At what point does Carbonneau recognize that Kovalev is playing like crap, and cut his ice time? He's averaging over 22 minutes for the past few games, and has done squat.
Start rewarding the guys that are playing hard.
Also, hate how Price gives up at least 1 softie a game.
you are right it wasn't a great goal but its becoming a lot to ask of your 21 year old goalie to basically pitch shutouts if you want to win.
Good effort. This loss doesn't taste as bad as the last one. Fluke goal by Wheeler. I was mostly concerned at how the Habs were going to respond after the embarrassment last game. Some thoughts...
- Offense is gone, could be all the line juggling. It's still early in the season so once Carbo finds the winning combination, we should be ok.
- Tim Thomas looks like a different goalie. Still flaps around like a fish out of water but not as much and makes up for it with improved positioning.
-Akost is heating up. It's almost looking like he has the potential to carry a line by himself. Great game from him and hope he keeps up. The whole defense played solid, except for O'boy.
-For anyone asking why Laraque is on this team, please watch the game. Lucic was petrified, simple as that. Anybody smaller or who couldn't fight as well he would have dropped. He thinks he's a big boy but still cowers from the boss of the school yard.
- I understand Carbo's mentality of giving Kovalev a chance to redeem himself but when a game's on the line like this, you take control of the team and you make a decision that will best help you get the results. Kovalev wasn't the answer.
Hopefully this game proves the Habs can pushed back off of bad performance. Even with the loss, they worked hard, earned a point and can ride this momentum into the next game.
edit: Anybody see how polished the Bruins are in the odd man rush? They use the third man VERY effectively.
Did you watch last Thursday's game instead of the one tonight?
i watched the game
****ing pissed
they cant compete, team is so loss they miss the most basic things
no pp, passing gets cut off half the time, cant sustain offense in the enemy zone, no will to shoot the puck
no offense but in this regard, what game were you watching? Brisebois and Bouillon were absolutely horrid. OB was actually better than both of them despite the gaff on the first goal. Breezy and Bouillon both soft defensively, thought the habs goal line was the blue line cause thats were they decided to engage on the oncoming opposition. And then there was Bouillon floating around standing in the offensive zone while the rush is heading to his zone.
If they can put in this kind of effort every night, they'll finish 1st in the East and be a top contender. The only reason that game went to OT is Boston got all the breaks. Every time Thomas was down(it happened 4-5 times) our guys missed the net or misfired. If the Habs were not in a slump they would have cruised to a 5-2 win.
Instead of the trap like in Ottawa they got back to a more forechecking game and outshot, outchanced and outhit Boston.
My only beef was all the deekes on the shootout then shooting low, it's pretty obvious that tHomas flops around, make him move then roof it. Kovy was the only one who had the right plan but did bit get it quite high enough.
Tanguay and Koivu need to start shooting more, especially on PP, tonight they made too many extra passes and ended up with no shot.
Hum... Kovalev is by no means as good as last year, but I think he's still one of the best player in our team. But it's best, for now, to consider him as a second trio player. And, for now, we better do anything in order to lit up Kovalev, because we won't be a cup contender without him (or without a good trade/player acquisition, which I doubt). I still belive he'll put up 70-75 pts.
As for the game tonight, we're still far from the type of game we can play with all our talents, but at least, the team's beginning to understand they can't win effortless and now they seem to have put some piece of the puzzle together. The best is still to come.
-We have 25pts, 4 points more than 9th place and a game in hand
-We're trailing Boston by 6 pts with 2 games in hand
-Boston is playing way above their heads and will come back to earth soon enough
-Our next game is at home vs the Isles
AND WE HAVE THE EXACT SAME RECORD AFTER 19 GAMES THAN LAST YEAR
no offense but in this regard, what game were you watching? Brisebois and Bouillon were absolutely horrid. OB was actually better than both of them despite the gaff on the first goal. Breezy and Bouillon both soft defensively, thought the habs goal line was the blue line cause thats were they decided to engage on the oncoming opposition. And then there was Bouillon floating around standing in the offensive zone while the rush is heading to his zone.
I wouldn't say they were horrid. O'B played wwell outside of biting on Kessel's deke...one of his bests games. Not sure why people keep trying to throw him under the bus and glorify Gorges(who always gets a free pass).
Is it only me but Higgins has not done much this season beside is 3 goals game.
The only thing i hear when Higgins is on the ice is "Higgins miss the goal" , " Higgins shots wide" , "Higgins misses the shot on the pass" "Higgins..."
Get him out of here, I dont care if people like him, there is D'Agostini or Chiphura in Hamilton. Get a guy like Robidas and a 3rd round pick for Higgins
EXACTLY. Obviously Montreal needs another defenseman, not someone like Sundin or Shanny or both. Sorry for being a bit sarcastic. Just frustrated at the serious lack of scoring. On a better note, thought O'Bryne played a better game.
However........
Given the obvious pro-rated salaries at this point, might be possible to bring in both. Dump the press box players and one other, and you have more scoring (Sundin) and grit (Shanny).
Well having 2 4th liners in your top 9 does that to you. I mean.. Laraque with Saku and Tanguay and Kostopoulos with Andrei Kostitsyn and Lang?? If you gonna have a kosto in your top 9 cuz Lats is injured why wouldn't you put Andrei with Saku and Sergei with Lang or Higgins with lang and sergei with plekanec?
