Why do people have Leblanc on the 4th line? That's ridiculous, he's a scorer, not a grinder. Put him on the 2nd with Bourque and Plekanec and lets see what he can really do.
Bourque - Roy - Nash
Pacioretty - D.D - Cole
Kostitsyn - Eller - Leblanc
T.Moen - White - Darche
Markov - Emelin
Subban - Gorges
Diaz - A.Sutton
Pleckanec + 2round 2013 for Roy
Gionta + Weber + First round 2013 + 3round 2012 for Nash
Sign Sutton at summer
Buyout Gomez
I think we don't need a big center if we have big wingers.
The D.D line did very well this year. If we can get another line like that it will be Awesome to watch.
Desharnais and Plekanec can't be the C 1-2 (order doesn't matter) going forward, or we'll always be an mid-conference team. Not to mention that on a Cup Winning team, Bourque and Cole are both one spot below, and Emelin as well.
We need to improve our center line. Unless Eller has a massive improvement and becomes a solid top center, we can't keep him DD and Plek. We need a center capable of getting 1pt/gp.
As for Leblanc, useless on the 4th. We need to use him as a winger. The only option, as I said, would be for Eller to become that top center, and we move Plek.
Why do people have Leblanc on the 4th line? That's ridiculous, he's a scorer, not a grinder. Put him on the 2nd with Bourque and Plekanec and lets see what he can really do.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MXD
Desharnais and Plekanec can't be the C 1-2 (order doesn't matter) going forward, or we'll always be an mid-conference team. Not to mention that on a Cup Winning team, Bourque and Cole are both one spot below, and Emelin as well.
And Leblanc on a 4th is ridiculous.
Quote:
Originally Posted by beowulf
Desharnais as a number 1 centre? Leblanc a 4th line centre? Where is Markov? Love Gorges but he is more a second pairing dman not a top pairing.
There are things to be positive about but by no means is this a team that is guaranteed to be a top team any time soon.
What about XXXXX on the 2nd and 3rd line???
Gorges is a fine 1st pairing dman. As long as we have other options to play on the PP. Those are not actual lines, but if the Bruins can win the cup with Bergeron and Krejci as #1-2, we can win with Plek and Desharnais if he keeps getting better. He has the skill and the vision to be a much better offensive player given time.
I agree there's still work to be done on this team but we do have a good future. This team is full of very young guys who have just started playing in the NHL. With the injuries we've had this year and the youth of the team, it's not crazy to think that, given the right circumstances, the team will be up for a rebound in the standings next year.
Gorges is a fine 1st pairing dman. As long as we have other options to play on the PP. Those are not actual lines, but if the Bruins can win the cup with Bergeron and Krejci as #1-2, we can win with Plek and Desharnais if he keeps getting better. He has the skill and the vision to be a much better offensive player given time.
I agree there's still work to be done on this team but we do have a good future. This team is full of very young guys who have just started playing in the NHL. With the injuries we've had this year and the youth of the team, it's not crazy to think that, given the right circumstances, the team will be up for a rebound in the standings next year.
The rant of somebody who would be content with a 7th place. Awesome.
Gorges, 1st pairing? Very good D-Men, but the idea with a great team is that there are players who play "below" their spot, not "above" or "barely okay" (like, Josh Gorges as a 2nd D-Men). See Steve Yzerman with Detroit, Ron Francis with Pittsburgh and Peter Forsberg with Colorado.
And Bergeron is a better center than Thomas Plekanec.
Bourque - Roy - Nash
Pacioretty - D.D - Cole
Kostitsyn - Eller - Leblanc
T.Moen - White - Darche
Markov - Emelin
Subban - Gorges
Diaz - A.Sutton
Pleckanec + 2round 2013 for Roy
Gionta + Weber + First round 2013 + 3round 2012 for Nash
Sign Sutton at summer
Buyout Gomez
I think we don't need a big center if we have big wingers.
The D.D line did very well this year. If we can get another line like that it will be Awesome to watch.
Desharnais and Plekanec can't be the C 1-2 (order doesn't matter) going forward, or we'll always be an mid-conference team. Not to mention that on a Cup Winning team, Bourque and Cole are both one spot below, and Emelin as well.
