"Almost perfect" – Carbo

posted by Mike Boone at 14h43 EST on Nov 11


Guy Carbonneau assigned high grades to his team after their 4-0 conquest of Ottawa in a game the Canadiens had to win to avoid a city-wide nervous breakdown.

"We worked hard for two days and got results," Carbo said of himself, the coaching staff and the players. "It was very satisfying.

"That was the best 60 minutes we've played this year and probably the last two years.

"This team always responds well to tough times. They didn't disappoint me tonight."

Audio:

• Carbo

• Hat Trick guy Christopher Higgins

• The trenchant analysis of Josh Gorges

• Mr. Cool, Carey Price

• Max Lapierre on Ruutu's atempt to kill him


3P 00:00:

CA-REY! CA-REY!

Wow! 

3P 1:00:

BGL on

3P 2:26:

Leg  save on Alfie. Wow!

3P 3:25:

Only a few hats ...

3P 3:25:

Career night for Chris Higgins

 

4-0 

3P Break:

Every team is going to try to crash Price.

3P 5:19:

If there were a God, dandy would have scored on that breakawy

3P 6:21:

Chris Kelly crashes Price and Kovy asks refs what's up

3P 6:52:

Komisarek gave Heatley a good battle but ended up holding him

3P Break:

Ruutu gets tossed ... and waves to the crowd. He's a showman, gotta give him that.

3P 9:50:

Price has been superb. 24 saves

3P 11:00:

Neil takes a shot at Sergei

3P Break:

Great excitement, but too many odd-man rushes for Ottawa

3P 12:23:

Heatley in alone. SAVE!!!

3P 14:00:

Higgins goes to the net smartly on a Koivu rush. They're getting it

3P 14:27:

Canadiens d-men playing angry in front of Price

3P 16:00:

Not a great PP for Kovy

3P 17:55:

Net result. A PP, but Canadiens down a defenceman for five minutes

3P17:55:

Ruutu throws the most flagrant elbow I've seen this season on Max and Bouillon gets to him before BGL can

3P 18:26:

Litle things AK46 fails to chip it out and it turns into an Ottawa chance

3P 19:00:

Price huge on Spezza off a Tanguay turnover

3P 20:00:

TNo defensive shell, but 20 more minutes of keeping it simple. Skating, pounding pucks deep, avoiding stupid penalties. Make them skate 200 feet to get the three goals they need.

Stats:

Ryan O'Byrne: three hits, two blocked shots, an assist and plus-2 in a shade over nine minutes. Maybe there's hope ... Tanguay has not shots but I think he's playing a great game. Getting back on D all night ... Robert Lang's best game in a while. If that line starts to produce, watch out!

J.T. on the second period:


-I think if Pierre McGuire was a girl, he'd be caught hiding in Carey Price's shower some night.

-Gorges is like one of those blow-up clown punching dolls we used to have as kids: the harder you hit it, the quicker it bounces back up again.

-What's with all the falling down? It's like watching a drunk try to walk downhill.

-Good luck hooking Laraque with a hockey stick. You'd have to use a meat hook. And even then, he'd probably just bite through it.

-It's kind of amazing a guy of Kovalev's size, with those hands, loses so many pucks on the boards.

-Worst penalty ever is that stupid delay-of-game for shooting the puck over the boards. Gainey would have been much better served to propose abolishing that than sliding shot blocks.

-Carbo should make them watch an hour of video and yell at them more often.

-The fourth line is working hard. It draws more penalties than Picasso drew lopsided faces.

-The Importance of Faceoffs, Exhibit A: Robert Lang to Lats.

-Hammer's better one-on-one than Barbara Walters.

-Okay, two periods of effort and commitment. One to go and I'll say Carbo's the Hockey Player Whisperer.

2P 1:19:

Love it! Spezza has to hook Kovy.

2P 1:44:

"LA-RAQUE! LA-RAQUE!"

