Richards, Carter. Gone, gone.
This good news for the Habs is ostensibly bad news for the Flyers and their fans. Richards and Carter were a big part of the Flyers success and a huge reason the team ever got close to a Stanley Cup without a goalie.
But that's where it all goes wrong isn't it?
Without a goalie.
For most teams, not having a good goalie is a problem. For Philadelphia it's a brain-devouring complex. That's why instead of applying a bit of patience and recognizing what a good thing they may have pulled from thin air in Bobrovsky, they went out and did what they always did and signed, signed, signed.
Bryzgalov is a good goalie, don't get me wrong. I like him, I like his chances in Philly. But you will note that Anaheim let him go, that Phoenix let him go, that Phoenix doesn't have any Cups.
A goalie simply can't do it all. Let me rephrase that, a goalie not named Thomas or Hasek can't do it all. A team needs to put talent at all positions and use their salary allowance wisely to do that.
Philly's real problems
A lot of articles on yesterday's trades say things like "Holmgren managed to unload Carter's long-term contract/Richards salary cap millstone".
I think these comments are way off the mark. Both players were paid in the $5 million range and both performed to the level of their salary, which in the world of guys paid that much means they were bargains.
What's more, the salary cap hasn't been going anywhere but up, even through the worst financial period in modern US/Canadian history. As the proportion that a $5 million salary takes up shrinks, the better a long-term deal for a producing player paid at that level looks.
Saying nothing about intangibles at all, I can firmly say that Richards and Carter were not the salary cap problems in Philadelphia. If anything, they were among the contracts that permitted them to spend with abandon at times.
The real problems in Philly come in at the back end.
The Pronger deal wasn't expensive at the time, but it was a gaffe to sign him long-term past his 35th birthday. This contract is central to their problem.
Timonen is another. If Price/Halak was a luxury, Pronger/Timonen was a bigger one. Both players are paid to be #1 Dmen, but the name implies there can only be one #1 Dman. The other became the most expensive second fiddle in the league.
And it didn't stop there. Rather than fill out a roster like everyone else in the league would with prospects and a couple of cheaper contracts at the back (to defend other teams' fourth lines), Holmgren put $3 million players at every hole.
The Flyers biggest cap problem was their luxury defense, which got them 7th best D in the East with 6 less GA than Florida.
Other than their $22 million defence corps, Philly also took on the dead weight contract of Kris Versteeg. In fact, they repeated their luxury buying attitude up front with a third line that included double millionaires all around.
Fix is temporary
Philly found a temporary fix for immediate cap space, but based on the Bryzgalov signing, it won't be used for prudent and conservative rebuilding. In fact, when the grossly overpaid forward comes in as the replacement for Carter/Richards, fans will most likely be wondering what these deals were for.
Habs news more encouraging
The Habs did better in the last couple of days with their signings and seem less likely to implode their plan and go schizophrenically down the garden path. While I'll always lament Gauthier for not getting in on action like Ville Leino or Andrej Meszaros, I at least admire his commitment to the plan he thought was working last spring. Holmgren on the other hand...
The Flyers moves do also serve the Habs well since this team was a chief rival and those two players were chief nemeses. Some fans will point to the danger of the rebuild for the Habs more distant future, but the contracts at the back, together with the quick trigger of Holmgren seem to provide the insurance that this team won't be a perennial problem.
I guess this whole thing just shows that making a cap mess will catch up with your team at some point. Chicago's mess cost them a lot, but they have a Cup to show for it. Philly, mere games away, just got a mess.
Showing posts with label Carter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carter. Show all posts
Friday, June 24, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
The Flyers Success Story
Building Tips For The Habs
The Canadiens and the Flyers meet for the fourth time this season. This time, the Stanley Cup finalists sit on top of the NHL (tied with Vancouver) and are doing it with offense.
The game promises to be a good one (they often are in this rivalry), but aside from that, it’s a chance for Canadiens fans to glimpse a very well-put together NHL outfit for the last time in the regular season. Why well put together?
It’s been noted here before, and elsewhere, that balance has been a key with the Flyers. Their top three centres on some nights are Daniel Briere, Jeff Carter and Mike Richards. All first round picks, all having great seasons. Their wings are just as deep with Claude Giroux (the envy of a province), Scott Hartnell, Ville Leino, James van Riemsdyk and Nikolai Zherdev.
Surely a team like this would suffer at the back? Nope. Pronger, Timonen, Carle, Meszaros, Coburn and O’Donnell at its healthful best.
It’s a line-up with oodles of pre-professional pedigree and experience (10 first rounders) to go with their recently gained Stanley Cup teeth.
When one looks at this team, one has to wonder how Philadelphia came out on top over Atlanta, Florida, Islanders, and other perennial lottery seekers. They’ve had their high first rounders (Pitkanen, van Riemsdyk), but Philly has built this group through hard work, some good drafting and a commitment to a formula. I think there are some good lessons for Montreal managers here:
1) Big draft coming – be ready
2003 was one of the most talent laden drafts in the history of the NHL. There’s hardly a player drafted in that first round who hasn’t played in the NHL. It has more than its fair share of stars. Montreal media will never tire of telling us about how Andrei Kostitsyn (picked 10th) could have been Jeff Carter, or Mike Richards, or Zach Parise. Philly was one of a few teams that positioned themselves superbly for this draft. Prior to it taking place, they managed to turn Daymond Langkow into a first rounder from Phoenix. In doing so, they nabbed the #11 pick. In addition, they accumulated 7 picks in the top 3 rounds. Doing this affords a team with the freedom to cater to more scouts and take chances, while leaving those annoyingly unsuccessful hole-filling picks for later rounds.
2006 was the same story, deep draft and Philly was there with a boatload of picks. I’m not sure the Flyers go for Giroux at that time in the first round (their D was a big, big weakness) without the surety of 5 picks in the first 3 rounds.
