Habs 3, Devilzz 2: Old men bested by young men

HEAAAAAA!

Hell yes. The Devils and their old farts can get their discount trip back to New Jersey for the rematch in thist first of a home-and-home series. Speaking of which, who the fuck thought "A home-and-home series with the Devils is JUST what we need! Let's pick the speedy Habs team to do it too!"

Kill me.

- PK Subban had more saves than Brodeur.
- Carey Price had more saves than Brodeur. Haha Habs were outshot 22-9 by the end of the 2nd. And were up 2-1.
- Obligatory goal by Bernier. Seems to remind himself he's a hockey player when he plays here. Still not enough to warrant that 3rd star though. Wondering if he has family in the media or they've promised him a job later..
- Obligatory goal by Ryder. Because of course.
- Jagr has big feet.
- Bourque LIVES!
- What is with the slide whistle? Did Molson hire a clown to provide musical entertainment?
- Remember folks, Galchenyuk could technically join the USA WJC team. But won't, obviously.

Also this.

- Needed more yakety sax.
- I found video of Desharnais forchecking the Devils with great puck pursuit.

- PK Subban and Carey Price combine like Voltron into Subbrice, Ultimate Goaltender!
- Moen crunched Fayne and it was loud. And crunchy.
- Zidlicky tried to take out Desharnais knees. The refs ignored it.
- This game was so dull even the puck was refusing to join in.
- Pacioretty fist pump celebration, still being reviewed by Toronto.
- Plekanec and Eller went all beast mode preventing Brodeur from going to the bench.
- Regardless of the win, the broadside of the barn is totally safe. (Practice those empty net shots or give it to Price dammit).

Oh my god we have to deal with these fuckers again? At least that takes care of two Devils game.

Habs 2, Blues 3 (SO): Throw another pie in his face

For once, just once, I would like someone to ask Therrien some tough questions. Are media members afraid of him? Are they concerned they'll piss off their old RDS buddy? Does he need the kid gloves, spilless, and spork?

Let's try one.
"What was your thinking in shortening your bench only after you had repeated your errors from Friday's game by allowing the 4th line out randomly in the 3rd where they got scored on, again, when you had the lead? Was that not too late?"

Another one:
"You were given one powerplay with the game tied. Why was Martin St-Pierre given more time on this powerplay over Galchenyuk, Gallagher, Eller, Pacioretty, Bourque and Plekanec? Was this not a good moment in the game to go for the kill?"

Maybe one more:
"Was there any reason as to why PK Subban was essentially benched with the game tied and three minutes til overtime for Bouillon and Murray?"

Guess it was ok to ask these things and hang these blown 3rd periods on Jacques Martin. Get some balls, press. Or get Jessica Rusnak back in there.

By the way, I don't give a rat's ass about breaking the shot blocking record. "I know one thing, when you're blocking a lot of shots, the puck's in your end a lot." Ken Hitchcock said that after the game. I think he knows something about hockey.

Also I'm tired of "giving the other team credit". You're in your home. You were up 2-1. Fuck them. You put your fourth line out, and Parros is too slow to get to the guy on the point. Bang. Puck bounces off 4 elbows past Price who was standing on his fucking head to get you a win against a top team.

This is why this team will be a pretender: shit coaching will be their undoing.

Habs 2, Stars 1: Primodial

Of course he meant "primordial".

Too be honest I thought this would be a loss. Mostly because Lehtonen tends to give this team fits regardless of who's on staff. And Jamie Benn is awesome. Then I remembered Lindy Ruff is coach. The Dallas Stars are now the Buffalo Sabres with less douchebags.

