A preview for Game 2. As before, we steer clear of lines and pairings and other news from Brossard and look to more important things for this match-up with the Penguins.
Key match-ups
Crosby and Plekanec
In May, Halak handed the penguins their walking papers, but it was Plekanec who handed Crosby his lunch. The Stanley Cup champ was hounded and humbled to a single goal and a minus contribution to his team. Though I'm sure we're all very worried that Letang is motivated by hate, it's Crosby's dislike of Plekanec that might be of most interest. Plekanec is ready for the season as always and is probably more than ready to replicate his form.
Fleury and Price
Two goalies who started young. One has won a Cup and so is held up as a standard for the other. Both had average numbers in 2009-10, both are looking to get above 0.900 in save percentage this year. Should be interesting to see who makes the important stops.
Letang and Subban
Two young offensive defencemen ready to accept new roles on their teams. I'm actually more interested to see if Letang's hatred can help him to defend a Subban rush.
Cooke and O'Byrne
Matt Cooke has a lot to answer for with Josh Gorges. When Matt Cooke injured Andrei Markov, it was a chance for Martin to humiliate Ryan O'Byrne by choosing to bench him in the playoffs. To start this season, O'Byrne has to suffer playing with Picard because Markov's injury lingers on, and when Markov returns will probably have lost his job to Picard. Man, he must want to pummel Cooke. Cooke, of course, doesn't know O'Byrne because the 6'5" Dman is usually hiding when the rough stuff that Cooke instigates gets under way.
Momentum
Backwards. Both teams have opened their seasons with losses. Both teams made their goalies look beatable. And both teams stars were on for important goals against. The Penguins were expected to storm and now might be downgraded to cruise through the East. The Habs didn't win when they could've, should've, would've.
On the bright side, there are no ties in the NHL anymore, so someone will get a win.
Penguins the Habs covet
Sydney Crosby
Makes things happen all on his own. He could probably even make a scorer out of a Pouliot with disinterested positioning.
Maxime Talbot
A French Canadian sure thing. He's like the Lapierre who doesn't take half seasons off. This Canadiens management would dearly love a player like Talbot.
Habs the Penguins covet
Mike Cammalleri
A winger.
Brian Gionta
A winger.
Andrei Kostitsyn
A winger.
Benoit Pouliot
A winger.
Tomas Plekanec
Can play wing.
Ready-made excuses
Michel Therrien's not in either city anymore, so honest indictments of goalies are unlikely after this one. More likely, one of these excuses for a loss:
If Montreal lose:
- Markov is injured
- Crosby plays for them
- French Canadian goalies always shut us out
- We played Thursday
- Our defensive strategy relies on a lot of luck, sorry
If Pittsburgh lose:
- We're tired from delivering season tickets all day
- We thought Paul Martin would mask all our defensive deficiencies
- Fleury is still young
- They forced us to play the puck to wingers
Impact of this result
Pittsburgh will make the playoffs this year, so this game is for positioning. The impact of a win or a loss is little really, since the President's trophy is meaningless and playoff winning will depend so much more on which wingers are added at the trade deadline than those playing tonight.
If Price loses again, I think there will be some kind of exorcism, as he will start to believe there's a cloud over him again and thereby resign to not moving his left arm all season. If the Habs win, all will be forgotten and euphoria will sweep the city until the next practice when lines are revealed.
On a serious note, Pouliot is on thin ice. As coaching decisions are made on a shift-by-shift basis in this city now, he must out-perform Eller tonight or start seriously considering community college.
Showing posts with label Talbot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Talbot. Show all posts
Saturday, October 09, 2010
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Top 100 Habs By Decade:
2. 1949-1959
In recognition of the Canadiens Centennial next Friday, we at Lions in Winter have been doing what we like best – making lists. As a precursor to publishing the definitive LIW top 100, we will be counting down the decades from least successful to most successful and naming our LIW top 10 players for the ten-year span. You should expect a few each day for the next few days.
Though this celebration has inevitably lost some steam due to relentless marketing and pre-game ceremonies for all of living memory, it would be a shame to let it pass unnoticed just because Mr. Gillett wanted to cash in before he cashed out.
I can only venture a guess as to what it must have been like to support a team like the 1950s Canadiens. Hundreds of games against the Leafs, Red Wings, Hawks, Bruins and Rangers. Tough rivalries night after night. Ones that more often than not the Canadiens were in a position to dominate. Would it be satisfying? Would it get tired? Judging by what fans of the time tell me, the answers to those questions are "no" and "no".
