You're not quite there yet, Jose...

If you think it's weird that Colorado Avalanche goaltender Jose Theodore is letting in less than 3 goals per game in Colorado and stopping at least 9 shots out of 10, you're seriously not alone.

The former Hart and Vezina winner was dealt to the Avalanche 2 seasons ago by his hometown Montreal Canadiens, the same year he was made the richest goalie to ever tend goal by Canadiens GM Bob Gainey with a brand new 3-year/$17 million deal.

Theodore floundered in Montreal terribly, and posted mediocre numbers as the team continued its embarrassing downward slide in the standings.
With newly acquired goaltender Cristobal Huet pushing Theodore for playing time, the French media being all over him for his little Paris Hilton scandal, coach Claude Julien getting blamed for Theodore's paltry performance, costing him his job, and a newborn child on the way as well as problems related to his uncle's loansharking business, Jose Theodore was a troubled young man.
The icing on the cake came when Theodore broke his ankle by falling down the stairs in front of his home one morning in that January, putting him on the injured reserve for the rest of the season as well as sparking talk that his injury was purposely "done" for his terrible season to end, highlighted by a recent 8-2 home loss to the Carolina Hurricanes that proved to be his last in the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge uniform.

At that point, it was doubtful rumours persisting that Gainey would unload Theodore and his huge contract would happen, but big G surprised us all once again.
While Huet rode the Habs net and Gainey coached his team up the standings behind the bench, Jose Theodore was a lost memory, and was written off for good the eve of the 2006 trade deadline, as he was surprisingly sent to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for equally struggling goaltender David Aebischer in a move many so called "experts" called the second coming of Patrick Roy in the Rocky Mountain state.
Gainey had successfully gotten rid of $17 million.

While Theodore tended to his injury down in Denver, Cristobal Huet carried the Canadiens to the playoffs and put up a strong performance in a series the Canadiens should have won against the eventual Stanley Cup Champs Hurricanes and in a series that dramatically saw a team fall apart as its captain did after a highstick to the orbital bone in Game 3 by Justin Williams.
That was evidently the turning point of the matchup that saw Carolina climb back from a 2-0 deficit, to beat the Canadiens in 6.

A few weeks later, the Avalanche and Jose Theodore took the plane home after losing in the Western semi-final in spectacular fashion to the San Jose Sharks.

In the month that followed, Cristobal Huet striked a new deal with the Canadiens, inking a 2-year/$5.75 million deal.
Theodore likely caused, however, then Avs GM Pierre Lacroix to resign, after wrongfully acquiring Theodore in a trade that still glares to this day in the hearts and salary cap of the Colorado Avalanche and their fans as a lopsided one.

The next season, Huet posted respectable numbers en route to a first career all-star selection while Theodore was just as bad as he had been in Montreal in a backup role to Peter Budaj.
Theodore earned the nickname of Jose "Threeofour" and was known to let in an inordinate number of goals on low shot totals (ex: 4 goals on 26 shots, 3 goals on 24 shots).
With new GM Francois Giguere manning the deck for Colorado, fans were itching for management to buy out the Quebecois goalie for his immense $5.5 million salary to be tossed out the window and forgotten.
This obviously did not happen and it is much easier said than done, as for Theodore to pass up that kind of money (knowing he likely won't ever get anything remotely close to that again) would be ridiculous.

The 2007-2008 season is just a month old, and Theodore is doing a lot more than he did in previous seasons with Colorado, pushing Peter Budaj for playing time in the Avs' goaltending tandem.
I'm trying to say this is a nice comeback, feel good story, but sorry, it's not.
The 31-year old netminder is 4-2-1 with a low GAA of 2.30 and a .920 SPCT%, both very remarkable results.
He is looking like the old Jose the Habs wished they could've had for the $17 million they invested in him at the time (actually, no, Huet rocks...and for his salary, he's a steal) and his play is looking less and less shaky, and more and more productive and confident.

It's only 7 games, I know, but (and I'm trying REAL hard to say this with a straight face) he needs to prove he can be brilliant over the course of one whole season, as you could argue that his last "great" year came in 2003-2004, in the last year of the pre-lockout era.

Formerly dubbed "The Franchise" by the Hockey news for the Canadiens, Theodore isn't quite there yet, but it's "nice" to see he's finally earning a fraction of his paycheck, at least for Avs fans.

-BBeR

Digging deep into the Montreal Canadiens team...

Read at your own risk, it took me 2 hours to get all this frustration out...

2006-2007 record: 42-34-6, 4th in Northeast, 10th in Eastern Conference.
Missed the playoffs by one point.

A. Contract situations
(Players with number figures are under contract)

FORWARDS
F Saku Koivu, $4,750,000
F Alex Kovalev, $4,500,000
F Sergei Samsonov, $3,525,000
F Steve Begin, $1,225,000
F Guillaume Latendresse, $850,000
F Garth Murray, $625,000
F Maxim Lapierre, $563,000
F Andrei Kostitsyn, $612,000
F Mikhail Grabovski, $700,000
F Kyle Chipchura, $984,000

UFA
F Radek Bonk
F Mike Johnson
F Aaron Downey

RFA
F Michael Ryder
F Chris Higgins
F Alexander Perezhogin
F Tomas Plekanec
F Duncan Milroy

DEFENCE
D Francis Bouillon, $1,875,000
D Mathieu Dandenault, $1,750,000
D Mark Streit, $600,000

