tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post2115544257604966748..comments2023-11-03T09:15:38.743-04:00Comments on The Daily Hab-it: Will the real Montreal Canadiens please stand up?Arpon Basuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11896844844557916169noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-18625487788218017712010-06-08T18:41:26.133-04:002010-06-08T18:41:26.133-04:00I agree with a lot of what you are saying. The Ha...I agree with a lot of what you are saying. The Habs "might" be able to live without Markov - especially if Suban plays as well as he did most of the playoffs, and they would be better off with a power forward than Plekanec. They need to add some size up front. BUT they have to move Price and keep Halak. I have no doubt Price could be a tremendoud goal tender. Just NOT in Montreal. The pressure of playing in Montreal has killed the careers of countless incredibly talented prospects. Price may be onther one. The best thing for HIM would be to go somewhere else and grow into the star he can be. I don't think he can do that in Montreal.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-6115275041979139952010-06-03T21:37:33.548-04:002010-06-03T21:37:33.548-04:00@Anon:
-thanks for the reminder...I keep forgetti...@Anon:<br /><br />-thanks for the reminder...I keep forgetting that some of you wouldn't know a bad from good from great team. some of you have never seen a Cup contender let alone a Cup winning club<br /><br />-I suppose I've been spoiled with what I have witnessed and should understand why the CH faithful stand and cheer at the end of a game where the club backs into the playoffs on a loser OTL point to the 2nd worst club in the league. <br /><br />-I should also understand why CH nation celebrates a second round win as if it was to be cherished as a huge accomplishment and a loss to a 15th seed as a foundation on which to build greatness<br /><br />-I continue to forget that one person's floor is another's ceiling. then again the current crop of 'fan' chants Gui Gui Gui as if he was the next coming of #10 and 2 years later reminds him not to let the door hit him in the ass on the way out<br /><br />-different expectations my friend<br /><br />@Olivier:<br /><br />-got to give you your due on the Latendresse vs Pouliot trade. you sussed that out on day one...unless JM or someone gets to him it'll be a case of $1,000,000 skills and $100 brain. then again wasn't it JM's charm that ran Gui out of dodge<br /><br />-I always thought it was BS the saying that 'they' come to Montreal and do worse; 'they' leave Montreal and do better...not so certain any more and no idea whypfhabshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05116906615296671918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-20477042292120359942010-06-03T18:43:22.371-04:002010-06-03T18:43:22.371-04:00PF stop living in the pastPF stop living in the pastAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-69881393992805670682010-06-03T18:37:32.841-04:002010-06-03T18:37:32.841-04:00@pmk:
-I can handle myself no need for your inter...@pmk:<br /><br />-I can handle myself no need for your intervention <br /><br />-as for results you are absolutely correct; they made the ECF...no argument there...best result since 1993 and best result in the 7 years of Gainey & Gauthier...<br /><br />-so although I assume you are satisfied you are missing one key element. the cost of this adventure; the July '09 signings including Gomez have yet to be paid and come due this summer when trying to sign Plekanec, Halak, Price, Moore, Lapierre, Markov early and others...pmk you seem to be suffering from premature e-celebration...when the cost comes in and Gauthier pays what he decides to or moves whomever then I'm prepared to say the EXPERIMENT was a success or not...<br /><br />-remember this cowboy after they finished first 2 years ago in the conference were did they go the following year ? some (maybe you) expected the Cup to follow<br /><br />-what's past is past I'm looking forward to the next 5 weeks and then next season and the cost of last year's moves...and you thought the season was over ! sorry the fat lady has yet to sing once she does then 09-10 can be evaluatedpfhabshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05116906615296671918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-39853662897708928812010-06-03T12:39:11.268-04:002010-06-03T12:39:11.268-04:00Latendresse-for-Pouliot was such an obviously stup...Latendresse-for-Pouliot was such an obviously stupid move *when it happened* that you have to wonder about the sanity of the brass. That Latendresse was the superior player was fairly clear to anyone who cared to look -- many fans didn't, but I expect management to use a bit more information when they make trades. <br /><br />It was an entirely predictable and entirely avoidable error. They call Latendresse "BTE" over on Wild blogs actually -- "Best Trade Ever". The Habs are damned lucky Pouliot gave them as much as he did, but they now find themselves without a young player who'd been one of their better even-strength scorers. After this decision, you have to question whether you can trust them with the trade of more important assets -- such as, say, Markov. <br /><br />If the trade ends up being a wash, it'll be very fortunate for Montreal.MathMannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-31277987428079648262010-06-03T12:18:55.455-04:002010-06-03T12:18:55.455-04:00honestly pf i can't believe your still blabbin...honestly pf i can't believe your still blabbing on still about this. Please stop I'm embarrassed for you!