a miniskirt" defence. It's disgusting. There ARE clean and legal hits that result in injuries, there are hits that had no intent to maim that cause injuries, that is understood. However, there are a lot of hits that are "legal" but, far from clean and many more that aren't much more than a split second instinct to try to destroy the guy on the other side of the hit, with no consideration of the life on the other side of it after the game.
It doesn't even mean someone's a bad or evil person normally, they just seem to get on the ice and turn into something else because of the way the game is transforming them when they do get out there. The other night Liambas (eventually I'll spell his name right) went out on that shift seeking to destroy, he drilled 16 yr old rookie Fanelli, he came around behind the net and crosschecked smooth playmaker Skinner in the face only 5 feet away from his unconscious initial victim, he fought with 3 other guys for about 5-10 seconds before finally coming back down from his rage and noticing the results of his actions. Liambas then stood in the zamboni path about 20 feet away from Fanelli for close to half an hr as the reality of what he'd just done sank in on him, he started to cry and felt as terrible as anyone of us likely would have felt, that he let the normal flow of the game turn him into a savage beast that tried to kill his opponent and faced the reality that he may well have just succeeded in doing it. He went to Hamilton personally to see his victim that night from what I understand and now he needs to live the rest of his life knowing and regretting that he did this to someone. That's the part we need to get out of the game. I'm all for fights and hard hits, I am no lady bynger or bleeding heart tree hugger by any means. I just don't believe that we need to send the message that it's the law of the jungle out there and we have to turn body checks into a means to disable or cripple our opponents as opposed to using them as a means to bump them off of the puck. Much like the poke check, you don't have to slash a guy in the head to use your stick to defensivly break up a play, you also don't have to take someone's head off to make an effective body check. Hit hard but, hit safe. The mentality of the game lately seems to have seriously shifted to kill or be killed though and that starts at the top.
I'm done my inane rambling and I'll step off the soap box now, sorry folks. I've been collecting my thoughts for the past few days and they all had to come out at once now that I am finally somewhat coherent again.
Very well said, I agree with everything. I'm a resident and I've done a couple of ER rotations, and I've already seen no less than six severe head/neck hockey injuries during the relatively short time I've been practicing. These are not famous NHL players, just kids who will never get to be featured on the news. However they are somebody's teenage sons who were supposed to live healthy and fulfilling lives, but instead they're bound to wheelchairs with absolutely no sensation or movement from the neck down, forever stuck with tubes inside of them to help them breathe and urinate. The last boy I saw was only 14, quadriplegic now because of a hit that sent his head to the boards and snapped his neck at the C4 level, and he has just started to learn how to breathe on his own after two months of intensive rehab. I'm all for the game but when you look at those kids, you have to wonder if it's really worth it.
Nicely said...the NHL is now a league run by Americans trying to entice Americans to watch a sport that emulates football in the degree to which hitting is the main focus...just as most Cannucks, myself included, do not GET the so-called Beautiful Game of soccer, because we grew up watching hockey, Americans, in the same way, do NOT GET hockey in "it's" most beautiful manifestation... in Olympic/Worlds Championship hockey, the hitting is designed to remove the player from the puck, penalties are too costly, and the focus is on skill, the NHL is a bush league run by Goons for Goons.
Was watching the Leafs postgame reaction on tsn.ca, and this is what a smiling Plekanec had to say about Komisarek getting booed all night:
"No surprise at all, I mean, he got what he deserved. So it was nice to see hear that from the fans for sure. "
I bet Pleks could've slapped Komi if he wanted to, but he uses his pimp hands for scoring goals/assists, cause he's a real O.G.
