The Canadiens are on the front page of TSN and there is a feature article on Cristobal Huet and the Habs success this season.

The hockey world is all over the Canadiens right now.

So the secret is out. The Canadiens are a good team.

How good?

No one expected much out of them at the beginning of the year and now they are catching the eyes of everyone with their strong start.

Can they keep it up after moving from under the radar to an Eastern Conference threat?

Is Cristobal Huet ready for the pressure of being the league’s best goaltender?

lol i remember that lol

Yes. That was the good ole days eh……………….

So Souray and his wife are trying to reconcile cause she’s pregnant with his second child?

I’ve read in one paper that his wife is staying in L.A., so he’s going to go there but I’ve also read that she’s coming back to Montreal and he’ll sign for less money to stay in MTL.

Which one is it?

Oh, and like I said, the Habs aren’t making the playoffs.

Montreal WIIL make the playoffs. They will upset Buffalo in the first round. They will loose in the 2nd round. Any takers or am I just crazy……………..

When did Gainey figure out it was not their season? Did he feel that way before X-mas? When they first started to slide down the standings, why did he not do something to stop the slide?

That was Theodore’s great(and only) year. they had goaltending that year. Now they have N O T H I N G ! It’s finished this year! No goaltending = no playoffs!

Yesterday morning in Dallas, a few hours before his San Jose Sharks would take on the Stars, former Canadien Rivet praised Gainey for his strategy and his measured silence.

“Bob doesn’t owe anything (to the media), and that’s what they don’t understand,” said Rivet, preparing for his second game as a Shark since his trade.

“They feel they have a right to know everything that’s going on, and they don’t. Bob has a plan, and he’s a very, very smart man. He understands the game, and he’s been around hockey a long time. He’s played it and lived it.

“But some reporters feel they’re in the same boat, despite the fact they’ve never played the game and don’t really understand its inner workings. They’re on the outskirts looking in - trying to get in.

Wasn’t Gainey with Dallas when they won the cup?

Looks like Pittsburgh is leaving town and moving to KC. They just couldn’t get a deal done for a new arena. But I have a better idea. Bring the Pens to Montreal, and send the garbage habs to KC! Wow could you imagine us, with all those Pitt players, and poor KC with thse fu@#$ken hab players?

This team sucks, big time clean house start fresh

I’d like to see some of you ******** play in the NHL. You couldn’t even lace up a pair of skates. You bashers are all a bunch of Pussies. You Idiots couldn’t even handle being the stick boy. Grow up Babies. Grow up……….

I have done my share of bashing my Habs because I was upset. I should have not done it. But you ******** keep it up……

No doubt, I agree that Gainey’s an extremely smart man. He worked wonders for the Stars franchise and that can’t be ignored. We probably all should stop crying and wait for him to work his magic. But, we Habs fans are just proud people, we can’t help it. We want a competitive team! Personally, I don’t care where they finish in the standings…I just don’t want them to miss the playoffs, EVER!

Rangers won…now they’re only 1 point behind us and 2 games in hand..At this rate, the habs have to win all their games if they want to make the playoffs..

the minimum amount of french canadian players we had when we won a cup was 8, and alot of them were key players. so there may be something to that for whatever reason.

I agree the french canadian players get special treatment ,but not from the organization, just from the media and fans. Guys like Higgins and Komisarek are pretty popular though.

hmmm a supposed dispute with begin, an apparent altercation with souray in the dressing room, and now these supposed comments. there must be some truth to some of these things. or maybe not.

Kovalev should be moved if they can move him. his on ice performance has been terrible. he gets more icetime than any other forward as well and has a measly 13 goals and makes 4.5 mill plus. there’s just no excuses for his poor play.

You took the words right out of my mouth snake.You could bring in any high profile offensive player on this team and there points will suffer.This team is not built for offence.The system carbo has installed in this team is not working.This style of play turns 80 point players into 60 point players without a question.This is the thing i dont get though,if we are suppose to be this big defensive team then why in the hell are we getting blown out of the water nightly.You need to score goals to win at the end of the day.

Whether true or not (I believe Kovalev), it’s just another incident that adds to Gainey’s desire to change the core of the team… changes are coming this summmer.

