GOALTENDING AGAIN

The game's number one star.


posted by habsbloggergirl

So I just got back from my first (and most probably last) game sitting in the Molson Ex Zone at the Bell Centre.

When my friend got these tickets, I was excited! We had actually seen Florida a couple of times in past years, but still, they always tended to be somewhat interesting games.

Tonight was an experience to say the least, but I’d hardly call what happened on the ice tonight interesting. To be honest, it was actually a pretty boring game.... Or rather it would have been, had we not been sitting where we were.

We were actually in the 300-level seats so it was equivalent to grey, which was great, or so we thought. I was at the end of the row, which I liked, although sometimes it’s annoying since you have to get up so many times to let people through and miss parts of the game.

Anyway, the game starts and this girl comes and sits on the steps right next to my seat, and unpacks a bag of signs and Habs memorabilia. Of course, she was one of the Molson Ex people... and had the goal of getting everyone up and screaming. Before she got there, our area was relatively quiet. I mean there were a few loud people and everyone was cheering, but nothing too intense. However, that soon changed. First, the two guys behind me would not stop screaming, booing... you name it, they did it. Second, Molson Ex lady was giving away things to people who were loud, so of course these two guys got even louder. And to top it off throughout the entire game she was smashing around a tambourine (part of the job description unfortunately). I can’t tell you how many times I looked over, wanting so badly to take that tambourine and throw it at the two guys behind me.... and I seriously don’t think I was alone in that line of thinking.

You’d think during the breaks in game, we’d get a break too... but in fact, just the opposite occurred. Every single break was filled with that damn tambourine, followed by more screaming.

It wasn’t all bad... We actually saw Bob Gainey right above us walking (I got a blurry picture!), the goaltending was fabulous on both ends of the ice, and I’m happy my section was a little bit enthusiastic at least (though it went way overboard at times).

Back to the goaltending, it pretty much led to all the highlights of the game. Jaro was amazing, and definitely earned his shutout, and Vokoun did a stand-up job as well, so much so that it could have gone either way. Luckily Pouliot got a goal, because honestly had it been 0-0 until the end I’m not quite sure we would have won in OT.

The rest of the team was abysmal. Markov really did not have a good night (though he did made some a few nice defensive moves (I mean, he’s Markov!) but there were some defensive errors), and Plekanec and Cammalleri looked completely out of sync. Speaking of line #1, during the game, I turned to my friend and said something I thought I’d never say: “I miss Kostitsyn”. Not that I’m not a fan, I actually really like Andrei, and he’s been doing great this year, it’s just that he seems a little space-y on the ice, and I know that he can do even better. However, perhaps I was wrong... maybe this space-iness allows for Plekanec and Cammalleri to have more time (I’m just grasping at straws here), but without him they were the ones who looked “dans la lune”, so I’ll be glad to have him back ASAP.

Laraque was really bad tonight too... It made me miss Kostitsyn (Sergei this time) because honestly, anyone could have done a better job than he did. I still rue the day that Gainey gave him a no trade clause (or a 3 year, 4.5 million dollar contract for that matter). When he came he told us he was a good fighter who would help protect our team and that he also was skilled hockey-wise. I’ve yet to see him perform in either of those categories and the three years are almost up...

The three stars were predictably Halak, Vokoun and Pouliot. Why? Because there was actually no one else. Every other player was either invisible, or doing something wrong. I just hope that we can get our acts together, and quickly. We are very fortunate because Halak and Price have been playing well of late, but that doesn’t give the rest of the team the right to put in absolutely no effort.

On that note, I think I’m going to get to bed since I’m still hearing tambourine sounds in my ringing ears. Hopefully sleeping it off will do the trick, though I doubt it will be erased from my memory anytime soon.

So we’d better hope for some stellar goaltending Saturday night against Jersey... and someone’s gonna have to get a puck past Marty B., and to be honest I have no idea who that will be. We seem to be lacking in scorers lately. Either way, it should be an interesting one.

HERO'S RETURN

Markov, ready as ever. (photo taken from rds.ca)

posted by habsbloggergirl

To be honest, I’m a little scared for this game. Terrified actually.

This is the day that our defensive star returns after missing 35 games. It’s the game that can become the 6th in a series of losses, or the 1st in (hopefully) a streak of wins. It’s against the Islanders, who have somehow caught up to us in the standings, but are ahead due to their game in hand. We sit in 12th, only ahead of Philadelphia, Toronto and Carolina.

The past few games have been grim at best. With little secondary scoring, Plekanec, Cammalleri and Kostitsyn are dragging this club along, and Plekanec is particular (due to his heroics on the PK) is showing signs of exhaustion. Our defence as a whole is mediocre (if that), and with the loss of the Hamrlik, we’re pretty subpar. We have taken an enormous amount of penalties. To win our goalies have had to have been incredible, but lately they have only been good. Not their fault, it’s hard to be perfect, and with scores like 3-1 and 2-1 in the past two games, perfection would have been the only way for us to win. We know this, and have been going over and over it for a few weeks. It has been extremely frustrating, and the only possible solution is that someone, or rather some people, need to step up.

