WE’RE OFF TO THE CIRCUS

It seems fitting that our first Saturday game of the year will be against the Maple Leafs. This should lead to an exciting game and an exciting beginning to the series.

Two games into the season, the Leafs are already plagued with drama and controversies. This of course is inevitable when a team of 40+ years of failure struts around with a culture of entitlement and never really admits to resembling a circus full of monkeys in jerseys more than the hockey team they pretend to be. At this point even a significant portion of their fans (based on online forums and news paper articles) have admitted to requiring a complete overhaul. That of course is difficult when you have major contracts committed to several players who really don’t deserve that kind of money. In this new age of salary-capped NHL teams, a GM must be vigilant and intelligent; neither of which can be said about JFJ. For us HABS fans, this presents valuable entertainment and we sure hope he remains in power or many many many years to come.

My predictions for the night:

1) Tucker renews his rivalry with his water bottle, and they go for round two (my money is on the bottle)

2) Toscraft or Raycala continue their dominant performance is the “how many pucks can I let in” game.

3) Refs continue organising parades to and parties in the penalty box, and Carbo does his …well you know what he does :D

4) HABS win and the Leafs fans and media blame the refs, earth’s gravitational pull and oil prices.

More on the game tomorrow…

PS Let us all rejoice in the MN dropping another point following the games last night!

PPS Don't forget to repeat yesterday's prayer one more time before the game!

TORONTO MAPLE LAUGHS: LOOKING FOR THE 41ST YEAR OF CONSISTENT FAILIURE

Another glorious morning for the MN fans. TO-NO-GO takes a hit after another loss for the Leafs. This fan is hoping that the Leafs begin the season 0-3, and I’m hoping for a blow out!

In reality however, the Leafs are going to be hungry for a win, and they will be settled down with their jitters. It should be a tight game and fun to watch. I believe that we have the upper hand, mainly thanks to the Rayskala, Toskcraft circus they have going in nets. Our PP should have a field day with these guys in net…even if both were playing at the same time! Now onwards to our first Saturday night game…and what a game it will be!

THE BALL…ERRR…PUCK STARTS TO ROLL IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION:

Phew…first game of the season down, and it’s a win. Incidentally the Leafs have their first game of the season the same night and loose. The NL scoreboard remains with the HABS on top and the Laughs on the bottom. Things don’t get any better than this.

Last night’s performance is, in my humble opinion, a clear reflection of yesterday’s post. In all aspects of our game (defence, goaltending, offense, special teams) we were not perfect, but we were better than mediocre.

Huet may have let in a softy by NHL standards in the third, but he made spectacular saves to keep the wind in our sails in the first and second periods. The defence had some giveaways, and at times seemed incapable of getting the puck out of our zone, but they were better than solid for the most part of the game and kept Carolina’s chances to the outside. Offensively some mistakes were made, particularly in the transition game, and taking penalties in the offensive zone, but we were intense and had many many chances, and out-shot the opponent once again (I hope this turns into a theme this year). Special teams didn’t help them selves by giving away two 5 on 3s and missing out on a 4 minute power play, but we killed 7/8 penalties, and were 37.5% on the power play (at this point I would like to let my evil cousin take over and say EAT YOUR HEART OUT to everyone who argued with me over the summer as to the departure of Souray and the performance of special teams…the formula was the coaches, Kovalev, Markov and Souray. We only lost a quarter of the equation, not the whole PP).

We lost momentum on several occasions due to penalties we took (we’ve all heard this tune before). The good news on that front however is two fold. First off, unlike last year, only a small minority of the penalties were undisciplined penalties, and the remainder were results of intensity. Secondly, the guys worked very hard to get the momentum back on their side after killing off penalties. Now I’m not saying that the first game is indicative of a new work ethic we have on the team (remember we started the year intense last year as well and faded off), but what I am saying is that at least we are starting with intensity. It’s an easier battle if we have a good start to the year.

In conclusion, I would expect more of the same for the remainder of the year: A solid performance ALL around, with “glitches” and “brain-farts” along the way. The key to our success this season will be to limit these errors and keep up the same work ethic which was present on the ice last night.

But hey, it’s only one game, 81 more to go. Good news is we get to sulk in our success for at least the next few days.

Now everyone, please hold hands and join me in a prayer: “Oh holy Sponge-Bob, please give thy Senators the strength of a thousand mules, and guide thy shoulders into the unholy Laughs’ faces so as to pave the way to a glorious blow out victory for our boys in Tri-colore against a battered and bruised Leafs squad this Saturday. And should all else fail, may the Laughs crotches be infected with fleas of a thousand camels, and may their arms be too short to scratch it. A-men.”

THE PUCK DROPS TONIGHT!