Gainey’s getting pissed off, first the Brian Burke trade dealine diary in USA Today and now the retarded French media trying to run the team. Add in the tragedy of daughter Laura and Bob’s a volcano about to blow. Oh yeah, change is-a-comin’…

I agree Dalley1, so wouldnt you think carbo would open up his offence a little.If we as fans can see the problem then how come these “Great Hockey Minds” cant. I am no coach or G.M by any means but a blind man could see the problems on this team

That should be Maple and AMEN

This blog needs a spell checker……………….

It’s the offensive players fault or it’s the defencive players fault or its the goalies or its the media or it’s too small a team or its the prima donnas or its the rookies or it the defencive style or its Bettman or its Carbo or its the fans or its the tax’s or its Gainey or its the Russians or its the penalties or the flu bug or its the goal scorers or its the culture issues or its Downey , Murray , Niinimaa or Kovalev or its the lack of instigaters or its team chemistry or its the french players or its Gillett or its the 5 on 5 play or its the turnovers or its the captain or its the first line or its the second line or its Rivet and Riberio……..; forgive me if I’ve left out some of the excuses for this years Habs and funny enough,if the team was a winner ,the list would disappear.

Actually, XHABSFAN, it’s a combination of all of the above. It’s not 1 thing.
When we won all those games early in the season ,we weren’t nearly as good as our record indicated. We had alot of luck, played over our heads, and won some games we should have lost. We aren’t losing because Huet isn’t there. In his last 17 starts, he was 5-12. Not exactly a winning record, and his play had fallen off quite a bit, and he was starting to let in a soft goals.
I think there is an internal problem on this team(dressing room).
This team lacks in confidence, and self esteem. Koivu noted once, that they play better when they’re behind. what does that mean? are they only in a desperate mode when they’re worried they might lose, or maybe they can’t stand prosperity and don’t know how to play with a lead?
This team is neither an offensive or defensive team. That’s the problem.
THEY HAVE NO IDENTITY! They don’t have enough quality Dmen to play solely defensively, and they don’t have enough talented offensive players to be considered an offensive team. They score shorthanded, because it’s like playing from behind. And they score on the PP, because that extra player gives their psyche confidence to score. Their goaltendinf is average at best, even with Huet. Next year, Huet should be only a backup. That’s his role, and the reason he was originally brought here. He can’t handle the amount of games needed to be a starter, or else his game suffers, as noted by his record,as the season wore on. So add to the wish list, a starting goalie.
Once the habs get some talent on offence, and better D men, along with goaltending that the team can have confidence in, hopefully they can lock into a system that works.
It doesn’t help, to change lines a million times every game. The players never have a chance to adapt to their linemates, and form a bond, and some chemistry.
If you don’t know who your linemate is from 1 game to the next, how are you supposed to form chemistry? That’s CARBO’S fault. For the reasons stated, I believe CARBO ii NOT the right coach for this team! He lacks patience, experience,tolerance, has no rapport with his players, and only adds confusion to a team going in a million directions. He should be replaced with a more experienced coach. Carbo should be cthe coach of a team that is set, and already a winning team. He will never lead this team anywhere. Maybe someone like ROY or ROBINSON should be the coach, but certainly NOT CARBO!
He has no idea how to run this team, and only made the situation worse!

R habs 4 real :

“When we won all those games early in the season ,we weren’t nearly as good as our record indicated. We had alot of luck, played over our heads, and won some games we should have lost”.

I’ve been playing hockey since I was 5 yrs old. I’ve been on loosing teams and winning teams. “A GOOD TEAM IS A LUCKY TEAM”. They do win when they should loose. They get the bounces and breaks. That goes with a winning team.

I’ve played goal all of my life. I’ve got my fair share of lucky bounces and goal posts. Not moving my glove, the puck finding it and making it look like an outstanding save. “A GOOD GOALIE IS A LUCKY GOALIE”.

Do you not think that Buffalo and Nashville are not getting thier share of luck. Your damn right they are.

No body knows what Gainey is saying to his team behind closed doors. Of all of the people or Fans of the Habs in here, have you ever played hockey at a competitive level? It is not as easy as it looks…………Give them some slack sometimes…………….

Choose your words wisely as well R habs 4 real. I did not say that a team should depend on luck all the time. Are you saying that all of the games that the Habs have won was just luck right? You make no sense.

