It’s that time of year folks! You dust off your TV remote or getting in the ticket buying mood and start watching the greatest team in the NHL! (yeah, that’s right…. but as you can tell, this is a Habs blog right??)

Always a great time of year… I know these games really mean nothing… but do they?

What do they mean to me?

Well, I get to watch the veterans get in gear again… but more importantly (for this time of year) I get to see the prospects lineup next to our veteran players. I always love watching the young guys who are trying to force the coach’s hand, or find their spot on a roster. The enthusiasm…. the talent, the timidity (sometimes… let’s be honest!)…. it’s a chance to see tomorrow’s lineup.

How they handle taking the first steps towards their dream and playing for this great franchise we love.

Go Habs Go!

Enjoy!

The Canadiens face the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Center in Montreal tonight… and might I take this time to welcome Sidney and his crew to the most intense hockey crowd in the world.

Here’s a few reasons why I think the Canadiens deserve a little credit and why they can win.

Besides the fact that shutting down the Capitals offense for 3 consecutive games and taking them in 7 games surely wasn’t any luck or bad luck. This time of year is about “want”, “desire”, “hunger”…. you better believe it.

Don’t count anyone out until they’re out.

1 – Jaroslav Halak

I don’t really need to say much here. He’s been great in these playoffs and maybe that in itself is an understatement.

One question that I’ve heard some people say is “how long can he keep it up?“… that question came up a couple of games into the Washington series and to some extent hasn’t went away. It’s not really a fluke that he’s playing well. At least I don’t think it is. For us Habs fans who watch every (or just about) game then you’ve seen this guy play some great goaltending prior to the playoffs.

He’s had nothing handed to him since coming to North America and has earned every bit of his ice time. I’d say he’s a pretty confident guy in what he does… he’s won my confidence…. I’d also suggest his teammates are quite confident in him too…

2. Hal Gill and Josh Gorges

Hal Gill and Josh Gorges have been superb during these playoffs. For a team that was generally really bad at 5 on 5 hockey during the season, all of a sudden the team is playing some pretty good defense.

Yes, there are alot of shots on goal. But many of them are taken from the outside and the Gorges – Gill pairing have done a fabulous job on the penalty kills. When it comes to the playoffs I’m not sure there’s any luck involved. There’s a strategy, a game plan… guys have their jobs…. and try to do it.

Gill and Gorges do many simple things well. They also show some patience instead of panic. Nice simple plays off the boards to clear a puck…. bumping a guy off the puck (you don’t have to decapitate people)…. sticks and bodies clogging passing and shooting lanes.

3. The big guys

While I’m sure many “experts” in the hockey world from parents to coaches to (fill in the blank) may have thought or even told these guys that they’re too small to succeed as pro hockey players they’ve always defied the odds. Luckily they’ve never believed that they’re too small…. which is something that many “experts” were saying when these guys were signed. I think some people questioned these guys because they wouldn’t be effective in the playoffs.

Well. Sorry.

Ever see Brian Gionta go in the corners? Against guys 7 inches (and more) taller then him? Yeah, he gets banged around. But he comes out with the puck his fair share of the time. And won’t back down. The crazy bugger even goes in front of the net and scores goals!! Imagine!!

And so does Mike Cammalleri!!

Seriously, Gionta’s got great hands, a great shot… and Mike Cammalleri is an artist with the puck. Yeah I know, we had another guy here a little while ago that they called the artist and in all fairness I enjoyed his time with the Habs. But Cammalleri’s got heart. He WANTS to win. You can tell.

That “want” to win and work ethic coupled with a magnificent shot…. makes Cammalleri a player you want to have playing on your team.

Maybe these 2 guys should be given a little more credit by the “experts”. Although in fairness to the experts, they often do acknowledge their skill and hockey IQ.

4. PK Subban

He’s thrown in the fire and looks like he belongs. He skates, handles the puck, shoots, hits….. and gets “mini Bobby Orr” comparisons already.

Youthful enthusiasm and energy coupled with skill can certainly help energize a team.

On several occasions PK has made the right pass or made a little stutter step to back off a defender. Subban is showing that he’s got a ton of hockey smarts to go along with all that raw skill.

All those simple plays (like the stutter step) show patience, poise and give the Habs offensive chances as well as defensive stops. The last thing you want is your guys to panic out there… that’s where you have turn overs. Subban looks at home in the firestorm.

Welcome PK. The crowd is already chanting your name buddy!