http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=296825
...watched most of the first (still 0-0) until My daughter needed some last minute decoration for Her costume ...by the time I returned it was the third, and 3-2 Habs, and shortly 4-2 with 5 or 6 to go ...then I cringe listening to the untimely Na-na-na chant .....4-3 ....then 4-4 ...(...We SHOULD ALSO have an Oy Vey ! Song) ...then in-the-end was relieved we overcame in the Shoot-out ...I will watch WHAT I missed on CBC's Game-in-60 re-play a little later
...BUT ...here are a couple things I can recognize without yet seeing the whole game: Toronto HANDED this game to Us for a couple reasons; First, starting/playing Toskala rather than The Monster; Second; incomprehensibly NOT calling Grabovski, Poni and/or Jason Blake in the shoot-up ...assisted Us in THIS win
...Habs Fans' long-held perception for The Reason (among MANY other) of Toronto's longstanding futility is because they are a few Leaves-short in Hockey Sense ...seems NOT to of changed with the comin' of Team USA to run the joint
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
...on a different tangent ...I VERY Much commend Mike Boone for leading-off His blog tonight by highlighting Nahlsy's compelling report of the almost killed junior player
...the ONLY way for this shite to be controlled in hockey ...the sport we love so much is for the press not be intimidated by muddying their relationships with teams and NHL management by campaigning for change on policies to eliminate or greatly minimize intentional OR accidental head-contact
...Our short-attention-spans can't be allowed to let THIS subject be swept under the rug or forgotten
...Fans ALSO must raise Their voices and influence on the subject ...shake the tree enough,and force the Colin Campbells and the NHL Rules Committee to act ...as well shame the Burkes of the NHL to understand how their talk influence impressionable kids AND have real-life consequences
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
BTW - Habs are 6 - 0 after 60 mins (feels like 1993!)
I don't know. I watched the game and enjoyed it end to end. They blew the two goal lead but I liked the intensity and thought we got great performances from Metro, Chips, Pax, Moen, Lapierre, Latendresse, Cammalleri (in spots), Gomez, and of course the unbelievable rebirth of MVP Pleks. Also thought Halak was pretty solid. Oh, and I am very impressed with Mara - much better than I expected - and Hamrlik may be stretched too thin but thank god we have him. Playing much better than last year.
The two clowns: Kostitsyn and Bergeron, with honorable mention to Gill but for some reason he's not bothering me as much. I sit Bergeron when O'Byrne comes back and agree that Belle would have been good enough for the 7th D, though.
Komi - on the ice for three goals against at least - the Metro fluke, the Latendresse goal, and coming back on the ice in the brilliant Gomez play with a little bit of luck for Hamrlik.
Two points against a team that won't be vying for the 8th spot - and one more point to help them out of the cellar eventually and thus not give the top pick to the Bruins.
I don't know why - I'm just enjoying this season.
Doug. I was there. Witnessed it from the very last row, vey last seat (section 404, seat 13) and I have not seen a Habs game more exciting in years. Good hockey? Not a chance, in fact my buddy and I agreed this was the most inept couple of teams we have ever had the fortune of watching. But fun? WOW!!! Between the flubs on the ice and the fights in the stands (security was bouncing them out pretty well the entire 2nd and 3rd, mostly Hab fans oddly enough) it had to be the most comical excuse for a "game" we've seen. And that in itself spelled F-U-N. Emotional rollercoaster ride of thrills and spills.
Bottom line, we won. Who the H-E-double hocky sticks cares how we did it. We beat those bottom dwelling scumbags.
Oh, and as a final assessment, they didn't give up...again. They collapsed in the last few minutes in their own end, but they did NOT give up.
that's what I said... heck of an exciting game, mostly because both teams are so bad. I get those in my beer league from time to time. Usually happens between the bottom feeders. Glad you made it to the Bell.
Komi -3? Awesome. I only wish Moen jumped him after the hit on Metro, however legal.
Mike...the physical activity in the stands was way more compelling than the on ice crap. I was in section 404 (where Boone acknowledsged the guys dressed as doctors, who were all Leaf fans celebrating a guy's stag...nice guys every one). It was the Leaf Nation up there and the animosity was running deep. Only wish the passion in the stands was carried to our bench.
My guess would be that it's because they could have just quit on October 2nd when Markov was gone but, they decided to fight instead. They know they're tiny, they know they're new to one another, they know they're missing their all-star and only true major award candidate but, they don't seem to know how to quit. There's a reason that Rocky and Rudy were among the all-time sports movies. People love to watch the underdogs that don't seem to realize they're the underdogs, busting their butts and pulling it off, even if it's ugly.
Those that expect to see the late 70s Habs dominating the league are disappointed mostly because their expectations aren't realistic. Those that realize these guys are a rag tag group of kids that weren't picked to play on the other teams and were basically floating around out there as free agents after we tossed all of our guys from last year, and notice that this is darned near 'We are Marshall' can sit back and enjoy the efforts and appreciate that win or lose, the team's rarely boring to watch because you just never know what the heck's going to happen next out there.
That singing early bit was annoying in a way but, funny as hell if you step outside the box and look at it from a neutral observer's vantage point.
Hey...fully support your views of the Kitchener game.
