No Loss Unrewarded

Despite losing their third straight game last night, the Canadiens still locked up a playoff spot thanks to the overtime point. They now sit at 93 points, and thanks to holding the tiebreaker over the Panthers are assured of a postseason berth even if the two teams finish tied in the standings (i.e. Montreal loses on Saturday and Florida wins).

The game last night was a chippy affair, with plenty of evidence (especially in the second period) that these are two teams that clearly don't like each other. With the return of Mathieu Schneider and insertion of Yannick Weber the Montreal PP was again successful (if unspectacular), scoring 3 times with the man advantage. A bit of secondary scoring was also evident (Matt D'Agostini had a pair), and Carey Price played a relatively solid game despite throwing in a couple of noteworthy errors. Unfortunately, the problem with the team still seems to be an inability to play and focus for a complete 60-minute game, and that is clearly something that needs to be fixed if they have any aspirations of making a postseason run.

With their playoff spot now assured, the main question that remains is who the Canadiens will face in the first round: Boston or Washington. That will depend on the outcome of the games over the weekend, as a Rangers win or Canadiens loss means a return matchup with the Bruins, while should the Rangers lose and the Habs manage a single point against the Penguins then it will mean a series with the Caps. Each possible opponent has their own relative strengths and weaknesses to be sure, so it's hard to say who the Canadiens would feel is a better matchup. Either way, I'm sure most people following the team are just glad to see them in, and will be more than happy with any first-round opponent given the alternatives that were looming a few weeks ago.

The Verdict: Matt's Back

Mathieu Schnedier returns tonight for the Montreal Canadiens, partially torn rotator cuff and all. It's a Passover miracle for Schnedier, after being told days ago that his season was over. Hopefully, this gutsy decision to play through pain will spur the rest of the team on.

Still no word on Andrei Markov.

Go Habs Go. 

The Thin Blue Line

That's what the Habs are faced with tonight. No Schneider. No Markov. Doug Janik slots in for his first game. And a power play that has been 37% for the past six games lies in wait.

Can they get it done sans the big two?

UPDATE

Schneider gone for the season with a rotator cuff injury. Markov gone for 3-4 weeks with a reported left-knee injury.

Can it get any worse?

The solution: Yannick Weber.

Bob, make the call.

Streaking Habs Meet Surging Sharks

Big game tonight in Montreal, as the Canadiens (winners of their last 3) face off against San Jose (victories in 5 of their last 6) in what many people thought might be a Stanley Cup preview back at the start of the year. While the Sharks have managed to live up to those lofty expectations so far this season (not that regular season success is anything new to them), the Canadiens have taken a slightly rougher road through their first 62 games. After a prolonged Western slump the Habs seem to have things back in order though, and look to keep it going tonight against one of the top teams in the league.

Key to the recent success has been the resurgence of the once vaunted powerplay with the acquisition of Mathieu Schneider, who tallied two points on the PP last night including the game winner in OT. Jaroslav Halak has also become a stabilizing presence in goal, and Tomas Plekanec has been absolutely on fire with 9 points (6 goals) in the 5 games played since returning from his 2-game suspension. Alex
"L'Artiste" Kovalev has been equally hot of late, totaling 7 points in the three games back after his team-imposed exile.

With the deadline looming it will be interesting to see how management decides to go about tinkering with the roster, since the quality of play lately has been very solid. With Alex Tanguay and Guillaume Latendresse due to return before too much longer there will also be improvements available from within the team itself, although that hasn't stopped people from talking about the availability of Keith Tkachuk and Olli Jokinen to fill some needs up front. Needless to say it should be an eventful few days leading up to the March 4 deadline, and we'll do our best to keep you completely up to date on all of the important news.

Enjoy the game tonight everybody!