UFA
D Janne Niinimaa
D Sheldon Souray
D Andrei Markov

RFA
D Mike Komisarek
D Josh Gorges

GOALIES
G Cristobal Huet, $2,750,000
G Jaroslav Halak, $500,000

UFA
G David Aebischer

RFA
G Michael Leighton

B. The changes that may come

-It remains to be seen how Bob Gainey will cope with checking forwards Mike Johnson and Radek Bonk, both will be unrestricted on July 1st.
Mike Johnson made $1.9 million last season, he had a very solid season and was a great pickup by Bob Gainey and ridiculously cheap (4th round pick.)
Radek Bonk was a total bust on certain standards, the Canadiens acquired him and Cristobal Huet from the Kings hoping he would provide that much needed size and offence.
Bonk made a huge amount of money and was not at all worth the money he put in his wallet last season, after a dreadful first season with Montreal, Bonk seemed rejuvenated this season and played some of the best defensive hockey I've ever seen in my life, unless him and Johnson takes paycuts, Bob Gainey won't pay nearly $4.5 million again for them both.

It's known Gainey would like to retain them both, but, if Souray is signed and his salary is commanding, he may be forced to part with either Bonk or Johnson or even both.
Johnson would probably have a bigger role on another team and it's anyone's guess for Radek Bonk.

-Aaron Downey was a horrible enforcer for the Canadiens, he was totally useless and was a waste of cap space and jersey fabric.
The Canadiens acquired goaltender Phillipe Sauve from the Bruins' minor league club in Providence as part of a loan deal for Aaron Downey.
Sauve was acquired because of injuries to Yann Danis and the call up of Jaroslav Halak by the Canadiens, just a depth deal...
He will not be back next season and he'll be lucky to get an NHL job elsewhere.

-Michael Ryder had an up and down season, and thanks to Andrew Raycroft, he managed to score 30 goals yet again.
That won't be forgotten by his agent when it comes time to talk turkey with Bob Gainey.
Ryder is an RFA and a very good forward.
He is very inconsistent however, and it would be nice if he scored on a consistent basis, and not in short periods of time.
He made $2,2 million last season and he'll get around the same thing next season, he doesn't deserve a raise, but, if Ryder feels he does, Gainey will bite and sign him anyway.

-Christopher Higgins and Tomas Plekanec are the restricted free-agents that will likely get a huge pay raise for the upcoming season.
Higgings, arguably the team's best player for the first two months of the season before going down with an ankle injury, will probably net around $800,000 next season, that's a 127 thousand dollar raise from what he's making now.
Plekanec exploded in the second half and became the second line centre the Canadiens wanted him to be, maybe even more than many expected.
After a relatively mediocre rookie season, Plekanec was one of the many young forwards to blossom into young stars for Guy Carbonneau this season, he will likely make $650,000 -$700,000 next season, a hefty raise from his current league minimum $450,000 wage.
Alexander Perezhogin and Duncan Milroy won't have any considerable changes to their salary, they may get a little more, but not much, besides, both are slowly fading away and it is believed Perezhogin could return to play in Europe next season rather than get limited ice-time and put up 11 points in Montreal.
Milroy is the Hamilton Bulldogs' best scorer, and he finally got the call this season, but it was short-lived and he only spent a week with the Canadiens before being sent back down to Hamilton.
He is a long shot to make the club next season.

-Janne Niinimaa and David Aebischer weren't even mentioned by GM Bob Gainey at his press conference a few days ago, however, both had terrible seasons and don't figure to be in the Canadiens plans.
Aebischer, signed specifically to step up should Cristobal Huet get injured or play bad, did not show up like Montreal wanted and needed from him.
After a great start, it was all downward for Aebischer and eventually lost his spot to rookie breakout Jaroslav Halak.
Fans won't miss David Aebsicher, his iconsistent play won't find him a $1.9 million taker for next season, and probably not even a starting job like the Swiss-born goalie longs for.
Niinimaa made a good push for the last month of the season and Guy Carbonneau acknowledged that by playing him on the powerplay and in key situations.
Janne Niinimaa's career has endured a sharp decline ever since he had that devastating surgery that changed the complexion of his career.
Once considered a top defenseman with the Flyers, Oilers and Islanders, Niinimaa had two equally bad tenures with the Dallas Stars and most recently, the Montreal Canadiens.
The only way Niinimaa will be a Hab next season, is if he accepts to be the no.7 defenseman and get paid a fraction of his current salary ($2,500,000).
Ironically, he was the Canadiens' highest-paid defenceman in 2006-2007.

-Sheldon Souray and Andrei Markov are both key to the Canadiens, but it looks like Markov has been made a priority to be signed by GM Bob Gainey before he becomes an unrestricted free-agent.
Markov made $2 million last season and he will probably earn the double of that next year.
As for Souray, he may even get the triple of his current $2,4 million salary on the open market.

I don't think Josh Gorges is going to be Sheldon Souray.

He has said he would like to be back next season only if the price was "fair", and with him and Markov sharing the same agent, things can get sticky for Bob Gainey if he decides to keep them both.
If he does keep them both, there's no way one will make more than the other.
I think I explained this best to Sherry over at Scarlett Ice when she asked me if the Rivet trading was the first step to clear up money to sign Souray:

Trading away Rivet to clear up money was part of it, but, Rivet was also having a very ordinary season and it seemed as if he had worn out his decade tenure in Montreal.

The deal clears up about $2 million, but, with Souray breaking the record for powerplay goals, Michael Ryder (thanks to Raycroft) getting yet another 30 goal season and Sergei Samsonov's paycheck glaring unspectacularly in the pressbox, along with his measly 8 goals, it is actually more difficult for Bob Gainey to retain Souray.

Trading away Rivet was the first step, the second would be to dump either Samsonov or Kovalev, neither will be traded (Samsonov was put on waivers, and went unclaimed) because of the $8 million they represent on the salary cap level.

