Tomas Plekanec
posted by Dave Stubbs at 18h14 EST on Jun 22
Centreman Tomas Plekanec's no-trade clause will keep him in Montreal for six seasons.
Bruce Bennett, Getty Images
• AUDIO: Tomas Plekanec conference call
Tomas Plekanec probably could have fetched more on the open market, an unrestricted free agent come July 1.
But the popular centreman likes Montreal, made no secret of that and, like defenceman Andrei Markov before him a few seasons ago, chose to pass on the UFA route by today signing a six-year contract estimated to be worth $30 million.
Plekanec has a no-trade clause in the deal, but he wouldn't say for how much of the contract that exists. He also wouldn't address whose idea it was to sign for six years, referring both points to GM Pierre Gauthier.
The native of Kladno, Czech Republic had a career-best 70 points during the 2009-2010 season (25
goals and 45 assists). He was also a fixture on the team's power-play and penalty-killing units while taking important defensive zone faceoffs.
Although only 5-foot-11 and generously listed at 198 pounds, Plekanec has missed only four games over the last four seasons.
There was speculation he could have drawn as much as $6 million per in the UFA market. He was the 71st overall by Montreal in the third round of the 2001 NHL Entry
Draft and has played his entire career with the Canadiens.
The signings today of Plekanec and Mathieu Darche leave the Canadiens with less than $9 million in salary cap space. Still unsigned: Carey Price, Benoit Pouliot, Tom Pyatt, Dominic Moore, Glen Metropolit, Maxim Lapierre, Marc-André Bergeron and Sergei Kostitsyn.
Mike Boone and Kevin Mio contributed to this post wih early reporting.
Continue reading "AUDIO: Six years, $30 million, no-trade clause locks up Plekanec for long term" »
posted by Mike Boone at 6h31 EST on Jun 15
The weather is warming up in Montreal, the jazz festival starts soon, and here's what I was asked by three store clerks who recognized me on the weekend:
"Should the Canadiens keep Jaroslav Halak or Carey Price?"
And the HIO hockey genius answered: "Man, do I LOOK like Pierre Gauthier?"
I don't. For one thing, I've got 100 pounds easy on the Canadiens vegetarian, ultra health-conscious general manager.
But that doesn't count the weighty decisions he has to make over the next few weeks.
So tell us, Commentariat, what should Gauthier do?
Continue reading "WSGD" »
posted by Mike Boone at 13h03 EST on Jun 4
A day after Guy Boucher didn't say much at Canadiens development camp, it was the general manager's turn to be circumspect.
Pierre Gauthier gave Trevor Timmins a vote of confidence.
He described the scout sackings as a "restructuring".
Gauthier said after blue-chippers are off the board – anywhere between Picks 2 and 10 – the first round of the draft becomes an extension of the second round.
Asked if the Canadiens would shy away from Russian players, Gauthier refused to generalize, saying players should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
The Canadiens would not, Gauthier said, stand in the way of Guy Boucher's professional advancement.
And if David Fischer isn't signed by Aug. 15, the Canadiens will get a compensatory second-round draft choice in 2011.
Pierre Gauthier audio
Meanwhile, agent Rich Curran was telling Radio-Canada that Tomas Plekanec's value was not diminished by his playoff performance.
posted by Dave Stubbs at 9h55 EST on Mar 15
From ESPN.com and Hockey Night In Canada's Pierre LeBrun:
The Habs and Tomas Plekanec's agent, Rick Curran, continue to talk, and
all signs point to the Czech centre likely staying put instead of
hitting the unrestricted free-agent market July 1.
"We continue
to have positive conversations ... not likely to finalize any agreement
until after the season has completed," Curran told ESPN.com via e-mail
Saturday.
I suspect the Habs need to create some cap space
after the season before fitting in any new deal for Plekanec, but it
does sound like the Canadiens will likely retain him.
posted by Kevin Mio at 17h45 EST on Mar 1
According to a report on Ruefrontenac.com, Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier and the agent for Tomas Plekanec, Rick Curran, held discussions during the Olympic break on Plekanec's future in Montreal.