2P 1:53:

Daniel F. 1-on-1 with Hamrlik? No problem

2P 3:01:

Wow! Has this sucker turned around fast!

2P 4:21:

Bing! Lang wins draw. Gui! buries it

3-0 

2P 4:23:

They key: Keep the damn pedal to the metal for 25 more minutes

2P Break:

The Lang line came to play. Sergei is The Man

2P 5:46:

What a sequence! PK of the season becomes a picture goal. Sergei to Higgins

2-0 

2P Break:

This will be the typing goal. Lang clears it into the crowd and takes a penalty

2P 9:00:

Lang, Higgins, Koivu, Tanguay, Markov Vermette makes a nice play on Kovy. Sergei is looking better on the right point, with Hamrlik

2P 11:13:

Fourth line works hard, and gains a PP

2P 12:22:

Another solid game for Gorges

2P Break:

Ottawa looking more organized and getting better chances. Canadiens are scrambly and impatient in the offensive zone

2P 16:32:

Another icing. And tired Habs hemmed in

2P 17:26:

Ugh! Outlet pass goes for icing

2P 18:00:

Dandenault should play every game. BGL chills Ruutu out.

2P 19:24:

Alfie line gets early chance. And they're crowding Price

Stats:

Robert Lang 4-1 on faceoffs! Higgins had five shots ... Four hits for Max; no one else has more than two ... Canadiens have blocked 11 shots ... BGL played 2:36. I think Carbo is afraid to use him in a tight game

J.T. on the first period:


-Higgins scores on a breakaway. I had to check the replay to make sure I didn't need to book a visit with the optometrist. Beautiful.

-First thing I look at in any game is which colour sweater gets to pucks first. Tonight it's the Big Red Machine. Finally. Two more periods to go, though.

-One Senator I wouldn't mind picking up: Antoine Vermette.

-Heatley got Rhino Burned. Good to see the kid hitting. Now, if he can just keep the puck out of his own end...

-Has Gorges been on for a goal against on the PK recently? I don't think so.

-For those of you lobbying for no-touch icing...think of all the little Dandenaults of the world. Without the chance to beat icings, they could starve.

-Looks like Carbo was meaner to his team than Hartsburg was to Spezza...at least so far. I hope that little weasel gets nothing but pain out of this game.

-Price was more embarrassed than a monk at an orgy on Saturday night. It's good to see Mr.Laid Back doesn't like being humiliated.

1P 00:43:

Komisarek bounces Ruutu, a longtime nemesis, on his back over Price

1P 1:40:

Hamrlik huge on the PK

2:39:

Ottawa comes very close. Kuba's shot is a major weapon the point

1P 3:52:

Holding the stick. Weak

1P 4:28:

Blown icing. Looked like Dandy got there first

1P 5:10:

Someone has to smack Spezza

1P Break:

O'B is working hard. But man, he makes me nervous. D is getting a lot of help from the forwards tonight. Shots are 11-4

1P 6:45:

Gee, those icings look dangerous. Andrei K ran someone down

1P Break:

Light went on on Heatley scrum, but no goal. The book is definitely Bug Price

1P 9:03:

Koivu line is on fire

1P 9:41:

Shooting for movie Toujours les Canadiens in the crowd tonight

1P Break:

Scrum in front of Auld. They're getting bodies on him. Lapierre annoyed the  Senators, which is good. Neil has been quiet

1P 10:00:

Fast 10 minutes. Shots are 8-2

1P 11:20:

Tanguay makes great passes then gets back in puck support

1P 12:38:

That's a slump breaker. Koivu finds Higgins in alone on the PK.

Wow! 

1-0 

1P 14:35:

First time O'B touches pucK Delay of game

1P 15:38:

Dandenault effective with Lang and Gui!

