Benoit Pouliot: not tendered qualifying offer (June 27)
Sitting at his table at the amateur draft back in 2005, having to select fifth overall, Bob Gainey has his plan of action. His target? Benoit Pouliot, a 6’2″ French-Canadian winger who just finished his rookie season with the Sudbury Wolves with 67 points including 29 goals in 67 games. However, the Minnesota Wild picks him just ahead of the Canadiens… who then have to go to plan B: Carey Price.
Pouliot returned to the Wolves where he collected 65 points, 35 of them goals, in only 51 games. He then struggled to bring his game to the next level, going back and forth between Houston and Minnesota for the next 3 years, before being traded to the Canadiens on November 23, 2009 for Guillaume Latendresse. We know the rest. Pouliot finished the season strong collecting 15 goals in 39 games for the Habs, playing on a line with Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta.
He can be even more frustrating that Andrei at times
It's like if he always wants to rush everything, never slows down to take a better decision
And he falls at least 3 times every game
Falls three times a game
More like three times a shift
Hard to say if he can turn it around. I'd love to see Montreal package him with their first if they can get a team to bite. Do this to pick up Zibenijad.
Halfway through the season I was thinking he was the next big star of the team. But at the end, he was so awful, I don't even know. He made Gomez look like a professional hockey player in the POs...
I'm pretty sure he's done with the Canadiens. One of the most talented players on the team, but aside from the few weeks after the Latendresse trade he's been a complete waste of space.
24 years old, big, fast and some decent offensive skills. I'd give him one more year to prove himself. I'm sure he'll be a great player one day, but I don't know it will be with Jacques Martin...
I wanted this guy's head on a platter after the playoffs were over, but after having some time to think about it, it seems like he's going through a bit of growing pains a la Kostitsyn as someone pointed out. I just hope they don't last as long. I think he needs a bit of veteran guidance to reacquire some confidence. He's really looked lost out there more often than not towards the end of the season, and I think his fighting and aggressive (read: dumb) penalties, especially in the offensive zone, are a result of him trying to compensate for what he can't seem to find elsewhere, that being his offensive groove.
24 years old, big, fast and some decent offensive skills. I'd give him one more year to prove himself. I'm sure he'll be a great player one day, but I don't know it will be with Jacques Martin...
Actually, I think his best chance to succeed is with Martin. Martin has coached him before and I believe they are close off the ice. I would say that was one of the reasons they made the trade for him, because Martin knew exactly what they were getting
Had to be tough losing his father so quickly. Obviously affected him, with the DUI. I suspect he gets better the farther away he gets from that. I'd definitely give him another year. But he needs to be used in an offensive role.
I've had my gripe with Pools for awhile now, but I've wanted AK gone for 2 seasons, if they give up now on BP, when they opted to keep AK46 for way longer then I thought they should have, well then Im confused as to where they expect players to develop.
People wanted a miracle with BP, and truth is he is a work in progress, a project that needs time, You can see the flashes, and what not but then you can also see why he is so frustrating to watch.
I still believe BP will be a top 6 forward one day, whether its with us or not is unknown, but our pattern suggests we let go of players for next to nothing and they fluorish somewhere else. Why we let them go is another story in its own, but point is they are producing on other team being the types of players we need, while we are desperately looking for another Top 6 for the umpteenth year. If we trade Pouliot I want an impact player coming back. 1-1 obviously wont happen, but Pouliot, A 1st, Weber, and Kristo or something like that ought to get you something useful, and NO Penner is a DO NOT WANT for me, what a friggn waste of a trade for LA.
Also People need to remember Pouliot has only played his 2nd full season in the NHL, Andrei is on like his 5th or 6th.
I've had my gripe with Pools for awhile now, but I've wanted AK gone for 2 seasons, if they give up now on BP, when they opted to keep AK46 for way longer then I thought they should have, well then Im confused as to where they expect players to develop.
Kostitsyn is a MUCH better player than Pouliot. I have a feeling he will be given away this summer like his brother was last year, but even with his inconstency Andrei is clearly a top-six NHL forward. I'm not convinced Pouliot will be in the league in a few years.