A Big Win for Les Canadiens

A great game this afternoon for the Habs as they prevail 5-3 over the hated Ottawa Senators. Alexei Kovalev was the man of the hour, with two beautiful set-ups, a goal, and great penalty kills for the Canadiens. Josh Gorges had a spirited fight, and Jaroslav Halak kept the Canadiens in it with some fairly solid goaltending. It will be interesting to see who Carbonneau starts Tuesday against Vancouver, as one can make a reasonable argument for both. 

A positive for the Canadiens: the power play continued to click, as Mathieu Schneider scored yet again in his Habs-redux. The Canadiens power play is a solid 7 for 12 since acquiring Schneider, and is quickly moving up in the NHL rankings from the terrible 30 where it once sat.

A great game, a great weekend, and a challenging week ahead. Will Kovalev and Koivu continue to lead the way? Will Gainey make another trade?

Will the real Carey Price please stand up?

Canadiens at Penguins

Another day, another game...another loss? We'll see. Guy Carbonneau ices the same team tonight, with Carey Price starting after a strong effort last night in a shootout loss to the Washington Capitals.

The Alex Kovalev saga continues (and that's what it is, a saga). As well, Steve Begin is apparently now upset that he isn't playing. I can't blame him. He is the same type of player as Gregory Stewart, and yet Stewart was called up to play ahead of him. Furthermore, Begin makes $1.2 million, and Stewart makes (in NHL terms) next to nothing. If this were any other NHL city, Begin would be dealt, and he is valuable to contenders as a gritty, hard working fourth liner. However, he's French, and this in Montreal, so for at least a few more games he'll likely watch from the press-box.

Also, Georges Laraque. What does he do? Last night, he took a dumb penalty hitting Donald Brashear from behind. Otherwise, he did nothing. I can't believe we have this guy for another two years at $1.5 million. Perhaps Gainey's worst signing as Habs GM - but that's debatable.

And as for rumours, the same ones continue to swirl: Kovalev to Pittsburgh, Kovalev to Columbus, Kovalev responsible for economic crisis, Kovalev meeting in Ottawa with Obama. Etc. Etc. It just keeps going.

Ryan Smyth is apparently available (so says TSN). Now he might look good playing wing to Saku Koivu. But do the Canadiens have the cap room? No.

And lastly, the Habs powerplay came to life last night, going three for four. Mathieu Schneider looked great, playing 27 minutes. Can the Canadiens keep the PP momentum going this evening?

Doc, this is going to be a good one.

Better Effort, Same Result

The Canadiens' road woes continued last night, falling 4-3 to the Caps in a shootout. Unlike other recent defeats though, the team actually looked motivated and controlled the play for large portions of the game against a solid Washington squad. Unfortunately, a late goal by David Steckel forced extra time, where Tomas Plekanec had an amazing chance to beat Jose Theodore but was robbed by the inside of the post. Things were equally bad in the shootout, with goals by Alex Semin and Nicklas Backstrom sealing the victory and ruining what was otherwise a solid team effort from the Habs.

On the bright side, the powerplay found new life and scored 3 times (with goals by the beleaguered trio of Higgins, Plekanec and Kostitsyn Sr.), and Carey Price showed signs that he may be back to the form that we remember from earlier in the year. Mathieu Schnedier also looked to be at home back in the "bleu, blanc et rouge," playing a solid game and recording an assist in just over 27 minutes of ice time.

Montreal travels to Pittsburgh tonight, where they'll face a reeling Penguins team. If the work effort from last night carries over, expect this one to be an equally well-contested affair.

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

How quickly the fans can turn

Turn on Montreal radio this morning, and the general feeling is that Alex Kovalev is a terrible person. Just awful. He's gotta go. Trade him for pucks. Addition by subtraction.

Hold on a second: Kovalev was THE guy last year. He has been THE guy for small parts of this year. Yes, he's in a slump, but he didn't steal a baby or rob a bank. He's just had a bad 10 games. He'll snap out of it. Let him play through it.

The general feeling seems to be that the Schneider signing was a good one. Let's see what kind of impact he makes tomorrow against the Capitals. 

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).