Here's my report on the habs for the break, hope you enjoy:
Gomez:
I'm not afraid to say that Scott Gomez is one of my favorite players in the NHL. I like the way he plays and just think he's having a tough time right now I really do. But Scott you've gotta wake up. You're capable of so much better and you know it. He just seems to have lost his confidence out there and it's really a shame. I want to see the Gomez of the playoffs, I want to see the Gomez of those Stanley Cup runs in New Jersey. The guy who showed up every night and elevated his play, made his line better and setup some sweet goals. Heck he's never been known as a gifted goal scorer but he has been known as one hell of a play maker.
Gomez just needs a clean slate. He isn't going anywhere fans, sorry I know so many of you want him gone but he isn't going anywhere not only because he's an important part of our team but because with his cap hit no team will take him even if he does get paid less in coming years. I don't want him gone regardless but some people need to understand that. That being said we need to support him but he's gotta support himself too. He needs to get his confidence back and clearly needs fans and media support not to be shunned or hated on. I know he cares about this team and wants be successful. But I also know he isn't playing like Scott Gomez the coveted all star play maker from the New Jersey Devils. They did have a good team but he was a big part of the reason they did. He needs to be a big part of our reason. We have injuries now and the team needs him now more than ever.
He's gotta step up his game right now.
Price
Needs his team to stop taking dumb penalties that are costly and momentum shifting. Not kidding you I don't fault this guy one bit in a number of our losses in recent memory. When your team takes 3 penalties at the same time and on top of that takes several too many men penalties in a season (I wonder what the stat is) you really can't be blamed by them throwing away games. I'm not saying he hasn't let in some goals he'd like to have back or mishandled the puck ever, he has. But he's been a good goalie and the team needs to support him and stop ruining him by playing so bad defensively and taking dumb penalties. If it weren't for that Price would be doing a lot better. And another thing, play Auld please, thanks. He's a grown man he knows how to play also.
Jacques Martin
Makes some questionable decisions at times I think we can all agree. Anywhere from not taking a time out to taking a bad time out. Not pulling the goalie early enough at times. I find the habs this year have a seriously lack of control in the oppositions zone even on the power play and this direly needs to be addressed somehow.
Pierre Gauthier
What can I say, I like this guy. He goes and gets Wis for nothing. But then at the same time gives Lapierre away for nothing. I can only assume he's making cap space in case of a huge trade. Now I'm not saying we're going after Iginla even though it's rumored. But he freed up the Markov cap space, some of Gorges and even traded Lapierre to get rid of his cap room. Added Wisniewski so that adds cap but we could definitely fit Iginla in. We'd be giving up cap room in the process in that deal, not as much as Iginla's probably but some. If he makes the Iginla trade I'll be thrilled personally. Yes Iginla is 34 years old but I figure he has enough good years left. I want him on our team. He played with Cammalleri already. Cammalleri with Plekanec and Iginla would be a #1 line in the NHL that would match up against any other teams very well. I believe they will want Pacioretty in the deal though, that's the only problem I have with it. But you've got to give to get.
O'Byrne
I know he's an ex hab but just because I was speaking about Gauthier I think this trade will look very stupid if the Bournival kid doesn't pan out for us. I knew O'Byrne would be an NHL defense man and I also called the trade on my blog before it happened. It was a no-brainer because O'Byrne clearly was NHL ready. I'm happy for him that he's playing well and progressing.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Mathieu Darche - Does make the team better.
The other day I was watching the game and RDS posed a question that to be quite honest I think is ridiculous. The question was in French but I'll paraphrase to the best of my abilities. Basically they were asking if Darche makes the team better or not. To me after 20+ games it's a ridiculous question, in my mind the response is "of course he does".
I'll be the first to admit I had my doubts about the Darche signing, thought maybe it could have been a waste of salary cap space due to it being a depth signing. I don't think I'm too worried about it anymore as Darche is a very hard working player who makes things happen. As a thirteenth forward I don't think it gets much better than Mathieu Darche. I'm not sure if this was a question posed by a fan or RDS but the fact that RDS chose this question above others to me is just crazy.
Darche fills the role he's given by our management on any given night. He has never hurt the team but on many occasions has in fact helped the team a lot. What more could you want from a "thirteenth" forward and I'm beginning to use that word pretty loosely already. The team simply has looked better when he's in the line up then with out. So to the question "Does Darche make the team better" I boldly answer "of course he does!"
I'll be the first to admit I had my doubts about the Darche signing, thought maybe it could have been a waste of salary cap space due to it being a depth signing. I don't think I'm too worried about it anymore as Darche is a very hard working player who makes things happen. As a thirteenth forward I don't think it gets much better than Mathieu Darche. I'm not sure if this was a question posed by a fan or RDS but the fact that RDS chose this question above others to me is just crazy.
Darche fills the role he's given by our management on any given night. He has never hurt the team but on many occasions has in fact helped the team a lot. What more could you want from a "thirteenth" forward and I'm beginning to use that word pretty loosely already. The team simply has looked better when he's in the line up then with out. So to the question "Does Darche make the team better" I boldly answer "of course he does!"
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
The Habs - A Last Ten Story Pt. 2
After the first 10 games of the season I posted a blog about how the Habs were doing as a team and as individuals on the team. We were 7-1-2 in those games and now we're 6-4-0. Funny thing is I think aside from last nights game against Philly I think we've been playing some good hockey in that 10 game span. Still posting an above .500 record and with Markov out once again. We'll find out later this week just how serious the injury is, hopefully it isn't too bad but I have my doubts to say the least. Now being 13-7-1 I can't say I'm complaining and yes I know I'm late in posting this. A slight miscalculation on my part ;)
Again I think the coaching has been good and a big part of the reason we're doing so well on the PK and improving on the PP, though I must admit the PP leaves much to be desired it still isn't in 29th place so that's a huge improvement over the first ten games of the season. Either way talk regarding the team as a whole, we're 3rd in the eastern conference and winning games, enough said on that.
Carey Price A+ - I think it's pretty obvious why he gets the A+. First of all 30% of his wins are shutouts, second of all he's only ever allowed 3 goals in regulation. Third of all he's played 20 games already this season which is a ton of games. He's been solid, he's been making big saves, keeping us in the game and much more. He's been confident in net, probably the most confident we've ever bared witness to. I'm in awe even as a big time Price supporter that he's doing this well. I expected him to be a good goalie this year I really did. I did not expect him to be one of the three best. This year I'd say he's definitely a top 3 goalie so far and I'm not going to be knocking on wood anytime soon. The way Price is playing I don't think voodoo or knocking on wood has anything to do with it, he's proving why he has such a great history of winning.
Tomas Plekanec A+ - Again this is a guy playing above expectations and going into this season they've been the highest of all time for him. People expect no less than a 70pt season out of Tomas, I think Tomas is more interested in 80 to 90 points and I don't doubt he could achieve either. He's been our best forward and often times he's even played like a third defenceman for us. Hard to fault a guy who works so hard and gets results, when you look back to his rookie season and now it's crazy how much this guy has grown as a player and continues to. Now my expectations for he and Price are super high, these two guys are players Stanley Cups are won with.
Andrei Kostitsyn B+ - Last time I gave him an A- and my reasoning was that I wanted to see him produce for a more extended period of time. It isn't that I feel Andrei has become worse it's just that he hasn't produced at the same pace so this time I'm knocking him down a notch. That isn't to say I don't acknowledge his solid play regardless. He's been playing his game still just hasn't been as good in the first 10 games as he has been in the last 10. I attribute this partly to being moved around the line up and don't fault him for that but at the same time I call it how I see it. I don't doubt that in the next 10 games he could go back to being an A- or even become an A. Remember this is based on their last 10 or so games, in this case 11 because of my mistake. While he's still been great out there he's not producing at the level that he was early on. Still 3 points in his last 5 games isn't too bad considering we got shutout by Nashville.