But Bob will buy out Samsonov and the cap hit will only be $1.2 million, freeing up a good amount, anything is a good amount when it comes to finding money to keep Souray and more importantly, Markov in the fold.

Markov is the better defencemen, I'll say it again: Souray was -28 and his only asset was the shot from the blue-line, it was a valuable one, but his liability in his own end is overshadowed by his 19 powerplay dingers.

Markov, however, is a + on a -162 team and can play 30:00 minutes of sound defensive hockey and spectacular offensive.

On Saturday, I thought Souray would test the FA market, but it appears now that he'll consider staying with Montreal and signing before July 1st only if "the offer is fair".
"Fair" in this case, means around $6 million and if he is sentimental, $5 million.

But, since the Habs were eliminated, according to the hockey media: it makes it all easier to sign Souray, since they say (even though I don't agree) there will be HUGE changes to the roster and many UFA departures (Johnson, Bonk, Niinimaa, buyout of Sammy, possible trade of Kovalev, Bouillon) have probably forced Bob Gainey to re-think his team's situation and change the way the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge look.

And for that, he'll let a few walk and free up space and Souray will be in the Canadiens' price range.

That was a few days ago, and I thank Sherry for asking me that question, as it made me think long and hard on how it would be possible to sign Souray.

But, again, if Bob Gainey is intent on acquiring a free-agent forward like Briere, he may have to let go of Souray if he thinks a scoring forward is more important than his shot.
Briere, I would say, would be more important to this team than Sheldon Souray, and it looks as if Buffalo will keep Chris Drury and let Briere walk, a bad choice in my opinion.
Gainey may be reduced to making another tough choice and getting another migraine:

Do you want to keep Sheldon Souray and his 27 goals, or, get an elite centre like Daniel Briere who can score consistently and make the players around him better.

You make the call, I won't for Gainey.

Cristobal Huet will be the Canadiens' starting goaltender next season to Mitch Melnick's dissapointment, Halak will get a fair share of starts but the Canadiens will play Huet and probably let him go as his contract expires at the end of the season.

Why let him go?

Carey Price.

Or, sign Huet to a 1-year deal and make Price the starter for the 2009 Centennial season?

It's difficult to see Jaroslav Halak be the clear cut no. 1 man for the Canadiens ever, Carey Price is a couple seasons away and Huet is under contract for next season.

It'll be interesting to see how the goalie situation turns out, but, Gainey already hinted he's not worried about the goalies and that he still has confidence in his "Crystal Ball."

-Guy Carbonneau, I'm sorry to say, is not as great as everyone makes him to be.
He expects production from his players, while he doesn't work with them to improve their game, to "cultivate them" as Pierre McGuire would say.

Take Kovalev for example, I couldn't believe that he was benched for the final minute of play in
the most important game of the season!

Like, WHAT THE HELL?

Sure, he didn't play great, but I've really become tired of seeing Kovalev on the bench, he's better than that and I wish Carbo would see it differently.
But no, he has his stubborn view on Kovalev and Samsonov, and I'm starting to wonder if they're related to the fact that they're Russian.

Scratching Samsonov for the final stretch was a totally useless move.
The guy is having a horrible year, you don't enforce that or change anything by putting him the pressbox.

You play him, you play him and you hope he'll regain his confidence and get back into the game.
Enough already about this crap that you "focus" when you're scratched, you don't, you only sulk in despair and it makes even more distracted when you get back on the ice.

Samsonov will probably be bought out and we will bid him adieu.

He just didn't fit in here well Carbo, talk to the guy, see what his concerns are, don't got publicly out saying he's going to sit in the pressbox and never play for the Habs again, that's also another thing Carbonneau lacks: communication with his team and that's what probably cost him a chance to coach a playoff-bound team.

I'm starting to think Carbonneau was a bad choice by Bob Gainey and that he should get the whip soon, even if he is "from around here."
He was a good player, but now he's a coach...and that doesn't mean he'll be a good coach.
Man, just listening to Kirk Muller talks makes me feel like he's under Carbonneau's leash and that whatever he says, he's run it thru Carbonneau first.

I actually would like to see Kirk Muller be head coach of this team, I think he'd be better than Guy Carbonneau.

Here's to hoping Bob Gainey will somehow find this blog and read my blog post and make the right choice.

My sob-filled "it's over" post...

Only read this is you want to cry, Habs fans.

*hysterical sob*And as Mark Streit picked the puck up at his own blue line, realizing there were only 07 seconds remaining in play, I sobbed dearly.

I sobbed for the Canadiens, a team that had just blown a two-goal lead, a team that had given fans an ugly ending for the season, a team that lacked the passion the Leafs had tonight, and finally I sobbed because it was all over.

*continuous sobb*There would be no Cinderella runs for the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge this year, no more glory to uphold our pride, no more passion to support our addiction; it's just all gone. *passionate sob*

*sob*Saku Koivu did not lead this team, like I asked in my prayer. *sob*
Sure he had 3 assists and was not a minus, but the guy who we're paying more than Alex Kovalev did not even get a shot on goal, let alone battle in the corners. *sob*

I am really dissapointed in his showing tonight, his opponent, Mats Sundin, recorded 8 shots on goal, had the same number of assists, but nevertheless, he led his team; he was the Captain.

And now we get to...Alex Kovalev,*sob*after all the support I have shown for him even in times of media houndling him, people getting tired with his inconsistency and telling them all he could easily be the best player in the NHL, it's time for him to go. *sob*, *sob*

I don't have anything against Kovalev, despite a poor performance, I don't hold anything against him. I will however, criticize him.