Hanging out with my sister after the game and watching the Detroit-Calgary match right now, my record for recent years is now 3-0-0!
Observations from the Game:
Defence: Same old story, dead-legged and ineffective in the final 10 minutes,nice to see Gill get a goal, granted his overextensions in the offensive zone make you cringe but he had a good game save the Delay of Game penalty of course.
Offence: Loved Moen, Metro, Max-Pac, Pleky, Gio/Gomez/Cammalleri had some good moments but they seemed a bit out of step, they need either be kept together to make sure they keep working on their chemistry and timing. Lats finally had a deeent game but I'll leave him be if he has 5-10 more like that, getting in the goalmouth and shovelling pucks into the net any way he can, no stupid wraparounds, just front of the net prescence and dirty goals is what he should be about. AK46 had some okay mloments but before we run him out of town, let's at least get SK74 up here and pair them up, we need to least experiment with that before they're tossed.
Goaltending: Haven't watched the highlights yet and 2 rows behind the Visitor's bench, I couldn't see much of the goalie action in the 3rd period from where I was, but what I saw was Halak had some very nice saves tonight but I would have preferred to see Carey get the start since he put on a huge game against Chicago and could have helped won that game and could have helped tonight. I love Halak's athleticism in nets, but his rebound control and his playing the puck has me cringing every once in a while.
About the Jersets: Uglier up close, but Toronto has to go home knowing they lost to the Pajama squad.
SO Goals: Saw them perfectly from my seat, beautiful.
If you saw a guy with a jersey and a goatee 2nd row back, that was me with my sister next to me.
- I shall always remember Captain Koivu.
AK46 had some okay mloments but before we run him out of town, let's at least get SK74 up here and pair them up
A few people have been asking for that, and to that I say: do you all have poor memories? The Belo-boys were terrible when paired together in the past. They only passed to each other, and neither was willing or able to go to the net, let alone shoot. They've only been effective when on separate lines.
They were great together when they were paired with Lang last season and with Plekanec emerging as a great player again, this could be the time to at least TRY it for once before we drop them both out of the team. The experiment is worthwhile if we get AK46 and SK74 going for us again if not, well we can't say the opportunity wasn't given for them to turn it back around for themselves.
- I shall always remember Captain Koivu.
actually they were both playing well when they were centered by lang last year.
Anybody see my RDS intro hahahaha!
Haha yeah I saw the Joel character after the hockey song, that was you? (Im assuming your not the real Joel)
Uncanny resemblance to the real Joel, and the rds crew was digging it too! Wish I had beautiful hair like that.
On the bright side... the more points Toronto gets the worse the 1st round Boston draft pick will be.
I hope the Phils enjoyed their lead earlier this evening!
You saw what happened when the Habs fans started singing too early though. So far so good though, great to see Swish finally hitting again. Almost batting his weight now.
Ok, no more screwing around. Enter Sandman
I love the Yanks, but it still bothers me that they are what the Habs should be. There is just something wrong with getting so lathered up about an OT win against the worst team in the NHL.
The Habs would be winning like the Yankees if the NHL didn't have a salary cap.
Brian...should have been with me in the last row of the Bell Centre tonight. For all the boring, inept play it was extremely exciting to be there and ultimately satisfying. Lathered up? Naaa...but the after game beers at Hurley's made the whole thing seem like a playoff victory. Funny how beer clouds the memory and makes all seem right. :)
I'm glad for the distraction after the past 24 hrs. In a way, the way the Habs game resulted was kind of a comic relief.
4-2
Nananan...oops 4-3
Ok Nanana...dammit 4-4
YAY we beat the Leafs in a shootout while Toskala does his impression of a statue!
Hey Hey Hey...
Habs just haven't been the Habs we grew up with in a long long time (since Pollock left?). They've been so poorly managed and their scouting staff has been so terrible, that and quite frankly our fans and media are some of the worst in the league, we'd have Mario Lemieux and bitch that he only got 5 last night and he shoulda had 8 afterall. So no one wants to be involved in that crud. Sam Pollock we miss you man!