1P 17:00:

First wave with Pleks gets chances. So does the second wave. Kovy out for full two minutes

1P 19:16:

Hustle produces early PP

1P 19:59:

A lot of empty seats for an early weekday start

Canadian Legion:

Colour guard, and a moment of silence for the fallen

Molson Cup October:

Presented before the game. Just once I'd like them to sing the songs, drop the puck and get at it without a whole lot of hoopla

Penalties:

Gotta avoid them tonight, with Daniel F. in the house

New pre-game music:

Instant Karma

Quote on the big board:

"The main ingredient in stardom is the rest of the team"

– the great John Wooden (with Scotty Bowman, the best coach ever in any sport) 

O'Byrne:

This guy has to start playing. With almost everyone else on the team, I have a good idea of capabilities. But O'B is a big question mark.

The Spartan intro:

Thanks to J.T. for posting this link to a classic

Dandenault in:

He'll play with Maxim Lapierre and Georges Laraque. Roman Hamrlik returns, sending Patrice Brisebois to the pressbox.

Now that would be fun to watch:

In the elevator running up to the Bell Centre pressbox, there's one of those then-and-now centennial celebration photos: Alex Kovalev, in colour, trying to take the puck off a black-and-white Bobby Orr.

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Comments

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G-Man's picture
Submitted by G-Man on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 06:38.
4-0 and all is well again in Habsland. Great to see Higgins, Lats and Price rewarded for the hard work. Whodathunk Higgins could actually pick a corner and not shoot wide? Gilbert 2008/09 is the season of the Habs

Submitted by Sami on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 12:03.
Or hit the post and go in....

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 04:06.
Canadiens Get On Track With 60 Minute Effort http://wwweyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/11/canadiens-get-on-track-wit...

Neil's picture
Submitted by Neil on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 02:36.
Habs are now 8-0-1 with Dandy playing this year. Now before anyone else says it I know a stat like that is useless. It's very rare that a forth liner does enough to win a game. That being said he hasn't played bad hockey this year. His 1.7 plus contract is too much for the forth line but I love the speed that he brings to our team. I don't see him finishing the year with the habs but I hope he does well wherever he goes. My cousin played junior hockey with him and against him and said that he was the only guy that you could hear skating towards you. Too bad his hands aren't as quick as his feet.

m00ks's picture
Submitted by m00ks on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 03:43.
An unsung hero. Him and Max Lapierre dominate with their speed and grit. Love their work ethic on the offensive end and they draw a good amount of penalties for 4th liners.

The Teacher's picture
Submitted by The Teacher on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:50.
Well I missed the original Ruutu hit but after seeing the replay, he better get a suspension, although I wouldn't hold my breath. Did Kovalev get one for that dirty elbow on Hollweg? My suggested overtime format and other sports talk

caper_5's picture
Submitted by caper_5 on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 07:27.
There is no such thing as a dirty elbow on Hollweg!

Will Longlade's picture
Submitted by Will Longlade on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:41.
OB played a pretty solid game tonight. Hopefully, his performance will help him get his confidence back and crack the lineup as a regular. Hamrlik has got to be the team's unsung hero. He's unflappable, just like Carey. Break out game for Higgins. Couldn't happen to a better guy. Nice all round team effort.

Chorske's picture
Submitted by Chorske on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:17.
Man, you gotta feel bad for the sucker who was posting before the game about how Price and Lats sucked, and that the Habs were never going to win with those two in the lineup. Takes all kinds I guess. Here's hoping he says the same things about Sergei and Dandy, they're due for some love on the scoresheet.

Willy the bum's picture
Submitted by Willy the bum on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:38.
When there's a big loss on one game, the outcome should be a big win on the other. Glad the team sees it that way! ---------- "We all wore the same costume as Maurice Richard did; the red-white-and-blue costume of the Montréal Canadiens, the best hockey team in the world." - Roch Carrier

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:16.
I have to admit, the HNIC theme song on TSN is just not right. The CBC should make a reasonable offer and try to get it back. It's sort of like the John Tesh show playing Led Zeppelin.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:18.
Y'know, I never would have pegged you as a John Tesh sort of pig. __________________________________

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:29.
Sometimes when you're driving, you have no choice as to what comes in on AM.

