Here was the scene in McLean’s Pub with about a minute left in the game:

Penguins are going golfing. Habs are moving on to the conference finals for the first time since 1993. And – say it with me – we all know what happened in 1993.

The whole city is partying right now. Think I’ll go join them.

GO HABS GO!!!

“I’ve done my best and now it’s time for me to pass the torch,” Gainey said on Monday. “I believe that the general manager position requires a long-term vision and a long-term commitment. At this point, I’m not prepared to make a commitment of four or five or six more years in this position.

Assistant GM Pierre Gauthier has been promoted as the new GM.

Gainey took over the role in 2003 to great fanfare greater expectations. At first, he battled the naysayers and started the long process of rebuilding the team, achieving first place in the East two seasons ago.

But many of his decisions have been very questionable of late, and the trust was gone, namely, ill-timed overconfidence in Carey Price, the failure to secure big-name free agents despite public efforts, firing of Guy Carbonneau and hiring Jacques Martin in his place, and of course the great shake-up during last off-season.

I think a lot of people were fed up with Gainey. He won’t go down in history as the Habs’ worst GM (I’d say that role belongs permanently to Rejean Houle). He had an overall winning record, and he did do a lot of good things for the team, which was in shambles when he took the reins. But his legacy is mixed, at best. And of course, nobody ever remembers what you do best; they only remember what you do last.

Bye bye, Bob. Best of luck to you.

Can we keep it up? Let’s hope so. Go Habs!

Well, here you go, Ryan. Your wish is granted:

(Oh, and woohoo, Go Habs Go!)

What, you mean rumours leaked by the organization itself?

Before the game, pretty much every living Hab great in history was out there tonight on the ice for the 100th anniversary ceremonies, from Jean Beliveau to Guy Lafleur, from Dickie Moore to Yvon Cournoyer, from Patrick Roy to Ken Dryden. Butch Bouchard and Elmer Lach had their numbers retired as part of the night. Plenty of pomp and circumstance, to be sure, but this is a team whose stories deserve to be celebrated.

Happy Birthday, Habs!

From the minute the sellout crowd booed loudly and rudely through the U.S. National Anthem, I knew it was going to be a long night. There is no excuse for that kind of disgusting display. If you don’t want to sing, fine, but stand quietly and show some respect.

The boos continued all night for the likes of Zdeno Chara and company. The cheers, on the other hand, were loud and boisterous for hits, checks and fights, but were mostly absent otherwise. Last season, the Bell Centre was so loud during the playoff games that you couldn’t even hear yourself think. Not so this season. When the team needed the crowd to rally behind them as they limped their way through a scoreless third, it was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

This fanbase eggs on the likes of Laraque and Stewart and encourages the team to play like thugs. Meanwhile, the so-called “big bad Bruins” beat us on skill, not might.

Yes, it’s true that a good number of our key players were injured. Yes, it’s true that Gainey has made some incredibly questionable decisions, including giving Carey Price a stranglehold on the starter’s job for no apparent reason.

Ultimately, the better team won all three games. Boston has outplayed us, outmatched us, outdueled us in every critical category, and has walked away with the victories fair and square.

And until we fans start demanding better and acting with class, we can expect more of the same. This season, Montreal fans truly got the hockey team that we deserved.

Shame on us.

It’s hard to argue that the Habs’ recent woes can be blamed solely or even largely on Carbo. On the other hand, sometimes fault doesn’t come into it. Sometimes it’s just about shaking things up.

Can’t help but feel bad for the guy, though. I liked Carbonneau as a player and I liked him as a coach. He led the Habs to their best record in over a decade last season, and this season started off promising as well. Then again, I guess the higher you rise, the further you fall.

Halak stole that one for us. At least one of our goalies seems to have rediscovered his confidence, even if it’s the wrong one. But that was a really dismal performance by the rest of the team.

Let’s hope that this victory – however undeserved – helps energize the rest of the team to turn things around for real.

Gainey’s got a busy couple of weeks ahead. He’ll need to do something to turn things around before the trade deadline.

Update: The carnage continues.

About time. Hope they can keep it up.

The Swiss-born Universite de Montreal professor said the ubiquitous relics and rituals linked to the Habs struck him when he arrived in the city a few years ago.

The similarities prompted Olivier Bauer to launch a crusade – in the form of a university course – to explore the many ties between a team that hails its sweater as La Sainte Flanelle – or holy flannel – and spiritual devotion.