In fairness, there was a big overhaul, the team's tiny and built almost completely around Markov right now. Losing him put us DEEP in a hole. It was poor planning to build the entire game plan around a single stilt to the foundation. In reality, we've done ok this year with a heck of a lot of heart being shown by some of the guys on the forward lines playing above themselves (when judged on their true abilities and not with biases). The D has been coming around and have also had a lot of adversity to deal with, especially considering the magnitude of what that Markov loss means to this squad. If we go in with realistic expectations, there's less to be disappointed about.
built almost completely around Markov right now
God, ain't that the truth! BG put all his eggs in two baskets labeled Markov and Price. Hmm, sounds like a slightly mangled Walmart ad.
Chara was invisible in the playoffs and what happened? The Hurricanes booted the Bruins from the playoffs. Your Elite D-Man goes missing and you're buggered a lot of the time, Mike Green was invisible for Washington and Crosby got his hat trick in the playoffs because of it and Washington lost that series as well because he wasn't on his game.
Spacek and Hamrlik are killing themselves to fill in for one of the Top 10 D-Men in the League right now, guys like Markov are irreplacable and every team with a guy like Markov, Chara, Green, Niedermayer or the like are built around that elite D-Man, filling in the roles he can't play and covering the minutes he's not available on the ice. Ovechkin goes down tommorow for 3 months for example, Washington will be climbing a mountain retooling an offence that is built around the top goal-scorer in the NHL. All teams build around a Star Player or two and go from there, take a star player out of the lineup and you'll have a problem. Atlanta can't expect Pavelec to turn in Dominic Hasek-type performances for the whole month Kovalchuk will be gone for example, you knock out one key plank of a team, the other ones get treaded on a lot heavier.
Montreal will be in a better Defensive situation in a year or two, we're just in a transition period, Subban and Weber anyone else needs at least 1 more year before they can realistically make the lineup without being a MAB-type problem in our end. Everyone says you need to have a balanced team but if Malkin had a season-ending injury tommorow, I doubt they could get the rest of the Top 6 to crank out those 100+ points to compensate for when he was gone. Star players are just that, Stars who can't be replaced because so few people play like them, occasionally you get a few surprises like Anderson and O'Reilly to boost your team after a guy like Sakic retires, but at the end of the day, you have to fight your way through the star guy's injury time and hope to be in a good position for them to help you get to the post-season when they return.
- I shall always remember Captain Koivu.
Hey guys! Just got back, kept my streak goin (5-1-0 this season, 27-0-1 in the regular season!). I'd like to think I was lucky. The game was boring at parts. Here are some of my observations:
-AK46's costume as the invisible man was a big success, fit the role quite well.
-When the crowd started singing Na Na Na, I cringed and rightfully so. If you guys called the people at the Bell moron, please count me out.
-However, I did BOO Komi my heart out. Made sure he heard me.
-My cousin somehow maybe jinxed it when he said: "Hal Gill is getting the game winner?" before the game was over.
-MAB was a disaster in the defensive zone.
-Hammr has quietly stepped up to fill a role that is too big for him. He is no Markov but he's doing his best to help the out.
-And Cammi played very mean tonight. I liked!
-Halak....halak....halak....very unimpressed...no matter what people say, there was at least two goals he should've had. But he saved his own *** in the shootout. I hate how ppl blame Price for flukey goals but Halak gets a pass, totally unfair. I think safe to say Price would start on Tuesday. But again, I'm not JM.
-I checked that Stewart only played 5:41 but he was speedy and effective. I thought he made a case that he could be an effective fourth liner but with all the PPs and PKs, he couldn't play much.
-Metro was really good and once again, I regret that Moen isn't in my pool.
-We need to be hitting more out there.
-Wouldn't you guys love to get Kaberle?
-And boy are those unis really tough on the eyes!
If something crosses my mind, I'll post later.
"All you need in hockey is good character, luck and skills" - Ovie
H...was there too...agree except for:
- Kaberle...no, he prefers a short stick...what's up with that? Just sayin' ;)
- Halak...he played an excellent game considering the defensive lapses he had to cover...and understand I am NOT a fan of goalie bashing (or bashing any player) etc...in my opinion both Price and Halak are equal. No goalie could stop all the errors created by our porous defence.
I've been begging for Bo to make a move for Kaberle for 2 years now. If I'm in charge, AK46 plays 25 minutes tonight on the first and 2nd line and I try to talk Burke into a couple of disgruntled brothers to put out there with Grabovski in exchange for a very very low priced superstar d-man that doesn't get the credit because it's impossible to soar with the eagles when you're surrounded by turkeys.
I've always felt Kaberle was identical to Markov and would LOVE to have him on this blueline to have 2 d-lines with a Markov on them basically.