- All we are saying is give Douglas Murray a chance!
- And so far so good. Six hits. Never mind his bumping his own nose on the glass or the weaksauce interference penalty they call him for.
- Pretty sure after he hits someone he rolls up his sleeve and makes another mark.
- They say this Crankshaft is a bad mother. Shut your mouth! ♪
- I didn't notice but was Erik Cole or Tyler Seguin playing?
- I'm sorry. People will say Desharnais did well tonight. He did and didn't. So status quo. I saw him pass the puck badly, behind both his linemates, get the lucky bounce back to the D who sent it to the net where Leblanc and Bourque were crashing and banging and making it count.
- Alex Chiasson brought 52 people to watch him. And Price robbed him of his baseball goal.
- Can you please stop with the crap about Eakin's goal? A hard sneaky snap shot hiding behind PK wired to the goal with everyone frozen in time is not a banana and it pisses me off whenever a goal goes in the fucking trolls come out of their caves (who were apparently quiet for 40 minutes). Also apparently it negates all the incredible work Price and the D did holding the Stars off.
- But it's totally cool when Pleky does it right. Get over yourselves. Habs were still winning.
- Also considering the Stars should have scored about 3 goals right before that when they held the zone for what seemed like 5 minutes with poor Douglas Murray huffing and puffing around...
- But the Habs also should have had at least 300 wide open empty net goals. Shit happens.
- Speaking of empty nets... You could probably pull your goalie with 5 minutes left and not worry with these guys.
- Diaz scored by shooting the puck wide. Bounced off Robidas.
- Actually they ended up crediting it to Bournival, since it bounced off him too.
- He then continued shooting the puck wide. Hilarious.
- One of these days someone not named Blunden will finish a PK Subban dipsy doodle rush...
- Erik Cole did not troll us.
- GUYS. GALCHENYUK!
- Also PLEKANEC. LORD OF TWO WAY HOCKEY.
- I'm still laughing at that puck sitting in the crease for like a full minute with everyone looking at it before Bouillon fired it out of the zone.
- Alex Chiasson got the RDS home town discount 3rd star and did not wave to the 52 people who came to see him.

Gopher State they go. Go for it. Ok I'll stop.

Habs 4, Ducks 1: Koivu

This is all we need here.

A fitting tribute by the fans, and a kind gesture by Boudreau to put him out on the ice for the final shift (where he lined up by the new number 11, Gallagher). Chants of "SAKU! SAKU! SAKU!" echoed around the rink. L'Antichambre we gracious enough to put their bias aside and nominate him the third star of the game so the fans could properly send him off with another ovation and a solo skate.

As for the rest of the game, total team effort.

- Everything  they did wrong against the Oilers they did right tonight.
- Early 2-0 lead made us all dubious regardless.
- Plekanec was a beast all game.
- Corey Perry had his usual shit fit and attempted to take out PK.
- Gionta takes a high stick to the face and no one argued it was because he was short. An actual 5-on-3! Proceeded to take 4 swings at the net. Fourth one was a goal.
- Can you believe Chris Lee called a better game than the shitshow we saw for the two previous games?
- The only real blemish was the terrible attempt by Diaz on a 2-on-1. Markov and PK need to help him with that... He's just really bad at it.
- When was the last time a Maroon scored on the Habs? In the 1930s?
- Bourque accepting a stretch pass by PK for what seems like the 3rd game in a row now.
- But it was his backhand that finally worked.
- I find Hiller really not as good as he used to be...
- Things must be good when they're winning 4-1 like they were before.
- Still gave up over 30 shots though.
- Bouncy shots too.
- SAKU! SAKU! SAKU!

Seriously. All the feels.

Habs 5, Listless Sabres 1: X marks

Things are looking up.

My day started with the best kind of foreshadowing when Toaster stepped into his own shit. I went to work and discovered they shut down our studio because they have zero idea what the hell they're doing. (Not worried yet, as I have a meeting tomorrow for possible new employment). Then my brother, while dealing with a shit head tailgater and a shit head who wouldn't let him merge over, accidentally bumped a BMW that suddenly stopped. Nothing major, but still annoying. Oh how could this day turn around?

Well, the Islanders beating the Bruins and the Habs beating the Sabres would definitely help. Especially after that deliciously GIANT burger I ate at the Dublin that filled me with beefy rage.

