Divisional Supremacy

The Canadiens made a statement this year by beating the New Jersey Devils 3 out of 4 times and taking the season series.

If they hope to win their Division and potentially the Conference, they’ll have to do the same and start beating the Senators.

The Canadiens have not had any recent success beating Ottawa. The Habs and Sens will meet 3 times before season’s end. With so few games remaining an the standings so tight, these games will most definitely decide the Division.

The “achievable point” gap between teams could swing as much as 12 points if one team wins the remaining 3 games in regulation.

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59 Comments

#1 Habman says:
March 13, 2008 at 4:28 pm

Good day everyone…just a thing you may be interested in..Carey Price “signed” 8×10 photographs starting at 10 dollars on NHL.com auction…I put my bid in theres i believe 8 or 10 photos..so Bid and goods luck, they may go up in …Get it…”PRICE” if we win the cup..lol..so check it out if your a HAB FAN!..lets get it on OttAwA!

#2 Habman says:
March 13, 2008 at 4:32 pm

By the way..theres other photos too..from present and past Habs and other teams..Price pictures(signed) starting bid !) BUCKS!!!!4 hours left!
Hall of fame inductees can sign in “gold” sharpie..ive got a 8×10 framed photo of “the rocket” black and white(gold signed)..paid 350.00 for it..its priceless now!

may the spirit of the ROCKET live tonight against Ottawa!

#3 hablifer says:
March 13, 2008 at 6:46 pm

looks like Alfreddson will be playing tonight, after all. won’t be easy. We’ve lost 8 of the last 9 games vs Ottawa. If we can’t find a way to beat them, you can kiss 1st place goodbye.

#4 hablifer says:
March 13, 2008 at 9:14 pm

habs really stink tonight! not sharp, no D, and no offence. Ottawa had the same roadtrip as the habs, yet look so much better. Guess they’re just a much better team. This game was supposed to be a measuring stick, and habs failed miserably.

#5 Don Carnage says:
March 13, 2008 at 9:18 pm

There are 2 more chances this season against Ottawa but we dont fair well against them, Let’s hope someone else takes them out of the playoffs ..

#6 Senet 1 says:
March 13, 2008 at 9:37 pm

Don, you probably hit the nail on the head, it is not that Ottawa is a better team that we are it is just we have problems playing against them and their style. Washington always seemed to do the same thing to us as well as Buffalo. So the good thing is we do not have to play them in the playoff at least in the first round if all goes well, someone else who has trouble with us will knock them off.

#7 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 9:42 pm

Stupid penalty by Kovalev. He has taken a lot of them lately.

The best of Kovalev’s year is OVER.

I knew that the Habs were going to lose before the game even started. When ever there is any sort of presentation at the Bell Centre, the Habs always lose. It is a 100% certainty…….

- Montreal aways get embarassed by Ottawa.

- Montreal’s PP suck against top teams. The last two games and this is the third no powerplay goals.

- Every team in the NHL can beat Ottawa except Montreal. Even last place teams can be Ottawa.

- If Montreal should face Ottawa in the playoffs it will be game over. A 100% Certainty.

- The Habs wil blow 6 points to Ottawa. THERE GOES YOUR FIRST PLACE BOYS.

I know that Montreal will have a bad game, but the Habs are the laughing stock of the league when it comes to playing Ottawa.

Ottawa knows that it will be an easy win when ever they play montreal. They are laughing their Azzes off at the Habs. Ottawa is just hoping that they play Montreal in the playoffs cause it will be a sure pass to the next round.

I for one am sick of Montreal always losing to Ottawa when crapy teams can beat them.

1st goal was a wicked deflection.
2nd goal could have happen to the best Goalie. Just bad luck.
3rd goal he made the first stop but he banged in the rebound.

#8 hablifer says:
March 13, 2008 at 9:47 pm

No guarantee we don’t face them. If they finish in 2nd place, and us in 7th, in 4 and out! Until the habs find a way to beat these F****ers, we can’t be considered a great team!

#9 hablifer says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:08 pm

You can all say what you want, but I see NO WAY habs finish higher than 6th place!

#10 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:10 pm

They are in 4th now For F@ck Sakes.

#11 Don Carnage says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:13 pm

Yeah here we go again a bad game and all the doom of the world is upon us … get a grib no one knows where we will finish and better yet , it does not matter, we will make the playoffs and from there we will see, this team has a bright future and no matter what happens from now on, this year was a great year and was fun to watch, its not over and we will get better, there is nothing to complain about.

#12 STUO11 says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:14 pm

Guys It’s 1 loss. calm ur asses down!!!