Montreal’s done an OK job of this in the past (and 2003 and 2006 were pretty good hauls for them too), but this lesson just needs to be drilled in a little more.
2) Draft forwards, acquire defencemen
The best forwards are young, fast and dynamic. The best defencemen are old wise and efficient. It’s right there for NHL GMs to see, yet some still insist on picking defensive defencemen in early rounds (Komisarek, Fischer, Tinordi).
Philly has about 8 dynamic scoring forwards, any or all of which could score 30 goals. Add 9-goal Nodl and that’s nine. Of the nine, 4 are Philly first rounders, Nodl is a second rounder. Yes they added Briere, Leino and Zherdev through a variety of means, but their core is from their own scouting and commitment.
The contrast is their defence. Pronger (trade and sign), Timonen (trade and sign), Coburn (trade), Meszaros (trade), Carle (trade), O’Donnell (sign). Not a draft pick there.
Since the Pitkanen choice in 2002, Philly has had 6 first round picks. 5 were forwards. 6 times in 8 drafts their first selection was a forward. The Habs are all over the map in their first round strategy. Scoring has been a need for as long as I can remember (2008 was a blip, I admit) and the team is still drafting big Dmen.
3) Don’t be precious about prospects
Philly has had its fair share of name prospects pass through over the years. Once they may have been precious about them, but their recent attitude seems to treat them like assets until they are established. Pitkanen keeps getting mentioned and he was one. He was turned into Lupul, essentially. Other prospects that have been leveraged include Upshall, Sbisa and Lupul himself. A sentimentalist might have kept these and missed the opportunity their trading presented.
Montreal fans get very precious about prospects. Some still lament McDonagh and Valentenko. No one wants to throw away a prospect in a bad trade, but holding onto an average prospect may leave you with an average team.
4) Salary cap, schmalary cap
I’ve said cap space is overrated. Philly walks the walk. They pay the price for big parts of a team and they often go very close or over the cap. On at least one occasion, they’ve had to call in amateurs to avoid actually exceeding the payroll limit.
With penalties for going over so slack, and opportunities to bury salary in long recoveries from injury, it seems one way to create good depth is to rehab a ton of salary for the playoffs. Montreal missed the boat on this by pressing Markov to return and not insisting earlier on Gorges’ surgery. Both might have been available for later along with the depth their salary space would have left. Instead, Montreal lines the Molsons pockets as it carries cap space month over month.
5) Goaltender not cast as hero/savior, a real possibility
Philly doesn’t just happen into these goalies, they have made the choice to put money elsewhere. This year it’s Leighton, Boucher and Bobrovsky, last year it was Emery and co., Biron before that, and on into eternity. Philly hasn’t been able to hold a candle to the goaltending the Canadiens have put forward in the last two decades. Yet Philly has often been contending and making deep playoff runs, while goalie-driven Montreal has not.
Having a good goalie is not a weakness, but perhaps overpaying for one is. Turning goalie money into an extra goal for a game will pay the bills when good = 92% of saves and bad = 90% of saves.
This article could be way off. Philly made the Stanley Cup final last year, yes. But they barely made the playoffs and didn’t really beat anyone too good (sorry Habs fans). What’s more, their 69 points today is actually only 10 points out of 7th (hello Montreal) and their lack of goaltending could yet topple them from their perch.
Still, I think these lessons are good ones. They are not the only rules of operation, but rather 5 among many that Philly have exploited to find a bit of success and bottle it. They’re also good ones as there’s nothing stopping a team like Montreal from approaching things from this way right away. No one is saying they need to lose for 6 seasons (Oilers) to win, or anything.
The game promises to be a good one (they often are in this rivalry), but aside from that, it’s a chance for Canadiens fans to glimpse a very well-put together NHL outfit for the last time in the regular season. Why well put together?
It’s been noted here before, and elsewhere, that balance has been a key with the Flyers. Their top three centres on some nights are Daniel Briere, Jeff Carter and Mike Richards. All first round picks, all having great seasons. Their wings are just as deep with Claude Giroux (the envy of a province), Scott Hartnell, Ville Leino, James van Riemsdyk and Nikolai Zherdev.
Surely a team like this would suffer at the back? Nope. Pronger, Timonen, Carle, Meszaros, Coburn and O’Donnell at its healthful best.
It’s a line-up with oodles of pre-professional pedigree and experience (10 first rounders) to go with their recently gained Stanley Cup teeth.
When one looks at this team, one has to wonder how Philadelphia came out on top over Atlanta, Florida, Islanders, and other perennial lottery seekers. They’ve had their high first rounders (Pitkanen, van Riemsdyk), but Philly has built this group through hard work, some good drafting and a commitment to a formula. I think there are some good lessons for Montreal managers here:
1) Big draft coming – be ready
2003 was one of the most talent laden drafts in the history of the NHL. There’s hardly a player drafted in that first round who hasn’t played in the NHL. It has more than its fair share of stars. Montreal media will never tire of telling us about how Andrei Kostitsyn (picked 10th) could have been Jeff Carter, or Mike Richards, or Zach Parise. Philly was one of a few teams that positioned themselves superbly for this draft. Prior to it taking place, they managed to turn Daymond Langkow into a first rounder from Phoenix. In doing so, they nabbed the #11 pick. In addition, they accumulated 7 picks in the top 3 rounds. Doing this affords a team with the freedom to cater to more scouts and take chances, while leaving those annoyingly unsuccessful hole-filling picks for later rounds.
2006 was the same story, deep draft and Philly was there with a boatload of picks. I’m not sure the Flyers go for Giroux at that time in the first round (their D was a big, big weakness) without the surety of 5 picks in the first 3 rounds.
Montreal’s done an OK job of this in the past (and 2003 and 2006 were pretty good hauls for them too), but this lesson just needs to be drilled in a little more.
2) Draft forwards, acquire defencemen
The best forwards are young, fast and dynamic. The best defencemen are old wise and efficient. It’s right there for NHL GMs to see, yet some still insist on picking defensive defencemen in early rounds (Komisarek, Fischer, Tinordi).
