Post-Game Talk: Habs lose to oilers

[sampollock]

was a fun game to watch... at least

 

[Rapala]

That time of year when Bell hypocritically floods the airwaves during games and assorted sports shows with their mental health campaign, just before they announce massive layoffs among their broadcasting employees (while turds like Sean Campbell inexplicably hold on to their jobs).

Same as last year -- Bell has a knack for creating the type of distress and mental anguish in people’s lives that prompts them to eventually seek out the services Bell pretends to care about.

Which is quite possibly exacerbating the mental health issues of a portion of our Province.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Again outshot, outplayed… no talent, no structure. Goalies make this team look much better than it is. In my opinion, they are bottom 3 in the league in terms of talent with the Sharks And Hawks

They are far more talented than the Hawks or the Sharks who have one good player each. Habs have 5 forwards and several d and several more in the minors. If Dach and Newhook hadn't gone down they would likely be in or just out of a playoff spot.

 

[Rapala]

I see Gally on the ice, and some nights, you just have to shake your head....his time has come. His expiration date is passed. Sorry guys, it just is...........

Yeah he was behind the play most of the time. Not able to disturb the shit out of many players when the game goes too fast.

 

[Rapala]

Yeah he played great, but he's mistake prone, so people now take him to town for any perceived miscue. He's also not a PP QB, which is killing our PP. Basically all he can do is pass it to Caufield or take a shot.

You can keep Ceci. That guy sucks. Even Caufield was able to ride him off the puck & take it from him. A better offensive team does a lot more with all the turnovers he made in defensive zone too.

I don't know if he got a talking to but he was far better moving the puck to his right. They had Suzuki back there so maybe that had something to do with it.
The play HAS to go through Suzuki Monahan Slaf with CC flitting in and out on that left side. Slaf is better in the bumper role but damn he has to shoot when he's set up cleanly with time. He's big enough and strong enough to cause problems with a one time snapshot without stopping the puck. That eliminates the problem with his long release.

 

[Tyson]

I think he's being brought along OK. He really only has had a rough stretch recently. If we're honest, golden boy Guhle has also struggled this year both offensively and defensively. We know about Mathesons issues. Harris has been terrible. Struble has been great, but he's also starting to show cracks. Our vets are Savard and Matheson. Not a pair who exactly inspire confidence.

Our skilled players and future core are very young. The Gretzky/Messier/Coffee/Fuhr Oilers sucked defensively at the start but grew together as a core and we all know how they turned out. Not comparing our guys talent for talent to them, but same idea...we're rebuilding, so patience. I think Barron is better off developing in the NHL at THIS point. WiFi on his best days this year was still worse than Barron overall, IMO. Cheers!

I would counter argue that Guhle has struggled since being paired with Barron. He looked like a completely different player last night.

 

[RationalExpectations]

They are far more talented than the Hawks or the Sharks who have one good player each. Habs have 5 forwards and several d and several more in the minors. If Dach and Newhook hadn't gone down they would likely be in or just out of a playoff spot.

None of them have scored even 50 points in a season. We have no idea if Dach s injury issues will resolve at some point. Can they change the fact that Habs are bottom 5 in the league in PP, PK, shot for, shot against, regultation wins…

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Trade you Ceci for him.

Real talk though, I thought he was one of your best players tonight?

I find it an instructive exercise to visit the boards of opposing teams after a game. It provides a counter-balance, if not an escape from the cocoon of one's own biases and pre-dispositions. I instruct everyone here to try this enlightening experiment. You might be surprised what others feel about your team's current heroes, villains and scapegoats. Matheson provides a great example. Oiler fans were generally highly complimentary about Matheson's play and impact on last night's game. Some intuitively compared our theft of Matheson from the Penguins to our acquisition of Petry from them at the cost of a second round draft choice. One poster laughingly described our recent acquisition of Matheson as our having Petry'ed the Penguins. Some ( probably having read many negative posts here) expressed hoped that we might be foolish enough to trade Matheson to the Oilers.

Only in Montreal could you find a segment of a fan base who fervently wish and hope for the riddance of a highly skilled, mobile defenceman who plays close to 26 minutes a game, is second on the team in scoring and projects to end up scoring 12-15 goals and 55 to 65 points this year. As if we have a plethora of valid options to fill those 26 minutes.

I would suggest Montreal has much bigger problems than the incessant nattering we hear about this fine and dedicated player.

 

[CHwest]

I'd absolutely love to fleece some team in a trade for Matheson. Everyone sucks him off all the time but every time I watch him he's f***ing brutal.

I am amazed at how the announcers fawn over him.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

None of them have scored even 50 points in a season. We have no idea if Dach s injury issues will resolve at some point. Can they change the fact that Habs are bottom 5 in the league in PP, PK, shot for, shot against, regultation wins…

There is no player on the Sharks or Hawks capable of 50 pts aside form Bedard and Hertl. Habs have 5 (if Dach is ever healthy), And the Habs have many more good prospects than either of them.

I am amazed at how the announcers fawn over him.

Maybe because they know a good player when they see them.

 

[sandviper]

Pretty crazy how much disrespect McDavid gets. He's the best forward since Lemieux. It's way closer than people on this board say it is. Crosby has this aura and he's a top 10 player, but the way McDavid utterly dominates the ice when he's on is out of this world. Once he wins a cup the narratives will completely change, like they did with Datsyuk, but times 100.

Yeah, McDavid is more than just a guy who can skate fast with the puck. He also wants to win, so I don’t buy any BS about him not having that mentality. Hockey is a team sport anyways.

No disrespect for Crosby, as he’s one of the GOATs, but McDavid can absolutely own a game whenever he is on the ice. I mean, that was obvious in the Kings series last season. They could not contain him.