mjames's picture
Submitted by mjames on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:49.
It was nice to see Higgins silence some of the critics tonight. Higgins has developed a reputation of having stone hands. I think Mike Boone might have something to do with this since he takes jab at Higgins every chance he gets. In any event the following is an interesting comparison. -----------Goals--------------- Year--------S. Shutt-------Higgins 1------------8--------------23 2------------15-------------22 3------------30-------------27 4------------45-------------?? If Shutt was playing for us now we would have had him traded by now. I know Shutt would be in Mike Boone's doghouse based on the above. Be careful what you wish for (trading Higgins) you might get it. mjames

Will Longlade's picture
Submitted by Will Longlade on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:29.
Nice post. There's a reason why Higgins is the subject of many trade rumours. Other teams covet his speed, leadership, two way play & ability to find the back of the net. Twenty seven goals in his third season is quite an accomplishment for a two way forward in this league and it hardly suggests that he can't finish. I'd take Higgins straight up over Hossa in a New York minute. I'm happy he's a Hab and I'm confident he'll make a huge contribution to the team moving forward.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:01.
Nice work. Wonder if Shutt's linemates might have had something to do with his success? I could be wrong, but when Higgins was drafted by the Habs didn't some scout(s) say he had hands like Yzerman? Damn, if he does and he has rediscovered them, we have seen nothing yet.

Submitted by Jim M on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:57.
mjames Interesting stats. I always marvelled at Steve Shutt's eye-to-hand co-ordination. I like Higgins, but he'll never score 66 goals. However, he does bring other attributes that Shutt didn't have. Don't worry. Gainey would never trade him unless the price was right.

mjames's picture
Submitted by mjames on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 10:57.
JimM I will take 30 on a regular basis anyday. 40 would be gravy. Not expecting 66. mjames

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:12.
Higgins' eye-to-hand co-ordination isn't all that shabby though. The one that got called back against the leafs on Saturday night, had it stood, might have triggered one of the "comebacks." You know how I feel about Higgins Jim. A kid from the metro NYC area who grew up with a Dad who way a Habs fans and was actually drafted by the team. I hope this is the first of many nights like this for him. Crap, even Guy sort of sucked until he got rid of the lid.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:07.
Since none of Ovechkin, Heatley, Nash or Kovalchuk have been able to score 66 goals in a season in today's NHL, I'm not betting against you. ;) But I agree whole-heartedly with you...Higgins is a keeper.

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:20.
Chris It's funny that you bring up that point. The rule changes were made to increase goal-scoring. There are more PPs(I think), the center line is gone, D-men can hardly touch forwards in the crease, etc..., and yet 60+ goals looks almost unattainable. I'd like your thoughts or anybody else's on this.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:20.
While I think that better goalies and "improved" goaltending equipment is the primary culprit, another theory that I just remembered concerns the over-coaching of today's hockey players. I think it was either Mogilny or Bure that noticed that many of the top North American kids rarely just goofed around with a puck, that they were all taught defensive systems and proper checking techniques at the expense of developing their offensive creativity. That was their arguement for why so many of the seemingly "creative" offensive players were coming from European systems. Wayne Gretzky also spoke out in the past about kids getting too much hockey instruction...he was a firm opponent of summer hockey camps and schools, as he felt young kids should be out playing other sports in the summer (he was big on lacrosse and softball as a teen, if I recall correctly). I'm not sure I necessarily agree with the premise that North American kids are given less opportunity for offensive creativity than European kids, but it is at least some food for thought.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 09:58.
I think you're spot on Chris, especially when it comes to American kids. Everything is so damned organized these days. Kids, for a variety of reasons, almost never get together with their friends down here and just screw around for a few hours each day with a puck. Growing up in upper Manhattan in the 70s, we would play roller hockey every day from the minute school ended until the sun went down. Once, they installed lights, you had to drag us away. The two times a week we were on the ice for a practice and a game were often spent seeing if the stuff we pulled on roller skates would be effective on the ice. And, a lot of it was. I am convinced that playing roller hockey with a roll of 3M electrical tape for a puck helped our stickhandling skills.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 12:50.
I think that there are once again some similarities to soccer. While playing a game out on the pitch is fun and you can improve that way, the true offensive creativity comes from playing in the less organized pick-up games and mini-games (futsol is amazing in this regard) where the game is dominated by short passes and ball control. Road hockey, roller hockey and pick-up shinny are often played in less than ideal conditions, with tons of people and often confined quarters. The result is that you will only excel by improving your stick-handling, while your hand-eye coordination must be developed to deal with the ball usually having to travel through the air if you are going to have any hope of getting it through the maze of legs and bodies. Since slap-shots are often taboo, you often have to work on your dekes if you want to score.

