Habulous!

No Panic Buttons

2011-10-16T01:29:00.001-04:00

A panic button is useful. If you're a security guard and someone dangerous comes by, you hit one. The police or someone with more power shows up to give you a hand. When there's a problem in that whirlpool in your building, you hit the panic button and the conceirge will come help you. So these buttons are signals for help. What does this have to do with the Habs?

Well, they are no 'panic buttons' for the Habs. You can't get help from the outside. Sure, you could give up draft picks or prospects and ruin your future. Spending to the cap does this to you. Was it bad luck that Campoli got injured at the ACC? Absolutely. And that Brett Burns concealed info about his health problems? Probably. And that we overhauled our D with the expectation that Markov would be back in time for the season? Umm...no.

Fact is the team has changed too much. The roster last year was quite similar to the one that made the 2010 playoff run--the only big differences being the goalies and Jeff Halpern. Wiz coming along helped a bit and made up for Gorges. Last year's team was better than the 2010 team in the regular season as well. But this year's team is radically different. Emelin and Diaz on defence. Weber keeps switching positions. Budaj. WHY BUDAJ?! I know I was a bit excited for an NHL starter to be joining us but judging from the preseason the team cannot play infront of him. Carey is going to get a ton of starts. And when he's doing not as well as he was tonight, he's probably not going to get subbed out because we can't even trust our back up. What was so wrong with Auld? He was a supportive veteran who didn't suck.

The biggest point of concern apart from 3 injured players in 2 games and our not so great record is chemistry. The problems in 'clicking' have made the situation in Montreal even more confusing. Erik Cole didn't click with Pleky and Cammelleri. So coach Martin is juggling around and trying his best to make it work. After yesterday's 6-5 SO loss to the Avs, it was obvious that the team can score (just not in the shootout). We don't normally score 5, but including the last preason game we've had 3 five-goal games in 5 games. So we can score. But we can't defend. Not like we could before.

The solution lies in getting back injured players. They are the only solutions coming our way.

Random Habs Thing of the Day [02.07.11]

2011-07-02T16:21:00.002-04:00

Hope you all had a wonderful Canada Day.

Here's your random Habs thing of the day...

Habs socks

Yes, because we all need them. Our feet must also show Habs love.

Free agent frenzy brought in Peter Budaj and Erik Cole. Actually, the image above was on the Canadiens website when I went to read an article about Budaj.

I'll miss big, bald Alex Auld. I wish we could've resigned him for a year for $1 million like last year. But I guess Mr. Gauthier didn't trust him enough. Budaj, while he's had some bad numbers, will hopefully do better in Montreal. Apparently Colorado did not have a full time goalie coach. Also, their defence was probably unlike Montreal's. Really, with Coach Martin we're probably one of the most defensive teams out there. But that's a result of not having much offense. And it really is necessary with our dismal goals for numbers.

As for Cole...we overpaid and the term's longer than I would have hoped. And he has a NTC. Two years from now we'll regret this signing and we won't be able to move him. Unless his production drops off this year, in which case the regretting will begin earlier. But I have hope. If this guy can fit into our system, keep his production up, play physically, and not screw up then this will be our best signing of the year. We're giving Markov $5.75 million/year so this isn't that bad in comparison. And thanks must go out to the Captain for recruiting him.

Now we must wait for Josh Gorges, Ryan White, an assistant coach and maybe one more guy who can help us with Lars Eller still on the mend.

Only 96 days until the regular season starts!

Go Habs go!

Random Habs Thing of the Day [16.06.11]

2011-06-16T03:04:00.000-04:00

Hunting around the net I came across this:

(CNW Group/Boiron Canada Inc.)

That's Graham Rynbend, head athletic therapist for our Canadiens. I'm sure he was busy this year with all those Habs injuries, so he gets to be in an ad. He's promoting Arnicare Gel from Boiron. Read more about it here. I'll be honest: In my short time as a fan I've never seen anyone but athletes in ads related to the NHL. But this ad makes sense. Translation:

muscle pain
delayed onset muscle soreness
bumps and bruises

"For my players I want the best...naturally!"

And a tidbit of info for the upcoming draft: The Habs have flown in Ty Rattie, ranked number 17 by Central Scouting, for a tour and interview. Montreal is going to be picking 17th, so this makes sense. I don't know why in the world Toronto brought him in. They'll be picking 25th in the first round. :)

Until the day after awards night, where we find out Carey Price was fourth on the list for the Vézina...

Funny Video with Carey Price

2011-04-30T21:49:00.000-04:00

Ok, not the real Carey Price.

Jacob Markstrom of the Florida Panthers has some fun with Carey Price and Marty Brodeur dolls.

I'd like to see this exchange occur in person. Maybe for a commercial?

XD

You can also see two P.K. Subban commercials here and here (if you haven't already).

Thank you Habs

2011-04-29T22:40:00.001-04:00

This was the year of the triple low five.

And what a year it was.

The 101st season of the Habs involved ups and downs quite similar to and yet unlike any other before.

Once more we lost our best D to injury. And that would have been tolerable were it not for the fact that we lost our second best D to an injury he'd been hanging onto for 7 years. Josh why in the world would you not get that fixed?! Ah, but I don't blame him. Poor guy's a rock for us and I know he plays with heart. See this if you haven't already to see what I'm talkin' about.

I love the "Nos Canadiens" series. Seriously. I haven't watched a lot of episodes (gotta save something for the long offseason) but I loved what I've seen. I hope next year we can get more stuff, like the Oilers got "Oil Change" or the Pens & Caps with the "24/7" series. Good stuff.

About this season...we improved from last year. New additions to the team really helped out, especially Jeff Halpern in the faceoff circle. But we're still severely lacking. How does a team go from an 8-1 blowout to being shut out in three consecutive games? Seriously? With the Habs futility in February I knew we wouldn't bring home the hardware this year but by that point I was wondering if we'd make the playoffs. Thank goodness for the strong start in October and November.

Though the team struggled, nothing was as frustrating, probably, as that road trip in December. Why does the NHL have this every year? It's like their sadists or something. Really. No one in Montreal or Eastern Canada in general can see the Habs during the holidays. Unless you go to Long Island if you're up for that long road trip. Is this fair to the most passionate fans who continuously fill the largest arena in the NHL? Hell no. Don't talk to me about snow birds in Florida. You can have two road games there and come back here for the other 5 or so games. But a road trip that takes you out west as well is just crazy.

Then there's that Pacioretty-Chara incident. Everyone was bothered by that. I greatly respect Henrik Sedin, Tanner Glass, and Joe Thornton for speaking out against Chara. A team with an injured player like Marc Savard should not go around hurting people like that. Accidentally or otherwise. And Dr. Recchi should know better. I'm tired of hearing jokes about people calling 911. So, were the people in Vancouver who called the cops when Bertuzzi went wild also idiots who shouldn't have called the cops? If I were in the arena I would have been crying for Patches really looked like he had died. His good luck saved him from getting a displaced fracture or Chara would be facing murder charges. Stop acting like it was a hockey play. Hockey plays do not get penalties and game misconducts. If a penalized action on the ice is a hockey play then I say the NHL has gone to the dogs.

The team wasn't the same after that. I mean, not just the loss to St. Louis. I wonder if some people were disappointed with that game, since it was the big Halak vs. Price game. Halak even came back from a hand injury. But really, Patches' injury overshadowed everything. We went on to having a pattern of wins and losses up until the blowout in Minnesota after which we imploded. The win against NJ and the subsequent playoff berth clinching OT winner vs. Chicago righted the ship a bit. But we were never able to challenge for 5th or even 3rd. And the gap between us and the Rangers grew dangerously small. It's sad for the Rangers that Chara broke one of their most important players' leg or else they would have had a better end to their season. And of course, we never won five games in a row again. Our best win streak of the season and our best point getter in 2011 were done after that game. Gotta say thanks to those fans from Long Island and even Toronto and everywhere else that booed Chara afterwards. A screenie of the standings on March 9.

And I got to see that wonderful game 82 in Toronto! It had two near hat tricks with Gio getting 2 goals and Ryan White getting a goal and a fight (both in the first period no less) for 2/3 of the Gordie Howe hat trick. It was a beautiful game and had a very festive atmosphere because it was Fanapalooza. Some Leafs great were in attendance as well. I was a bit relaxed, not having to worry about qualifying. I never want to go to a game in which we are worried about qualifying. Loved seeing the captain score, and I've become quite a White fan after the Savage Garden thing so I was delighted that he's the first Hab I got to see score in person. ;) And Turtle Pleks finished off the scoring. One guy who couldn't buy a goal that whole night was Mike Cammalleri. He was trying real hard, I think he had friends and family in attendance. But it just did not work out. While the no goal call was quite surprising (I saw the puck cross the line) the crowd was full of Habs fans. We even started the ole chant a few times! And some guy proposed to his girlfriend during the 2nd intermission. I swear, the game had everything (except hat tricks, a shut out, a penalty goal, and OT/shoot out--so most everything). It's great that it was a Habs win and the buddy I went with (an exchange student from Scotland) got to see it all. Especially the triple low five! <3

Habby is also celebrating White's goal in the arena up there on the opposite side.