5 pts in Anaheim on 5 goals and 4 in Mtl on 4 goals at that....
Thanks H!
Totally agree with everything, especially the part about Halak, but he shove his own bacon in the shootout so I guess all is OK in the end. hope Price gets the call next game, IMO he had the best game of the two the last two nights.
Wish I was there to boo along with you
The last time the leafs won the cup it was still just a bowl!!
Top 10 Observations and Comments (also posted on Main):
1. We are not hitting.
2. We are not blocking shots.
3. Gill and MAB should only play on the PK and PP respectively, and no more than 7 minutes each when 5 on 5. Belle should be called up immediately.
4. Stick with the smurfs on one line.
5. Get rid of Lats and BGL. Bring up SK74 and Pyatt.
6. Put PLEKS between SK74 and AK46 for a 10 games and let them GEL.
7. Price and Halak are both great young goalies and keep us in the game. Martin should keep teams guessing by announcing who starts at the last minute.
8. Burn those barbershop jerseys
9. Fans should STFU with their signing in the last 5 min unless we are up by at least 3 goals.
10. Practice passing and hitting the net.
Re: #9
Let us sing!
Who are you to tell people to stifle their passion for our beloved team?
1-4: No arguments
5: Why, so we can give them a couple of years to almost hit their stride, before bailing on them too in lieu of un-testing kids coming up on the farm? Lats is doing fine, and BGL might not be creating waves but he usually isn't a liability. SK shouldn't be rewarded until he's paid his dues, and going to Pyatt seems a strange choice.
6: Didn't we try this for half a season or so? Why are we giving up on Lats, who is having an impact, but giving a pass to the Kostits? Andrei is invisible on the ice, and Sergei has been an *** off the ice.
7-10: Also no argument!
I thought Lats was our best forward out there, especially in the 3rd. He was banging a bit with Komisarek (who really stabbed me in the back for my years of loyalty to him by turning gutless coward and going after guys like Metro and running away when guys closer to his size like Moen or Lats came by), causing chaos in front and played a very solid power winger game I felt. I don't understand some of the hatred shown to Gui all the time but, that's something I haven't really understood with a few of our players such as Price as well.
The guy that's really disappointing me is AK46, he just doesn't seem to care about anything out there anymore. Hasn't since the concussion last year though. Maybe that's a big part of things, giving him the benefit of the doubt.
D'OH!
Nearly perfect. You forgot zone clearance: practice, practice again ... repeat.
Full Breezer 4 Life
Happy to get the 2pts but giving the Leafs 1 after having a 2 goal lead with 5min to go not so great. Officiating was horrible but thats common when Habs play Leafs....refs grew up Laff hating Hab fans. The difference in this game, other than that, was Leafs have Kaberle and Habs without Markov. Both teams got lucky goals and goaltending not spectacular. Not blaming Halak for the tie and he keeps playing in games we win so what's a Coach to do? The week ended up with us losing 2 and winning 2 which is about right...would have been nice to win last nights game.
We are a 500 team that can be fun to watch. Probably will make playoffs but this team will need to get better. Problem will be finishing 7 or 8 which will mean another 1st round exit and another middle of the pack draft pick. Hopefully Gainey can find a GM who can take A Kost off his hands and gain some more picks. No fan really wants to suck for the 3-5 years it will take to draft a few in the lottery so tonight is pretty much what we can expect for the foreseeable future.
This team is only going to get better by the UFA route so hopefully our players can help convince some to come our way in the next year or 2. If Price matures into the goalie he is projected to be in next couple of years then maybe we become a team that can finish in the top 4 and have a shot at the cup. It's not going to happen this year but at least we are most games and that's better entertainment than sucking.
"refs grew up Laff hating Hab fans."
I think you meant to say: "Hab hating Laff fans."
yep cheers!
I don't think the refs were responsible for what happened tonight. Face facts, these guys are light years away from contending for the Cup. Heck, you'd think after 17 years everyone would have caught on to that.
With a few additions and substractions with a real #1 G we can be top 4 in the conference. That makes you a contender but we can't be dominant like others that drafted in the lottery for a few consecutive years. Pens have it now, Tampa could be next. Habs plan has to be UFA and smart scouting.
I don't blame the refs for the comeback. I do, however, call them out for TERRIBLE officiating.
The officiating in general is horrible in the NHL. I really want them to go back to just one ref. It's much better to have one guy calling a bad game -- at least he might be consistant -- than two.