The last thing you want to say in a Buffalo arena is "go for the jugular"...
- But outshooting them 42-15 is indeed going for the throat.
- Plenty of powerplay practice to boot! Sabres got so complacent they couldn't give a shit anymore. Even had Gerbe abuse an official.
- When Ryan Miller gets scored on you can hear his sighs.
- My brother on the booing: Yessss your anguish sustains me.
- First Niagara Center was invaded by a mass of Habs fans. Business as usual.
- Rene Bourque is definitely back. When you see his line doing a 3 man attack, check your pants. Or your net.
- Galchenyuk is blazing.
- The only worry I had in this game was when some moron (Ott, Kaleta) would attempt to injure one of our guys. Prust punched Kaleta down. Bouillon took care of Ott.
- And THAT'S the Frankie Bou I know. Where was that guy?
- It's easy to forget that Gallagher is camping around your net.
- PK puts two more notches on his Norris tally.
- The first shorthanded goal they allow this year and it has to be to the Sabres...
- Only one player I'd rescue from Buffalo, and that's Luke Adam. He just looks confused to be there right now.
- Desharnais and Gallagher screening Enroth. They're all pretty much the same height.
- Thinking Steve Ott wondered if Halpern tasted of fried chicken and doughnuts. That or what 900 games tastes like.
- Seriously. Just burn that visor. We have no clue where that tongue's been...
- Happy smiling coaches on the bench!

Habs get an X and retake their top spot at #2.

Tastes...like victory.

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Habs 1, Panthers 0: We need more Galchenyuks

How does one make a dull game that looked more like a day at the practice rink and turn it into a win? Take one 0-0 tie to overtime, add one Alex Galchenyuk, put a little bit of muscle as he powers his way to the net, send a pass over to the slot, hope it bounces off a flailing Shawn Matthias, and as the chaos unfolds watch Rene Bourque baseball swing the puck over Jose Theodore.

And that's about it, because nothing else really happened all game. In fact, I spent most of my time wondering what back breaking stupid shot by Filip Kuba will bobble it's way off 50 possible candidates and into the net to end it. A couple of saves on both sides, and a lot of flash from PK, but other than that, a barnbummer. In fact, Canadiens Express can just play the OT and be done with it.

Florida sweep! Oh and Habs traded Ced for Tokarski. Our small goaltending pool just got extra adorable. And punchy.

Habs 6, Vanek 1: Free Buffalo Wings

PK is back! And his skate had it out for him in the first period. But once that was fixed, you could see just how good this team is with him. And an assist in his first game back thank you very much.

Other than PK, today's game was billed (locally) as Grigorenko VS. Galchenyuk! The two players Habs could have drafted but only could have one! How will this look? How will they perfom? Who will get more points? Build up, controversy!

...and Grigorenko may as well have not been playing.

As for Galchenyuk? He OWNED.

Ryan Miller discovered 2 Gallys are better than 1

Steve Ott is still a douche
- The "New Look Sabres" were supposed to be scary. Or that's what I was TOLD because of that shitstorm in Boston.
- I can say, as a fan of the Blackhawks, that John Scott is fucking useless. You will learn to understand this, one day. Just like how the Rangers did.
- Do you like Rene Bourque now? When he's not drawing penalties, he's crashing the net. Two goals!
- You see the difference with PK. He's our only D capable of matching the speed of say Cody Hodgson running full steam on a breakaway as Kaberle does his best impersonation of a wet noodle.
- THE KIDS! Highlight reel stuff. With a little help from Ehrhoff.
- First time Ryan Miller was pulled in a game against the Habs.
- First time since like 2008 (or 2009) the Habs scored this many goals on them. Maybe Lalime was in nets.
- HEY THERRIEN! IS LARS ELLER PLAYING INTENSE ENOUGH FOR YOU?! All it takes is a little bit of ice time, and a flying chance.
- DD did things right today! TWO GOALS. But those penalties negating powerplays........
- We had 3-on-3 hockey. And it was awesome.
- It would have been awesomer if Pleky, who literally walked up to Enroth, would have scored instead of shoving the puck into him...
- Funny how PK hits 6'8" John Scott, and Scott throws a punch at PK, gets a penatly while Cube (all 5'8" of him) comes to PK defence (PK stopped him).
- My biggest problem was Diaz's inability to stay calm and hold the blueline. That was like a vintage Hamrlik fuckup....
- Prusty vs Ott. Ott tried to get Gallagher to fight him first. Still a fuckwit.
- Ott went after Gallagher with a minute left in the game too...
- Lindy Ruff's face turned many shades of red.
- My nemesis Cody Hodgson didn't score for once!