Never have I felt hate for the NHL until this season. Not only did the league show its incompetence in dealing with serious offences (still waiting for Crosby's concussion causers to get something), they made me realize just how powerless I am as a fan. The latest incidents that reminded me were the finger that Ferrence gave all Habs fans around the world. If that was the Wiz, I'm sure he would have gotten at least a game. What does he get instead? A fine that people in Boston are willing to chip in to pay. As Mike Richards would say, this kid's got no respect. And the hits in games 6 and 7. Another turnbuckle/stanchion incident involving a Bruin hitting a Hab. And a shoulder to the head that even Logan Couture thought was intentional. Jumbo Joe was onto something, eh? I don't know if the Flyers will beat the Bruins. I'll just say this: I hate the Flyers for breaking my heart twice but at least they've never tried to kill one of our players before (as far as I know...might be something in history) so I hope they can teach these classless "hockey players" all about respect.

And I hate the fact that we keep getting eliminated by the Ruins and Flyers every year. Ugh. Can someone else eliminate these guys for us?

We need more offense. Game 5 of this series proved for the millionth time that while Carey can stand on his head and keep it a one goal game, WE NEED PEOPLE TO SCORE. I thought after last year's terrible showing against the Flyers with us getting shut out so often there would be some changes. I'm going to say that even if there were, they did not help.

Gomez...I don't need to elaborate. But man, this guy is a rock for the wrong reasons. He's the rock sinking our salary cap ship. Bad analogy, but this guy needs to get it together. We need more from the guys we have because our roster's core won't change. We don't have the money or trade power to move the highest paid players.

I wonder if we hurt ourselves by going for 6th place. Would we have had a better time against Philly with their goalie problems and without Pronger? Can't help but wonder if winning that kinda useless game 82 might have actually hurt us.

I'd like to see P.K. Subban signed to a contract extension if he can keep up his numbers next year. Same for Carey, except I'd like to talk after the playoffs. He wasn't bad, but we need to see if he can keep it up.

Lars Eller is one tough man. Popping in your dislocated shoulder and continuing to play...sheesh. Hope our guys get some rest and rehab in the months to come.

Price not getting nominated for the Vezina despite Brodeur's support: terrible. Rinne and the Ruins goalie who falls a lot are understandable. Luongo? Meh. I like him as Canada's goalie and all, but in no way was he better behind his stacked team than Price was. Oh well. I still hope it's Luongo or Rinne over that other guy.

This was my Stanley Cup moment of the season:

I can only imagine what the real celebration would be like. :D

The 10-11' season is over. Nothing more can be done about what's happened. Take this summer to regroup and tweak and make the Habs a contender once more Monsieur Gauthier.

Go get 'em next season guys.

GO HABS GO!

Image credits: triple low five, White's goal celebration, "And I buried him"

This a postseason and offseason blog

2011-03-20T00:17:00.001-04:00

As a uni student I am unfortunately too busy to keep this blog going through the year. But I hope you'll join me in Habs ~~stalking~~ loving in the time after the regular season.

I do promise to scan that Elle magazine...eventually. Expect something by the end of April.

So what's new?

I'll be attending my first Habs game at the ACC at the season ender (is that a word?). I'm in the nosebleeds but these tickets are already $100 over face value so I can't spend more money. The life of a uni student! (One who was foolish not to get tix earlier... *headdesk*)

Jose Theodore will play Alex Auld tomorrow. In 2005 I would be wildly cheering for Jose. But times change...

I noticed in Toronto that people were sympathetic toward Pacioretty and thought that Chara should get some discipline. I was surprised because I thought everyone hated the Habs but I guess it's to be expected. No one wants one of their players getting steamrolled into a stanchion.

And would you belive my luck. The day the Habs play the Bruins I have a test scheduled 8-9 p.m. (ET). Normally this test should have been in class, which runs 5-7 p.m.. But the prof didn't want to lose class time. I now not only have a 12 hour day at uni (got a lab that starts at 9 a.m.) but by the time I get home (to the neighbouring town) the game will be over. Even if they go to shootout. Ridiculous! Grr. Well, thank goodness for internet on phones and the fact that TSN will be replaying the game at 2 a.m. :) Though the Habs will probably lose, be booed excessively, and lose more people to injuries after being targeted by the Bruins goonery all night. Whey even play the game? But I hope the team wears some sort of armbands or something for Patches. The best would be Pacioretty jerseys in practice. That'd give the Bruins a nice surprise.

Much respect to Geoff Molson for his letter. I was so very happy to read it. Showed us in polite words that the organization, despite what Pierre Gauthier said, did care about the non-suspension and supported the fans' outrage.

I love the series "Your Canadiens". Watched Plekanec and Cammalleri's episodes and enjoyed it thoroughly. Especially Pleky's girlfriend. The two of them seemed so nice and were adopting a nice cat named Arthur from a shelter. This guy could be a captain, seriously. I think Gio got the nod because he's got a Cup. And the fact that Pleky is kinda quiet. (´･ω･`)

Hope you're all doing well and are happy and healthy. Much better than our Habs at least. Though I'll give 'em credit for staying in it despite the ugly 6 goals on Friday. If Pittsburgh's loss of Crosby and Malkin were big, our 9 guys out right now are probably equivalent to their two superstars. And at least with Sidney, they have hope that he'll return. Markov and Gorges? Gone 'til September.

All I can say is...

GO HABS GO!

101 Habulous Seasons

2010-12-04T00:39:00.002-05:00

Habby birthday to the Habs! Last year I missed the Centennial celebrations because of a term test on December 3 (I was behind in everything as a result of that test and played catch up until the 8th or 9th). This year, I'll watch on CBC. Go kick some Shark butt this afternoon to party in style.

Also, congrats to Carey Price for being named 2nd star for the month of November.

A reminder to vote for our guys for the 2011 All Star Game. Most guys say they don't care, but it does give them a confidence boost and deep down I think they do care. Here is some evidence from Carey Price. So keep the ~~ballot box stuffing~~ votes coming!

Go Habs go!

Watch the Habs Online!

2010-11-05T23:19:00.001-04:00

That's right! You too can watch the Habs, with or without RDS. Check out this site: Habs Online TV. I haven't ever used it, but I'll check it out soon. I don't think there should be anything wrong with it as Boris420 seems like a dedicated fan who posts links (yes, more than one!) for every game. What a great fan!

Congrats to our Habs for winning in Buffalo tonight. I hope they don't show signs of tiredness tomorrow night. Boston is always ready to be in the top 3, Philadelphia is *restrains anger* skilled at winning, and Tampa Bay is just unstoppable. But seriously, if letting go of Guy Boucher meant that Kirk Muller has a chance at being coach, I'll take it. Also, who says this guy can't come back to us one day? Gauthier let him go so he could develop his career (at least, that's what was said to the media). So be it. We can use an experienced coach in the future. If TB wins a cup in the time that he's there, I might be less tolerant but we'll see what happens.

The drive for 25 is alive!

Have a Habulous Halloween!

2010-10-31T17:35:00.004-04:00

First off, habby birthday to Tomas Plekanec! Hard to believe he's only 28 today. I like how he shares his birthday with Newsy Lalonde. =) Too bad we couldn't get a win to celebrate it yesterday. On Tuesday, make it happen guys!

And these videos. I wonder when they film them? During training camp? Kinda sad to see the old ones with guys that got traded. First up, for this year's Halloween the Habs talk about their worst costumes. The Pens did this, with pictures and all. I would've like to see Plekanec's hot dog and Spacek's Teletubby outfit. XD Wonder if Pleky was advertising something. And thinking about it, Spacek must've done this as an adult since the Teletubbies first came to TV in 1997 and Spacek was 23 at the time. @_@

Update: (The link does not work. Their embed code is for the wrong video. ;_; You can see it on the official site.)

I also really loved this edition of Journal d'un Canadien back from the first season I became a fan. Kovalev's hair is hilarious! And Captain Koivu was such a good sport.

And this video really made me happy. I wanted to know if they'd learned how to spell his name. I learned the spelling after watching the first one. You'd think they would too!

Finally, I managed to get that ELLE magazine! I will post scans (with translations) once I get some time. I dislike scanning, so don't expect them soon. I went to Maison de la Presse at 99 Yorkville Avenue in Toronto. If you're in town, you could try checking there, they might still have it. They've got a lot of French literature, everything from French manga to French travel guides. The prices...well, I don't know. I prefer the prices of my university's bookstore for things like dictionnaires and stuff.

