Big game tonight with the Red Wings. A throwback really, with the two teams both riding quite high. Must have felt tlike this in bygone eras.
As a prelude to the game, I was asked by Red Wings blogger, and extremely dedicated Norwegian hockey fan, to answer a few questions for his blog "Fight Night at the Joe". In turn, I asked him a few of my own. I'll post his answers below, and will link to the my answers on his site when they're up.
Fight Night at the Joe asks LIW:
1. The Habs have looked great so far this year, what reasons are behind the improvement from last year?
2. Will they be able to hold on for the entire season?
3. Which player do you guys plan to boo next?
4. Going into this game, what do you fear about the Wings? What should the Wings be looking out for?
5. Predict the final result of the game and tell us why!
(See answers on the Fight Night at the Joe pre-game post)
LIW asks Fight Night at the Joe:
1. Can you explain briefly how the Red Wings do it? Perennial contention, what's the secret?
The secret is pretty simple I think. First of all, the Wings have always drafted very well. They were very early on to focusing on Europe and got a lot of draft steals from Sweden and Russia. Generally good scouting has also helped.
Secondly, the Wings tend to never rush anyone. Except for in a few cases, prospects have to play at least a year, often more in the AHL before they get up to the NHL and they are well developed when they finally come up.
The Wings have also done very well at trading. There have been a few busts (Wendel Clark and Robert Lang come to mind), but most of the trades the last 20 years have been good and they have never been a team that will make a desperation trade.
Money is another factor, but that has been diminished after the lockout.
But one of the main factors in my eyes is that the Wings seem to be a team where players want to stay. Everyone, from the Illitches, through Kenny Holland and down to the role players, equipment guys and everyone else are part of the Wings family. They treat their players well, keep a consistent environment and everyone coming up through the system plays Red Wings hockey. Draft picks stay there their whole career and journeymen like Brad Stuart and Dan Cleary and outcasts like Todd Bertuzzi find a new home where they can get a role that fits them, adapt to the system and finally settle down. The players seem to be happy in Detroit, there is a winning culture and the team is usually the same from year to year, which is a huge factor in consistently winning. And they really take care of and value every player. They know how important role players are. Just look at Draper and Maltby.
Last of all, Nicklas Lidström. It is impossible to realize how good he is without watching the Wings every game and he has been a huge part in the last 20 years of success.
2. The Canadiens have lost Andrei Markov for the second straight season, essentially. Is there a single player on the Red Wings whose absence might lead to a significant dip in the standings?
The first player that comes to mind is Nick Lidström. As I said, even with his success I think he is underrated. He is so subtle and does all the little things right. You really need to watch them often to appreciate just how good he is at that. Teammates and fans call him the Perfect Human and it is fitting. When he makes a mistake it is shocking to us, cause usually he just doesn't make them. He is the team's leader, still one of the best, maybe the best defenseman in the NHL. He does a huge job shutting down the opponent's star players every night and is important offensively too. Zetterberg and Datsyuk are other guys that would be huge losses for the Wings.
3. Andrei Markov goes to free agency on a shaky knee. Would you want your GM to sign him?
That depends on the price. I wouldn't pay high money for an injury prone star defenseman, but if he came for a discount because he wanted to prove himself it would be interesting. Right now I don't think the Wings need a guy with his style, but if Nick retires he could be an interesting part of a solution to fill the hole that would leave.
4. Montreal has had amazing first periods thus far, and managed to impose their style on the opposition. From what I know, this is Detroit's M.O. Which team do you think will get to play their style tonight?
The Wings are terribly schizophrenic when it comes to starting games. Some days they are right no time and score one or two goals early, but other nights it seems like they need a period to get into the game. And it is very hard to predict which version will show up. Right now the team has lost three straight games (or, well, one was in OT) and in the two first they came out strong, but collapsed (end of road trip and first game back home, so I get it) and then on Wednesday they were terrible for the first 25 minutes against Nashville. I know Babcock goes insane over that, so hopefully he has whipped the team into shape so they come out strong, but I am very worried that the Habs can come out flying and roll over the Wings for some time before the Wings really wake up.
