Habs are the worst defensive team in the league

[HabsQC]

Hutson is not a problem
Guhle is very good

Savard looks slow
Xhekaj looks bad
Matheson injured
Barron is being showcased

no true #1D

Most players don't seem to know how to get the puck out of the zone.

The solution to all of our defensive problems

Patrik Laine !!!

On a completely unrelated note, Kovacevic has been the Devils best D and I’d argue best player so far

He was pretty underrated here I thought. Good move by the devils. And I'm happy he's doing good. I've watched the Habs rebuild documentary and he seems to be a very fun teammate to have around the room.

 

[Hisch13r]

Hutson is not a problem
Guhle is very good

Savard looks slow
Xhekaj looks bad
Matheson injured
Barron is being showcased

no true #1D

Most players don't seem to know how to get the puck out of the zone.

The solution to all of our defensive problems

Patrik Laine !!!




He was pretty underrated here I thought. Good move by the devils. And I'm happy he's doing good. I've watched the Habs rebuild documentary and he seems to be a very fun teammate to have around the room.

Feel like he would’ve been a perfect partner for Hutson

 

[Romang67]

The solution to all of our defensive problems

Patrik Laine !!!

Hey, Laine has historically been pretty good at making his teammates look good on defense.

Hutson's rel xGA/60 is going to look amazing!

 

[Stickpucker]

Even if the defense suck donkey balls on a hot day how are their new young guns looked?

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Even if the defense suck donkey balls on a hot day how are their new young guns looked?

Head fakes per 60 at an elite level.

 

[holy]

The Toronto media .....yes. Get to interview Mitch "I'm like a God" Marner.

Replying to your own post in the same post is one of the biggest flexes I've ever seen on this forum.

Could be the turning point for the Habs D.

 

[rahad]

Not sure I've ever "woo"ed to anything but maybe ric flair??? What does this even mean?


Im really down bad...any suggestions on how to fix it?? Watch more Hutson videos? Im not quite done with my Barron ones yet though...

No need to watch Hutson videos. Your own captain fighting his teammate is entertaining enough!

 

[FerrisRox]

I don't follow haba closely. I do follow the trades and proposals on HF closely though.

From that.. Habs posters have told me

Guhle is a top pair damn
Matheson is elite
Xhekaj would cost 'more than you can afford'
Hutson is Makar level
Monty is the next great goalie

All of these guys trade values are untouchable. They are elite.

So I find the defensive stats surprising after five games.

Can you find even a single post where a Canadiens fan calls Mike Matheson elite?

I'll wait.

 

[notbias]

The overhyping of Matheson doesn't exist from what I've seen, but here:

I don't think it is a big deal... The overhyping of Caufield/Hutson/Laine/X/etc is far more delusional and annoying, don't see much around Matheson.

Can you find even a single post where a Canadiens fan calls Mike Matheson elite?

I'll wait.

Just because you wanted an example.

Assuming he is a Habs fan...

 

[Czechboy]

Can you find even a single post where a Canadiens fan calls Mike Matheson elite?

I'll wait.

If you mean go back to last year and find the posts.... no, not doing that.

However, I can tell you this.. I had no idea who Matheson or Guhle were. Then they'd come up in trade proposals and I started reading how amazing both are. So then I did the usual 'stat watching' stuff ... eliteprospects, NHL.com, twitter etc.. The only reason I know about those two was because I kept reading about them on here and how amazing they are. Same with Monty before he signed his contract and was in trade Drai for him talks (and that I was following closer because of Dobes who I do follow).

 

[Fatass]

Hutson is not a problem
Guhle is very good

Savard looks slow
Xhekaj looks bad
Matheson injured
Barron is being showcased

no true #1D

Most players don't seem to know how to get the puck out of the zone.

The solution to all of our defensive problems

Patrik Laine !!!




He was pretty underrated here I thought. Good move by the devils. And I'm happy he's doing good. I've watched the Habs rebuild documentary and he seems to be a very fun teammate to have around the room.

Hutson isn’t a problem defending?

 

[Do Make Say Think]

The rebuild is just starting in MTL

They are going to need another 4 to 5 years before they stop being terrible

 

[HabsQC]

Hutson isn’t a problem defending?

No he's actually doing well in his own zone. Sometimes he does decide to go deep in the Ozone, which leads to a winger taking his position. But as far as I can tell, he's smart enough to get himself out of bad position in the Dzone. Don't get me wrong, he's no defensive beast either, but certainly not a problem IMO

 

[Breakers]

4 minutes stuck in their own zone at 5v5 for a single shift

LoL

 

[Habby4Life]

4 minutes stuck in their own zone at 5v5 for a single shift

LoL

That’s the MSL version of the rope a dope. Let the other team wear them themselves out globetrottering them in the own end.