Philly has about 8 dynamic scoring forwards, any or all of which could score 30 goals. Add 9-goal Nodl and that’s nine. Of the nine, 4 are Philly first rounders, Nodl is a second rounder. Yes they added Briere, Leino and Zherdev through a variety of means, but their core is from their own scouting and commitment.
The contrast is their defence. Pronger (trade and sign), Timonen (trade and sign), Coburn (trade), Meszaros (trade), Carle (trade), O’Donnell (sign). Not a draft pick there.
Since the Pitkanen choice in 2002, Philly has had 6 first round picks. 5 were forwards. 6 times in 8 drafts their first selection was a forward. The Habs are all over the map in their first round strategy. Scoring has been a need for as long as I can remember (2008 was a blip, I admit) and the team is still drafting big Dmen.
3) Don’t be precious about prospects
Philly has had its fair share of name prospects pass through over the years. Once they may have been precious about them, but their recent attitude seems to treat them like assets until they are established. Pitkanen keeps getting mentioned and he was one. He was turned into Lupul, essentially. Other prospects that have been leveraged include Upshall, Sbisa and Lupul himself. A sentimentalist might have kept these and missed the opportunity their trading presented.
Montreal fans get very precious about prospects. Some still lament McDonagh and Valentenko. No one wants to throw away a prospect in a bad trade, but holding onto an average prospect may leave you with an average team.
4) Salary cap, schmalary cap
I’ve said cap space is overrated. Philly walks the walk. They pay the price for big parts of a team and they often go very close or over the cap. On at least one occasion, they’ve had to call in amateurs to avoid actually exceeding the payroll limit.
With penalties for going over so slack, and opportunities to bury salary in long recoveries from injury, it seems one way to create good depth is to rehab a ton of salary for the playoffs. Montreal missed the boat on this by pressing Markov to return and not insisting earlier on Gorges’ surgery. Both might have been available for later along with the depth their salary space would have left. Instead, Montreal lines the Molsons pockets as it carries cap space month over month.
5) Goaltender not cast as hero/savior, a real possibility
Philly doesn’t just happen into these goalies, they have made the choice to put money elsewhere. This year it’s Leighton, Boucher and Bobrovsky, last year it was Emery and co., Biron before that, and on into eternity. Philly hasn’t been able to hold a candle to the goaltending the Canadiens have put forward in the last two decades. Yet Philly has often been contending and making deep playoff runs, while goalie-driven Montreal has not.
Having a good goalie is not a weakness, but perhaps overpaying for one is. Turning goalie money into an extra goal for a game will pay the bills when good = 92% of saves and bad = 90% of saves.
This article could be way off. Philly made the Stanley Cup final last year, yes. But they barely made the playoffs and didn’t really beat anyone too good (sorry Habs fans). What’s more, their 69 points today is actually only 10 points out of 7th (hello Montreal) and their lack of goaltending could yet topple them from their perch.
Still, I think these lessons are good ones. They are not the only rules of operation, but rather 5 among many that Philly have exploited to find a bit of success and bottle it. They’re also good ones as there’s nothing stopping a team like Montreal from approaching things from this way right away. No one is saying they need to lose for 6 seasons (Oilers) to win, or anything.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
The Auld Enemy
Flyers Preview
Ever since the Flyers have existed, they have been the enemy of the Montreal Canadiens. The city that was once home to some of the greatest intellectuals the world has seen now has a hockey team that leaves intellectuals cold.
If Montreal builds hockey teams that inspire poetry (maybe not lately), then Philly has always been a tabloid team. The two philosophies may never be reconciled, but when they intersect, it is always interesting. So tonight.
Key match-ups
Montreal goalie vs. Philadelphia shots
No matter the record, the momentum, two of the last three playoff exits happened because Montreal goalies went stone cold when facing Philadelphia shots. Some might dismiss this as simple coincidence, as luck catching up with people. I wonder as Philly locks up another sharpshooting duo, whether it's so simple.
Plekanec vs. Pronger
Plekanec is the best player on the Canadiens. Pronger (given the right refereeing) is the best at his trade. Last playoffs, Plekanec was not his regular season self under the stifling Philly blanket. This game is a chance to prove either a) he has learned from that, or b) refereeing is critical to how this match-up goes.
Picard and Mike Richards
Throwing Picard out against most teams' third lines is a relatively safe bet. You get the match up, you can limit his exposure to true skill. Philly has depth with Carter, Briere and Richards down the middle to go with Giroux (11 goals), Leino, Hartnell, Zherdev and van Riemsdyk. I'm only going by message board lines for Richards, but any third line pair from those 8 poses a challenge.
Price vs. Bobrovsky
The NHL first star of the week and the NHL rookie of the year to date. As Montreal revels in their goaltending choice, Philly may at long last finally be revelling in a good decision at the back end. Bobrovsky brings in a 2.01 and 0.930 in 14 games , so this should be a match-up of two of the hottest so far this year.
Momentum
Montreal had something very good building until that crushing knee collision. With Markov firing, this team was quietly and not so quietly dominating games. Philly has their own, of course. They haven't lost in November (fully) and have scared the league with their out-of-town scoreboard updates. It's two hot teams, tow hot goalies, but only one having to deal with the loss of a keystone player. Advantage Philly on momentum.
Flyers the Habs covet
Claude Giroux
If Pierre Gauthier could have his scouts redo one pick in his tenure, it might be this one. Kostitsyn vs. Carter or Richards, well at least Kostitsyn plays. Mr. High School Hockey vs. Franco-Ontarian QMJHL scoring star, now that's a flub. His 11 goals lead one of the most solid teams in the NHL. Fischer plays for the Florida Everblades...
Andrej Meszaros
The Canadiens have thrown around second round picks like it's nobody's business recently, but they have never made one into a defender like Meszaros. Meszaros is expensive, but he has potential and youth. After this season when Hamrlik, Gill and others depart, starting a stable with someone like Meszaros beside Subban would feel better than say Mathieu Carle.