Yes, it’s a religion here all right. In its jubilee 100th year. With a big revival in the form of All-Star Weekend coming up next week. And of course, we’re all hoping that this will finally be the year when Les Boys bring home the Holy Grail: the Stanley Cup.

T-shirt with Habs logo in Hebrew letters: 30 shekels.

Coffee and a muffin from Tim Horton’s: $2.50.

Being there to see the game-winning goal scored with 22 seconds left: Priceless.

The melody stays in my head as I walk home, setting the tone for the rest of the evening. It is already dark, long ago. The days are so short now.

Outside, a few snowflakes fall lazily, trying only halfheartedly to amount to something, but succeeding only in lightly dusting the ground and the shining pavement. There’s no more ambiguity now about the season. The trees are bare now, autumn leaves replaced with Christmas lights.

Hardly anyone is on the streets. Even in the middle of downtown on a Thursday evening, it’s quiet. They’ve all hibernated. Gone underground for the winter.

The headlines today are all from Mumbai, and they’re all horrifying. Nobody reacts much. The rest of the news is about the economy. People worry but they don’t panic. They can’t quite work up the energy to panic. They exchange platitudes at the water cooler before heading back to their desks to cough and sneeze. They work hard, but they’ve slowed down since everything was new. The shorter days make everyone tired.

South of the border, it’s Thanksgiving. Here it’s just another day, like all the others. Maybe with a little less life than yesterday. And tomorrow with a little less life than today. They say it’s supposed to be the festive season, but aside from last night’s hockey win, people can’t seem to find much to be festive about.

November is a month of endings. Cold rains and early snowfalls, without the joy. The knowledge that winter has set in and will be here for the next five months. A long road with no end in sight. We walk it steadily, one foot in front of the other, because it’s all we can do.

And so we draw those we love close to us, hunker down and wait for spring.

Lang played a great game. Tanguay, not so much. Kovy is hogging the puck again, but it’s definitely the Kovy of 07-08 and not of 06-07 on the ice. Captain K, Pleks and AK all look good. Breezer is back to his cringe-worthy self. Markov doesn’t look too comfortable in his new role yet. Lapierre, wtf was up with Lapierre? And as a team, these guys are still getting used to playing on lines together. A lot of missed passes, blueline confusion, the usual stuff for the start of a season. And very nearly a photo finish. But in the end, it wasn’t enough.

And Price. Price, Price, Price. Yeah, so he lost the shootout, but the kid still made 35 saves tonight, and looked really sharp doing it. The kid’s the real deal. He’ll improve on shootouts with practice.

All in all, we looked pretty damn good out there. We came away with a point, and we’ll build on it. Bring on the Leafs!

In an effort to reduce scalper buyout, they’re limiting the tickets to one transaction per person / credit card. So even if by some miracle I manage to get ahold of tickets, they’ll only be for one game. More likely, I’ll get shut out. Then it’s a matter of staying on the good side of some season ticket holders.

Update: After waiting nearly 2-1/2 hours in the queue for the online system, I managed to get onto the system, but all the good games were basically sold out. I picked up two nosebleed tickets for Montreal-Chicago in March, which should be a good game with all the talented kids that the Blackhawks have in their lineup. I had really hoped to get tickets to a Washington or Pittsburgh game, but no such luck. Oh well, at least I got some!

Let’s see, we’ve got:

• Marian Hossa to Detroit, where he obviously wants to try to win a Cup from the other side of that equation.
• Michael Ryder to Boston, not surprisingly leaving the Habs for our arch-rivals.
• More surprisingly, the Habs also lost Mark Streit to the Islanders. Streit was one of the most valuable Habs last season, and I’m frankly stunned that Gainey didn’t make keeping him into a bigger priority.
• Rangers shit-disturber (and surprising fashionista) Sean Avery heads to Dallas.
• Wade Redden to the Rangers, taking one of the top D-men out of the free agency market.
• Brian Campbell to Chicago, taking care of the other.
• After being traded to the Caps in time for an inspiring playoff run, former Hab netminder Cristobal Huet is heading to Chicago to try to give all the young talent over there a fighting chance.
• To fill that void, the Capitals have acquired Jose Theodore from the Avalanche, who in turn signed Toronto-castoff Andrew Raycroft. Definite downgrades for both teams, there.
• Tampa Bay has signed three free agents, most notably top forward Radim Vrbata, as well as Adam Hall and former Caps’ veteran goaltender Olaf Kolzig. Along with their previous signings of Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts and Vinny Prospal, and their first-round draft of Steve Stamkos, Tampa Bay is clearly determined to dig out of last place in a big way.