5. A few sayings that you hear this time of year

– Good teams find a way to win
– Defense wins championships
– Don’t underestimate the heart of a champion
(We’ve got a crew of guys who’ve won or come very close before)

Habs have a shot at winning tonight! Better believe it!

Go Habs Go!

Ever since the Montreal Canadiens were knocked out of the playoffs last spring I’ve been waiting for training camp.

Well, if I back up a little bit I should say that first my anticipation was focused on the NHL entry draft. Who would they pick?? I was pleased with the draft, I don’t think there are too many scouts who would be considered better than Trevor Timmins.

Then my focused switched to the UFA free agent market… the Gomez trade and all the signings that followed and also the ones that most people thought would happen but didn’t (wink,wink)…..

Now here we are in early september. September 4th to be exact and the rookie camp starts in just a few days.

The Canadiens made they’re announcement on the canadiens.com website which can be read here. You can also find the complete roster here.

Mikael Johansson who signed with the Habs on may 27th 2009 will be there as will be Dany Massé who signed as an undrafted free agent.

On guy who I’ve been curious to see is Andrew Conboy. He’s a big frame left winger at 6’04 and some of what I had heard about him was that he could very well develop into a really rugged big forward. Something that wouldn’t hurt at all.

Many of the invited players are draft picks.. 15 of the 29.

There is one player who is invited as a try out and that is Philippe Lefebvre from Trois-Rivières who played for Drummondville. He was a teammate of Dany Massé on the junior squad.

All in all, I’m excited that the season is so close! Can’t wait to see, hear and/or read reports from the rookie camp and go into the full blown training camp.

We’re close people!

I thought I’d take a look at what we could see individual players achieve in 2009. What career achievements could be made by players on the Habs roster. I haven’t listed all the possible numbers…. but listed many.

So here’s my little preview!

Mike Cammalleri

• Needs 34 games played to reach 400 games played in the NHL
• Has 155 career assists, could break the 200 assist mark
• Has 287 career points, will definately break the 300 point mark

Scott Gomez

• Has 578 career points, will break the 600 point mark
• Has 1914 total shots, will break 2000 shots

Brian Gionta

• Has 473 career games, will break the 500 game mark
• Has 160 career assists, could break the 200 assist mark
• Has 1351 career shots, could break 1500 shots

Andrei Kostitsyn

• Has 186 career games, will break the 200 game mark

Tomas Plekanec

• Has 184 career points, will break the 200 point mark

Glen Metropolit

• Has 338 career games, could break the 400 NHL games played mark

Guillaum Latendress

• Has 82 career points, will break the NHL point mark

Georges Laraque

• Has 667 career games, should break the 700 game mark
• Has 98 career assists, will break the 100 mark.

Travis Moen

• Has 362 career games, will break the 400 game mark
• Has 487 PIM, will break the 500 PIM mark

Andrei Markov

• Has 571 career games, will break 600 game mark
• Has 255 career assists, could break 300 assist mark
• Has 945 shots, will break 1000 shot mark

Josh Gorges

• Has 246 career games, will break 300 game mark

Roman Hamrlik

• Has 1157 career games, will break 1200 game mark in the NHL
• Has 564 career points, could break 600 point mark
• Has 58 career PP goals, should break 60 career PP goals
• Has 2694 shots, will break 2700 career shots

Jaroslav Spacek

• Has 33 career PP goals, could break 40 career PP goals

Paul Mara

• Has 639 career games played, should break 700 games played
• Has 943 career shots, will break 1000 career shots

Hal Gill

• Has 851 career games played, should break 900 games played
• Has 985 career shots, will break 1000 career shots

Carey Price

• Has 93 career games played, will break 100 career games

I wasn’t aware, but it seems as though the Montreal Canadiens did in fact win the Stanley cup in 2009!!

Only, it was on someone’s Xbox 360… and not in real life. They did however reach the finals VS the Sharks in this one.

Please, enjoy.

Chipchura has vision and smarts.. I guess that the major knock always mentioned is his speed. He’s just not fast.

After being introduced with the team last night in the opening ceremony where I’m sure he was wondering exactly if he would get a shot in the lineup.

I guess I had hopes for Chipchura over the last couple of years.

The Habs lineup is deep for guys trying to come in and grab a spot.

(RDS article)

This has 100 Habs season facts and trivia with some misconceptions “debunked” by Robert.

Great read!

Find it here:
http://wwweyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/10/montreal-canadiens-100-seasons-facts.html