A frustrating loss, and a coach past

The Habs lost another last night, in a shootout, to the Rangers. Doesn't matter how they lost - it was a loss. Great game by Carey Price - until they lost. The Habs head to Ottawa this evening, where hopefully they win. Otherwise, they'll be losers of four in five since Bob Gainey took over as coach from that other guy.

"It's the first time I have been fired."

Speaking of Guy Carbonneau, he addressed the media today, his 49th birthday. He said he had "no idea" he was going to be fired, and that it caught him by surprise. He also said, not surprisingly, that he is not happy he was fired. He said he is still cheering for the team and hopes they make the playoffs and go far.

Wow. What a 100th season. Whoo. Hoo. 

Big Game This Evening

Brodeur goes for 551. Habs go for 2 points. Pittsburgh lost this aft, room to gain ground. Will Les Boys come through?

Jaroslav Halak starts. Brisebois plays #1000. Gainey coaches #3. 

Three Solid Periods

Well, if you count OT as a full period anyway...

The Habs managed a 4-3 victory over the visiting Oilers last night despite playing one of the worst second periods in recent (and distant...) memory. Fortunately, other than that aberration the team actually looked quite impressive in the first game under the Bob Gainey regime, carrying the rest of the play and getting solid contributions from virtually the entire lineup. Carey Price continued his renaissance, and Saku Koivu scored late to tie the game and again in OT to seal the victory. The one obvious blemish was that the performance of Alex Kovalev was somewhat lacking (his only "contributions" came in the form of minor penalties), but given his strong relationship with Bob Gainey and his solid linemates, it is unlikely to be a prolonged slump.

The Habs continue their extended home stand on Thursday night, when they welcome the New York Islanders. Although recent games against Eastern bottom-feeders like Atlanta have been far from inspiring performances, you can be sure that Gainey will have the team prepared and focused for this one at a key point in the season.

Changes

With the sudden firing of Guy Carbonneau yesterday afternoon, the Canadiens will presumably finish their Centennial Season with Bob Gainey behind the bench. This isn't the first time that this has happened, with Gainey taking over from Claude Julien and amassing a record of 23-15-3 in 41 games during the 2005/06 season and leading the team into the postseason. He evidently hopes to repeat things this year, citing eight weeks of underachievement as the driving force behind the move.

While it isn't uncommon for the coach to become the scapegoat for an underachieving team, I was a bit surprised to see Carbonneu take the fall during the year. I had him finishing the season with the team before being moved out over the summer, so this certainly comes as a surprise to most parties involved. Conversely, we've seen Lou Lamoriello fire coaches with 3 games left in a season where the Devils set a regular season record for wins (again the unfortunate Claude Julien was the victim), so this sort of sudden move isn't exactly uncommon. What remains to be seen is how the Canadiens as a team react to the change. We won't have to wait too long to find out, as they're home to face the Oilers tonight (7:30 EST start).

Another Year...

...and another quiet deadline for the Canadiens pending some sort of late-breaking activity. It'll be interesting to see what Bob Gainey has to say in his upcoming press conference, which is scheduled for 3:30 from Brossard.

With trade talk now firmly behind them until the offseason, the Canadiens can turn their focus to the Buffalo Sabres (who they'll face tonight at the HSBC Arena). The Habs put their four game winning streak on the line, and are expected to start Carey Price in goal with Jaroslav Halak forced out of the lineup on account of the flu.

Many fans will be disappointed by the lack of trade activity from the Canadiens today (and the inevitable indictment by the TSN crew during the broadcast of the game tonight will do nothing to improve the situation), so hopefully the team can pull out a victory to ease at least some of the sting.

Looking Out for #1?

In an interesting discussion on TSN's "Off The Record" last night, the panel brought up the idea that the number of players on the Canadiens with contract uncertainties heading into the offseason has been a significant detriment to the quality of play of the team. This can be seen to manifest itself in two ways: players pressing too hard to try and score in the hopes of earning a better contract (ultimately leading to inconsistent play), or players avoiding intensive physical/defensive styles to limit injuries that would hurt their contract chances.

Two questions to throw out to our readers then:

1) Do you think that the number of players with uncertain contract status for next year has really been a contributor to some of the struggles the Canadiens have had?

2) Should Bob Gainey work harder to sign/extend his free agents during the season, or is waiting until the offseason still the more prudent choice?

Three's a Streak

What a game. Halak looks fantastic. Koivu comes through with faceoff magic late. And L'Artiste with three points again. The Habs are back ladies and gentlemen.

Mathieu Schneider, again, looked great anchoring the power play. His booming shot has added a dimension the Canadiens were sorely missing. Mike Komisarek also had a very strong game, playing physical against a very tough Philadelphia team.

And lastly, new Hab Glen Metropolit looked great against his old team. Wearing #15, he played very strong on a line with Tom Kostopolous. Looks like another strong move by Gainey.

In Bob We Trust.

RUMOURS

From the Buffalo News, Tim Connolly to Columbus for Rostislav Klesla.