5. Predict the final result of the game and tell us why!
That is a difficult question. The Wings have not been good lately and the Habs are scary to me right now. And they have such a speedy group of forwards, so I am scared that they might be all over the Wings, rush them and make the Wings commit way too many turnovers. The Wings need to get into their groove a little and get their passing game going to be good and if the Habs can deny them that early, then that and Carey Price having a good game, can lead to this getting ugly.
However, I think the team and everyone around it are very disappointed in the last few games and I have to hope that they show up ready to go and out for blood. I think it will be a tight game, but I think that the Wings will win 4-2 with the fourth goal being an empty netter. I also think special teams might become the deciding factor, but it is hard to predict which way that will swing.
6. Finally. You live in Norway. How do you manage to follow the NHL. And why the Red Wings?
Following it is pretty easy these days. Back in the day, when it was just on TV, it was a pain and you couldn't see every game, but now I have something called ESPNPlayer, which is basically the European equivalent of GameCenter Live. Lets me watch every game live or on demand (I have the same for the MLB and NFL (shoot me, I'm a Lions fan)). And seeing as I'm a student and my part time job has evening shifts, I can have a semi-American sleep cycle and stay up to watch the games.
Why the Wings? The answer has two parts really. When I was three or four I got a Canucks jersey cause my dad had been in Vancouver. So I became a Canucks fan. However, when I got NHL on TV in 94-95 I realized that the Canucks bored me (aside from Bure) and my 6-7 year old fashion sense realized that the Canucks jerseys were ugly as sin. However I loved the Wings jerseys, I loved that they had a Russian line and some Swedes and I really loved Stevie Y, so I began rooting for them. Two straight years of playoff disappointment (horrifying finals loss and then a brutal conference final loss) only made me love them more. And then, in the summer of 96, I attended a hockey camp in Asker, right outside of Oslo and Scottie Bowman and Barry Smith came in and coached us for one afternoon and in the morning the next day. It was really cool and they were really nice to us and I remember that Scotty gave us stickers saying "Proud to be a Wings fan". That settled it and I've been a hardcore ever since. Used to fight my mom and dad to be allowed to see important games on school nights and everything.
Thanks to Fight Night at the Joe
Pretty cool to hear from a dedicated fan of a very special franchise. The answers to the questions above remind one about things that have been said about the Canadiens in the past, and things we hope might be said about them in the future.
Needless to say, we're a bit jealous about the Scotty Bowman meeting, all-time best coach and all. But then I've had Nicklas Lidstrom hold the door for me on my wedding day, so we'll call it even...
Showing posts with label Babcock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Babcock. Show all posts
Friday, December 10, 2010
Friday, June 13, 2008
NHL Awards: Habs Shutout
As nominations were being prepared, Habs fans were thinking that the Canadiens could realistically take a shot at 3 of the trophies – the Calder, the Jack Adams and the Hart. The optimists were hoping for nominees in even more categories with Markov a borderline Norris candidate based on his regular season play.
Nominations for the trophies (or published top threes in voting), left us with one man standing: Guy Carbonneau for the Jack Adams trophy.
Last night was the final cull for the Habs, as Carbonneau lost out to Bruce Boudreau of the Washington Capitals.
The voters got it wrong with this verdict.
Boudreau's accomplishments pale in comparison to Carbonneau and Babcock (the other nominee) and even to a few others who were not nominated in the end.
While Boudreau's supporters vaunt his impressive 37-17-7 record in the last 61 games of the season, they just as eagerly ignore that Carbonneau's Canadiens went 35-19-7 over the same span. Babcock's Wings did better at 39-16-6.
Boudreau turned a team around. Carbonneau and Babcock kept their teams consistent enough to win.
Boudreau took a non-playoff team to the last available place. Carbonneau took a non-playoff team to first. Babcock managed to get the perennial leaders interested in another runaway regular season win.
So why was Boudreau chosen?
The answer eludes me.
Lots of teams improve from one season to the next – going from non-playoff team to qualifier. If that was the criteria for coach of the year, surely John Stevens would outclass Boudreau. Carbonneau's Canadiens went from 11th to first, comfortably cruising into post-season play with time to spare. He must trump Boudreau here too!