And Leblanc on a 4th is ridiculous.
We need toget bigger on center. Trade Plekanec and try getting a bigger center via draft or trade
We need to improve our center line. Unless Eller has a massive improvement and becomes a solid top center, we can't keep him DD and Plek. We need a center capable of getting 1pt/gp.
As for Leblanc, useless on the 4th. We need to use him as a winger. The only option, as I said, would be for Eller to become that top center, and we move Plek.
I missed the game yesterday because I had school. A couple of my friends told me that Leblanc was a beast yesterday. Was he centering Eller or was Eller centering him? I'm thinking maybe the Habs can either give him an offensive role at center position or give that top 5 pick some good ice time and use the free cash with the Gomez buyout to invest on a 1st line winter ala Parise.
Last night gave me the opportunity to watch a game from beginning to end, all the periods, overtime and the shootout and I must say, not only was I entertained in a long time, but I like what I see in the Habs future and here is why:
Pacioretty - Desharnais - Cole
Bourque - Plekanec - XXXXX
XXXXX - Eller - XXXXX
White - Leblanc - XXXXXX
Gorges - Subban
Tinordi - Emelin
Beaulieu - XXXXX
Price
Not only did I like what I saw but I think that we have the right core to move forward with some top end talent on the back end and hopefully a top three pick this June that might land us Yakupov, Grigorenko or Forsberg. Personally, I feel that the need is at centre and right wing, so Grigorenko might just be the perfect fit or Galchenyuk.
Montreal is not far from being a great team for a long time, if we look at our goalie situation and the defensive core, some might say that we will be safe for at least another 10 years, lock up Price, Subban and Emelin a.s.a.p. make Gorges a captain and develop Tinordi, Beaulieu and Ellis as best as we can.
Last night I also got to see a series of shooters in the shootout that were all over six feet tall, Bourque, Pacioretty and Cole have all added a much needed dimension to Montreal's line up and now it's time to draft a top line centre and develop Leblanc and Eller to be the 2nd and 3rd line centres of the future.
We are not in bad shape at all, especially since we might have a lottery pick in June to start the re-building and re-tooling!
GO HABS GO!
I agree that we have a decent foundation to start from. I think we are in need of a 1st line however. Pacioretty-Desharnais-Cole is a capable first line but they will not win a cup if that's what we have going forward.
Plekanec needs to have a big winger with him (think Nash, Ryan, etc) or else he needs to be moved for a legit #1 centre. Ideally , you move Desharnais and put Plekanec with Patches and Cole.
Next, we have to make sure we get a first line forward from our high pick this year. We cannot afford to mess this up!
2 or 3 years from now:
XXXXX - 2012 First Rounder - XXXXX
Pacioretty - Plekanec - Cole
Bourque - Eller - Leblanc
White - XXXXX - Blunden/Other
If we are lucky Leblanc will keep progressing and take a 2nd line spot and Pacioretty can go to the 1st line. Then if lucky again, Gallagher or Kristo will be good third line wingers.
If we can get our forwards looking something like that, then we will start looking like a contender. Long term we have to hope that Eller continues to progress, then we can look at moving Plekanec, slide Eller to the 2nd line and Leblanc to the third line centre position with possibly Kristo on the third line wing.
Our up an coming defense is what I think a position of strength in the future. With Subban, Emelin, Gorges, Diaz, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Ellis, Bennett all capable of being in the NHL or knocking on the door in 3 years. I would think that at least one or two of these players will be moved to shore up the forwards.
I for one won't be surprised if Tinordi, Beaulieu or Ellis are eventually dealt in some sort of package for a top 6 forward.
I love Kostitsyn but he is going to have to be moved for a pick. Same with Moen and Gill. Try and unload Campoli, Kaberle and Gomez for anything, but that will be tough.
We need to improve our center line. Unless Eller has a massive improvement and becomes a solid top center, we can't keep him DD and Plek. We need a center capable of getting 1pt/gp.
As for Leblanc, useless on the 4th. We need to use him as a winger. The only option, as I said, would be for Eller to become that top center, and we move Plek.
