Ironic .
Jaroslav Spacek is playing in his 99th game as a Montreal Canadien . The Canadiens are playing against the Edmonton Oilers tonight . Once upon a time , in a galaxy far , far , away , there was a certain fellow named Gretzky that wore 99 for the same Edmonton Oilers . Gretzky was part of a dynasty – Spacek ? Not so much . Jaroslav`s team however , along with the Oilers of the mid to late eighties , are the two last Canadian teams to rule the NHL .
The similarities do not stop there .
The Montreal Canadiens have ten players from their four cup team in the Hockey Hall of Fame . The Edmonton Oilers have six from their four Stanley Cup winning teams . ( Gretzky and Coffey were not part of their fifth ) . The two teams boasted the Greatest player in the game at the time of their great dynasties . Lafleur with the Habs and Gretzky with the Oilers .
Perhaps the greatest similarity between the two is what happened afterward . Aside from the two Stanley Cups in `86 and `93 , plus the year that the Habs lost the Cup final to Calgary in 88 – 89 , the Habs floundered . They limped into the 1990 `s and ended up missing the play – offs entirely three of four years .
The Oilers remained competitive until the end of the 90`s yet – just like the Habs , hit rock bottom and became a non – play off team.
It was the young version of the Oilers eventual dynasty that began the Habs demise as the young upstart Oilers upset the Habs in the 1981 play -offs . Officially putting a nail in the coffin of the Montreal Canadiens last dynasty .
Tonight – as the Habs enter their 25 th game of the season , they are in the top four in their Conference and can be considered among the top eight teams to have a legitimate shot at the Stanley Cup this year . The Oilers are basement dwellers and come into tonight `s game trying to win back to back games for the first time this season. Last against first . 1981 all over again ?
Trouble is a Brewin `for the Mighty Habs .
The Oilers have been playing improved hockey as of late and after a slow start and adaptation for the first round pick of 2010 – Taylor Hall has begun to find his game . He has six goals and six assists in 23 games . That is eleven more points than Hab Eller and five more than Scott Gomez .
The Habs do not play well against basement dwellers or even first floor dwellers . Tonight will be a test for the Habs as coach Martin cannot be pleased with his team `s performance against the non – playoff bound teams in the league. If the Habs lose tonight , that will be eight points lost to teams they should beat . The Habs are currently eight points ahead of the ninth place team in the Conference – The Carolina Hurricanes instead of sixteen . A four game slump by the Habs and a four game winning streak by the `Canes would flip – flop the two .
Ironic.
Habs Notes
Carey Price is still at the top in All Star voting for goaltenders despite being left off the ballot He has 145,726 write-in votes and is followed by fellow write – in candidate – Sergei Bobrovsky of the Philadelphia Flyers with 116,725 votes.
The who `s who of the hockey world was in town on Monday to attend Pat Burns `funeral. Pat Burns`widow – Line left the service with her husband`s ashes in an urn shaped liked the Stanley Cup. Nice…
Carey Price was also named player of the month in the Molson Cup standings for November .The Molson Cup is given each month to the player that has received the most three start nominations . It is the second straight month that Price has won .
Since the Montreal Canadiens have moved into their new home – the Molson and now the Bell Center , it appears that aside from a few occasions – the `Forum Ghosts `did not move with them into their new digs . Maybe the ghosts have been here all along but they were missing a modern day coach to kick their butts . Welcome Pat Burns – we `ll see you in June . Usual route .
Check out Oil on Whyte for Chapman `s Oiler news .
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The Habs play in New Jersey tomorrow – if you can get Andrew Timoni to stop crying – maybe he `ll fill you in on the Devils foibles at Pucks and Pitchforks .Game time is 7 pm at the Prudential Center.
Look up – look way up ! Click on schedule to find out Habs results and up-coming games . You can also buy tickets for any game – Home or Away .
Congrats to the Montreal Allouettes – the 2010 Grey Cup Champions ! That is back to back wins for the Als as they bring home Professional Sports `oldest Trophy !