Here we have a situation that could go either way. Up in flames or a trip to a comfortable play – off spot. The end result is up to Jacques Martin and his coaching staff.
Max Pacioretty has effectively replaced Dustin Boyd and David Desharnais is attempting to move into Maxime Lapierre’s locker. Do not look for Desharnais to adopt Maxime’s agitating behavior however. At 5’ 6”, David would best to leave the shenanigans to his bigger teammates – which , in his case , consists of the entire squad. ( Brian Gionta being the sole exception ).
Desharnais was the leading scorer in Hamilton , a post that was occupied by Pacioretty before the latter was called to the big club. The duo were line mates in the AHL and the pair insist that each other ‘ s success is directly related to one another. Coach Martin will be pairing them against Pittsburgh on Thursday and for the sake of the team, the fans hope that the success they had in Hamilton will continue in the NHL. Desharnais had an excellent training camp and was demoted to Hamilton mostly because of his size and M. Gauthier and the coaching staff also wanted to get a good look at Boyd , Darche, Pyatt and Halpern. Boyd was a bust with the parent club yet since being demoted to the minors, Dustin has been playing well and accumulating points. This goes to show just how wide the gap can be between the two leagues. It may also tell worlds about Jacques Martin’s ability or lack thereof of handling certain players.
It appears that Martin will give a player up to fifteen games to buy into his system and if that player does not receive and ingest the memo, the player is relegated to the press box while Gauthier attempts to initiate some sort of a future for the ‘ undisciplined ‘ culprit. The ‘ Wiz ‘ is doing fine upon his arrival yet it will be interesting if the same type of fate that swallowed Subban awaits James. Wisniewski is after all a defenceman that enjoys jumping into the play and errors are forthcoming for this type of individual. Paul Coffey, one of the greatest players in the history of the NHL was the worst offender in this category yet because of the massive number of points that he obtained every season , Glen Sather looked the other way when Coffey was over generous to the opposing forwards. Sheldon Sourray was the same in Montreal. Horrible defensively yet where would the Habs have been without his offensive contributions ?Guy Lapointe held the record for most goals by a defenceman in a season for twenty years before Sourray came along and surpassed it. Good thing that Martin was not coaching Lapointe and Sourray – the pair would have been traded before Halloween. A scary thought indeed.
To Agree or Not Agree – That is the Question
It appears as if a player on the Habs roster concurs with Martin , it does not matter what that player does on the ice productively. In the case of Lars Eller , he must not only buy Jacques ‘ system – there is a good reason to believe that he also delivers the coach breakfast every morning. Eller is not producing point wise yet the lack of scoring has earned the Dane a sole trip to Martin’s doghouse all season long.
Hal Gill is a defenceman and is paid to keep pucks out of harm’s way. Gill is negative nine on the season and has accumulated two points. Hal is not producing at either end yet he also has eluded Martin’ s hook. Mr. Gill is probably ‘ the ‘ player that follows Eller and adds the sugar to Martin’s tea in the wee hours of the morn’ and Senor Gomez cannot be too far behind with the stir stick.
Subban is benched and it is deemed a learning curve for the rearguard. Eller probably plays to make Gauthier’s Halak trade seem viable since the other player in the deal , Ian Schultz is AWOL in Hamilton. Gill and Gomez are seasoned veterans and should know better . Should that not be ample enough reason to let them tidy the canine combine once in a while?
Important Stretch
The Habs’ next few games are probably the most important that they will play all season long. Ideally it is not the time to be experimenting with stray ‘ Bulldogs ‘ as the team attempts to climb up the play – off bound ladder. Every team hits a slump during the course of a season and that is the reason that the points that are ‘gimmes’ against lower quality teams are so important. The Montreal Canadiens are six points up on Carolina who occupy the ninth spot in the Eastern Conference. Remember the twelve points that they squandered against teams such as the Leafs , Devils and Islanders ? Twelve points puts them atop the division right now even with their current two for six slump.
Martin – regardless of what Carey Price tells the world , should start giving the twenty – four year old netminder some time off for good behavior before his win / loss record radiates the same illusion that appeared in the skies over the Bell Center last season. Price ‘s status and trade value ( should it ever come down to that ), should not lower below the Halak line just because Martin cannot see how good Auld is. His value should also not decrease because his mates cannot score goals. Price had a losing record last season because the team averaged 2.00 goals a game offensively when Price was in goal . Currently , they are also averaging the same paltry amount and let’s face it – these number are not fair to either Price or Auld.
Muller , Pearn and Martin must also figure out how to assemble four lines that will give enough offense while keeping up the defensive power that propelled the team to it’s pre – slump success. Will Pacioretty and Desharnais integrate nicely into team chemistry ? What about the ‘ Wiz ‘? The twenty – three year old is playing for his fourth team in a short career thus far. Is he a problem in the room or has he been a victim of the business side of hockey ? James has also had three operations on his knee which places him on even keel with Andrei Markov. Ironic because the ‘ Wiz ‘ replaces Markov in the line – up and both players become free agents in July. James should be the one to wave his wand on La Gauchetiere Street given his age. If the Habs can retain Markov for a bargain price given the insecurities following his second major operation in two years , then a Wisniewski / Markov one – two punch on the power play will place the Habs once more among the elite in that category. Add Subban to the mix and Spacek and Hamrlik will inevitably be plying their craft elsewhere as the pair are also eligible free agents come summer.
Rivals with a Capital ‘ R ‘
This season must be completed first and foremost with an eye toward Stanley Cup joy. The Habs play eight of their next ten games against Eastern Division rivals. Pittsburgh is their next opponent Thursday night and the two teams will square off again six days later. Crosby and his birds are not the same team the Habs defeated earlier in the season , nor are they the same bunch that the Habs dismissed in last season’s play – offs. Fleury is playing the way he played as he co – led the Penguins to the Stanley Cup. Malkin is much more energetic and the entire team is enjoying the fruits of Crosby’s labour. If the Habs split the pair of games and come out with a win against either Boston or Philadelphia , it will keep them right in the middle of a tight race in the east. Lose all three games and they will probably commence February on the outside looking in as far as the play – off race goes.
It is the start of crunch time in the NHL and teams such as Ottawa, the Rangers , Carolina and Atlanta are going to make every game difficult against the Habs as they can all ‘ sniff ‘ the dog food that awaits them come the end of the season. The food that is awarded them for making the post – season is ample enough to give whichever team sufficient enough energy to commence a new season . A season where , as the Habs proved last season , anything can happen.
The Montreal Canadiens’ weakest opponent in January is Calgary on the 17th . Given the team’s record against inferior foes, Martin’s group will lose that game . The question remains whether the rest of January will go down in Flames ?
Odds and Ends
Former Montreal Alouette – Tony Proudfoot passed away on Dec. 30 after a long battle against Lou Gehrig’s disease. Click on the link and read Mr. Proudfoot’s farewell letter and follow this amazing man’s life and heroic ending. Mr . Proudfoot was buried today and the sun came out for the first time in a week. That means that God has accepted an angel into heaven.
Team Canada plays the Russians tonight for the Gold Medal at the World Junior Championship in Buffalo. After defeating the defending champions , the United States , Team Canada will attempt to reclaim their sixth championship in seven years.
Go Canada Go !
Wanna read about the league in general – visit Too Many Men on the Site
Visit Penslabrynth to find out why we do not like Sydney Crosby ( jealousy ).