Perhaps the answer was Boudreau's ability to turn a flailing Capitals franchise around. If so, he won a Jack Adams trophy on the back of poor work from both Glen Hanlon who should and could have done better preparation with the Capitals and from Peter Laviolette who coached his talented team out of the playoffs again.
I have Carbonneau as the coach of the year, regardless of what the mopes on the voting panel say. Carbonneau not only turned his team around, won the East and somehow managed to get Kovalev into the mood to be a serious mentor, but he also did it in a seriously difficult division, with no help over the season from his GM.
It shouldn't be forgotten that Carbonneau and his team also revamped the number one which had lost its main weapon of the previous campaign – actually improving it. Over the season they also turned the Canadiens young crew into extremely effective penalty-killers and defenders and even the number one offensive team in the league.
After putting all this down on paper, it's pretty clear Carbo deserved more than the invitation to dress up and do his best good loser impression for the cameras.
Nominations for the trophies (or published top threes in voting), left us with one man standing: Guy Carbonneau for the Jack Adams trophy.
Last night was the final cull for the Habs, as Carbonneau lost out to Bruce Boudreau of the Washington Capitals.
The voters got it wrong with this verdict.
Boudreau's accomplishments pale in comparison to Carbonneau and Babcock (the other nominee) and even to a few others who were not nominated in the end.
While Boudreau's supporters vaunt his impressive 37-17-7 record in the last 61 games of the season, they just as eagerly ignore that Carbonneau's Canadiens went 35-19-7 over the same span. Babcock's Wings did better at 39-16-6.
Boudreau turned a team around. Carbonneau and Babcock kept their teams consistent enough to win.
Boudreau took a non-playoff team to the last available place. Carbonneau took a non-playoff team to first. Babcock managed to get the perennial leaders interested in another runaway regular season win.
So why was Boudreau chosen?
The answer eludes me.
Lots of teams improve from one season to the next – going from non-playoff team to qualifier. If that was the criteria for coach of the year, surely John Stevens would outclass Boudreau. Carbonneau's Canadiens went from 11th to first, comfortably cruising into post-season play with time to spare. He must trump Boudreau here too!
Perhaps the answer was Boudreau's ability to turn a flailing Capitals franchise around. If so, he won a Jack Adams trophy on the back of poor work from both Glen Hanlon who should and could have done better preparation with the Capitals and from Peter Laviolette who coached his talented team out of the playoffs again.
I have Carbonneau as the coach of the year, regardless of what the mopes on the voting panel say. Carbonneau not only turned his team around, won the East and somehow managed to get Kovalev into the mood to be a serious mentor, but he also did it in a seriously difficult division, with no help over the season from his GM.
It shouldn't be forgotten that Carbonneau and his team also revamped the number one which had lost its main weapon of the previous campaign – actually improving it. Over the season they also turned the Canadiens young crew into extremely effective penalty-killers and defenders and even the number one offensive team in the league.
After putting all this down on paper, it's pretty clear Carbo deserved more than the invitation to dress up and do his best good loser impression for the cameras.
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Game# 27
The Canadiens Game in Review
Date: Tuesday December 4th, 2007
Opponent: Detroit Red Wings
Venue: Bell Centre, Montreal, QC
Team Stripes
Final Score: 1-4 - Loss
Habs starting goalie: Carey Price (L)
Opposition starting goalie: Dominik Hasek (W)
Habs goalscorers: Christopher Higgins,
Opposition goalscorers: Pavel Datsyuk (2), Niklas Kronvall, Henrik Zetterberg
2007/08 first
There's a first time for everything, so they say. What they didn't tell you is that every game, something happens for the first time, you just have to look harder in March...
1st Game on the roster for Halak this year
Play of the game
The play you're straining to see on the press catwalk monitor...
Tonight Detroit provided the highlights and I don't really feel like describing any of theirgoals. My favorite play came towards the end of the game and was by Dandenault. Mathieu, playing his former team must have some lingering regrets within him about no longer being with the best team in the league, but that didn't stop him from playing with a lot of heart for his current team.