MSL is the best pee wee coach in the nhl

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Not to avoid the topic but… as a Hab fan, I really don’t care. I didn’t expect them to be good defensively. They’re super greeen and it’s going to take some time.

What I hoped for this year was that key young players would step up and be productive. I was hoping to see young players take the next step and hopefully see the offense improve. That’s what really matters this year.

I didn’t and don’t expect the playoffs and I’ve consistently said it’s defense that will keep us out.

And it doesn’t matter at all so long as players like Caufield, Slaf, Hutson, Mailloux, Guhle, Roy, Newhook and Dach improve. That’s what really matters at this stage.

So far Caufield and Hutson have been what I’d hoped they’d be. Slaf could be better but he’s produced. Mailloux is up and got a goal in his first game. Roy hopefully makes his way back. Dach and Newhook have had rough starts.

I think the team will improve. They’ll get more offense and their shots for will likely improve. But that D is going to be bottom third. No doubt about it. And it’s not going to be good probably for a few years. The Canadiens will need to start scoring their way out of their problems. Montembeault will need to steal some more games. That’s how it’s going to be barring any big trades for a right shot D.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

Habs fans shouldn’t be surprised. Their team is still in a rebuild and this is good. Another lottery pick or two would be good for this group. They do not want to rush the rebuild like the rangers did. They’ll be much better in the end if they accept it and focus on player development over winning.

I think people look at outlier teams like Pittsburgh and Chicago and think that "not rushing the rebuild" will make you a dynasty. They will be lucky when the rebuild is complete to be like the Rangers even if the Rangers never win the cup. They're more likely to be a perennial losing team than a team that contends while not winning.

 

[Hunter368]

I see a fair number of Habs talking about tanking more (around the board), for better or worse the Habs have their future core already on the team or drafted. So tanking is the last thing the young players need or that management wants. These young players need to play in close and meaningful games to develop, that’s what the team should be looking to do. That means showing patience, having good coaching, good trainers, good special teams, good systems and filling needs once it becomes apparent there is no internal solutions (I’m not suggesting this last step yet, it’s too early). Tanking is not the answer at this stage, the answer is playing close meaningful games so work towards that goal. Improve the things you can control and be patient with those things you can’t.

 

[StreetHawk]

I see a fair number of Habs talking about tanking more (around the board), for better or worse the Habs have their future core already on the team or drafted. So tanking is the last thing the young players need or that management wants. These young players need to play in close and meaningful games to develop, that’s what the team should be looking to do. That means showing patience, having good coaching, good trainers, good special teams, good systems and filling needs once it becomes apparent there is no internal solutions (I’m not suggesting this last step yet, it’s too early). Tanking is not the answer at this stage, the answer is playing close meaningful games so work towards that goal. Improve the things you can control and be patient with those things you can’t.

If a team tanks, what is the likelihood that the youngsters develop properly? Learn that their mistakes have consequences in close games, learn how to snap losing streaks, play with a lead, play sound defense?

Kind of equate it to raising little kids. If you let them get out of hand without disciple, good luck trying in instill discipline later.

Robidas is the coach for the D, but STL has to setup the overall structure for the team. So, are their issues with the coaching/scheme, or with the roster? Is it too many kids at the moment?

 

[HuGo Sham]

Savard looks washed and Matheson who is at best a 3, is playing 1D minutes - especially with guhle injured.
EVERYONE else is 23 (Xhekaj) or younger.
This is a position that takes lots of time to develop.

@ forward, With Dach being rusty, Laine injured and forwards out of position,
habs only have 1 scoring line.

But the troll takes are welcome

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I see a fair number of Habs talking about tanking more (around the board), for better or worse the Habs have their future core already on the team or drafted. So tanking is the last thing the young players need or that management wants. These young players need to play in close and meaningful games to develop, that’s what the team should be looking to do. That means showing patience, having good coaching, good trainers, good special teams, good systems and filling needs once it becomes apparent there is no internal solutions (I’m not suggesting this last step yet, it’s too early). Tanking is not the answer at this stage, the answer is playing close meaningful games so work towards that goal. Improve the things you can control and be patient with those things you can’t.

I don’t think Montreal will tank. But I don’t think they’re in the playoffs either.

I think they’ll improve as they have the last few years. I’d say around 85 points by the end of the season.