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Recrutes: Hockey scouting from a professional perspective from Grant McCagg and Habs coverage from a 33 year veteran covering the NHL from Brian Wilde.

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Call Of The Wilde: Top Three Changes

October 21, 2017

By Brian Wilde

Alright, Recrutes subscribers, the discourse out there on social media is ugly. The negativity is so severe that people are insulting each other’s mothers. Impressively, the discourse remains respectful here. You have your issues, but you’re not insulting your fellow human either.

The Habs have issues. This is obvious with a 1-6-1 record and the fewest goals scored at 13 with the most goals allowed at 33. However, they also lead the league in shots on goal and as much as people want to talk about the quality of those shots, when you spend most of the time in the opponent’s zone, it is in the long run impossible to remain this bad.

If the Habs had this record with the most goals allowed and fewest goals scored and they were getting outshot 40-20, instead of the other way around, then I would predict Rasmus Dahlin, a generational defenceman, was about to probably join the Habs next October.

As it stands, they are for my money in a precarious spot already and they need to turn it around and be on the cusp of a playoff spot by American Thanksgiving or the season is lost and they should think seriously about selling assets down the road. There’s nothing dumber than finishing three points out of a playoff spot, especially sacrificing future for a push for a playoff spot you don’t actually achieve and if you did would have just a marginal chance of success anyway.

But we are a long way from that. Where we are is they need to turn it around and turn it around fast. The schedule in November is easy with a lot of winnable home games. Changes have to be made though.

Sound out on what are your top three changes GM Marc Bergevin needs to make to turn around the Montreal Canadiens in the month of November. I’ll start…

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About Brian Wilde

Brian Wilde has worked in hockey since he was 20. He was the rink side host for the Edmonton Oilers at CTV and Ottawa Senators for Sportsnet. He was also lead reporter on the Montreal Canadiens for 17 years at CTV Montreal.

View all posts by Brian Wilde

  • Sean McIntyre says

    After all of the Shananagins that happened last night and Weber was silent. Not sure if he’s captain material. I’m not a huge fan of Shaw but he was engaged all night and down by four goals and getting punched in the face nobody did anything. For a team built on character last night was an embarrassment. All the pride they showed in second period got flushed down the toilet in the third. I’m not a Subbanista I’m a fan of Weber but so far it’s been all talk. He has one fight since joining the Habs. ONE! Last night Hemsky got rocked twice. Nothing. I got Leaf fans chirping me that Shaw is a pussy for not fighting Bieksa. Shaw is one punch away from another concussion but he still tried to fight back after being suckered. Benn grabbed a guy and started hugging him during the mele. Do I like fighting? Not really but it’s still in the league and when you lay egg after egg the team has to come together and start fighting back. Give the C to Carey Price. He’s the 10 million dollar man. He’s the backbone. He’s the leader and oh yeah has as many fights as Weber in the past year.

      • JimmyGster says

        Luongo was captain in Vancouver for awhile. Not a good idea if you ask me, but I think they can be captains.

  • Rick Blaine says

    I can’t agree with you this time, Brian. While this level of results can’t continue, they can go on for a longer time than you’d think, and realistically the season is lost. With this season gone, your veterans will be a year older next season. I think the focus has to be on rebuild, not on making the playoffs, which is the hamster on the wheel strategy. Sure, take on a bad contract, but for a player you can remove in a reasonable time frame. Make the team losing the bad contract pay in the form of a good prospect or draft pick. Change your time frame from now to 2 or 3 years from now, when Poehling or Ikonen are contributing. I’d go even further by moving other veterans, but that gets more controversial.
    I totally agree with you on Pacioretty. I don’t think he’s mentally suited to be captain and it’s hurting his performance. The recommendation about Hemsky is a bit of a slam dunk, no?

  • k3x says

    You won’t like my idea here but I was not put here to please you so here it goes…1: Marc Bergevin needs to be replaced. I know his team has done reasonably well-being over 5 years but much like his old foxhole buddy, he is not inspiring and the Habs will never win the Cup with him in charge. He made some decent moves but has made some bad ones too and several real head scratchers. He has completely tied CJ’s hands by publicly stating that Chucky is not going to be a centre – that smacks of George Steinbrenner to me. Keep out of it! And I know it is not helpful to say get rid of him when I can’t offer up a replacement but surely there is a better option. He has built the team in his own image as a player…that of an average unspectacular but generally dependable defenceman who never won anything. 2: Spend some money on a power forward who can score. 3: let Chucky play centre and learn to play D over time. If he starts to score goals it becomes slightly less important if his back check is occasionally weak. Habs need goals more than anything else so why bother shopping for supplies you’ve mistakenly tucked away in the wrong place. Discuss…

    • Brian Wilde says

      It’s not my idea yet no. Also who is the replacement. Honestly there’s no one. The one in the realm of serious is Brisebois but he’s there to help Yzerman with his math. Brisebois has zero hockey evaluation experience. He’s a capologist.