Submitted by ebk on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:26.
The goalies nowadays are that f..., I mean damn good! The goalies are so damn big, the players so damn fast and coaches stress defense so damn much, that the chances to score today just are not there like they were in the pre-trap days of the 80's and early 90's.

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:44.
Earl, You're obviously right. However, the shooters are faster, it's easier to screen the goalies and coaches emphasize PP systems more. As for the "trap", Punch Imlach used it, or something similar, in the 60's with the leafs, Scotty Bowman used it with the Habs according to Jacques Lemaire. I'm sure there were others, but I'm afraid that I'm not enough of a systems guy to identify them. I'm just bringing this topic up because I hate listing line-ups, trades, demotions, etc...

Submitted by ebk on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:02.
Jim, I agree they used the trap but mainly to protect a lead back in the day. However and I certainly could be wrong, I don't think they tried to play it for 60 minutes, game in game out like the do now. I think when Lemaire had so much success with it in Jersey, it became the dominate playing style of most teams. What we got was crap that passed for hockey pre-lockout.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:38.
And, there will come out of the hockey desert a young man who can find the back of the net like the back of his hand. He will terrorize butterfly goalies by beating them to the low corners and the five hole. The upper corners will be his friends. We will know him because not even J.S. Giguere's ridiculously oversized jersey will be able to trap his shots above the waist. He will be "the one!" He will wear a tri-colour jersey. God will look down upon his creation and feel that it is good. (Me? I'm just waiting on the proverbial John the Baptist to show me that I am right.)

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:52.
Brian I think "the one" chose politics over hockey.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:00.
Well, there is no future in investment banking anymore, Jim.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:51.
My question is to you is: which hockey desert should we begin searching? New Jersey or Phoenix? :) And while I remember: Giguere's upper body looks remarkably like a rectangle with his equipment on. A big rectangle. And then you see him in his civilian clothes and he looks like a mortal. That guy's equipment should be measured every game. He's listed as the same height at Cristobal Huet (6'1") and a bit lighter (201 lbs. versus Huet's 205 lbs.) but looks like he could eat Huet and still have room for Halak afterwards.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:05.
According to Nostradamus, it could be a forest as well. I still think he must come from QC, but I have yet to see a sign. The only thing more ridiculous than Giguere, to be fair, is how much Patrick Roy grew from the time he entered the League as a Hab till the day he retired from the Avs. (HGH hormones could never have accomplished the task.) You want to know why scoring is down in the NHL over the past two decades? Just compare those two photos. Everyone did it so I hold Patrick blameless.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:18.
It's twofold, because not only does all that equipment fill space, the psychological effect on the shooters is to make them feel like they have to thread a needle every time.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:38.
That's about what comes to mind for me too. It seems the refinement of systematic play and analysis has consistently benefited the defensive side more. The size, level of training, equipment, two player approach and video analysis that goaltending has developed has raised the bar for that position overall.

