Post-Game Talk: Habs lose big to Sabres. Special teams, not so special.

[salbutera]

Sure. Or shut up and put up attitude… Grinning on spitting chicklets laughing at the media (and the fans) rubbed me funny yesterday. His teams sucks, he’s a liability on the ice and I can’t stand the attitude personnally. The line between swagger and “whatever I don’t care lol” is a fine one for me. Man up kid and stop sucking.

Zegras, Hughes the rest of that squad from USHL are all similar personalities..

 

[OldCraig71]

Have to have a chill attitude here if they want to survive. Just look at comments on HF, it’s the best example. A player have to deal with way more than elsewhere. Can’t even get back from injuries without fans watching your every shift and point out every details. When the goals are there, people find something else.

I wasn't the only one commenting on his play last night and over the last few weeks for that matter. He is turning the puck over too often and yes he will get more attention from a large fanbase like Montreal and the rest of Canada for that matter but that comes with the territory. He has to get better, every player should want to no? He does well in 3 on 3 situations because he has more room on the ice but 5 on 5 he has been struggling, even MSL mentioned this so it's not just on the fans.

 

[Naslundforever]

Zegras, Hughes the rest of that squad from USHL are all similar personalities..

Hughes delivering the goods unless I am mistaken though.

 

[Tyson]

Habs need to figure out to win on home ice

 

[Naslundforever]

I wasn't the only one commenting on his play last night and over the last few weeks for that matter. He is turning the puck over too often and yes he will get more attention from a large fanbase like Montreal and the rest of Canada for that matter but that comes with the territory. He has to get better, every player should want to no? He does well in 3 on 3 situations because he has more room on the ice but 5 on 5 he has been struggling, even MSL mentioned this so it's not just on the fans.

Everything actually working on his line has been Suzuki and Slafkovsky looking for each other and playing actual hockey. These 2 need a winger to help them play real hockey (I have Ylonen in mind).

 

[SOLR]

Habs need to figure out to win on home ice

There, I said it.

 

[SlafySZN]

I wasn't the only one commenting on his play last night and over the last few weeks for that matter. He is turning the puck over too often and yes he will get more attention from a large fanbase like Montreal and the rest of Canada for that matter but that comes with the territory. He has to get better, every player should want to no? He does well in 3 on 3 situations because he has more room on the ice but 5 on 5 he has been struggling, even MSL mentioned this so it's not just on the fans.

Not in the last few games, no. (minus last night, everyone was bad). I would think people could admit that he’s starting to look more like himself. He wasn’t perfect every night last year, too. His goals pace is starting to go up.

 

[SlafySZN]

Everything actually working on his line has been Suzuki and Slafkovsky looking for each other and playing actual hockey. These 2 need a winger to help them play real hockey (I have Ylonen in mind).

He’ll definitely keep his goals pace he’s in now in the last few games and even better by playing with Gallagher and Evans. That’ll show him!

 

[morhilane]

There, I said it.

Habs are 9-7-3 in away games this season so far...

 

[Naslundforever]

He’ll definitely keep his goals pace he’s in now in the last few games and even better by playing with Gallagher and Evans. That’ll show him!

I don’t care about “showing him” or care about him at all, I watch Netflix if I want personality. I like to watch good, meaningful hockey and having him miss every pass every game, be beyond useless in his own zone and not helping Slaf and Suzuki cycle ever is my problem. Then watching him laugh it off as though the fans themselves are meaningless in the equation is cringe and has wiped any sympathy for me about his suckage. I’ll appreciate his opportunistic icetime, including pp and 3v3 eventually once they have a real winger for the 1st line.

 

[SOLR]

Habs are 9-7-3 in away games this season so far...

Before January, now the real season begins.

 

[Habs]

Habs need to figure out to win on home ice

scratch Harris, Savard and MM at home, it would be a good start.

 

[OldCraig71]

Everything actually working on his line has been Suzuki and Slafkovsky looking for each other and playing actual hockey. These 2 need a winger to help them play real hockey (I have Ylonen in mind).

I brought this up during a GDT a little while ago, elevate Ylonen for a few games and drop Caufield to play with Monahan, whats the harm? Cole is a very good sniper who will only get better but I don't know how people can watch him and not see the bad habits he has developed. MSL even said he wanted him to play a more complete game and now I can see what he meant. Cole turns over the puck very easily and is completely lost when the puck is in our end, the coaching staff sees this and is probably hoping that Slaf can make it look less glaring with his improved defensive play.

 

[Forum93]

What a debacle of a game, when I saw it was a Montreal born rookie goalie's first game at the Bell Ctr it didn't bode well.
MSL needs to split Chubs and Petry's Bro and limit their time, it's hard to watch.

 

[LaP]

I wonder if there's still people who believe Allen is a good goalie. It's crazy that he is our worst goalie this season considering how weak this trio is on paper.