#13 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:23 pm

We have 2 more games with Ottawa. That is 4 points we will give away. We are lucky to finnish 6th. We will probally lose to Toronto and that is 2 more right there. The two team that we have a very hard time to beat. So that is 6 points right there that are gone.

With such a great year we wil blow 1st place.

#14 patrick says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:25 pm

cry baby

#15 Don Carnage says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:29 pm

Guys like this should be kicked off the site … they are not fans one game and all we see is the end of the world … 1st place who cares , we were not even supposed to make the playoff’s … get a life will ya

#16 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:42 pm

Who cares what the Experts say. It does not mean anything. So the experts say that the Habs should finish in 12 spot, then it is ok for them to just make 6th, 7th 0r 8th.

The Habs could have had a shot at 1st place. But their poor play against Ottawa will cost them 6 valuable points.

Now YOU get a lif Don.

#17 Xtrahabsfan says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:56 pm

Yo ,relax guys,they do us like we do Bruins,thats it that’s all.We will make the playoffs and have some success need to be able to adapt to every team and we so far can’t,oh well. This summer they can work on it.I don’t like losing ,but I know more about are shortcomings and our strengths after,so…GO HABS GO….

#18 Don Carnage says:
March 13, 2008 at 10:59 pm

Thats the point we lose a game so what , this team has alot to learn and it will learn, you cant win every game, and Ottawa is the team we just dont seem to have an answer for, but that does not change how great this season has been, lets see who we get first round and see where we are then.

#19 Senet 1 says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:01 pm

Ice Man I am afraid I side with Don, firstly you are writing off these games as if we have already played them secondly, although first place would have been great it is not the end of the world if we finish lower as long as we make the playoff. No need to be negative, I have said this a number of times this team is being built for next year, if we arrive a year early great but most of us habs fans are really glad that we turned it around this year. Also we have some time to determine what we need to do to be competitive with Ottawa.

After all we are all habs fans we should not beat up on each other or our team.

#20 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:05 pm

The way we are going, we could very well play Ottawa. There will be no success with that.

A Father tells his Daughter that she will never amount to anything. That she is a looser, she will not amount to anything. So she ends up being a hooker. So that is acceptable right.

#21 Ice Man says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:09 pm

Senet1:

How much more time do we need to figure out Ottawa.

Please go and find the stats between Montreal & Ottawa. Seem who has the most wins since Ottawa came into the league.

#22 Senet 1 says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:12 pm

hablifer, you make a good point, there are no guarantees that Ottawa will finish first or second either, right now there are five teams that could finish first, Philly and Boston could get hot too and that is my point that anything can happen, we could finish first or eigth, I know one thing it is better than 9th. I believe a test of a good team is to figure out what they have to do to beat a team that they have trouble with, Montreal seems adaptable, and they certainly have the coaches with the experience to help them to adapt. They seemed to have adapted to New Jersey so hopefully they will figure out Ottawa too.

#23 Senet 1 says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:16 pm

Well with the exception of the first few years I expect that stats are in favour of Ottawa but stats from one year to the next mean nothing, we can play in the past otherwise every team in the league would just hand montreal the cup every year.

This team has come a long way in one year and they will adapt, but lets face it, Ottawa have a number of super stars that we do not have, we have to play as a team to beat them. So you can look at your stats all you want it does not change anything that is going to happen for the rest of the year, none of us really knows what will happen

#24 Senet 1 says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:21 pm

Ice Man, no team should accept loosing, however, what one has to consider is are we improving and are we moving up in the league standings, I can remember the year that NY Islander won their last cup and handled Edmonton fairly easily, the Oilers learned a lot that year and the next two years and four out of five they won cup. Rome was not built in a day, you have to be patience with a young team.

#25 hablifer says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:22 pm

But will they figure out Ottawa in time? I’m guessing 6th place for the habs and play Carolina. I don’t think we would mind playing the Canes, right?
we can beat them. I just don’t want Pitt, Ottawa, NYR in the 1st round.
In any case, Gainey will have to do some work in the offseason to get us the missing pieces. It’s like a puzzle, getting pieces to fit, and seeing the big picture. Right now, we can’t compete with Ottawa. Their coaching is better, and their top line is better. i thing worrying me, is Kovalev. He’s not scoring much, taking alot of lazy penalties, and looks really tired. Our lack of depth will keep us from doing damage in the playoffs. We’re just too 1 dimentional. And our PP isn’t scoring much lately. So yes, I’m concerned.
I want to see more determination and killer instinct from the habs, but it’s not there. They don’t seem to want it bad enough, but Ottawa does. Otherwise there would have been more effort. It’s like they gave up, realizing they can’t beat Ottawa. not a good sign. In order for us to take this team seriously, they have to beat the top teams, ie. Pitt, Sens, NYR, and haven’t done that. I’m finished ranting. I hope the effort is better on Saturday, or forget it..

