Post-Game Talk: Habs can't stop a puck or stay healthy. Rags wipe out Habs in Montreal.

[Adriatic]

Not really six pretty bad "team" games out of seven is what most aren't liking.

That's what happens when you have a young green team with injuries and no depth. It gets ugly!

 

[Rapala]

Oh yeah, we have many LHD to replace Hutson and Matheson and be effective on the top 4. Totally on coaching.

There's literally no one to put there, but them, as much as there's no one to put at Guhle's place on the right side. MSL is stuck with the little he has to work with.

Yeah throwing Hutson to the wolves is definitely on COACHING and it's the entire shit show on D that is screwed up.
Our LD is supposed to be our strength WTF happened????

 

[bringbacktheskate604]

Primeau will need to stop giving away goals. Doesn't matter if he looks good on most shots if he lets in a softie every few periods.

No coach is winning anything with that defense. Our first pairing is Matheson-Barron, think about this. Then we have Savard who's pretty much done, Hutson and Mailloux who are less than 10 games into their careers, and Struble, another young guy. Stop the nonsense about the coach. St-Louis is one of the the best things we've got. Our only functional defenseman is Ghule, who's injured, and also very young.

We are finshing in the bottom 5 again, and probably next year again. This is what happens to rebuilding teams, it takes time, more than you think, and it hurts.

There's only so many high picks in any given rebuild that actually end up becoming a part of a successful rebuild and I think the habs are teetering on becoming another team stuck in a perpetual rebuild.

Picks this year and 2026 and on are years away from being ready to be part of the core already assembled and the habs would be better served using picks and prospects to try and aquire the tentpole pieces, failed to get via the draft.

 

[Garnet76]

Putting 2 rookie defenseman together isn't giving either one of them the best opportunity to succeed. Many times hutson pinches and no one covers his position leading to odd man rushes against. I feel this will get better as the team adjusts to playing with Hutson.
D-zone coverage is a complete mess at this point. You can see the players don't know where to be on the ice and are thinking too much. The Habs have defenseman covering the points during cycles. Then Montreal finally gets the puck back and everyone is out of position and they don't know what to do. When this happens they default to clipping the puck out and killing an opportunity for a break out.

 

[Rapala]

That's what happens when you have a young green team with injuries and no depth. It gets ugly!

It's also when you simplify your pathetic non structure.

 

[Habby4Life]

It's also when you simplify your pathetic non structure.

A good coach implements a structure that fits with the players he has. Right now, Bombay is lost.

 

[badfish]

D-zone coverage is a complete mess at this point. You can see the players don't know where to be on the ice and are thinking too much. The Habs have defenseman covering the points during cycles. Then Montreal finally gets the puck back and everyone is out of position and they don't know what to do. When this happens they default to clipping the puck out and killing an opportunity for a break out.

Every time the puck goes low to high the whole defensive coverage gets confused and they start scrambling.

 

[Habs]

That's what happens when you have a young green team with injuries and no depth. It gets ugly!

No it's when you have a poorly coached team made up of creampuffs and smurfs that don't have each other's backs.

 

[MasterD]

The fifth goal killed us after Suzuki got our juices flowing. They claimed Dvorak screened him but I'm not buying it.
Bottom line we aren't going to win many games giving up 27 shots from the slot vs 7.
These numbers were given a while before the end of the game so I don't even know what the final tally was.

If Dvorak screen Primeau on that goal, then we all were screening him. He was way, way to the side.

 

[Canadienna]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1848896918883020832

Slaf in the pressbox with essentially the same expression I had watching that game.

 

[Ozmodiar]

Aside of Suzuki they were all bad

All of 'em

Their only complete player RN.

They’d have to forfeit if he was sidelined.

 

[Andrei79]

The fifth goal killed us after Suzuki got our juices flowing. They claimed Dvorak screened him but I'm not buying it.
Bottom line we aren't going to win many games giving up 27 shots from the slot vs 7.
These numbers were given a while before the end of the game so I don't even know what the final tally was.

100%. The slot was wide open. The players don't seem to know who is supposed to be where. They must be the team who protect the "house" the least in the league. I think the last time I saw them this bad defensively was under Ducharme. They're actually doing good things offensively, but the play without the puck is just so, so bad.

 

[The Real Timo]

It's also when you simplify your pathetic non structure.

That. Young teams can still have structure and system and not look out of place in every of the 3 zones. When none of your players know what they are supposed to be doing and where they are supposed to be is all coaching. So 2 options: 1 - either coaching stuff has no clue or 2 - the team totally tuned them out. 3 - both. Something needs to change. Badly. And quickly.