Submitted by ebk on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:44.
what you said and damn they have big goalie equipment now.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:43.
Wow...two nights in a row that I'm agreeing with Earl! :) The NHL really missed a window of opportunity 10-15 years ago when the wave of arena replacements began. I think they should have gone to the larger international ice surface as the increased focus on conditioning has resulted in players that are bigger, stronger and faster. While the extra space would be further away from the net, it would open up more opportunities for wingers to sneak by defenders without getting pasted. It would also limit how much the defenders could chase before they would have to be worried about being pulled too far out of position. I remember reading some player's bio (can't remember who) and they were talking about how NHL forwards in the 70's and even in the early 80's were often weak skaters going backwards. In today's NHL, defence is so ingrained that I think most forwards can skate backwards so well that they could play defence in a pinch. And as mentioned, goalies today are both exceptional athletes (as opposed to the "weakest" athletes, as was often the case 20-30 years ago...and I know that there are definitely some exceptions to that rule) and so well protected that there is literally no net to shoot at.

Submitted by ebk on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:53.
I agree with most of this except the Euro-ice, not sure I'd want it in the NHL. There we can go back to disagreeing again, whew, I was getting worried. :) Not only has the goalies equipment improved, the shinpads offer much better protection. Players used to drop like they were shot with a cannon if a slapshot hit them but it's so good now, it allows them to do a much better job clogging the shooting lanes, They no longer have to worry about Gaston Gingras breaking their shin with his cannonading blast.

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:00.
Guys I enjoyed the game and I always enjoy reading comments from people like you. What a difference a win makes on the quality of the posts. Thank you.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:06.
You can say that again. This site was something else Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:14.
Eric Guys I enjoyed the game and I always enjoy reading comments from people like you. What a difference a win makes on the quality of the posts. Thank you. Sorry. I couldn't resist. Good night all.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:57.
Gaston Gingras could keep the puck low enough to break somebody's shin? :P

Submitted by Jim M on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:03.
Not even on a pass.

Submitted by ebk on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 01:02.
one out of every 10

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 00:02.
You don't put a letter on a guy you're willing to part with willy nilly.

forskis's picture
Submitted by forskis on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:38.
Watching the Flames/Leafs on SNET HD and they talked about Grabovski's butt-end...apparently the league took a look at it and put him on notice. The color-guys spoke about it during intermission: they said the butt-end was no big deal, yeah it should not have been done, but it was not malicious and was not a suspendable offense, no harm was done...they also said that hockey is a man's sport as if those who complained about it should man up... I understand SNET is a bit of the mouthpiece of the Leafs, but let's have Toskala butt-ended and see what they say then. BTW, the Flames looked at the hit and Robyn Regehr who has seen and done a lot said that there was not much TK could have done: “Kostopoulos was coming in at a full head of steam,” said Regehr. “He looked like he was going to hit Van Ryn shoulder to shoulder but at the last second Van Ryn turned his back to the hit, and it didn't work out well for either player. “You can't look at the end result. You have to look at the whole play. It's a combination of factors,” Regehr insisted. “You're going to see a little more of that now that forwards are not held up in the neutral zone. It's a by-product of a making a little change in the game.” Regehr also mentioned that coaches aren't always pleased when players choose not to follow through a big hit and instead skate away from an opponent. “I don't think coaches would be very happy to see guys put on the brakes. They're the ones who get everyone wound up … There are certain times where you see a player do that (ease up on an opponent). It's respectful. But there's so much speed now. “That hit, I don't think you can do anything with it.” Asked if the Flames were going to keep a keen eye on Hollweg, who had been benched the past four games after drawing suspensions for illegal hits, Regehr replied, “Oh yeah.”

BIG-D's picture
Submitted by BIG-D on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:29.
Aulds GAV take a hit tonight.....Sweet.........

sidhu's picture
Submitted by sidhu on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:20.
"Almost perfect" = it would have been perfect if Laraque knocked out Ruutu

Gr8stFranchizEvr's picture
Submitted by Gr8stFranchizEvr on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:24.
or Neil...

Kristopher7's picture
Submitted by Kristopher7 on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:30.
Or anyone but I appreciated that he was being a policeman tonight, pulling people off of others and telling them to F off. Props to Buillon though, pro.