Mike Cammalleri B+ - I haven't seen enough improvement in his game statistically to merit increasing his rating yet. He certainly hasn't been terrible like people are mentioning either. He too has been moved around a bit and has had some close chances but like Andrei simply hasn't been putting up the numbers. In Mike and Tomas' cases reason I keep them the same is because they've proven their consistency at the NHL level already. We all know how Mike is, he'll score 15 goals in 12 games and then he'll score 3 goals in 15 games. Other than that he's been playing the way he normally does which is good, when he's on the ice he creates space for his line mates as they try to cover Mike pretty tightly.
Alexandre Picard - Will give him the pass this time around as he didn't get to play much. Glad he's back in the line up and he hasn't looked too bad yet. He might have been slightly better before he got benched for a bit but I think that's the way the cookie crumbles. He'll be much more solid in the next few games I think once he gets back into his groove. He still wasn't bad even despite that though.
PK Subban A - I can't give him the A+ just yet but I think he's been solid still none the less. He got under a vets skin (Richards) and he's been known to get under peoples skin throughout the league. I love this about PK and I wouldn't ask him to change his game in the slightest. Once he starts banging them in and getting more points and consistently maintains good numbers the A+ won't be too far away. The guy is a superstar, he's magical with and without the puck. He's still maintained a good defensive game while playing well offensively. For me right now the only thing holding me back from A+ is consistency, not saying he isn't consistent but he's a rookie, I'd like to see how he does for most of or an entire season first before deciding but if he manages to find magic on our PP I wouldn't rule out giving him an A+ sooner than later. He brings a lot to the table and if he can manage to quarterback our power play eventually then surely he'll bring enough elements to the table to merit being called an A+. He is our defensive version of Plekanec, he's a star and he plays the game well in many different areas and has only improved since becoming a hab. I know he hasn't even come close to reaching his full potential yet so calling him an A+ now would be detrimental to my rating system :) I know the logic behind it is less than logical but remember I just do this for fun and give my opinion on the matter, I'm no Eklund (lol)
Eller B - Reason I give him a B instead of B- this time is because I find in the last 5 or 6 games especially he's simply been more noticeable on the ice, doing more things and he seems to be gaining the coaches trust. It's tough to rate the guy because he isn't being used in an offensive role in most cases. Considering that I think he's developing fine. I don't think he's being ruined I just think he's being taught the defensive side of the game and the system prior to being put in a position where he can cost us a game. Give the kid some time, he's got a tremendous amount of talent and could be our Subban 2.0 come playoff time this year. He will surprise us all I think but we'll have to wait and see, he might possibly become our secret weapon. The Dane is being developed properly we just need to be a little bit more patient.
Halpern A+ - What can you really say about this guy? He works hard, he produces and he wins games for you. Hardly the Halpern I thought we had acquired in the post season but it just goes to show how looks can sometimes be deceiving. I feel our organization has done a tremendous job over the past couple seasons of finding guys that work well within our team. Metropolit, Moore and now Halpern. All seemed to play a really good game for us when compared with other teams. This guy really is a perfect fit for us though, I just pray he can stay healthy because looking at his stats it seems he does get injured often enough. For a player that I had pegged as a B- to a C+ at most going into the season Halpern has exceeded expectations. He gets the A+ for now but we'll see if he can maintain it.
Moen B - He hasn't been bad but kind of like Halpern this player imo has to produce in order for me to consider him a B+ etc. I wouldn't say Moen is playing beyond his level, he's just playing his typical game which is what we need. However I also wouldn't say he's dominating the physical game/presence entirely. Other guys have really seemed to step up this year even the smaller guys, seems our team is a bit more feisty then in past seasons. A solid B for Moen and deservedly so.
Gomez C- - I'm starting to agree with people that a larger part of the problem might be Gomez. While I still stand by my point that Gomez never really got a true 2nd line to play on he still certainly has to be producing more than he has even despite that. There comes a time where there just aren't any excuses to be used anymore. If he had maybe 1g 4a more I probably wouldn't complain and would have even given him a B- but really he's just been terrible out there. Now I know Scott Gomez isn't the kind of player to carry a line but it would be nice if he could at least get some points now and then. That aside I still think once he's paired up with a true pair of wingers rather than one 4th liner all the time his stats will improve. I just don't think his stats are justified by this reasoning anymore. Like I said if he had 4-5 more points fair enough but he's just been terrible out there. Now he even appears to have lost all confidence where as before he still was and just wasn't getting lucky. We need this guy to wake up and soon but I really do think a trade is in the works for deadline latest, if we start losing even sooner. We need to get this guy a winger to play with and then people are going to see he and Gio will find their magic once again.
Gionta B- - I consider him to be the most improved hab in the last 10 games. Switching him onto the Plekanec line really did help. It's too bad we can't put Gomez on a line with Plekanec as he really seems to make even the coldest or worst players around him look amazing. Gionta started producing which was what we needed him to do and to continue doing. Now all he has to do is take that confidence to the Gomez line and hope it translates into production. He's definitely been burying chances when before he missed many open nets and screwed up several good feeds from Gomez. Not trying to detract from how badly Scott has been don't get me wrong, but if Gionta had put away a few of those feeds I think I'd be telling you all a much different tale right now. I don't know if it's my Koivu fanboyism but I still don't think he's anywhere close to as good a captain as Koivu was but then again Koivu had a lot of time to learn.
Pouliot B- - Still think he's a B-, he's been playing great but needs to produce a little more consistently. This is a guy that at one point people thought was capable of putting up 30-40 goals and in my opinion with good reason. He has size, speed and a good shot, what more could you want? I'm putting him on hold for now though because like Andrei I think over the next 10 games he might impress me. Both these players have grown tremendously as hockey players this year in my opinion. Something caused by Jacques Martins coaching and coaching staff? I really hope so because if it's the case we'll pretty soon be putting the habs development issues to rest.
Lapierre B - Even though it was a fluke pair of goals that got him some points I still think he's been playing with a bit more kick in the last few games. Maybe he had a wakeup call who knows but one things for sure he shoots the puck and sometimes that's all you need to do and fluke goals can happen. Also you can't really pretend to forget that amazing goal he had against Cam Ward, for that alone I'll give him the bump up to B from B-, he's still capable of much more in my opinion but it remains to be seen. I think he needs to be a bit more feisty out there and a bit more physical but I get the feeling the coach has told him to tone it down, possibly because he's known for getting called on a lot of stupid penalties both legit and BS.
Spacek C- - Most inconsistent habs player bar none. Sure he's improved but he's still not consistent in the slightest. One game he'll look like the Spacek we knew from Buffalo. The next game he looks like crap. One game he's producing offensively and playing defensively sound, the next game he's blowing clear cut opportunities and getting burned. I think if we give him more time he'll work out his game and be a surprise benefit to us this year maybe even in the playoffs. Either way he's a signing I was excited about and I want to like the guy, he just makes it very difficult with his blunders.
So that's my 2nd novel on the habs players this year. Also honorable mentions go to Tom Pyatt (very underrated and solid on the PK) and of course Darche who looked great along side Pouliot and Halpern, though I'm starting to suspect a lot of players would.
Again I think the coaching has been good and a big part of the reason we're doing so well on the PK and improving on the PP, though I must admit the PP leaves much to be desired it still isn't in 29th place so that's a huge improvement over the first ten games of the season. Either way talk regarding the team as a whole, we're 3rd in the eastern conference and winning games, enough said on that.
Carey Price A+ - I think it's pretty obvious why he gets the A+. First of all 30% of his wins are shutouts, second of all he's only ever allowed 3 goals in regulation. Third of all he's played 20 games already this season which is a ton of games. He's been solid, he's been making big saves, keeping us in the game and much more. He's been confident in net, probably the most confident we've ever bared witness to. I'm in awe even as a big time Price supporter that he's doing this well. I expected him to be a good goalie this year I really did. I did not expect him to be one of the three best. This year I'd say he's definitely a top 3 goalie so far and I'm not going to be knocking on wood anytime soon. The way Price is playing I don't think voodoo or knocking on wood has anything to do with it, he's proving why he has such a great history of winning.