And the Habs? Aside from re-signing Andrei Kostitsyn, and picking up Alex Tanguay on draft day, Gainey has been pretty quiet. We lost Ryder (no surprise there) and Streit (big surprise and tough loss) and so far we have nothing to show for it. Not even Sundin, who I don’t even want, but who surely would have signed by now with Montreal if he had any desire to be here.

We cleared cap space, we made offers, but it’s starting to look like Gainey’s highly publicized announcements about his intention to land an “impact” forward will end this year much as they did last year. And I have to wonder how many people will stick to the “In Gainey We Trust” bandwagon this time around.

All things considered, I think Calgary – who picked up Mike Cammellari from LA, came out ahead on this one, upgrading their talent and picking up some key picks. All things considered, I think I would’ve preferred a direct deal with LA for Cammellari.

But, in Bob we trust… Right? Right?

Update #2: The negotiations are officially underway for Mats Sundin. I really, really hope this doesn’t happen.

Update #3: Flyers forward and the Habs’ playoff hopes’ worst nightmare, RJ Umberger, has been traded to Columbus.

Update #4: If the reports are true, Montrealers hoping for a return of native son Vinnie Lecavalier will be very disappointed indeed. Not that it was ever more than wishful thinking, mind you.

Here’s hoping the Mats Sundin to Montreal rumours don’t come true. I know Gainey desperately wants an “impact forward”, but c’mon, we can do so much better than over-the-hill Toronto cast-offs.

Sad as it is, the Habs defied a lot of expectations this season, and I’m predicting even better things next year. Here’s a salute to the bleu-blanc-rouge. Thanks for a great year!

I don’t want to lose faith in the Habs, but there’s very little hope of them recovering. I think the miracle bag of tricks is gone, and the season is close to being done.

I guess there’s always next season.

I hate the overtime shootout with every fiber of my being. I mention this fact now because I believe a monkey spinning a giant logo-covered carnival wheel is just as entertaining and has as much to do with an actual hockey game as a skills competition deciding a regular season winner.

That’s Greg Wyshynski over at the NHL Experts Blog, in a post about TSN’s famed results-predicting Maggie the Monkey.

For the record, Greg, I couldn’t agree more. Let’s get rid of the shootout during the regular season and go back to 60 minutes plus a 5-minute sudden death overtime. If both teams are still tied after all of that, they each deserve to walk away with a point. End of story.

67 shots on goal (34 by Montreal, 33 by Philly)
60 saves by the two goalies (30 each)
60 percent of faceoffs won by the Habs (71% success rate for Captain K)
48 seconds elapsed in overtime when the winning goal was scored
29 seconds left when the tying goal was scored
4 goals scored by Habs players whose last names start with KO
3 big scoring chances by Montreal that hit the goalpost
2 video-reviewed goals (both awarded, but narrowly)
2 brothers netting points
2 powerplay goals
1 short-handed goal
1 goal scored on our own net (Brisebois back in vintage form)
1 missed penalty shot

And a partridge in a pear tree.

Yes, it was a weird game. But at the end of the day, all that matters is the win column. 1-0 Habs after 1, so far, so good.

That means we’ll be taking on the Flyers in Round 2. As much as it would have been fun to see an Ovechkin-Crosby matchup, it’s probably good news for us that we will be taking on the Flyers, against whom we went 4-0 this season, instead of the Rangers. Despite our historic comeback win against the Rangers in February, they’re a tough team to beat. Besides, let the Pens deal with Avery’s Antics.

Of course, the Flyers won’t exactly be a cakewalk. They play a hard physical style of hockey, and the series with the Bruins should teach us exactly what a season sweep of a team is worth in the playoffs: not much. But I believe we can do it. I have faith in these guys.

With Calgary’s game 7 elimination tonight at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, Montreal is now the only remaining Canadian team in the playoffs. The eyes of the nation (including plenty of green eyes in Toronto) will now turn to Montreal to keep the dream alive of finally bringing the Stanley Cup home to Canada where it belongs, after 15 long years. No pressure, eh?

Go Habs Go!

It sounds like we won the Stanley Cup out there, with all the horns honking and people partying in the streets. But no, all we did was win round 1 to advance to round 2.

Not that it was easy, mind you. The Bruins battled back against all expectations and took us to a game 7 that was making even the faithful lose heart. Whatever anyone expected from tonight’s game, it wasn’t this.