Where were you tonight Alex?
This is the night you were supposed to show up?
This is the night you HAD to show up?
This is the night, you'd shut them all up and come out of hiding!

Except, you were benched for all but two shifts in the last period of play, and worst of all: Guy Carbonneau found it necessary to put you where you don't belong with the season on the line in the last minute of play: on the bench.
And with that said, I just cannot bare to go through the 2008 season with the guy on our team.
I think Gainey needs to trade him...please, do it, I don't want to suffer with all the Kovalev talk again, and besides, you could possibly get a nice package return back for him.
And once again, I don't hate the guy, I think it's just business and that he doesn't get along well with Guy Carbonneau and the media in question.

Sheldon Souray...*sobs again* is gone.
He will file for unrestricted free-agency and leave us...*sob*He's going to leave us!
There's no way we're going to sign him, unless Gainey sacrifics Kovalev and Samsonov for the price of Souray, we can't afford to sign him.

Oh Shelly...*sob*you've played for the last time in Bleu, Blanc et Rouge...
I'd like to thank you from the heart as I sit here sobbing at my computer desk for everything you have given us during this damned season...leadership, record-breaking scoring, maybe even legendary scoring. I salute you, and I will never forget what kind of a leader you were in the dressing room, and what an offensive fireballer, you were on the ice.*sob*
Aurevoir!*sob*

*Sigh* and now we get to Cristobal Huet. My favourite goaltender and by far the classiest guy of the team. I don't blame you, Cristobal, sure you let in 6 big ones, but, you couldn't even stop 4 of them. Remember how the puck hit off a skate, a stick, a body, a helmet, the zamboni, whatever. It always hit off something and went in. I do however, blame you for one thing: not stepping up when it was needed late in the game.

You kept us in the game after facing around 20 shots in the first period, but you did let in a few softies. I also understand you haven't played in about 2 months, but on this play, it's irrelevant.

Take the first goal for example: (I'm a goalie too) What...just what, were you doing on your knees, in your crease, not even facing the player who scored right, 1 second before the shot was even taken in the slot.
You did go down to block the post, but you did not show me the Huet I admire by pushing off to face the second shot in the slot like you ALWAYS do in the season.

*sob*

I'm sorry we couldn't help you more tonight. I still have confidence in you, and I can't wait to see you play next season.

''Some people might question Carbonneau for putting Huet in, but I think we made the right move,'' said centre Chris Higgins, who scored two goals and added an assist against Toronto.

"The summer will be long," said Huet to the French press.

And yes, you're right, the summer will be VERY long.

I've had enough of ranting and sobbing now, but another thing bothers me.

The 2008 campaign? It could be the worst season in the new NHL era for the Canadiens.

Saku Koivu is not leading the team to wins, like a typical fan like you or if you're a psychotic fanatic like me, would want.

David Aebischer? Bye-bye! There's zero chance you're coming back next year thanks to your crappy play, and the emergence of Jaroslav Halak, makes it all but clear. I don't want to start on you again, I've already said it many times in many posts.

Radek Bonk? Ah, Radek. I hope you get signed, you had a fine year on defence and I appreciate the little things you did that helped this club A LOT.
I realize that you probably won't be retained, if Bob Gainey wants to attempt to keep Andrei Markov and Sheldon Souray, then you're toast mon ami.

*sob*Barring any big discount from the $2.3 million you're making now, I don't see you coming back, nor do I see the most-expensive d-man on our team returning...no, it's not a Markov or a Souray, it's Janne Niinimaa.

I still think management should offer him a contract and remain as the 7th defenceman, rather than bring up a dud like Jean-Phillipe Cote from Hamilton.
His strong play over the month of March is enough of an indication to me, that he wants to remain here. But maybe Bob Gainey will see it differently, and he likely will.

*sob*Mike Johnson? Wow, just a great pickup by Gainey! He had a very good season, and if Mark Streit didn't have a good year, I think he would have been nominated for the Masterton, and possibly (this is WAYYY stretched out) the Selke.

He had a very sound year on defence, and was a good surprise on offence (30 points and over 15o shots is good production at this point in his career).

I don't know if the Canadiens will retain him, he's making $1,9 million and I doubt he'd make that much next season.
I hope he and Bonk will come back, I really do...

I'm worried about this team for the upcoming season, because there is a major need of talent here. I would absolutely love to get Daniel Briere, but, it seems like nobody wants to come here and that Bob Gainey is reluctant to make big trades.
Both those items will cost us dearly next year.*sob*

Here's to hoping Gainey will make the right decisions and turn our team around.

And in the meantime, Go Sabres, but in my heart, I will always bleed Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.

Canadiens fans everywhere...pray.

May Habs fans everywhere please rise and pray for the Canadiens.

Pray for Cristobal Huet to be healthy tonight, to be back into the game, to have regained his first half magic and last but not least to make those key crucial saves. Pray for him to steal us the win and let us sneak into the playoffs and finally, pray for Cristobal...

Pray for Alex Kovalev to come out of hiding. For his heart to wake up and bring the player that has been hidden inside an imposter's body wearing the same jersey number during the entire season. Pray for him to do what he does best, and his best would be enough to carry us to victory tonight...

Pray for Sheldon Souray. Pray for him to remain a Canadien after the season is over. Realizing this could be his last game, God, please let him score once more and let victory roll over when the siren rings as we see him walk off the ice in Bleu, Blanc et Rouge for possibly the last time ever...

Pray for Michael Ryder to do his thing tonight. Pray for the real Ryder, not the -26 Ryder that doesn't backcheck and gets stupid hooking penalties, but the one who shoots the puck with passion and is driven to get the goal judge to ring up the red light on the opposition's net...