For a city that adores itself as a winner, the 1950s were a coming out party. While Toronto was overtaking Montreal in population and slowly to take the place as most important city in the country, Montreal launched a new self-image boosting pastime – winning hockey games. And did they win? First of second in the league all but one season (3rd that year) and 9 Cup finals in 10, with 5 Cups.
The players selected for the 1950s teams were banging at the door to get in. Virtually every player brings 5+ Cups to the table with a trophy, gaudy stats and a place in the Hall of Fame. These 10 names are names of Canadiens lore.
[Note: Each player only appears in one decade's top 10 – Beliveau and Henri Richard, therefore will be missed]
10. Jean-Guy Talbot (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
A mainstay of the big 1950s dynasty, Talbot could do whatever was asked of him.
9. Bert "Dirty Bertie" Olmstead (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
The left wing plumber for some of the top lines in NHL history.
8. Claude Provost (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
One of the best shadows in league and Habs history.
7. Tom Johnson (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
Doug Harvey's sidekick for many seasons.
6. Dickie Moore (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
The Canadiens first back-to-back winner of the Art Ross Trophy. He set a league scoring record in 1958-59 with 96 points.
5. Bernard "Boom Boom" Geoffrion (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
Trophies and honours line up for the innovator of the slap shot. He was the second man in history to score 50 goals in 1960-61.
4. Jacques Plante (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
An innovator at his position, what really set him apart was not his mask, but his gaudy statistics. He won 5 straight Vezina trophies in the late decade and 6 in 7 years in all.
3. Doug Harvey (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
People aren't laughed out of the room when suggesting he's the best defenceman of all-time. Certainly, if they had to rename the Norris trophy they could do worse than naming it the Harvey trophy. More of a classic defender than, say, Orr, he nevertheless had the nous to go forward.
2. Maurice "Rocket" Richard (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
5-time leading goalscorer in the league, his legacy will never be his own personal trophy cupboard. Known for scoring in the biggest games and tightest situations, he out-hockeyed Mr. Hockey by capturing 8 Stanley Cups in his career. Iconic for the fans of the Habs, he could and would be first on many other lists.
1. Jean "Gros Bill" Beliveau (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
The enduring face of the franchise and its leading scorer and best centre-iceman. The epitome of Hart and Conn Smythe laureat, he won both in his long career.
* Awards: H = Hart trophy; AR = Art Ross trophy, C = Calder trophy; N = Norris trophy; V = Vezina trophy; BM= Bill Masterton; AS= All-star; HOF = Hall of Fame; CS = Conn Smythe trophy; SC = Stanley Cup.
Though this celebration has inevitably lost some steam due to relentless marketing and pre-game ceremonies for all of living memory, it would be a shame to let it pass unnoticed just because Mr. Gillett wanted to cash in before he cashed out.
1949-1959
I can only venture a guess as to what it must have been like to support a team like the 1950s Canadiens. Hundreds of games against the Leafs, Red Wings, Hawks, Bruins and Rangers. Tough rivalries night after night. Ones that more often than not the Canadiens were in a position to dominate. Would it be satisfying? Would it get tired? Judging by what fans of the time tell me, the answers to those questions are "no" and "no".
For a city that adores itself as a winner, the 1950s were a coming out party. While Toronto was overtaking Montreal in population and slowly to take the place as most important city in the country, Montreal launched a new self-image boosting pastime – winning hockey games. And did they win? First of second in the league all but one season (3rd that year) and 9 Cup finals in 10, with 5 Cups.
The players selected for the 1950s teams were banging at the door to get in. Virtually every player brings 5+ Cups to the table with a trophy, gaudy stats and a place in the Hall of Fame. These 10 names are names of Canadiens lore.
[Note: Each player only appears in one decade's top 10 – Beliveau and Henri Richard, therefore will be missed]
10. Jean-Guy Talbot (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1954-67 | 791 | 36 | 209 | 245 | 884 | AS |
| Decade best (Season) | 1958-59 | 69 | 4 | 17 | 21 | 77 | |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1956-67 | 105 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 112 | 7 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1957-58 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 12 | SC |
A mainstay of the big 1950s dynasty, Talbot could do whatever was asked of him.