And by “this”, of course, I mean a 5-0 blowout shutout, to much singing and cheering, of the Bruins – who suddenly looked much like the hapless team we played all season, and not like the team who game within a shade of one of the biggest upsets in hockey history.

And I got to witness it from the reds of the Bell Centre. Great view!

Now… onto round 2. Go Habs Go!

Update: For the record, I think that the rioting was not only disgraceful, but completely idiotic. WTF??? I mean, it’s only round 1. At least wait until we win the cup. Sheesh!

The Habs completely quit tonight – on each other, on their team, on their coach and on their fans. They gave up. Therefore, they choked. Andrei Markov’s exasperated shrug on the powerplay late in the third said it all. In case that message wasn’t received, Carey Price’s refusal to even try to save the fifth goal drove the point home.

The Bruins won because they refused to quit. And now, instead of going to the golf course, they get to go home, down 3-2 in the series but holding all the momentum cards.

How does an offense that was #1 in the NHL all season collapse so miserably? How does the league’s top powerplay fall apart so spectacularly? How does a team that went 8-0 against the Bruins in the regular season let a playoff series that ought to have been a blowout get to game 6?

The Canadiens are going to be doing a lot of soul-searching between now and Saturday. Let’s hope that includes a lesson in perseverence. I still believe that this team has it in them. Let’s hope they start believing that about themselves. Because, as the saying goes, quitters never win, and winners never quit.

With the division title, the possible conference title, the #1 offensive record in the NHL, it’s safe to say that the Canadiens have not only exceeded expectations this season, they’ve knocked everyone’s socks off.

One year ago, the picture was very different. The Habs were fighting for a playoff spot, and needed to beat the Leafs in the final game of the season in order to clinch a spot. The Leafs came back to win that game and the Habs went home dejected. What a difference a year makes!

Now as we head into the post-season, it’s a whole new game where once again, anything can happen. Will our unbeaten streak against the Bruins translate into a first-round win, or will the Bruins fight back? Will Carey Price continue his stellar play, or will his inexperience do him in? Will injuries plague us, or will we get our healthy team back together for a real run? Could this be the Habs’ year to make a real run at the Cup?

Whatever happens in the weeks ahead, here’s a salute to the Canadiens for making the fans and the city proud. Go Habs Go!

At the beginning of the season, would anyone – even the most die-hard fan – have picked this to happen? It’s been an unbelivable season, and here’s hoping for a great post-season.

(The Leafs, of course, will be teeing off on the golf course very shortly.)

Go Habs!

Tomas Plekanec, who scored the lone “real” goal of the game, said it best: “We didn’t play a great game tonight, but thanks to Huet, we ended up with a win.”

That said, following Saturday’s disgraceful loss to the Leafs, we’ll take a victory at this point. And Huet, at least, can celebrate knowing he deserved the shutout on his record. Still, I’ll expect better things from the bleu-blanc-rouge on Thursday against Boston.

We have some young promising talent in training camp this year, and there’s a long history of teams proving that you don’t need the superstars to be good. I hope that Gainey and Carbs get the team into gear this year, push them to realize their potential and to play a more offensive style of hockey that can actually get us somewhere.

But when players are turning down offers from Montreal to sign for less money elsewhere, it doesn’t bode well for the long-term future of the team. Have we reached the point where Montreal’s media-frenzied Hockeymania is driving too many talented players away, sending them running scared? How long can we keep going down that path before we turn into the NHL’s major league farm team?

I have to say, though, that I love living in a city where hockey is front-page news in July.

Markov was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, but he’d made it plain that he wants to stay in Montreal. This deal should make Markov, the club, and the fans very happy.

However, it does raise big questions about Sheldon Souray’s future with the Habs. With the Markov deal reported to be worth about $5 million a season, it’s highly unlikely that there will be room in the Habs’ payroll for Souray, despite his being a key player on the team and having expressed a desire to stay. Souray becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1st, and it’s now more likely than ever that he’ll chase a big offer elsewhere.

Overall, I’d have to say the Habs made the right move, even if it means losing Souray. While Souray tallied up the points on the powerplay, he isn’t as strong an all-around player or a defenseman as Markov. But there’s no doubt that finding a way to keep both players would be the ideal situation. I just doubt that it’s in the cards.