      • Alex Pelletier says

        I’m not so sure about that regarding Brisebois and hockey evaluation, he’s also the GM of the AHL Syracuse Crunch who have had a ton of success, and he won the Calder Cup managing the Bulldogs back in the day. Most impressively though is that he went out signed some quality players for the AHL squad, who eventually developed into very good NHLers as well (Sustr, Johnson, Brown, Gourde), suggesting to me that he knows how to evaluate players, or at least puts people in place who do and listens to their opinion.

        He’s also gone out and hired some excellent coaches in Guy Boucher, Jon Cooper, Benoit Groulx. Similarly to his AHL player signings these coaches develop into good NHL coaches as well.

        I’m not a Bergevin hater but with the way the season is going, it’s hard not to think the writing might be on the wall for him at this point. Julien Brisebois in my view is the perfect replacement. Here’s a good article about him in case anyone is interested, it’s a good read:
        http://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1030648/julien-brisebois-tampa-bay-lightning-crunch-syracuse

      • K3x says

        That is where I am struggling too Brian. I didn’t say “replace him with so and so” because I really don’t know who would go there. I am not a McGuire fan but I don’t really know (his TV commentary often annoys me) enough about him to make the call. Personally I don’t trust Bergevin (sorry to bring it back up but the way he behaved over PK was inexcusable as a human being never mind a GM of a hockey team!) So that weights my call on this point quite a bit.

        • Brian Wilde says

          Yes I understand what you’re saying. That part of the decision was the judgment of him as a human being. I didn’t like it either. I want them to be hockey decisions. Sadly though Bergevin is not alone. Hockey men are making evaluations about a person in a personal way all the time. Listen to a scout when he says why did you take that guy “oh he skates well and we liked his attitude he’s a gamer “ What do these things have to do with what you’re seeing on the ice? Nothing but they’re measurements made trying to get cup winning chemistry. So yes Bergevin evaluated a human in non hockey ways. I am never going to love that but I also recognize it is very very common. I was not in the room but they decided that the relationships were irreconcilable. Life is complicated sometimes and especially so in team environments.

      • Scott Murray says

        Is Julien interested in promotion to GM? Muller could take over as Head Coach. And there is that Roy guy…

  • Michael Zarwanitzer says

    Hi Brian.

    1) Getting rid of Hemsky is a good idea but I don’t think it moves the needle much. Adding Scherbak or Mccarron will make the team marginally better but Hemsky isn’t in the top 5 reasons we are losing.

    2) Make a big trade – As you mentioned, Bergevin is in a very bad spot right now and will have to give up extra to make a trade. I’m not sure there’s a point. If Price continues playing like this, it won’t matter who they get they still won’t make the playoffs. Based on history, he should get out of it but it may be too late and it won’t be worth giving up a lot of assets for a trade. Also, it’s hard to tell how good/bad this team is right now. There first 8 games were extremely difficult (6 of 8 on the road including California trip and 2 home games were against excellent opposition), I think Bergevin has to wait for the next 10-12 games and figure out what he has. If the team and Price get better, he will be in a better position to make a trade. If the they continue to lose, then bring up the kids (Juulsen, Lernout, Scherbak and Mcaaron) and start reading Grant’s draft articles.

    3) Remove Pacioretty as captain – As much as I agree that he shouldn’t be captain (Weber should), removing it will become a huge story and will be talked about for the whole season. I don’t think that helps Pacioretty or the team. They should either do it in the offseason or by trading Pacioretty (only if they can make a good deal, Tavares anyone).

    I think they have to stay the course until game 20 and then decide if the playoffs are a realistic goal. If they are go for it, otherwise start planning for the future.

  • Jeff Young says

    1. Put 27 at C or keep him in the top line winger slot. If you aren’t going to use him properly trade him.

    2. Make a trade for a puck moving D. The dynamic on the D line is lacking a couple of really good puck movers. Bergevin needs to realize this before it’s too late.

    3. Split up Alzner and Petry. This duo has been really bad. Sure sometimes it takes time to develop chemistry but in this case I just think it’s a bad match and they need to be split up.