 

[JRichard]

I wonder if there's still people who believe Allen is a good goalie. It's crazy that he is our worst goalie this season considering how weak this trio is on paper.

On some other post that trio ranks top 5 in stolen games. Confused.

 

[morhilane]

I wonder if there's still people who believe Allen is a good goalie. It's crazy that he is our worst goalie this season considering how weak this trio is on paper.

It was not a weak trio on paper. Right before the season started, Monty/Allen was considered the best goalie duo in Canada after Vancouver Demko/DeSmith and the Habs traded DeSmith to them.

People only see that trio as weak because the Habs had decades of Véniza winning goalies up front.

Allen's mental took a dive this season, but he was the model of an average NHL goalie before that.

Welcome to league average LaP!

 

[Kennerback]

On some other post that trio ranks top 5 in stolen games. Confused.

With Allen as #1, we’d be on a one-way track to Celebrini. We’ve been piling up defeats. Every time we build a little momentum, Monte wins a sure loss on paper. I know because until I gave up on the tank, my blood pressure went up.

 

[JRichard]

It was not a weak trio on paper. Right before the season started, Monty/Allen was considered the best goalie duo in Canada after Vancouver Demko/DeSmith and the Habs traded DeSmith to them.

People only see that trio as weak because the Habs had decades of Véniza winning goalies up front.

Allen's mental took a dive this season, but he was the model of an average NHL goalie before that.

Welcome to league average LaP!

Would trade that « weird » best goalie duo (why not trio?) in Canada award for any of Helleybuck, Demko, even Woll and Markstrom.

 

[Rapala]

In all fairness, the coaching staff doesn't have much to work with but to your point, I don't understand why we give up the blueline so easily, that is clearly on the coaching staff. Most teams can walk into our zone very easily, our forwards collapse too low and this causes us to give up prime scoring chances. One other thing, why is it that we look so different on home ice as opposed to the game we play on the road? They seem to play a looser uptempo game on the road but at home it's the opposite, I don't know, maybe I'm seeing something that isn't really a thing. Oh yeah, one more thing, get rid of the stupid drop pass.

It is a very rare game where we control the neutral zone and teams are hitting our line with speed to burn.
Dmen will back up in those instances instead of looking stupid and getting walked.
The standing up has to start well before the blue line.

We still lack conviction in our own zone in the one v one battles and we use the swarm or the collapse method to compensate.
The thing is the style of play does reflect the reality of our group as a whole.
The staff see it as the best way to bank points but is it really helping us?

It's very rare we play a game and look good when the opposition is on point and it seems teams feed on the energy at the Bell Center.
We played much better at home during Covid with no crowd.
Players often talk about loving to play in Montreal and we haven't managed to build a team in recent years able to punish them and change that mindset.
Once upon a time teams dreaded coming to play in Montreal.

 

[morhilane]

Would trade that « weird » best goalie duo (why not trio?) in Canada award for any of Helleybuck, Demko, even Woll and Markstrom.

When the article was made, it wasn't clear what the Habs would do with Primeau. Nobody expected to still have a trio by January either.

 

[Captain Mountain]

With Allen as #1, we’d be on a one-way track to Celebrini. We’ve been piling up defeats. Every time we build a little momentum, Monte wins a sure loss on paper. I know because until I gave up on the tank, my blood pressure went up.

Is there support for this other than feelings? Each of the Habs 3 goalies have stolen wins this year. Both Allen and Montembault have saved a goal or 2 more than one would expect. Montembault has the better record, better 5v5 save % (6th among guys with 350+ mins) and is more consistent. Allen is more inconsistent and has a worse record, but his 5v5 save % (15th among guys with 350+ mins), is better on the PK and in close goals (not that either of them are not bad there, but Allen has been more consistent in making saves in those situations).

I'm not sure what you think is projectable to support that, but everything points to it not being the case.

 

[Rapala]

how can I dislike a post I haven't liked lol

The thumbs down is the closest thing to a "dislike"
Imagine the infighting if there was an actual dislike tab that took away from the "likes" tally.

 

[Captain Mountain]

I wonder if there's still people who believe Allen is a good goalie. It's crazy that he is our worst goalie this season considering how weak this trio is on paper.

What do you mean by "how weak this trio is on paper"?

Because that seems more of a reputation argument than anything else.

 

[Rapala]

Hate to say it but his “I’m too cool for this city it’s fans and that media” attitude will only gel as long as he’s scoring buckets.

I think it's more a coming to terms with the fact that Caufield will never be an effective player going up against the top line and Dmen.
He can best exploit his talents in a different role while enjoying PP and OT opportunities.

I've been watching games this past month feeling we no longer need the ideal right winger for Caufield and Suzuki.
We actually need the ideal left winger for Suzuki and Slafkovsky.

Slings and arrows incoming...