He's just 'Therrien' terrible at making lines.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NHLcrazy
The positive:
-We have 25pts, 4 points more than 9th place and a game in hand
-We're trailing Boston by 6 pts with 2 games in hand
-Boston is playing way above their heads and will come back to earth soon enough
-Our next game is at home vs the Isles
Let's think positive!
Really? I disagree. They play at almost their full potential, except for Bergeron, but he's slowly coming back to his old self.
Kovalev despite his break-ins in the O zone is totally useless. And put freaking AKost on the Point, at least there's gonna be somebody shooting the DAMN puck at the net.
The effort was there but our offense is pathetic right now.
In our last 6 games we had 1 freaking goal after 55 minutes.
That can't be more sad than that.
Kovalev...hmmmmmm what can I say? He has been our worst forward in the last 5 games. He's annoyingly bad.
Tanguay had to be in the SO. We all agree on that...except Carbonneau. Laughable.
And Habs have to stop the fancy play attempts. In the OT it was absolutely ridiculous. Not once. Not twice. But three times a player tried a back pass or a "back/butt play" instead of sending the puck toward the net. COME ON.
-We have 25pts, 4 points more than 9th place and a game in hand
-We're trailing Boston by 6 pts with 2 games in hand
-Boston is playing way above their heads and will come back to earth soon enough
-Our next game is at home vs the Isles
Let's think positive!
something that very few of us are willing to accept : Bruins are very well coached. I did not like Julien as a coach, but I though that last year he should have been coach of the year. This year, Bergeron is back, Kessel is breaking out, Lucic is better, and thomas is playing very well. Look at how they play in their own zone. Guy and his crew should take note and learn from someone who spent more time coaching than all 3 of them combined
The only way they slow down, it is because of the goalies not being excellent and just going back to being above average.
I know a lot of people don't actually understand hockey and just like to say "no effort, gutless, etc" after a loss but the team tried tonight. They just couldn't score. It's not a new problem, but it's probably better than a problem with work ethic. The goals will come if they keep at it. The third period was very promising.
Disappointing shootout though with such a lucky winner. Also would have liked to see Tanguay.
The Habs played a good game tonight, I think the effort was there but was that just because of the nype with all the ceremony. The Bruins got a lucky SO goal but the tying goal was a little lucky even though the pressure was there.
Could someone please enlighten me as to the roles of Chris Higgins and Thomas Plekanec?
How does Higgins deserve to wear an "A"? He brings [/B][B]nothing[B][B]to this team. He says all the right things (usually), but can't back anything up with his play. He doesn't hit, he cannot take a pass, and is absolutely useless on the PP because he stands still.
Plekanec appears afraid to go to the net, and is brutal in the faceoff circle.
Kovalev gets enough grief around here - but let us look at these two guys who have had AWFUL starts to this season. The problem is I don't see this as a "slump". I think this is all they can give.
We desperately need SHOOTERS on this team. I was screaming at the TV during the powerplays....SHOOT SHOOT!!!
Although better tonight, O'byrne has now cost us at least one goal in our last three losses. How patient can we afford to be with him?
Frustrating loss - we need to find some finish out of these guys, or else make some roster moves. I still cannot beleive Chipchura has yet to be called up.........
Last edited by Blind Gardien: 11-22-2008 at 10:34 PM.
Reason: Turned down the volume
Is it only me but Higgins has not done much this season beside is 3 goals game.
The only thing i hear when Higgins is on the ice is "Higgins miss the goal" , " Higgins shots wide" , "Higgins misses the shot on the pass" "Higgins..."
Get him out of here, I dont care if people like him, there is D'Agostini or Chiphura in Hamilton. Get a guy like Robidas and a 3rd round pick for Higgins
Playing with Kovalev is bad for your point production right now. As long as he plays with an edge and has scoring chances like tonight, I don't mind him. Andrei should be with Plekanec and Higgins, and Kovalev should be on the third with Lang and Sergei. It would be the logical lines, but too logical for Carbo.
-For anyone asking why Laraque is on this team, please watch the game. Lucic was petrified, simple as that. Anybody smaller or who couldn't fight as well he would have dropped. He thinks he's a big boy but still cowers from the boss of the school yard.
I agree, and the one time he isn't out there with Lucic, he scores.
Kovy and Carbo both cost this team the 2 points. Kovy should be sat and if Carbo doesn't start actinglike an nhl coach he should be removed as late as after this season.
Well, bitter loss, but the Habs outplayed the Bruins. Thomas was just a little better (and perhaps luckier) than Price and that was the difference. And considering we outplayed them with many of our players in a funk, I think things might be starting to look up.
No, it's not time to panic as many seem to doing. Kovalev is really struggling out there, Higgins is literally invisible, O'byrne (though doing his best) is a liability back there (at least at this time). Even still, we outplayed one of the best teams in the league tonight. We can and will play better than this. And I just get the feeling the B's will soon hit a slump like the one we've been pushing through. It's a long season and, at least based on what I saw tonight, I think things will turn around in our favor.
Also, hate how Price gives up at least 1 softie a game.
that goal he gave up to Heatley was whiffed by him and flew over Prices head, and that 2nd goal tonight was like a complete changeup...i don't blame Price on either, the whole team around has to wake up, Price is anything but the problem, i know that's not what you're stating, but still..
Well, bitter loss, but the Habs outplayed the Bruins. Thomas was just a little better (and perhaps luckier) than Price and that was the difference.
He was not better in any way, he was lucky that some of our guys couldn't hit the broadside of a barn. If those open nets weren't missed it could have been 4 or 5-2.