  • Kevin Kaiser says

    Right or wrong, I would like to see some of the young guys try out for the team. That way, at least we can see what we have coming up in the future, and if we get Dahlen, we can try him at Centre too! 😀

  • Richard McAdam says

    1. Drop Hemsky, replace with Scherbak.
    2. Sound out Colorado to see what it would cost to get Tyson Barrie. Evaluate that cost and act accordingly.
    3. Pull Pacioretty, Price, and Weber into a room and have a real good and frank discussion about leadership roles on the team. Not merely about the symbolism of the C, but leading by example and setting the standard on and off the ice for the team. Ultimately, if it is decided among that core group of three plus management to install Weber as the new C, then do it.

  • Daniel Jette says

    1) Delete Hemsky, Mitchell, And 2 of Benn/Davidson/ Morrow; replace with McCarron, Scherback, and Lernout or Jerabek. Develop the youth you have.

    2) All-in on the best available C under 28: that means whatever the max draft pick compensation is for a max salary RFA, put it on the table.

    3) Dangle any fwd not named Drouin or Danault plus our best remaining prospect for a top D as you describe. Yes that includes Max, Gally and Gally.

    4) Blow up the farm system and scouting departments. Triple resources scouting and recruiting in European pro leagues. Results-based business, etc.

    5) Claude Julien needs to reflect seriously on whether his team of coaches is getting the job done.

  • Elisabeth Di Niro says

    Hi Brian! I watched he game last night and I just felt so bad for them. It was sad how fragile they are and how they just can’t turn it around. It got me thinking, in the last 3 seasons, they have had mental breakdowns like this every single season. In every season, Max was captain. I’m not saying this to put the blame on him because it isn’t his fault, but as a captain, you have to steer the ship to weather out a storm and you have to lead your team out of it as well. Remember a few years back when Brian Gionta was captain and the Habs went through a really bad losing streak and Gionta had a closed door meeting with the team after one of the losses?? Well, I don’t know what he said to his teammates and how he steered that ship, but they got out of their slump the very next game. Do you remember that?

    Having said all this, I just believe giving the C to Weber is the BEST THING this organization can do for the team. His leadership ability is innate. He just has it… just like some people have a natural ability to be a CEO in a company… that’s Shea Weber.

    I don’t know enough about defensemens out there to comment on a trade, but the D is very weak and you it is blatantly obvious Price wasn’t comfortable with them in front of him from th beginning of th season. Now it’s gotten so bad, he’s second guessing himself and playing very frazzled. It the Carey we know and love…

    Lastly, call up the young guys from Laval and get some energy from them. They can help break the scoring drought. It’s time Mike McCarron and Shelback play and stay for more than a game. And please put Davidson back in the line up…

    • Brian Wilde says

      Excellent reply. All the ideas are excellent and man is it nice to feedback to each other in a socially acceptable way here. Thank you everyone. I am receiving wings from you all.

  • Daniel Campanella says

    In regards to move number 2, I would add Danault to list of players that should be protected. On the other hand, the Canadiens need to get proactive and I would suggest trying to move three players who might warrant a return larger than their actually value : Pacioretty, Weber, and Gallagher.

    A team that is also in need of a shuffle are the Rangers. Hypothetically, the Canadiens may be able to swing Pacioretty for Nash, Skjei and a pick. At least that is what I would try.

    Another move I would make, which stems from point 1, is to rid yourself of the mistakes that are Alzner and Shaw. Their salaries do not correlate to their hockey ability. Alzner is simply a 6/7 defensemen and well Shaw is the beneficiary of who he was playing with in Chicago.

  • Michael Kelly says

    Great article Brian (as usual). This slide won’t last but the hole is getting close to being deeper than the teams max potential can overcome. A panic move now carries great risk.

    I’d start low risk. They could use some size and push back. The players that play big are small (11, 41, 65). Id give McCaron and/or Sherbak a chance to shine.

    Give that a few games and reassess. It’s still early and an extended winning streak is needed to balance things out. The team leads the league in shots. They have 31 (who looked more on his toes and focused to me after his hissy fit) in net. The current roster tweaked from within has a better chance of a long winning streak than MB does of pulling off a season saving trade during a tailspin.

    Hope I’m wrong but leaving$8-9 million cap unused is looking more and more as an inexcusable bit of hubris on MBs part.

  • Trevor Birtch says

    I never even thought about the captaincy, but Brian this is a great Idea! Shea would be the natural fit and he has a year under his belt in Montreal, I’m totally on board with this.