#26 bossdj420 says:
March 13, 2008 at 11:39 pm

How many times are we gonna lose 3-0 this season??? Jesus, I’m glad I wasn’t at tonight’s game. I’ve seen two 3-0 losses when they played Buffalo in November and Columbus. I sure hope I don’t see another one when they play Toronto in April.

#27 Izzy says:
March 14, 2008 at 7:01 am

lmao …one loss = Kovy’s season is over
= now we’ll be in fourth
= we’re the embarrasment of the league

why do some of you guys even write this ****?, and if you knew BEFORE the game we were going to lose, why didn’;t you write all this earlier so you wouldn’t have tp stay up late? Did you honestly think, that because we were tied with about 3 or 4 other teams for first that we were going to win every hockey game from here on out?

sigh…I remember now why I left this site.

#28 Ice Man says:
March 14, 2008 at 7:33 am

Why didn’t you stay away then?

#29 STUO11 says:
March 14, 2008 at 8:31 am

Montreal will beat Ottawa once and beat Toronto once. 1 more win and we’re are back up in 2nd lol. The Habs don’t suck!! I’ll admitt that I usually go crazy and say that they’re the worst team after losses, but It’s really ok. Also the 3 goals they got we’re fluky goals just like the other game.

#30 Christopher says:
March 14, 2008 at 8:43 am

Ok so we have a PROBLEM…….

Why can we not find a way to beat the Senators??? For whatever reason we cannot beath these guys…we finally over came the strangle the Devils has had on us for years, now cant we get one up on the Sens?? If we face them in the palyoffs then we are done. Good news is facing them in the first round is slim and my best bet is we will be playing prob Pitts, Boston, Rangers or whoever finishes last in the conference..Philly? Tor? Buffalo?…we will see but any of those teams we have a good chance at beating in a series. Dont get too down yet Habs fans…we will be in the playoffs and that is whats important. We can hope Ottawa faces a team that can upset them in the first round, or at the very least out-goaltned them…because that is the keys to breaking Ottawa…there goaltending is extremely shakey boat….and the three the got against us last night were luck of the boucnes….we just didnt get the same bounces on our side.

#31 Ice Man says:
March 14, 2008 at 9:08 am

Chris.

I hear you.

But it is only putting a band-aid on a gushing wound. We have to beat Ottawa if we are to be the BEST. PERIOD.

#32 Xtrahabsfan says:
March 14, 2008 at 9:40 am

Did anyone catch G Gillette”Owner” SHAKING HIS HEAD after the Kosty check?Unfortunately, it gave me a feeling of control that I felt uncomfortable with.

#33 PACTUM SERVA says:
March 14, 2008 at 10:02 am

Ummmmmmm guys we are only 1 point out of first. It was nice to hold the first spot for awhile but personally i didnt think we would stay there. Its no big deal, we still have a great team so relax guys. Ottawa has never been able to figure it out after all of these years so who cares what they do. We figured out the devils this year and we will figure out ottawa soon enough. This is all gravy this year since the experts said we wouldnt even make the playoffs. It has been fantastic wathcing the boyz play this year, a real surprise indeed. So if some people want something to complain about maybe they need to drive west down the 401 and go cheer for that sad sack of a franchise in the blue and white GO HABS GO

#34 PACTUM SERVA says:
March 14, 2008 at 10:08 am

People on tv are also saying that kostitsynes hit was an elbow hahahahah not even close. They fail to mention how the ottawa player took a run at A. kostitsyne just moments before that with the game 3-0 with just minutes left. Typical of ottawa. Kostitsyne hit him with shoulder.

#35 rgillis says:
March 14, 2008 at 12:00 pm

I would actually like to place 5th, or 6th in the conference. Not because i don’t like the habs, but because we are a better road team than a home team so the more games we play on the road the better our chances.
With that being said, i would like to place first to show all the nah sayers at the start of the season that Montreal is a viable team that can not only make the playoffs but win the conference, but the main goal here is to make the playoffs, so we will probably need about 4 more wins to accomplish that. I don’t care if we loose to Ottawa both times and lose to TO again, as long as we get to the playoffs.

The Playoffs is like a start to a new season, everyone has 0′s and we can deal with ANY team in our conference, Ottawa included.

So lets all say GO HABS GO, leave the regular season behind us, relax and concentrate on a long playoff season.

#36 Rubberman says:
March 14, 2008 at 12:35 pm

I agree with you Izzy (and the rest of you who are still positive).

“The sky is falling” bit sucks. Great teams stumble, so do great players.