Pray for Chris Higgins to wake up. The Chris Higgins we have seen this year is a mere reflection of last year's breakout. Pray for him to drive to the net, to make the play he made before getting injured, and to become a feared player once again. Pray to God to also let him wake up from a condemned sleep, which has showed us minimal offence...

Pray for Tomas Plekanec. Pray for the guy that was considered too weak to play with Kovalev and Samsonov to carry the team should the Kaptain and Kommander fail to do so...

Pray for the Kaptain. Pray for Saku Koivu to lead us in these times of uncertaincy and keep the pride when we need it most. Pray for him to lead us into Lord Stanley's ring...

And finally...Pray for Guy Carbonneau. Pray for the rookie coach to make the right decision for us when times are dark, pray for him to do what is best for us to win and pray that he continues to blast referees.

Last but not least...Pray for Josh Gorges (who's a healthy scratch). Pray for him not to make that bonehead play and cost us a goal. That's all I'm asking. (Even though he's a healthy scratch! :D)

Ah what the heck, it's the Leafs, I think I'm overreacting, after all, it is the Leafs we're playing...

Photography: Habs prepare for big game

Here are a few photos I "borrowed" from Habs Inside/Out and Yahoo! Sports.

The last time Cristobal Huet gets pulled? Please, yes.

Canadiens stretch out on the Air Canada Centre ice, this morning.

Cristobal Huet works out under the eagle-eyed Guy Carbonneau.

The Canadiens finish up their practice, note that David Aebsicher is miraculously in net (bottom right) and Cristobal Huet is on the other end of the ice.

Despair, dissapointment, effortless, call it what you want, it was disgusting.

This is today's NHL Frozen Moment, no need to caption it....

Islanders' Matinee Can Impact Big Game

Tonight’s monumental game against the Toronto Maple Leafs could be worth all the marbles should the New York Islanders fail to pick up the two points they would need to help themselves into the playoffs.

The great thing about the Islanders’ game today is that it’s at 1pm. Thus, both the Leafs and Habs will know exactly what’s on the line tonight when they square off for the first puck drop.

Should the Isles drop their match to the Philadelphia Flyers tonight (or even lose in overtime or shootout), the winner between Montreal and Toronto will make a post-season dance with the Buffalo Sabres.

For the Leafs, however, a win in regulation would be required because an OT or SO win would bring them into a tie with the Canadiens who would remain ahead thanks to more wins. Also, should the Islanders lose or pick up only a point tonight, Montreal would need only a single point to clinch their playoff spot.

It wasn’t until this morning that I actually felt the full excitement of tonight’s match. Honestly, it’s all that I can think about, and probably all I’ll think about until the middle of next week. I even dreamt of hockey last night, though, I cannot recall the outcome of the dream.

In my opinion, this is Toronto’s game to lose, if only because they hold home-ice advantage. It will be vital for the Canadiens to score early in the game to take the Leafs’ fans out of the game a bit. Thing is, scoring first isn’t one of Montreal’s strong points. I can’t remember a whole lot of games this season where Montreal took the first lead and held it.

Another key to the game tonight is goaltending. You have to like the Habs’ chances with either of Jaroslav Halak or Cristobal Huet. The logical choice would be Huet, even if he is a bit rusty having missed the last 20+ games with a hamstring injury, because of experience. The Maple Leafs have Andrew Rayrcoft, a goaltender Montreal has proven they can beat both in Boston and Toronto.

Either way you slice it, the degree of importance regarding tonight’s game will be heavily decided by the outcome of the Islanders/Flyers match this afternoon.

Among other tidbits...Francis Bouillon next one out?

Can Francis Bouillon's time in Montreal be over?

Got this off of Spector, it's very interesting to say the least (corrected the spelling and grammar)

"Daniel" recently sent in the following on the Canadiens

This is probably not possible to check if it's true or not but former referee Ron Fournier said yesterday on popular radio show "Les amateurs de sports" that Gainey's plan is to have Huet as a starter next season and have Halak or young Carey Price as a backup. On defence, the 7 starters planned are Dandenault, Markov, Streit, Komisarek, Gorges with young Jean-Philippe Côté and Ryan O'Byrne leading to the speculation that Sheldon Souray and Janne Niinimaa won't be signed and Francis Bouillon will be traded somewhere this summer. He also said that Gainey wants to pursue a big UFA name such as Bill Guerin, Daniel Brière and Chris Phillips. Fournier said that there's some big surprise for the forwards and doesn't want to reveal it until the Habs season ends. He also said that he has a source from
the Habs management but don't want to say who it is.

This was broadcast on CKAC 730AM around 5PM Tuesday.

Well, Ron Fournier is definitely a good journalist and radio host and I'm sure this isn't far off.

Sheldon Souray will probably command around $6-$6.5 million per season, and I doubt the Canadiens can give him that(I had a post earlier in February on how the Habs could re-sign Souray, but the price has risen now.)
And besides, Souray's only asset is his booming slap shot, besides that, he's not a very good defenceman (he's hovering around -20 these days), and his 5-on-5 play is just plain ordinary.

I know he'll get that kind of money elsewhere, but seriously, it's not the end of the world if the Canadiens let Sheldon Souray walk and invest that money in bringing in a prime-UFA scorer this offseason.
Ok, ok, the powerplay will likely suffer without him, but, look at the bright side, a Daniel Briere, Bill Guerin or Chris Drury would be an even better addition.