Ok, enough randomness. Stay warm folks!

Shots on Net [01.10.10]

2010-10-01T15:03:00.003-04:00

Congrats to Captain Brian Gionta! He was my choice. I hope he'll be able to lead the team to much success. Check out the cool trailer/video if you haven't already. I love the pictures of the previous captains. Great to see some of the guys who never made it on TV but fought so hard for the Habs. The NHL also has a nice article with a list of past captains.

Happy birthday to Coach Jacques Martin! I did not know he's from Ontario. I approve of the birthday wishing thing the Canadiens have going on. Sometimes on your birthday the only thing you want is for someone to remember and wish you. <Canadiens>

Markov, Gionta, Gill, Cammalleri, and Lapierre will be on the cover of ELLE Quebec. The guys look great! I'd love to get a copy. Alas, I have no time to search around Toronto for this. If I do get it, I'll scan pages from the shoot for you all. One thing to note: Pleky and Gomez weren't in this. What happened there? <Canadiens>

If you're in Toronto on October 7, check out NHL Face-Off at Dundas Square. Activities start around noon, and go until the Habs vs. Leafs game ends. Come on down to watch the game on the big screens and show off your skills to win prizes. I'll be there in a Habs shirt. (No jersey for me because I've got a lab in the morning and I do not want to ruin such a beautiful sweater with chemicals.) I'm advertising because I don't want to be the only Habs fan there! (The friend I'm going with is not a hockey fan. T.T) <NHL.com>

Check out the links portion for more info on the Habs.

Update from the bottom of the sea

2010-09-18T05:08:00.001-04:00

I think one of the worst things that can happen to a blogger is computer problems, which is what I was bogged down with. My computer was gone for repairs until yesterday. I hope it's ok now.

In the time I was gone Carey Price signed a contract with cap hit that was awarded to the Stanley Cup winning Antti Niemi in arbitration. I knew we'd overpay him. No, I don't think he's deserving. But he's our number 1 goalie, so might as well keep him happy.

The golf tournament took place on Thursday and poor Brian Gionta. Everyone's attention's on him now. The news made headlines in Toronto's daily newscasts as well (the only reason I was able to follow).

Then we got the start of training camp. The guys look good. Hopefully we can win something.

Preseason starts on the 22nd at home against Boston at 7.30. Let's drop the puck.

A little thing I noted: what's up with chemistry? Would the Habs really pass Chemistry 101? As someone taking 3rd year chemistry courses, I'd like to see how the Habs stack up. Maybe Mike Cammalleri already has some chemistry knowledge...

Now time for a ~~lame~~ joke. Thought up while reviewing the structure of the amino acid lysine, which has a lot of CH₂ groups

Question: What is every organic chemist's favourite hockey team?
Answer: The Canadiens. They're the CH!

(Mini explanation for non-chemistry people: organic chemistry deals with the chemistry of carbon and hydrogen containing compounds. The elemental symbols of carbon and hydrogen are 'C' and 'H' respectively.)

~~Lame, yes?~~

GO HABS GO!!

ps. Expect posts to be few and far in between as university has started in full swing with a tough courseload ahead of me until December. Can't wait for 2011!

Happy Birthday Carey!

2010-08-16T22:29:00.000-04:00

The 23 year old got a nice page from the Habs as well. I'm not feeling very enthusiastic, but I hope you enjoyed your day.

Happy Birthday Josh Gorges!

2010-08-14T17:57:00.002-04:00

Happy 26th birthday to our big defenceman!

An interesting thing to note is that the Canadiens actually wished him on their website. This, for me, is a sign that he may become our next captain. No one else got wished on their site this entire summer. (Cammalleri was wished on Twitter, but didn't get a nice page and stuff.) Sidney Crosby did not even get wished on his birthday by the Pens (they've wished him in the past). If Carey gets wished on Monday then I might rethink this (and laugh).

Two quick things: they mentioned Pakistan on their site! (I'm from there originally.) And of course, it's 'Habby Birthday'. ♥

Hope you enjoy your day Josh!

Shots on Net [12.08.10]

2010-08-12T23:35:00.007-04:00

Brief this time because Carey hasn't signed. (I'm joking! It's because of summer.) Since I ~~complain~~ talk about him so much, I found some news on him.

Carey Price was at the Chilliwack Exhibition last weekend, participating in the Team Roping competition in the Rodeo. What a cowboy. I'm pretty sure he's the guy in the first picture in the slideshow below, and also at the 1:07 mark. Or am I seeing things? Price seems to be into this thing as he won $300.30 with a buddy doing some team roping at the BCRA rodeo between July 31-August 1. I wonder if he was in it for the cash? For the sake of journalism, I decided to check out the BCRA website and as you can see for yourself, Carey's really into these things as his name pops up twice on overall standing lists. He's made some decent money, but we need to get him to a rink. <Chilliwack Times>

Dustin Boyd was happy to go and skate at Brossard. Get a look at one of our newest players. The video editing will make you realize just how much time everyone has on their hands. <Canadiens>

Jarred Tinordi is joining the London Knights. It pleases me to know that our prospects are choosing junior hockey over university. Maybe I'll even go watch him play. <London Knights, via HI/O>

Also from HI/O, this nice article about Cammalleri in which he discusses leaving Calgary and becoming a Canadien. It's good to know he cares so much about the fans and can understand their emotions. Hope you like your time with us, Mike. <The Montreal Gazette>

In case you've been gone on vacation and want to catch up: an off-season report on the Canadiens' activities. <The Fourth Period>

---

I haven't warned you, but I will now. I'm a huge Jose Theodore fan. If it wasn't for him, I would have never become a Habs fan. So I'd like to poke you to go watch this slideshow over at Bleacher Report. Man, I'd love to have him back in net for us. Him in net, and Crosby up front. Maybe one day in the future...

Update: Maxime Lapierre had a golf tournament to fundraise for the Montreal Canadiens Children's Foundation. You can find interviews with Max and P.K. Subban linked. Also, there is a link to an interview Cammalleri gave which was probably used in the article from The Gazette mentioned above. <Ya! The Habs Rule>

Hamilton Bulldogs 2010 Hockey Camp

2010-08-10T17:01:00.000-04:00

This week long camp took place at the end of July. Get more info from the Bulldogs' website. This video was posted online (with no embedding options) and featured P.K. Subban, Mathieu Darche, Randy Cunneyworth, Randy Ladouceur, and Bulldogs player David Urquhart.

Good to see our guys on ice with some cute kids.

Shots on Net [09.08.10]

2010-08-09T23:56:00.004-04:00

Because some news piled up.

Dustin Boyd will be wearing number 17 with the Habs next season. Catch him in a nice new jersey in a pic snapped by @CandiensMTL. <Canadiens>

Michael Cammalleri's back at his university and has been training there. Follow him on Twitter for more updates. <@MCammalleri13>

This past Saturday Yvon Lambert was at 2010 Tonik Tournament, hosted by Bruno Gervais and Max Talbot. Click the link for a nice pic of Monsieur Lambert. <25 Stanley>

Guy Lafleur is having a golf tournament tomorrow and there will be a silent auction as well. I can't find any info about this other than this tweet, so good luck searching. <@ALCCINC>

Speaking of golf tournaments, Mr. Lafleur will also be at two more. On August 18, he will be the president of honour at the 15^th edition of the Desjardins Securities Leucan Estrie Golf Tournament. On August 26, he'll be the chairperson at the 16^th annual Hector "Toe" Blake Golf Tournament. The Canadiens are one of the sponsors of this tournament. Be sure to check out the gallery for some great photos.

Finally, a strange thing I ran across while reading about a fishing trip the NY Islanders training camp attendees took. It's Mark Sterit in a Habs uniform! Anything with a Habs logo is bound to catch my eye. I liked seeing it. The Habs would probably never do this with their players, as no doubt comparisons (to the past level of play) will be drawn up. He's another one of those guys who was around when I first became a fan. Credit to the Islanders, of course.

---

In the last SoN what I wanted to write was that we should make signs that say 'Owners of 8th place'. Or maybe '8th place or better'. Really, could we aim to do any better guys? I know it's tough, but you were the best once (2008, you anomalous year) so can we make it happen again? We're banning injuries, inconsistent play (to be consistently good, not bad), and bad luck charms. Let's get elusive number 25!

Birthdays of Habs Players

2010-08-09T21:20:00.002-04:00

That's right. It's a list of Habs players' birthdays, by month and date (with year listed on the side so you can calculate yourself). Why? Because I'm booooored. And it's August 9 and it's summer and Carey Price will most likely turn 23 before he signs a contract. And a list is good to have so you can wish them on Twitter/FB/your blog. So let's go!