Tomas Plekanec A+ - Again this is a guy playing above expectations and going into this season they've been the highest of all time for him. People expect no less than a 70pt season out of Tomas, I think Tomas is more interested in 80 to 90 points and I don't doubt he could achieve either. He's been our best forward and often times he's even played like a third defenceman for us. Hard to fault a guy who works so hard and gets results, when you look back to his rookie season and now it's crazy how much this guy has grown as a player and continues to. Now my expectations for he and Price are super high, these two guys are players Stanley Cups are won with.
Andrei Kostitsyn B+ - Last time I gave him an A- and my reasoning was that I wanted to see him produce for a more extended period of time. It isn't that I feel Andrei has become worse it's just that he hasn't produced at the same pace so this time I'm knocking him down a notch. That isn't to say I don't acknowledge his solid play regardless. He's been playing his game still just hasn't been as good in the first 10 games as he has been in the last 10. I attribute this partly to being moved around the line up and don't fault him for that but at the same time I call it how I see it. I don't doubt that in the next 10 games he could go back to being an A- or even become an A. Remember this is based on their last 10 or so games, in this case 11 because of my mistake. While he's still been great out there he's not producing at the level that he was early on. Still 3 points in his last 5 games isn't too bad considering we got shutout by Nashville.
Mike Cammalleri B+ - I haven't seen enough improvement in his game statistically to merit increasing his rating yet. He certainly hasn't been terrible like people are mentioning either. He too has been moved around a bit and has had some close chances but like Andrei simply hasn't been putting up the numbers. In Mike and Tomas' cases reason I keep them the same is because they've proven their consistency at the NHL level already. We all know how Mike is, he'll score 15 goals in 12 games and then he'll score 3 goals in 15 games. Other than that he's been playing the way he normally does which is good, when he's on the ice he creates space for his line mates as they try to cover Mike pretty tightly.
Alexandre Picard - Will give him the pass this time around as he didn't get to play much. Glad he's back in the line up and he hasn't looked too bad yet. He might have been slightly better before he got benched for a bit but I think that's the way the cookie crumbles. He'll be much more solid in the next few games I think once he gets back into his groove. He still wasn't bad even despite that though.
PK Subban A - I can't give him the A+ just yet but I think he's been solid still none the less. He got under a vets skin (Richards) and he's been known to get under peoples skin throughout the league. I love this about PK and I wouldn't ask him to change his game in the slightest. Once he starts banging them in and getting more points and consistently maintains good numbers the A+ won't be too far away. The guy is a superstar, he's magical with and without the puck. He's still maintained a good defensive game while playing well offensively. For me right now the only thing holding me back from A+ is consistency, not saying he isn't consistent but he's a rookie, I'd like to see how he does for most of or an entire season first before deciding but if he manages to find magic on our PP I wouldn't rule out giving him an A+ sooner than later. He brings a lot to the table and if he can manage to quarterback our power play eventually then surely he'll bring enough elements to the table to merit being called an A+. He is our defensive version of Plekanec, he's a star and he plays the game well in many different areas and has only improved since becoming a hab. I know he hasn't even come close to reaching his full potential yet so calling him an A+ now would be detrimental to my rating system :) I know the logic behind it is less than logical but remember I just do this for fun and give my opinion on the matter, I'm no Eklund (lol)
Eller B - Reason I give him a B instead of B- this time is because I find in the last 5 or 6 games especially he's simply been more noticeable on the ice, doing more things and he seems to be gaining the coaches trust. It's tough to rate the guy because he isn't being used in an offensive role in most cases. Considering that I think he's developing fine. I don't think he's being ruined I just think he's being taught the defensive side of the game and the system prior to being put in a position where he can cost us a game. Give the kid some time, he's got a tremendous amount of talent and could be our Subban 2.0 come playoff time this year. He will surprise us all I think but we'll have to wait and see, he might possibly become our secret weapon. The Dane is being developed properly we just need to be a little bit more patient.
Halpern A+ - What can you really say about this guy? He works hard, he produces and he wins games for you. Hardly the Halpern I thought we had acquired in the post season but it just goes to show how looks can sometimes be deceiving. I feel our organization has done a tremendous job over the past couple seasons of finding guys that work well within our team. Metropolit, Moore and now Halpern. All seemed to play a really good game for us when compared with other teams. This guy really is a perfect fit for us though, I just pray he can stay healthy because looking at his stats it seems he does get injured often enough. For a player that I had pegged as a B- to a C+ at most going into the season Halpern has exceeded expectations. He gets the A+ for now but we'll see if he can maintain it.
Moen B - He hasn't been bad but kind of like Halpern this player imo has to produce in order for me to consider him a B+ etc. I wouldn't say Moen is playing beyond his level, he's just playing his typical game which is what we need. However I also wouldn't say he's dominating the physical game/presence entirely. Other guys have really seemed to step up this year even the smaller guys, seems our team is a bit more feisty then in past seasons. A solid B for Moen and deservedly so.
Gomez C- - I'm starting to agree with people that a larger part of the problem might be Gomez. While I still stand by my point that Gomez never really got a true 2nd line to play on he still certainly has to be producing more than he has even despite that. There comes a time where there just aren't any excuses to be used anymore. If he had maybe 1g 4a more I probably wouldn't complain and would have even given him a B- but really he's just been terrible out there. Now I know Scott Gomez isn't the kind of player to carry a line but it would be nice if he could at least get some points now and then. That aside I still think once he's paired up with a true pair of wingers rather than one 4th liner all the time his stats will improve. I just don't think his stats are justified by this reasoning anymore. Like I said if he had 4-5 more points fair enough but he's just been terrible out there. Now he even appears to have lost all confidence where as before he still was and just wasn't getting lucky. We need this guy to wake up and soon but I really do think a trade is in the works for deadline latest, if we start losing even sooner. We need to get this guy a winger to play with and then people are going to see he and Gio will find their magic once again.
Gionta B- - I consider him to be the most improved hab in the last 10 games. Switching him onto the Plekanec line really did help. It's too bad we can't put Gomez on a line with Plekanec as he really seems to make even the coldest or worst players around him look amazing. Gionta started producing which was what we needed him to do and to continue doing. Now all he has to do is take that confidence to the Gomez line and hope it translates into production. He's definitely been burying chances when before he missed many open nets and screwed up several good feeds from Gomez. Not trying to detract from how badly Scott has been don't get me wrong, but if Gionta had put away a few of those feeds I think I'd be telling you all a much different tale right now. I don't know if it's my Koivu fanboyism but I still don't think he's anywhere close to as good a captain as Koivu was but then again Koivu had a lot of time to learn.
Pouliot B- - Still think he's a B-, he's been playing great but needs to produce a little more consistently. This is a guy that at one point people thought was capable of putting up 30-40 goals and in my opinion with good reason. He has size, speed and a good shot, what more could you want? I'm putting him on hold for now though because like Andrei I think over the next 10 games he might impress me. Both these players have grown tremendously as hockey players this year in my opinion. Something caused by Jacques Martins coaching and coaching staff? I really hope so because if it's the case we'll pretty soon be putting the habs development issues to rest.
Lapierre B - Even though it was a fluke pair of goals that got him some points I still think he's been playing with a bit more kick in the last few games. Maybe he had a wakeup call who knows but one things for sure he shoots the puck and sometimes that's all you need to do and fluke goals can happen. Also you can't really pretend to forget that amazing goal he had against Cam Ward, for that alone I'll give him the bump up to B from B-, he's still capable of much more in my opinion but it remains to be seen. I think he needs to be a bit more feisty out there and a bit more physical but I get the feeling the coach has told him to tone it down, possibly because he's known for getting called on a lot of stupid penalties both legit and BS.
Spacek C- - Most inconsistent habs player bar none. Sure he's improved but he's still not consistent in the slightest. One game he'll look like the Spacek we knew from Buffalo. The next game he looks like crap. One game he's producing offensively and playing defensively sound, the next game he's blowing clear cut opportunities and getting burned. I think if we give him more time he'll work out his game and be a surprise benefit to us this year maybe even in the playoffs. Either way he's a signing I was excited about and I want to like the guy, he just makes it very difficult with his blunders.