Francis Bouillon is having a mediocre season by his standards.
After having an oustanding 2005-2006 campaign, Bouillon's play has declined sharply this season.
The problems start in his own end, despite being able to put up that bone-crushing check often, where he coughs up the puck way too much and shoots the puck up the middle instead of around the boards.
He looks like Sheldon Souray on defence and is nothing close to him on offence.
His offensive input has been miminal this season (3 G, 11 A in 61 games), but an injury he suffered late last season, could be the reason for his inconsistency.
He had 22 points last year, not much off from this year, but it looks like he felt more into it last year. He had 3 powerplay goals and 20 more shots on goal than so far this season.
I wouldn't be sad to see him go, he was a scratch once or twice this season and he has only himself to blame for that.
He's making close to $2 million this season, and if this keeps up, I'd rather have a guy like Ryan O'Byrne or Josh Gorges out there.

Janne Niinimaa...I've already said it, he's having a horrible year all-around, but his play has picked up recently.
He's making a push to get a contract offer from Bob Gainey this summer, to remain as the possible 7th defenceman, but no way for the price he's getting now ($2.5 million).
With that said, I'd rather have him that (blech) Jean-Phillipe Cote up here.

And again, everyone wants these Brieres, Drurys, Guerins, Shanahans to come and put on the Montreal Canadiens jersey, but, every year we get dissapointed.

And if the defence looks like that next season, we're in for a long one.

With respect to O'Byrne, Dandenault and Gorges, that's a pretty crappy defensive back.

Maybe that "surprise" is that a guy like Alex Kovalev, Michael Ryder or even (shudder) Saku Koivu are on the move?

God, I hope not.

7 teams fighting for 3 spots...

The Hurricanes and Islanders have fallen (make that) 4 points out of the final spot...7 teams are fighting for a playoff spot.

With the Canadiens, Islanders, Maple Leafs, Rangers and Lightning in action tonight, the playoff barely got clearer and it looks like we're gonna see it all go down to the wire folks!
The Canes are failing and their schedule isn't very easy till the end of the season...the Islanders won't go anywhere without Rick DiPietro...

• The Canadiens held on to beat the East-leading Buffalo Sabres, 4-3.

Michael Ryder, Radek Bonk, Maxim Lapierre and Saku Koivu all scored for the Canadiens and Jaroslav Halak, winning his 6th of his last 7 starts, made 22 saves.
The Sabres got to the Habs first, Daniel Briere became the first player since Pat LaFontaine to surpass the 90-point mark for the Sabres, scoring 9:20 into the first frame.

Michael Ryder responded with a trickle through-the-legs goal on backup goalie Ty Conklin, who got the start over the tired Ryan Miller and did not impress me at all as he allowed 4 goals on 19 shots.

Dainius Zubrus, who indicated he might be interested in coming back to Montreal as a free-agent this summer provided the Sabres with their 3rd goal and that was where the line was drawn for Lindy Ruff's club.

The game was nearly penalty free, with both teams getting only 2 powerplay opportunities and both going 0-fer with the extra man tonight...4 of the Canadiens 5 goals were assisted by defenceman (the lone attacker to get a helper tonight was Alex Kovalev, who was blanked for the second straight game after scoring two 2-goal games in a row against the Rangers and Capitals) namely Janne Niinimaa, only his 3rd point of the season, Andrei Markov, Francis Bouillon, who shot the puck that was tipped in by Michael Ryder in the first period, and Mark Streit (well, he is a d-man playing forward...)

The Canadiens have won 5 of their last 6 games and things are looking mighty good after tonight's win over the Sabres, the chemistry is very good, the team is focused, they know what's at stake...Jaroslav Halak made a few very good saves, but...Cristobal Huet is coming back in a few days and is the dream over for the young Slovakian netminder?

He's played great and all, but his last 3 starts (he's allowed 11 goals) are a worrisome indication...and you know what else? Everyone's making a HUGE deal out of Halak winning 5 in a row and not how the Canadiens have won 5 in a row.
You know? Hockey c'est un team sport.

He had a 1.33 GAA last week and was named the NHL's third star, he deserved it, he played awesome...and I shudder to think how it'd ruin his confidence if he was sent down.

Or maybe I'm exaggerating at the 11 goal stat and just sore that Cristobal Huet still isn't cleared to play...I really don't know how Gainey will go along with this.
Aebischer you ask? Screw 'im...

• Wow! The Leafs beat the Penguins

It's desperation time for Paul Maurice's squad now, the Leafs know that margin for error in their upcoming stretch is little to none.
After a sad 3-2 overtime loss to the Atlanta Thrashers, Paul Maurice promised his team would be ready for tonight's game.

They sure were: my NHL.com scoreboard read 4-1 Leafs at some point in the second period, and I was like: "Wow!".
Another "wow" goes to Tomas Kaberle, who scored his team's 3rd goal in the second period and flashed "clutch" by potting the game-winner in extra innings just as Bob Cole exploded.

A "wow" to the Penguins also, who rallied from a 3 goal deficit to tie the game and send it to overtime. Sidney Crosby gets a goal to further add to his scoring lead over the Sharks' Joe Thornton...just as all was said and done and Harry Neale put away his broadcasting equipment, Ryan Whitney ties the game with 4 seconds to go!

I think that deserves a "wow" too.

Andrew Raycroft made 32 saves and Leafs TV made a horrible choice for the 3 stars, putting in Pavel Kubina as the 3rd (he had only one assist on the Kaberle goal in overtime), simply ignoring Kyle Wellwood's 3 helpers.

Jocelyn Thibault was pulled after allowing 4 goals on 20 shots and that likely spells the end of the veteran goalie's attempt to win over Michel Therrien's heart and be the Pens' number one guy come playoff time. Marc-Andre Fleury relieved the latter about half-way through the game and made 16 saves.