<br /><br />You talk of cap hits and points but what about this big guy:<br /><br />Koivu: did not qualify for playoffs<br />Komi: ditto<br />Beauchemin: ditto<br />tangauy: ditto<br />Kovalev: 1st round exit<br /><br />Gomez: ecf<br />gionta: ecf<br />cammy: ecf<br />gill: ecf<br />spacek: ecf <br /><br />This is a results oriented business and the RESULTS speak for themselves. You were wrong. Man up and admit it.pmknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-3665483629499825512010-06-03T12:06:31.568-04:002010-06-03T12:06:31.568-04:00I wouldn't be so enthusiastic when it comes to...I wouldn't be so enthusiastic when it comes to trading known commodities for bags of magic beans.<br /><br />Speaking of which, I guess it would be bad form to bring up the Latendresse trade. I mean, Pouliot will break out any day now, right?<br /><br />Right?Olivierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18280119238261445564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-15703745259751927692010-06-03T11:59:26.534-04:002010-06-03T11:59:26.534-04:00With all due respect to Markov, Pleks, and Halak -...With all due respect to Markov, Pleks, and Halak - great players all - I have to agree with this post. If those three are not in Habs jerseys next year, I believe the team will be stronger. Not by their absence, but by what they fetch in return or allow the Habs to sign. Now the Brothers K are a different story...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-49155325682385383862010-06-03T11:11:31.609-04:002010-06-03T11:11:31.609-04:00@DSL:
-sorry about the wording...thought you had ...@DSL:<br /><br />-sorry about the wording...thought you had gotten past your 8th grade reader...will try to be more linear next time<br /><br />@Anon:<br /><br />-"first line" centre is obviously left to subjective opinion but generally speaking they are more than a point a game player, usually in a big body--but not necessarily and easily the most offensive centre on the team. there are other criteria but think Nick Backstrom who makes $7 million and is in the 90 point category, or Marleau, or Spezza, obviously the Crosbys of the world in earlier times Sundin, Yzerman, Federov BUT not a 59 point player<br /><br />-slightly overpaid ? Koivu scored 52 points and made $3.2 million ! that $4+ million more is a 1st line winger that you now cannot afford.<br /><br />-is Gomer a fine player ? yes, but a stupid move at $7.37 million. Koivu is a second line centre as is Plekanecs...you do not replace the guy playing first line minutes who is really a second line centre (Koivu) with another guy who has the same stats over the last 7 years; ie, a second line centre but at more than 2x the cost then dump other assets including your best D prospect even if you get a good 3rd/4th line player in the deal (Pyatt)<br /><br />-if you cannot materially improve the position with the move you intend on making you simply do not make the move especially when you give away assets and it costs you more than twice as much in salary to make the move. <br /><br />-both Cammalleri ($6 M) and Gionta <br />($5 M) would be happy with their current salaries and playing next to Koivu and the points they would get would be the same<br /><br />-further you do not make the Gomez move when it obviously will affect other signings you want to make going forward<br /><br />-completely agree that Gionta brings more to the table in any part of the season than does Kovalev or Tanguay but you cannot even come close to making that assesment between Koivu and Gomez. <br /><br />-as for Gill as gusty as his performance was lets not forget that Komisarek led the league in blocked shots and hits, can skate faster, plays bigger and is meaner than Gill and is about 8 years younger. I chose Komaserik who has the same leadership qualities as Hall if not the ring.