Thank you Habs

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

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!

Have a Habulous Halloween!

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 [05.07.10]

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!

Shots on Net [17.06.10]

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!