If Pacioretty had been on the Habs roster for 3 more games, this season would have counted as 1 year of NHL experience. Free agency is achieved at age 27 or 7 years of NHL experience. 1 year of NHL experience is 40 games on the NHL roster. So with this move, Pacioretty can't become a UFA until 2016. Regardless, if we haven't won a cup by then, there will have been an EPIC FAIL of even larger proportions than this season.
Tanguay-Koivu-Kovalev needs to work! Kovalev and Koivu rarely played well when paired but at this point its worth trying to have our best 3 forwards together. We could call that the UFA line
In fact I like these lines, perhaps Higgins is going to replace Sergei should he fail to give an effort. Still both Kostitsyns reunited could provide a much needed spark under Andrei's ass. The Latapopoulos line is money while the 4th is "good" for a 4th line.
Unlike some of the desperate lines we've seen in the past week these have the potential to stick together for a while. I guess Dandy or even Higgins (if he continues his disappearing act) could be replaced with Stewart. I don't think D'Ago will play much for the remainder of the year, same with Laraque (unless Sergei floats).
Good thing for Pacioretty. He gets to play in a league where he'll be able to develope his scoring touch and maybe be ready to step in full time in the NHL next year.
On the other side, I think it could be good for D'Agostini to do the same, get to work on little things to be ready next year. But I think he wasn't on the final list for Hamilton so he can't play there for the rest of the season...Can someone confirm this???
Pacioretty showed some sparks of greatness and potential but clearly he doesn't fit on a team struggling to make the playoffs. Him and D'Agostini are defensive liabilities and aren't producing that much (which is understandable of course).
Good thing for Pacioretty. He gets to play in a league where he'll be able to develope his scoring touch and maybe be ready to step in full time in the NHL next year.
On the other side, I think it could be good for D'Agostini to do the same, get to work on little things to be ready next year. But I think he wasn't on the final list for Hamilton so he can't play there for the rest of the season...Can someone confirm this???
D'Ago is not on the BD's playoff roster, so there is no sense in him being sent down, he will be here for a while now !
funny thing is Carbo would likely have been bashed for these lines.
Doubt it.
Andrei is away from Kovy and playing with his brother, the Laps line remains and Higgins is on the 4th due to his poor play all season. I think that satisfies most people on here. The 1st line is a wash, but we never know, putting all the best players on the same line might work for once.
I don't think the lines will change much, but we never know, Andrei playing with Sergei might wake him up. I think that 1st line can be successful as well if they play like a line and not like 3 players who play for themselves, though the latter is more probable.
This is who I assume is on the bulldogs playoff roster:
Jancevski
Henry
Weber
Wyman
Glumac
Chipchura
Trotter
Russell
Kemp
White
Desharnais
Aubin
Janik
Belle
Flinn
Carle
Lehoux
Maxwell
Desjardins
Denis
Conboy shouldn't count as part of the 22 because he should still be on that ATO contract with Hamilton. So then Max Pacioretty and Sergei Kostitsyn could both be on the list.
Though on the AHL website, there seems to be 26 guys on the Bulldogs regular season roster, I guess some are injured though.
These lines are perfect. The first line should draw a lot of attention from other teams which should help the 2nd and 3rd a lot. This team is so much more talented than last year's even with Lang out. The defense is the same even Bigger with OByrne. They only need one win and they'lle probably turn this thing around. Im not quiting on them, NEVER!
Dag could go down and play Bulldogs regular seson he just can't play for them in playoffs if I was Gainey I would send him down to get his touch back and when the dogs playoff starts call him back up. Also I belive SK74 is on the digs roster so he could get sent down again if he doesn't perform.
Pacioretty being sent down is the best news in weeks. It should have happened a LONG time ago as he was basically a ''body'' to plug into the lineup for this team - he was bringing very little offense. Hopefully he lights it up in the Hammer down the stretch and in the playoffs and comes into training camp next year with tons of confidence.
Curious to see how that first line performs -- that's all the big guns. It really should get tons of ES and PP icetime -- leave the penalty-killing to the grinders who do it almost as well.