Also of note, Jacques Martin was scouting tonight's Canadiens-Flyers game.

If I'm Bob Gainey...

So if I'm Bob Gainey today, before this Larque situation becomes an issue, I try and move him. And Edmonton is the prime target, as the Oilers always loved Georges, and vice versa. He still has significant ties to the organization and within the community. Despite the Ruutu for Cole rumour, would this work:

Georges Laraque

Mathieu Carle

3rd

for

Erik Cole

What do you think? Should Bob deal Laraque? Would this type of move be possible?

More on the Laraque situation:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090225.WBhockeyblog20090225135831/WBStory/WBhockeyblog/

Rumour Update

• Brian Burke stated definitively on radio this afternoon that he expects a player, a 1st round pick, and a to prospect for Tomas Kaberle. In essence, he's looking for the same sort of package he paid to Edmonton for Chris Pronger three years ago. 

What a crazy day...

Wow. Links to organized crime. Kovalev back in the fold. Halak back between the pipes. NHL investigations.

Quite the day in Habsland. As usual, we're trying to keep you up to date with news and commentary. Many media still say there is a lot more to come out, but let's be honest, this is Montreal: how could they keep anything jucier than this under wraps? So at this point, we here at The Drive for Twenty Five are looking forward to Hockey Day in Canada tomorrow, and the Canadiens annual thrashing at the hands of the Senators. Perhaps The Doc will touch on that later.

For now, we leave you with this: Bob Gainey held a press conference this afternoon to discuss the ongoing police investigation, and the return of Alexei Kovalev. 

Audio can be found on the HIO website, here:

http://habsinsideout.com/main/15923

Quite the 24 hours for the Canadiens.

Kovalev Back Friday: RDS

RDS is reporting that Alex Kovalev will rejoin the Canadiens tomorrow, after he and Bob Gainey had a lengthy discussion today. Kovalev is expected back in the lineup Saturday versus Ottawa, but that decision will be left up to coach Guy Carbonneau.

http://www.rds.ca/canadien/chroniques/269527.html

As The World Turns: Wednesday in Washington

The soap opera that is the Montreal Canadiens continues. Slumping star Alex Kovalev has been sent to his room by GM Bob Gainey. Former hot-shot young winger Sergei Kostitsyn has been banished to Hamilton. And today, rumours in La Presse that Gainey has been trying to deal Kovalev for weeks, perhaps for Vincent Lecavalier. You can read about that here:

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/sports/hoc...x-semaines.php

So what happens next for the Habs? Well, a game against former goaltender Jose Theodore Washington, of course. This will be a big test, because if Montreal's defence plays as well as they did Sunday against Vancouver, Alex Ovechkin may challenge Darryl Sittler's record for points in a game. Really. The defence was that bad. This could be ugly.

No word yet on starting goalies, although the airwaves this morning are suggesting it will be Carey Price. We'll see who Guy decides to stand in front of the firing squad.

How will the Habs respond sans Kovalev? How many shots will Ovechkin get? All these questions and more to be answers tonight.

Kovalev to...bed?

Alex Kovalev will not be travelling with the Canadiens for the next three games, and instead will be staying home to get rest. Bob Gainey apparently feels that Kovalev is tired and deserves some time to rest, as he appears "tired."

This armchair GM thinks instead that Gainey is trying to trade Kovalev and doesn't want him getting hurt.

For the full report, go here:

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=267501&lid=sublink01&lpos=headlines_main

Cap Concerns?

With the addition of Mathieu Schnedier yesterday, the Canadiens now find themselves in the unfortunate circumstance of having essentially spent their total salary cap allotment for the current season. I don't know about you, but given what I've seen recently I'm not all that convinced that one veteran defenceman is enough of a change to put this team back into legitimate playoff contention (even when Tanguay returns and the search parties find Alex Kovalev). With any other deals having to coincide with the movement of a current roster player, it leads to a number of interesting questions leading up to the March 4 trade deadline:

Who (if anybody) is Bob Gainey willing to part with?
What needs remain to be addressed?
How will the team's UFA/RFA situation play out over the rest of the year and into the summer, and what influence (if any) will this have on any potential moves?
Can we finally put the ridiculous "Lecavalier-to-Montreal" rumors to rest?

Needless to say, it's going to be an interesting couple of weeks as the team gears up for the deadline and subsequent drive for the playoffs.


http://www.nhlnumbers.com/overview.php?team=MTL

And he comes full circle...

Mathieu Schneider left the Canadiens in 1995 under cloudy circumstances. Rumours of a fight with Patrick Roy still exist. However, what's not in question is that Schneider went on to have many productive years, an all-star American defenceman who could run a power play well and won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007. He went from a rookie in Montreal, learning under the tutelage of Chris Chelios, to a veteran in Atlanta, mentoring the young Zach Bogosian. 