Koivu was in a little scuffle with Samuelsson towards the end of the third when out of nowhere Dandenault came to Saku's aid. I am sure that the Finn would have loved to have continued feuding with the Swede, but Mat put a stop to that. Dandenault came flying in, jumped in the air and tackled Samuelsson down. To me this showed heart, it showed good team loyalty and showed us that the Habs, despite some bad games, haven't lost their fight.
Game puck
Trophies are for the end of the year, play well in the game, you get a lovely puck...
Saku Koivu
Saku always gets up for big games whether it be at the Olympics, in the playoffs or in the regular season against the league's best. Tonight he played a very strong game in Detroit's end and had a very nice assist on Higgins' goal. He was involved in a few altercations which is always a good sign for Koivu - we all know how great of a leader he is off the ice, tonight he was a great leader on it.
Dome hockey team
We're going into the last minute with these 6 (and they're attached to the ice, so they're not coming off)...
Forwards
Alexei Kovalev
- One of the few Habs that could match the skill of the Red Wings tonight. Detroit obviously has a great team, but if you look closely they are also carrying a lot of dead weight; Downey, Drake, Cleary, Ellis etc. Alex was able to exploit the Red Wings' weaknesses tonight and actually drew a few penalties which is always a great play
Andrei Kostitsyn
- Along with Kovalev and Plekanec Andrei was a threat for the Habs tonight. We definitely didn't have too many shots on net, but the chances were there. Kostitsyn showed off his very quick release tonight with a couple of very good shots, but Hasek was up to the test
Saku Koivu
- Good game for the skipper despite the loss. Streit and Higgins were his linemates for most of the game until Mark commited an error in the defensive zone that led to Detroit's second goal - the game-winner. After that point Koivu's line changed with every shift. I'm sure Saku is like me - I don't care who Koivu plays with, just let it last more than 1 period at a time
Defencemen
Mike Komisarek
- It was a quiet game from Mike tonight, which for a defenceman is a good thing. He has now been paired with Hamrlik for a few games which may be beacsue of Markov's injury. Unfortunately for Andrei that leaves him with Brisebois so look for his +/- to plumet. Some good hits for Komi with some solid defensive-end play, ended up +1
Roman Hamrlik
- Roman and Komi were the only two + players for us tonight. This partnership looks very good, but shows again that the Habs need a 4th top 4 D-man to play in the top two pairings - if only we had, I don't know, a player who is the captain of his country's team, who may have beaten Canada...Hammer played more than any other Hab, looked good in both ends
Goaltender
Jaroslav Halak
- I don't just want to get in the habit of putting the back-up in here if we lose, but tonight I think it is the right call. Halak was called up because Price was sick, then all of a sudden Huet gets retroactively injured, so Price is back in. Halak has a great home record and has nothing to lose at this point. I feel that a start for Jaro would have been the right thing tonight. Price didn't play horrible, but he didn't play that well either. He continues to look very ordinary so far in his career making me wonder if his stock is maybe falling? If we ever want to improve this team it will have to be via trades and if you trade while your player's stock is low you get ripped off. (Theodore - Aebischer, Riberio - Niniimaa). At some point something has to give bewteen these 3 keepers, now is Halak's chance to show if we actually have a problem
Eyes on Kovalev
Did he flit and float? Someone ought to keep track...
Alex played his usual game tonight, very much the game you would expect from him at this point in the season. This game was very fast as Detroit set the tempo early and Kovalev was one of the few forwards who could match the cadence. He came very close to tying it up on the PP, but missed the net, but again at least the chances were there.
Kovalev's Assessment - Good
Overall Comments
The game was fast, was fun and believe it or not was close. Until the end of the second I really thought the Habs would find a way to win. The bad thing is that the Habs just can't seem to come from behind this year. Last year throughout the early part of the year you could count on them coming back to force OT and then generally going on to win, but we aren't so fortunate this year. Scoring the first goal seems to be the way to go about it these days, back to way it was before the lock-out. The good news is there are usually more penalties called in the 1st than in the other periods, so scoring 1st, on the PP, should be doable for us.