Its pretty weird cuz when I heard of the Sergei call up I made the roster change in NHL 07 (the newest version for me) and made those exact same lines except i had Kost and Higgins reversed and D'ago instead of Dandy. But still top two lines are perfect with what we have I feel.
This is who I assume is on the bulldogs playoff roster:
Jancevski
Henry
Weber
Wyman
Glumac
Chipchura
Trotter
Russell
Kemp
White
Desharnais
Aubin
Janik
Belle
Flinn
Carle
Lehoux
Maxwell
Desjardins
Denis
Conboy shouldn't count as part of the 22 because he should still be on that ATO contract with Hamilton. So then Max Pacioretty and Sergei Kostitsyn could both be on the list.
Though on the AHL website, there seems to be 26 guys on the Bulldogs regular season roster, I guess some are injured though.
The Bulldogs' Clear Day roster consists of 12 forwards, eight defencemen and two goaltenders.
Forwards: Mathieu Aubin, Kyle Chipchura, David Desharnais, Mike Glumac, Sergei Kostitsyn, Yannick Lehoux, Ben Maxwell, Max Pacioretty, Ryan Russell, Greg Stewart, Brock Trotter, Ryan White
Defencemen: Shawn Belle, Mathieu Carle, Alex Henry, Dan Jancevski, Doug Janik, T.J. Kemp, Yannick Weber, J.T. Wyman
Goaltenders: Marc Denis, Cedrick Desjardins
Players in Residence but not on the Clear Day list: Chad Anderson, Thomas Beauregard, Andrew Conboy, Ryan Flinn, Steve Gainey, Ryan Kinasewich, Olivier Latendresse, Tyler Shelast, Mark Van Guilder
A player in residence can only be used during the remainder of the regular season or the playoffs if a combination of three members of the 22-man roster are injured, recalled or suspended.
The Kovy-Koivu-Tang line will not be useless. The other teams will not have the choice to put their best defensive pair against them so there will be more space for the other habs lines .
Dag could go down and play Bulldogs regular seson he just can't play for them in playoffs if I was Gainey I would send him down to get his touch back and when the dogs playoff starts call him back up. Also I belive SK74 is on the digs roster so he could get sent down again if he doesn't perform.
According to AHL by-laws, only the players listed on a team's Clear Day roster are eligible to compete in the remainder of the AHL regular season and in the 2009 Calder Cup Playoffs, unless emergency conditions arise as a result of injury, recall or suspension. Teams may also add signed junior players or players on amateur tryout contracts after Clear Day, but only once their respective junior or college seasons are complete.
Finally, Higgins is where he deserves to be... the 4th line !!
This imposter, floater, Stone hands, has been miserable this season.
The fact that he hasn't been on the pressbox yet and still wearing the "A" is just beyond me.
I hope that people will finally realize that Higgins is nothing more than a 3rd liner...
As for Pacioretty, I'm not surprise... He started to float a little bit, was a non-factor offensively and physically and seemed tired... He is not ready, need more time in the AHL to develop.
As for Sergei Kostitsyn, he finally returns in the line-up with Plekanec and his big bro. I predict a 3 points night for him. His line will be the best of the game.
I know MaxPac has been sent down but, as a 4th line, these 3 would bring speed and some offensive potential. Leave them together for 10 games and who knows...
Metro has had one good game so far (although better than Higs at faceoffs) and Dandy is not so dandy as a F.
Stewart should be in the line...he certainly did not play himself out of the lineup...guys who play with heart and grit should not be on the outside watching!
The Kovy-Koivu-Tang line will not be useless. The other teams will not have the choice to put their best defensive pair against them so there will be more space for the other habs lines .
If they can do that and hang on to the puck forever, they can serve a useful defensive purpose even if they generate zero shots.
But Tanguay does shoot when he has a good chance and Kovalev can smoke it, so it may work better than we think.
Didn't Pacioretti play center in college. That's where they should play him. We've been crying for a big center for how long now. There's the answer. I've seen enough from him to think that he could excell and feed his wingers effectively. He may not become that #1 center, but could be the #2 guy. I'd be ok playing a small #1 center as long as the rest of the centers are 6'2" and/or play like they are 6'2".
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.... The problem is the fans havent seen a good effort in so long they may not recognize it if and when it happens....