So that's my 2nd novel on the habs players this year. Also honorable mentions go to Tom Pyatt (very underrated and solid on the PK) and of course Darche who looked great along side Pouliot and Halpern, though I'm starting to suspect a lot of players would.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Carey Price pt2
So at the start of the preseason I wrote about how Price will gain his confidence back and become the goalie we all know he can be if we're just patient and show him our support. When Price commented about how the preseason is irrelevant the media and fans had a field day saying that Price has everything to prove and should not take any games lightly. So far there has not been a single game this guy didn't keep us in. The only times he didn't were times the team couldn't put the puck in the net 3-0 losses where we just couldn't finish.
It's now 15 games in and Price is a top 10 goalie in the NHL. He has 8 wins and has posted two shutouts already. One against a team like Vancouver none the less. He's 10th in GAA but has played 3 more games than any of his competition. He's 13th in save percentage as well which is pretty impressive again as only Cam Ward has played a comparable number of games thus far. Obviously another shutout or a 5-0 loss would drastically change these numbers but it's always nice to see the guy so many doubted winning games for your team. Obviously it's still very early but if you've seen Price play you can tell not only is he on the ball this year but he's improving.
How do I see Price improving? Well it's actually pretty obvious for me. He's much better on the glove, early on in the season this was a weakness in my opinion. Opponents would go for the glove side, he wouldn't get it up fast enough, sometimes he wasn't really positioned that well to make the save in the first place. I noticed as games went on slowly he started to get confidence in his glove hand. He would still get beat on the glove but he was improving. Now it seems you won't be getting too many shots past Carey's trapper anymore. He really seems to have improved that element of his game and what's crazy is just how drastically it's improved from game 1 until now. The second thing I noticed is that in the past Price wasn't a very good puck handler. When he would get the puck often times he wouldn't be patient enough or even sometimes too patient. He would pass it to a guy whose covered and it would create chances for the other team. He still does it sometimes but I mean, every goalie does now and then. The point is though he's improved this drastically this season. Positionally he's also better and seems to be going down less often or at least less quickly. He plays big in his crease and really makes it tough on the opposition to score. Another thing I found about Price in past years is that he would often times have a good game but then a bad ending. Would let in a goal with a few minutes left. Could have just been bad luck but he seems much more focused out there.
So now that the confidence is rolling in, he's gotten himself into a top 10 position in the league, is it any wonder Price had this tremendous talent and the confidence to back it all along? Sure he was down on himself after last season, any professional athlete in his position would be. The point is though he bounced back. He took his bumps along the way and he grew as a player but more importantly as a human being. Up until now we've seen Carey Price the boy but I think this year we're going to see Carey Price the man, and I think this is just Price playing like Price, if he goes on fire at some point I think we'll really frustrate some teams. Price has all the tools to be a top 10 goalie in the NHL for years to come. Right now he's showing that his first season wasn't a fluke and that the only fluke was last season. We are incredibly lucky as a team to have a guy as gifted as he is in between the pipes. I'm positive by game thirty I'll still be happy with his game, he's getting better and better as time goes on. Now the team has to feed off of his confidence and the fact that they have a guy like him in goal and start putting the puck in the net.
It's now 15 games in and Price is a top 10 goalie in the NHL. He has 8 wins and has posted two shutouts already. One against a team like Vancouver none the less. He's 10th in GAA but has played 3 more games than any of his competition. He's 13th in save percentage as well which is pretty impressive again as only Cam Ward has played a comparable number of games thus far. Obviously another shutout or a 5-0 loss would drastically change these numbers but it's always nice to see the guy so many doubted winning games for your team. Obviously it's still very early but if you've seen Price play you can tell not only is he on the ball this year but he's improving.
How do I see Price improving? Well it's actually pretty obvious for me. He's much better on the glove, early on in the season this was a weakness in my opinion. Opponents would go for the glove side, he wouldn't get it up fast enough, sometimes he wasn't really positioned that well to make the save in the first place. I noticed as games went on slowly he started to get confidence in his glove hand. He would still get beat on the glove but he was improving. Now it seems you won't be getting too many shots past Carey's trapper anymore. He really seems to have improved that element of his game and what's crazy is just how drastically it's improved from game 1 until now. The second thing I noticed is that in the past Price wasn't a very good puck handler. When he would get the puck often times he wouldn't be patient enough or even sometimes too patient. He would pass it to a guy whose covered and it would create chances for the other team. He still does it sometimes but I mean, every goalie does now and then. The point is though he's improved this drastically this season. Positionally he's also better and seems to be going down less often or at least less quickly. He plays big in his crease and really makes it tough on the opposition to score. Another thing I found about Price in past years is that he would often times have a good game but then a bad ending. Would let in a goal with a few minutes left. Could have just been bad luck but he seems much more focused out there.
So now that the confidence is rolling in, he's gotten himself into a top 10 position in the league, is it any wonder Price had this tremendous talent and the confidence to back it all along? Sure he was down on himself after last season, any professional athlete in his position would be. The point is though he bounced back. He took his bumps along the way and he grew as a player but more importantly as a human being. Up until now we've seen Carey Price the boy but I think this year we're going to see Carey Price the man, and I think this is just Price playing like Price, if he goes on fire at some point I think we'll really frustrate some teams. Price has all the tools to be a top 10 goalie in the NHL for years to come. Right now he's showing that his first season wasn't a fluke and that the only fluke was last season. We are incredibly lucky as a team to have a guy as gifted as he is in between the pipes. I'm positive by game thirty I'll still be happy with his game, he's getting better and better as time goes on. Now the team has to feed off of his confidence and the fact that they have a guy like him in goal and start putting the puck in the net.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Scott Gomez & Brian Gionta - I Believe in You!
Well we're just eleven games into the season and just like some players are on fire others aren't. It's all part of the game players have slumps, it only becomes so magnified when it happens early on in the season. The interesting thing about the situation though is that Gomez of all people is receiving the blunt of the blame for his lines lack of production. Some say it's because he's paid 7.5 million dollars and should be able to carry a line as a result. What I don't get is why salary has anything to do with the equation. We didn't sign Gomez at 7.5 million, Glen Sather did. It was a stupid signing not because I don't think Gomez is a good player but he's clearly a 4-5 million dollar player. A general manager overpaid him and we were willing to trade for a guy who is overpaid. What I don't get is how it's even an issue.
Scott is the same Gomer we all knew and loved last season. He's still making great passes even though he's covered twice as often now, he's still skating well, he's still putting forth the effort. On some nights he hasn't looked great at all but I find it tough to blame him when he's been playing with half a line. Playing with a forth liner just means he and Brian are covered twice as much. Neither of them are big players and while Gionta plays a big mans game with a ton of heart, he's still not a big guy. The truth is Scott isn't in a slump he's been doing the right things out there. He's never been known for his shot so expecting him to put up 5 goals while Gionta is in a scoring slump is just an unfair expectation. Truth is when you're a pure playmaker you rely on your line mates heavily in order to rack up points.
Gionta can't even get in good scoring position. He's small and doesn't have any back up. Normally he would be able to because the other teams defenders would have to cover he and his line mates about equally. Problem is nobody is really all too concerned with Tom Pyatt scoring goals against them. These two guys are being covered twice as much and being that it's tougher for Gionta to get into a good position as a result, Gomer has to hold onto the puck a lot longer and thus loses the puck. To me it's just common sense these two guys need another top six forward to play with. I can't put the blunt of the blame on Gomez though if he's making plays and guys like Gionta and Pyatt aren't burying their chances. Though it's equally unfair to put the blunt of the blame on Gionta either because how is a guy of his stature supposed to get in a good scoring area with one to two guys covering him at all times? People need to have fair and realistic expectations here, we're only eleven games in and these guys haven't had a line mate all year.