He’s not flawless, but his strengths more than make up for it.

 

[Goldenhands]

Matheson played a great game tonight and was one of the most impactful players using his great skating to break up many Oiler plays. We took a strong team into overtime and Matheson in one sequence in overtime almost won the game for us on an end to end rush and then broke up a three on one rush on the back check with a great display of mobility.

Without Matheson’s contributions game-in and game out, this team would be even more pedestrian than one could bare. They would become unwatchable.

The incessant suggestions of trading this excellent player borders on insanity.

Well if we can get a solid return, we should definitely trade him, we are rebuilding and there is a logjam coming on the left side.

I wouldnt trade him for a late 1st though, it would take more than that.

 

[LesCanadiens]

I would counter argue that Guhle has struggled since being paired with Barron. He looked like a completely different player last night.

When Barron was playing great and getting compliments on this board, Guhle was still looking un-Guhle like. So IMO, one game is highly anecdotal. Maybe it's true, but could just be a chemistry thing too. All I'm saying, is patience. Barron was getting lots of accolades not very long ago. And it's not unusual for any player to go through rough patches, let alone a just-turned 22 year old RD.

Some of now infamous plays he was criticized on were not even his fault. But sure, he's had some big ups and downs. I just think, as usual for our market, the downs get the more powerful microscope. Time will ultimately tell. And this is the kind of year we (as a team) can bide that time.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

My boy Kirby

I miss Kirby too. It really put a damper on the season and crushed any chance of Suzuki / Caufield reaching a milestone. The opposing team's best players/defensive pairings can just target one line and the Habs have no answer.

I thought Guhle had regressed, but maybe playing with Barron was the problem

Who was Guhle paired with last night?

 

[ChesterNimitz]

I miss Kirby too. It really put a damper on the season and crushed any chance of Suzuki / Caufield reaching a milestone. The opposing team's best players/defensive pairings can just target one line and the Habs have no answer.


Who was Guhle paired with last night?

The anchor known as Matheson.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

The anchor known as Matheson.

Interesting, who played RHD?

 

[_vivelequebec_]

There is no player on the Sharks or Hawks capable of 50 pts aside form Bedard and Hertl. Habs have 5 (if Dach is ever healthy), And the Habs have many more good prospects than either of them.

Maybe. But atm, SJ and CHI holds two top 15 picks (mostly they have first and second). That could give Eiserman/MBN to CHI and Celebrini/Yakemchuk to SJ.

Buffalo, Anaheim and Columbus would also pick before us and already have a better prospect pool than we have. I think we over estimate our future. Sure we are top ten for prospects, not top 5.

 

[Habs10Habs]

Interesting, who played RHD?

Ghule did, and he played very well.

 

[Tyson]

When Barron was playing great and getting compliments on this board, Guhle was still looking un-Guhle like. So IMO, one game is highly anecdotal. Maybe it's true, but could just be a chemistry thing too. All I'm saying, is patience. Barron was getting lots of accolades not very long ago. And it's not unusual for any player to go through rough patches, let alone a just-turned 22 year old RD.

Some of now infamous plays he was criticized on were not even his fault. But sure, he's had some big ups and downs. I just think, as usual for our market, the downs get the more powerful microscope. Time will ultimately tell. And this is the kind of year we (as a team) can bide that time.

I like Barron, I just think he was and is being rushed.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

Ghule did, and he played very well.

That was an excellent coaching move by the much maligned MSL. He recognized that playing against McDavid, we needed our most mobile defencemen on the ice to limit this incredible skater's ice and time. In general, they both did an effective job holding McDaid to one point. I shudder to think what would have happened if we had Savard , Kovacevic, et al, on the ice against McDavid. Matheson and Guhle can skate with McDavid.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

I like Barron, I just think he was and is being rushed.

I find Barron plays scared in his own zone. He panics way too much. Makes terrible decisions. The game is too fast for him pint size brain.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Maybe. But atm, SJ and CHI holds two top 15 picks (mostly they have first and second). That could give Eiserman/MBN to CHI and Celebrini/Yakemchuk to SJ.

Buffalo, Anaheim and Columbus would also pick before us and already have a better prospect pool than we have. I think we over estimate our future. Sure we are top ten for prospects, not top 5.

I was talking about Chicago and San Jose. Habs are far ahead of them because they have 7 or 8 building blocks already on the team and a good prospect pool. Hacks and Sharks have maybe 1 good player each on their team currently.

 

[LesCanadiens]

I like Barron, I just think he was and is being rushed.

That's what a lot of people said about Slaf...not all that long ago. Maybe you're right. Nothing much to lose to find out.

I guess I have a LOT of faith in MSL. I think he's the best coach we've had in ages, probably since Demers. I see him as a much more well-rounded Demers (especially on the technical side of the game and game experience). If MSL thinks he should play, I think that speaks volumes.

 

[LesCanadiens]

I find Barron plays scared in his own zone. He panics way too much. Makes terrible decisions. The game is too fast for him pint size brain.

Ridiculous comment and exactly the kind of hyperbole that our fanbase can be known for in a bad way. Do I really need to bring-up the many posts not long ago on this board praising his play? "Pint size brain"? Seriously, how rich.

 

[Tyson]

That's what a lot of people said about Slaf...not all that long ago. Maybe you're right. Nothing much to lose to find out.

I guess I have a LOT of faith in MSL. I think he's the best coach we've had in ages, probably since Demers. I see him as a much more well-rounded Demers (especially on the technical side of the game and game experience). If MSL thinks he should play, I think that speaks volumes.

I am not as confident in MSL as many on this site are. Experience speaks volumes and eventually lack of experience shows itself.
He has a ways to go in my eyes to prove he is the best coach since Demers (that's actually not a very high bar).