• 
  
  THANK YOU OTTAWA!

And I'm saying those words after the Scotia bankers beat the Habs last night...and they repaid me nicely, but not entirely, by knocking the Islanders even further on their rear end.
Victor Kozlov and the revived Marc-Andre Bergeron scored the only 2 goals for the Isle, who lost for the second time in as many nights and in that span being outscored 11-6.
Mike Dunham simply isn't getting it done for the Islanders, so Ted Nolan goes to minor-league goalie Wade Dubielewicz and the result was astonishing.

I don't think the likes of Tom Poti, Brendan Witt, Chris Campoli, Bruno Gervais, Sean Hill and Marc-Andre Bergeron were there tonight.

They allowed 46 shots on goal and Dubielewicz did the best he could, pushing away 42 of those shots and keeping his team in the game as long as he could...you don't win games by allowing the double of your shots on goal and scoring only twice.

Mike Comrie scored twice, Christoph Schubert, the defenceman/forward put in his 8th and Dany Heatley is 2 goals away from yet another 50-goal season after scoring late in the 3rd to put the game entirely out of reach.

Dean McCammond scored his 14th and Martin Gerber got the start in goal.

• The Flyers can't upset this time..

The Flyers closed some mouths a few days ago by beating Peter Laviolette's awe-strucken Hurricanes team 5-1.
Tonight was a different story, well, it was the same story entering the game: A nothing to lose team trying to ruin a team's chances of making a run at Lord Stanley's Cup.
Final score: 6-4, not bad, the Rangers didn't exactly coast through this one.

Jaromir Jagr, the shadow of last season's version of himself, scored twice for Big Apple, Martin Straka, Tomas Pock, Ryan Callahan and Peter Prucha scored the others.
Jagr also added an assit, as well as Martin Straka (he had 2).

Michael Nylander added 2 assists and Sean Avery stayed out of the penalty box.
For the Flyers now...the 23rd overall pick by the 'Yotes back in '02, Ben Eager, scored his 5th and 6th goals of the season and Braydon Coburn, the young defenceman acquired from Atlanta for Alexei Zhitnik, scored only his 3rd and Ryan Potulny potted his 6th of the season. Simon Gagne was also on the scoresheet with 2 assists...
Martin Biron was pulled from the Flyers' goal after giving in to 5 Rangers' goal on 22 shots, Antero Niittymaki made 11 saves out of a possible 12.

The Ligtning still alive...

After beating out on the Canes 4-2 last night, the Lightning had an easy opponent in the Washington Capitals and the score proved it once again: 5-2 Lightning.

The league-leader in goals, Vincent Lecavalier, scored his 51st of the season while quebecois Martin St. Louis added his 43rd.

Lecavalier also added his 54th and 55th assists as he continues his career season...
Jason Ward, Dan Boyle and Ryan Craig scored the other 3 Tampa goals...Cory Sarich got his 14th and 15th assists.

The Lightning still hold a 2-point lead over the 8th place Canadiens and a one point lead over the Rangers...

Yawn...good night!

Oh, and on a side note, the Panthers are still winning and they have not lost hope yet...but, with barely 5 games to go for the season and a 4 point deficit, barring any *ouches wood* Habs losing streak, the Cats are probably out.

Kronwall's injury is more serious than expected, he'll miss 6-8 weeks of action and that possibly means the entire playoffs. HUGE blow for this Wings team, Kronwall is a fine puck-moving defenceman but I think Andreas Lilja can compensate for this loss.
This is the third major injury of Kronwall's 3 season career (knee surgery, broken leg...)
And he didn't strain his hip, he BROKE his sacrum, which is a "large triangular bone at the base of the back" (Hat tip to Wikipedia).
Yow! That's gotta hurt.

And here's something for you to sleep...or wake up on:

Crucial Week for Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens play three games against two teams below them in the standings. This kind of situation portrays the illusion that winning is going to be easy, but as most realize, the opposite proves true more times as not.

The Habs will play a home-and-home with the Boston Bruins starting Tuesday night at the Bell Centre and then Thursday night in Boston. The Canadiens then close out the week with a home game versus the Washington Capitals.

The Bruins hold a 3-2-0 edge over the Habs in five games this season, while Montreal has out-gunned the Caps on route to a 2-1-0 record. However, the Canadiens will need to do better than the combined 4-4-0 record against the two teams this week. In order to guarantee that they remain competitive for a playoff spot, the Habs will surely need to take at least five of six points this week.

While Washington is solely looking to pull off some upsets in attempt to hamper any opponents chances of a playoff spot, the Boston Bruins are still mathematically able to reach the post season and will surely see this week's two games against Montreal as a chance to bring themselves even.

One thing on the Bruins' side is that they have played fewer games than most of the teams they are trying to catch. If Boston were to win the two games they have in hand of the eighth place Carolina Hurricanes, they would only be three points back from the 'Canes with nine games remaining.

The Washington Capitals turned some heads Sunday afternoon when they smoked the playoff bound Tampa Bay Lightning 7-1. The Caps got a great showing from 23-year-old Alexander Semin and 22-year-old Tomas Fleischmann. Semin scored a natural hat-trick for his 35th, 36th, and 37th goals while Fleischmann picked up two goals and two assists. Meanwhile, goaltender Olaf Kolzig started his third straight after missing 13 games with a knee injury. The win was the 36-year-old's 21st of the season.