There are a lot of people in here that think they know it all (not to name names). But they know didley squat. Just what they here on TSN etc. and bring it in here. They are sitting on their sofas stuffing their faces. Untill you have been on the ice or in the dressing room. Shut the FU_CK up. If it so easy to solve the problem why don’t they go ahead a try to coach etc. They would not know how to open the bench door…………. People in here tlak a lot of smack………….

Dalley 1:

You are actually praying to the wrong hockey gods in post #37. If you think that the hockey gods give a damn about the Toronto Maple Leafs, you are sadly mistaken.

I find it hard to believe that Kovalev would have said what he is purported to have said on this blog. If he did, I don’t think that he is necessarily entirely wrong. However, he should really just keep his mouth closed and be concerned about his own lack lustre level of play for the remainder of the season. Leave the stupid comments like that to us.

I have also heard rumors that Montreal is going to pursue Briere in the off season which I personally think is another mistake in the making. Buffalo is a phenomenol T-E-A-M which could probably put Smiler in nets, and still manage to win someone. No offense intended, Smiler; I am trying to make a point!

The Sabres have 9 starters out of their line up, and can still whoop Montreal and the Laffs in back to back nights (in two completely, different styles of play.) Take Briere off the Sabres, and he becomes another small, soft, mediocre player which the Habs have had plenty of already. I am not sure what has happened to this team in the last season, but there was a time when I felt like I could almost predict what Montreal’s next move would be. If they don’t understand that they need a BIG Canadian, work horse type, franchise center with some heart who can put the puck in the net more than anything, they are really lost. They should PAY/TRADE WHATEVER IT TAKES to get this after the house cleaning in the off season!

Geezzz, joshtm! To attack a guy for not posting his opinions in the last blog is just plain weird. I have a life to live too, and cannot be on this site 24/7 like some people.

It’s true that the effort starts in nets, but it is a T-E-A-M sport. No team equals no playoffs. It is that simple really! Get it together, guys. They are still only one point out of a playoff position.

Go Habs Go!

So Rob, where is your famous “Everything is going well in Baghdad” speech then? So do we come back in 14 years to watch the habs win? So what is your explanation for the slump the habs are in?

By the way, there was an article about the playoff race in the East by Pierre Lebrun of the Canadian Press which broke down the teams. It’s interesting, and if you get a chance, look at it.

Who is saying the right things, right now? Boston, Toronto, New York Rangers

Who is saying the wrong things, right now? Montreal, Carolina, Florida

The image that you project to your opposition before the puck is even dropped, does matter a lot. They need to stop whining and just start winning.

For once I have to say well said Rob!

I agree, Montreal needs to project a winning attitude, from Youpie, the fans, the media and most of all Alex Kovalev!

You can tell he wants to win but the wrong way. The rookies are good, I am sure when Alex was a rookie he too made stupid comments.

But Alex is one of the leaders, it is time to lead instead of grandstanding~!

You have not played much hockey in your life time right.

I disagree with this:

Dalley1… in my opinion, a puck hitting the post or finding its way to the trapper is not “lucky�. If the puck doesn’t go into the net on a shot that the goalie didn’t clearly “save�, then it’s either lack of skill by the shooter, or great positioning by the goalie. It doesn’t mean the goalie’s lucky.

I agree with that:

Dalley1… why should I give anyone who makes that much money any slack? I make an average salary in a very competitive and demanding work environment and nobody gives me any slack. If you don’t perform when you’re supposed to, you get criticized. That’s just the way it is.

Hey Dalley, man are you a suck or what? Crapping on the fans cause hey all of a sudden you got a revelation. Oh no what if we are all right and the habs truly suck? Geeze Dalley did you forget to take your antidepressants today?

What Joshtm and I agree on something? OMG, John Kordic must have just rolled over in his grave or something!

Now, witness as Joshtm tries to pick another on-line fight with another blogger that he doesn’t necessarily agree with! C’mon, Joshtm, we are all supposed to be cheering for the same team here. As I have said before, in-fighting with other Habs fans is really just a waist of everyone’s time that won’t go anywhere. It is certainly not getting the Canadiens anywhere right now as they seem to have also picked up the bug of fighting/criticizing each other (if these rumors are true.)