January
7--Alex Auld (1981)
18--Brain Gionta (1979)

February
3--Andrei Kostitsyn (1985)
11--Jaroslav Spacek (1974)
14---Tom Pyatt (1987)

March
29--Maxim Lapierre (1985)
30--Ben Maxwell (1988)

April
6--Hall Gill (1975), Travis Moen (1982)
12--Roman Hamrlik (1974)

May
3--Jeff Halpern (1976)
8--Lars Eller (1989)
13--P.K. Subban (1989)

June
8--Michael Cammalleri (1982)

July
5--Alexandre Picard (1985)
16--Dustin Boyd (1986)
19--Ryan O'Byrne (1984)

August
14--Josh Gorges (1984)
16--Carey Price (1987)

September
29--Benoit Pouliot (1986)

October
31--Tomas Plekanec (1982)

November
26--Mathieu Darche (1976)

December
20--Andrei Markov (1978)
23--Scott Gomez (1979)

Notes:

We've got each month represented! February and April are tied for months with the most Habs babies. Spacek's the oldest, beating Hamrlik by two months and a day. Subban's the youngest. He also signed a three-year contract on his 20th birthday (link's in French). Wonder if he waited for that day especially? Hall Gill and Travis Moen should celebrate together, but they're probably more concerned with making the playoffs than getting older at that time of the year. Also, Plekanec (whose birthday is closest to my own) should be the happiest. Free candy for all on his birthday. =)

Sorry to Dustin Boyd and Ryan O'Byrne whose birthdays I missed. Happy belated birthday to you both!

Let's have a year full of habbines and joy.

ETA Eller, Halpern, and Picard on 10/10/31.

Shots on Net [06.08.10]

2010-08-06T23:59:00.004-04:00

Short this time as well as summer drags on.

Alex Auld is wearing number 35. The only thing is, will he be sad if Carey Price doesn't sign? Seeing what Gained did last year, I don't think anyone would wear 31 for a year in that case. <Canadiens>

Louis Leblanc scored two goals in the Red vs. White game at the National Junior Team development camp in Newfoundland today. There was also a story on TSN that spoke about how difficult his decision to join the Q was. Important to note that the second goal he scored put his team ahead. The period after that they built up the lead that the Red team could not overcome. Also, that spearing incident is kinda funny. <Hockey Canada, kudos to tweeps>

Carey Price is at the top of NHL.com's list of 'Top RFA's still waiting'. At least they're willing to admit they want a big story. <NHL>

The NHL's looking for a title sponsor for the Heritage Classic. It's all about money. <NY Sports Journalism>

Glen Metropolit is a nice guy. Reading this made me sad. And having to move so many times! I've moved a few times and I complained. I have no right to after reading this. Good luck in Switzerland, former Canadien. <The Montreal Gazette, through HI/O>

Former Hab Chris Chelios has retired. He won the Cup with us in '86. <ESPN>

Doug Jarvis, former assistant coach of the Canadiens, has become the assistant coach of the Bruins. He rejoins Claude Julien, the first Canadiens coach I knew. As a player he didn't get a lot of injuries because that is one great record to hold. Kinda like the perfect attendance award. (LOL Couldn't help it.) <NHL>

Finally, a sad story. Isabel Robitaille, described as an "avid Montreal Canadiens fan" was murdered Wednesday evening. Rest in peace Ms Robitaille. <MyKwartha.com>

---

I had thought of something to put here, but it's slipped my mind. T_T

Update: The Bulldogs will be playing the 9^th Annual Molson Canadian Hamilton Bulldogs Charity Golf Classic to benefit the Bulldogs Foundation on Wednesday, October 6 at Piper's Heath Golf Club. <Hamilton Bulldogs, from @dogsplaybyplay>

Shots on Net [04.08.10]

2010-08-04T18:58:00.001-04:00

A brief post today.

The Heritage Classic press conference ended about an hour ago. There are quite a few video clips from the event on NHL.com if you missed the conference. The Canadiens have a page dedicated to the Classic, including jersey info. Looks good. You can read the article as well. <Canadiens>

Here's Josh Gorges being interviewed by NHL Network.

News from the Rochester American's fundraiser that Brian Gionta was a part of. Randy Cunneyworth, seen here, was also present. You can see Gionta here. <Rochester Americans>

---

Will update if necessary.

Shots on Net [03.08.10]

2010-08-03T19:14:00.007-04:00

Not much news about the current team.

Jacques Martin was interviewed by RDS. There's a video and an article, both in French. He talks about his hockey school, the next capitain, and Carey Price among other things. The golf tournament will be on September 16, and training camp will start on the 17th. <RDS>

Alexandre Picard got a $600,000, one-year deal and Louis Leblanc got a 3.6 million dollar deal over 3 years. These salaries kill me as I load myself with debt trying to get an undergraduate education. <Cap Geek>

Former Hab Ryan Walter has ended his tenure as Assistant Coach of the Vancouver Canucks. He won the Cup with us in 1986. <Ryan Walter's official site, first seen at BC Local News>

Georges Laraque has retired from hockey due to back problems and Glen Metropolit is heading to EV Zug in Switzerland for two years. <The Montreal Gazette>

This is a story about a guy you probably don't remember, but I do. Yann Danis debuted in the NHL the first season I became a fan, and recorded a shutout. Being a huge Jose Theodore fan, I was jealous. Though reading his story after all these years, I feel for him. Where would we be if we gave him a chance? He's almost in China for crying out loud! If someone could give him a chance, I'm sure he'd be grateful. His GAA and save percentage aren't terrible. <CKAC (FR)>

Stéphane Richer was at an autograph session in Carbonear, Newfoundland on June 29. You can check out a picture of him with a big Habs fan. <The Compass>

For lulz and because we love The Flower, here's a link to his disco album from 1979. <Disco Delivery, from The Pensblog from Puck Daddy>

Be sure to check out NHL.com on August 17 for their evaluation of the Habs' offseason activities. They're going in alphabetical order by city name, so we're sandwiched between Minnesota and Nashville. <NHL>

---

Would Carey sign already? Or are we going with Niemi? (I joke. But wouldn't that be a story if he did? We got rid of our playoff goalie, only to take the Stanley Cup winning goalie. Might be considered an improvement...)

Updates:

You can watch a live stream of the Heritage Classic news conference tomorrow at 3 pm MT (5 pm ET). We suspected this would happen on August 4, thanks to those photo galleries from the future! Now, why aren't the Habs also streaming this? Josh Gorges and Ray Lalonde will be in attendance for the Habs. Steve Staios, Curtis Glencross, and Cory Sarich will be the players there for the Flames. You can find what appears to be a press release here. Kevin Weekes of HNIC and NHL Network will be the MC according to a tweet he made today. <Calgary Flames, hat tip to @JeremyBouch_Eh>

Jacques Demers survived a nearly fatal mistake during his surgery. If you easily get queasy, do not read this. <CTV Montreal, first seen on Twitter>

Shots on Net [31.07.10]

2010-07-31T23:59:00.005-04:00

July is ending and Carey's unsigned. But more people are getting signed so I guess we're not idle. Our cap space has shrunk some more.

Alexandre Picard has signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Habs. He's 6'3", from Quebec, and has played for the Flyers. I hope we can beat those oranges with him on our team. RDS has few quotes from him in French. <Canadiens>

Bulldogs captain Alex Henry was signed by the Canadiens yesterday to a two-year, two-way deal. <Canadiens>

NHL Alumni is honouring Guy Lafleur and Dick Irvin at their 8th annual NHL Alumni Awards Gala Dinner. The Flower is being honoured as the NHL Alumni Man of the Year "for his tremendous skills on the ice and involve[ment] with so many charities and communities off the ice." Dick Irvin is receiving the Keith McCreary 7th Man Award, which is awarded to someone "who has contributed behind the scenes for a significant period of time." I guess it's a posthumous award, unless it's being awarded to Dick Irvin Jr.? This missed my radar so apologies. Congrats to both! Wish I could attend (it's close to me!), but the tickets are out of my price range. <NHL Alumni>

Michael Cammalleri might be interested in participating in Battle of the Blades. Old news, but since the blog wasn't around back then, here it is. This would be hilarious to see. But he'd get a ton of votes from Habs fans. <CBC Sports>

Make sure to show your Habs support by getting a spiffy Habs wallpaper. August's calendar featuring P.K. Subban is up. <Canadiens>

A Louis Leblanc photo gallery.<Hockey Photography>

Former Hab Russ Courtnall has been added to the line up of Battle of the Blades Season 2. He was apparently a fast skater so it should be interesting to see him back on the ice. I'm looking forward to seeing posters all over the TTC again this fall. <Battle of the Blades Blog, first seen on Twitter @kathleenlavoie>

Dominic Moore signed a two-year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning yesterday. Stevie Y is showing a strange interest in our Habs. Was it perhaps that he once wanted to play for us?! Anyway, we might as well rename his team Habs Stolen Goods. <TB Lightning>

Georges Laraque has been named the deputy leader of the Green Party. Ken Dryden will probably remain the most successful Canadiens politician. <TSN>

A Habs fan takes his love for the Habs to the top of Mt. Lady MacDonald. This team has great fans. <@mainertoo>

---

I'm waiting for TSN to blow up with Carey Price contract signing news. It shall be fun.