Gauthier used the talks to find out what Plekanec, who leads the team in scoring, was hoping to get in his next contract.
"We talked during the Olympic break and decided to talk again after the NHL trade deadline," Curran said.
posted by Mike Boone at 23h58 EST on Feb 19
Tomas Plekanec is on a goal-a-game pace at the Olympics.
Pleks scored in the Czech Republic's 5-2 win over Latvia on Friday. He had four shots on goal and played 17:10, second among Czech forwards to Patrik Elias's 18:37.
Sergei Kostitsyn played 16:51 and had a SoG but was kept off the scoresheet in Belarus's 4-2 loss to Sweden.
Jaro Halak will be in action Saturday afternoon at 7:30 when Slovakia plays Latvia.
And on Super Sunday, it will be Pleks and the Czechs against Andrei Markov's Russia at 3 p.m., followed by Canada vs. the U.S. in what should be a prime-time classic, then Sweden vs. Saku Koivu and Finland at midnight.
posted by Mike Boone at 5h26 EST on Feb 18
Tomas Plekanec took a pass from his hometown hero, Jaromir Jagr, and beat Jaro Halak for the insurance goal in the Czech Republic's 3-1 conquest of Slovakia – the most exciting and competitive game to date.
Pleks played 16:16 and had three shots on goal, second only to Tomas Kaberle's six.
Halak allowed three goals on 24 shots.
Including his last three NHL starts, Jaro has stoped 75 of 89 shots, an 84.3 save percentage that is well off his performances in 40-shot games.
posted by Kevin Mio at 12h55 EST on Feb 17
Andrei Markov played 15:29 on Tuesday night in Russias 8-2 win over Latvia, collecting an assist, registering two shots on goal and was a plus-2 at the end of the night.
The Czech Republic and Slovakia face off tonight, pitting teammates Tomas Plekanec and Jaroslav Halak against each other, and Belarus, with Sergei Kostitsyn, takes on Finland with former Canadiens captain Saku Koivu.
posted by Dave Stubbs at 12h37 EST on Dec 22
You're not just thinking that Tomas Plekanec is having a whale of a season. He is having a whale of a season.
Eric Engels crunched a few numbers. Take a look at this.
posted by Chris Aung-Thwin at 20h30 EST on Dec 21
"I have heard from a reliable source that there may be a deal brewing between Montreal and Philadelphia. Pleks, Gill, and Halak for Carter and Boucher." – 24 Cups
Well, what do you think?
The Philadelphia-Montreal rumours have been swirling for the past week or so. Jaroslav Halak wants out, Jeff Carter is available… let’s make a deal, right?
We ship out our number one center for their number one center. They get a real solid 5/6th defensemen who gets the job done on the PK. We give them a guy who wants to be a number one goalie for a guy who’s lucky to be a backup.
In today’s world of “my capspace is bigger than yours”, GMs have a tough time orchestrating any impact trades until February or March. This season’s deadline is March 3rd and we might see a flurry of activity this year if there are any major injuries during the Olympic Winter Games.
Most teams have very little wiggle room right now. They’re up against the cap and can’t make any major moves. Our trades this season have so far involved a contract-for-contract swap (Guillaume Latendresse / Benoit Pouliot) and moving Kyle Chipchura’s minimum contract of $500 000 (or what someone like Vincent Lecavalier made while you were reading this sentence).
Continue reading "Trade Rumours?" »
posted by Dave Stubbs at 7h38 EST on Nov 23
Tomas Plekanec's hard play at both ends of the ice has drawn the praise of Habs coach Jacques Martin.
Richard Wolowicz, Getty Images
I had an enlightening visit Saturday night postgame with Tomas Plekanec to discuss his superb season – his revolving-door linemates who seem to raise their game alongside him, how he has re-created himself this year after a summer of reflection, his contract status, etc. Here's that column.
Sunday was a day off for the Canadiens. They return to practice this morning, at which time we'll provide an update on the crowded medical clinic.
