I was going from memory so maybe I'm wrong about his age.
Hemsky is only about 9 months older.
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I still would never trade a valuable asset for him. He's the type of player often injured, not a clear 1st liner and strikes me as a player who shy away when the opposition gets tougher.
Then I don't know how much you've watched Ales Hemsky play. The reason he gets injured as much as he does is because he drives into those hard areas of the ice. And production in the clutch? He had 17 points in 24 games when the Oilers went to the Cup.
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I'm not saying he wouldn't be a good fit at the right price on a contending team that could really afford to sacrifice some youth or top pick to get him though.
As I said, when you consider the Kings gave up a 1st plus a former 1st rounder for Penner, Hemsky will command at least that much. Injuries are a possibility, yes, but you're getting a vastly more talented player for your trouble.
Hemsky's a great player and all, but I've had enough with soft, injury riddled forwards.
I think we need a board-wide glossary. To me, soft means a player who pulls up short rather than go hard into the corner after the puck - a player who loses board battles - a player who will go down easily and look at the ref for a call rather than pursuing a play right to the end. None of these things describe Hemsky, yet pretty much every page of this thread has someone describing him as "soft." Is my definition wrong?
I was going from memory so maybe I'm wrong about his age. I still would never trade a valuable asset for him. He's the type of player often injured, not a clear 1st liner and strikes me as a player who shy away when the opposition gets tougher.
I'm not saying he wouldn't be a good fit at the right price on a contending team that could really afford to sacrifice some youth or top pick to get him though. Just not the type of player the Habs should go after at this stage imo.
He's pretty clearly a first liner and the part where you say "He strikes me as a player who shy away when the opposition gets tougher" reeks of negative bias toward euros. It just sounds like you haven't watched him play at all and you're coming up with distant made up impressions to be honest. Basically everything you said in that post is complete BS conjured from bad memories except the fact he might be injury prone.
I was going from memory so maybe I'm wrong about his age. I still would never trade a valuable asset for him. He's the type of player often injured, not a clear 1st liner and strikes me as a player who shy away when the opposition gets tougher.
I'm not saying he wouldn't be a good fit at the right price on a contending team that could really afford to sacrifice some youth or top pick to get him though. Just not the type of player the Habs should go after at this stage imo.
Your post should've read: I don't really know what I'm talking about, but I don't like him.
Lol! You guys are probably right! Although I'm not biased against Euro players.
As for the reference to what the Kings gave for Penner, well that was a mistake to give-up a 1st on Penner. Although the d-man they gave (Teubert) can't be qualified as a "great" prospect. Average at best.
I guess all I'm saying is that imo, the Habs aren't to the point of sacrificing depth or high picks on a player like Hemsky who will command major bucks while not being the difference maker fr a Stanley Cup in the short term.
I think we need a board-wide glossary. To me, soft means a player who pulls up short rather than go hard into the corner after the puck - a player who loses board battles - a player who will go down easily and look at the ref for a call rather than pursuing a play right to the end. None of these things describe Hemsky, yet pretty much every page of this thread has someone describing him as "soft." Is my definition wrong?
I think we need a board-wide glossary. To me, soft means a player who pulls up short rather than go hard into the corner after the puck - a player who loses board battles - a player who will go down easily and look at the ref for a call rather than pursuing a play right to the end. None of these things describe Hemsky, yet pretty much every page of this thread has someone describing him as "soft." Is my definition wrong?
He definitely is not 'soft' but you can't deny that he's a very injury prone player, esp. the last couple of seasons. He's had surgery on both shoulders. Shoulder injuries are a nuisance and they have a likelihood of recurring: see Havlat. I say throw an offer sheet to an elite RFA: Parise or Callahan. Stamkos would be nice but he is way to expensive. 10million is not worth it considering we have Subban, Price, Pacioretty (and yemelin if he is as good as he's said to be) becoming free agents in the next 1-2 years.
He definitely is not 'soft' but you can't deny that he's a very injury prone player, esp. the last couple of seasons. He's had surgery on both shoulders. Shoulder injuries are a nuisance and they have a likelihood of recurring: see Havlat. I say throw an offer sheet to an elite RFA: Parise or Callahan. Stamkos would be nice but he is way to expensive. 10million is not worth it considering we have Subban, Price, Pacioretty (and yemelin if he is as good as he's said to be) becoming free agents in the next 1-2 years.
Paying top talent 10M is never a problem as long as you don't waste valuable cap space on interchangeable players such as Justin Williams (LA) Kopecky (FLA) Spacek (MTL) and the list goes on and on...
He definitely is not 'soft' but you can't deny that he's a very injury prone player, esp. the last couple of seasons. He's had surgery on both shoulders. Shoulder injuries are a nuisance and they have a likelihood of recurring: see Havlat. I say throw an offer sheet to an elite RFA: Parise or Callahan. Stamkos would be nice but he is way to expensive. 10million is not worth it considering we have Subban, Price, Pacioretty (and yemelin if he is as good as he's said to be) becoming free agents in the next 1-2 years.