    This week Pierre McGuire mentioned possibly going after Nick Leddy, realistically they wouldn’t have to give up too much to get him I don’t Think? Maybe try and piece in Brock Nelson? Islanders could use a future goalie if you dangle lingrens Name? I’m just thinking out loud

    • Daniel Campanella says

      Trevor,

      I am also a fan of going after Leddy. However, I believe the islanders value him highly (as they should). Acquiring him would require a solid player in return and the Canadiens are not in a position of strength right now. I like the idea of dangling Lindgren. Maybe it could work. Maybe we can also take Ladd off their hands?

  • Milton Simitsakos says

    The problem with this team for the last few seasons is that they have incredibly high, highs and catastrophically low, lows.
    Most of the time these swings are tied to Price. A few years ago it was his injury, last year it was his “bad stretch” where he looked uninterested and to be honest I thought it was his way of protesting MT being the coach. This year it’s something completely different. It started out as extremely bad luck coupled with some terrible defending but it’s morphed into a total lack of confidence. The old Price gave up controlled rebounds where he either redirected shots into passes to a waiting player or deflected a puck into a corner away from trafic. That’s because he was always one step ahead of the play. Other than that, shots would hit him and be completely absorbed into his padding. This years Price is constantly reacting to the play, he’s a step behind. Shots hit him and bounce directly to opposing players. He rarely controls the play because he’s constantly chasing it trying to keep up. Many harmless looking shots give him more trouble than they should. The few times I see him anticipating a play, he’s reading it wrong. I’ve seen multiple instances where a player goes behind the net and Price thinks the play is going around the other side but in fact it’s a pass to the short side and in. HE’S SIMPLY OFF HIS GAME.
    Luckily for HABS nation we have enough of a sample size to know that this will correct itself. Based on the reaction I saw last game where he tried to chop down his goalpost with his stick, I think he’s had enough and I’m sure we’re going to get back our dialed in goalkeeper back.
    This should be great news but the reality is that it’s just camouflaging our real problems. As long as Price is the best goalie on the planet it allows MB and his brain-trust to continually squander the opportunity to build a true cup contender. Year 5 into this regime and we’re still no closer to a true number 1 Center. We still have the same problems on the back end. He inherited one of the top PMD’s in the game which he turned into Weber (I may be one of the few to like that deal). He also had an aging Markov, who may or may not have been able to help us this year. But that’s just it, we all knew Markov’s age, MB mentioned it as a huge negative in the off-season when he tried to sell us on how his years d-core was better. The reality is that he did absolutely nothing to address the issue. He’s had years to start planning for an eventual replacement. He had the time/assets and opportunity to fix this before it became the glaring problem it is today.
    I’m tired of constantly hearing about how hard his job is. He’s paid lots of money to get results. I think he’s managed a few good moves but generally speaking he’s thrown away many draft pick to bring in fringe fourth liners. And I know Brian, 2nd rounders have a low percentage chance of actually making the nhl, I follow/read you thoroughly. But I’d rather have my cupboard stocked with draft picks rather than constantly liquidating them for plain old bad Hockey players. Besides PK Suban was drafted in the second round, Mete picked 100th overal, I’d rather take a chance on the unknown quantity that could turn into that rather than throw away the pick and get what I know is bad.

    Basically, I’m tired of this regime and the way the run the team. I’m also not looking forward to another regime taking over and selling us on another 5 year plan.

    Sorry for the rant, but I’m so used to saying it in 140 word spurts that it feels good to actually develop an argument for a change.
    The only way to fix this in the short term is to get a truly talented PMD on this team. And to do so you’re going to have to sacrifice Gallagher, Poeling and a first.
    I also think we need a true number 1 Center. I love the Drouin acquisition but I’m not sure he can be that guy. I hope I’m wrong on this because it’s still such a small sample size. But in the short term he’s what we have so I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and hopefully his talent will help him overcome any growing pains quickly.
    Lastly, I would give our young talented guys a true shot. Leave Drouin with Galchenyuk and Lehkonen. Bring up Scherbak and put him on a line with Danault and Pacioretty. Let Hudon play with Pleky and Biron and the last line is the rest.

    • Brian Wilde says

      Rants are good. Passion is good. Caring is good.

      And here we seem to be able unlike Twitter to do it without calling our fellow human an idiot. So carry on !!!!