If only the reffing had been more fair… if only Huet hadn’t let in that soft goal in the first period… if only Steve Begin hadn’t taken the world’s worst double-minor for the world’s dumbest slash… if only…

Ah well, there’s always next season.

Well, more or less.

If the Habs walk away with 2 points tonight, we head to Buffalo. If the Leafs win, they have to hope that the Islanders lose to New Jersey tomorrow. And the potentially complicating factor is that if the Habs lose in overtime, we still head to the post-season… unless the Isles win tomorrow.

None of that will matter if we win tonight, though. So as grocery stores across the city are full of people lining up to pay for beer and potato chips, and bars get the big screens out and tuned to CBC or RDS, the eyes of the nation will turn to the Air Canada Centre tonight.

Go Habs Go! (And Lose Leafs Lose!)

The Rangers and the Leafs are both in the playoff race against us, but a Rangers’ win was actually the best thing for the Habs tonight, because it kept us in 8th place. Not to mention, I just like seeing the Leafs lose on general principle, and seeing them embarrassed is just icing on the cake. Especially when it involves Tucker being knocked flat on his ass.

Now, this doesn’t mean I’ll have any love left for Avery when we face the Rangers on Thursday. But for tonight only, the man’s my hero.

Opening prayers:
Thanks, God, for creating wine. (Drink wine.)
Thanks for creating produce. (Eat parsley.)

Overview:
Once we were slaves in Egypt. Now we’re free. That’s why we’re doing this.

Four questions:
1. What’s up with the matzoh?
2. What’s the deal with horseradish?
3. What’s with the dipping of the herbs?
4. What’s this whole slouching at the table business?

Answers:
1. When we left Egypt, we were in a hurry. There was no time for making decent bread.
2. Life was bitter, like horseradish.
3. It’s called symbolism.
4. Free people get to slouch.

A funny story:
Once, these five rabbis talked all night, then it was morning. (Heat soup now.)

The four kinds of children and how to deal with them:
Wise child-explain Passover.
Simple child-explain Passover slowly.
Silent child-explain Passover loudly.
Wicked child-browbeat in front of the relatives.

Speaking of children:
We hid some matzoh. Whoever finds it gets five bucks.

The story of Passover:
It’s a long time ago. We’re slaves in Egypt. Pharaoh is a nightmare. We cry out for help. God brings plagues upon the Egyptians. We escape, bake some matzoh. God parts the Red Sea. We make it through; the Egyptians aren’t so lucky. We wander 40 years in the desert, eat manna, get the Torah, wind up in Israel, get a new temple, enjoy several years without being persecuted again. (Let brisket cool now.)

The 10 Plagues:
Blood, Frogs, Lice-you name it.

The singing of “Dayenu”:
If God had gotten us out of Egypt and not punished our enemies, it would’ve been enough.
If he’d punished our enemies and not parted the Red Sea, if would’ve been enough.
If he’d parted the Red Sea-(Remove gefilte fish from refrigerator now.)

Eat matzoh. Drink more wine. Slouch.

Thanks again, God, for everything.

SERVE MEAL.

Watch the Habs punish the Bruins on Tuesday night.

(Via e-mail forward from relatives).

Update: It was a bit of a nail-biter against Buffalo tonight, but a win nonetheless. Way to go, Les Boys!

But even the Habs’ winning streak – 6 out of the last 7 – may not be enough. So far, we’ve kept pace but we haven’t advanced into the magic Top 8. Even a perfect record won’t get us a playoff spot if the Rangers, Isles, ‘Canes, Bolts and Leafs (especially the Leafs) don’t start choking, soon.

It’s the home stretch now, Les Boys. Every game’s a must-win. Can we pull it off? Stay tuned.

I’ll have to take their word for it, I suppose. I was otherwise occupied, watching the Habs beat the Isles 5-3 from seats in the reds that gave me a great view of the game’s many blows – including the head-on collision between Steve Begin and Rick DiPietro. It was a night of heated hockey, and a fantastic comeback win for Les Boys, who picked up what might be a critical two points in the race to squeeze into the playoffs.

Can’t say I’m too heartbroken about missing the debate. All told, I think I got the much better show.

Last night’s routing of the Leafs was marred by the display of Aebischer as only slightly-less-shaky than Rayyyyyyyycroft. And the Habs are 20 minutes away from being shut out on Broadway tonight.

All this doesn’t exactly add up to a team pouring its heart and soul into a drive for the playoffs.

Conclusion: Gainey, Carbs et al have given up. *Sigh*.