Tonight's game started with a nice tribute to the Red Wings-Canadiens rivarly. I couldn't help but feel a bit of pride seeing Chelios, a former Hab captain, out there on the carpet with his ex-co-captain Guy Carbonneau. The Chelios-Savard trade obviously had a good short term gain for the Habs as Denis was a key ingredient for our '93 cup win. Just imagine, though, had we traded someone else for Savard and kept Chelios. If Chris was still with the Habs he would most certainly still be the captain making it 19 seasons as the skipper. How many more cups may we have won? Think of all the years where our defence was a right shambles (Laflamme, Traverse, Dirk, Baron, Popovic etc.), now imagine Chelios there to guide the way. I believe that he could have become a legend in the same mould as Harvey, Robinson or even Beliveau. It was great to see him in Montreal, even better to see him still playing, well done Chris! It was also nice to see former McGill Redmen captain Mike Babcock back in town. He was wearing McGill tie for the game which I found quite interesting. You would have thought, though, that a local boy might at least let us get one point!
The Canadiens had the effort tonight, but seem like they need some help out there. With the recent struggles of Ryder, Koivu, Smolinski etc. we area always leaving it to the same 2 or 3 guys each game. I would suggest calling up O'Byrne or Cote to play wing, afterall aren't defencemen the best wingers? You would have to think that that is what Carbo is thinking, or is it juts getting that hard to justify having Breezer in the lineup? How about Recchi or Selanne - both have had great success with Saku and both could probably be snatched up for a fair price. If we continue to play around the .500 mark over the next few weeks we have no need to worry, but if we drop below that then I think that it may be time for a re-shuffle. Like Topham said - stay in the mix right until March and give ourselves a legitimate shot at the playoffs, I think we all knew that 4th overall was a little beyond us.
Date: Tuesday December 4th, 2007
Opponent: Detroit Red Wings
Venue: Bell Centre, Montreal, QC
Team Stripes
Final Score: 1-4 - Loss
Habs starting goalie: Carey Price (L)
Opposition starting goalie: Dominik Hasek (W)
Habs goalscorers: Christopher Higgins,
Opposition goalscorers: Pavel Datsyuk (2), Niklas Kronvall, Henrik Zetterberg
2007/08 first
There's a first time for everything, so they say. What they didn't tell you is that every game, something happens for the first time, you just have to look harder in March...
1st Game on the roster for Halak this year
Play of the game
The play you're straining to see on the press catwalk monitor...
Tonight Detroit provided the highlights and I don't really feel like describing any of theirgoals. My favorite play came towards the end of the game and was by Dandenault. Mathieu, playing his former team must have some lingering regrets within him about no longer being with the best team in the league, but that didn't stop him from playing with a lot of heart for his current team.
Koivu was in a little scuffle with Samuelsson towards the end of the third when out of nowhere Dandenault came to Saku's aid. I am sure that the Finn would have loved to have continued feuding with the Swede, but Mat put a stop to that. Dandenault came flying in, jumped in the air and tackled Samuelsson down. To me this showed heart, it showed good team loyalty and showed us that the Habs, despite some bad games, haven't lost their fight.
Game puck
Trophies are for the end of the year, play well in the game, you get a lovely puck...
Saku Koivu
Saku always gets up for big games whether it be at the Olympics, in the playoffs or in the regular season against the league's best. Tonight he played a very strong game in Detroit's end and had a very nice assist on Higgins' goal. He was involved in a few altercations which is always a good sign for Koivu - we all know how great of a leader he is off the ice, tonight he was a great leader on it.
Dome hockey team
We're going into the last minute with these 6 (and they're attached to the ice, so they're not coming off)...