A special hello and thanks to all the Inside/Out Summit crew I met pregame Saturday night – a fun, engaging, passionate bunch. Boone, Mio, Hickey and I thank you all for having made this site one of your cyberspace homes. We're glad to have you.
posted by Mike Boone at 6h33 EST on Sep 16
• Andrei Markov talks to Dave Stubbs about the captaincy and other stuff
• Tomas Plekanec looks for a bounce-back season
• Pat Hickey on Max-Pac's strong camp
• François Gagnon nominates Roman Hamrlik
• Sean Gordon of the Globe and Mail on Georges Laraque's vegan diet
• Eric Duhatschek asks whether young stars like Ovie and Sid can save the NHL from itself
• Pierre LeBrun's training camp questions, including:
Are the Habs any better? It really depends on how quickly so
many new faces can come together and find chemistry, and that's no
small task. It also depends on how Gomez and Gionta can rebound from
subpar seasons and whether they can rediscover the magic that made them
effective as New Jersey teammates a few years ago. Goalie Carey Price
also has much to answer for after a mediocre season. It's hard to see
the Habs as anything but a bubble team fighting for the last playoff
spot in the East, but stranger things have happened. Either way, Gainey
had no choice but to change the dynamic of a team that came apart, on
and off the ice, last season.
• Boston Globe on Steve Bégin (Thanks, nightmare_49)
posted by Mike Boone at 7h33 EST on Sep 2
• Pat Hickey on the NHL's long, hot summer.
• Thanks to Brian La Rose at HabsWorld for a comparison of this season's defence corps vs. '08-'09's and five players with something to prove.
• The team web site has calendar downloads.
• Pierre LeBrun on Alex Tanguay, who talks to La Presse and to RDS.
• SI's Darren Eliot on six players who must bounce back if their teams are to succeed, including our very own Tomas Plekanec: "No team revamped its roster more than Montreal. GM Bob Gainey brought in seven new faces, including three top-line forwards in Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta.
All three should boost the Canadiens' offensive output. But, balance on
the top two lines hinges on Plekanec reasserting himself as a
consistent threat. He is coming off a season in which his production
dropped 30 points, from 69 to 39. He has scored 20 goals in each of the
past three seasons, but last season was a major dip in both goals and
points after roughly 20-point leaps in his first three years with the
big club. The Habs need Plekanec to prove that last season was an
aberration and that his previous total wasn't a plateau."
• Eric Duhatschek on the Dany Heatley mess.
• At Rue Frontenac, Bertrand Raymond responds to the masses who thought his last column was crap.
• Another lovely, sunny day in Montreal. Let's ruin it with a pic of Chris Pronger in orange.
posted by Mike Boone at 6h20 EST on Aug 6
posted by Mike Boone at 6h14 EST on Aug 5
We're 36 days into free agency, and Mathieu Dandenault is still looking for work.
In La Presse, Mathias Brunet looks at Dandy's dilemma and points out that five other Canadiens' UFAs remain unsigned: Alex Tanguay, Robert Lang, Mathieu Schneider, Francis Bouillon and Patrice Brisebois.
Tell me again: How good was the team Bob Gainey blew up?
To be fair, players of a certain age carrying a significant price tag are going to have a tough time in the current market. The unsigned list includes Todd Bertuzzi, Mike Comrie, Petr Sykora, Brendan Shanahan, Miroslav Satan, Emmanuel Fernandez, Philippe Boucher, Denis Seidenberg, Mike Grier and Chris Chelios.
Oh yeah, and a certain big Swedish centre who looked very attractive a mere 12 months ago.
• You read it here first: Patrick Eaves will have a career renaissance in Detroit. Ken Holland doesn't make many mistakes.
• Pat Hickey on the Phoenix mess.
• Watsatheo Theatre: Guillaume Latendresse highlight reel, Tomas Plekanec laying out James Sheppard and Rick Nash with nifty hip checks.
• From the Canadiens site, Brian Gionta likes country music (Carey will have company). Favourite Seinfeld character: Kramer.
• Will the Sharks make a trade? Good analysis from San Jose blog.