  • Chris Loreto says

    I don’t know Brian, are we built to win now? So many holes on this team and so many players of the same ilk that we are more than a one or two band aid players away. We need a reboot.
    It kills me that we have to foresake our future to find a puck moving D , when we had one of the best already, and we traded a potential next one!? But those ships have sailed.
    It kills me that MB did not see this happening and if he didn’t where is his hockey acumen?
    Yes he has made some nice finds- Byron, Daneault,, but he has made even more bad moves-like backing the wrong coach too long,letting go of the analytics guy because he disagreed, Subban,( yes Subban),Pleks’ contract, Shaw’s contract, Alzner’s contract, Petry ( soft from day 1), Semin,Kassian, Streit and Hemsky.
    So I would begin with unloading MB and finding the best GM period- language be damned. I know it is a sensitive subject, but do we want to win or not? I do not want Patrick Roy.
    We need at least 2 more D after Weber and Mete. I like Davidson, but I would move Petry, Alzner and Benn.
    We need protypical power forwards – doesn’t any team- and I like your list of protected players but I would part with Max if I had too. I see him as a Phil Kessel and he may fit better into a stronger team as a third liner; and I would move one of Gallagher or Byron- preferably Byron. They are the same type of player and you have to spend money to make money.
    I would play the youth and move any vet now that is not part of our future plans- Plecks
    If a true rebuild is the question, then I dare say we move Weber and Price and build around a strong core.
    I am quite disillusioned and I do not want a quick fix. I want a solid team from the goalie out who can play a strong fast 200 foot game. We do not have this as presently constructed.
    The last few playoffs have told the same story- we need more than a goalie.

    • Brian Wilde says

      I gotta admit I am asking myself the same question Chris for the first time in a long time.

      I think they are built to win still. They have 2 big holes though … PMD 1C. But they do have a good goalie and they can’t outshoot 40-20 and lose by 3 goals. It doesn’t make sense to me.

      But you’re right Chris…. watching this ? It’s hard to have a vision beyond it. We are all human. It’s hard to see what is not there.

  • Alex Laberge says

    Another good read. Thank you. As much as I want a big trade, I think Habs need to win a few games with what they have right now. Wouldn’t want MB to do a desperation trade that could hurt this team even more down the line, just to save his job. For me:

    1. Hemsky on waivers. He could by replaced by a cardboard cutout of Hemsky and it would be better.

    2. Shake up the lines. Maybe Pacioretty with Danault? Galchenuck back at center? Drouin on wing? Anything. Everything. It doesn’t have to be for long, but can it be worse (don’t answer that..)?

    3. ??? Five dollar beer at Bell Center until team hits 500? 😉

    Naming Pacioretty captain was a mistake. He’s too inconsistent. That’s on MB/MT. I would eventually trade Pacioretty and put the “C” on Weber. I feel it would be best for Pacioretty & Weber moving on.

    How many bad games still before MB gets released? If it comes to that, hoping Julien Brisebois gets a shot. I like Claude Julien and I know he’ll stick around for a while with that contract, but now I’m having doubt on him too. New school hockey is “in”..

    Have a good one!

  • stv says

    I dont kmow if three are enough but here are mine:

    1. Mixup the defense by making a trade for a top 4. The Habs have an abundance of NHL wingers so they may have to think about packaging one with a draft pick (2nd or 3rd) to get it done. I love Gallagher but ever since the Habs acquired Shaw he seems to redundant. I would rather trade Shaw but I don’t think Marc is going to move one of his guys so soon after trading for him.

    2. If the Habs want to win now and worry about the post season later then they should ho back to the Centres from last year. Let Drouin dominate on the wing. Move him back to C when the team has gets their mojo back if they do at all.

    3. Price is signed longterm but there is no harm in letting him be pushed by an upstart. Lindgren should be his backup.

  • Dan Adams says

    Regardless of what one may think of the individual talents that have left us on defence there was a synergy between them & there was some huge passing talent lost when Markhov left the team. We have especially witnessed this phenomena when we tried some very good defencemen in world competitions. Their talent finally came to the surface after quite a few games. I think Bergevin’s ” patch work quilt” approach has been a total failure so far. Price’s spectacular play in the past has hidden Bergevin’s failures like Therrien’s strangulation style of hockey tried to do. It is no wonder that both Therrien & Bergevin often stated that they were in the foxhole together because they were while Price was winning the war.
    I understand that to be a hockey expert for some people only requires them to be born in Quebec ,but I will say this from my not so quiet home in St Henri: The biggest thrill I have had this year was watching the play of Mete and predicting that he will have a bright future. I felt he plays very much like J.C. Tremblay . Mete makes a great quick first pass and he is able to get the puck in the corner without seemingly no physical confrontations–a real art only known to a very few. The biggest insult to the Canadiens’ fans was trying to tell us that Streit and Hemsky had any hockey left in them.Even from our couches we all knew what the Canadiens’ management seemingly did not know. I think we are owed an explanation for their acquisition . Their acquisition was an insult to us because quite simply the management is supposed to know more than us. In my estimation, the abject failure of these 2 players helped set the stage for a team who seems to now not know one another. Panic in a team game like hockey is like going to the cinema with the exits on fire. It is now beyond blame. Bergevin often laments that The Canadiens do not get high draft picks. High draft picks do not always result in finding a player who will really excel in the NHL. It is one thing not to have a high draft pick and use this as an excuse. It is another thing not to recognize 2 players whose careers are over.