Forwards
Alexei Kovalev
- One of the few Habs that could match the skill of the Red Wings tonight. Detroit obviously has a great team, but if you look closely they are also carrying a lot of dead weight; Downey, Drake, Cleary, Ellis etc. Alex was able to exploit the Red Wings' weaknesses tonight and actually drew a few penalties which is always a great play
Andrei Kostitsyn
- Along with Kovalev and Plekanec Andrei was a threat for the Habs tonight. We definitely didn't have too many shots on net, but the chances were there. Kostitsyn showed off his very quick release tonight with a couple of very good shots, but Hasek was up to the test
Saku Koivu
- Good game for the skipper despite the loss. Streit and Higgins were his linemates for most of the game until Mark commited an error in the defensive zone that led to Detroit's second goal - the game-winner. After that point Koivu's line changed with every shift. I'm sure Saku is like me - I don't care who Koivu plays with, just let it last more than 1 period at a time
Defencemen
Mike Komisarek
- It was a quiet game from Mike tonight, which for a defenceman is a good thing. He has now been paired with Hamrlik for a few games which may be beacsue of Markov's injury. Unfortunately for Andrei that leaves him with Brisebois so look for his +/- to plumet. Some good hits for Komi with some solid defensive-end play, ended up +1
Roman Hamrlik
- Roman and Komi were the only two + players for us tonight. This partnership looks very good, but shows again that the Habs need a 4th top 4 D-man to play in the top two pairings - if only we had, I don't know, a player who is the captain of his country's team, who may have beaten Canada...Hammer played more than any other Hab, looked good in both ends
Goaltender
Jaroslav Halak
- I don't just want to get in the habit of putting the back-up in here if we lose, but tonight I think it is the right call. Halak was called up because Price was sick, then all of a sudden Huet gets retroactively injured, so Price is back in. Halak has a great home record and has nothing to lose at this point. I feel that a start for Jaro would have been the right thing tonight. Price didn't play horrible, but he didn't play that well either. He continues to look very ordinary so far in his career making me wonder if his stock is maybe falling? If we ever want to improve this team it will have to be via trades and if you trade while your player's stock is low you get ripped off. (Theodore - Aebischer, Riberio - Niniimaa). At some point something has to give bewteen these 3 keepers, now is Halak's chance to show if we actually have a problem
Eyes on Kovalev
Did he flit and float? Someone ought to keep track...
Alex played his usual game tonight, very much the game you would expect from him at this point in the season. This game was very fast as Detroit set the tempo early and Kovalev was one of the few forwards who could match the cadence. He came very close to tying it up on the PP, but missed the net, but again at least the chances were there.
Kovalev's Assessment - Good
Overall Comments
The game was fast, was fun and believe it or not was close. Until the end of the second I really thought the Habs would find a way to win. The bad thing is that the Habs just can't seem to come from behind this year. Last year throughout the early part of the year you could count on them coming back to force OT and then generally going on to win, but we aren't so fortunate this year. Scoring the first goal seems to be the way to go about it these days, back to way it was before the lock-out. The good news is there are usually more penalties called in the 1st than in the other periods, so scoring 1st, on the PP, should be doable for us.
Tonight's game started with a nice tribute to the Red Wings-Canadiens rivarly. I couldn't help but feel a bit of pride seeing Chelios, a former Hab captain, out there on the carpet with his ex-co-captain Guy Carbonneau. The Chelios-Savard trade obviously had a good short term gain for the Habs as Denis was a key ingredient for our '93 cup win. Just imagine, though, had we traded someone else for Savard and kept Chelios. If Chris was still with the Habs he would most certainly still be the captain making it 19 seasons as the skipper. How many more cups may we have won? Think of all the years where our defence was a right shambles (Laflamme, Traverse, Dirk, Baron, Popovic etc.), now imagine Chelios there to guide the way. I believe that he could have become a legend in the same mould as Harvey, Robinson or even Beliveau. It was great to see him in Montreal, even better to see him still playing, well done Chris! It was also nice to see former McGill Redmen captain Mike Babcock back in town. He was wearing McGill tie for the game which I found quite interesting. You would have thought, though, that a local boy might at least let us get one point!
The Canadiens had the effort tonight, but seem like they need some help out there. With the recent struggles of Ryder, Koivu, Smolinski etc. we area always leaving it to the same 2 or 3 guys each game. I would suggest calling up O'Byrne or Cote to play wing, afterall aren't defencemen the best wingers? You would have to think that that is what Carbo is thinking, or is it juts getting that hard to justify having Breezer in the lineup? How about Recchi or Selanne - both have had great success with Saku and both could probably be snatched up for a fair price. If we continue to play around the .500 mark over the next few weeks we have no need to worry, but if we drop below that then I think that it may be time for a re-shuffle. Like Topham said - stay in the mix right until March and give ourselves a legitimate shot at the playoffs, I think we all knew that 4th overall was a little beyond us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)