What happened?

Well the decade is closing on the resetting er rebuilding habs. The habs did not go to a Stanley cup final during the last decade, but did make it technically to two conference finals. Technically because one was in the 2009-2010 year. We can say that the Habs Gms left us frustrated, confused, or exhilarated at times but there were very few dull moments. So here is a year-by-year recap of the decade. 2009-2010 I mention this year because the habs made it to a conference final even though the season spanned two decades. This was the first season of what I refer to as the Gainey experiment. Before the season started, Bob Gainey unloaded Saku Koivu, who he once referred to as a champion in waiting, and Alexei Kovalev who had actually won a cup with the Rangers and had quantums of talent. Koivu had been the hab’s captain for almost as long as Jean Beliveau. He had a courageous bout beating cancer. However, his tenure led to no cups and no playoff success. The reality wa...

I always preferred Janis Joplin’s version of Summertime she really put some sexual soul into it. Anyways whenever it gets hot and sticky for some reason I start thinking about hockey again and the habs. Free agent frenzy day is just around the corner or as we used to know it as Canada day (and in Quebec moving day). So all the armchair GMs on Twitter are deciding which free agents Bergy should sign. Since I got a very comfortable armchair here are my thoughts on the matter. I am not saying that Bergy will sign anyone because as everybody knows many hockey players even from Quebec do not want to play in Montreal because of  the weather, the taxes, and the media circus. I have to agree with a few of the hockey pundits who think that Jake Gardiner would be a good fit with the habs. However, I disagree that he should be partnered with Shea Weber. I would prefer him playing with Jeff Petry. I still think that Weber and Mete are a viable duo. Mete is underrated as to how his...

I wrote my predictions for the NHL season last September. I decided not to use a crystal ball this season. Next year I will. However, I was dead on for a few. 1) Connor Mcdavid, Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, and Jonathan Drouin will challenge for the Art Ross. Will they get 100 points? Every year I expect a 120 point season and it just doesn't happen. Well doggy I almost got it right. It was a hell of a scoring race and Kucherov and Giroux surprised. Mcdavid wins it again but MacKinnon should have probably won it if not for his late-season injury. Matthews was injured for too long a period to compete. As for Drouin I may have jumped the gun a little so as the Brooklyn Dodgers fans  would say 'Wait till next year'. By the way all my habs predictions were wrong. 2) I predict a 3 way fight for the Norris. My choices from last year are back in PK Subban and Victor Hedman. My surprise choice as the 3rd challenger is Shea Weber. PK might win it this time because Ellis wi...

So we are reaching the half-way point in the season time to review my third annual absurd and bizarre but fundamentally correct predictions for the 2017-2018 nhl season that I posted in September: 1) Connor Mcdavid, Auston Matthews, Nathan Mckinnon, and Jonathan Drouin will challenge for the Art Ross. Will they get 100 points? Every year I expect a 120 point season and it just doesn't happen. Kinda pleased with this prediction. I can see Mackinnon and Mcdavid catching up to the leaders and surpassing them by year’s end. The young legs and talent will take over. I am especially pleased with my Mackinnon choice that many were calling a dud. The concussed Matthews may still make the top ten. Now for Drouin. Maybe I was one year too early and was not expecting the total mess that are the habs. I also did not expect the Pacioretty meltdown and Weber to be injured. 2) I predict a 3 way fight for the Norris. My choices from last year are back in PK Subban and Victor Hedman. My surpri...

Yeeehaaa it's September 1st the official start of the hockey bitching season. I guess the Marvel folks got it right when they named one of the recent Avengers movies Civil War. This has been the theme in Habsland since the Subban trade in June 2016. Tweet grenades have been launched in the twittersphere as the warring sides have dug in for a surreal lengthy fratricide. It has also led some blow-hards to try and silence media criticism. Lest we forget that not so long ago any critique of a professional sports team was met by censure or dismissal whenever the franchise decided to exert their influence and power. Hopefully, we will not go back to those dark ages. Well, one thing you gotta credit Bergevin with, there is rarely a dull moment off the ice as he remolds the habs on a yearly basis. Dare I say Bergevin is the risk-taker in chief of NHL GM's, even allowing David Poile to win GM of the year.  After the habs early playoff exit, the whole left side of the defence has been ...

Well it's all over now. The Habs have done the unthinkable to many and the inevitable to others. PK Subban has been traded for Shea Weber. I think we have to understand this trade from what makes sports tick and that is money. It is also a story of greed and jealousy. Habs management most notably Marc Bergevin and their head coach Michel Therrien have never been comfortable with PK Subban. There has always been an incompatibility between them and PK's flamboyance and self promotion. Michel Therrien is a lunch pail coach, he prefers grit to flash, high work rate to moments of genius, conservatism to improvisation. Even there this was not the main problem with PK. The real issue was money. It started when Bergevin made the terrible decision to sign PK to a bridge contract. Anybody who had half a brain in evaluating talent should have realized that this was the time to sign him long term. It would not have cost them 9 million, even 7 million. It would have maybe cost them ...

Well in October  I posted my wild and crazy predictions for the hockey year. So far I missed the boat by a country mile. Here is my rationale why my predictions have been so off. 1) Sydney Crosby will get 150 - 200 points- eeek what a disaster. My prediction was based on what I saw at the world championships last year. Crosby put on an offensive exhibition as did most of his teammates. As well, he finally had the scoring winger that would inflate his point totals in Phil Kessel. Well, Crosby still has not shown up this year. The coach was fired, Kessel was moved to Malkin's line, and the Penguins are struggling. It is becoming apparent Crosby does not seem to do well with star wingers. They have tried Pallfy, Hossa, Neal, amd now Kessel and no one gels with Sid. Weird as it is it seems Crosby plays better with average wingers.  2) Phil Kessel will win the Maurice Richard trophy- Don't think so. I watched a recent game and I saw that Kessel was a step slower than h...

I am at poolside at an extravagant hotel and I am pissed. Well I thought all was well in Habsland. Finally coming to their senses management got rid of overpaid deadwood Josh Gorges and Brian Gionta. They terminated George Parros, Doug Murray, and Ryan White forgettable non- NHL calibre players. Could Travis Moen and Tomas Plekanec be far behind? I thought the reason for not keeping Gorges and not affording Gionta was simple -to re-sign the Norris trophy winning franchise defenceman PK Subban. Bergy gambled a couple of years ago when he signed Subban to a 2 year bridge contract. Even though most hockey pundits understood the superstar potential of Subban and the stats bore that out, Bergy newly hired wanted time to evaluate the star and leadership qualities of his inexperienced defenceman. Bergy was applauded two years ago for holding firm a little like Reagan when he fired the air traffic controllers as one of his first moves as President. In the ensuing two years PK did ...

We are in December a month before Team Canada is chosen. Time to decide. If the trend remains the same these are my choices. To be perfectly clear,  Steve Stamkos would have been on my team. I am basing these choices on the assumption he will not be ready.                          My goalies are in no particular order Roberto Luongo, Carey Price, and Corey Crawford. Luongo should get the start for the opener. He is the defending gold medal goalie and his job has to be taken away. However, as Brodeur was given the hook after a bad game in the last Olympics, the same should be done to the inconsistent Luongo. Carey Price has been nothing short of spectacular this year. I still have my doubts he can come through in big games. He has not proven much since his victories in the World Juniors and the AHL. Canada may have no option but to throw him in and hope for the best if Luongo bombs. Corey Crawford should be there becau...