So now you might ask why haven't we seen Pouliot given more chances or Eller? For one Eller plays much better as a center and for the sake of our team going forward needs to be developed as one. He brings much needed size down the middle for us. For two Pouliot is a young player and Martin wants him to earn the spot. He has been earning the spot and he's been gaining a ton of confidence along the way. I think Martin is trying to develop him into a consistent forward, make him earn his spot and produce on lines with far less effective line mates. To me the production of our second line can be attributed to this because our team struggled to develop players for many years once at the NHL level, this is why Martin was brought in to make sure it gets done properly. Unfortunately our second line is suffering as a result but in the long term it's going to pay off. This is a guy who knows how to develop players, who knows how to coach young guys and get them to achieve what they're potentially capable of. In Montreal unfortunately you can't win though, because one year people are complaining we rush our prospects, then when we don't rush them and our top line forwards have nobody to play with, people still complain. Heck people are blaming Gomez for this debacle as we speak, how would you feel in his shoes if you had nobody realistic to play with. Tom Pyatt is great at what he does but he isn't a top 6 forward far from it. I wouldn't even consider him a realistic fill in for a top line. Moen in short spurts has been leaps and bounds better.
This all having been said I believe in Gionta and Gomez, they're doing all the right things they just need the support of a line mate who is close to them in skill level. After a few games of Benny blasting them past the opposition teams will start covering Benoit a lot more, once he gains more confidence and is a fit on that line. He's going to be on that line people just need to be patient and by being there within a week tops you will start to see Gomez and Gionta explode on the stats sheet. Truth is for a line to work you need two people who can put the puck in the net minimum. A bottom six forward can only work in a top 6 role for so long before it starts to fail. All these guys need is a consistent line mate and I believe the reason they are lacking Benoit currently is because Martin is trying to work on Benny's consistency and confidence level.
Our team is in the right hands after so many years, we need to trust how the management will develop our players and we need to be more trusting of the decisions our management makes. You think they don't realize that Gomer and Gio are under performing? They knew it would be that way all along given the situation at hand and are working hard to fix it. This isn't a Gauthier problem, it becomes one July 1st depending on how Pouliot plays, at the very earliest by deadline. Truth is though our team is doing very well despite that second lines production currently and we're getting the added benefit of developing our young players properly during this period. We should be losing games right now and be starting to win them towards the middle of the season, we're very lucky we're doing so well this early on. I knew we would have a hell of a team this year but I never expected us to do so well this early on. Our coaching staff knows what they're doing and we just need to be patient and believe in our players and all will be well.
Scott is the same Gomer we all knew and loved last season. He's still making great passes even though he's covered twice as often now, he's still skating well, he's still putting forth the effort. On some nights he hasn't looked great at all but I find it tough to blame him when he's been playing with half a line. Playing with a forth liner just means he and Brian are covered twice as much. Neither of them are big players and while Gionta plays a big mans game with a ton of heart, he's still not a big guy. The truth is Scott isn't in a slump he's been doing the right things out there. He's never been known for his shot so expecting him to put up 5 goals while Gionta is in a scoring slump is just an unfair expectation. Truth is when you're a pure playmaker you rely on your line mates heavily in order to rack up points.
Gionta can't even get in good scoring position. He's small and doesn't have any back up. Normally he would be able to because the other teams defenders would have to cover he and his line mates about equally. Problem is nobody is really all too concerned with Tom Pyatt scoring goals against them. These two guys are being covered twice as much and being that it's tougher for Gionta to get into a good position as a result, Gomer has to hold onto the puck a lot longer and thus loses the puck. To me it's just common sense these two guys need another top six forward to play with. I can't put the blunt of the blame on Gomez though if he's making plays and guys like Gionta and Pyatt aren't burying their chances. Though it's equally unfair to put the blunt of the blame on Gionta either because how is a guy of his stature supposed to get in a good scoring area with one to two guys covering him at all times? People need to have fair and realistic expectations here, we're only eleven games in and these guys haven't had a line mate all year.
So now you might ask why haven't we seen Pouliot given more chances or Eller? For one Eller plays much better as a center and for the sake of our team going forward needs to be developed as one. He brings much needed size down the middle for us. For two Pouliot is a young player and Martin wants him to earn the spot. He has been earning the spot and he's been gaining a ton of confidence along the way. I think Martin is trying to develop him into a consistent forward, make him earn his spot and produce on lines with far less effective line mates. To me the production of our second line can be attributed to this because our team struggled to develop players for many years once at the NHL level, this is why Martin was brought in to make sure it gets done properly. Unfortunately our second line is suffering as a result but in the long term it's going to pay off. This is a guy who knows how to develop players, who knows how to coach young guys and get them to achieve what they're potentially capable of. In Montreal unfortunately you can't win though, because one year people are complaining we rush our prospects, then when we don't rush them and our top line forwards have nobody to play with, people still complain. Heck people are blaming Gomez for this debacle as we speak, how would you feel in his shoes if you had nobody realistic to play with. Tom Pyatt is great at what he does but he isn't a top 6 forward far from it. I wouldn't even consider him a realistic fill in for a top line. Moen in short spurts has been leaps and bounds better.
This all having been said I believe in Gionta and Gomez, they're doing all the right things they just need the support of a line mate who is close to them in skill level. After a few games of Benny blasting them past the opposition teams will start covering Benoit a lot more, once he gains more confidence and is a fit on that line. He's going to be on that line people just need to be patient and by being there within a week tops you will start to see Gomez and Gionta explode on the stats sheet. Truth is for a line to work you need two people who can put the puck in the net minimum. A bottom six forward can only work in a top 6 role for so long before it starts to fail. All these guys need is a consistent line mate and I believe the reason they are lacking Benoit currently is because Martin is trying to work on Benny's consistency and confidence level.
Our team is in the right hands after so many years, we need to trust how the management will develop our players and we need to be more trusting of the decisions our management makes. You think they don't realize that Gomer and Gio are under performing? They knew it would be that way all along given the situation at hand and are working hard to fix it. This isn't a Gauthier problem, it becomes one July 1st depending on how Pouliot plays, at the very earliest by deadline. Truth is though our team is doing very well despite that second lines production currently and we're getting the added benefit of developing our young players properly during this period. We should be losing games right now and be starting to win them towards the middle of the season, we're very lucky we're doing so well this early on. I knew we would have a hell of a team this year but I never expected us to do so well this early on. Our coaching staff knows what they're doing and we just need to be patient and believe in our players and all will be well.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
The Habs - A Last Ten Story Pt. 1
Every ten or so games I'll be doing a review of the team in their last 10. This is the first time and we're 7-1-2 currently sitting 1st in the NHL. Of course it's early in the season and this is not a guaranteed projection of how we will do all year, but it does feel good to see many of my predicted favorites doing so well this early in the season. With that having been said I will choose to rate some of the notable hab players and the management in general.
First of all I'll start by saying I think the coaching has been very good. Last year I have to admit I was weary of the new coaching but by the playoffs a lot of those questions were answered, we went deep for the first time since our last Stanley cup and it felt good. This year I think the team is playing much more offensively and it's paying off in five on five play. Our power play really doesn't look good yet but I think when Markov comes back tonight we may just explode. I know it's a bit cliche to say but he says he's in the best shape of his career, and with the current management being so focused on that it's no wonder some of these guys look the best I've ever seen them. We may all question some of Jacques moves but can we complain about the results? Thus far and even last year, no we cannot. Now we have a team that is playing very well five on five. We have a top line that might one day be one of those dynamite lines you hear about around the league. The Heatley Spezza Alfredson line is an example I could use. So I'm not too worried about our power play and seeing the five on five play I'm seeing, there isn't much doubt in my mind we're a contender this year barring major injuries.
Second of all, I've gotta hand it to my man Price. He's been rock solid and Alex Auld last night proved why he has good stats as a backup goalie in the NHL. So lets please not forget Pierre Gauthier with the Moore move, the Halpern signing, the signing of Auld which thus far seems okay. Going back to Price though, he's been more confident, he's been better on the glove, he's been a total rock thus far and has kept us in every game aside from the New Jersey game where our team couldn't score.