Perfect for SuperBowl Weekend: Free Wings! Would have been cool if there was say A TRIPLE LOW FIVE celebrating this awesomeness....

Habs 4, Jets 3: Find a way and win

Remember that clusterfuck of a game in Edmonton with the millions of stupid calls and Yakupov's heroics saving the game? We just got a taste of that. But no sliding across the ice to land in prayer on a game tying goal. Instead, the Gallys took over the game and saved this team from what would have surely been a loss last season.

Four in a row.
- I do not, will not, ever not give a fuck about Perry Pearn. Good bye.
- Habs/Jets (Threshers) games tend to be weird. Tonight was weird and wonky. Could have easily gone 7-8.
- Dear PK, you have no idea how much the PK is missing you. Also every D outside of Markov/Emelin ae starting to show their warts, and Gorges could really use you next to him. Can't get back soon enough.
- Price had a better 3rd than the first two periods. Especially with the zero clean up in front. Good thing for him, he's not playing tomorrow.
- Good thing for him Gorges is a pretty good goalie too.
- DD is still sucking. Tonight they tried Prust, Gally, Galchy, Moen, Youppi. Seriously, you're running out of options. Apparently Patches doesn't need you (though we know this already) but rather the other way around. And even then nothing is working.
- Am I the only one who thinks Gallagher looks like a micro Channing Tatum?
- Off the schneid: Bourque finally didn't shot for orbital sattelites! And Erik Cole collected a gift from the Gallys.
- Honestly, I thought they were playing Lacrosse half the game...
- Did you know 27+73=100?

By the way, RDS math.

- Prust says he was hit from behind and fell down. Apparently that's now a penalty.
- Though you have to admit, it was funny seeing everyone go after Antropov. Like, don't piss off the dwarves!
- That call, however, made my dog vomit.
- Markov and the powerplay = Norris, Masterton, Hart. All the accolades!
- Ron Hainsey scored a goal for the Habs.
- Gally had a goal and assist with the least amount of ice time on the whole team (about 9:22). He knows how to compensate.
- Emelin says привет! Kane does not approve. Boohoo.
- The last 30 minutes killed me.

Taking 8 of 10 points so far? Excellent. Keeping the Gallys? Excellent. Best players on the ice. We'd be lost without those crazy kids. Onwards to Ottawa!

Habs 1, Rangers 4: We're almost there...

Toaster has the right idea.

This was so dull and boring that the only reason why it wasn't 7-1 or even 10-1 was because the Habs are just slightly better than the Leafs. And have a goalie. But a goalie can only do so much when his defence resembles a bunch of statues. WE'RE REALLY AWESOME AT STANDING AROUND.

I can take sucking and losing and all that but I cannot STAND watching pro-hockey players just stand around.

At least do the fucking YMCA dance or something?

Similarly, you're first shot in the 3rd period comes with 5 minutes left...and it was by Brad Staubitz.

The slim-because-it's-too-small-to-be-called-small victory is Bourque busting the shutout. This is, of course, after he flubbed plenty of golden opportunities earlier. And yea, scoring with 2 minutes left just doesn't really help. But hey, if you want to start signing the Olé song and you're NOT a Habs fan, well you're just asking to get scored on.

So olé.

Habs 1, Bruins 2: Listless...and then!

We were on our way to absolute boredom with this. Which is hilarious considering the Bruins nightly quota is like 5 goals per game.

Fucking broken stupid Boston rink causes the puck to bounce out weird and no one else is paying attention at the little hockey player in front of an empty net. For a long while, looked like it was all the Bruins needed tonight. Habs had really nothing going for them. Well, the usual suspects were working: Eller's line, and as the night went on DD's line picked it up (I giggle every time DD takes on Chara, and he took him down with a shot to the gut to boot). After pissing off most of his fanbase, and probably most of his teammates, while back-peddling today on his comments yesterday, we were all paying close attention to Cammalleri just to see if he would indeed put his money where his mouth is. Two gifted rebounds found their way in front of him with wide open nets and he ignored both of them. Sigh.

As the game went on I gave up, and traded him for Bobby Ryan. Apparently someone else was thinking similar... (No, not Bobby Ryan).