Habs the Flyers covet
Josh Gorges
The Flyers have names on D, but if they have a weakness it may be there lack of quiet (and cheaper) efficiency. Josh Gorges is what they need to complement their big D.
Carey Price
Bobrovsky or not, the Flyers could use Price. He's more seasoned than the rookie Russian (as they look to contend now) and it wouldn't hurt his skills to practice against the shooters he has most trouble with.
Impact of this result
Both teams at this point will shrug off a loss quite easily. Both teams are just about due. The value of winning in Montreal may be greater due to the playoff hangover and the feeling that the Habs have won against the lesser crowd so far (I don't agree with the latter). The impact of a win for Philly may be the firming up of an Achilles heel for the Montrealers, depending on the result.
If Montreal builds hockey teams that inspire poetry (maybe not lately), then Philly has always been a tabloid team. The two philosophies may never be reconciled, but when they intersect, it is always interesting. So tonight.
Key match-ups
Montreal goalie vs. Philadelphia shots
No matter the record, the momentum, two of the last three playoff exits happened because Montreal goalies went stone cold when facing Philadelphia shots. Some might dismiss this as simple coincidence, as luck catching up with people. I wonder as Philly locks up another sharpshooting duo, whether it's so simple.
Plekanec vs. Pronger
Plekanec is the best player on the Canadiens. Pronger (given the right refereeing) is the best at his trade. Last playoffs, Plekanec was not his regular season self under the stifling Philly blanket. This game is a chance to prove either a) he has learned from that, or b) refereeing is critical to how this match-up goes.
Picard and Mike Richards
Throwing Picard out against most teams' third lines is a relatively safe bet. You get the match up, you can limit his exposure to true skill. Philly has depth with Carter, Briere and Richards down the middle to go with Giroux (11 goals), Leino, Hartnell, Zherdev and van Riemsdyk. I'm only going by message board lines for Richards, but any third line pair from those 8 poses a challenge.
Price vs. Bobrovsky
The NHL first star of the week and the NHL rookie of the year to date. As Montreal revels in their goaltending choice, Philly may at long last finally be revelling in a good decision at the back end. Bobrovsky brings in a 2.01 and 0.930 in 14 games , so this should be a match-up of two of the hottest so far this year.
Momentum
Montreal had something very good building until that crushing knee collision. With Markov firing, this team was quietly and not so quietly dominating games. Philly has their own, of course. They haven't lost in November (fully) and have scared the league with their out-of-town scoreboard updates. It's two hot teams, tow hot goalies, but only one having to deal with the loss of a keystone player. Advantage Philly on momentum.
Flyers the Habs covet
Claude Giroux
If Pierre Gauthier could have his scouts redo one pick in his tenure, it might be this one. Kostitsyn vs. Carter or Richards, well at least Kostitsyn plays. Mr. High School Hockey vs. Franco-Ontarian QMJHL scoring star, now that's a flub. His 11 goals lead one of the most solid teams in the NHL. Fischer plays for the Florida Everblades...
Andrej Meszaros
The Canadiens have thrown around second round picks like it's nobody's business recently, but they have never made one into a defender like Meszaros. Meszaros is expensive, but he has potential and youth. After this season when Hamrlik, Gill and others depart, starting a stable with someone like Meszaros beside Subban would feel better than say Mathieu Carle.
Habs the Flyers covet
Josh Gorges
The Flyers have names on D, but if they have a weakness it may be there lack of quiet (and cheaper) efficiency. Josh Gorges is what they need to complement their big D.
Carey Price
Bobrovsky or not, the Flyers could use Price. He's more seasoned than the rookie Russian (as they look to contend now) and it wouldn't hurt his skills to practice against the shooters he has most trouble with.
Impact of this result
Both teams at this point will shrug off a loss quite easily. Both teams are just about due. The value of winning in Montreal may be greater due to the playoff hangover and the feeling that the Habs have won against the lesser crowd so far (I don't agree with the latter). The impact of a win for Philly may be the firming up of an Achilles heel for the Montrealers, depending on the result.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Information Leak
Tanguay Not Priority One
With Canadiens info as rare this month as a Russian source for La Presse with credibility, it is with some glee that I can add this latest rumour to the mix.
The Fourth Period (with a record credible enough for me) has signalled that Alex Tanguay's agent has had contact with Bob Gainey. According to the report, it happened (briefly) this Wednesday. Not very interesting in itself, the juicy part of the report was this quote from Tangauy's agent, Bob Sauve:
Another priority?
For the sake of our amusement, I am going to assume that this priority is not the sale of the team. For one thing, it will be more fun. For another, if Gainey is unable to think about re-signing players for the Montreal Canadiens because the prospective owners might be in disagreement – this will be the last fun we will have for the forseeable future.
So, a player of higher priority. It's worth reminding ourselves of the possibilities:
1) The Canadiens have 10 pending UFAs they could re-sign
The total without Tanguay, of course, is 9. They are, to refresh our memories: Koivu, Kovalev, Lang, Kostopoulos, Schneider, Komisarek, Bouillon, Dandenault and Brisebois.
If Tanguay is not the priority, Gainey could be looking at Koivu, Kovalev or possibly Komisarek. I think we could rule out Kostopoulos, Brisebois, Bouillon and Dandenault as first signing of the summer. It would be terrible PR, not to mention a poor example of team building. ONly Koivu and Kovalev are realistic after Komo's brutal displays of hit-rather-than-defend.
2) The Canadiens have 5 pending RFAs to re-sign
These guys don't have to be signed by July 1, so traditionally if not signed by now, they'll wait to see what the post-UFA kitty looks like. I don't see that being different this season. The guys are: Plekanec, Higgins, Latendresse, Chipchura and D'Agostini.
3) The Canadiens have long been rumoured to be working on a deal for Lecavalier
This possibility fits as precedent to Tanguay. No use ruling out a good big trade by handing too much money over to a free agent right now.