This brings me to my next point. We're one top six winger away from being a dominant force in the east. Whether that winger is Benoit Pouliot, Lars Eller or somebody we trade for is yet to be seen. I believe we will find out over the course of the next twenty games though. Gomez and Gionta really need to get going. To be honest most nights I don't feel Gomez is that bad, he's setup some nice plays and Gionta and company failed to bury their chances. Gionta seems to be a step out of position on many occasions and Gomez can't hold onto the puck forever, he has usually two to three guys chasing him down by the time Gio or anyone else gets into a position to do anything. They need some serious support out there. I think it's time to experiment with Benoit Pouliot for a 5-10 game stint. He had magic with them last year and I think he can regain his confidence if the team shows him the same faith they had in Price. Young players need their team to back them in times like this and I have no doubt with our current squad Pouliot can find his game.
Tomas Plekanec A+ Best we've ever seen Plekanec, clearly capable of breaking the 80pt mark. He's a rock in terms of dependability. The guy really cares about staying in shape, he's a guy who loves the game, comes to the rink three hours early on game night. What a guy, I don't think anyone is complaining about this signing by Gauthier either, incredible deal for the habs on this one. I don't really need to say anything else about him, you all know how beastly he's been.
Andrei Kostitsyn A He's been one of the best players on the team. Even when Andrei was producing in the past we haven't seen him play this good. It's really been a thing of beauty. He's been playing like a player who can get 80+ points and even 40+ goals. I'm not saying he'll achieve it, but I think he will be consistent this year and have a career year. Something along the lines of 60+ points. This is very good news for the habs and they will likely re-sign him if he really does show he's turned a new leaf. I think he has to be honest. I don't think it's because it's a contract year, I think it's because he's on the staying in shape band wagon and now he's a part of the team, he fits in and you can see he's much happier then he's ever been. Something about his game has just been more dominant as well. He's got more confidence, he keeps his head up out there now and he's also going to the right places. Over the summer somebody taught him some things because he has just been spectacular. I really will put my reputation on the line saying this but the guys going to be a star.
Mike Cammalleri B+ He's been the most underrated hab so far this season. He's been doing all the right things, just hasn't been able to finish. Cammy has always been a very streaky player, he'll light them up one after another when he starts to and I know this because he's in all the right places doing all the right things when he's on the ice. People don't realize he had the best +/- in the NHL for a reason, he attracts a lot of attention on the ice giving guys like Kostitsyn and Plekanec a lot of space out there. It shows in his +/- and it shows in their stats. I saw many times where he was being covered leaving people wide open where we got goals. He's a vital part of that line, he cannot be switched to the Gomez and Gionta line, that line needs to figure itself out.
Alexandre Picard B He's been exceptional in more recent games. Another player who seems to do all the right things on the ice, at least lately. He made a couple nifty offensive plays down low as well that didn't translate to goals but easily could have. He's easily a #6-7 defenceman in the NHL, I wouldn't call him an AHLer. He's been a big part of our success defensively too, he plays a great all around game. Don't expect him to be Josh Gorges anytime soon but we might be able to expect a Ryan O'byrne trade shortly. The kid needs to play and this Picard guy truly appears to have stolen his spot. I don't know how many more games its going to take but I believe he will be moved.
PK Subban A First of all he's been great offensively notching 6 assists in ten games, while having numerous chances to score, posts hit, the guy is a natural offensively. I'm excited to see how he plays tonight against Florida with Markov back in the line up. That having been said this guy is the best rookie we've had since Saku Koivu, and I don't mean any disrespect to Andrei Kostitsyn he's a great player too but PK is something special. Why do I think he's something special, because I think he's already great offensively and will one day be an offensive powerhouse like Markov. Why else because I believe he will one day be one of the best defensive defenceman in the NHL as well. He plays physical, he has great speed, great acceleration. On one occasion against the Isles he robbed them from a two on one. On another play he robbed a guy from a breakaway. He's the real deal, the total package. We are insanely lucky to have gotten this kid and I think it speaks wonders about our scouting. He's a superstar and I'm not overrating him, he's that good and anyone who doesn't think so hasn't seen him play or doesn't know the sport. I'm sure there are 29 other general managers right about now who are looking to their scouting departments and shaking their heads.
Eller B- I didn't want to give him a C+ because ultimately for the line mates he's had I think he's fared pretty well. He's done a lot of good things on the ice and given that he's a young player still developing I'm going easy on him admittedly. But if by the next 10 games I don't see more of those good things and some stats to go with we can talk about it then.
Halpern A He's really been consistently good for us. I can see why some fans were disappointed their team didn't sign him. He's been our best face off guy, a good PKer to relieve Plek from full PK duty. He really makes our bottom 6 and PK a lot better and I have to give him credit where it's due he's been great offensively so far too. He's just what we needed and he's exceeding my expectations currently.
Moen B He's been actually pretty good so far this season. He's fought, he's put the puck in the net, he's been pretty reliable I think now that he's in his groove. I hope to see him drop the gloves a lot more this season and hopefully score a couple more goals here and there. What I like about Moen and Halpern is they seem to be very clutch at times. They're the kind of guys who are unsung heroes in the NHL, they do the right things at the right times sometimes and you end up winning a game or two because of them now and then. But in reality you're winning games because of them all the time because they bring something to this team it's been seriously lacking.
Price A He's been a rock keeping us in games, getting a shutout, making the spectacular saves we all saw him make even last season but more often before. He's really playing great and I hope he keeps it up. Enough with the Halak and Price comparisons. Both are great goalies, both have great futures in the NHL, the habs made the right move. Price brings more value to the table if he continues playing like this or better. Halak would have cost 4 million and Price is the type of goalie who can steal games too. As long as Price is still a good goalie whether Halak is better or worse isn't really relevant as long as we're winning games. St. Louis is St. Louis and Montreal is Montreal. There's no telling how well Price would be doing right now if he were in St. Louis and the tables were turned, the comparison simply isn't fair and especially with how well Price has played I think the argument needs to be put to rest. Price is our goalie now so support him.
Gomez C+ I don't feel he's been as bad as people say. Some nights better than others though I'll admit, but honestly he has nobody to pass to and he's a pure passer, what did people honestly expect would happen? He can't play by himself. Once he has steady line mates for 10 games I'll put more emphasis on his stats. So far he's the same old Gomez, he just hasn't been able to get any points because one of his line mates is always a 4th liner and the other is having a really bad start, not being positioned well etc. Personally I just find it hard to blame the guy whose a pure playmaker when it's not like his line mates are scoring.
Gionta D+ I think he's been terrible thus far. Missing many chances, also been robbed too to be fair, but he's not in the right places ever. Part of it isn't his fault, because his other winger is usually a forth liner he and Gomez are repeatedly double covered. The other teams just make the line obsolete right now. The book is out, Gomez and Gio have nobody to pass to. This is why I want the Pouliot experiment to begin again. The kid can shoot so put him on a line with people who will not only benefit from his presence but help him get some goals. I do blame Gio more than Gomez though because in reality he's the shooter and he just hasn't been in the right places, he makes Gomez have to hold onto the puck for too long.
Pouliot B- Considering the lines he's been on most of the time, he's at least gotten a couple goals, he's been a hitting machine, playing more physical. Sometimes he makes dumb decisions but he is a young player and we all know what he's capable of. It's all mental with him, he needs to get his confidence back up. I think if Jacques shows a little confidence in him and gives him a 3-5 game stint on the Gomez line he'll find his game and be able to earn the right to stay there. I don't question Jacques decisions though I just give my input, if he thinks Benny isn't ready then in my opinion he isn't.
Lapierre B- He's been alright. Haven't seen him on the scoreboard much but he isn't at all known for that. When he plays at a high level of intensity he's a real treat to watch. As always he plays get under your skin type of game and he's one of the best at doing it. Gomez said it himself, he despised Lapierre before coming here and he didn't even know his name he just knew that he hated him. I think that's pretty funny. Like Halpern and Moen he's just one of those guys you need to have one of on your team. Right now the Canadiens organization is trying to build the perfect team having assets in all areas, when you do that you can beat any team.