Here we go again folks. Our jerseys have been washed, our TV time booked, our beer fridges stacked and the speed dial updated to include the pizza guy who delivers the tastier New Yorker pizza. another season is upon us and I say it's about time. This summer's hockey drought was way too long, and I for one hope this year the boys should drive further in to the post season to ensure this tragedy does not repeat its self. and thus we face the question everyone is trying to answer: Can the Habs make the playoffs? Are we a better team? We've read the so called experts' articles on it, and now here is HLD's take on the subject:

Goaltending

By now most of us can agree that Huet's performance to overtake Jose Theodore's job two years ago was not a flash in the pan. He is a NHL calibre goalie and will serve us well as the bridge to close the gap as our young guys develop into star goalies. There is no guarantee that he will remain as brilliant as he was in his stretch to earn a spot on last years All Star team, however one thing is for sure; he can and will steal games and can and will make key plays.

The decision to keep Price at the NHL level is a good decision. Even though he did not spend too much time in Hamilton, given his stellar performance against AHLers in a pressure packed situation was proof enough for me (and obviously Bob) that time spent in the AHL has no value added for this talented youngster. Playing 30+ games at the NHL level will be far more beneficial to the team and his development.

With Halak in the AHL ready to jump in at any time (we all saw what he can do last year) our goaltending is as solid as last year, and even more consistent. We can pretty much guarantee we won't have 10 game stretches with Aebischer mishaps.

Defence

The tandem of Markov and Komisarek…enough said. They are solid, they have been and will be. Hamrlik and Brisebois are reportedly the second pairing. I don’t care what people say about Brisebois, and I don’t care what happened three years ago (although I still have some lingering ill feelings there). He is an established NHL veteran defenseman and is a great addition to our second line. Togeather with Hamrlik, they will be an experienced line which should play solid in their own end and move the puck comfortably out of our zone. For the third pairing, we have chouices of Bouillion, Dandenault, Streit and Gorges. I thinks these are pretty awesome names to have for a third pairing on D, and it gives the coaching staff various tools to use on a given night against teams with different strengths. Our first two lines will be able to move the puck up the ice, creating chances for our forwards. In other words, not only is this defensive roster FAR superior to what we had last year (and has more depth), but also it will contribute to our 5 on 5 offense in that the top two pairings will have an immense impact on our transition game.

Offence

Higgins-Koivu-Ryder will be as effective as last year, but even better. They cannot rival other star #1 lines around the league, however we can expect a consistent input from all three of them, both 5 on 5 and special teams.

Kostitsyn-Grabovsky-Kovalev will have the most part of my attention tonight. There is so much potential and talent on this line that point production is inevitable. The only question will remain as to how many points they will put up. I sure hope that Kovalev can be motivated by playing on a line with others he can speak Russian with. This might even be an advantage when they speak to each other in Russian on the ice without the opposition understanding what they are communicating to one another.

Latandresse-Plekanec-Smolinski will have big shoes to fill following the Bonk Johnson show last year. They were undoubtedly a great shut-down line in 2006-2007, however this year’s line has potential. Plekanec has proven to be a superb assets defensively, Smolinski has a reputation for shutting down big names, and Latandresse is a young kid trying to find a niche, who can hit and HURT the opposition. This line not only has the potential to shut down lines, but to put up a considerable number of goals in net (hopefully the oppositions net).

The fourth line, much like the third defensive line, has many names that it can accommodate: Begin, Chipchura, Kostopoulos, Muray, Dandenault, Streit. All are more than worthy (maybe not Muray) to be on a NHL team’s fourth line, and they all offer different tools to the coaching staff. Having this flexibility on our third D and fourth O lines gives the coaches an asset which, in my humble opinion, is worth a lot more than people give it credit for.

Coaching Staff

The coaching staff went through a training period last year. They have openly admitted to making mistakes and learning from them. Given the characters up there (Carbonneau, Muller, Jarvis, and Gainey) I cannot doub t for an instant the hockey knowledge, the work ethic, and the will to win that is present at the top. Furthermore, given those four names, our special teams can be expected to perform at a high level yet again. Everyone can keep talking about Sheldon’s shot we will be missing on the PP, but let us not take credit away from where it’s due. Given the myriad of tools the coaching staff is presented with, we will undoubtedly shut down the opposition on the PK, and perform at a high level on the PP. We may not be 1^st, but we will remain in the 75^th percentile and that’s all a team really needs.

Summary

As this first post of the season turns into a novel, I’ll gather my thought and present you with my conclusion. This team is marginally better in offense, marginally better in goal and far superior in defence. Further more we are better 5 on 5 (mainly thanks to our new found transition play) and will remain as competitive on special teams. The icing on the cake (and the reason why I am confident we’re making the playoffs) is that we have dramatically reduced our areas of weaknesses. I expect a more modest beginning to the season, but a more consistent output through out the year.

As I always say, we can all speculate, but….only time will tell.

Let’s go les Glorieux! GO HABS GO!

THE COB WEBS ARE OFF

OK so the goaltending did not live up to its hype. Concern? Problem? Not at all. As Carb put it so perfectly last night, it is more than normal that both goaltenders wee a bit edgy and nervous. Price has had all this media attention and expectations, whilst Halak was outperforming everyone in training camp and no one was talking about him.