<br /><br />-another note: <br /><br />MAB + Mara + Gill + Spacek = $8.486cap hit<br /><br />Komaserik + Beauchemin = $8.3, add in some time for Weber and more ice for O'Bryne and I think you have a much better, younger, more mobile/faster and tougher D corps going forward with Markov, Gorges & Subban<br /><br />-final note: the K boys have tremendous talent and would like to see them perform under a different coaching system but the genius JM has other criteria and it doesn't look like either fit<br />any longer...CH will not get full value for either if tradedpfhabshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05116906615296671918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-16896137918469827992010-06-03T11:03:58.607-04:002010-06-03T11:03:58.607-04:00i don't know how people can defend plekanac--h...i don't know how people can defend plekanac--he disappears when he needed the most--he does nothing in the playoffs--trade him for a 10th round and we still would win on the trade<br /><br />and whoever says size doesn't matter, i say go watch the tapes again and see how the flyers controlled the boards and how their defencemen contolled the front of the net--enough of this--its the same story every year and the same excuses--bottom line is that lineup does not cut itAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-91433876432208468902010-06-03T05:03:17.665-04:002010-06-03T05:03:17.665-04:00I wonder if you guys actually watch hockey games a...I wonder if you guys actually watch hockey games and deduce things from what you see or if you simply have a set of words you repeat over and over again. Tough. Grit. First-line center. Whatever.<br /> What does it mean to say that Gomez and Pleks are "second line centers"?That there's some other player/players who are true "first line centers"who are a.) alive, b.)available and c.) affordable? I mean, sure, lets get a first line center. Exactly how? A sane approach might be to accept that Gomez is a fine player who is slightly overpaid by today's standards, and that Plekanec is a very good player indeed who wants to be paid what players like him get these days , and then build on that basis. Gainey's insight , which turned out to be exactly correct, is that some players (Gomez, Gionta, Gill,etc.) really are better in the playoffs than some other players. We still have these players; now we ought to build around them. <br /> Similarly about the K brothers, particularly AK. Sure, it's frustrating that he's not more consistent than he is. But for all the things he did that were wrong he did many things right in the playoffs -- go check out his assists--and giving up a talented player because you're frustrated that he's not a great player is a great way to remain a mediocre team.<br />As for "size" , "grit" and all that ...what beat us in the Flyers series was the Giroux-Briere-Gagne line. Move them from orange to tri-color, and we have it. We lacked secondary scoring once the top line was stopped. Size, grit, sandpaper and all those words -- had nothing at all to do with it. (Imagine if Briere were with the Habs; all you would have heard for three years was that he was too small to play.) Good teams have a mix of players playing useful roles; they keep the useful ones and they search out complements. They don't go out in search of things that don't exist, and they recognize what they do do well and try to do it again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-1606934803597044162010-06-02T18:31:45.343-04:002010-06-02T18:31:45.343-04:00what? Ovechkin and Backstrom are on the trading bl...what? Ovechkin and Backstrom are on the trading block?<br /><br />Halak is a 4rth string goalie? lol more like PFHABS is a 4rth rate pundit.DSLnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-23761186478797558322010-06-02T17:40:51.249-04:002010-06-02T17:40:51.249-04:00Arpon:
-normally you are measured and present ana...Arpon:<br /><br />-normally you are measured and present analysis that makes sense...unfortunately I think you've taken leave of them here<br /><br />-to suggest the "real" Canadiens are represented by the WSHDC and Pitt series wins ignores some basic facts<br /><br />1. Ovechkin himself said they thought the series was over after the 3rd game...to disrespect a team to such an extent always results in trouble for the boastful ones. add to that an unrepeatable .940+ percentage by Halak and Cammalleri almost scoring at will and the 1-2-2 system installed by the King of the Trap and the Caps demise was coming. a convenient convergence of events not superior talent had the CH winning. do you expect this particular history to repeat itself again next year ?<br /><br />2. ask yourself who would you trade on the CH to get Backstrom and Ovechkin---the answer is any of them<br /><br />3. ask the same question of Crosby, Malkin and Staal...again anybody the Habs have anywhere<br /><br />-the teams they beat have superior talent. the CH outworked them, out trapped them and won with a strategy that is not a winning formula going forward because the Caps and Penns will not be taken like that again<br /><br />4. they got beaten by the 15th seed using a 3rd or 4th string goalie who stoned them while those of him also used the trap. the Flyers are as talented as the CH but are much bigger and many measures meaner...they've shown the world the formula to beating the CH<br /><br />5. I'll take the example of the 82 game sample over that of the 14 game sample you chose to hang your assumptions on. add in the many cap issues and an aging slowing D that are basically untradeable except for Markov and MathMan is absolutely correct---lots of heavy lifting to do.