4) The Canadiens will be signing new UFAs
There's no doubt the Habs will have to bring in new blood if and when they don't re-sign all the outgoing. Gainey might be making July 1 his priority. The one thing that makes me think this less likely is that this strategy would be an awful risk as some targets could yet re-sign with former teams. Gainey may be a lot of things, but risk-taker? Not that I recall.
5) The oft-ignored possibility of trading up in the draft
Just because Gainey hasn't been talking up his ability to trade up since January, it doesn't mean he wouldn't consider it. Players like Tavares, and my preference, Hedman don't come along every year. Whatever one can give for Lecavalier might be enough to move.
6) The Canadiens have another trade in the works
The Habs aren't restricted to dealing for Lecavalier, despite what the media might wish for. We've heard rumblings about Daniel Briere (please no!); but then there could be others: Kovalchuk, Heatley, Doan, Morrow or anyone else you could dream up. All four here can be sourced to my keyboard, but with $25 million to spare, no one is out of bounds, at least for enquiry.
7) Nothing gets done until the exact salary cap number is known
Carries the risk of the waiting for UFAs, as other teams might not operate with such caution as they snap up players who are worth snapping up. The thing that scares me is that Gainey is sometimes this cautious.
8) Tanguay's rights could be traded as a commodity
This is by far the more far-fetched idea. We know that Tanguay signed and delivered only drew a couple of picks for Calgary last spring. Tanguay unsigned in a bull market – that's a low pick, isn't it?
If you take a look at Tanguay, the player, it's perhaps not too surprising that he isn't priority number one for an NHL team – especially one that could be looking for a number one centre and right wing if they sign him as the cornerstone player. However, being Montreal, and the fact that Tanguay does carry the favoured trait of fluency for RDS's second intermission interview; one could see how the French Canadian might have been at least equal top among free agents.
Perhaps it's the romantic in me, but I tend to believe that Bob Sauve's statement indicates trade. The pessimist in me is clearly at play too, as I can't see the Montreal Canadiens asking Tanguay to hold on while they sign this hockey fan's choice of the UFAs – Saku Koivu.
The trade just adds up. But which trade will it be?
Personally, I think the Lecavalier trade is too difficult. I think Tampa will overvalue their centre and will play Montreal off other suitors. I would be surprised if Gainey pulled it off while keeping a grasp on any semblance of his reputation as a good hockey GM.
Lost in all the Lecavalier talk, though, is the clear willingness of Gainey and his team to significantly re-jig their outfit. When a GM is willing to toss in prospects and young players as he clearly was based on previous Vinny leaks, then the transferability to another deal is oh so very do-able.
Discarding the Vinny trade means opening the NHL up in its entirety, with endless targets. But being that we're sensible and like to discuss, let's come up with a list (based on some logic) as to who Tanguay is waiting for here...
My 5 aspirational targets are:
Ilya Kovalchuk
Dany Heatley
Jeff Carter
Ales Hemsky
Number one or two pick 2009
... and for good measure, Martin St Louis (the consistent option from Tampa)
A lot to draw from two sentences. Maybe they were very telling. Then again, maybe two months without a game isn't healthy...
The Fourth Period (with a record credible enough for me) has signalled that Alex Tanguay's agent has had contact with Bob Gainey. According to the report, it happened (briefly) this Wednesday. Not very interesting in itself, the juicy part of the report was this quote from Tangauy's agent, Bob Sauve:
"I had a discussion with Bob Gainey yesterday and the Canadiens currently have another priority," Sauve told CKAC. "We'll wait for that priority [to be taken care of] and then the Canadiens will speak to us about Alex."
Another priority?
For the sake of our amusement, I am going to assume that this priority is not the sale of the team. For one thing, it will be more fun. For another, if Gainey is unable to think about re-signing players for the Montreal Canadiens because the prospective owners might be in disagreement – this will be the last fun we will have for the forseeable future.
So, a player of higher priority. It's worth reminding ourselves of the possibilities:
1) The Canadiens have 10 pending UFAs they could re-sign
The total without Tanguay, of course, is 9. They are, to refresh our memories: Koivu, Kovalev, Lang, Kostopoulos, Schneider, Komisarek, Bouillon, Dandenault and Brisebois.
If Tanguay is not the priority, Gainey could be looking at Koivu, Kovalev or possibly Komisarek. I think we could rule out Kostopoulos, Brisebois, Bouillon and Dandenault as first signing of the summer. It would be terrible PR, not to mention a poor example of team building. ONly Koivu and Kovalev are realistic after Komo's brutal displays of hit-rather-than-defend.
2) The Canadiens have 5 pending RFAs to re-sign
These guys don't have to be signed by July 1, so traditionally if not signed by now, they'll wait to see what the post-UFA kitty looks like. I don't see that being different this season. The guys are: Plekanec, Higgins, Latendresse, Chipchura and D'Agostini.
3) The Canadiens have long been rumoured to be working on a deal for Lecavalier
This possibility fits as precedent to Tanguay. No use ruling out a good big trade by handing too much money over to a free agent right now.
4) The Canadiens will be signing new UFAs
There's no doubt the Habs will have to bring in new blood if and when they don't re-sign all the outgoing. Gainey might be making July 1 his priority. The one thing that makes me think this less likely is that this strategy would be an awful risk as some targets could yet re-sign with former teams. Gainey may be a lot of things, but risk-taker? Not that I recall.
5) The oft-ignored possibility of trading up in the draft
Just because Gainey hasn't been talking up his ability to trade up since January, it doesn't mean he wouldn't consider it. Players like Tavares, and my preference, Hedman don't come along every year. Whatever one can give for Lecavalier might be enough to move.
6) The Canadiens have another trade in the works
The Habs aren't restricted to dealing for Lecavalier, despite what the media might wish for. We've heard rumblings about Daniel Briere (please no!); but then there could be others: Kovalchuk, Heatley, Doan, Morrow or anyone else you could dream up. All four here can be sourced to my keyboard, but with $25 million to spare, no one is out of bounds, at least for enquiry.
