The Official M.E.R.B. Hockey Thread

[Doc Holliday]

For a player the Leafs gave up on, he seems to be doing well with the CBJ and has 15 points in 21 games - yet another Burke blunder.

Considering Calgary also gave up on him, it's simply a case of a change of venue did him some good. We might be saying the same thing of Guillaume Latendresse in a couple of years, just like what happened to the likes of Eric Desjardins, John Leclair, Chris Chelios, Patrick Roy & Mike Ribeiro. Want more? Rod Langway, Brian Embloom, Mark Hunter, Stephane Richer, Claude Lemieux, Mathieu Schneider, Sylvain Lefebvre, Donald Brashear, Francois Beauchemin, Mark Streit, Jose Theodore, Crystobal Huet, etc. All players who performed better elsewhere as compared to when they used to play for Quebec's team. Coaches? You want coaches? Alain Vigneault, Claude Julien & Michel Therrien, among others.

Get my drift?

(Toronto didn't give up on Stralman, by the way....they traded him to the Flames for a 2nd round pick, a pick they needed in order to obtain Phil Kessel)

 

[lgna69xxx]

C'mon Doc , they didnt ALL play for the Remparts!

All players who performed better elsewhere as compared to when they used to play for Quebecs Team

 

[Doc Holliday]

Times are tough on the injury front in Habsland. News coming out of the Bell Center today state that there's a possibility both Serge K & Max Pacioretti might not be in the lineup in their next game due to injuries. If they can't play, who's left to recall?

Good news, though. Andrei Markov is back skating & there's a good chance Alex Ovechkin might not be in the lineup in his game against the Habs on Saturday due to a possible suspension. If i'm a fan at the game, that sucks.....i want to watch Ovechkin if i'm paying $150 for a ticket!

 

[JustBob]

If I'm a fan of the game, I don't want double standards applied to star players when it comes to cheap hits and suspensions.

 

[Octavian]

thumbs up for Burke

I never really liked Brian Burke, but he gets my admiration for being so supportive of his son.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=299990

 

[Doc Holliday]

I never really liked Brian Burke, but he gets my admiration for being so supportive of his son.

Supporting his children is among every single parent's ultimate duty. Unfortunately, it's not always the case.

 

[joelcairo]

Considering Calgary also gave up on him, it's simply a case of a change of venue did him some good. We might be saying the same thing of Guillaume Latendresse in a couple of years, just like what happened to the likes of Eric Desjardins, John Leclair, Chris Chelios, Patrick Roy & Mike Ribeiro. Want more? Rod Langway, Brian Embloom, Mark Hunter, Stephane Richer, Claude Lemieux, Mathieu Schneider, Sylvain Lefebvre, Donald Brashear, Francois Beauchemin, Mark Streit, Jose Theodore, Crystobal Huet, etc. All players who performed better elsewhere as compared to when they used to play for Quebec's team.

They didn't all perform better after leaving - some did, some didn't.

Desjardins was fine in Montreal (although it's true that he really blossomed in Philly). So were Chelly and Roy. There was nothing wrong with Richer (a couple of 50 goal seasons - never repeated after leaving) and Lemieux (runner-up to Roy for Smythe in 86) during their time in Montreal. Theodore won a Hart and a Vezina - never came close to repeating after leaving.

In fact it's more of a black mark on the habs that they got rid of players for political reasons than that they failed to be patient enough for some others to develop their potential. But that goes back to the days of Doug Harvey and through Pete Mahovlich and Guy "One-Finger" Carbonneau.

 

[Doc Holliday]

They didn't all perform better after leaving - some did, some didn't.

In fact it's more of a black mark on the habs that they got rid of players for political reasons than that they failed to be patient enough for some others to develop their potential. But that goes back to the days of Doug Harvey and through Pete Mahovlich and Guy "One-Finger" Carbonneau.