9. Bert "Dirty Bertie" Olmstead (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1950-58 | 508 | 103 | 280 | 383 | 609 | AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1955-56 | 70 | 14 | 56 | 70 | 94 | AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1951-58 | 8 | 8 | 34 | 42 | 78 | 4 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1955-56 | 10 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 8 | SC |
The left wing plumber for some of the top lines in NHL history.
8. Claude Provost (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1955-70 | 1005 | 254 | 335 | 589 | 469 | BM, AS |
| Decade best (Season) | 1957-58 | 70 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 71 | |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1956-69 | 126 | 25 | 38 | 63 | 86 | 9 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1958-59 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 2 | SC |
One of the best shadows in league and Habs history.
7. Tom Johnson (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1947-63 | 857 | 47 | 183 | 230 | 897 | N, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1958-59 | 70 | 10 | 29 | 39 | 76 | N, AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1950-62 | 111 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 109 | 6 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1952-53 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | SC |
Doug Harvey's sidekick for many seasons.
6. Dickie Moore (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1951-63 | 654 | 254 | 340 | 594 | 575 | 2 AR, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1958-59 | 70 | 41 | 55 | 96 | 61 | AR, AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1952-63 | 112 | 38 | 56 | 94 | 101 | 6 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1958-59 | 11 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 8 | SC |
The Canadiens first back-to-back winner of the Art Ross Trophy. He set a league scoring record in 1958-59 with 96 points.
5. Bernard "Boom Boom" Geoffrion (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1950-64 | 766 | 371 | 388 | 759 | 636 | C, H, 2 AR, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1954-55 | 70 | 38 | 37 | 75 | 57 | AR, AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1951-64 | 117 | 56 | 59 | 115 | 88 | 6 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1956-57 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 2 | SC |
Trophies and honours line up for the innovator of the slap shot. He was the second man in history to score 50 goals in 1960-61.
4. Jacques Plante (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | W | L | T | GAA | SO | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1952-63 | 556 | 314 | 133 | 107 | 2.23 | 58 | H, 6 V, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1955-56 | 64 | 42 | 12 | 10 | 1.86 | 7 | V, AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1953-63 | 90 | 59 | 28 | 0 | 2.13 | 10 | 6 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1956-57 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1.66 | 1 | SC |
An innovator at his position, what really set him apart was not his mask, but his gaudy statistics. He won 5 straight Vezina trophies in the late decade and 6 in 7 years in all.
3. Doug Harvey (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1947-61 | 890 | 76 | 371 | 447 | 1042 | 7 N, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1956-57 | 70 | 6 | 44 | 50 | 92 | N, AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1949-61 | 123 | 8 | 59 | 67 | 138 | 6 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1958-59 | 11 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 22 | SC |
People aren't laughed out of the room when suggesting he's the best defenceman of all-time. Certainly, if they had to rename the Norris trophy they could do worse than naming it the Harvey trophy. More of a classic defender than, say, Orr, he nevertheless had the nous to go forward.
2. Maurice "Rocket" Richard (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1942-60 | 978 | 544 | 421 | 965 | 1285 | H, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1950-51 | 65 | 42 | 24 | 66 | 97 | AS |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1944-60 | 133 | 82 | 44 | 126 | 188 | 8 SC |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1957-58 | 10 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 10 | SC |
5-time leading goalscorer in the league, his legacy will never be his own personal trophy cupboard. Known for scoring in the biggest games and tightest situations, he out-hockeyed Mr. Hockey by capturing 8 Stanley Cups in his career. Iconic for the fans of the Habs, he could and would be first on many other lists.
1. Jean "Gros Bill" Beliveau (Top 100 all-time, Profile)
| Years(s) | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | GWG | Awards* | |
| Habs career (Season) | 1950-71 | 1125 | 507 | 712 | 1219 | +67 | (23) | H, AR, AS, HOF |
| Decade best (Season) | 1963-64 | 68 | 28 | 50 | 78 | 2 | H, AS | |
| Habs career (Playoffs) | 1954-71 | 162 | 79 | 97 | 186 | (2) | CS, 10 SC | |
| Decade best (Playoffs) | 1964-65 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 16 | CS, SC |
The enduring face of the franchise and its leading scorer and best centre-iceman. The epitome of Hart and Conn Smythe laureat, he won both in his long career.
* Awards: H = Hart trophy; AR = Art Ross trophy, C = Calder trophy; N = Norris trophy; V = Vezina trophy; BM= Bill Masterton; AS= All-star; HOF = Hall of Fame; CS = Conn Smythe trophy; SC = Stanley Cup.
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