In my opinion it is blessing in disguise that the “heebee geebeezz” got left on the ice last night. Now they can get back to doing what they do best.

Remember the epic moment in Rocket Richard’s career when the team pulled in to New York after being notified that the home team would ensure Maurice would leave the game in a stretcher. He took matters into his own hands and made a clear statement that “we will not be pushed around”. Well I couldn’t help but think of that event when I watched Latandresse cream a Pens jersey on to the boards behind their net, following a head hunter hit on him in his previous shift. Not that I comparing a grand and majestic moment in Rocket’s career to a pre-season game event, but the attitude Guillaume brought to the ice last night shows a promises that the upcoming young corp might provide this attitude of “not being physically intimidated” to a team who has desperately lacked it in the past decade or more. I’m not advocating having goons on a team to push the other guys around, but a clean retaliation like the one Guillaume dished out following a shoulder to the head will make a team think twice about getting into a physical battle with our HABS. As we all know this has been a down fall for our team, and last year we lost most of our games when the opposing team was fore-checking hard and hitting our D behind the net. If Latandresse, Cote, Lapierre, Begin, Komisarek, and others begin to lay a few solid and legal hits in response, I recon any offence will be more hesitant in entering the game with a sense of physical superiority resulting in less confidence. Like Kirk always like to yell across the ice “STOP AND GO BOYS!! STOP AND GO!!”

THE BEGINNING:

It seems the summer wasn't long enough for Syd the Kid to mature. The Crosby show is still plentiful, and the acting remains terrible. I find it unfortunate that such wonderful raw tallent is, at the least in my eyes, tarnished by diving and exaggerate. Crosby will undoubtedly break most records and establish him self as one of the best to ever play the game, but his childish behaviour and sense of entitlement is a real downer. In my opinion, his coach is to blame. Michelle either has to grow up him self and tell Crosby that if he fakes being hurt to draw penalties his hair will fall out, he’ll go blind and he'll loose his left dingle berry. The alternative is to teach him how to better draw penalties and improve on his 70 adult industry film calibre acting. This is one hockey fan that wants to cheer on Syd the Kid, and is convinced that one day he will. But that won't be till such date where Crosby will own up to being
outplayed some times and not try to rectify his errors by pulling a....dare I say Ribeiro?

Kovalev is...well Kovalev. I have been both a believer that he costs the team a lot in turn overs and a lack of effort, however I have also been a supporter of him in that he is a strong player, great tool for the coach and not to take anything away from Shelly, but him and Markov were the quarter backs of the power play. He him self probably said it best: "I make mistakes. It's not my first and won't be my last. But I make good plays 70% of the time". It's hard to argue with him when he puts up performances like last night. In fact more often than not, when he is given the ice time (even after he pulls a brain fart) net net he ends up contributing to the team's success in a positive matter. Perhaps the coaching staff and especially the fans have to accept the fact that he is a 3 step forward, 1 step back kind of guy, and hold judgement till the end of a stretch. I'm not sure if I'm ready to accept failure in the short term to gain success in the long term, but maybe that's my shortfall as a rabid HABS fan. At least I have the piece of mind that I don't have to make such decisions. That's left to a management team and coaching staff that has proven through out their careers to possess a knowledge of the game at a level beyond any armchair GM (including yours truly) who would be willing to tar feather and parade the whole team down St Catherine in their privates following a three game loosing streak, and replace the players with Chimps in skates arguing that at least the entertainment value will be worth our time to watch $8.50 we pay for our beer.

On a closing note, was I the only one who was more than disappointed when Vertigo hit the sound waves following our first goal? In its fourth year now, that song is as fitting in a hockey arena as a Britney/Paris duet with Frank Sinatra.

Markov...Deal or No Deal?

Good day one and all. It has been a while since I posted, but I thought the Markov deal deserved a visit and a comment on the blog.

First off I am glad to see that we have signed Markov. The price is a tad bit steep, but given the realities of taxes (net amount in his pocket) and being able to lock him in for the longer term, the deal made both sides happy. A win win deal will always yield more results than one agreed upon with resentment. Furthermore, with the trend of the salary cap moving up every year, I believe the 5.75 per year will be cheap (proportionally speaking to the overall salary of the team) in the third and fourth year for a defenseman of his talent.

With that said, I have seen some people questioning whether he is that good of a player. I can understand why one might question his abilities, since he is a player with no flash…no specific memorable events. Not like Souray with a record breaking year in goals and his wonderful highlight-reel goal on the SO. But don’t let Markov’s modest play style fool you. Think back to every game we played against star forwards. I’m referring to the Crosbys, Ovechkins, Lecavaliers, Briers, etc…Out of about 25-30 games we have played against teams with super star forwards, how many times can one remember where a super start had a super game. I remember more occasions where they were shut down (especially when we were at home and could match Markov against them all the time) than times where they had multiple goal games. That is value that is hard to find in the league and I am very very very happy we have someone like Markov leading our defensive core.

So an overall good deal. On to Don Souray.