HF Habs: Montreal Canadiens Hockey Ops - Part 3

Rapala

Registered User
Mar 29, 2013
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Montreal
A little bit disappointed that they won’t hired an other assistant with experience. I do think it would have help MSL
I'll be hugely disappointed if we don't see a marked improvement with our structure zone time and GA.
MSL is sold on himself and his vision and there is no one to set him straight despite the obvious flaws.
 

BLONG7

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Oct 30, 2002
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Nova Scotia
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I'll be hugely disappointed if we don't see a marked improvement with our structure zone time and GA.
MSL is sold on himself and his vision and there is no one to set him straight despite the obvious flaws.
Our man 2 man in our own end, looks beyond atrocious.
We need to play a zone D
 
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Mudz

3peat watch: 0/3
Sep 11, 2006
3,121
1,087
Montréal
This has to stop. Man to man is not a system that most teams employ

We haven't played true man to man since the start of MSL second season. We are a little bit more m2m than the average but it an aggressive system and adapted to the way MSL would like to play. Robidas is most probably in charge of the defensive system. The biggest deficiency of Mtl's system is the lack of quality and/or experience of its players executing the system.

I'm glad we won't see Kovacevic do a Kovacevic anymore. It's a good start.

I used to say the rebuild would be over when Kovacevic would be gone. Or not needed anymore. Kind of the end of phase1 the more I think about it. The Young D still need experience but we'll have top6/D good enough to challenge for a WC.

Funny how a lot of outside medias are seeing what's happening with mtl but no one inside the mtl ecosystem.
 
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ReHabs

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Jan 18, 2022
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We haven't played true man to man since the start of MSL second season. We are a little bit more m2m than the average but it an aggressive system and adapted to the way MSL would like to play. Robidas is most probably in charge of the defensive system. The biggest deficiency of Mtl's system is the lack of quality and/or experience of its players executing the system.
If the Habs intend to play serious, competitive hockey they'll need to have a serious and competitive approach to defending. It's not like the players need to fine-tune things and will suddenly stop being part of a porous defense, it's clearly the system that is not appropriate for the level of opponents we're facing. It needs adjustment.
 

Rapala

Registered User
Mar 29, 2013
42,704
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Montreal
The Florida teams have been in five straight finals with that system.
Ummmm
Nothing Florida does resembles what we are doing.
I don't see Florida's Dmen chasing checks out of the zone or continually getting picked.
Florida plays man to man down low but they also hand checks off to wingers at a certain point.
We just don't have the horses to play that game which requires structure and communication.
 
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WeThreeKings

Demidov is a HAB
Sep 19, 2006
95,625
107,209
Halifax
Ummmm
Nothing Florida does resembles what we are doing.
I don't see Florida's Dmen chasing checks out of the zone or continually getting picked.
Florida plays man to man down low but they also hand checks off to wingers at a certain point.
We just don't have the horses to play that game which requires structure and communication.

But the goal is that we will, so teach it to the guys and go through the growing pains now, and when the talent/experience catches up, it will be a boon.

The goal was never to put a Therrien system in place to artificially inflate point totals.
 

DAChampion

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May 28, 2011
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A lot of people are commenting on how smart Hughes must be (particularly relative to Bergevin), that he's able to complete trades like the Laine and Dach trades.

Though true, it probably also requires social intelligence and emotional acuity. I imagine that Hughes must be good at communicating with other GMs, and keeping up with opportunities. It takes a lot to speak to people, to get them to open up, and to know how much they value things.

A lot of us would have done the Laine trade as presented, but it takes an effective professional to negotiate that. I doubt that it was Columbus' opening offer. It may be, for example, that Hughes was willing to pay more, but he knew what the market was.

We will probably never be able to prove this, but with Bergevin I often felt like he wasn't aware of the opportunities available.
 

WeThreeKings

Demidov is a HAB
Sep 19, 2006
95,625
107,209
Halifax
A lot of people are commenting on how smart Hughes must be (particularly relative to Bergevin), that he's able to complete trades like the Laine and Dach trades.

Though true, it probably also requires social intelligence and emotional acuity. I imagine that Hughes must be good at communicating with other GMs, and keeping up with opportunities. It takes a lot to speak to people, to get them to open up, and to know how much they value things.

A lot of us would have done the Laine trade as presented, but it takes an effective professional to negotiate that. I doubt that it was Columbus' opening offer. It may be, for example, that Hughes was willing to pay more, but he knew what the market was.

We will probably never be able to prove this, but with Bergevin I often felt like he wasn't aware of the opportunities available.

I think he saw the main motivator for the Jackets was to get out of the contract without retention, the Habs being the only team able to offer that, made it easy to work things through.. and in the end, he got the player, he got the extra asset, and he fixed another issue at home with taking Harris out of the defense logjam.

Hughes got everything he wanted and the Jackets got what they wanted out of a bad situation.
 

DAChampion

Registered User
May 28, 2011
30,203
21,650
I think he saw the main motivator for the Jackets was to get out of the contract without retention, the Habs being the only team able to offer that, made it easy to work things through.. and in the end, he got the player, he got the extra asset, and he fixed another issue at home with taking Harris out of the defense logjam.

Hughes got everything he wanted and the Jackets got what they wanted out of a bad situation.
Experts make it look easy.
 

Bobby Holik agent

erudite free agency sci-fi
Oct 17, 2002
317
402
Montreal
In the Laine/Harris trade could have use the GM giving us hint of Harris value in the trade.
Feel like it would help the media not making stuff up to sell their narrative.
 

HuGort

Registered User
Jun 15, 2012
21,745
10,733
Nova Scotia
I think he saw the main motivator for the Jackets was to get out of the contract without retention, the Habs being the only team able to offer that, made it easy to work things through.. and in the end, he got the player, he got the extra asset, and he fixed another issue at home with taking Harris out of the defense logjam.

Hughes got everything he wanted and the Jackets got what they wanted out of a bad situation.
Jackets so fierce to dump him though has me worried. Gave him away for his contract
 

Rapala

Registered User
Mar 29, 2013
42,704
39,959
Montreal
I think he saw the main motivator for the Jackets was to get out of the contract without retention, the Habs being the only team able to offer that, made it easy to work things through.. and in the end, he got the player, he got the extra asset, and he fixed another issue at home with taking Harris out of the defense logjam.

Hughes got everything he wanted and the Jackets got what they wanted out of a bad situation.
Indeed the feelings expressed a day or two before the trade was finalized came to fruition.
I think you mentioned CBJ were going to have to pay to move Laine.
I also compared the Laine situation to the Sean Monahan dossier as there were many similarities.
The term and players age were different and Monahan didn't have the red flags but it was always going to be a cap dump.
 
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WeThreeKings

Demidov is a HAB
Sep 19, 2006
95,625
107,209
Halifax
Indeed the feelings expressed a day or two before the trade was finalized came to fruition.
I think you mentioned CBJ were going to have to pay to move Laine.
I also compared the Laine situation to the Sean Monahan dossier as there were many similarities.
The term and players age were different and Monahan didn't have the red flags but it was always going to be a cap dump.

Laine as a cap dump vs. what some people were wanting to pay to acquire him is two different risk factors.

Hughes strikes and puts himself in a no-lose situation.

It's like walking out of the stone age straight into the industrial age.
 
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