 

[morhilane]

Yeah throwing Hutson to the wolves is definitely on COACHING and it's the entire shit show on D that is screwed up.
Our LD is supposed to be our strength WTF happened????

Harris was much better then people in this forum wants to admit.

But the entire team isn't playing well right now (outside some individual efforts). Something is just not working, whatever that is mentally or conceptually (or both).

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Honestly, they started the game off well and came back well, but two things killed them.

The non-icing, icing. That was icing all day long, the refs f***ed them, but the two kids learned a lesson that you can't stop until you hear the whistle. Incompetent officiating happens in the NHL too often.

The muffin of a 5th goal against by Primeau.

In the end, the goaltending regressing to the mean from last year, multiple execution failures to clear a puck from the zone when they get the chance, and the lack of depth to overcome major pieces of the line-up being out, and you'll get this against a bonafide cup contender that was built by our very own Gorton.

Its good to read a rational response to last night's defeat.

Most minor league hockey teams have a 24 hour rule: that parents can't contact their sons/daughters' team managers and coaches during the 24 hour period after each game to prevent the usual / predictable complaints that their son/daughter didn't have enough ice time or wasn't used on their team's powerplay.

I've coached and managed hockey teams for over 30 years. The stories I could tell would shock most here ( other than those who are fellow coaches/managers). Here's a short snippet which you may find amusing: I was coaching in a summer recreational league in the GTA where the players ranged from AAA to house league. After a game that we actually won, an incensed parent stormed into the dressing room and angrily confronted me because I had the temerity of playing his son, normally a center, on defence. In his words, I was 'stunting the growth of son's development.' Oh yeah .... the kids were ten years old. As the discussion became more heated and the parent became more aggressive ( all in front the other players) the parent had to be restrained and removed from the dressing room. To avoid further incitements, it was thought best to have the kid in questioned moved to another team. The stories I could tell.

The 24 hour cooling off period avoids most of these type of incidents. It would be interesting if a similar policy was instituted on forums like this one. People would hopefully cool off after a particularly malodorous loss and post with some retrospection and restraint.

Bottom line: the sky is not falling. We don't have to fire the coach, trade away every player or even change the goal song. This team, at best, with everything going right, was a marginal playoff team. Take into consideration the number of injuries to key players that the team has suffered, the lack of quality depth, the youth on the team and the number of underperforming veterans, it's no surprise that they were overwhelmed by a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. Our goalies can't be relied on every game to save our asses like Montembeault did against the Leafs. Its going to take several more years to undo the dry rot of decades of mismanagement.

But I like to look at the positives, perhaps its the misguided mindset of a Habs fan of close to 70 years. I am a living witness of the good, the bad and Houle/Bergevin.

Here's my positives: Evans, quietly, as a result of his excellent play and leadership, has become an important player on this rebuilding team. If his level of play continues, he'll justly earn an extension of his contract. If his high level of play does continue, Hughes would be a fool not to extend this dedicated player.

As some know, I was an early booster of Mailloux but grew somewhat skeptical about this young man's upside. Last night, you saw the best and worse of Mailloux's game. As I warned, Mailloux lacks the skating ability to avoid the first forechecker and gain the separation and time to be able to consistently get the puck, whether by skating it or passing it, out of the defensive zone. Last night, as in the game against the Islanders, at times when Mailloux was on the ice, the team was trapped and hemmed in our defensive zone for extended periods. It was worse when Mailloux was pared with Hutson on defence. On the positive side, for the first time, I saw Mailloux display one of his greatest skills, the first pass from the defensive zone. Both in London and Laval I saw Mailloux make accurate laser-like passes from deep in his defensive zone to streaking forwards one and even two zones away. His passes were hard, flat and precise to teammates who didn't even have to break stride to receive them. Last night, against a strong Rangers team, Mailloux was able to break down the Rangers game on a number of occasions with his elite passing skills. On one play, when he made a 100 foot pass to Gallagher, which sent him on a partial break, Mailloux looked like Joe Montana passing to Jerry Rice on a deep slant. This kid has the best first pass since Subban at his peak. But Mailloux has to be a more efficient skater and generate more speed or we are going to continue to witness extended painful moments where we will be trapped in our zone like we saw in the Islanders and Rangers games. Will it happen? I don't know. I think we will have a better idea by next training camp.

It was good to see Suzuki play like the Suzuki who earned the captaincy of this storied franchise. Without Suzuki at his best, we will challenge for 1 OA next June.