Spacek D- I hate to jump on the bandwagon but he's been terrible. I think he's out of shape to be honest. Hopefully at the 20 game mark I have some good things to say about him. He's made a couple nice passes here and there, has maybe once a game won a battle for the puck. He's really not looking great out there, a lot of the time when a goal happens he seems to be there. Somehow though he's a positive plus minus so I'm guessing he's been carried on a couple of goals. He has two assists this year, for a guy that I expected to be a complimentary offensive player, I'm pretty disappointed. In his defense when I've seen him on the left point he's been alright, but it's rare that I see it.
I've gone and written a novel so I won't review any other players thus far, but that's my assessment this far in, we're going great.
First of all I'll start by saying I think the coaching has been very good. Last year I have to admit I was weary of the new coaching but by the playoffs a lot of those questions were answered, we went deep for the first time since our last Stanley cup and it felt good. This year I think the team is playing much more offensively and it's paying off in five on five play. Our power play really doesn't look good yet but I think when Markov comes back tonight we may just explode. I know it's a bit cliche to say but he says he's in the best shape of his career, and with the current management being so focused on that it's no wonder some of these guys look the best I've ever seen them. We may all question some of Jacques moves but can we complain about the results? Thus far and even last year, no we cannot. Now we have a team that is playing very well five on five. We have a top line that might one day be one of those dynamite lines you hear about around the league. The Heatley Spezza Alfredson line is an example I could use. So I'm not too worried about our power play and seeing the five on five play I'm seeing, there isn't much doubt in my mind we're a contender this year barring major injuries.
Second of all, I've gotta hand it to my man Price. He's been rock solid and Alex Auld last night proved why he has good stats as a backup goalie in the NHL. So lets please not forget Pierre Gauthier with the Moore move, the Halpern signing, the signing of Auld which thus far seems okay. Going back to Price though, he's been more confident, he's been better on the glove, he's been a total rock thus far and has kept us in every game aside from the New Jersey game where our team couldn't score.
This brings me to my next point. We're one top six winger away from being a dominant force in the east. Whether that winger is Benoit Pouliot, Lars Eller or somebody we trade for is yet to be seen. I believe we will find out over the course of the next twenty games though. Gomez and Gionta really need to get going. To be honest most nights I don't feel Gomez is that bad, he's setup some nice plays and Gionta and company failed to bury their chances. Gionta seems to be a step out of position on many occasions and Gomez can't hold onto the puck forever, he has usually two to three guys chasing him down by the time Gio or anyone else gets into a position to do anything. They need some serious support out there. I think it's time to experiment with Benoit Pouliot for a 5-10 game stint. He had magic with them last year and I think he can regain his confidence if the team shows him the same faith they had in Price. Young players need their team to back them in times like this and I have no doubt with our current squad Pouliot can find his game.
Tomas Plekanec A+ Best we've ever seen Plekanec, clearly capable of breaking the 80pt mark. He's a rock in terms of dependability. The guy really cares about staying in shape, he's a guy who loves the game, comes to the rink three hours early on game night. What a guy, I don't think anyone is complaining about this signing by Gauthier either, incredible deal for the habs on this one. I don't really need to say anything else about him, you all know how beastly he's been.
Andrei Kostitsyn A He's been one of the best players on the team. Even when Andrei was producing in the past we haven't seen him play this good. It's really been a thing of beauty. He's been playing like a player who can get 80+ points and even 40+ goals. I'm not saying he'll achieve it, but I think he will be consistent this year and have a career year. Something along the lines of 60+ points. This is very good news for the habs and they will likely re-sign him if he really does show he's turned a new leaf. I think he has to be honest. I don't think it's because it's a contract year, I think it's because he's on the staying in shape band wagon and now he's a part of the team, he fits in and you can see he's much happier then he's ever been. Something about his game has just been more dominant as well. He's got more confidence, he keeps his head up out there now and he's also going to the right places. Over the summer somebody taught him some things because he has just been spectacular. I really will put my reputation on the line saying this but the guys going to be a star.
Mike Cammalleri B+ He's been the most underrated hab so far this season. He's been doing all the right things, just hasn't been able to finish. Cammy has always been a very streaky player, he'll light them up one after another when he starts to and I know this because he's in all the right places doing all the right things when he's on the ice. People don't realize he had the best +/- in the NHL for a reason, he attracts a lot of attention on the ice giving guys like Kostitsyn and Plekanec a lot of space out there. It shows in his +/- and it shows in their stats. I saw many times where he was being covered leaving people wide open where we got goals. He's a vital part of that line, he cannot be switched to the Gomez and Gionta line, that line needs to figure itself out.
Alexandre Picard B He's been exceptional in more recent games. Another player who seems to do all the right things on the ice, at least lately. He made a couple nifty offensive plays down low as well that didn't translate to goals but easily could have. He's easily a #6-7 defenceman in the NHL, I wouldn't call him an AHLer. He's been a big part of our success defensively too, he plays a great all around game. Don't expect him to be Josh Gorges anytime soon but we might be able to expect a Ryan O'byrne trade shortly. The kid needs to play and this Picard guy truly appears to have stolen his spot. I don't know how many more games its going to take but I believe he will be moved.
PK Subban A First of all he's been great offensively notching 6 assists in ten games, while having numerous chances to score, posts hit, the guy is a natural offensively. I'm excited to see how he plays tonight against Florida with Markov back in the line up. That having been said this guy is the best rookie we've had since Saku Koivu, and I don't mean any disrespect to Andrei Kostitsyn he's a great player too but PK is something special. Why do I think he's something special, because I think he's already great offensively and will one day be an offensive powerhouse like Markov. Why else because I believe he will one day be one of the best defensive defenceman in the NHL as well. He plays physical, he has great speed, great acceleration. On one occasion against the Isles he robbed them from a two on one. On another play he robbed a guy from a breakaway. He's the real deal, the total package. We are insanely lucky to have gotten this kid and I think it speaks wonders about our scouting. He's a superstar and I'm not overrating him, he's that good and anyone who doesn't think so hasn't seen him play or doesn't know the sport. I'm sure there are 29 other general managers right about now who are looking to their scouting departments and shaking their heads.
Eller B- I didn't want to give him a C+ because ultimately for the line mates he's had I think he's fared pretty well. He's done a lot of good things on the ice and given that he's a young player still developing I'm going easy on him admittedly. But if by the next 10 games I don't see more of those good things and some stats to go with we can talk about it then.
Halpern A He's really been consistently good for us. I can see why some fans were disappointed their team didn't sign him. He's been our best face off guy, a good PKer to relieve Plek from full PK duty. He really makes our bottom 6 and PK a lot better and I have to give him credit where it's due he's been great offensively so far too. He's just what we needed and he's exceeding my expectations currently.
Moen B He's been actually pretty good so far this season. He's fought, he's put the puck in the net, he's been pretty reliable I think now that he's in his groove. I hope to see him drop the gloves a lot more this season and hopefully score a couple more goals here and there. What I like about Moen and Halpern is they seem to be very clutch at times. They're the kind of guys who are unsung heroes in the NHL, they do the right things at the right times sometimes and you end up winning a game or two because of them now and then. But in reality you're winning games because of them all the time because they bring something to this team it's been seriously lacking.
Price A He's been a rock keeping us in games, getting a shutout, making the spectacular saves we all saw him make even last season but more often before. He's really playing great and I hope he keeps it up. Enough with the Halak and Price comparisons. Both are great goalies, both have great futures in the NHL, the habs made the right move. Price brings more value to the table if he continues playing like this or better. Halak would have cost 4 million and Price is the type of goalie who can steal games too. As long as Price is still a good goalie whether Halak is better or worse isn't really relevant as long as we're winning games. St. Louis is St. Louis and Montreal is Montreal. There's no telling how well Price would be doing right now if he were in St. Louis and the tables were turned, the comparison simply isn't fair and especially with how well Price has played I think the argument needs to be put to rest. Price is our goalie now so support him.