The rest of the league has stepped up the level of play to playoff-intensity, but the Habs are still languishing in lazy mode. Two months ago, the mere suggestion that we might not make the playoffs was laughable. Now, it seems not only possible, but probable, unless we dramatically turn things around.

It’s tough being a Habs fan these days, I tell ya.

But it was Ken Dryden’s night. The legendary goaltender (and now elected MP, since in this country we know full well that hockey players make the best politicians, and the rare *smart* hockey players make even better ones) had his number retired last night. He accepted the honour with humility and humour:

“Watching, waiting, not doing much of anything,” Dryden joked to the crowd about his signature stance. “That is pretty much what the 1970s were all about – that and a whole lot of Stanley Cups.”

Today’s Habs have a lot to live up to. But, judging by how they played last night, they were inspired to at least try.

That sound you’re hearing is Guy Carbonneau’s giant sigh of relief. Let’s hope they can keep it up!

As a female hockey fan, I find this article downright insulting. You write as though women have suddenly just discovered that – hey, guess what? – our national pastime can be lots of fun to watch!

I’m not sure which is worse: The suggestion that female fans just like to ogle the hot players, or the implication that women are more into hockey these days because we’re “entering” the business arena and pursuing equality in other areas as well. Wake up, guys, this is 2007; we’ve “entered” the business arena a good long time ago, and the hockey arena as well.

Women make up nearly half of all fans attending NHL games. We follow the plays, read the papers, look at the statistics and the trades, debate the coaching strategies and line juggling, and appreciate a great comeback or an exciting goal just as much as any man does. One of my favourite girls’ night activities is going to a Habs’ game with a girlfriend, or getting together with a bunch of friends to watch a game on the big screen. We are devoted fans and have been for a long time. Reporting this as “news” suggests to me that you are completely out of touch with reality.

And that’s just women who watch the sport. You have completely failed to mention those who play it. The number of participants in women’s hockey has increased 400% in the past decade. Women play in leagues – both competitive and recreational – all over the country. I think if you asked Cassie Campbell, Danielle Goyette, Hayley Wickenheiser, or any of our gold-medal winning national team players, they might point out that not only do Canadian women play hockey, but they play it exceptionally well.

It’s attitudes like those expressed in this article that ensure that women’s hockey constantly gets the short shrift, both in terms of funding and in terms of publicity. Women like hockey, period – and we don’t need pink Habs’ t-shirts to be fans, either.

I politely suggest that you get your head checked. Into the boards. Hard.

Update: The Gazette published my letter on the subject.

Still, Carbs had better get the team in shape in time to face the surging Sens by tomorrow, who are only three points back.

It’s obvious that the Habs are saddened by the Gainey family’s loss. The team held a poignant moment of silence before the start of tonight’s game against Boston, and it was obvious that the thoughts and prayers of the crowd were with the family as well.

Eat your heart out, Toronto!

And if they ever start a Hockey Hall of Shame, then Mario Tremblay and Rejean Houle would get my vote.

Way to go, les boys.

• Congress: Democrats take control with a projected 16-seat gain.
• Senate: Still too close to call, but looks like the Republicans will narrowly hang on.
• Hockey: Habs 3-2 over Oilers in a shootout.

Everyone knows which one of those is the most important in my book, of course.

Nice to see Latendresse score his first NHL goal. Playing on the top line tonight, this was his big chance, and I’m glad to see him capitalize.

There’s still 17 minutes left in the game, so Go Habs!

Hell, we’re playing better a man down than we are at even-strength. We’re ranked in among the top 3 in the NHL right now on the penalty kill. And after the two shorthanded goals that contributed to last night’s 4-0 blanking of the defending Cup champs, this is a surefire strategy for success!

Okay, maybe not.

Sure, we had some unlucky bounces and made some unfortunate mistakes, but really, if it weren’t for Miller’s spectacular goaltending, it could’ve just as easily gone the other way. A loss is always a shame, but tonight’s game was better than the outcome.

Oh well.

As much as I want to be optimistic about my Habs, I realistically don’t believe that this is our year; we’re still way too much in a rebuilding phase. While I’ll save my real predicting for my fantasy hockey league, I think Buffalo looks good in the East, while San Jose and Calgary should be very competitive in the West. Seasons usually hinge on skaters and playoffs usually hinge on goalies, anyway, so it will be interesting to see how things play out.

Long live the greatest game on ice!