  • Chris Michalec says

    Great thoughts, Brian. I’m still not convinced we will see enough of a turnaround to salvage the season, but nothing wrong with making the moves now as long as the players you get will still be around next season without crushing your cap. Here are my humble suggestions.

    1) Send Hemsky packing. Can’t believe how much leeway he has gotten, and it has to end.
    2) A major shakeup of the assistant coaches. Let Claude bring in some new guys to hopefully start fixing some of these issues.
    3) Don’t indulge the veterans any longer. Be willing to start making call ups from Laval, and give those guys some time to develop. I realize being a veteran comes with the benefit of the doubt, but continually playing dumb shouldn’t be permitted. We should expect prospects to make mistakes, but veterans need to be held to a higher standard. I realize #3 has about zero chance of happening on most teams in the modern NHL, but I can dream!

  • Mike McTaggart says

    How about trading Price before his new contract kicks in? They have depth in goal on the farm and Price should land the Habs quality assets. I think that contract is going to hurt down the road. It’s a way to get back value without completely tearing it down.

    • k3x says

      Bergevin has form for doing this so i wouldn’t be surprised if Price is moved. Remember this (and I am not intentionally being negative here ) but Bergevin is a liar. He has form…dont forget this when he is sitting there smiling and telling you how much a player means to the oeganisation…

  • Michael says

    First off i wouldn’t waste one on Hemsky, that’s a given, just wave him already.

    1. If the Oilers bad season continues until Leon returns, MB needs to pry RNH away. I would start with Gallagher and Juulsen.

    2. I agree totally on Larsson. He’s been brought up in discussion lately, just the puck mover we need. Not sure what the roster player would be though. Lindgren, 1st, and Chucky..ugh hard pill to swallow there.

    3. I just don’t see the Habs doing a C change mid season, even if it’s the right move. I want to see Chucky with Drouin and Pac with Danault. I think all its takes is one spark from one of these pairing and they will be flying once again.

    • Brian Wilde says

      awesome thought. Maybe the two GmS who are off to bad starts can meet each other’s needs. RNH has to go eventually.

  • Christopher Carveth says

    As bad as it looks, the season is only two weeks old. It won’t be easy and there is not much room for error but they can make the playoffs. I cannot give up on the season on October 21st!

    Price regaining form, Schlemko in the lineup, Big MAC in for Hemsky will go a long way.

    What we have seen is not the habs. They are not this bad.

    1. AG27 to C.
    2. McCarron in for Hemsky
    3. Addition of a puck moving defenseman.

  • Emil says

    This team has more holes in the lineup then Swiss cheese. I say stay the course this season. Get a high pick and do all you can to get Tavares and a puck moving d-man. I would replace Bergevin as he building teams for 90’s and not for 2017. Now skill and speed win over character.

  • Trevor says

    Everyone just needs to chill a bit and remember what happened with Nashville last year. They had a 2-6-1 start and everyone knows how they ended up doing.

  • Marvin Matthews says

    I like the idea of trying to pry a (young-ish) dman, a-la Larsson for Lindgren. One player I would REALLY be hesitant on trading is, Juulsen. He is the closest to the NHL of any dman with potential that we have. AZ wouldn’t need that type of player anyway, but if Lindgren is the ask in return for Larsson, I would try to work on that trade.

    Thanks.

  • Marvin Matthews says

    Would also add that at this stage in his career, Weber (imo) is more reputation than anything else. I have a friend who blogs for NAS and he even says that the intimidating player Weber used to be hasn’t existed for about five years.

    Thanks.

  • Serge Levy says

    1. Identify your top6 and play them a lot, double shift a few of them (Drouin and Pacioretty). That will solve the Hemsky problem.
    2. Move players not prepare to accept their role or play within their abilities (i.e Galchenyuk).
    3. Aquire a top4 d-men (for Galchenyuk). Muzzin, Edler, whatever. It doesn’t matter who as long as he’s a proven top4. At this point waiting for the moon – Brodin, Ehkman-Larsson, Leddy is counterproductive.
    That alone will plug 2 holes and improve the 3 d-pairings.
    Mete on the 3rd pairing will improve it massively. Top4 guy playing with Weber againt top lines will free 2nd pairing to more suitable competition.

