PRE SUMMER RECAP

So let's go over what the Habs have done so far this off season before I head up to the exotic Laurentians for two months.

A) Playoff hero Jaro Halak was dealt to the St. Blues for elite prospect Lars Eller and Calgary Hitman Ian Schultz. The deal means that Carey Price has once again been given the drivers seat in Montreal while the team looks for a veteran backup Goalie.

B) The Canadiens surprise some and move up from 27th to 22nd in order to select behemoth and possible future captain Jarred Tinordi. He is the son of former NHLer Mark Tinordi and was the captain of the US U-18 National Development Team, called by many the best development team ever with 9 players drafted this year including two other first rounders, Goalie Jack Campbell and Defenseman Derek Forbort.

C) Pierre Gauthier solves a season long problem by dealing clubhouse cancer Sergei Kostitsyn far far away to Tennessee as the Habs acquire heart and soul grinder Dustin Boyd and soon to be UFA netminder Dan Ellis from the Nashville Predators. If the team can ink Ellis to a deal it will give them the seasoned vet they wanted to back up Carey Price.

Now what?

Well we should not assume that we're going to make another giant splash come free agency a la 2009, but it would be nice to build on some youthful depth. As shown by Stanley Cup Champions Chicago, four line depth is key in being successful.

That's all for now, can't wait for September.

Peace,

E

THE SKY IS NOT FALLING.

Okay, so right now seems like a perfectly good time to panic, in the words of Rex from Toy Story.

Jaroslav Halak, our "franchise savior" who singlehandedly took down powerhouses like Washington and Pittsburgh and got the Canadiens to within 3 wins of the Stanley Cup Finals, has been dealt to the St. Louis Blues for Danish Blue Chip Prospect Lars Eller and Ian Schultz, who is just plain chippy for the Calgary Hitmen.

WE'RE DONE, GAME OVER MAN, GAME OVER. HALAK WAS OUR MOON AND OUR SUN, WITHOUT HIM WE'RE DONE.

So, you guys can continue to run round like decapitated chickens, I am going talk to the rational people here.

Jaroslav Halak put in an show stopping performance this year in the playoffs, he wanted to prove he was our starting goalie, but what now? Halak's play has given him something for his negotiating cause, he was at liberty to demand over 4 M a year when the Canadiens brass would approach him to re-sign him. What then? How would we re-sign Tomas Plekanec, our most consistent forward this year? And although Carey Price now looks like a cold commodity, would you really be ready to part ways with our 5th overall pick from 2005? A guy who had been hung out to dry more this year than a pair of Granny Panties, a player who when given reins all by himself, like he did in 2008 after Cristobal Huet had been traded, went 12-4 down the homestretch en route to 1st place in the East. The NHL is a goal tending carousel, Dwayne Roloson led the Oilers to the finals in 2006, only to be the backup on the Islanders, do you honestly think that Michael Leighton or Anti Niemi are going to have long distinguished NHL careers? Jaroslav Halak showed his worth, but can you really say that he would be in our plans for the future?

Lars Eller is a top notch prospect, he was an AHL all star last year, and was the 13th overall pick in 2007. He could come in and challenge for a spot on the top 6 next year. He is 21 years old. Before you state that all is lost, give this deal time, because in 3 years I have a feeling Lars Eller will be a big part of this team. Jaro, I wish you luck and want to thank you for the superhuman feats you performed for this team. I hope you get the starting job you deserve.

Peace,

E

Olympic Hangover, and goodbye O Happy D'Agger

Well I think I speak for many of you, who did not realize the Canadiens restarted their season until about 6:30 last night. I'm sure even a larger group of you were confused when our fourth line combined for 3 goals. It was definitely not Olympic caliber, hell, it wasn't even a good game for NHL standards, but it was great to see the Habs open the homestretch with two points. Then, this morning I check out the unusually dormant Trade Deadline page on TSN, and see that the Canadiens have shipped yet another young underachiever. Yes Matt D'Agostini was dealt to the St. Louis Blues for prospect Aaron Plushaj, and it was not a major trade by any means. But I do like it, Plushaj was a College Star in Michigan, and was nominated for the Hobey Baker award for the best player in the country. He was a 2nd round pick who is having a very good year for the Peoria Rivermen of the AHL and will be a contributing factor on the Bulldogs until he is ready to make the step to the pros.

All for now, I will update you on any other trades that show up, if you want some entertainment throughout this over-hyped day, read Jay Onraits blog on TSN, there is a funny dude right there.