This. People need to stop relying on the Montreal Canadiens official roster positions. Leblanc is no longer a centre. He's a winger now and will remain that way. NHL scouts have all said he plays more like a winger.
Desharnais and Plekanec can't be the C 1-2 (order doesn't matter) going forward, or we'll always be an mid-conference team. Not to mention that on a Cup Winning team, Bourque and Cole are both one spot below, and Emelin as well.
And Leblanc on a 4th is ridiculous.
While agree with pretty much everything you said, hasn't Cole won a cup as a a 1st liner in Carolina? He's fine where he is.
I agree that we have a decent foundation to start from. I think we are in need of a 1st line however. Pacioretty-Desharnais-Cole is a capable first line but they will not win a cup if that's what we have going forward.
Plekanec needs to have a big winger with him (think Nash, Ryan, etc) or else he needs to be moved for a legit #1 centre. Ideally , you move Desharnais and put Plekanec with Patches and Cole.
Next, we have to make sure we get a first line forward from our high pick this year. We cannot afford to mess this up!
2 or 3 years from now:
XXXXX - 2012 First Rounder - XXXXX
Pacioretty - Plekanec - Cole
Bourque - Eller - Leblanc
White - XXXXX - Blunden/Other
If we are lucky Leblanc will keep progressing and take a 2nd line spot and Pacioretty can go to the 1st line. Then if lucky again, Gallagher or Kristo will be good third line wingers.
If we can get our forwards looking something like that, then we will start looking like a contender. Long term we have to hope that Eller continues to progress, then we can look at moving Plekanec, slide Eller to the 2nd line and Leblanc to the third line centre position with possibly Kristo on the third line wing.
Our up an coming defense is what I think a position of strength in the future. With Subban, Emelin, Gorges, Diaz, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Ellis, Bennett all capable of being in the NHL or knocking on the door in 3 years. I would think that at least one or two of these players will be moved to shore up the forwards.
I for one won't be surprised if Tinordi, Beaulieu or Ellis are eventually dealt in some sort of package for a top 6 forward.
I love Kostitsyn but he is going to have to be moved for a pick. Same with Moen and Gill. Try and unload Campoli, Kaberle and Gomez for anything, but that will be tough.
Agree with you completely. Contending teams have at least three solid scoring lines; we have one-and-a-half. Definitely need that power forward to complete a line that includes Plekanec.
I have no idea why some people keep repeating that we need to trade Plekanec. The mantra is that "His value is high". Well, maybe that's because he has a very high value for US. He is exactly the type of player we'd need to get if we didn't already have him - he creates offense, is a great two-way forward and is fantastic on the PK. Geez, how many singlehandedly shorthanded breakaways has this guy created in the last few games alone? He's in great shape and not even 30, the type of player you build around.
The other thing I don't get is some people's singleminded fetish for bigger and bigger players, like it's the single most important factor. Dump Pleks or DD 'cause they're not big enough? Big enough for what? Effective play? Production? Consistency? They do all that and more. Yes, I know, our team was too small. Yes, I know it would be ideal to have a true first-line center with size. But big first-line centers are hard to find, and the Desharnais line has proved a small center can succeed with good size on the wings. Why dump what works really well for us? Just add to it. With Pacioretty, Cole, Bourque and a hopeful addition of at least another power forward, we're close to being where we need to be size-wise. Then it all becomes about the balance of talent in each line, not the necessity of having every forward over 6'. There's no reason to dump our most effective players under 6' just because they're not 'big'.