Boston, on the other hand, faced a similar fate to that of the Lightning when they dropped a 7-0 match to the Rangers in New York. It was a great watch for Rangers' fans, but Bruin's Coach Dave Lewis was absolutely applaud by what he witnessed. The fact that Boston is coming off such a lop-sided loss makes them a dangerous team to play right now since they'll surely be looking to redeem themselves against the Habs.

Montreal will have a familiar face back in the line-up this week. Center Radek Bonk makes his return after missing three games with the flu, the same bug that has been plaguing the Habs since Christmas. It is doubtful that Bonk will be 100 percent, but simply having his big-body presence back on the ice will surely be welcomed.

Rookie netminder is scheduled to make his ninth NHL start, and if Coach Guy Carbonneau's words are any indication, Halak will be the go-to goalie unless he fumbles the opportunity. David Aebischer will unhappily ride the pine for the time being as the Swiss goaltender hasn't played consistent hockey for most of the season.

If you're wondering when Cristobal Huet may make his return to the Habs' net, simply read Bleu, Blanc et Rouge's post below. Huet has been practicing with the team for about a week now and rumor has it that the France native could be back as early as next week.

They key for Montreal is to take it one game at a time. They should keep it in their minds that there are few games left to make up ground on the final playoff spots, but they have to respect each game as equally important as the next. The Habs can't afford to take a minute off or it could very well cost them important points.

Thus, The Canadiens need to approach each game, each period, and each minute as sudden death overtime. If they can do that, there will be no stopping them.

Enjoy the playoffs folks; they've been on for Montreal for quite some time now.

Habs to get Huet back soon?

Goalie Cristobal Huet, still recovering from hamstring surgery, practised for about 40 minutes with goaltending coach Roland Melanson and strength and conditioning co-ordinator Scott Livingston, and took shots from both Tomas Plekanec and Steve Bégin. He then was on the ice for about 15 minutes with the entire team, which very pleasantly surprised head coach Guy Carbonneau.

Great news for Habs fans!

I expect him to be back next week, when the Habs will need him most...

Matthew has more about the Canadiens above...

Habs notes: Kovalev will hear "Vertigo" again tonight...

[...] that is...if the Canadiens do score tonight as they host the Toronto Maple Leafs in another battle for the ages...

Alex Kovalev will indeed play tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs as the Canadiens host T.O at the Bell Centre according to RDS.

Kovalev has been suffering from vertigo which has caused him to miss one week of action, but there's no telling how much longer it will plague him.

Kovalev did not fly to Pittsburgh on Thursday night and instead remained in Montreal, where he practiced hard and alone on the Bell Centre ice.

The Kommander has been in a funk all season and he will hopefully regain consistency and beging helping the Canadiens as they slowly fall out of playoff contention.

Rookie Jaroslav Halak, in spite of my willingness to give Michael Leighton a chance, will get the nod in goal as he hopes to put an end to the Canadiens' recent embarrassing goaltending situation.

Guy Carbonneau's response to a reporter of this decision was: "Do I really have a choice?"
Good answer Guy, it's not as if you have a choice, you're stuck with a bunch of no-shows for goalies, particularly David Aebsicher, blech.

• Because of the three-headed monster of David Aebischer, Jaroslav Halak and Michael Leighton, forced me to look this up...
  

As always, this is...

My thoughts on the mockery that hockey has turned into in Montreal.

This picture demonstrates the Canadiens' season overall.

Tonight, as the Canadiens will face-off against the Atlanta Thrashers, I hope they'll know how to spell HUGE, because that's how huge tonight's game is.

With the Leafs putting the Caps away 3-0 a few days ago, the Canadiens find themselves in the 10th spot, 2 points behind the Leafs for the 8th and final playoff spot and 1 point behind 9th place Carolina.

With the way the Habs have been playing recently, it makes me wonder if Guy Carbonneau has thrown them all in the dressing room, pulled out his board, took the cap off the Sharpie pen and scrawled down the misery the Canadiens have dug themselves into.

Yesterday, while at the Eaton Centre, in Montreal, I was proudly wearing my Canadiens jersey and had my jacket open on purpose, just to let everyone see the team that was the second best in the East 2 months ago and that have stumbled so badly.

How badly the common ignoramus asks? Let's just say the Canadiens have now dropped to a double-digit position in the East and the worst part about it is that the majority of their next 14 games are against Northeast division teams, namely the Bruins and Leafs, who are both making a push to put the Canadiens in the cellar and pull ahead in the standings.

I sometimes wonder how I can put up with this? Year in and year out, it's the same story, start off absolutely great, greater than people predicted and then slowly fade away into the New Year, like"the experts" always saw coming.

"Too good to be true" was the most common one.

What? You didn't see it coming? Well, I have to admit, neither did I. I seriously thought this team was for real, that we were Cup Contenders, that this is our year, and look how stupid that sounds now.
I was lost in that unique Canadiens euphoria, one which seldom affects other teams' fans as much as Habs fans, that brings me to 7th heaven and when we started losing, I came back to the place where the sad reality existed: Earth.

When I talk to people about the Canadiens, I usually get a snicker in the face before they register what I told them. Worst of all, I get the same damn excuse over and over...the Canadiens suck, you see, I told you this would happen.

I'm also sick and tired of these so called "fans"who give up on their team after it endures a slump, in this case, a lengthy one.

After a win, it's like: Oh yeah, the Habs are good...and after a loss, you probably guessed it: Oh, the Habs suck, they won't make the playoffs, blah, blah...

God, now I hope this town also realizes how important Cristobal Huet is to this team, as they now have no-bona fide number one and in danger of falling out of playoff contention, that could possibly kill them.

I still have faith, and I hope you Habs fans do too...

GO HABS!

Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.