ETA: More news.

Thank you, Louis Leblanc

2010-07-30T22:00:00.000-04:00

A quick post to say that RDS is reporting that Louis Leblanc has signed a three-year contract with the Canadiens, and will be playing for the Montréal Junior Hockey Club. It must have been hard to turn his back on Harvard, but I feel you made the right decision. The announcement is on the Canadiens website, and CapGeek has nothing so we don't know the money involved. Perhaps we could expect to see him in a Bulldogs uniform soon.

Shots on Net [29.07.10]

2010-07-29T04:49:00.004-04:00

An early post. Will update if necessary.

From the canadiens.com homepage

What is the Canadiens' management trying to tell us? I'm sorry but I've got to laugh. Thanks for realizing we hate his contract. But seriously, this story is like ten years late. Ok, more like a month but still. Nice to hear about how players got their numbers. <Canadiens>

Mike Cammalleri doing a photo shoot for CANADIENS magazine. A golf club?! The golf love continues. Shot at Brossard. <@CanadiensMTL>

There are six new faces with the Canadiens staff. Pierre Allard's arrival was announced previously. Hopefully these new scouts net us some good players. <Canadiens>

As seen at Habs Inside/Out, Brock Trotter has left for the KHL's Dinamo Riga. <ESPOIRS>

If you haven't heard already, you could win a chance to train with Mike Cammalleri, Scott Gomez, and other NHL hockey players thanks to BioSteel. See details here. <BioSteel ProHockey Week>

A follow up to the Jim Roberts story mentioned in the last post. <Northumberland News>

With the unveiling of the 2011 All Star Game logo and the 2011 Winter Classic hoopla, I was wondering if we'd get anything for the 2011 Heritage Classic that will be played February 20 in Calgary? Here's the logo if you haven't seen it yet. First seen at Puck Daddy, from Icethetics who grabbed it from NHL.com so that would explain the bunch of logos.

Mike and Jarome Iginla face off...is the NHL saying something about captaincy, or just faces of franchises?

I love this logo. It's much nicer than the Winter Classic one, IMO. A veined maple leaf (no, not for Toronto...it's red for Canada), a scroll like in Canada's coat of arms with 'A Mari Usque Ad Mare', crossed hockey sticks that bring back memories of old hockey team pictures, and the Calgary skyline with iconic Calgary Tower. Even the writing looks old school. The NHL shield just reminds you that the game is ocurring in this century. Kudos to whoever came up with this.

---

I'll end on that happy note.

Update (at 10.50 pm):

This is kinda strange. Go to the Canadiens 'Photos' page and you'll see galleries that have dates in the future. Right now there's a Montreal Canadiens Hockey School gallery dated July 31, 2010 and an Outdoor Hockey Games gallery dated August 4. Should we expect some news about the Heritage Classic around August 4?!! But really, advanced posting only works if you don't let your readers know about it. XD Nice going, canadiens.com people.

More updates:

There will be a press conference about the Heritage Classic at McMahon Stadium next week. My hunch was correct! <@Fan960Jason>

Cammalleri's speaks about his summer and various things with Toronto radio stations. <Ya! The Habs Rule>

Habs great Émile "Butch" Bouchard will be having a private signing on August 15 at Al Collections Inc. Their site also allows you to get signatures from Jean Béliveau, Peter Mahovlich, Maxim Lapierre, and Benoit Pouliot. <@ALCCINC>

Hope that's all for today.

Shots on Net [26.07.10]

2010-07-26T15:48:00.000-04:00

We will never escape golf in the offseason it seems.

Coach Jacques Martin held his Omnium Jacques Martin on July 16 at Outaouais Golf Club in Clarence-Rockland, ON. The total money raised was $140,000 and this amount was matched by the Government of Ontario for a total of $280,000. (What a nice gesture.) The money is going to the Jacques Martin/J.R. Brisson Bursary Fund, Roger's House ($10,000), and the Roger Seguin Foundation ($5,000). Members of the Martin family, Benoit Pouliot, Kirk Muller, Trevor Timmins, assistant and goaltending coach Pierre Groulx, and director of media relations Dominick Saillant were in attendence. Here's the site for his the Omnium. Article and picture from the Ottawa Golf Examiner. Be sure to view the slideshow to see all the aforementioned people. <Ottawa Golf Examiner>

Coach Martin looks happy. Wonder what he'll look like if he gets a Cup?

Henri Richard and Yvan Cournoyer were honorary guests at the Garry Peters & Rich Pilon Charity Golf tournament in Saskatoon on July 22 and 23 to help raise money for KidSport. They spoke about their opinions on how the NHL has changed since their time, and the article mentions what they did after they retired. A good read if you want some perspective. <The StarPhoenix>

P.K. Subban will be at the Cure for Cancer Ball Challenge on Saturday, August 7 at the Master Card Center for Hockey Excellence in Toronto. What a busy summer for Subban! <The Barrie Examiner>

Canadiens assistant coach Perry Pearn was a presenter at the KMHA Summer Coaches’ Conference. There's an interesting story about Team Canada's coaches in the article. Go Mike Babcock for opening up and leading us to gold! <The Kamloops Daily News>

Jim Roberts is being honoured by his highschool, Port Hope, by being inducted into their Wall of Honour. Congratulations! <Northumberland News>

Cam Connor auditioned for Wipeout Canada. I wonder why? LOL I hope you had fun sir. <Calgary Sun>

Scott Gomez' contract makes number three on Bleacher Report's list of contracts that should have been rejected by the NHL. I guess we should just add the Rangers to 'list of teams we hate'. Right after the Flyers, Leafs, and Bruins. <Bleacher Report>

ESPN gives the Bell Centre a thumbs up for health inspection. The only problem they found was that food was "at an improper temperature," with 3% of vendors with critical violations. <ESPN, first seen at The Star Tribune>

The Bulldogs will begin training and play three games against the Binghamton Senators in Newfoundland. <Hamilton Bulldogs, first seen at WIVT/WBGH News Channel 34>

Another Habs fan has passed away. Rest in peace Mr. Versloot. <Atlantic Farm Focus>

...

Still waiting on King Carey...

Shots on Net [24.07.10]

2010-07-24T00:43:00.001-04:00

A summary of the activities of our favourite team.

Here's Mike Cammalleri doing 1-on-1 with Michael Landsberg on TSN's Off The Record on July 16. <TSN>

Mike was also on The FAN 590 (Toronto) and he spoke about things that should interest you. I'm sorry to hear he was a Leafs fan growing up. He made the right decision by coming to us. Also, I sympathize with the reporter. He's just like me. First seen on Twitter. <FAN 590, direct download link>

Carey Price is talking. Thanks to KEPR CBS19 for the video.

The Canadiens will have a captain next season. It will be someone who was in last year's leadership group, meaning either of the three alternate captains or Cammalleri (was there anyone else? I can't recall...). They've already almost decided it, so it's just a matter of time. <RDS (FR)>

Andrei Markov became a Canadian citizen. Here he is with the judge and a mountie. You can also see a picture of him posing with some cute stuffed toys and Canadian things while posing for the next Canadiens magazine. However, he he will not play for Canada in international hockey competitions. Thanks to the Montreal Gazette for the pic. <The Gazette>

Aw, he feels left out of the 'shake...

Our busy man Mike teed off at the RBC Canadian Open on Wednesday, July 21 at 7.50 AM. He had a handicap of 6, saying it was because he was busy playing playoff hockey games. =) He also said he shot 78. And his mom says he looked like a kid in a candy shop. Story and pic from Ya! The Habs Rule. <Y!THR>

Lookin' good!

The Bulldogs have a new head coach and assistant coach. Randy Cunneyworth will be head coach, while Randy Ladouceur as his assistant. Both men are from Ontario. I hope there won't be any confusion due to the presence of two Randys. <Canadiens>

---

Will update if necessary. Sorry it wasn't very exciting this time.

Shots on Net [13.07.10]

2010-07-13T12:41:00.004-04:00

More news from your Habs as Carey Price becomes the last free agent. What's the hold up King Carey? Don't tell me you got Allan Walsh as your agent?!