  • Mark Paas says

    This may sound outlansdhish but hey why not.
    Price has been the “ identity” of this team for so long. It’s an odd situation when a goalie is your team’s heartbeat. Yes the goalie is probably your number 1 impact player as are far as wins and losses but shouldn’t be the superstar that’s the face of the franchise and it’s leader. Shake things up and trade Price. Give the team a new identity.
    I don’t know what he would give them in return, but aim for the number 1 pick. Draft a franchise player. It’s players, not goalies who should be the soul of the team.

  • GMan says

    This team needs to play with more emotion, yes cut Hemsky.. but bring up Deslauriers, add some of that physicality the Habs so little of right now.

    Big trade a package for Tavares, but include Pacioretty.. you won’t have the money to re-sign him with Price/Weber/Tavares in the fold anyway, and it solves your #3 problem at the same time.
    Gallagher in a package for a D.

    Then you have your #1 center, play him with Galchenyuk & Lehkonen on 1st line… and task Tavares with getting Chucky going. Then French connection 2nd line Hudon-Danault-Drouin, Byron-Plekanec-Shaw, Deslauriers-DelaRose-McCarron.

    On D you have Weber, Mete, Alzner, Petry, new D, Schlemko back from injury.. Benn/Davidson your spares, Morrow out or used on 4th line & PP.

  • Klon says

    1. Trade Pacioretty. Preferrably for a puck-moving defenceman or younger forward. Easier than taking the “C”. Call up Sherback. Our hope is now 1-2 years from now and he’ll likely cost too much to re-sign then anyway. I love him but something has to change. It seems like he’s not part of the solution.

    2. Find a way to get rid of Alzner. Addition by subtraction. This is Bergevin’s biggest mistake during his time as GM. He is slow. He can’t handle or move the puck effectively. He’s painful to watch. We’d be better off with Lernout. Find a reason to get out of this. It’s only going to get worse.

    3. Make Weber captain.

  • Joe Szyslak says

    Really enjoyed this article. I completely agree that it’s time to move on from Hemsky. Let’s call a spade a spade and admit defeat. It’s not a big deal – very small gamble for the Habs that shouldn’t be held against Bergevin.

    Given the play of the club right now, I’m wary of trading away any prospects and would not include a first round pick in a trade under any circumstance.

    A PMD is sorely lacking, but so is a top 6 C. I’m not convinced Drouin is a centre and would prefer him on the wing where he could focus on generating offence for the club. I agree that not having a solid PMD is causing the most headache right now, but I still do not think the club is going anywhere with the centre line they have in place.

    Ideally they make one big trade that addresses both needs but the odds of that happening are slim to none. So realistically if I’m the Habs I’m saving my best trade chips to try and land Ryan Nugent Hopkins from the Oilers when they are ready to deal him (might be sooner than later given Oils poor start). The Oilers are going to trade RNH for cap reasons – it’s inevitable. This may only happen in the offseason, but I would wait. Top two UFA’s at C this summer are Tavares and Turris and let’s be real – it would be shocking if both weren’t re-signed by their respective clubs. Imagine Max Pacioretty on McDavid’s wing. Scary.

    On D, I would go hard after Calvin De Haan from the Isles right now. He’s a UFA that may not cost too much that can be slotted in a top 4 role and he moves the puck very well. Not a prolific point getter, but he would be a good fit for Habs. Add Schlemko in a month and the Habs SHOULD be ok. Emphasis on should.

    Mitch Melnik wrote today that the Habs should hire someone as President of Hockey Ops to oversee the entire department. I really like that idea and think it should be done to help Bergevin with player evaluations and to have a new voice involved in the club’s decision making process.

    My two cents, cheers.

  • Halifaxhab says

    I cant see taking the C from a player and have him stay. Not everyone is like Thornton. If Pacioretty gets stripped my view is he gets traded. And if he does you know you can land 2 great pieces in return

  • Bob Trask says

    Love the Weber for captain idea and I’m all for replacing Hemsky with Scherbak. Before taking that 3rd step you suggested, I’d see what the impact of these 2 would be. My 3rd step would be to replace Morrow and Benn with Jerabek and Lernout. Keep Davidson around and rotate the 3 of them

  • Bill Shahidi says

    I like all your suggestions but it’ll take Poehling+1st rd pick and another top prospect like Juulsen for OEL. I would call up Scherbak & McCarron. Habs badly need more size in the top 9.