On L’antichambre the other day, they said that someone needs to get mad in the locker room. Although that may be one solution, most of our team doesn’t fit that role. Perhaps a better one would be for someone to step up and play their heart out on the ice. Now I’m not talking about those mentioned so far. Plekanec et al. do it every night. I’m talking about Maxim Lapierre, Matt D’agostini, Max Pacioretty... The young guys really haven’t been bringing much to the table lately. I’m also talking about Scott Gomez and Marc-Andre Bergeron. Honestly, most of the team has been a bit off lately.

Markov leads on the ice, no question. But we can’t expect miracles from him. He’s just one player (albeit one player who can affect the course of a game). I’ve always been a bit jealous of Pittsburgh, Washington, LA... with guys like Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin, Backstrom, Kopitar... it’s a little frustrating that they were rewarded for playing badly, but that’s beside the point. They have these “franchise players”... amazing talents. In Montreal, it seemed like we never had one of those uber-talented stars. But I realize that Markov IS in their league, and am quite thankful that we still have him. When Bob Gainey blew up the team this summer, this is one piece I’m thrilled he kept intact. He may not have been 1st overall in the draft (actually it’s a bit unbelievable that he was still around in the 6th round!), but his play in the past 8 years has shown otherwise.

Whether he has a great game or doesn’t, I’m thrilled to finally have him back, because honestly the Habs haven’t felt like the Habs without him. I’m still member of the Markov for captain fan club, and I think no one would do a better job. I also think we need a captain ASAP. At the beginning of the season, when Jacques Martin said not having a captain would work, I knew it was a bad idea. There are a lot of leaders in the room, yes, but without one clear leader, it’s hard for the others to organize themselves. If everyone stepped up in the room it would be too chaotic, and so, though many may want to, no one does, and nothing gets done. Captains exist for a reason, and with our lacklustre performance this season, you’d think Martin would realise that. It won’t solve all our problems, but at least we’d be going in one direction instead ten different ones.

I think we can pull it off tonight. Ending the losing streak now would keep our confidence levels from hitting rock bottom. Markov’s return should give them some form of fuel, and hopefully he can make a difference in the game.

On that note, I’d like to wish him a very happy (early) 31st birthday, and good luck tonight! We’re probably going to need it.

UNSUNG HEROES

Hamrlik doing what he does best: Keeping talented players from scoring goals. (Photo taken from habsinsideout.com)

posted by habsbloggergirl

Every year we think we have it bad injury-wise. Players drop like flies on a daily basis. Last year was out of the ordinary in that department for the Habs, but it almost seems like this year is going to top it.

We have not been having an easy time, starting from day one when Markov went down. We lost (in my opinion) the most important player on the team, and although we did have other capable defenseman, losing Markov was heartbreaking. We not only lost a great player, but a leader, and someone who is greatly respected among his teammates and the fans.

However, our remaining defensemen have played incredibly hard to make up for Markov’s absence. In fact, I doubt anyone would disagree with me when I say that Roman Hamrlik is the Canadiens’ unsung hero thus far. He logs an unbelievable amount of minutes for a 35-year-old, and he plays as though he’s 10 years younger than he is, but with the added bonus of wisdom and the fact that he makes very few mistakes, if any. He almost seems to know what’s going to happen before it does, and he’s arguably the best 1-on-1 defenseman we have. He has a calm demeanour on the ice that most others do not, and you can tell he thinks things through very carefully before he does them, but never hesitates either. Without him, I honestly believe we would be lost; another season down the drain.

It’s strange to me that when Jacques Martin initially picked his alternate captains, he didn’t include Hamrlik among them. But I suppose there are a lot of leaders on the team, and it was a tough decision. It’s strange to think that of the three he chose (Markov, Gionta and Gill), all three are, or were in the case of Gill, injured. Now that Cammalleri wears an “A”, I often worry that he may eventually suffer the same fate (though obviously I seriously hope nothing will ever happen!!). If Hamrlik is the defensive hero, then Cammalleri and Plekanec are the offensive ones, having really dragged this team to their current position in the standings. In fact, it irks me that Gomez’ lack of production is being rewarded by an inexplicably high salary, when Plekanec, who is making about 1/3 of what Gomez is, has more than double the amount of points. And I doubt we’d be able to get rid of Gomez at this point, because honestly what team in their right mind (other than us apparently) would take on a 70-point-per-year player for $8 million a season?