Kristopher7's picture
Submitted by Kristopher7 on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:15.
OT Talking about Pierre.... WHY is he so close to Dutch? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5zXLZHGI4

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:17.
You're right. He is definitely violating his personal space there.

Gr8stFranchizEvr's picture
Submitted by Gr8stFranchizEvr on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:19.
He does that all the time!

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:26.
Give me the creeps!

BIG-D's picture
Submitted by BIG-D on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:14.
I'm watching that game again at 11:00 on Canadiens Express..... I is on agin now on TSN2 on HD

Submitted by gauvinator on Wed, 11/12/2008 - 02:00.
Like RDS in HD, Rogers won't give us TSN2 either!

gohabzzzz's picture
Submitted by gohabzzzz on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:12.
I love higgsy, always have and always will. carey you da man and what about josh gorges? met him once, really nice and happy ( ok, he only said hi but he was pretty cheerful compared to the rest ) such a goood D-man this team rocked the bell centre gohabzzzz " Mesdames et messieurs, veuillez accueillir, please welcome, le numero trente-trois, number thirty-three, Patrick ROY!!!! YYYYYEEEAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! "

Kristopher7's picture
Submitted by Kristopher7 on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:14.
you seem very jolly.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:08.
Evidently, the net actually spoke to Higgins after his first goal to inspire him tonight. As the shorty entered the cage, even opposition players heard the net breath a sigh of relief and say, "Howdy stranger!"

tony d's picture
Submitted by tony d on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:02.
I almost choked (pardon the pun) on all of Higgie's goals, couldn't believe what I was seeing...I guess Santa came early this year well as painful as Saturday's loss was, I think it's just what the doctor ordered to kick-start this team here's to many more WHOO HOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:06.
They can play hockey. That's why it drive you freakin' crazy when they don't.

Gr8stFranchizEvr's picture
Submitted by Gr8stFranchizEvr on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:13.
That pretty much sums it up.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:19.
Game 25 they play the Rangers. After that, we should idea of what type of team we have. (To be fair, the whole damn league has been pretty much pick 'em on any given night.)

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:02.
Congrats to Price and Higgins. Koivu was great tonight. Kovy...well... not so good. I know lots of you like him, but Pierre McGuire is a 'monster' pain. The two most annoying emissions form his mouth tonight: -Carbonneau can't play the Lang line against the Heatley line... Heatley's line will eat them up!(notice how that wasn't repeated after the first few minutes) - The key to playing good defence is playing well without the puck.(no *** Sherlock, maybe you should get back into coaching, with insights like that, a Cup is a given.)

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:07.
I agree with you about McGuire. He used to be quite good when he first came up as an analyst, but now that he's drunk his own Kool-aid so often, he's just annoying. He still makes decent points occasionally, but most of the time I just want to fire him into the sun.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:23.
He has been better and still makes some good points. But, even back in the 90's, when he did Habs play by play on CJAD, he was developing his blow hard style.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:10.
I generally like Pierre, but he has fallen into the trap of American sports announcers. He feels compelled to fill every empty minute of air time with himself. Half of the stuff he now comes out with is just "oily" discharge.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:18.
I'll temper the criticism of American announcers that it applies more directly to the more recent sports announcers...why, oh why, can't the NFL develop any more Pat Summerall-types? I miss my youth watching him call New Orleans Saints games. And you thought the rest of you were tortured by YOUR NFL teams... :)

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:45.
Who Dat said we gonna beat d'em Saints!

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:47.
If somebody ever discovers a hockey-playing clone of the late Sam Mills, I want him signed to play for the Montreal Candiens ASAP.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:36.
I will agree there too. I have very found memories of listening to Joe Castiglione and Ken Coleman call Red Sox games in the 80's.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:14.
Bang on Pig. I was going to say something about him sounding like American play by play guys but I held back, what with your feel good election and all. But, since you said it, I have to agree.