Peace for now,

E

More inconsistency, and why we are screwed.

You don't have to be a rocket scientist, heck you don't even need to have an IQ higher that 40 to know that the Canadiens cannot string a decent stretch of wins together. One day we're beating New Jersey and New York in emotional hard fought affairs, then we fall asleep for 120 minutes and get shmiced by the Florida Twins, I think they scored more goals over those two days than the number of people at the actual game. Then comes the game against Ottawa, the league's hottest team where we fight back to get to overtime, only to get scored on by Mike Fisher, then probably lose Mike Cammalleri, our leading goal scorer for the remainder of the season, pending an MRI tomorrow. Then, if that wasn't enough, we now have to deal with Dion Phaneuf in our division for at the very minimum, another three years. And we no longer have the luxury of playing the suddenly terrible Vesa Toskala, as now we will have to try and solve Montreal native, Jean Sebastien Giguere. Well, I don't usually say this, as I try to keep an optimistic profile, but we might be screwed.

Peace True Believers,

E

Tossing the CHIP bowl.

Ahah.

I make a funny in light of a god awful team performance last night.

Yet another promising prospect that did not live up to expectations.

Kyle Chipchura, captain of the 2006 World Junior Hockey Team that won Gold, with Guillame Latendresse riding the bench, psycho Steve Downie leading in scoring, and now Ducks AHL Teammate Justin Pogge in net, was traded to Anaheim for a 4th round draft pick.

He is the fifth former First round pick to leave the team this year, along with Saku Koivu, Mike Komisarek, Chris Higgins & Ryan McDonagh. This fuels the fire that maybe "Draft Guru" Trevor Timmins might not be all that he is cracked up to be.

Maybe Chips would have had a future with the Canadiens had he not suffered a tremendous tendon injury in Junior, but life is a bitch that way. It comes up and smacks you in the nose when you least expect it.

Happy Trails Chipper,

Hope you get to ride Splash Mountian in Disneyland.

That ride is cool.

Peace,

E

The death of Gui!

Your nips might get a lil' cold in Minny bud.

Well Bob Gainey took his in house cleaning to a new step trading disgruntled fan favorite Guillame Latendresse to the Minnesota Wild for hulking underachiever Benoit Pouliot.

Pouliot was selected 4th overall in 2005, just a spot ahead of Carey Price.

Imagine the nightmare if we had the chance to draft him. Ugh.

Pouliot has been considered one of the bigger draft busts of the last 10 years, just a little less than the great Patrik Stefan. He has been in and out of the minor leagues and has a mere four points in his first fourteen games of the season which would be alright, if he wasn't chosen only three spots after Sidney Crosby...

Benoit Pouliot is not the answer, he might just be another problem, but you have to hope a change of scenery can do well for him.

Meanwhile Gui, I do not put you at fault for your issues. When you have 23,000 Neanderthals chanting your name as an eighteen year old in the PRESEASON, and the team decided to bypass letting you evolve fully in junior and the AHL, it's hard not to have a little bit of on ice issues.

Hopefully you hit your stride in Minnesota and this trade was what you needed. Happy trails my man.

Oh and uh Benny...

Welcome to the fucking jungle.

E

Sergei Kostitsyn asks for trade.

Not to going to dwell on this, because I think he is immature and reckless and holding himself in too high of a regard to pull this type of crap right before the season started.

He did not play well enough.

His attitude has not changed.

He deserves to be sent down.

Pierre McGuire was on the TEAM 990 and when asked about this, he baisically replied that fans should be confused to why the Canadiens did not get rid of him this summer when they got rid of the rest of their "problem players", and why they waited until now that it has escalated.

Well I usually agree with you Pierre. But that is the wrong question to ask.

The players who left this summer all had their contracts expire, you can bet your house Bob Gainey would not have just traded Alex Kovalev on July 1st. Another reason why Sergei was still with the team was because he has been touted as having "boatloads of potential", at one point in Junior, he was on a line with Sam Gagner and Patrick Kane. Gainey knew that Kovalev was not going to change his erratic off ice behavior, so he let him go. Maybe management hoped Sergei could change once negative influences were out the door.

The real question that all Hab fans should be asking right now is: Is Sergei Kostitsyn worth it?

Should we continue to scold him until he is a reformed player, or do we let him leave and possibly create an issue with his older brother Andrei, who is very unpredictable and easily shaken when it comes to his level of play.

Is he worth it?

This blogger gives the young Belarussian a big ol' NYET.
But you tell me.

Peace true believers,

E