The play and steady emergence of Kapanen continued. He was excellent on face offs and wasn't bullied or intimidated by a much larger, stronger and skilled Rangers team. This kid is a player and will be an important piece for this team going forward. I can't see Hughes not keeping him for the whole season. But who knows.

I thought Anderson continued his strong play. While the ship that hoped Anderson would be a constant 20 to 25 goals per season has probably sailed, he played with determination and speed last night. If he continues this level of commitment, I can readily see a playoff bound team trying to acquire Anderson as a fast, physical depth piece at the trade deadline. I don't think we can realistically expect a better outcome than that.

As for Hutson, I can almost feel the wave of discontent and disappointment among segments of the fan base. Hopefully, this young talented player doesn't become the new whipping boy of the team. Yes he made a grievous turn over that led to a goal. It will happen again. It happens to all players. Ask Matheson. But if you have unrealistic expectations of any player, those turnovers and errors become magnified. Hutson handles the puck more than any player on the team. The chances for him committing a mistake are obviously higher. He'll learn. He'll get stronger. He'll get better. Until then, just enjoy the level of excitement this kid brings. Right now his good plays far exceeds the bad ones.

As for the team, though overmatched, I thought, other than a short period after that weak 5th Rangers' goal, the team competed hard. They stood up for each other. The game was a learning experience. They know how far they have to grow as players and as a team to become a winning team.

We need to be patient. I'm almost 80. If I can wait, certainly you youngsters can.

 

[Bouboumaster]

Their only complete player RN.

They’d have to forfeit if he was sidelined.

I'd ne ready to f***ing forfeit the entire season despite having Suzuki

 

[Rapala]

Harris was much better then people in this forum wants to admit.

But the entire team isn't playing well right now (outside some individual efforts). Something is just not working, whatever that is mentally or conceptually (or both).

I have very little to criticize Mike Matheson about...
I'm just not sure if he's playing well or he simply looks stable in comparison to Lane Hutson's adventures.

He still makes weird decisions with the puck on the PP but I can live with that if he plays reasonably well in his own end.
I don't see him making those ill advised rushes we've seen in the past but then again Lane is making enough for both of them.

 

[The Real Timo]

Its good to read a rational response to last night's defeat.

Most minor league hockey teams have a 24 hour rule: that parents can't contact the sons/daughters' team managers and coaches during the 24 hour period after each game to prevent the usual / predictable complaints that their son/daughter didn't have enough ice time or wasn't used on their team's powerplay.

I've coached and managed hockey teams for over 30 years. The stories I could tell would shock most here ( other than those who are fellow coaches/managers). Here's a short snippet which you may find amusing: I was coaching in a summer recreational league in the GTA where the players ranged from AAA to house league. After a game that we actually won, an incensed parent stormed into the dressing room and angrily confronted me because I had the temerity of playing his son, normally a center, on defence. In his words, I was 'stunting the growth of son's development.' Oh yeah .... the kids were ten years old. As the discussion became more heated and the parent became more aggressive ( all in front the other players) the parent had to be restrained and removed from the dressing room. To avoid further incitements, it was thought best to have the kid in questioned moved to another team. The stories I could tell.

The 24 hour cooling off period avoids most of these type of incidents. It would be interesting if a similar policy was instituted on forums like this one. People would hopefully cool off after a particularly malodorous loss and post with some retrospection and restraint.

Bottom line: the sky is not falling. We don't have to fire the coach, trade away every player or even change the goal song. This team, at best, with everything going right, was a marginal playoff team. Take into consideration the number of injuries to key players that the team has suffered, the lack of quality depth, the youth on the team and the number of underperforming veterans, it's no surprise that they were overwhelmed by a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. Our goalies can't be relied on every game to save our asses like Montembeault did against the Leafs. Its going to take several more years to undo the dry rot of decades of mismanagement.

But I like to look at the positives, perhaps its the misguided mindset of a Habs fan of close to 70 years. I am a living witness of the good, the bad and Houle/Bergevin.

Here's my positives: Evans, quietly, as a result of his excellent play and leadership, has become an important player on this rebuilding team. If his level of play continues, he'll justly earn an extension of his contract. If his high level of play does continue, Hughes would be a fool not to extend this dedicated player.