It was the first time I’ve ever been to an exhibition game, and I wasn’t expecting it to have quite the same excitement level as a season or playoff game. Luckily, I was wrong. Even despite Latendresse’s ejection from the game in the first two minutes, and the fact that we spent half the night killing penalties, it was easily some of the most exciting hockey I’ve ever seen.

Can’t wait for the real season to begin next week.

With all these one-year contracts, Gainey must be planning a lot of trades this season, or else it’s going to be real trouble come next summer.

I can’t help but wonder if there are hockey fans running Hezbollah. Because this has so far been a foolproof strategy for them: Instigate a conflict by kidnapping some soldiers and launching some rockets, and watch the world penalize Israel for its retaliation. Two minutes for bombing.

Maybe it’s time to give the Israeli army some hockey coaching. What could we tell them that would help? “Keep your head up”? “Communicate with your teammates”? Actually, the best hockey-esque advice I think Israel can hear right now is to avoid pissing off the refs any more than necessary, even if they are about as biased as they get. Hezbollah’s never going to play by the rules, but Israel needs to remember that it is bound by them. By all means, play some solid defence, but don’t get dragged into playing Hezbollah’s game.

Any hockey coaches out there who want to elaborate?

(Here’s a thought: Maybe we could settle this whole conflict in a hockey match! Israel against Hezbollah. Or, even, Israel against Hamas. With all the Russian immigration in the past number of years to Israel, we’re pretty much assured victory).

In other big news, Zednik won’t be back next season; after a disappointing year, the Z-man is off to Washington.

Gainey has been steadily signing most of last year’s young talent to (mainly short-term) contracts. Still notably unsigned are Ryder, Perezhogin, and acquired-for-Theo Aebischer. More notably, we haven’t been dipping too heavily into the free agent pool. Will next year’s Habs be able to compete?

After a stellar breakout season in 2003/04, Ribeiro struggled this past season, finding the net only 16 times. He’s talented but he seems to have hit a slump, so the question is whether he can dig out of it next year. Maybe the coaching change will help.

With only 7 wins in the last 25 games, it was clear that the Habs were in big trouble and something needed to be done. But was this the right move? That depends on how you look at it. If the talent is there and simply not producing, then it’s reasonable to blame the coach. But if the front office hasn’t made the deals to put the right guys on the ice, then Gainey ought to shoulder more of the blame himself.

Here’s Craig Rivet’s reaction:

I think it’s unfortunate that it’s always the coach that takes the fall for lack of production from players. He gave us a game plan and guys maybe chose not to follow it. That’s too bad because he’s a good coach.

Until the players step up and start moving and controlling the puck and creating scoring chances and playing a full 60 minutes each game, then no shakeups will have much effect. I’m sad to say this as a fan, but I’m not holding out too much hope that this move is going to turn things around. But who knows?

Update: Well, in the immediate term at least, the shakeup seems to have lit a fire under the Habs, who routed the San Jose Sharks 6 to 2 tonight. It’s been far too long since the last time the sounds of the “na-na-na-na hey hey hey goodbye” song were heard in the Bell Centre. Whether the team can keep it up remains to be seen, but this was a good start.

Goaltending may be an issue, but until the Habs can figure out how to control the puck offensively and create scoring chances, we’re doomed. It’s not Theodore’s fault. It’s everyone’s fault.

Stranger in skates intrudes on Habs' practice

Canadiens goalie Jose Theodore got a shock Monday when a stranger in full hockey equipment jumped on the ice during a Montreal practice and shot a puck at him.

The 28-year-old man from Montreal, who would only say his name was Raphael, went onto the Verdun Auditorium ice when most of the players were at the far end of the rink.

Wearing skates, full gear and a plain white hockey jersey, the man skated in on the star goalie with a stick and a puck. He was poke-checked on his first attempt and Theodore then stopped a weak wrist shot to the high glove side.

The practice crasher was chased to the side boards by coach Claude Julien but wouldn’t get off the ice until he was pulled away by an arena worker.

Police later released the man.

At the rate we’ve been playing lately – wins against Ottawa notwithstanding – we might need to start looking for talent in unusual places. Verdun Arena wouldn’t be tops on my list though.

We may only have exactly one player on our team… but he’s back, baby! Tonight’s shootout win over the Sens snaps a long losing streak for the Habs and puts us right back in the game.

The Senators are a powerhouse team and most everyone thought it was mission impossible tonight (myself included, admittedly). I love being wrong.

WOOHOO!!!

