Alot is being said about the goaltenders in Montreal in the media. Will one get traded? When? For who/what? Which one?….etc.

This morning I read this great article on The Hockey News site titled “Top Shelf: Re-packaging the 1-2 goalie punch“.

The author (Ryan Dixon) mentions that there is another team doing a very similar thing that is going on with the Habs as of late. That is, each goaltender has played a substantial number of games.

You see, the Nashville Predators have been playing both Pekka Rinne and Dan Ellis a fair bit. Rinne has played 28 games and Ellis 20. Their stats are also quite similar:

Nashville Predators
Pekka Rinne – 28 games – 2.74 GAA – .906 S%
Dan Ellis –  20 games – 2.75 GAA – .910 S%

It’s quite similar to what’s going on in Montreal between Price and Halak statistically:

Montreal Canadiens
Carey Price – 29 games – 2.67 GAA – .915 S%
Jaroslav Halak – 18 games – 2.64 GAA – .922 S%

Just like the article mentions, if we go back to the days of Patrick Roy he played with Brian Hayward alot. In fact in Roy’s first 4 full seasons in Montreal (85-86 to 88-89) he never played more then 48 games.

Alot has changed since those days of course. I’m not sure if all the money might have influenced more of the battle to be a “number 1″ on a team. I mean, I know athletes are competitive but when you lay the chips down hockey is a team sport and if I put my “fan-gm” hat on for a minute…. it’s much better for a team and for an organization to have 2 strong goaltenders instead of having a “number 1″ and a “backup”.

Food for thought this morning.

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We didn’t have to wait long and Sergei was called up to play in Montreal.

Fast forward a few years and here we are.

Sergei Kostitsyn had a place on this roster. There is no doubt. But there’s been this kind of cloud hovering above him since last season.

Last year all the media (well not ALL the media, but some media certainly) were finding new issues every couple of weeks…. Kostitsyn’s name was mentioned along with the word “party”…. and then later on he and brother Andrei were thought to be involved with some shady figures in Montreal (along with Hamrlik).

Sergei had been demoted after all that stuff came about… but even before that the Habs team were sinking fast. I’m not sure if half the team just stopped playing for Carbo or what…. but there had been whispers of attitude problems.

This season, Martin made it clear that he wanted to run a tighter ship… the boys better work hard…. etc.

Right off the bat Sergei got himself in the bad books.

I’m not an “insider”. I’m a fan. I watch every game I can which comes close to all the games. I follow reporting on the team…etc.

From what I’ve seen the last 2 years I’m assuming that in fact Sergei does have some growing up in the sense that he needs to learn to take directives from his boss. From the coach and from the GM.

In hockey it’s not like boxing. You’ve got teammates. It’s a team sport. And in most team sports you have a coach that analyzes his players, what their strengths and weaknesses are and not only a general team strategy but a game per game strategy.

Sergei also decided to “force” management to trade him by not reporting. Honestly Sergei, what would have been the big deal to work hard in Hamilton? There’s a spot for you on the roster dude. But here’s the deal….. it’s not gonna be handed to you because you have potential. When you’re potential comes into fruition with work ethic then you deserve the spot. I have no doubt that you would have earned that spot much sooner then later.

But at this point even the title of my blog post kind of “erks me”… because the possibility of Sergei staying has gotten very slim to none.

Now if you’re reading this you may have heard the various rumors. I don’t really write rumors and rarely write about them but one rumor has the Kostitsyn’s going to LA for Frolov. I don’t mind that deal if it ever happened.

I’m always hoping that Andrei finds his “overdrive”.. but he hasn’t as of yet. Sergei just doesn’t want to listen to his boss or so it seems.

How long does Gainey wait?

Frolov would be a low risk acquisition because he is UFA at year’s end.

Personally, I wish all of this would just straighten around… Andrei starts putting up points… Sergei works hard comes to Montreal and helps the team’s offense… and we all live happily ever after.

But do you think that will happen??

Maybe after all this I just need a bigger cup of coffee….

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Here are a few pre-game and really “pre-season” thoughts.

Bob Gainey

Alot has been said about the Montreal Canadiens over the last few years, from the highs to the lows and everything in between.

This season is a departure in many ways for the franchise in the sense that the team has really been rebuilt with several longtime players leaving and several new faces coming in with multiple years left on contract. Maybe unlike previous years, this team is now Gainey’s team. From top to bottom his hand has been involved in one way or another in regards to management, coaching drafting, trading and UFA signings in forging the team we will see tonight and this season. In radio call in shows and internet banter I’ve seen and heard Gainey being called both a genius and some calling for his head.

This is an important year for Gainey in Montreal. There has been no shortage of criticism this summer about these off-season moves… hindsight will tell us the good and the bad. It’s the nature of the job.

We get to see the first glimpse.

Scott Gomez

Scott Gomez came to Montreal in a big trade prior to July 1st and with him came a big contract. I, along with others, didn’t really like this trade. But to be quite honest I’ve really warmed up to having Scott Gomez in Montreal. He seems to carry himself quite well and seeing him play and learning a bit more about him there’s no denying that he’s a really talented hockey player. He can really pass the puck.

Scott Gomez may very well have something to prove in Montreal and it’s not far fetched to think that he could rebound from his time with the New York Rangers. We once had another fellow that was dubbed “Kovy” come from the big apple after basically being written off…. this “Kovy” fella played a career year in Montreal.

Scott, if you read this buddy…. I’m hoping you look good in the uniform bro… glad to have you aboard!

Mike Cammalleri

Mike Cammalleri was one of the big UFA names out there this summer and it was a pleasant surprise when I heard he signed in Montreal. Cammalleri is an offensive weapon… there is no doubt.

A big knock some people had on Cammalleri… maybe more so by some critics was that he couldn’t score without Iginla. But checking his stats…. it’s quite easy to see that it’s not quite true. And the possibility of having a guy like Gomez feed him the puck is promising.

Mike…. Glad to have you aboard man!!!

Other thoughts

Of the guys in uniform tonight, there are a few others that I think have an important year in front of them.

Andrei Kostitsyn showed lots of promise 2 years ago with Kovalev and Plekanec. Being on a line with Gomez and Cammalleri could be very beneficial to him. I mean, tonight, it’s just a pre-season game. But it’s a line that we could very well see on a regular basis this year. Both Kostitsyn and Cammalleri have a pretty good shot while Gomez is a superb passer.

Andrei, make the best of the opportunity!

Carey Price will certainly be looking to bounce back and I think he’ll be able to put last year behind him. Plus Martin’s tighter defensive system should help him alot… at least that’s what I think.

P.K. Subban…. all I’m gonna say is you’ll likely find your way into the lineup soon, you’re a great young player and if you spend the year in Hamilton we’ll see you next year. But there’s a chance we could see you from time to time in Montreal. Keep it up bro!

Mr. Desharnais, I like how you’ve continued to prove everyone wrong at every level. Keep it up!

Guillaume… this is an important year for you. I hope that we see many hard checks and some of that scoring touch around the net.

We’re almost there… the puck drops soon!!!

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