Today, there are two Canadiens defencemen left in the NHL from the 1993 Stanley Cup winner, Patrice Brisebois and Mr. Schenider. And they're both back where they belong. Montreal sends Anaheim's 2nd round pick in 2009 (which they previously acquired), along with Montreal's 3rd round pick in 2010, for Schneider and a conditional pick. The conditional pick is dependent on how deep Montreal goes in the playoffs. It can be as high as this year's 3rd if they don't win a round.

What does this mean? Well, it means Montreal's top four looks a lot better, as Schneider slides in to run a power play that has been ineffective at best all year long. It also means GM Bob Gainey is working the phones trying to get things done. It also means that the Habs have made a preemptive strike against other teams in the Eastern Conference fight for talent at the trade deadline.

And it also means that cap space is running thin. 

RUMOUR

Bob McKenzie of TSN is reporting that the Phoenix Coyotes are "upset" with the Canadiens, as Phoenix believed they essentially had a deal with the Habs. Who knows what that deal is - perhaps Bob wouldn't allow them to keep pushing for more? One thing is clear: McKenzie says we should expect more trades from Mr. Gainey before deadline day. 

Schneider Returns to Montreal

Various media outlets are reporting that the Canadiens have traded a second-round pick in 2009 and their third-round pick in 2010 to the Atlanta Thrashers for Mathieu Schneider and a conditional draft pick (based on how far in the postseason the Canadiens advance this year).

In the wake of their recent slump many people have been calling for Bob Gainey to make some sort of move to shake things up, so in one sense this should at least temporarily satisfy those demands. The question now is whether this was a prudent choice (he's a veteran presence and should help the defence and PP), or just a case of panic setting in (2 picks in exchange for an aging player making a lot of money and having a relatively slow season so far).

The Beat Goes On

Another day, another disappointing loss. The Habs return from their Western swing with a dismal 1-3-0 record after losing 4-2 in Vancouver last night, and the questions surrounding the team will only continue to intensify.

How can they build some consistency (both offensively and defensively), and can Bob Gainey make a move that would in some way salvage a season that is quickly spiraling out of control? Also, what does the future hold for Guy Carbonneau, who seems to have lost control of the room quite some time ago? For good or bad, coaches tend to be the first domino to fall in trying to change the fortunes of a struggling team (see Tampa Bay, Ottawa and Pittsburgh so far this year), so it may only be a matter of time before we see a move being made behind the bench in Montreal.

With these issues in mind it's going to be a long couple of days between games for the entire management staff, and with a visit to Washington next on the schedule, things could certainly get worse on the ice before they have a chance to get any better off of it.

Vancouver Bringdown

A 4-2 loss proves that the Habs have not broken out of their funk. Saku Koivu plays like a possessed man, but it's not enough as the team yet again lets down Jaroslav Halak. The one bright spot? Carey Price came in late in relief to play in front of his family and friends and looked good. However, that's really stretching it for a bright spot. 

A few days off may help now, but what this team really needs is a shake-up. Whether it's a trade or a new coach (see Penguins, Pittsburgh) Bob Gainey really needs to figure out how to right this ship. Or this has Titanic written all over it.

What's to Gain-ey?

Trade rumors continue to swirl around the Habs, but if history is to be believed then it's unlikely that Bob Gainey will rush into a move of any type. He knows that dealing from a position of desperation never yields the same types of results, so it seems a bit far fetched to expect that we'll be seeing any sort of major deal in the near future.

With that said, I expect the team to make a deal for a puck-moving defenceman some time before the deadline. The powerplay is stagnant, and recent games have shown an alarming decrease in the efficiency of the outlet pass from their own zone (I don't think I've ever seen so many icing calls in a single game as I have last night). The name of Jay Bouwmeester keeps getting thrown around, and I have to assume that the Habs will at least inquire to see what it would take to get him to Montreal (even if it's just for the stretch drive). Tomas Kaberle is another very reasonable option when he comes back from injury, and if Brian Burke can be convinced to make a deal within the Division then he may very well be an economical option.

The forwards and goaltending will likely be secondary, although a big presence up front would clearly help (like people have been saying for the last 10 years or so). Based on the crippling contract Lecavalier just won't happen (as much as people would like to believe it will), but maybe somebody like Erik Cole could still be possible. Also, with Halak picking up his game yesterday the backup situation seems a little less panicked than it did a few days ago, but some experience and a calming influence would certainly be an added bonus if it could be attained in a cost-effective manner.

In Bob We Trust...

...or do we? I don't know about you Doc, but I've been waiting patiently for a trade for weeks. What gives? Rumours of Lecavalier, then Richards, then Jokinen. But nothing happens. Can Bob get the job done?

In mulling over deadline possibilities, a few stick out as solid additions. Kaberle would look good on the power play. I would also love to see Erik Cole flanking Tanguay and Koivu. Regardless of who you think we should add, can we agree that a puck-moving defenceman, an impact forward, and a veteran backup goaltender are the most pressing needs? Tom Priessing in LA is available as as a rushing defenceman, and Curits Joseph could probably be grabbed off the Leafs for a few signed Kovalev sticks. 

Even if we don't sign anyone, hey, look on the bright side: at least we aren't stuck with Jeff Finger for three more years.