Maxim Lapierre has signed a one year, $900,000 deal with the Canadiens. He's been playing with the Habs as long as I've been a fan, so that's nice. <TSN>

Mathieu Carle has been signed to a one year, two way contract. <Canadiens>

One year contracts are popular today as James Wyman has also been signed to one that's two ways. <Canadiens>

P.K. Subban and Mike Cammelleri were at the 18th annual NHLPA Golf Classic on July 12 to raise money for "Hockey for Haiti", an effort in which former Hab Georges Laraque is involved. Click the names to see videos. And here's another one of Mike. Can I say that the NHLPA loves Mike, and maybe the Habs players in general? See the article about Mike cheering on the Azzurri. (And YAY for Juventus love!) <NHLPA>

This story is just great, so I have to share. Electronic House has given the 2010 Home of the Year Gold Award for Best Fun Room to a Canadiens home! This house belongs to a fan in Red Deer, Alberta who turned his bar and media room into Canadiens territory. I especially like the C in the ceiling. Man, I hope I can do something similar one day. Be sure to check out the gallery! Photo from Electronic House. <Electronic House>

Gorgeous! ♥

In case you missed them, here are some pictures from the development camp from the Habs. <Canadiens>

Fans neither forgive nor do they forget. Remember the Richard Riot? Halak's trade won't be forgotten unless we get something big out of the Habs next season and on. At least an ECF finish. Stu Cowan speaks to Pierre McGuire and continues to question the controversial trade. Let's see if Bob's 'thoroughbred' (what are they, horses?) comes through for us. <Montreal Gazette>

Speaking of rioting, the true cost of keeping fans in line during this amazing playoffs run was $2,181,059. Insane, no? But nothing bad happened, so that's great. I guess the playoffs are costly for Montreal, but a Cup would be priceless. (No pun intended.) <Cyberpress (FR)>

Continuing with the money theme, Gary Bettman earns a lot. Just over $7.23 million. And he fights with nice people like Ron MacLean on TV. Yup, you're getting paid well. Does he deserve it? Now that's another question.... <Sports Business Journal>

It's all about money, right? Some teams are struggling to sign players with the $59.4 million cap (e.g. Chicago), while others have many players but haven't even hit the floor of $43.4 million! See Cap Geek for the numbers. <Cap Geek>

Eller and Schultz want to try and please, but actions speak louder than words. Kinda sad that they have to do this. Couldn't we have gotten these guys for Price? St. Louis was interested.... <Sporting News>

Bleacher Report gives us a summary of Pierre Gauthier's moves as a GM. I like it. <Bleacher Report>

It's expensive to be a Habs fan (#2 in the league), but even more expensive to be a Leafs fan (#1 in the league). The Leafs get to be first at something. <Team Marketing Report>

Habsworld discusses captaincy. I'll agree with their choice of Gionta, with Gill and Cammalleri wearing the 'A'. Markov's not usually in the line up, and Gill will probably leave. Maybe let Gill have it for his last year here and then give it to Josh Gorges. <HW>

Jean Beliveau is a classy man. I'm so glad he played for us. <Dennis Kane>

Something I found on the official site: Henri "Pocket Rocket" Richard's playlist. I kid you not. <Canadiens>

...

So now we await Price and we'll see what kinda money he'll be getting. I think we could have probably afforded Halak and had a cheap back up from Hamilton now that Lappy has signed for less than a million. I get the strange feeling we'll be overpaying Price now that he knows he's number one and we don't have anyone else. Gah! Why is goaltending always such a headache for the Habs? The Habs have $4,728,273 to sign Price and anyone from our prospects.

Shots on Net [08.07.10]

2010-07-08T20:13:00.002-04:00

The one month anniversary post of this blog brings you more news from the Habs as the 2010-2011 Canadiens team takes shape, management gets sorted out, and ex-players sign elsewhere.

PK Subban has won the 2009-2010 President's Award in the AHL "in recognition of his outstanding accomplishments in the past year". Congrats! I can see why everyone is crazy for him. Picture from the Bulldogs site. <Hamilton Bulldogs>

President and CEO of the AHL David Andrews with PK Subban

Geoff Molson will be taking over as president and CEO of the Montreal Canadiens and evenco on June 30, 2011. He will be replacing Pierre Boivin who has been president since 1999. The two will work together in the meantime to ensure a smooth transition. <Canadiens, first seen at The Montreal Gazette via HI/O>

Dominic Moore, Glen Metropolit, Paul Mara, and Marc-Andre Bergeron will not be back with the Habs. The UFAs will not be given offers by the Canadiens. The team will also rely more heavily on prospects, so they are leaving cap space for them as they also work on deals with Maxim Lapierre and Carey Price. <Canadiens>

Jacques Demers, the coach who led the Canadiens to their last Stanley Cup, a senator, and commentator for RDS had surgery. This is the second surgery he's had in recent weeks, having had one on June 29 to treat a hernia. <Toronto Sun, first seen at Canoe Sports (in French) via HI/O>

Jaroslav Halak got a nice deal with the St. Louis Blues. He's going to be cheap next year. According to Cap Geek, he'll earn $2.75 million next year, $3.5 million the year after, then $4.25 million followed by a year at $4.5 million for a cap hit of $3.75 million for four years. A deal like this would have been a bit difficult for the Canadiens to come to, but maybe Halak would've taken less to remain here out of loyalty or something. We'll never know thanks to Pierre Gauthier, and his agent can be happy. We'll speak again when the season gets underway. Though it's sad to see all the Halak pictures with him in a Canadiens jersey. <St. Louis Blues>

Sergei Kostitsyn has signed a one year, $550,000 deal with the Nashville Predators. Since all of the players involved in the Kostitsyn/Boyd-Ellis deal have signed NHL contracts, no 'future conisderations' will be involved. <Nashville Predators>

Maxim Lapierre isn't going to arbritation, meaning a deal's close. <RDS (in French)>

David Fischer won't be receiving a contract offer with the Habs. The defenseman from Minnesota was chosen in the first round, 20th overall by the Habs in 2006. The Canadiens will receive a compensatory draft pick in the 2011 draft, which will be the 50th overall pick (20th in the 2nd round). The Canadiens' second round pick in the 2011 draft had previously been traded to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Dominic Moore. So we're getting one back. I wonder who's losing their pick? I don't fully understand how this works to be honest. <TSN>

I like this picture of Mike! lol If we could only see his face. Training at 7 AM when the lights are still off. You're the man, Mike. <@MCammalleri13>

Not the most flattering pic of Lars Eller in a Habs jersey, but it's the first time I've seen him in one so here you go. More pics of the development camp by JTUTAH. <25Stanley>

His helmet is coming off...?

Four Habs Fans have footage from the training camp. (Warning: the blog is a bit NSFW and has profanity. But they're all lawyers!) <FHF>

PK Subban is humble and dedicated to playing for the Habs. Habs fans are happy. <Canadiens>

A report from camp. <Bleacher Report>

A story about Morgan Ellis' background. Maurice and Henri Richard also came from a big family! <Toronto Sun>

More about Ellis. A great prospect, for sure. I hope he forgets completely about being a Leafs fan. <PEI Canada>

You can keep up with Hamilton Bulldogs news by following Derek Willis, Director of Broadcasting and Communications and play-by-play announcer for the Dogs on Twitter. He also tweets Canadiens news that's tied to the Bulldogs. <@dogsplaybyplay>

---

This one month has been pretty crazy, with Halak's trade and all the signings. I hope next season will be great, and we won't be regretting the stuff that's happened over this past month.

Now we await Carey and Max.

Shots on Net [05.07.10]

2010-07-05T01:50:00.006-04:00

So it's been a while and I apologize as I moved and have been doing home renos for a while now. Here's a summary of things that have been going down with our Habs.

PK Subban attended the Pepsi North America Cup event that was mentioned previously. Look at him holding that trophy. Hopefully he can hold Lord Stanley's mug in a Habs jersey. [Toronto Star]

Image by Glenn Lowson for the Toronto Star

The 2010-2011 NHL regular season schedule was released on June 22. The season will start and end in Toronto against the Leafs. The Habs will play St. Louis and Halak (if he's in net) on March 10. [Canadiens]

The Canadiens signed Mathieu Darche on June 22 to a one-year, $500,000 contract on June 22. It's his first one way deal. Good for him. [Canadiens]

Also on June 22 Tomas Plekanec was signed to a six-year, $30 million deal. Gionta and Plekanec are getting paid exactly the same now. I hope we get good point totals from both of them for the terms of their contracts. [Canadiens]

On June 25th the Canadiens were active at the draft, moving up from 27th to 22nd via a deal with the Phoenix Coyotes to snag defenceman Jarred Tinordi in the first round. [Canadiens]

Picture from Getty Images

Looking good! Though the number 10 was kinda strange to see on him. Number 10 belongs to a beautiful Flower, of course...

The Habs added more prospects on June 26. With the 113th pick, the Habs selected Mark MacMillan. Morgan Ellis was selected at 117th. Brendan Gallagher was taken at 147 and John Westin from Sweden was taken 207th. I must say, John's name doesn't look very Swedish. Maybe that's just me. Hope these guys can all help us out in the near future. I look forward to seeing them don the CH. [Canadiens]

Morgan Ellis looks happy.

