He's totally going to stalk us...

Yes, I totally thought of Sneak King (aka Stalker King) when I heard Kovy talking

Oh Kovy, you jest! We know you've got one eye on the puck and one eye on home. But, alas, you couldn't make up your mind on the contract terms and Bob wasn't in a waiting mood that day. In the end, there was no more room for you unless you were willing to take a hometown discount, which is probably what you'll need to realize in two years when you have to find another team. There is, however, enough Kovalove here to welcome you back in said two years time, so don't worry Kovy. We'll keep your number warm.

Do not fret, Sens fans. It's not another drama to add to your Summer of Heatley. And while he may be the prima donna, Kovy's the type of guy who speaks his mind, and he's not about to fly into Bryan's office and demand a trade. He's absolutely brutally honest, something that is rare among players and usually comes across as being an arrogant asshole. But he'll do his job. He'll put up the points as well as one can while trying to work with 4 guys trying to neutralize him every night. It's all part of being Alex Kovalev, International Man of Mystery. Also, like the Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, he'll play regardless of how sick or injured he is. Unless, of course, you got Bob on speedial to give him a call, walk the banks of a river with, or tell him to stay home and clear his mind (or go to the fucking doctor).

"I can still shoot the puck with my nose!"

Of course, if he ends up sad and depressed while distracted and dreaming of what lies an hour away down the highway, I'm sure we can help you out for a draft pick.

Feel the Kovalove!

Wonder if Kovy dekes his agent after seeing this. C'mon Kovy! They're protesting for you!

Pillsbury City: Habs 4 Pens 5

Can you guys stop with the turnovers? Can you guys STOP interfering with Price so he can move to make the save? Can you guys attack the point man instead of letting him shoot rockets at your goalie, doesn't matter who it is, while he's screened and can be deflected easily on? Can Higgins put the puck in the net when it matters instead of having it bobble on the goal line or tip it wide? Can defense actually, you know, defend instead of allowing 3 guys have their way with your goalie? Situations like that are 50/50, it doesn't matter who's in nets. If it's Malkin on the attack, forget it, it's a goal. That's like allowing Ovechkin the free length of the ice. Oh ya! We saw that yesterday.

- Schneider's first goal with the Habs in 13 years. Thank you for that, else the 5-on-3 would have been a total waste like the other powerplays tonight.
- The BelaRocket is on fire again. Two assists and one hell of a goal.
- His linemates were also the best on the ice. SuperPleky with two goals and an assist. Patches with an assist himself but he also did the yeoman's work for the night. I guess if this were Hamilton we'd give him the Flamboro Downs Workhorse mention.
- Play of the day.
- Or this?
- Maybe this.
- What did all those goals have in common? Shoot from the top of the circle: goal.
- Dipsy doodle dangle daisy: no goal, and an odd-man rush the other way. Video man, make them study this.
- Malkin doesn't like being annoyed.
- I guess the two games in a row drained the life out of Koivu...Actually I can say that for a few guys tonight.
- I guess we can thank the NHL schedule makers for injuring Bubbles, because that's what happens when players are pooped. Looks like his knee again.
- Not helping Price out will just piss him off more. HE HATES LOSING and no one is making his life easier. Come on guys, give him some help there. Half the time it was Price vs the Pens and like Therrien, the new coach has Malkin/Crosby out there every minute.
- What the hell did the puck hit on the clearing pass? It hit the glass, bounced up, and then right back down. Of course it gave a goal against.
- Carbo get your whip out. That defense play needs work. As does getting to the puck before the other guy.
- Kooooooooooooooooooooooooooooovyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.

Funny story in the Hamilton Spector on Sergei about him not being there for practice and people going ballistic with speculations that he refused to report when, in fact, he was on his way. It was just late because they were arranging things after their late practice. GM Brisebois said he wanted his car with him so it was taking a bit longer. He's flying in anyway. Guess the porsche comes later.

Scary event: The Albany River Rats (bHurricanes) bus crashed last night on their way back from a game in Lowell, Massachussets (bDevils home). Thankfully no one was killed but four players and a staff member were seriously injured.

Tailor made: Habs 3, Caps 4 (SO)

Here we have two teams that are similar, only one is flying with confidence, the other is taking baby steps to return to form. The fact one point was obtained despite a good solid effort in which they truly deserved the two points is exactly what The Bob ordered. Though without Kovalev to save your arse in a shootout, I'm thinking Carbo should have picked the natural goal scorers instead of the defensive hard working guys. You know, they wear the 67 and 36 and 21 and 46... But that's his choice so he'll have to live with it.

My dad's random fact of the evening: Schneider means "tailor"
- Happy to be back? Why thank you Bob! It's nice to see a solid veteran on the top line that doesn't Breezer his way through a game. One assist, solid ass-saving defense, blocking shots... Makes Chelios proud to see his stolen number is being put to good use. (No offense to Henry).
- It was the 6 000th game for the Habs since 1909. (Included games for the NHA).
- The lineup is weird without Kovy...
- Sergei too... (Gonna pay attention to Friday's game against the Marlies and see how he is).
- Stewart is a gem.
- Ovechkin is so much fun to watch. Giving Price credit for the crazy catch early on in the game. Flying over for a weird goal. Then near the end of overtime, absolutely steaming mad when Pleky stole the puck from him.
- Ha... well, he's a defensive forward but the Canadiens news recaps called Chipper a defenseman when he tried to cover for Hammer's super error on Ovie on the crazy goal.
- Speaking of Price, told you there was nothing to worry about. That last goal would have been a miracle save if he had gotten it, and it was really close to being a high stick.
- Powerplay was 3-for-4, while 5-on-5 was back to fanning and shooting wide, but they had good chances either way. PK was good, as the Caps were 1-for-3.
- Holy Markov might have turned over the puck a la Vodkov during the weaker powerplay, but he picked up 3 assists on the others!
- And no goal(s) for Mike Green.
- TK IS WEARING KOVY'S A!!!
- But good work for TK. He fell and still held on to the puck in the neutral zone while the Caps where gunning for offense. Too bad he's got hands of clay...
- Work on faceoffs ok please thanks. Fruit Punch once again takes the highest percentage on the team at 63% (5-8). Lowest was Pleky at 47% (8-17).
- My only annoyance was that Ovie tried twice to take Price's head off with the puck. Meanie!
- I hope Kovy was watching.

Conclusion: Good solid effort as seen by all. As they gain more confidence, we'll see the speed coming back, because right now they're overly concerned with causing any errors. And tomorrow, another team that's like ours, and in a similar fuck as well. We say hello to Pittsburgh and see how their new coach can change them. For the record, I was absolutely flabbergasted that Therrien got a contract extension way too early, especially since watching his Pens was like watching his old Habs, only he didn't have the two top players in the league up here... My brother is also one who believes they reached those Cup finals because of who was on the ice, not who was behind the bench. Then again, other than those two players, he doesn't have much to work with. (Kind of like his old Habs).

At work I'm in project limbo, so I'm currently milling through some downtime. Using it to get my creative juices back, as they can get really stale when you do the kind of work I have to do (it's all part of the job). I've got a large "sheet" opened in my photoshop and I'm just making random heads. Here's my Kovyhead that I made this morning.