Some players were put on the list considering what they got back in the trade amounted to bread crumbs compared to the talent they sent away:

Eric Desjardins: traded to Philadelphia along with John LeClair for Mark Recchi & a 3rd round draft pick. Desjardins had his best years in Philadelphia, although he played adequately in Mtl. But considering Mtl traded both he & LeClair for Mark Recchi & a 3rd rounder is a joke, even though Recchi is a solid player with potential HOF credentials (like LeClair). Desjardins was named the Flyers' top defenceman for seven seasons & went to the all-star game 4 times. He's now second on the Flyers' all-time list in scoring for defencemen.

Chris Chelios: He was only a shadow of what he'd become when he was with the Habs. Who know he'd become such a great defenceman? Many were happy to see him leave in favor of Denis Savard, who's best days were well behind him when he arrived in Mtl. Terrible trade by the Habs, maybe the worse ever.

Patrick Roy: Another example of trading away a player who already was an established superstar & not getting much in return. He was traded to Colorado along with captain Mike Keane in return for Jocelyn Thibault, Martin Rucinski & Andrei Kovalenko. He won another Stanley Cup, along with the Conn Smyth trophy. Keane is still playing in Winnipeg. I don't know whatever happened of the other three players. Another one of the Habs' worst trades. Enough said.

I absolutely agree with you that it's a shame some players were traded away for political reasons. Roy could have spent his entire career with the Habs if someone in the organization would have made an effort to sit down with him & Tremblay & come to a cease-fire. The guy throws a fit (a legitimate one!) and says he's played his last game with the team so they just trade him away even though he's the team's most popular player & future legend? Crazy! I also despise the way they dealt with the Guy Lafleur situation. Shameful! Another case of someone being traded away for political reasons was Donald Brashear, who constantly was Tremblay's scapegoat in practices & finally stood up to him & told him he had no balls. He was shipped away for a two hockey sticks & a roll of tape soon after that incident. Brashear is still playing effective hockey today & has become one of the NHL's most durable enforcers....who can actually play hockey. Has Mtl ever replaced him? I doubt it.

Like John Ferguson Jr. with the Leafs, Mario Tremblay & "Peanut" did a lot of damage to the organization during their time in Mtl. Mtl probably would have won another Stanley Cup or more with Patrick Roy in their ranks.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Phil Kessel

No matter what happens as far as how high a draft pick the bruins get from the Leafs, they sure gave up a great player and without serious injuries in the future, a STAR in the making......

Great win again tonight for the Leafs, as "highlight Phil" got 2, one being a sure highlight goal from end to end with a pretty finish, and finally getting rewarded for their relentless play night in night out...... finally the breaks are going their way and not so much the opposition.. long season and lots of time to turn this season around

Still not consistent in Defense and still a work in progress but Beauchemin is really playing well the last 2 weeks and leading the team in minutes played...... gunnerson is a nice addition playing for Komi, who also was playing well the last 5 games before he got hurt so hoping he picks up where he left off when he comes back...... Ian White is only getting better and Kaberle is having a career year, even Schenn is finally looking like he did last year and only gonna get better........ as soon as the leafs learn to play a full 60 minutes instead of 55 per game, look out boys and girls........


btw, the leafs are only 6 points behind the mighty scabs and the scabs have played one more game...... funny how things can and will work out , its a LONG season boys and girls

 

[Doc Holliday]

I agree with everything you just wrote. The Leafs have looked very good over the past 10 games, at least. They've had unbelievable bad luck, but they're finally starting to get some breaks. Kessel & Ponikarovski played great tonight. Highlight-reel goal by Kessel, as you mentionned. Beauchemin has been unbelievable for the past 5-6 games. He's a leader, an anchor on that defence. White is steady & Schenn is once again playing with confidence. I absolutely like Carl Gunnersson!! What a find by Leafs management!!

There are two negatives on the Leafs right now. Nope, not Jason Blake, who's speed i adore. The biggest negative is Mikael Grabovski. This guy doesn't bring anything to the team right now. He's not tough, he doesn't score, he doesn't kill penalties & he's not creating much when he's on the ice. He also doesn't win face-offs & rarely plays on the powerplay. It almost seems like he's trying out for next season's Battle of the Blades!

The other negative is Garnet Exelby. This guy is a terrible defenceman! They traded away Pavel Kubina to get this bum? Unbelievable!!! I can't wait for Komisarek & Finger (is this guy made of glass or what?) to come back so that they can ship him to the press box!

