That team is a total mess right now. I didn't realize they'd miss PK Subban so much. I think that's the problem with Carey Price: he really misses his good buddy. Price said last night after the game that the team had lost its identity. Today everyone is saying that Carey Price IS the team's identity. Maybe he was referring to Subban.
Many believe Michel Therrien will get fired. I don't think he will. Marc Bergevin won't fire him and even gave him an extension after last season's disaster. Then you wonder if both of them may be fired if Bergevin refuses to fire his coach. I also don't believe this will happen. Geoff Molson loves Bergevin too much and truly believes he's one of the league's top GMs. Go figure.
My guess is that a trade will happen soon, but it won't be the type of trade fans are hoping for. Look, even Georges Laraque alluded to this on his 1pm radio show. The habs don't really have any attractive prospects to send to another team (e.g. Colorado, Arizona) for one of their stars. Sure, they have Sergachev in Windsor and draft picks. But as Laraque pointed out, there's no one in St-John's that anyone would really want. He also spoke about watching yesterday's Marlies game on tv and raved about the Marlies team and added that many of the players who played in yesterday's game will one day be playing for the Leafs. He compared this to the habs' farm team and stated there's not even a single player right now whom you could say the same thing about. He also blasted Michael McCarron and called him a first-round pick bust, but that's another matter and he wasn't wrong.
Will the habs trade Pacioretty, Radulov and Galchenyuk?? I really doubt it since there the only players who can score. Will they trade veterans?? Maybe, but the ones they'd like to trade have untradeable contracts. As for Shea Webber, he started the season great and had everyone falling in love with him, but he's regressed badly over the past month or so. He's playing just like he was playing in Nashville last season. His best years are behind him.
Where do i put the blame?? Certainly not on Therrien, who's done miracles with the players he's stuck with. I blame Trevor Timmins and Marc Bergevin. When's the last time the habs skillfully drafted a prized prospect?? Galchenyuk doesn't count since the habs were lucky that year to fall in the 3rd spot at the draft. When he became available in the 3rd spot, they jumped on him, like all other teams would have done (excluding the Islanders). And i blame Marc Bergevin mostly because of the stupid contracts he granted to players like Desharnais and just a year ago to Plekanec. How the hell can you give Plekanec a 2-year contract at $6 million per??? And what about that multi-year contract he granted Andrew Shaw during this past offseason at a $3.9 million cap hit??? Andrew 'fucking' Shaw?? Are you fucking kidding me??? Do you know how much he's being paid this season?? $5.5 million!!!!! Holy fuck!!!!
And say what you want about the Subban deal, it's now starting to look like Nashville won that trade and Subban is still in his prime and much younger than Webber. Do you know how much the habs are paying Shea Webber this season and for the next one?? $12 million a season!!!!!!!!! I can't fucking believe it!!!!!!!!!!
Jeff Petry.....they're currently paying him $7 million a season. Yes, JEFF "FUCKING" PETRY!!!! Alexei Emelin.....$4.2 million and next season he'll get $4.4 million!!! Holy shit!!!!
And once the season ends Galchenyuk will be RFA and he'll expect to receive a big raise. Radulov will be UFA and also expect big $$. And a year later, it'll be Carey Price's turn and he'll demand to be the highest-paid goaltender, whether he deserves it or not. And if the habs don't want to pay him what he wants, he'll walk.
Of course, the wrong guy will wind up losing his job in the long run. And his name is Michel Therrien. It likely won't happen this season, but eventually Bergevin will have to get rid of him if he wants to hang onto his job.