Above everything, I’m satisfied with this season. They are a good, exciting team to watch. Thanks Habs!!!

“Opinions are a like ********, we all have one!”

#37 Ice Man says:
March 14, 2008 at 12:40 pm

Halak is starting on Sat.

Why didn’t Carbo start Halak with his 7-0 Bell Centre record last night since it was a must win game?

Price plays an oustanding game Tuesday. He loses last night due to NO fault of his own and Halak gets rewarded with playing a game against a bottom team.

Am I missing something here?

#38 ziman says:
March 14, 2008 at 2:30 pm

A couple of things hit me last night about the Canadiens. As I have posted here before, the Canadiens ARE NOT in the same league as Ottawa and will NEVER beat them. The Senators are too good for Montreal. Montreal can beat almost any other team in the league but Ottawa. They have figured out how to beat the Devils but they cannot beat the Sens. Ottawa has our number, case closed, the same way we have Boston’s number. I hate those ******* Sens, I really hate Ottawa and hope they get their asses kicked. I wish that team was Montreal that would kick Ottawa’s candy-asses but they never beat them, ANYWHERE!! On a side note, guys please don’t start writing negative comments when they lose a game. So what happens if they win on Saturday, we can be back in first in not only the division but the conference as well and then people will be writing comments like “Habs will win the cup this year” “the habs are going all the way”, you get my drift. They lose a game and the sky is falling. Grow up people, they have had a great year thus far and they will be fine the rest of the season. The Habs are a good team with a very bright future that will only get better in coming years, mark my words. While they might not win the cup this year, (although anything is possible, remember 1971, 1986 and 1993) they will win the cup in the next 2 to 3 years when they will be a powerhouse. Gainey will find the right pieces. When was the last time the Canadiens had a team that could contend for first place not only in the division but the conference? It has been a long time but the best is yet to come in the next few years. It takes time to build a champion and a contender but Montreal is getting there and will win the cup sooner than later!

Ziman

#39 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 4:55 pm

I am giving myself the “Wizard of the Night ” award because I said, if we score first we win, first 10 minutes will be the most critical part of the game..and we MUST stay out of the penalty BOX!..well 11:39 I believe of the first period Ottawa scores..ON A POWER PLAY!….back to basics on the P.P..nothing serious.. And ..guyz..Losing a game is like road rage..i get it to…Instead of criticisms of the fans that vent here..listen with patience and understand that these anomalies have reasons..I don’t hear us complaining about how bad we are against Jersey anymore,,..lol..Ottawa has “internal” problems that will effect them in the playoffs..believe me, they’ll fold like a tent come playoff time..the icing looks good on the cake..but the cake is “rotten” inside, We have the biggest advantage of anyone in the league..youth,speed,HEALTH…Raise your glasses!..to HEALTH< Championships, and our fine russian leader and new Father..KOVALEV..hes gonna pump up the special”K” line and LaPierre,,Plakanec is hungry for the playoffs..ONE MORE THING comrades..the best hockey is yet to come..get ready!

#40 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 4:56 pm

Oh yeah ..PEACE!!!!

#41 Senet 1 says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:06 pm

Ziman, dito. The only thing I disagree with is that we cannot beat Ottawa, this coaching staff in my opinion is better than Ottawa’s, Ottawa does have more talent and therefore the advantage. Montreal will figure out Ottawa and I predict that they will beat them at least once before the end of the season. Carbo and the coaches have been riding high and have not developed a plan to beat the sens just yet, but I predict when the time comes they will devise a game plan. One important thing, our defense will have to tighten up and our goaltending will have to make some very big saves. I remember 1971 we beat Boston with Orr, Espo. and crew. Oh by the way we had a rookie goaltender some big guy named Dryden. Sort of reminds me of someone else I know!

#42 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:06 pm

Anybody want to make a small wager…that Bouillion will have “and “upperbody” injury and BIRON make a little introduction within the next 7 or 8 games????

#43 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:08 pm

Can someone tell me who plays on the right side on the “d” line..the side the Sens picked on all night?

#44 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:10 pm

Gainey knows…if hes thinking right..he will put a bit’o’ beef” on alfredson come time..that’ll shutem down!

#45 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:11 pm

Comon WIZARDS!!!…start talking to me!!…ahahahahah!

#46 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:14 pm

Just think..the first time in Hab history a majority of the players were of non Anglo French decent … only EUROPEAN DECENT..and the Mighty Ducks are STANLEY CUP CHAMPS !!! and of course..well CANADIANS!!!!!!!…moneys rules eh???/

#47 Habman says:
March 14, 2008 at 5:18 pm

AHHHH!..the Diversity is killing me…we hate our own to embrace another..and fight like dogs here!..AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!