I like Hanson. He's added some spark to the lineup. Can't wait to see him play one day with the likes of Kadri, Bozak & Stalberg.

Did you see the play where Beauchemin got called for tripping when in fact the player was tripped by the linesman?? Kudos to Beauchemin for keeping his cool on a penalty that should have been given to linesman Pierre Champoux instead!

I'm once again proud of my Leafs!

 

[Doc Holliday]

Montreal facing Washington tonight. Who will be the next Habs player to go down to an injury? Cammalleri? Plekanec? Price?

With Ales Hemski out for the year (same operation Phil Kessel had this off-season), Edmonton is interested in Andrei Kostitsyn, currently out with a broken foot. Maybe this was part of the blockbuster deal being discussed for the past 4 weeks between the two teams, as reported first by ESPN. One player rumoured to be heading Mtl's way during talks was Andrew Cogliano.

 

[gohabsgo]

I'm once again proud of my Leafs!

Wow! The 29th place team beats the 28th place team by a goal - plan the parade route. Could fickle and fairweather Leaf fans be any more delusional?

 

[Doc Holliday]

Wow! The 29th place team beats the 28th place team by a goal - plan the parade route. Could fickle and fairweather Leaf fans be any more delusional?

WTF are you talking about, GHG? Now who's the delusional one?

NHL standings

Leafs/Panthers game final score

 

[lgna69xxx]

whats more funny is that the ONLY reason he's still here doc, is because the Habs are 6 points ahead of Canada's Team. and have played one more game to boot! .... for as much as SCAB fans like to point out how bad the Leafs are, they fail to realise it makes their team as well as themselves look pathetic, and it is soooooooooooo funny...

o well, a little GSG vs. none at all, is at least to say the least, quite entertaining and humorous...... keep up the good work GSG!

WTF are you talking about, GHG? Now who's the delusional one?

NHL standings

Leafs/Panthers game final score

 

[lgna69xxx]

The Great 8

Did Alex O get suspended for tonights game or is he good to reign terror on the Bell Centre ?

 

[lgna69xxx]

Nevermind, HNIC just gave me the answer to my question, the GREAT 8 is free and ready to search and destroy Les Habitants tonight!

Did Alex O get suspended for tonights game or is he good to reign terror on the Bell Centre ?

 

[Techman]

I guess there are different rules for superstars. It's great for the fans who bought tickets but really makes the NHL look bush league if you ask me. Don't get me wrong, I think Ovetchkin is a great player, if not the best in the league today, but does he have to put someone out of the game before he pays the price like all other players?

Hey lgna, you're right, it is a long season and sooner or later the habs will be back at full strength. It's amazing what they have been able to accomplish with the amount of injuries they've had. Can't wait to see what they can do with a full roster. Hit the Leafs with the same number of injuries to key players and they'd be...well they couldn't be much lower so last place instead of 29th. No big deal.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Classic example of so many new players needing time to adjust and get used to their new teammates..... for Toronto, who is finally starting to play the way they should be., and for the Habs, some great competitive spirit has kept them a little bit ahead of the leafs, and yes injuries have hurt the Habs, but thats Hockey, ....... hey you got the injuries and we run into a goalie on a nightly basis who seems destined to win the Vezina Trophy... its hockey, it is what it is and thats why its the GREATEST game on Earth! i think on that we can agree

Hey lgna, you're right, it is a long season and sooner or later the habs will be back at full strength. It's amazing what they have been able to accomplish with the amount of injuries they've had. Can't wait to see what they can do with a full roster. Hit the Leafs with the same number of injuries to key players and they'd be...well they couldn't be much lower so last place instead of 29th. No big deal.

 

[Techman]

its hockey, it is what it is and thats why its the GREATEST game on Earth! i think on that we can agree

We definitely agree on that point! And as a peace offering...for now...I present you with my favourite non-partisan hockey commercial!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDSfCqFUS7k

 

[lgna69xxx]

o my, thats some funny stuff!

We definitely agree on that point! And as a peace offering...for now...I present you with my favourite non-partisan hockey commercial!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDSfCqFUS7k