• The NY Post's Larry Broooks dissects the Nikolai Zherdev situation.
• The terrific Lions in Winter site has a look back at Gary Leeman's contribution to the 1993 Cup win.
• Stephen Brunt on Gary Bettman.
• James Mirtle on the Islanders' problems.
• Russian journalist interviews Alexander Ovechkin, whose voice is hilariously dubbed into English.
• Today's featured video: We'll miss you, J.R.
Continue reading "Still unemployed" »
posted by Mike Boone at 19h34 EST on Jul 21
Maybe Will Hunting – or Stephen Hawking – can help us figure this out:
During the 2007-'08 season, Tomas Plekanec scored 29 goals, added 40 assists and was plus-15. His salary was $1.4 million – which made those breakout numbers a bargain.
In 2008-09, Plekanec scored 20 goals and had 19 assists. He was minus-9. The second year of a two-year contract paid him $1.8 million.
Plekanec's new one-year contract is for $2.75 million.
So after a season when his goals declined by 31 per cent, his assists by 53 per cent and his plus/minus by 24, Pleks gets a 50 per cent raise.
And you thought the automobile industry was screwy?
• • •
NHL.numbers.com says the Canadiens have $3.22 million of salary cap breathing room, with Matt D'Agostini and Gregory Stewart unsigned.
The San Jose Sharks have $900,000 in cap space.
Patrick Marleau will make $6.3 million this season, Ryan Clowe $3.5 million.
I don't see how Bob Gainey can put together a trade package that would free up enough to fit Marleau under the Canadiens' cap.
But if Tomas Plekanec deserves a raise, anything is possible.
posted by Dave Stubbs at 20h16 EST on Jul 5
Canadiens centreman Tomas Plekanec is one of 20 NHL players who have chosen to go the salary arbitration route. The restricted free agent earned $1.8 million with the Habs this past season and late last month received a qualifying offer from the team.
In a release tonight, the NHLPA says the deadline for club-elected salary arbitration notification is Monday at 5 p.m. ET. Hearings will be held in Toronto from July 20 to Aug. 4.
Here's an explanation of the arbitration process.
And here's audio of Plekanec recorded on April 23, the day after the Canadiens' season ended with a four-game conference quarterfinal sweep at the hands of the Boston Bruins. Asked whether he thought his future was in Montreal, he said that, as an RFA, he was still a member of the Canadiens organization. "I guess I'll be back," he added.
posted by Chris Aung-Thwin at 17h31 EST on Jun 20
Saku Koivu – Our Captain. The 34-year old Finn is a stalwart of leadership, determination and perseverance. He’s battled through adversity both on and off the ice. He deals well with fans and with the media. He’s made Montreal his home. Unfortunately, he is also a reminder of our failures and our short-comings. We’re an under-sized team and during his tenure, we haven’t made a convincing run in the playoffs.
Saku’s best numbers were in 2006-07 when he notched 22 goals and 53 assists for 75 points. He also had a +/- of -21.
Critics point out that he’s not getting any younger and he’s never been the big number one center that we need. In Koivu’s defense, he’s never claimed to be.
If Gainey doesn’t ink Koivu – and we don’t trade for Lecavalier – then who do we sign to replace him? We could go after Henrik Sedin, but he’s a package deal with Daniel. The purported salary demands of the twins don’t appear exorbitant, but 12-year deals? That’s a long time.
Continue reading "Down the Middle" »
The Habs are playing like the Habs again. The boys are scoring goals, skating hard, playing defensively sound and maybe most importantly –
smiling.
And who can we thank for this last minute resurgence? Look no further than behind the bench.
Coach Gainey has implemented a system that uses players to their strengths and creates a team chemistry that helps overcome individual weaknesses.
This is the team that
GM Gainey had envisioned at the beginning of the season. This is the team that, on paper, looked like it could compete deep into the playoffs.
Continue reading "Making a Statement" »
posted by Dave Stubbs at 21h54 EST on Dec 17
Canadiens defenceman Mike Komisarek hopes the doctor clears him to return to action tonight. The team could use him against the red-hot Philadelphia Flyers.