7) Nothing gets done until the exact salary cap number is known
Carries the risk of the waiting for UFAs, as other teams might not operate with such caution as they snap up players who are worth snapping up. The thing that scares me is that Gainey is sometimes this cautious.
8) Tanguay's rights could be traded as a commodity
This is by far the more far-fetched idea. We know that Tanguay signed and delivered only drew a couple of picks for Calgary last spring. Tanguay unsigned in a bull market – that's a low pick, isn't it?
If you take a look at Tanguay, the player, it's perhaps not too surprising that he isn't priority number one for an NHL team – especially one that could be looking for a number one centre and right wing if they sign him as the cornerstone player. However, being Montreal, and the fact that Tanguay does carry the favoured trait of fluency for RDS's second intermission interview; one could see how the French Canadian might have been at least equal top among free agents.
Perhaps it's the romantic in me, but I tend to believe that Bob Sauve's statement indicates trade. The pessimist in me is clearly at play too, as I can't see the Montreal Canadiens asking Tanguay to hold on while they sign this hockey fan's choice of the UFAs – Saku Koivu.
The trade just adds up. But which trade will it be?
Personally, I think the Lecavalier trade is too difficult. I think Tampa will overvalue their centre and will play Montreal off other suitors. I would be surprised if Gainey pulled it off while keeping a grasp on any semblance of his reputation as a good hockey GM.
Lost in all the Lecavalier talk, though, is the clear willingness of Gainey and his team to significantly re-jig their outfit. When a GM is willing to toss in prospects and young players as he clearly was based on previous Vinny leaks, then the transferability to another deal is oh so very do-able.
Discarding the Vinny trade means opening the NHL up in its entirety, with endless targets. But being that we're sensible and like to discuss, let's come up with a list (based on some logic) as to who Tanguay is waiting for here...
My 5 aspirational targets are:
Ilya Kovalchuk
Dany Heatley
Jeff Carter
Ales Hemsky
Number one or two pick 2009
... and for good measure, Martin St Louis (the consistent option from Tampa)
A lot to draw from two sentences. Maybe they were very telling. Then again, maybe two months without a game isn't healthy...
Monday, November 17, 2008
PR Machine
Georges Fight Anyone
PR Machine
Georges Fight Anyone
Someone has their eyes on the blogs, their ears on the talk shows. Someone before Saturday night's game told Georges Laraque he must fight.
It was pure PR. A stupid ploy to entice back the most willing of fans.
But honestly? How easy do they think we are?
Our opinions on Laraque were a little better rooted than that, weren't they? (En Route Pour La Coupe, The Other Wing, and me).
I didn't bite when Laraque fought Josh Gratton. His fight was not part of the game.
Am I hard to please? Maybe. Perhaps some of you would say impossible to please. But Laraque's fight did not answer any of the concerns that we all expressed in our well considered arguments. He did not intimidate anyone, he did not respond to any incident. All he did was throw a body check on the only guy on the ice he could catch (Andrew Alberts). He was then confronted by Gratton (incensed at the hit (and not the least bit intimidated of Big Georges!!!) and had to fight. It might as well have been orchestrated in its meaningless effect on the game.
I'd like to say that Laraque's got a long way to go to impress this blogger. Quite a hole to get out of from his supremely ineffectual first 20% of the season. Fred like me is not enthralled...
Flyers just big, not bad
Incidentally, did anyone else notice the Flyers used the exact same game plan they had used in the playoffs against us – I guess it's too much to expect Carbonneau to revise his own plan a mere 6 months after the playoffs – a plan that worked in just the same way.
The Canadiens forwards were crowded and ushered to the boards every time they entered the zone. They were rushed into passes. In the defensive zone, the Flyers forwards merely made sure they made every dump in recovery a battle.
The Flyers, nominally not that much biger than the Habs, used their big players well – targetting our small guys in mismatched battles (a coaching strategy?? I thought you were only allowed to changes lines...). They did not play dirty. And once again they showed us how to shoot.
In contrast, we helped Biron look like an NHL goalie again by repeatedly shooting from bad positions and at chest height.
This seesm to be the recipe for success against us now (not roughing us up). I wonder how long it will take our coach to catch on with his line-up selection (I'm looking at you Georges) and maybe even some new ideas one of these days.
I suspect it'll be a while.
It was pure PR. A stupid ploy to entice back the most willing of fans.
But honestly? How easy do they think we are?
Our opinions on Laraque were a little better rooted than that, weren't they? (En Route Pour La Coupe, The Other Wing, and me).
I didn't bite when Laraque fought Josh Gratton. His fight was not part of the game.
Am I hard to please? Maybe. Perhaps some of you would say impossible to please. But Laraque's fight did not answer any of the concerns that we all expressed in our well considered arguments. He did not intimidate anyone, he did not respond to any incident. All he did was throw a body check on the only guy on the ice he could catch (Andrew Alberts). He was then confronted by Gratton (incensed at the hit (and not the least bit intimidated of Big Georges!!!) and had to fight. It might as well have been orchestrated in its meaningless effect on the game.
I'd like to say that Laraque's got a long way to go to impress this blogger. Quite a hole to get out of from his supremely ineffectual first 20% of the season. Fred like me is not enthralled...
Flyers just big, not bad
Incidentally, did anyone else notice the Flyers used the exact same game plan they had used in the playoffs against us – I guess it's too much to expect Carbonneau to revise his own plan a mere 6 months after the playoffs – a plan that worked in just the same way.
The Canadiens forwards were crowded and ushered to the boards every time they entered the zone. They were rushed into passes. In the defensive zone, the Flyers forwards merely made sure they made every dump in recovery a battle.