Isn’t it bad enough that we all have had to watch this team that we are all addicted to completely and totally fall apart? Isn’t it bad enough that there are few true leaders on this team that are worth looking up to as leadersfor kids (Koivu, Souray, Gainey and ?Higgins– that’s about it that I can think of)? Isn’t it bad enough that no one seems to even try for Montreal until they have been traded off the team? Isn’t it bad enough that every coach we have had for the last decade or so is succesfully leading another team? Isn’t it bad enough that compared to a team like Buffalo which is currently comprised a mostly minor leaguers, our team cannot hold a candle on most nights? Aren’t the excuses for losing and playing poorly (ie. biased refereeing, Bettman’s rule changes, bias in favor of US teams, injuries, flu bugs, back to back games, etc.) growing a little thin?

C’mon show a little sympathy to your fellow Habs fan, will ya? It is not Dalley’s fault that the Habs stink. At some point in this past season, they just seem to have collectively decided to give up playing hockey and stopped trying. When you don’t put in the effort and decide that you can get your way simply by trying to jeer your opponent, you will always lose! Always!

Habs are in 10th spot now. Leafs won tonight. That sucks……..

Hey someone forgot to tell Dalley that Montreal has become the UNICEF of Hockey, the graveyard where old elephants come to die! Yes, Montreal Canadians, the UNICEF of Hockey!

Uh oh, here we go yet again! The same old, broken record garbage from Joshtm!

It is all management’s fault! Geezzz, there has got to be a picket line somewhere in Montreal that you could be walking in the -20 degree celsius weather with your placard with that repetitive message. (Instead of the luxury of being behind your keyboard.)

Sorry, was the “going too good” there, Joshtm? What time period are you referring to exactly?

Oh, was it “going too good” for you to attack another human being that currently has the misfortune of calling themselves a Hab’s fan. Give it a rest! You don’t need to attack people personally for expressing their opinions as they relate to the Habs. Dalley is just trying to be optomistic; something that you could probably use a little more of.

If he and I are wrong that the Habs could still turn it around before the season is over, then we are wrong! BFD! Do you think that I should really pout like a small child and spew hatred in all directions because the Habs have let me down! There is always next year, and some very good prospects coming up through the system. Relax. We are all simply Habs fans trying to make the best of a bad situation. We actually don’t really have significant influence over the team, Joshtm. No matter how many CAPITALS that we use in our posts!

Thank you Rob. We are all Habs Fans lets make the best of it.

JOSHTM……..

What in the blue hell are you talking about? Don’t beat your meat. Just come out and say it Dude. That’s if you are a man.

Hey Dalley, what is this “be a man” that’s even more cornier than Rob’s “Gainey’s rebuilding” and join the “picket line”….you too take the cake! Honestly, you are both a laugh!

Making all kinds of excuses for the Habs, like, the classic “lace up your skates” eh Dalley? What put that with Rob’s “armchair GM” and the other “looks good on paper”….man you guys are just out to lunch!

Ten goals on paper is ten goals on paper, that is the stat for one of the more higher paid players on the habs, on any other NHL team that is pathetic. But to Robs and Dalley’s point of view ten points seems to be a friggen miracle!

What is even more screwed up is after they **** on people for pointing out just how pathetic and out of touch that is, they turn around after saying how dare we question Gainey and the team, they turn around and **** on the Habs.

Talk about being all Schizo! Man, get yourself on the same page for once!

More like your minds all smoke Dalley! First you say the Habs are ****. Then you turn around and criticize people for saying the same thing you say. Then you praise Gainey and the players. And then in the following paragraph you say the team is not doing well. Then you **** all over the players again. Make up your friggen mind, and what is this “be a man” **** too! You are freaked Dalley you know that?

The habs need to improve, granted that. Gainey has done a bad job signing and overpaying these underachievers. He did not take advantage of the trade deadline to improve. Many in Montreal questioned that. What Dalley you are gonna say how dare everyone else but you a whole city of Montreal question Gainey?

Talk about being a pompous arse!

If you cannot beat ‘em, buy ‘em! Right, Joshtm?

I think we can officially say that Joshtm may have officially left the building if you know what I mean. He has come full circle in proving himself a hippocrite.

Every blue moon, I sometimes think that he might have some real ideas, but it’s more and more clear to me that in the words of Jack Todd, “there ain’t no gold in thum thar hills.”

It is all just the same old poison that has resulted in the current mess that the Habs currently find themselves. Joshtm, I will repeat that neither you nor the Habs can win simply by jeering your opponent!