Dave Sidaway, Gazette
• Will the reunion of Tomas Plekanec, Alex Kovalev and Andrei Kostitsyn give the Canadiens a spark? Head coach Guy Carbonneau hopes so. And Plekanec hopes that more communication among the linemates, and on down the bench, will improve the Habs' sliding fortunes.
• Will Mike Komisarek get the green light for Thursday's game vs. the Philadelphia Flyers? Komo can't wait to get back into action, having missed the past 16 games.
• Feature to come in Thursday's Hockey Inside/Out section in The Gazette. Check out this sneak preview of goalie Carey Price's new equipment. Well, not really...
posted by Mike Boone at 8h08 EST on Aug 20
In an interview with the Edmonton Sun, Georges Laraque talks about coming home to Montreal:
"When I was a kid, I remember they were winning all the Stanley Cups and every kid on the street had a Habs jersey," Laraque said.
"And what I remember the most was the Rocket Richard book that we used to read at school. "
Possibly The Hockey Sweater, en français?
Non, says poster Ben D.:
"The book that Laraque is talking about is Un bon exemple de ténacité – Maurice Richard You can find that book in any French primary school library..."
Thanks, Ben
• • •
In the Edmonton Journal. Jim Matheson shoots down the rumour that had Ales Hemsky traded from the Oilers to the Canadiens:
The message boards say the Canadiens might be dangling forward Chris Higgins, defenceman P.K. Subban, a member of Canada's world junior team last year, and another roster player. And, defenceman Denis Grebeshkov's name has been talked about going to Montreal, too.
Kevin Lowe told Matheson it's all BS.
Continue reading "Laraque remembers the Rocket" »
posted by Mike Boone at 14h36 EST on Jul 30
From Canadiens.com, the team web site, Tomas Plekanec's iPod favourites.
Two questions:
• Who the heck are the All-American Rejects?
• Doesn't he hear Crazy enough at the Bell Centre?
| Songs |
|
Artists |
| Move Along |
|
The All-American Rejects |
| It Ends Tonight |
|
The All-American Rejects |
| Make a Memory |
|
Bon Jovi |
| Crazy |
|
Gnarls Barkley |
| Cool |
|
Gwen Stefani |
| The Reason |
|
Hoobastank |
| Wake Up Call |
|
Maroon 5 |
| All Good Things |
|
Nelly Furtado |
| Don't Cha |
|
The Pussycat Dolls |
| Buttons |
|
The Pussycat Dolls |
| Snow |
|
Red Hot Chili Peppers |
| Shut Up and Drive |
|
Rihanna |
| V.I.P. |
|
Shaun Baker |
| The Way I Are |
|
Timbaland |
posted by Kevin Mio at 10h30 EST on Dec 23
Tomas Plekanec wears a turtleneck under his jersey, but he's no slowpoke.
BRUCE BENNETT, GETTY IMAGES
In today's one-on-one, The Gazette's Kevin Mio sits down with Canadiens forward Tomas Plekanec, who has settled into his role as Alex Kovalev's centre and proven he is up to the task after a shaky start last season. The Czech forward exploded offensively during the second half of last season, finishing with 20 goals, and that has carried over into this season. Through 35 games, he has 11 goals and 16 assists.
In this week's feature, he discusses topics such as why he wears a turtleneck under his equipment and how he has adjusted to playing with Kovalev.
Here's a sample of his answers:
You spent three seasons in Hamilton, which is a long time for some players. Looking back, do you think that was a good thing for you in the long run?
"For sure. When you're a young guy, you don't
really like it down in the minors, but if you go about it and think it's good for you, it's going to help you for sure. It helped me a lot. When I look back, I think it's a great thing for me to have played there."
Who was your idol growing up?
"It was Jaromir Jagr all the time because he is from the same city (Kladno, Czech Republic) and he was the closest star to look at."
Read the entire article here.
Share the agony and ecstasy of Habs fandom and read live blogs from every game with Gazette columnist Mike Boone.