Cammy disappeared from the bench in the third. Thought maybe Hal Gill gave him a concussion with an "errant" water bottle. But with Cammy gone, and PK being a pest, Habs kind of crept back in ever...so...slightly. They looked like they had more jump than the previous two periods. It turned sour when Gorges accidentally tipped a shot that was going wide in behind Price. He knew it, Price didn't look too happy. And with PK drawing the ire of the Bruins, took two out with him to the penalty box. Who else? Yannick Weber said he thought he was better than some of the guys that were playing and yes, people got annoyed with that comment. In reality, English is not his first language, and I think he meant he believes he could bring more than what he saw from the rafters. I mean, I was watching Chris Campoli and thinking the same thing. How is Campoli a better option than Weber?! At least if Weber turns over the puck you can just chalk it up to a young guy still learning his options. (Noticed Eller and Diaz are getting better at decisions in their own end, even though they still make errors. You live and die with your youth to make them better in the future). And besides, it's the Bruins. I swear Weber has scored 90% of his goals against the Bruins. And all of them are probably on Tim Thomas.

They had another real good chance shorthanded near the end of the game. A few more cases of holding onto the puck too long. PK came out of nowhere and launched it on net, surprising everyone and forcing a save. Bruins got nothing on their powerplays.

Odd that it's the healthy scratched kid who puts his money where his mouth is.


MEANWHILE...
Cammalleri was actually pulled from the game and sent back to the hotel. Not like he was contributing to the game in any way, shape or form. If you didn't watch the game just look at his stat sheet. It was the only one that was blank right across the board. Not even a single turnover.

Probably should have just scratched him altogether.

Frankly I don't care if a guy was pulled mid-game for a trade. I've heard about this type of thing before. But because it's the HABS oh god forbid they work like the rest of the league! I mean, hey, who doesn't mind sending high-priced NHLers to the Minors all because you made a shitty contract or forcing a guy to go work in Europe because you screwed up. That's real class right there eh?


I wanted him to do like Weber: Work. Put the puck in the net. Show us you care for real and not say that you do. Actions speak louder than words, sometimes. Instead we got more floating.


Cammy was traded back to Calgary along with Ramo and a 5th, for Rene Bourque, Patrick Holland (Tri-City), and a 2nd round pick. ALSO: shed a shitload of salary. I have no idea how Calgary will stuff this all under the cap but that's their problem. And I think Jay Feaster is an idiot, but that's just me (hello Lightning). Also note: Cammy had limited no trade clause where he could veto about 7 teams, so when a GM perks up and says "I didn't know he was on the block, I would have traded for him!" I'll say that maybe that GM's team is on his no-go list. We pretty much all knew he wanted his old haunts first, and the rule is trade out of conference first if you can.


If you think they should have waited for the deadline, think again. The great Brian Burke is PRAISED for his school of thought with regards to trading long before the deadline. If it's the Habs, they get bashed. We're told on both sides the deal was being worked out for months now. Bourque's suspensions keep getting in the way (he'll be back Sunday). They're about the same age, but Bourque makes half what Cammy makes, and currently has more goals on a team just as shitty. I don't care about his playoff performance: you have to get there first. (And about that playoff performance, Cammy's sucked before coming here, too).


End of the day, Habs get young (prospect), cheaper, bigger, and get a coveted 2nd round pick.


When the Habs hosted the Flames at their first home game this season, Bourque tweeted "Can't wait for the game tonight at the Bell Center. Love playing in MTL." He scored 2 goals with the same amount of ice time Cammy was bitching about in a 4-1 win for the Flames. And I know how Bourque plays... which sometimes isn't much different from Benoit Pouliot. But let's face it, both guys needed out. Cammy's heart disappeared as well.


Oh and Troy Brouwer says hi.


Quotes on the trade:
"Interesting optics for CGY. They didn't think Cam was worth resigning at 6 mil after getting 39, but now he is worth 6 mil on pace for 18." (Brian Wilde, CTV.)

 "I wasn't concerned with what was going on with Michael at that time. I was too busy trying to stop the puck." (Carey Price after the game)


"On s'en sacre." (Mathieu Darche)

(EDIT) For your information:
And this is why the timing of the trade happened. I do believe a few freaking out "reporters" and snarky bloggers out there owe the Habs a little apology...