A late-summer bummer

Booney, That's HI-larious about the Colin Farrell reference. Well done.

Is Lang gonna blow chow in that picture or what!

Thanks Vince for reposting those possible alternatives to acquiring Sundin. I don't watch enough to really comment intelligently on the fit of those players, in terms of style of play. What I can do is look at stats. Marleau: good size. At 28 y/o, he's just coming into his prime. He's under contract for another 2 years, although I am not sure what the cap hit is. Only scored 19 last season, but previous to that, he was consistently 25-35 goals. Seems to be weak defensively with a +/- of -19, although +/- numbers were better in the past. He'd be Carbo's whipping boy if he turned in a -19 here though. Anyone know what bugging this guy? Someone said he has a no trade clause. Maybe he wants out of a bad situation. Gomez: middle weight at 5'11" 200 lbs. So he is not the power forward we are looking for. Healthy as he played 81 games last year. 16G 54A 70Pts +3 70 pts sounds great, but all those assists make him a playmaker, not a scorer. Under contract for another 4 years at $7.357M cap hit. Who would you move out to make room for Gomez? Pleks, Koivu, Chips, Lapierre? Not Lapierre as Gomez is not a shutdown artist. If you get rid of Chips, you are getting rid of our biggest centre when we need more size. Koivu is our captain. And Pleks is our best goal scoring centre. Not exactly what we are looking for.

SACKIC SIGNED 1 YEAR DEAL

We should have kept Grabovski centering the line between the Kostitsyn brothers! "We will win the Cup only with Carey Price in the nets"

SUMMIT NEWS WE JUST HAD ANOTHER FATAL ERROR ON OUR SUMMIT BLOG TODAY> So here is todays news, we have a total of 81 people coming to the Summit If you have not paid for your tickets on paypal yet, do so right away. We have 6 tickets that have not been paid for, so who ever wants them, get in touch with myself or Robert ASAP. Now that we know how many people are going this year, we will need to know who will need discounted hotel rooms, who will want to go on the Bell Center tour, who will be attending the pre game dinner (where we will auction off stuff, like a pair of season tickets, donated by Vicky, set of Gretsky hockey cards donated by Robert and much more that Chuck is getting from the Club) and who will be attending the after game get together. Each Summit officer for each event will need this info so as to reserve a spot for you at each event. Stay tuned IAN

I know I am reposting this, but I would love to hear some more opinions about Plan B centres for the upcoming year, as these guys will be free agents, and trade bait: Best Henrik Sedin - 76 Points Keith Tkachuk - 58 points Victor Kozlov - 54 points Patrick Marleau - 48 points OR- If NY wants to get rid of a 28 yrd old 70 point centre for a 37 year old 78 point older centre who will only last 2 yrs max, great, Lets Free up some room and TAKE SCOTT GOMEZ! Next best Robert Lang - 54 points Mike Cammalleri - 47 points Mike Comrie - 49 points T. Connolly - 40 points Mike Peca - 34 points _________________________ "ITS NOT EASY BEING GREEN...FOR A SUPERSTAR"

Lang .. slow as molasses ... NO THANKS. Now , if I am trying to fill a void at Center ... which I believe we are ... Oy obvious # 1 target is Mats Sundin ... my plan B is Viktor Kozlov ... Can he be had ... I would say, YES ... Washington is over the cap ... @ Center they have, in NO particular Order, Federov, Nylander, Backstrom, Kozlov and a couple of Defensive Centermen ... Kozlov is affordable at 2.5M$ and he gives you flexibility at seasons end, as he doesnt decimate your cap space .. he has good size at 6'4" , in or around, and his game has come around ... he isnt Sundin, but he is definitely a player .. still young wnough to contribute, and he will feel right at home here with the Kostitsyn's , Kovalev and Markov.

Where did this Schneider nonsense come up? The entire board has been thrumming with calls for a big centre all summer long. Was it bordeom? Was it the fact that Maple Leaf issued a recall, making us all switch to Schneider? We have enough D. One thing that makes us KILLER right now is that we have the league's highest scoring team from last year still intact, with a great new forward (Tanguay) and the league's best muscle (GL) to boot, AND we've got 6 million to play with. This is not money we NEED to spend on an aged Dman. This is money to get that big centre... or fill in holes in February.... or resign/extend key guys. The whole Schneider idea is bad bad BAD.