The Flyers, nominally not that much biger than the Habs, used their big players well – targetting our small guys in mismatched battles (a coaching strategy?? I thought you were only allowed to changes lines...). They did not play dirty. And once again they showed us how to shoot.
In contrast, we helped Biron look like an NHL goalie again by repeatedly shooting from bad positions and at chest height.
This seesm to be the recipe for success against us now (not roughing us up). I wonder how long it will take our coach to catch on with his line-up selection (I'm looking at you Georges) and maybe even some new ideas one of these days.
I suspect it'll be a while.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Flyers Flop: Impostors Outed
Vengeance futile:
The Philadelphia Flyers and their ridiculous playoff marketing are out of the playoff
Flyers reporter Chuck Gormley, who forgot to revise his playoff report after the victory vs. the Habs, had this to say this morning:
Having ousted the Canadiens on the backs of two or three solid performers and a bit of fortune, the Flyers earned Gormley's accolades. But then they proceeded to turn around and throw up a brick against the favourite Penguins.
Hugely satisfying (and dissatisfying at once) to the Canadiens fan is to watch the very players who played playoff heroes two weeks ago outed for the impostors they are. I wouldn't say it brings me much comfort that Biron started letting in goals again or that Umberger returned to 13-goal form, but for posterity have a look at what we could have seen:
Umberger 0.20 goals per game vs. the Penguins
A return to close to his 0.18 goals per game of the regular season. The anomalous 1.60 goals per game against the Habs was just fortuitous timing after all.
Biron .876 save percentage
No more breakaway game savers here. He let in good goals, bad goals, powerplay goals even. It wasn't a return to normal (far worse), but anyone who purported he was a playoff calibre starter is seeing Cloutiers.
While the Flyers fans should be and are happy about going from 15th to runner-up in the East, the players, managers and reporters need to have a think about what happened in the last 5 games. There was this:
And this:
And then the pot calling the kettle black:
Pretty rich for a team that made the second round on a non-goal, scored on every meaningful shot they took in the second round and then faced a far superior opponent and proved just how superior they were. All quotes neglect to recognise that the Flyers are out because the Penguins are so so much better than their competition. This was not a bad luck semi-final. You don't lose a playoff round in 5 games on a 6-0 rout if you're unlucky. This was a mismatch through and through.
Canadiens management should take note as well. While our fans and management can take consolation in the fact that our team at least played as well if not better than their opponents before they went out – the same feeling would not pervade had the opponent been the Penguins.
However, Flyers fans should not take offence. Sure they were impostors for the Eastern conference championship, but I have a feeling 13 other teams would have looked the same this spring.
Hossa a Penguin or not, the teams in the East will need to do better to make the finals in upcoming seasons.
The Philadelphia Flyers and their ridiculous playoff marketing are out of the playoff
Flyers reporter Chuck Gormley, who forgot to revise his playoff report after the victory vs. the Habs, had this to say this morning:
In the process, the Flyers found a natural-born leader in Mike Richards, who justified his 12-year, $69 million contract by playing every shift in the playoffs as if it was his last.
In Marty Biron, they found a goaltender in his prime who could raise his level of play in the postseason.
In Jeff Carter and R.J. Umberger, they found two budding stars capable of producing clutch goals when the spotlight was at its hottest.
Having ousted the Canadiens on the backs of two or three solid performers and a bit of fortune, the Flyers earned Gormley's accolades. But then they proceeded to turn around and throw up a brick against the favourite Penguins.
Hugely satisfying (and dissatisfying at once) to the Canadiens fan is to watch the very players who played playoff heroes two weeks ago outed for the impostors they are. I wouldn't say it brings me much comfort that Biron started letting in goals again or that Umberger returned to 13-goal form, but for posterity have a look at what we could have seen:
Umberger 0.20 goals per game vs. the Penguins
A return to close to his 0.18 goals per game of the regular season. The anomalous 1.60 goals per game against the Habs was just fortuitous timing after all.
Biron .876 save percentage
No more breakaway game savers here. He let in good goals, bad goals, powerplay goals even. It wasn't a return to normal (far worse), but anyone who purported he was a playoff calibre starter is seeing Cloutiers.
While the Flyers fans should be and are happy about going from 15th to runner-up in the East, the players, managers and reporters need to have a think about what happened in the last 5 games. There was this:
It was a harsh reality for a close-knit group of guys that was only seven wins away from bringing Philadelphia its first championship since 1983.
And this:
They just ran into a hot team. Pittsburgh hasn’t lost in regulation at Mellon Arena since February, around the same time when they last lost back-to-back games.
And then the pot calling the kettle black:
“I think we really had a chance to beat these guys,” Scott Hartnell said. “The chances they had were because of our mistakes.”
Pretty rich for a team that made the second round on a non-goal, scored on every meaningful shot they took in the second round and then faced a far superior opponent and proved just how superior they were. All quotes neglect to recognise that the Flyers are out because the Penguins are so so much better than their competition. This was not a bad luck semi-final. You don't lose a playoff round in 5 games on a 6-0 rout if you're unlucky. This was a mismatch through and through.
Canadiens management should take note as well. While our fans and management can take consolation in the fact that our team at least played as well if not better than their opponents before they went out – the same feeling would not pervade had the opponent been the Penguins.
However, Flyers fans should not take offence. Sure they were impostors for the Eastern conference championship, but I have a feeling 13 other teams would have looked the same this spring.
Hossa a Penguin or not, the teams in the East will need to do better to make the finals in upcoming seasons.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Game #2-2: Flyers Dome
Big win for the Flyers last night. So why is it so hard to identify the men responsible? One of those nights, I guess.
Dome hockey team
They're going into the last minute with these 6 against the Montreal Canadiens (and they're attached to the ice, so they're not coming off)...