Actually, I think his best chance to succeed is with Martin. Martin has coached him before and I believe they are close off the ice. I would say that was one of the reasons they made the trade for him, because Martin knew exactly what they were getting
I strongly disagree. While it's true that the Canadiens knew exactly what they were getting, Gauthier was there with Timmins and Gainey when they wanted to draft him 5th overall so it has very little to do with Martin.
People can try to defend Martin all they want on different topics, but he is the worst coach for young players and he has shown it in several occasions since taking over.
Young players will make mistakes, it's part of gaining experience. Martin punishes young players for making the same mistakes veterans make, yet they're the only ones being punished. What this does is that it mines their confidence.
I would personally play the hell out of Pouliot for 30-40 games, on the top 6 including on the second PP unit and that, no matter the mistakes.
The organization though, under Martin, won't give him that chance unless Pouliot can, somehow, do what Pacioretty and Subban did, which is getting the crowd on their side and getting their name chanted at the Bell Centre! Since it is unrealistic to think this will happen, I'm fully expecting Pouliot to be traded for nothing and produce, like Latendresse, Sergei and D'Agostini before him did.
Benoit Pouliot.......don't know what more to say except......tons of raw talent and lots of potential. He also had tons of raw talent and lots of potential when he was drafted into the league 5 years ago......and nothing has happened yet. He needs to work on his play without the puck, as well as his balance.....I have never seen a guy fall down so much untouched as this guy does. You look at him and you see a 6"3, 200 lb winger....you gotta love it.....but when you are scratched in favour of Tom Pyatt in the playoffs...something is wrong.
If Montreal is smart, they will spend the 1 million this guy makes somewhere else.
Between Pouliot, Kostistyn, Halpern and Hammer, we will have some money to spend.
Guys such as Ehrhoff, Laich, Glencross, Talbot and Dupuis are available so things are possible this offseason, all we can do is wait and see what Mr. Gauthier can get done.
Kostitsyn is a MUCH better player than Pouliot. I have a feeling he will be given away this summer like his brother was last year, but even with his inconstency Andrei is clearly a top-six NHL forward. I'm not convinced Pouliot will be in the league in a few years.
In my opinion, he's not. What he did get that the duo Latendresse/Pouliot didn't is the patience from his coach. Not saying that Kostitsyn didn't get sat at the end of the bench or sat in the stands, but he immediately came back to the top 6. Can't say the same of the other two.
Right or wrong isn't the issue here, but in all fairness, I just can't see Pouliot developing under Martin unless he goes on a tear like Pacioretty did and the fans force Martin's hand. Remember that when Subban sat last year, fans were all over Martin and were chanting the defenseman's name at home games...
I think that the article is right on when pointing out that Pouliot was the one who suffered from Gomez struggling. We were all happy with his production after the trade. When the Gomez line, with Pouliot on it, did not produce Pouiot is the one that was relegated to the 3-4 th line. However Pouliot is an offensive player that brings little of the grit and defensive play required to play in the bottom six. I think for him to be effective he needs to be on an offensive line.
I would like the Habs to have an offensive 3rd line like we did when Lang was there. I would love to see AK- Eller- Pouliot. Obviously Pouliot needs some work on balance, defensive skills and needs to stop taking stupid penalties. Pouliot is too young, too talented and especially too cheap ( we are in the cap era) to give up on him.
It's all in his head I suspect, he's not this bad of a skater with the fall-down act, no way was his skating was this atrocious and he went 4th overall.
Not sure if he lacks the passion or it's fragile confidence but he needs to find some kind of off-ice help this summer to get over whatever is troubling him. Lafleur himself nearly fell apart under expectations (not that I'm comparing them in terms of talent and accomplishments) and MTL is a pretty tough place to play. I think he needs a sports shrink more than anything.
I can't see the organization give up on Pouliot just yet. They gave AK quite a few chances and I can see the same for Pouliot. He has all the tools to succeed.