Is everyone assuming the Schneider rumour is true? Isnt it Eklund who said it or is there another sports source your hearing it from?? Cause I wont believe a word eklund says and if any of his rumours ever do happen to come true, well he'll still have to work on getting them right more than once every 50 rumours... "If I wanted to hear from an ass, I would fart..."

Schneider: 39 y/o Under contract until July '09 with cap hit of $5.625M. I like that he would only be under contract for this season. And let's face it, compared to Chelios, he's a youngster. He missed 13 games last season due to an ankle injury, then 2 more games with a hip injury, then 2 more games due to a wrist injury. In spite of missing 17 games, he still put up 12G 27A 39Pts +22. So last year he was a bit injury prone, put he still put up decent numbers. His +/- was third best on the team last season. He contributes on the pp with 5G last season. His average TOI was 22:18 so it sounds like he was a top 4 D with Anaheim. He's only 5'11" and 191 lbs, so he doesn't seem to be a bruiser, but some guys hit above their weight class, like the Cube. And his +/- suggests that he gets the job done at both ends of the rink while doing pp duty. Okay, I like him, and I think it is a big plus that he would only be under contract for one year, since we have some major negotiations coming up at the end of the season. If I am not mistaken, the Ducks are $1.313 above the cap right now, and they need to get Selanne signed. So the Ducks need to get rid of him and it might not cost us too much. Since they have cap issues, they will likely be looking for a prospect or a pick. Could be a decent plan B. We could use some top 4 help on defense while our prospects mature in Hamilton. And he would likely help replace Streit on the pp.

Forget about Sundin, Lang, Conroy. Lombardi would be good especially as he is a local guy (Hudson) and his speed fits well with our team. Would be willing to take a chance on Marleau as last year's stats are not reflective of his career and he is still young. He would be a great addition to the team. San Jose would dump his salary as Thornton gets all of the first line ice at centre. Failing Marleau or Lombardi how about Sergie Kostitsyn a centre? He is a great playmaker, responsible defensively, has guts and I think would flourish in the role of centre. All of our guys, including Sergie, will play bigger with Laraque on the team so give him a try. Lapierre is not really a centre and would be better on the wing.

Welcome back Matt Schneider? I might like this

Like my signature say's and I stand by those same words Mike.... See below!! Come on Mats add a Coupe Stanley, Championship to your great career! It's NEVER over til it's OVER!

A must read for all true Habs fans. Don't pass this up - it is precious stuff! Maurice Rocket Richard - The Sports Illustrated Interview 1960 As all of you who read my site regularly surely know, I have been undertaking the heavy endeavor of documenting the Montreal Canadiens 100 seasons. Close to a dozen posts have been published so far, and I am currently working on the middle 1940's, researching and writing on just about all I can get my mits on that I find interesting. Early this morning I came across this Sports Illustrated interview with The Rocket - Maurice Richard, done late in the 1959-60 season. The piece, taken from The Rocket's final NHL season, literally, it blew me away! As I read through it a second time, the human being inside the legend began to emerge and layers were pealed away from what we all always recognized as Habs fans, in Richard, as being a larger than life figure. Revealing, isn't the word! The perception that comes out of this article, is of a mortal being, not unlike you and I, who is staring straight at a career crossroads. http://wwwrealitycheckeyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/08/maurice-rocket...

There's no Plan B with Lang. Halfway decent numbers on a team with no depth doesn't translate into anything we want to bring to Montreal, where those numbers would be take a Bonk like dive. Plan B is....the lineup the team has now! A first place lineup! Gainey has said it all along that he is comfortable heading into the season with the lineup the team has. Tanguay and Laraque are great improvements, and all these kids are one year better.

I say "don't get someone just for the sake of making a move"although I have been mesmerized by a healthy Marty Havalet ,shoulder problems are a big non healing problem in Hockey.And no more small or old guy's Bob!go habs go

i don't see lang or nylander as improvements. don't just make a deal for the sake of making a deal. i don't think gainey is dumb like that. i see a lot of similarities with both of these players to czerkawski - when we brought him in a few seasons ago and he was a major bust. if you're gonna go out and get a robert lang, i would hope they wouldn't give up a young everyday player or a prospect.

just wanno know if that is snow or dandruff on lang's collar in the pic?