As some know, I was an early booster of Mailloux but grew somewhat skeptical about this young man's upside. Last night, you saw the best and worse of Mailloux's game. As I warned, Mailloux lacks the skating ability to avoid the first forechecker and gain the separation and time to be able to consistently get the puck, whether by skating it out or passing it, out of the defensive zone. Last night, as in the game against the Islanders, at times when Mailloux was on the ice, the team was trapped and hemmed in our defensive zone for extended periods. It was worse when Mailloux was pared with Hutson on defence. On the positive side, for the first time, I saw Mailloux display one of his greatest skills, the first pass from the defensive zone. Both in London and Laval I saw Mailloux make accurate laser-like passes from deep in his defensive zone to streaking forwards one and even two zones away. His passes were hard, flat and precise to teammates who didn't even have to break stride to receive them. Last night, against a strong Rangers team, Mailloux was able to break down the Rangers game on a number of occasions with his elite passing skills. On one play, when he made a 100 foot pass to Gallagher, which sent him on a partial break, Mailloux looked like Joe Montana passing to Jerry Rice on a deep slant. This kid has the best first pass since Subban at his peak. But Mailloux has to be a more efficient skater and generate more speed or we are going to witness extended painful moments where we will be trapped in our zone like we saw in the Islanders and Rangers games. Will it happen? I don't know. I think we will have a better idea by next training camp.

It was good to see Suzuki play like the Suzuki who earned the captaincy of this storied franchise. Without Suzuki at his best, we will challenge for 1 OA next June.

The play and steady emergence of Kapanen continued. He was excellent on face offs and wasn't bullied or intimidated by a much larger, stronger and skilled Rangers team. This kid is a player and will be an important piece for this team going forward. I can't see Hughes not keeping him for the whole season. But who knows.

I thought Anderson continued his strong play. While the ship that hoped Anderson would be a constant 20 to 25 goals per season has probably sailed, He played with determination and speed last night. If he continues this level of commitment, I can readily see a playoff bound team trying to acquire Anderson as a fast, physical depth piece at the trade deadline. I don't think we can realistically expect a better outcome than that.

As for Hutson, I can almost feel the wave of discontent and disappointment among segments of the fan base. Hopefully, this young talented player doesn't become the new whipping boy of the team. Yes he made a grievous turn over that led to a goal. It will happen again. It happens to all players. Ask Matheson. But if you have unrealistic expectations of any player, those turnovers and errors become magnified. Hutson handles the puck more than any player on the team. The chances for him committing a mistake are obviously higher. He'll learn. He'll get stronger. He'll get better. Until then, just enjoy the level of excitement this kid brings. Right now his good plays far exceeds the bad ones.

As for the team, though overmatched, I thought, other than a short period after that weak 5th Rangers' goal, the team competed hard. They stood up for each other. The game was a learning experience. They know how far they have to grow as players and as a team to become a winning team.

We need to be patient. I'm almost 80. If I can wait, certainly you youngsters can.

All I took from this is that we should move Suzuki to D

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

Can’t stand watching this god awful team all the way from top to bottom. I suspect even the positive bunch here are going to have mixed feelings about the rebuild after this season

 

[Tyson]

Can’t stand watching this god awful team all the way from top to bottom. I suspect even the positive bunch here are going to have mixed feelings about the rebuild after this season

It seems the rebuild is straying off course, something just doesn't seem right.
MSL has had an easy ride up until now but his coaching is now being scrutinized and it's deserved.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

In the mix for a top 3 pick

 

[GrandmaCookie]

You know I’ve cooled off from last night. I was an advocate of the rebuild, and this is what we are doing currently. Got to be patient, it would be dishonest to shit on the process now that it is ongoing. Bring on the cumulative high picks, the youth having bad nights, the years of suffering, I will be patient.

 

[Kobe Armstrong]

It seems the rebuild is straying off course, something just doesn't seem right.
MSL has had an easy ride up until now but his coaching is now being scrutinized and it's deserved.

Because the expectation set by management is that we will be in the mix - we are on pace for a 60 point season

 

[GrandmaCookie]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1848896918883020832

Slaf in the pressbox with essentially the same expression I had watching that game.

« Should have accepted that bridge contract offer instead, FML »

 

[Tyson]

You know I’ve cooled off from last night. I was an advocate of the rebuild, and this is what we are doing currently. Got to be patient, it would be dishonest to shit on the process now that it is ongoing. Bring on the cumulative high picks, the youth having bad nights, the years of suffering, I will be patient.

When I built my house I hired the absolute best and most qualified builders...I am not sure the Habs are rebuilding with the best coaching staff. These guys seem to be in over their heads.
Buffalo has two 1st over all picks playing D so stocking up on high picks doesn't mean a whole lot if they are squandered.