1- Trade gill for a 2nd
2- Trade campoli for a 5th
3- To Montréal : Getzlaf and a 5th
To Anaheim : Plekanec, Kostytsin, Weber, Palushaj, Calgary’s 2nd and our 2nd
4- To Montréal : P.A. Parenteau, Martin and a 6th
To the New York Islanders : Desharnais, Darche, a 2nd (Gill) and a 5th (Campoli)
5- Trade Nokelainen for a 7th or 6th
6- Trade our 6th and 5th (Anaheim) for a 3rd
CAPGEEK.COM CAP CALCULATOR
FORWARDS
Max Pacioretty ($1.625m) / Ryan Getzlaf ($5.325m) / Erik Cole ($4.500m)
Rene Bourque ($3.333m) / Scott Gomez ($7.357m) / Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau ($1.250m)
Travis Moen ($1.500m) / Lars Eller ($1.270m) / Louis Leblanc ($1.170m)
Matt Martin ($0.852m) / Ryan White ($0.625m) / Mike Blunden ($0.615m)
DEFENSEMEN
Andrei Markov ($5.750m) / Alexei Emelin ($0.984m)
Josh Gorges ($3.900m) / P.K. Subban ($0.875m)
Tomas Kaberle ($4.250m) / Raphael Diaz ($0.900m)
/ Frederic St. Denis ($0.605m)
GOALTENDERS
Carey Price ($2.750m) / Peter Budaj ($1.150m)
CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)
(these totals are compiled without the bonus cushion)
SALARY CAP: $64,300,000; CAP PAYROLL: $50,588,009; BONUSES: $300,000
CAP SPACE (21-man roster): $13,711,991
Agreed with the masses here, Leblanc has no business playing centre on the fourth line. Him and Eller have looked great together and that's the third line of the future here in Montreal. Now, whether the opposite winger for that line is Kostitsyn, Bourque or a UFA/call-up, that can be decided as the season rolls on and what decisions are made in the off-season.
Habs have a very solid third line for the long future. Eller and Leblanc will only continue to get better as they play.
__________________
"CS is one of my favorite people on this entire site." - ColePens
I agree that we have a decent foundation to start from. I think we are in need of a 1st line however. Pacioretty-Desharnais-Cole is a capable first line but they will not win a cup if that's what we have going forward.
Plekanec needs to have a big winger with him (think Nash, Ryan, etc) or else he needs to be moved for a legit #1 centre. Ideally , you move Desharnais and put Plekanec with Patches and Cole.
Next, we have to make sure we get a first line forward from our high pick this year. We cannot afford to mess this up!
2 or 3 years from now:
XXXXX - 2012 First Rounder - XXXXX
Pacioretty - Plekanec - Cole
Bourque - Eller - Leblanc
White - XXXXX - Blunden/Other
If we are lucky Leblanc will keep progressing and take a 2nd line spot and Pacioretty can go to the 1st line. Then if lucky again, Gallagher or Kristo will be good third line wingers.
If we can get our forwards looking something like that, then we will start looking like a contender. Long term we have to hope that Eller continues to progress, then we can look at moving Plekanec, slide Eller to the 2nd line and Leblanc to the third line centre position with possibly Kristo on the third line wing.
Our up an coming defense is what I think a position of strength in the future. With Subban, Emelin, Gorges, Diaz, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Ellis, Bennett all capable of being in the NHL or knocking on the door in 3 years. I would think that at least one or two of these players will be moved to shore up the forwards.
I for one won't be surprised if Tinordi, Beaulieu or Ellis are eventually dealt in some sort of package for a top 6 forward.
I love Kostitsyn but he is going to have to be moved for a pick. Same with Moen and Gill. Try and unload Campoli, Kaberle and Gomez for anything, but that will be tough.
I agree with this. Though I see Pacioretty and Cole splitting up to spread the size around.
It's definitely a strong core to build around. There are some things we can really only solve internally:
1) A franchise center with size who can put up 80+ points regularly (hopefully solved this draft).
2) An intimidating top 4 defenseman who'll stand up for the defense core and is able to clear the front of the net (Tinordi).
Then there are others we can get through trades and UFAs:
1) Two top-two wingers to fill out top 6.
2) Warriors on the 4th line.
My boss always says, to run a business you need horses but you also need donkeys. We need big intimidating players that help our top players be our top players.
Our D will be strong: Markov, Emelin, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Gorges, Subban and Diaz. We'll also have Ellis and Bennett.
If Markov and Subban stabilize, and Beaulieu progresses as he should, I'd deal Diaz next season for some more sand paper on the back end. A #6 like Engeland will do.
Our biggest problem is the #1 line. We don't have one that can challenge for the Coupe Stanley.