Picture from Getty Images

And here's a video of Brendan Gallagher from 2009:

On June 28 Tom Pyatt was signed to a one-year, $500,000 contract. (YAY! Thanks PG.) [Canadiens]

On the same day Benoit Pouliot was strangely given a ginormous raise and signed to a one-year, $1.35 million dollar contract. I'm as confused as the rest of the fans out there. [Canadiens]

On June 29, Sergei Kostitsyn was traded with future considerations to the Nashville Predators for UFA centre Dustin Boyd, goalie Dan Ellis, and future considerations. Ellis signed a two year, $3 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning (and they steal from us again?!!) while Boyd inked a one-year, $650,000 contract with the Habs on Canada Day. No idea about the future considerations. It's interesting to note that these two teams are connected by the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones. [Canadiens]

Also on free agent frenzy day the Habs signed goalie Alex Auld to a one-year, one million dollar contract. It is now official that whoever is in net next season (be it Price or some other poor soul) will be the number one goalie. But thank you Alex for willingly being our back up. I hope your shield of armour is strong enough to take criticism from all the fans and media. [Canadiens]

The eventful Canada Day also saw denfenseman Frédéric St-Denis signed to a one-year, $550,000 contract. [Canadiens]

Goalie Curtis Sanford was given the same money for the same amount as St-Denis on the same day. He chose Montreal over Vancouver and Phoenix, who also made similar offers. [Canadiens]

The PGA showed some love for the Habs by having caddies wear the jerseys of the 17 players with retired numbers. Henri Richard, Yvan Cournoyer, Stephane Quintal, Rejean Houle, Pierre Mondou, and Michael Cammalleri were present from the Habs. You can check out Mike here. [Canadiens]

Scott Gomez is getting Saku Koivu's old number. Number 11 was the number he wore in minor hockey, baseball and basketball. That's one athletic kid. It's interesting that Bob Gainey told him not to wear that number last season. The man had some sense, even though he brought Gomez's ridiculous contract upon us. [The Montreal Gazette]

You can read about Aurèle Joliat's childhood home in Ottawa and see some pictures thanks to this interesting story by the Ottawa Citizen. It's cool to know he lived on Stanley Avenue and won three Stanley Cups! [Ottawa Citizen]

Twenty-two prospects will be attending the Canadiens' second development camp which runs July 6-9. All of this year's draft picks will be attending, as will 'Lars Leller' and Ian Schultz who were acquired in the trade from St. Louis. Is it bad if Eller's name is misspelled so quickly? [Canadiens]

Alexander Avtsin has left HC Dynamo Moscow in order to play for the Canadiens' system. The Russian was chosen in the fourth round, 109th overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He's a big guy It's great to see a player who we recently drafted that actually wants to play for us. Unlike some others. *cough* Louis Leblanc *cough* [Russian Prospects]

You can work for the Habs! (Dream job...*drool*) Ahem, that is if you have the right skills. [Canadiens]

Keep track of the all the remaining contract lengths and signing dates thanks to the official site. [Canadiens]

The Canadiens are facing a cap penalty for the 2010-2011 season. It's (only) $68,751 (some people earn less per year but ok). That puts the Habs' cap at $59,331,249. That's still a load of cash. [Cap Geek]

On a somber note Sgt. James MacNeil, who was a Habs fan was laid to rest in Nova Scotia on July 2 in Cape Breton. Rest in peace. [680 News]

....

All salary figures are from Cap Geek.

So the Canadiens were really busy as the entire post here is full of links to the official website. Hopefully there will be a variety of stories next time. This was inevitable with free agent frenzy going on.

One thing I don't get: pay cuts for quite a few players, and a pay raise for someone not so deserving. Is this a consequence of signing free agents in the past for insane salaries? Overpaying players hurts you in the future. *sob*

Hope you all enjoyed Canada Day and Independence Day!

Goodbye Halak!

2010-06-19T21:25:00.014-04:00

Goodbye Jaro.

Image from Reuters.

One biased rant/post coming your way.

Read on.

This trade did not please me. This trade made me cry. But something had to be done, right?

We could not afford Halak. We didn't even ask how much he wanted. St. Louis, who currently has the most cap space, probably can afford him. But if he gets a better offer from somewhere else (not likely going to happen), he'll go there. Wouldn't it be bad if Philly got him? I'd cry some more.

So, we knew we couldn't afford him. What did we get in return? Two players who are so unknown to most hockey fans that the Canadiens had to write articles about both of them. Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. Schultz has never played in the NHL, Eller has played seven games. These two prospects for Halak. IDK. I know it's a move based on the cap. But there's something else.

Managament loves Price. It's strange, the amount of confidence they have in him. It's not bad to love your first round picked goalie, but this much? I have to ask, did management not see the disappointment of the fans after the 2008 and 2009 playoffs when Price was in net? Did management not see how Halak played and lit the world on fire with his play in the 2010 playoffs? Halak brought so much excitement and joy to the fans. Price has let us down in the past. Let's say we get behind him and support. After all that, let's say we fail to qualify for the playoffs. What happens then? I don't think Price will be getting a one year contract this year. So he'll be in net. Even if he's not, who do we bring in? Halak? I don't think so. I can already hear the crowds chanting 'bring back Halak' after a poor perfomance by Carey.

If management wants to continue to protect their goalie, because he is not the goalie of the majority of fans, then they have to bring in a reliable back up that can carry the team if Carey melts down from the pressure or whatever else. Carey's not an idiot. He's matured from watching Halak play. He's watched his job get taken away and fans get behind his back up. Let's hope he learned something he can use to give us good performances. But we still need a good back up, just in case we need more of what Halak did this past season.

Many are trying to justify the trade, and that's fine. But if we don't make it to the ECF next year, I can understand if there are riots in Montreal asking for Pierre Gauthier to be fired. I'd like to join in those riots. I said I would respect PG's decision, but this is a tough and bitter pill to swallow. Even MP Justin Trudeau doesn't like the trade.

I just want to say one thing about the management. They never contacted Halak or his agent after the season ended, not even to say thanks. I get the strong feeling they were just using Halak to groom their beloved Price. They knew all along that they were going to get rid of him. That's a bit heartless. I know it's just business, but still, you should treat your employees with respect and courtesy. You can read about PG's preivous blunder here.

The trade is over, and what is done cannot be undone. We'll support Price, willingly or unwillingly. He's the only one we've got right now. (Literally.) I don't wish him any harm, I wish him all the best. I hope he can let the fans understand that PG made the right decision and that the faith placed in him was not for nothing. For those fans who've stopped being fans, shame on you! How can you support a team for just one player? We're better off without you. Bandwagon fans are not needed.

So I'd like to say goodbye to our MVP, our biggest revelation, our most improved player. The fans have spoken, but have been ignored. I hope it's worth the pain and suffering to let you go. I hope you get what you wanted, the opportunity to be number one. You were number one in our hearts.

Shots on Net [17.06.10]

2010-06-17T15:49:00.000-04:00

More reminders that it's the offseason in your SoN today. We're crying on the inside, yes.

Jaroslav Halak has been traded to the St. Louis Blues in return for Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. I...I'm crying. On the outside. More on this when we get more info. [ESPN]

Canadien's assistant captain Brian Gionta is going to be bartending with Ryan Callahan of the New York Rangers at Murphy's Law Irish Pub in Rochester, NY on June 21. The event will begin at 7 pm and is a fundraiser for former Rochester Americans player Craig Charron, who is battling cancer. The article also features a mini interview with the two NHL players. And we now know that Brian spends his offseason in Greece. So cool. Check it out. [Messenger Post]

You can golf with Montreal's P.K. Subban and former Hab Stéphane Richer at the Medigas Celebrity Classic in Belleville, ON. Tee off on July 10 at the Trillium Wood Golf Club with your Habs for a good cause. Only 10 spots available, so move fast! If I knew how to play golf perhaps I would go, but alas, I do not. [The Intelligencer]

Speaking of golf, Hab's player Travis Moen had a golf tournament with Partick Marleau (San Jose) and former Canadien Trent McCleary for charity. The Trent McCleary - Patrick Marleau - Travis Moen Charity Golf Classic was held on Monday, June 14 at Elmwood Golf Course in Swift Current, SK. The money went to the Trent McCleary - Patrick Marleau - Travis Moen Sports and Recreation Foundation. Picture and article from The South West Booster. [SWBooster]

Travis Moen putts on the fifth hole

Habs great Émile Bouchard will be invested into the Order of Canada as a Member at a ceremony in Rideau Hall tomorrow.

The short citation:

For his contributions to sports, particularly professional hockey, and for his commitment to his community.