Anyway, another positive this season is goaltending. Now I know that there are A LOT of Halak haters and Price haters out there, and this bothers me to no end. They are BOTH good goaltenders. They BOTH have the confidence of their coaches and teammates. They clearly get along and work well together, motivating each other along the way. So we need to deal with the fact that they BOTH play for Montreal. I don’t understand why everyone seems to think it needs to be one or the other and that there are no other options. People keep talking about what’s best for Carey or what’s best for Jaro... Personally I think what’s best for them is that everybody stop fighting over which one is better than the other... AND I don’t understand why everyone thinks that we SHOULD be thinking about what’s best for either of them in the first place! Instead we should be thinking about what’s best for the TEAM (which they are currently BOTH a part of). They have each done a lot for the team this season, and without them we would not be where we are.

My favourite thing about the 2009-2010 Canadiens is that they rarely go down without a fight. Yes, there has been the occasional blow out game, but most of the time each player plays their little heart out every night or at least gives some effort – something we haven’t always seen in the past. I miss a lot of the 2008-2009 Habs: Koivu, Kovalev, Higgins, Lang, TK. They were good guys, and I especially missed Saku at the centennial celebrations the other night. But, I think we have finally started to move on, and that this group of mismatched misfits is finally starting to forge an identity, something they may have been missing for most of this season. Good things happen in cohesive groups, and hopefully when Markov returns (which I’ve recently heard may be sooner than we thought) we’ll be fighting for our playoff spot (or division title, who knows! Buffalo is only 6 points ahead of us), and showing the rest of the NHL that Gainey’s so-called “chemistry experiment” worked.

ODE TO LATENDRESSE

Latendresse looking happy at practice last year. (Photo taken from habsinsideout.)


Note: I apologize in advance. Enough said.


In the wondrous city we call Montreal,
Stood a guy named Guillaume at 6’2 feet tall.
Hockey was the sport he called his own,
The Habs were the team that he called home.

The media loved him, the fans did too,
So much so, that he skipped some steps, just a few.
Coming straight from the Q to the NHL,
The media pressure put him through hell.

His name was heard often while watching a game,
Even more often when he wasn’t in the frame.
The media praised him, and he became cocky,
This was a distraction from playing his best hockey.

A point per game, they thought he’d get,
Compared him to Crosby, which made some upset.
They may not take the blame, but I think they should,
They drove him out of town, like we all knew they would.

Minnesota is now his new destination,
From what I hear their winters are no vacation.
We wish you bonne chance, avec politesse,
We’ll miss you notre ami, Guillaume Latendresse.

REGULATION ZEROS / OVERTIME HEROES

Mike Cammalleri on his way to score his shootout goal versus the Bruins Thursday night.(Photo taken from habsinsideout.com).


posted by habsbloggergirl

Price’s expression at the end of the shootout Thursday night said it all. The game’s first star was a mixed bag of emotions; confident, tough, determined and even a little frustrated. And, he had every right to be.

For what seems like the millionth time, the Habs played one of their signature wishy-washy games: good enough, but not wonderful, for most of 3 periods, only to have it crumble in the last few minutes.

Another night, another trip to overtime. It’s so common this year that it’s not even that much of a novelty anymore. We have only had 1 win in regulation. ONE. It reminds me of those Leafs jokes that have been going around the past few weeks, you know the... “What does a triangle have that the Leafs don’t?” ones (the answer being 3 points)? Kinda sad that it can easily be applied to us (3 points in regulation anyway).

But then again, is it? Sad, I mean. We may not be able to finish during the game but we sure as hell finish during the extra five and the shootout. Our goalies seem to handle the extra pressure extremely well (in fact in most cases Carey and Jaro were the real heroes), and our forwards and D-men step it up. And we win. Every single time.

I don’t know about you, but lately I have almost felt relief when we went into OT. Sudden death OT should not = relief.... but for some reason, this year it does. We know how to finish and we want to, but can’t seem to do it in regulation... but in OT something changes.

Maybe we are just generous. Here Toronto... 2 games, 2 points on us, free of charge! Atlanta? Here’s one for you too, no need to even ask! And the Islanders... since we beat you by so much the first time, one for you too, no big deal!

Maybe we thrive in pressure situations.

Maybe we are only willing to take a risk when it matters most.

Who knows?

But more importantly, who cares? Its working right... why question it?

The thing is, there may come a day (cross your fingers that it’s not in the foreseeable future) where we won’t be able to finish. What then?

What then indeed.

Instead of waiting for that day to come, let’s hope the Canadiens can go on a scoring spree the next few games and rack up a few regulation wins. They have been working overtime this season (no pun intended), and with all the injuries on defence, they deserve a little bit of a break.

Though it’s a little too early to think about playoffs (though come to think of it, it’s never too early), today we sit in 8th, just one point ahead of Tampa.
Coincidentally, we are playing them tomorrow night. We need to win, and although the Habs love to give, it’d be nice to be on the receiving end of two points tomorrow night, within the 60 minutes.

Though if we do go to overtime, I wouldn’t be too worried.