  • Scott Murray says

    Great post! I’m in agreement about lifting the captaincy off PatCHes’ chest and assigning it to Weber. Pat Hickey wrote that Max’s comments the other day were “a cry for help,” which is true. I also hope the Hemsky experiment is over with. But let’s bring up McCarron and Scherbak instead of trading just yet. I think Benn, Petry, Davidson and Price are all just in a funk at the same time.

  • Patrick Moss says

    If a Bergy had just stood pat and drafted the players Timmins wanted to draft….

    Max – Galchenyuk – Radu
    DeBrincat – Danault – Gallagh
    Hudon – Pleks – Lehkonnen
    Mitchell – Jdlr – Byron

    Markov – PK
    Mete – Petry
    Sergachev – S. Girard

    How can you tell me the Shaw trade and the PK trade made this team better when looking at this lineup?

    • Nicolas Lamarche-Lauzon says

      I don’t think habs would have draft both Mete and Girard but i can be wrong.

  • Nicolas Lamarche-Lauzon says

    1- Trade Pacioretty for RNH / Nurse 2- Gave Captaincy to Weber. 3- Convert Galchenyuk to center. If habs want to have success, Galchenyuk need to be producing, 4- Call up McCarron, Sherbak and Lernout. 5- Switch lines Drouin-Galchenyuk-Scherbak / Lehkonen – RNH – Gallagher / Byron – Plekanec – Shaw / Danault- De La Rose – McCarron (Hudon)

  • habshannibal says

    I would love a real 4th line built with energy players, s**t disturbers, people that can go out and hit everything in sight. Guys that would at least try to change momentum. Nic deslauriers and Michael McCarron come to mind. And they would only play 10mins a game. Then I would play our tip players 20+ mins. When I read that Drouin played 14 mins; it makes no sense to me. 27 had 23 points in 25 games last year at centre before injury( playing with 67 btw). No ine was taking about hus defence and Habs record was quite impressive. Drouin can centre a line and Chucky can centre a line moving Danault to third line centre. So my last suggestion is it’s time to part ways with Plec. Thank you for all those years.

    • Grant McCagg says

      I agree…it’s like Bergevin went in complete reverse of his playoff philosophy of having size/grit/energy on the bottom lines..some kind of a balance would be nice.

  • Rene Mathieu says

    They’re in a tough spot and I’ll admit I don’t really have a a full plan to put forward but I’ll say this: Max is eligible for an extension next July and he’ll be looking for maximum term at over $6 M probably $7 M, and there’s no way I want him on the books for the next 8 years at that cost.
    And he’s probably our most valuable asset on the trade market.
    So…

  • Ken Macleod says

    “The Habs need to make a trade that is a puck moving offensive defenceman like Oliver Ekman-Larssson for example for three assets: a strong roster player, a strong prospect and a strong draft pick.”

    Crazy. With no Habs game last night, I took a cold, hard look at CapFriendly and this was almost exactly one of the trades on a short list of entirely do-able deals that jumped out at me right away, even down to Lindgren as one of its moving parts.

    I’d even go far as to say Derek Stephan could be included to make it a true block-buster, but that’s probably a bit over the top and would require giving up more valuable assets – ones that would also be painful to lose as well, of course – to make it work for both sides.

    But Wilde is correct here: Our biggest problem is wonky defence corps that needs to be straightened up, for now and going ahead into the future. We can put still together four lines that will (eventually) be productive, but nothing will work for this team until the bleeding stops in the defensive zone.

  • Dave Trembley says

    1. Do not trade Pacioretty. “You don’t get better trading your best players.” Bill Parcells.

    2. Do not fire Bergevin. Instead, hire a knowledgeable hockey person who is above Bergevin, who Bergevin reports to. Bergevin can still move players back and forth from Laval, but he can no longer make trades without approval from upstairs.

    • Trevor Birtch says

      I agree with hiring someone to over see hockey operations. Having someone whos been in the league for quite awhile who can stop MB from trading away guys like PK would be great. It seems like MB can make any decision he wants without anyone stopping him. He was playing hardball with PK for how long before Molson had to step in and give him a contract offer.

  • Allan Warren says

    I agree with your comments Brian. Especially number 2. To continue to hold this cap space “if” there are deals to be made is criminal. Since we are unaware of the back room discussions and the asking price for some of the players who may be available we can not be certain. We had a brutal start to the season but also a pretty brutal schedule too so I am waiting to see how the next 5 or 6 weeks goes before losing the faith I have. I have Premium Reds for the Dec.9 game against the Oilers. I am really, really hoping there is a turn around well before that!!

  • Michael Kalinowski says

    If it were me there would be no untouchables. Everyone is in play. You can’t get sentimental about players and be successful in this league.