Forwards
Jeff Carter
– I've always been a bit indifferent to Jeff Carter when I've seen him. But I will say this, on the Flyers, he is looking like a pretty classy guy. That's saying next to nothing of course. Every half decent play from the Flyers last night was a result of something Jeff Carter did. And, fault Carey Price all you want, but if Plekanec was shooting like Carter did on his goal, we'd have won - a very good corner pick from a non-angle
R J Umberger
– if I'm indifferent about Carter, I would have to take that even farther for Umberger. I won't - that's how little I care. His 2-goal performance was memorable because though he scored the game breakers, he did virtually nothing else. An indication of how badly the Flyers forwards, in particular were outplayed, is his presence in the dome despite my disdain
Mike Richards
– he played quite poorly and got away with it - a perfect representative for his team. He played dirty and got away with it - again a perfect representative of his team. Maybe he's too busy thinking about his promised $80000 a game
Defencemen
Kimmo Timonen
- played well. He played the most of any Flyer, and actually looked good while doing it. He was not on the ice for any of the Canadiens goals, though he was on for plenty of chances. Mind you, he was on the ice for 3 Flyers goals as well. He has not had the impact Chara had in the previous series, but has been the best Flyer nonetheless
Randy Jones
- in the same way Hamrlik deserves a lot of credit for playing with Brisebois, so Jones with Hatcher. Hatcher can do what he does, but then it will take him a fair amount of time to get to where he needs to be next. Randy Jones, a bit more fleet of foot has helped this pairing to be an effective one. The two of them together are the reason we're all asking what has happened to Plekanec. A +2 performance with some decent stats to go with, get him in the dome
Goaltender
Marin Biron
- I was harsh to put Nittymaki in. Biron plays a solid game. While some of his spectacular saves in fact turn out to be misses or posts, he did make a couple of enormously important glove saves to stop the Canadiens comeback in its tracks (heard of the glove hand Carey? you can move it too). What e did best last night though was to make the easy saves. Every time Steve Begin, Mathieu Dandenault or some other non-goalscoring forward took a shot, it was a Canadiens turnover. This was thanks to solid positioning and preparedness from Biron. He has shown, it takes patience to get a goal past him - something the Canadiens do not seem to have at the moment. The first star for his team for certain
Friday, April 25, 2008
Eyes For The Flyers
Quite a game. Interesting – to say the least.
Tobalev will be coming through with his full review of the game soon, as real-life got in the way of his journalist hobby on this very rare occasion.
On one hand, the game was a low quality affair. Two of the Flyers goals were poor quality. The Kovalev bunt was questionable. On the other hand, it was just what the Canadiens needed – in some ways a wake up call, in other ways a chance to prove to themselves that they could come back after losing all the games where they were scored against first the past two weeks.
Still brimming with that ecstatic buzz you get from watching your team tie and win the game in an 80 second span, I decided to watch the opposing teams interviews from the post-game scrum.
Now, can someone explain to me how the Flyers players and coach to a man thought they vastly outplayed the Habs, but were victims of extremely bad luck?
John Stevens did his best Jose Mourinho impression, complaining at length about the Kovalev goal.
(Admittedly, to an untrained eye, it did look like Kovalev may have touched the puck above the crossbar. However, the video judges holed up in Toronto must surely have access to more cameras and stop-start technology than RDS provides on its broadcast. I will give them the benefit of the doubt on that decision – especially considering they err on the side of no-goal in situations with doubt)
More cock-eyed vision, as he then had a good go about the bad luck they had with Jeff Carter's broken stick. Fair enough, but John, you did get a goal off our defender and another off an "accidental" deflection off a skate. You weren't hard too hard done by on the luck front. What's more, Jeff Carter hardly missed his stick as Kovalev scored right off the faceoff.
You want lucky John? How about even being in the second round after that travesty of a goal that got you here? Or playing a coach who continues to stick with Dandenault and Brisebois beyond all reason?
My favourite interview, though, had to be Martin Biron who complains ad nauseum about the Kovalev goal which he could not possibly have seen – his back was turned.
Posturing to the extreme. If you think a playoff series is 7 games, you are forgetting the games that go on between the hockey. Stevens and Biron trying to influence the refs for future games, no doubt. All part of the game.
As for their talent for objective analysis – I would recommend take another look.
Tobalev will be coming through with his full review of the game soon, as real-life got in the way of his journalist hobby on this very rare occasion.
On one hand, the game was a low quality affair. Two of the Flyers goals were poor quality. The Kovalev bunt was questionable. On the other hand, it was just what the Canadiens needed – in some ways a wake up call, in other ways a chance to prove to themselves that they could come back after losing all the games where they were scored against first the past two weeks.
Still brimming with that ecstatic buzz you get from watching your team tie and win the game in an 80 second span, I decided to watch the opposing teams interviews from the post-game scrum.
Now, can someone explain to me how the Flyers players and coach to a man thought they vastly outplayed the Habs, but were victims of extremely bad luck?
John Stevens did his best Jose Mourinho impression, complaining at length about the Kovalev goal.
(Admittedly, to an untrained eye, it did look like Kovalev may have touched the puck above the crossbar. However, the video judges holed up in Toronto must surely have access to more cameras and stop-start technology than RDS provides on its broadcast. I will give them the benefit of the doubt on that decision – especially considering they err on the side of no-goal in situations with doubt)
More cock-eyed vision, as he then had a good go about the bad luck they had with Jeff Carter's broken stick. Fair enough, but John, you did get a goal off our defender and another off an "accidental" deflection off a skate. You weren't hard too hard done by on the luck front. What's more, Jeff Carter hardly missed his stick as Kovalev scored right off the faceoff.
You want lucky John? How about even being in the second round after that travesty of a goal that got you here? Or playing a coach who continues to stick with Dandenault and Brisebois beyond all reason?
My favourite interview, though, had to be Martin Biron who complains ad nauseum about the Kovalev goal which he could not possibly have seen – his back was turned.
Posturing to the extreme. If you think a playoff series is 7 games, you are forgetting the games that go on between the hockey. Stevens and Biron trying to influence the refs for future games, no doubt. All part of the game.
As for their talent for objective analysis – I would recommend take another look.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)