Félicitations Monsieur Bouchard! [The Governor General of Canada, first seen at Earth Times]

Tom Pyatt wants to stay with the Habs. He sounds committed. (Can we keep him, please?) [TBnewswatch.com]

Carey Price was at Bullarama in Kitimat, BC last weekend. He spoke about the Habs playoff run. [CFTK TV]

The exciting P.K. Subban will be a guest drawmaster (?) at the Mohawk Racetrack this Tuesday, June 22 for the Pepsi North America Cup. I know nothing about horse racing, so I'll let you read the articles. [Harness Link 1, Harness Link 2]

The early bird deadline for purchasing Hamilton Bulldogs (the AHL affiliate of the Canadiens) tickets is this Friday (tomorrow!). There are all sorts of incentives, including the opportunity to win a trip for two to Montreal to watch a Habs game. [Hamilton Bulldogs]

The Cincinnati Cyclones, the ECHL affiliate of the Canadiens and Predators (and their respecitve AHL affiliates) have been honoured. Vice President and General Manager Kristin Ropp was named ECHL's executive of the year. On May 21 the Cyclones won their second Kelly Cup in three years. Congrats to the team and to Ms. Ropp! [Cyclones Hockey, first seen at Our Sports Central]

Tomas Plekanec is number four on Yahoo! Sports' NHL's top 50 UFAs list. The Hockey News had him as first. Will he stay or will he go? Only time (and Pierre Guathier) will tell. [Yahoo!]

You can get autographed Canadiens stuff from HMV as part of their customer loyalty program. Not much info, but the source in the link. [Marketer News]

Whew. That was quite a bit. I had no idea our Habs were so active! I'm still a n00b when it comes to sports journalism, so I hope you'll bear with me.

Just for clarification: by 'first seen at' I don't mean that that was the first place that reported the story. It just means where I first saw it. Then I'll try to get a soure that's closer to the story, like the official website or something. But I like to give credit so you'll get more than one link. And sometimes the source where I spot the story first has more info or better explanations, so it doesn't hurt to click.

Ok, enough chat. If there's any more news, I'll update.

Enjoy your Thursday!

Shots on Net [15.06.10]

2010-06-15T22:14:00.009-04:00

Those pucks from last time were probably annoying, so I'm changing the format. Sorry! Now back to normalcy. (But if you're wondering, those pucks had a meaning beyond the SoN meaning.)

Guy Lafleur's court troubles were in the news. Honestly, I hope everything gets resolved quickly. I dislike seeing his name get sullied. As a parent, I'm sure he's already hurting. No need to add to that. Picture also from The Gazette. [The Montreal Gazette]

The Flower's on the left.

A great post over in Scott Cullen's column at TSN about the Habs' situation. I think he was pretty fair in his judgement, though some might argue too optimistic. (But I prefer this to being overcritical.) It's hard to argue with some of the facts and figures here. I'd like to say that I like Cedrick Desjardins. I've never seen him play or anything, but he's looks pretty good from the numbers he's posted. I don't see why he can't back up Jaroslav Halak or Carey Price. That being said, I do prefer that we keep both goalies. If we had to chose, I'd chose Halak but I will respect Pierre Gauthier's decision. And about the need for offensive production: YES PLEASE. We cannot get blanked anymore in the playoffs. [TSN]

The guy who vandalized Montreal Gazette reporter Pat Hickey's car has been charged. Seriously, control yourselves fans. This goes for Habs fans too. It's sad to see fans act so stupidly. [The Phildelphia Inquirer, originally from HI/O]

Speaking of fans doing dumb things, the Habs might have to pay for cleaning up after the fans in Montreal. The cost for cleaning up after the Caps series in the first round was $305,000. Crazy. [Montreal Gazette]
A footnote to that: according to CTV, it wasn't an official proposal and it was more for security than for cleaning up. Also, it seems like it's not going to happen for now...?

Perry Pearn, the assistant coach of the Canadiens, has chosen to remain with the team, turning down an offer from the Edmonton Oil Kings (a major junior team). This comes after Guy Boucher, the head coach of the Hamilton Bulldogs this past season, left the team to take on the same position behind the Tampa Bay Lightning's bench. (I have to say, I laughed at the pronounciation help in that article. Learn some French guys!) So you lose one, you keep one. Thank you Mr. Pearn for sticking with us. [The Vancouver Sun]

The Canadiens have bought out Georges Laraques's contract. [TSN]

And finally, a little behind the scenes Habs info/trivia. Did you know that goalie Kim St-Pierre of Canada's gold-medal-winning woman's hockey team has played in net for a Habs practice? I was surprised! She's only the second woman to take to the ice with NHL players. I have to say that for me, the best part was seeing her #33 Montreal Stars jersey. I like women's hockey, and I have so much respect for Partrick Roy! Congrats to her for the honour. [TSN]

Here's a video of her in a interview with Radio-Canada (in French, but you can see her making saves):

So that's about it. I'll update if more things pop up.

Only 8 days left 'til the NHL Awards ceremony. I'm moving on that day, so maybe it'll be a bit quiet for some time around here. But I hope to be back and updating soon.

Enjoy your night!

Shots on Net [11.06.10]

2010-06-11T03:03:00.008-04:00

Shots on Net is something I'll be putting up from time to time. It'll be a bunch of different things I've gathered from the internet. The idea behind the title was thought of minutes ago, but the way I'm seeing it right now is this: it's screenshots of things on the internet. Shots on Net (SoN?) is much shorter to write than "screenshots of things on the internet" so yeah. Click on the puck for your story.

Jaroslav Halak's father says his son's as good as he is because his dad gave him "carrots and Viagra". Yeah...IDK. I wonder what kind of childhood Jaro had. This comes as he is on the cover of L'actualité magazine.

Louis Leblanc, the Canadiens first round pick in the 2009 draft (18th overall), has been speaking to Pat Brisson, agent for many well known hockey players such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and John Tavares. Also, Leblanc's QMJHL rights were traded to the Montréal Juniors this week (see here). If Leblanc has indeed taken on an agent, then there is very little chance he'll be returning to Harvard as those who play a sport at university cannot have an agent for that sport. Going to the AHL's Bulldogs or playing in the Q would be his other options, and he could continue his studies at McGill. But as Marc De Foy at Rue Frotenac points out, he could always return to Harvard to continue his studies whenever he pleases because the minimum requirement to be able to return is one semester of study (he's finished a year = two semesters). Click the puck to a juicy tweet that supports Leblanc's move to the AHL. In case it's deleted:

MurphysLaw74 said at 7:09 PM on May 28: Source told me today that Habs prospect Louis Leblanc, now represented by Pat Brisson, will leave Harvard and play in Hamilton (AHL) 2010-11

Though Mr. Brisson, who we assume is acting as a counselor and nothing more, is saying Leblanc's committed to Harvard. We'll see what happens.

Here's a great Habs fan. What a kid! Habulous salutes you Ross Vender. I hope you can meet Mike and get an autographed puck. Keep up the Habs loving in Ontario.

If you're in Montréal tonight, you can see some Habs players. Hab Inside/Out is reporting that the Lotus One Formula Team will be holding a press conference tonight at 7.30 pm at Montréal's Marché Bonsecours. In attendence will be Le Démon Blond (aka Guy Lafleur), Maxim Lapierre, and Patrice Brisebois. He's not a Hab, but Vincent Lecavalier will also be there.

Congratulations to the Black Hawks for winning the Cup. Last year, they lost in five games in the conference finals to Detroit, which lost in the SCF to Pittsburgh. If we continue the trend, the Habs should take the Cup next year (we also lost in five in the conference finals to the SCF losers this year).

Enjoy the World Cup, and hope to see you around for more offseason talk.

Update:

Louis Leblanc has been invited to the 2010 National Junior Team Development Camp. (Thanks to @HabsInHighHeels for the news.)

Check out Mike Cammalleri at the Grand Prix. Here's a vid. (Thanks to 25Stanley for the link.)

Michael Cammalleri turns 28

2010-06-08T15:44:00.001-04:00

Happy birthday to Michael Cammalleri! He was born today in 1982 in Richmond Hill, ON. Please wish him happy birthday via his Twitter account if you can.

Welcome! Bievenue!

2010-06-08T15:36:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone!

This is Habby, your blogger. I'd like to introduce myself a bit.

I'm a student and a Habs fan. I'm from the Greater Toronto Area. I wanted to start a blog so I could share my love for the team and because the offseason is (mostly) so boring. Also, there is some info out there that's just amazing, so I hope I can share it with you.

I hope you will find this blog useful. I'm not a great journalist, and most of my info will be from elsewhere (I don't have exclusives and stuff, sorry) but maybe I can give you a quick look at what's going on with the Habs.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions or concerns. I'm not an expert on hockey or the Habs, but I hope to improve as I go along.

Thanks in advance for your patience and for reading.