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:24.
The starkest comparison is in soccer, or football. The damn US guys even to this day feel compelled to go over the offside rule ad nauseum. You watch a game on Irish TV, they rarely say a word over the course of the whole match. Pierre: "You know getting throttled like that from behind by a 230lbs guy can really hurt a lot. You have to be a Monster performer to even find your pecker after that." No ***, Einstein!

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:35.
Its such a delight to watch a soccer game sometimes and actually be able to hear the game: you can tell how hard the shots are by the sound they make coming off the shooter's foot, you can hear shots hitting the post, etc. I also like that they can just relate a stream of player names and yet you can still piece together the build-up of the play.

twocents's picture
Submitted by twocents on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:34.
Sadly, I think it's partially a reflection of the audience. Along with the ridiculously loud music, there's this need to add to the spectacle. As if a well played game isn't enough for some viewers. Ah... I miss the concise insight and class of Gallivan and Irvin.

Gr8stFranchizEvr's picture
Submitted by Gr8stFranchizEvr on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:01.
Carbo looking like a new man compared to the Sat. post game press conference!

LongIslandHabsFan's picture
Submitted by LongIslandHabsFan on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:00.
Excellent team toughness in contrast to the limp-wristed effort in Toronto. They actually stood up for each other tonight. This had to be a topic brought up in Carbo's meeting with them.

Ayan_SB's picture
Submitted by Ayan_SB on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:00.
I don't usually pick out what I'm gonna wear the next day, but I know I'm wearing my Habs shirt tomorrow lol.

oshawahabsfan's picture
Submitted by oshawahabsfan on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:54.
What a prick that Ruutu is. Props to Frankie for sticking up for Max. That looked a little more like the Canadiens team we know and love and the guys who scored the goals, really needed to score those, hopefully everyone will have their games going and we'll actually see a bit of what this team is capable of, beacause we sure haven't seen anything close to the best yet. Hopefully the first of many shutouts for Carey this season.

Ayan_SB's picture
Submitted by Ayan_SB on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:52.
Ohh noo! Latendresse, O'Byrne and of course Higgins all played well today. Who are we going to blame?! Maybe Brisebois forgot to use a coaster while watching the game from the pressbox.

Shiloh's picture
Submitted by Shiloh on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:38.
Can't blame anybody re: tonight's game. It was a great team performance. But I don't jump on and off the wagon. Lats scored - and it was a good shot. But that's it. He still doesn't contribute much on a game to game basis. I feel the same about him as I have the past few years. I'm sure glad we have Higgins back on a line where he can complement Koivu and Tanguay. Lats was an anchor on that line.

Chris's picture
Submitted by Chris on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:49.
I think its a bit extreme to say that Latendresse was an anchor on the Koivu-Tanguay line, who were lighting it up fairly regularly with him on their line. He did his job on that line, and is now doing his job on the Lang line. I'm happy with his performance so far this season, and I still have faith in him.

Gary320's picture
Submitted by Gary320 on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:56.
They will start blaming Kovalev.

Kristopher7's picture
Submitted by Kristopher7 on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:56.
How dare he!

Submitted by ebk on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:55.
that bastard!

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:56.
Nothing worse than a sloppy guy in the press box. The rumour is that he also forgets to put the seat back down for female journalists.

Submitted by Jim M on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:01.
At least he doesn't throw paper airplanes.

BIG-D's picture
Submitted by BIG-D on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:18.
That was below the belt..........LOL

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 23:15.
Well, that's just a one-way ticket to Boston, New York, Toronto or Vancouver. The Breezer has NO intention of ever doing that. (Damn him!!!)

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:51.
Much better effort tonight, with no passengers. Special congrats Price for the shutout, and of course to Higgins fot the hat trick. He must feel like the world has been lifted off of his shoulders. __________________________________

Submitted by The Capitalist Pig on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:57.
Mats Sundin was on a Poker Stars commercial during the game. I may not have heard correctly, but I think Higgins was mentioned in it as well.

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