Then fragile is the word that should be used. When discussing hockey in English, those two words (soft, fragile) have very, very different meanings. You can have soft players that never have an extended injury in their career (because they avoid heavy contact and "tough" areas), and you can have fragile players that still try to hit everything in sight (and thus get injured a lot).
He definitely is not 'soft' but you can't deny that he's a very injury prone player, esp. the last couple of seasons. He's had surgery on both shoulders. Shoulder injuries are a nuisance and they have a likelihood of recurring: see Havlat.
This is the rational argument, IMO. As great a player as Hemsky is, it would be tough to send good players the other way for a player who has played only 69 games total over the last 2 years.
This is the rational argument, IMO. As great a player as Hemsky is, it would be tough to send good players the other way for a player who has played only 69 games total over the last 2 years.
It is very tempting though because I believe on a team like Montreal he would be a point a game guy if 100% healthy.
While Hemsky only has one year on his contract left, getting him also gets you first negotiating rights which tends be be very favourable towards getting players to re-up with your team.
Also, if he was signed long term there would be no way to get him for a prospect and a first anyway. Would you trade Plekanec to Nashville for their first and Blum?
I was going from memory so maybe I'm wrong about his age. I still would never trade a valuable asset for him. He's the type of player often injured, not a clear 1st liner and strikes me as a player who shy away when the opposition gets tougher.
I'm not saying he wouldn't be a good fit at the right price on a contending team that could really afford to sacrifice some youth or top pick to get him though. Just not the type of player the Habs should go after at this stage imo.
"You know, I don't know much about quantum physics, but I'll give my take on it anyways..."
Look dude, if you haven't watched Ales Hemsky play, why make comments about him?
How about you just watch him play? He's an outstanding winger with no one to pass the puck to. Not long ago, Oilers fans were saying he had top 5 offensive talent in the league or some crap. Spoiled fans, like Habs fans here who bash Hamrlik, despite the fact he held the D together on his last NHL legs, on top of making everyone he was paired with better. If you need someone else's opinion to form your own, you're not worth a second to anyone.
The fact he held the D together on his last legs is precisely why he should have taken the one year offer.As far as watching Hemsky play I'm not an Oiler fan but, most certainly have watched him play.The Oilers played the Stanley Cup final six years ago this season and Hemsky was a great player multi-talented.Put him in the Habs uniform and he won't last twenty games playing against the Bruins and Northeast teams,with the officiating he'd be concussed before the half season mark.Think about it realistically I have been a fan of Hamrlik and Hemsky for years,not a basher.If Tinordi was with the Habs to keep teams honest,Hemsky would be a great acquisition.Think about Tom Pyatt getting his face punched in last season,that's what the Bruins would be doing to Ales Hemsky is that what we as Habs fans want to watch?Not this fan,the Habs need to wait for some of the big bodies they have drafted to keep teams honest.
The fact he held the D together on his last legs is precisely why he should have taken the one year offer.As far as watching Hemsky play I'm not an Oiler fan but, most certainly have watched him play.The Oilers played the Stanley Cup final six years ago this season and Hemsky was a great player multi-talented.Put him in the Habs uniform and he won't last twenty games playing against the Bruins and Northeast teams,with the officiating he'd be concussed before the half season mark.Think about it realistically I have been a fan of Hamrlik and Hemsky for years,not a basher.If Tinordi was with the Habs to keep teams honest,Hemsky would be a great acquisition.Think about Tom Pyatt getting his face punched in last season,that's what the Bruins would be doing to Ales Hemsky is that what we as Habs fans want to watch?Not this fan,the Habs need to wait for some of the big bodies they have drafted to keep teams honest.
But if Boston or Pittsburgh can't 'keep teams honest' and their players still get concussed, how many 'big bodies' are we waiting for exactly?
Hemsky on an average year, if he played in all 82 games, scores 19 goals and 66 points. Considering he is UFA in a year and his injury history, his trade value is not huge.
Put it this way, overall I would rather have Gionta. Gionta is a better goal scorer and can stay health.
Considering he is UFA in a year and his injury history, his trade value is not huge.
It's shocking to me how little some Habs fans seem to know about Hemsky. That's okay- I don't expect everyone to know everything about every player, and I'm sure I'd be off in some of my assessments when it came to Habs players. But please, if you don't know what you're talking about, don't comment. Simplest thing for everyone, and it prevents you from looking like a fool.
He would be awesome if healthy. But is it what we need? Can we risk having another playing who could be injured all year long? And another small player too?
A lot of people here should watch the 2nd game of HNIC instead of l'antichambre... They would get to see some of the players in the western conference and would know that Hemsky is an extremely talented player that can make the Habs a much more potent team.
I wouldn't be against having Hemsky in Montreal at all. Watched him quite a bit when I lived Edmonton, he was very competitive with elite skill. I wished he would shoot a little more, but he is a very good player. For those who want more grit, rivet some sandpaper to his arse and you're good to go.