The Kostitysn Bros are not even trade worthy...one is a winer, the other a floater, people have to give up on the idea that they are tradeable, 0r, that we will get back anything of value right now fior these two guys, starting to sound like Laff fans wanting to trade aki berg for sidney crosbie, a bucket of pucks is more like it...
I hope my inlaws and the Phils enjoyed their lead this evening!
My ex was a Mets fan back in the time of the subway series, I know where you're coming from there.
Well, I'm happy with the outcome. I didn't have any Laffs (who does?) in my pool, but Plekaneck got me two. I just want my money when the season ends, and youre little girl is helping me out.
Better yet, how's L'eartless Kovy working out for you guys?
Correction "your" little girl...not "youre".
Plekanec is also the correct way to spell it. How's Cheechoo holding up?
Plekanec is also blowing Spezza out of the water as far as play goes and Spezza is supposed to be money.
But hey, if our "little girl" is helping you feel better about your marginal team, more power to ya!
Here's a big Nana, na, na shout out to you!
Thanks man! I get no love on this site. But I do like the girly man who's bringing in the Habs points for me.
At least, the "girly man" gets on the sheet. It's sobering to think how many "manly men" on the Habs don't.
Or on the Sens for that matter...
I still can't figure out why they don't wear white togas on the ice!
Dress code... They'd scare the pants off of every team with their Spartan-esque physique.
Scary things happen when you play hockey in your Pajamas....
Not really. I do it all the time. I also refuse to wear those form fitting pants and shoulder guards. The less crap you wear, the faster you are on the ice!
If the Habs can only count on one line scoring they are dead meat in the industry....
Top line didn't score tonight, what game were you watching?
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Who scored the two goals in the shoot out???
Since when to shootout goals count as goals? You don't need secondary scoring in a shootout so you're still completely off the mark.
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Yea, now that Lats is off the schneid, the Cup is ours!
You love Lats.
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As an NCAA D-1 coach, I would pass on him. Unless, of course, he were a math major. Those guys are always good to have around.
Lol, the schneid.
Is there a deal brewing? We need secondary scoring cuz AKwhatever and Tommy Girl ain't doing it and we need defence not named Marc-Andre... is Gainey bold enough to deal away Price?
I don't care who wears the uniform as long as they care and they like winning.
I hope Bob trades Price. If not, Price will leave anyway!
"Truth! You can't handle the Truth"
Plekanec has 15 points in 14 games, without a decent winger. Look for another scape goat.
13 points and he's a +5.
Sorry, you're right. The Habs site is super quick, I thought they only had the first 13 games and added his 2 assists tonight. He's certainly not one of our problems, as someone else seems to think.
Plekanec doesn't scare anybody. He's more of a 3rd liner. If he's our 2nd line center, we're in deep doo-doo.
He on pace for 80+ points, without any real help on the wing. He's defensivly responsible, strong on the puck and excellent on the PK and you're wrong.
Please check into your nearest mental health clinic a.s.a.p.
Plekanec has 13 points! Are you freakin' high?!?!?!
13 pts? wow, so?? And no, I'm not high.
How many games have the Habs played? Even Pavel Datsyuk doesn't have those kind of numbers. Would you be calling out for blood if he was Dats?!?! Come on dude. Pleks is doing it up and down the ice, whether its on the PK or getting points. You're crazy.
Some of your posts are good man, but blaming Pleks, who happens to be at a point per game is just ridiculous. How has he not been getting it done?
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"Tommy Girl ain't doing it" - ?!?!
Do you have some sort of anti-Euro biaS? Pleks has been one of the best players on this otherwise sad-sack team.
Anti-Euro??? Me??? Ummm, yeah, kinda.
if price goes ..we need another keeper to replace him and a better one at that just saying.
i still think the habs are spending the first 20 games evaluating certain players and a few minor changes will be coming. plek needs a winger to play with him, laps isn't that guy. lats played better, but on most shifts he is non-existent. gill played a solid game and our top line has been dominant pretty much every game this year. i thought halak was ordinary after the first period and was weak on the third goal.
I think that you are absolutely right about the evaluation period, but I don't think there are any real surprises vis-a-vis your observations. The only wild card is what they decide to do with Lats given his "protected class" status. I am down on him not just because of his play to date, but because I have yet to see any glimpses of hockey brilliance that would want to make me keep him. He ain't no Lafleur.
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