Just kidding. Actually, I didn’t watch. The Habs-Oilers game was much more exciting, despite our disappointing loss.

But if you’re truly interested in any of the rehashed canned statements of our illustrious leaders on separatism, the sponsorship scandal, gay marriage, or why the Liberals deserve to be “wiped off the Quebec electoral map”, then… get a hobby or something.

It’s about friggin’ time.

On the bright side, the Als are going to the Grey Cup. I may have to switch sports.

Final score: 3-2 in favour of Montreal.

Theodore stood on his head to steal that one for us. Woohoo! Go Habs!

Iraqis vote on their constitution tomorrow, as they struggle to implement democracy despite increasing attacks and sabotage.

And, with rookie Yann Danis in nets for the first time, the Habs shut out Carolina on Wednesday. Next, they’ll take on the Leafs at home… and I’ll be happily cheering them on from the reds!

Have a good weekend, everyone.

It’s great having hockey back!

Now, it seems Youppi has found a new home with the Habs:

As reported by colleague Stephanie Myles this year, the Canadiens have bought the rights to Youppi!, the moth-eaten bastard Muppet who became a symbol of everything that was wrong with the Expos. Youppi! will be introduced as the Canadiens’ new mascot at a news conference this afternoon.

Does this mean Youppi will have to learn to skate?

While his signing is good news, the fact that the deal is only for one year is not. With the exceptions of Theodore and Kovalev, the Habs will have to re-sign most of their players before next season, or else risk losing them to free agency.

This season looks good. The future? Who knows.

I feel much better now. As soon as we ink Ryder, I’ll be feeling pretty good.

Most of the Habs’ other key players are already signed, with the exceptions of Andrei Markov and Yanic Perreault. But some key players are only on one-year contracts, including Koivu and Ribeiro. And we haven’t done particularly well in bolstering our team during the off-season. With strengthened rivals within our division, I’m not sure how optimistic I’m feeling right now about our chances. Still, I’m hoping that the team pulls it together.

42 days till the puck drops – it’s getting exciting!

Update 8/26: Markov signed a 2-year deal yesterday. Still nothing on Theo or Ryder.

Update: Brisebois is officially gone… the Avalanche have signed him to a 2-year deal that I predict they will regret in about five minutes.

The Canadiens have declined the team option on his contract, cutting him loose as a free agent. While he’s free to re-sign with the team for a lower salary, the possibility of him actually doing so is slim to none.

This is definitely the week’s best news. Brisebois might have been the last remaining member of the 1993 Cup-winning team, but that’s the sort of trivia tidbit that makes most people stop and say “Why??????”. After all, he gave a whole new definition to the term “costly mistake” – over and over and over again.

Buh-bye Brisebois. Don’t let the puck hit ya on your way out.

*Sigh*.

I couldn’t bear to watch. I think it’s almost better that I didn’t. It would’ve been nice to at least win one game, but after Tuesday I think we all pretty much knew it was over, and so why postpone the inevitable?

There’s always next season… we hope.

I headed down there over the weekend, and I managed to squeeze some city exploring in between the business I had to do. It’s been a number of years since my last visit, and I can’t get over how much the city has changed. Not just the conspicuous absence of a couple of towers. But also how much more patriotic everyone seems. And how clean the city is in general, compared to what I remember from my last time there. Still expensive though. That hasn’t changed.

At any rate, I missed a bunch of news over the weekend, and rather than play catch-up, I’ll post a few links:

Allison, Lynn, and Harry commemorate Yom HaZikaron. Barry has been all over the North Korean train crash story. David weighs in on the abortion debate. And Meryl tries to take back the F-word from the nutbags. (In case you’re wondering, the F-word in question is feminism.)

In other news, seems like the only Habs fan cheering these days is none other than Vinny Lecavalier. *Sigh*.

The Admission site was busy all day, and so were the phone lines. The tickets, selling at ridiculously inflated prices, sold out within an hour or two. Even the furthest seats were all gone by mid-afternoon, for all three games – including game 6, which may not even happen.

Who woulda thought that the Habs would be in round 2 while the Sens and Canucks would be at home licking their wounds? There’s no denying that hockey fever is in the air here in Montreal, and some fans are even looking ahead to the finals and even the Cup.

Still, Tampa Bay is no walk in the park. They were the #1 team in the league during the season, and they knocked over the Islanders as though they were, well, the Rangers. The Canadiens have their work cut out for them.

Here’s hoping we can rise to the challenge. Go Habs!