I was just reading the article by Daniel Tolensky. This is very interesting. >50% Decline, Goals from 36 to 37: 12 Players (34%) >20% Decline, Goals from 36 to 37: 23 Players (66%) >50% Decline, Points from 36 to 37: 5 Players (14%) >20% Decline, Points from 36 to 37: 21 Players (60%) Based on this, Vancouver looks even sillier for offering $20M over 2 years. The declines are steeper than I realized. The players that managed to maintain or improve as 37 y/o are few and far between. One thing to consider: who were Sundin's linemates last year? Who would they be this year if he signed with Canadiens? I'd say he would be getting a definite upgrade with us. Last year, Mats put up 32G 46A 17+/- 78Pts. I'd say he is capable of coming close to those numbers with us, even if he is a year older. Factor in a big physical presence, strong leadership skills, and top notch face off skills, and I'd say he is worth the kind of numbers most have been hoping/expecting him to sign for - around $7M. But alas, BG's comments suggest that it is about time to move on. I still think that Sundin's new bride could be an important factor in the delayed decision and the final destination. I'm surprised that she is rarely mentioned.

double post

The wheels on the bus go round and round ............. Once again I will not refuse to believe Sundin is not coming here until I hear a confirmed report stating otherwise. Gainey said he is not optimistic.......what if he said he is optimistic.....would it have been any different....no...NOBODy but Mats knows (or at least is eilling to publicly divulge) anymore than that. Gainey's options when presented with a question about Mats would be Yes, were very optimistic (meaning a possible huge letdown and negative backlash if Mats did sign elsewhere or a backlash from MAts who boviously wants his privacy respected). The other option would have been "No comment" ....I can just see that plastered on the front of every paper in Montreal ....."Gainey refuses to speak to media about Sundin at charity golf tournament"). The third option and the answer I would expect even if Mats were coming or at least considering it was "well we're not too optimistic right now ....blah, blah,blah". Mats has supposedly not decided he is playing at all this year .....that would definitely be a cause for "not too optimistic". At no point did Gainey say he the deal is dead ......he said "not too optimistic" . I refuse to take part in this roller coaster ride of he said she said because until we hear it from the 6 foot 5 horses mouth this is all irrelevant. Nothing has changed ....Mats is undecided about playing hockey this year .......then comes the team selection. If Gainey had said that Mats is playing and it doesn't appear it will be with us then I might be ready to readdress Marleau, Lang, etc. Only in Montreal would something as subtle as what Bob said be overanalyzed as such. Laps just said something similar but everybody involved must be feeling the same as nobody seems to know anything. Montreal has always been the best fit and where Mats should play if he decides.....if he chooses not too it will be a stupid hockey decision based on the alternatives. Maybne it isn't a hockey decision...that seems the most likely scenario .....retire??? family??? those cncern me but we are stillt he best hockey decision and as long as MAts is not retired and is still a "hockey player" I have to believe he will make the right hockey decision. "It ain't over til it's over and it sure as hell ain't over before it's begun" .....let the guy decide in the order he said he would.

Mike - from Yogi Bera to Ol' Velcro Lips to rubenesque sopranos, I think this is a very well written piece. Thanks for your efforts today and all summer trying to find interesting perspectives.

Lang will do just fine, who cares how he plays, Shelly left a huge hole in the eye candy department, this guy will fit in quite nicely.

SUMMIT NEWS WE JUST HAD ANOTHER FATAL ERROR ON OUR SUMMIT BLOG TODAY> So here is todays news, we have a total of 81 people coming to the Summit If you have not paid for your tickets on paypal yet, do so right away. We have 6 tickets that have not been paid for, so who ever wants them, get in touch with myself or Robert ASAP. Now that we know how many people are going this year, we will need to know who will need discounted hotel rooms, who will want to go on the Bell Center tour, who will be attending the pre game dinner (where we will auction off stuff, like a pair of season tickets, donated by Vicky, set of Gretsky hockey cards donated by Robert and much more that Chuck is getting from the Club) and who will be attending the after game get together. Each Summit officer for each event will need this info so as to reserve a spot for you at each event. Stay tuned IAN

CBSC Makes Right Decision .. The Broadcasters Magazine ..... http://www.kuklaskorner.com/index.php/hockey/