Gomez C+ I don't feel he's been as bad as people say. Some nights better than others though I'll admit, but honestly he has nobody to pass to and he's a pure passer, what did people honestly expect would happen? He can't play by himself. Once he has steady line mates for 10 games I'll put more emphasis on his stats. So far he's the same old Gomez, he just hasn't been able to get any points because one of his line mates is always a 4th liner and the other is having a really bad start, not being positioned well etc. Personally I just find it hard to blame the guy whose a pure playmaker when it's not like his line mates are scoring.
Gionta D+ I think he's been terrible thus far. Missing many chances, also been robbed too to be fair, but he's not in the right places ever. Part of it isn't his fault, because his other winger is usually a forth liner he and Gomez are repeatedly double covered. The other teams just make the line obsolete right now. The book is out, Gomez and Gio have nobody to pass to. This is why I want the Pouliot experiment to begin again. The kid can shoot so put him on a line with people who will not only benefit from his presence but help him get some goals. I do blame Gio more than Gomez though because in reality he's the shooter and he just hasn't been in the right places, he makes Gomez have to hold onto the puck for too long.
Pouliot B- Considering the lines he's been on most of the time, he's at least gotten a couple goals, he's been a hitting machine, playing more physical. Sometimes he makes dumb decisions but he is a young player and we all know what he's capable of. It's all mental with him, he needs to get his confidence back up. I think if Jacques shows a little confidence in him and gives him a 3-5 game stint on the Gomez line he'll find his game and be able to earn the right to stay there. I don't question Jacques decisions though I just give my input, if he thinks Benny isn't ready then in my opinion he isn't.
Lapierre B- He's been alright. Haven't seen him on the scoreboard much but he isn't at all known for that. When he plays at a high level of intensity he's a real treat to watch. As always he plays get under your skin type of game and he's one of the best at doing it. Gomez said it himself, he despised Lapierre before coming here and he didn't even know his name he just knew that he hated him. I think that's pretty funny. Like Halpern and Moen he's just one of those guys you need to have one of on your team. Right now the Canadiens organization is trying to build the perfect team having assets in all areas, when you do that you can beat any team.
Spacek D- I hate to jump on the bandwagon but he's been terrible. I think he's out of shape to be honest. Hopefully at the 20 game mark I have some good things to say about him. He's made a couple nice passes here and there, has maybe once a game won a battle for the puck. He's really not looking great out there, a lot of the time when a goal happens he seems to be there. Somehow though he's a positive plus minus so I'm guessing he's been carried on a couple of goals. He has two assists this year, for a guy that I expected to be a complimentary offensive player, I'm pretty disappointed. In his defense when I've seen him on the left point he's been alright, but it's rare that I see it.
I've gone and written a novel so I won't review any other players thus far, but that's my assessment this far in, we're going great.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Andrei Kostitsyn - A New Beginning pt. 2
So now we're five games into the season and we're getting to see who is having a slow start and who is coming out of the gates and taking the game by the horns. Well clearly with 4 points in 5 games and an even more obvious effort against Ottawa, this kid is headed in the right direction. I had a feeling Andrei was going to have a good year with his brother gone and being on a contract year. Less distractions, all he has to do is play his game and boy is he playing his game. I know it's only five games into the season but the results thus far have been good for Andrei. He's playing his game and he's doing it well.
He's a guy with size and speed, a good shot too. I guess it was only a matter of time before he had a good start. Hopefully we see more of this Andrei going forward, clearly there's been an improvement somewhere in his game, attitude and overall self. He appears to be a lot more focused out there this year. I don't want to blame Sergei but it's tough not to when you see the night and day differences of Andrei after his brothers departure. To me Andrei doesn't seem like the partying type or the type to be a slacker but it's possible his brother Sergei was causing him to lose focus. Injuries certainly didn't help his game throughout his career thus far either. For the most part I think we can all agree that somewhere between being injured, having rocky stretches, dealing with the media and babysitting his brother, Andrei wasn't playing like the player we knew he was capable of being.
I remember when Andrei first came up to the team full time, the hype surrounding the kid was incredible. Much like the Subban hype of right now. I see no reason given his size and skill that he can't be the player we all originally thought he could become. The 25 year old winger is now entering his 4th NHL season, he's shown he's capable of 30 goals having scored 26 goals in 78 games in 2007-08 so no reason to think he can't pull it off now that he's in 2010-11 and playing with that added fire we've all wanted to see him play with for a very long time.
It's only five games in and I'm happy with my player predictions thus far. Plekanec, Andrei and Price have all played well and I had faith that they would. When Markov is back to 100% he will essentially be feeding guys like Plekanec, Andrei and Cammalleri on a regular basis, having him healthy will really help to increase the points totals for guys like this that rely so much on a power play quarterback to be successful. Sure they can win games without him, we've already seen last year how our team can persevere without him, it's something they haven't been able to do in a really long time save last season. When we have him though we become much like an unstoppable force winning 70% of our games with him in the line up. It's almost unheard of for a team to rely on a guy that much and while we might not drop off to 30% wins without him like we used to, we still rely on the guy to get our offensive players on the map. I'm sure guys like Plek and Andrei knows this all to well.
Point is with how well we've been doing without Markov it's going to be really nice to see how far we can go with him when healthy and 100% and furthermore what a guy like Andrei can do to increase his stats or ppg average once Markov is in the lineup. I can see Kostitsyn getting around 30g 30a and 60pt if healthy and with Markov in the lineup. Time will tell but I believe the new beginning is now underway. It's only five games in but five more games will tell, and then another five and so on.
He's a guy with size and speed, a good shot too. I guess it was only a matter of time before he had a good start. Hopefully we see more of this Andrei going forward, clearly there's been an improvement somewhere in his game, attitude and overall self. He appears to be a lot more focused out there this year. I don't want to blame Sergei but it's tough not to when you see the night and day differences of Andrei after his brothers departure. To me Andrei doesn't seem like the partying type or the type to be a slacker but it's possible his brother Sergei was causing him to lose focus. Injuries certainly didn't help his game throughout his career thus far either. For the most part I think we can all agree that somewhere between being injured, having rocky stretches, dealing with the media and babysitting his brother, Andrei wasn't playing like the player we knew he was capable of being.
I remember when Andrei first came up to the team full time, the hype surrounding the kid was incredible. Much like the Subban hype of right now. I see no reason given his size and skill that he can't be the player we all originally thought he could become. The 25 year old winger is now entering his 4th NHL season, he's shown he's capable of 30 goals having scored 26 goals in 78 games in 2007-08 so no reason to think he can't pull it off now that he's in 2010-11 and playing with that added fire we've all wanted to see him play with for a very long time.
It's only five games in and I'm happy with my player predictions thus far. Plekanec, Andrei and Price have all played well and I had faith that they would. When Markov is back to 100% he will essentially be feeding guys like Plekanec, Andrei and Cammalleri on a regular basis, having him healthy will really help to increase the points totals for guys like this that rely so much on a power play quarterback to be successful. Sure they can win games without him, we've already seen last year how our team can persevere without him, it's something they haven't been able to do in a really long time save last season. When we have him though we become much like an unstoppable force winning 70% of our games with him in the line up. It's almost unheard of for a team to rely on a guy that much and while we might not drop off to 30% wins without him like we used to, we still rely on the guy to get our offensive players on the map. I'm sure guys like Plek and Andrei knows this all to well.
Point is with how well we've been doing without Markov it's going to be really nice to see how far we can go with him when healthy and 100% and furthermore what a guy like Andrei can do to increase his stats or ppg average once Markov is in the lineup. I can see Kostitsyn getting around 30g 30a and 60pt if healthy and with Markov in the lineup. Time will tell but I believe the new beginning is now underway. It's only five games in but five more games will tell, and then another five and so on.
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