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McLean’s Pub Call Of The Wilde: Solid Effort
November 22, 2017
By Brian Wilde
I think this D has a chance if we trust the kids a bit. Imagine the following D pairings when every one is healthy:
Weber Mete
Petry Jerabek
Morrow Alzner/Benn
All of a sudden you have puck moving dman. I know Jerabek is only 1 game in but you have to take a chance.
Use the assets we do have be and hopefully that equals a centre.
I can’t fault Niemi on 2nd goal, quick pass to elite shooter. If that’s the Habs, puck is likely shot wide. Can’t believe how inaccurate Habs are at picking top of the net. Craig Button kept saying “elevate” the other night. They just can’t or they miss. Ugh.
I guess the question is, “why can’t Habs management see the same things we’re seeing, or are they using different criteria in their judgment”? Is Mete really making mistakes that they see and we don’t? Can Marc Bergevin not conclude that it’s better to have a decent centre than a high scoring, but somewhat defensively challenged winger who can’t seem to raise his game in the playoffs? Yes, the dmen are playing above their pay grade, but a guy like Larry Robinson takes guys like that and makes them just a bit better. What does JJ Daigneault do? Those initial hirings back in 2012 should have given us an inkling as to the way this management group thinks. When you pass up hiring a Hall of Fame defenseman with a proven record of improving players under his charge, in order to give a job to a friend and former teammate who has little success on his resume’, the impression is left that you’re not serious about being the best. The many peculiar decisions in the past 18 months are really only the culmination of a trend that began in 2012. One wonders how much Gerard Gallant contributed to the success of the team in 2012 and 2013. In 2014, Carey Price carried the entire team to a 110 point season and since then……well the emperor’s clothes seem to be disappearing. Keep up the good work, Brian. I very much enjoy the writing and viewpoints on Recrutes. The comments as well, are reasoned opinions that make sense, unlike some forums.
Brian – as much as you want the Habs to acquire a center, the sad truth is that we have nothing to offer other than picks – at least, not without creating another hole in the lineup. And based on what I’ve seen, I trust Timmins much more to find value in those picks – especially in a deep draft, than for Bergy to use those picks and prospects wisely in a trade. In fact, I think Bergy is TERRIBLE at trades. I don’t want Bergy to do a damn thing.
Want to know why I think that? Here goes:
Imagine, for a second, if Bergy doesn’t make a single trade in the past 17 months and just lets Timmins do his job. The D would look like this:
Markov – PK
Sergachev – Petry
Beaulieu – Girard
Mete
(Sam Girard would have been drafted in the second round of 2016 draft).
That, right there, is evidence that Bergy has actually made things worse on defense. If he had literally done nothing, we would be so much better.
while Grant was saying it was possible for this D corps to get as many points this year as last years, most fans already knew what You’re finally saying now: the D sucks. Puck moving. Moving. Breathing. Whatever u want to call it. They suck. And it’s Bergys awful trades and mismanagement that are the cause.
What would the offense look like if he hadn’t bungled free agency this year?
Hudon – Galchenyuk – Radu
Max – Danault – Lehkonnen
Byron – Pleks – Gallagher
DeBrincat – JDLR – Mitchell / Carr
Again, the forward corps is a bit better than what it currently is, as DeBrincat (yes, Timmins would have drafted him, he has stated so publicly), is better than Shaw in the skills department. The offense overall, because the d would be both “puck moving” and “moving,” would be better.
Again, Bergy doesn’t have to make a single trade. All he has to do is let Timmins do his job and sign and re-sign a free agent every and now.
This literally shows how bad Bergy has been for the past 16 months going back to the PK trade.
And in this pressure cooker, where he’s at a disadvantage, where he’s already behind, is the absolute wrong time for Bergy to sell the farm
On Ryan Nugent Hopkins. I don’t trust him.
Thank you for your honest reporting and nor just adding fuel to the fire of rumours. And for bringing up Drouin’s splint. When was the last time Petry put in 55 min. of TOI in two nights with travel in between. He’s had some terrible moments this season but he really stepped up on this trip.
I think they’re all trying, but some are clearly trying harder than others & some are giving a more consistent effort than others. Brendan Gallagher’s effort level is way higher than Max Pacioretty.
Max cleary had the “can”, but the “try” this season has been very inconsistent.
I really hope Mete goes back to Junior and plays for Team Canada. Get him away from this mess.
Like you Brian, I am hoping that the Mete snub last night was because they are going to send him back down to Junior to give him a more positive experience. However I can also see a scary trend here…ala Therrien, CJ is using the wrong players too much and not using the players he should because of “labels”. Jerabek got 18 minuts last night. I will bet you grand that number starts to decrease the minute he makes his first glaring error…just as Mete’s did. Because he is “young”. Meanwhile, the saviour that is Alzner gets walked night after night and continues to get 15-18 minutes – because he is a “veteran” . Makes no sense. Clearly the Habs are not going to make the show this season, so why not have a go with the best players you have? And that sure as shit isn’t the current crop of D they are using. Put Morrow with Weber, Mete with Petry and Alzner with Benn and see what you get (it is entirely possible that these combos won’t work due to whichever side they normally play) so before you slate my selection, just take the above mentioned 6 and work with them in whatever combo fits best. You can replace Alzner with Schlemko (if Schlemko is in fact a real person) as soon as his sore wrist is healed. Alzner is a complete bust and one that Bergevin has to take 100% responsibility for.
A bit all over the place I know but that’s how the team is making me feel these days.
I don’t blame Julien… the roster isn’t strong esp at D and had underperformed much of the year at G.
But blame isn’t a mutually exclusive exercise. He’s not been as good as I expected, and everyone in Boston keeps telling me ‘I told you so’. Noteworthy his replacements have outperformed him during his waning two years in Boston with similar roster talent. Some suggest he’s a coach for the old NHL that his defense was designed for (with his stamp of approval?).
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says
I don’t agree. You’re missing the fact that he turned the club around to make the playoffs. They were crack and within 4 games they were a completely different team.
Told you so after a cup and a cup final ?!? Habs fans would love to say told you so with that level of unappreciation.
As far as this year, you can’t make chicken salad out of chicken shit. The defence is 1 first pair, 1 second pair and 4 or 5 or 6 or however many are used 3rd pair.
Bergevin has 10 million bucks and he needs to find someone at c and d or this won’t improve.
not sure why Drouin was shooting the SO over 27 when his hand is not where it needs to be. full credit to him for working through this injury though.
I really like your comment about assessing players at “future value and not what was their past value.” I’ve heard NFL coach and GM Bill Belichick talk about that, saying that future expectations are more important than past performance when assessing your players, and the team commitment to them.