<br /><br />6. what is amusing is the greatness of Gainey's moves last July are losing much of its sheen beyond Gionta and Cammalleri...a $7.37 million second line centre scoring 59 points is beyond stupid especially when you gave away your best defensive prospect in McDonagh and when you consider the centre you let walk away (Koivu) got 52 points for $3.2 million<br /><br />--this is a bubble team yesterday, today and tommorow...with the Plekanec, Halak, Price, Moore, Markov (UFA '11), Pouliot contracts up plus the K boys in Martin doghouse assuming that everything is okee dokee is a HUGE stretch that makes little sense to mepfhabshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05116906615296671918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-73119444737193132332010-06-02T16:32:59.072-04:002010-06-02T16:32:59.072-04:00@Huck:
I dunno, from what I could tell Pyatt is p...@Huck:<br /><br />I dunno, from what I could tell Pyatt is pretty fast and very good defensively, but he sin't strong enough to generate offense. That may come in due time, but it won't be this year I think. He is a valuable 4th liner with real 3rd line upside if he ever develops an offensive side of his game. Moen does generate some offense by crashing the net and thus has the upper hand right now.<br /><br />I'm pretty sure Metropolit is gone. Darche too.Olivierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18280119238261445564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-38139565562155965602010-06-02T16:30:44.069-04:002010-06-02T16:30:44.069-04:00To weigh in on the Pleks debate: we are in a toug...To weigh in on the Pleks debate: we are in a tough position in that we have a very good second line centre in Gomez and an excellent second-line centre in Pleks. Obviously we couldn't get rid of Gomez whether we wanted to or not. And it would be awfully tough to part with Pleks. But if we want a first-line centre....one of our goalies plus Pleks might be the price tag. Pleks is my favourite player on the team, so that is awfully tough to say, but I'm just not convinced he is a bona fide first-line centre, especially in the playoffs. He is a Selke type player and I hope we can keep him, but we might have to make a very tough decision regarding him...depending, of course, on what is on offer. Price/Pleks for a bona fide superstar centre, I think, would be worth it. Nothing less though.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12292235123211164309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-4534975028141073302010-06-02T16:22:31.364-04:002010-06-02T16:22:31.364-04:00I agree with the talk of our strong third line, bu...I agree with the talk of our strong third line, but am surprised that Pyatt seems to be left out in the cold. I thought he was by far the most pleasant surprise of the playoffs (besides the run itself). I like Moen more as a fourth liner, with Darche on the other wing and Metro at centre. Pyatt was incredible during the playoffs and that speed is something to behold.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12292235123211164309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-14223900555297197352010-06-02T16:13:10.423-04:002010-06-02T16:13:10.423-04:00Plekanec managed 25 goals and 70 points last seaso...Plekanec managed 25 goals and 70 points last season and being a commited 2way player his effectiveness for the Club doens't stop there just as it doens't for other point producers like Hossa, Dastyuk and Zetterberg which are all a pain to play against.<br /><br />How can we afford to let our best offensive player walk knowing that we would have missed the playoffs by a long shot last season without is production, knowing that our team's main weakness despite his contribution.... was our hability to score goals; lowest scoring team in the whole NHL when 5-on-5.<br /><br />We have no one to replace Plek and if we can bring in a lesser alternative than him throught trade than the poor chaps still gona have to play with an unproductive AK for winger and this is no receipe to improve our TOP6 production and a shure garantie that our offensive game will remain in the basement.<br /><br />Plek has been the most prominent player of our TOP 6 last season..... AK46 has been the worst and his position is the one that need being improved upon through trade if our intend is to make the playoffs next season.<br /><br />A team out there will have to sacrifice a young proven TOP 6 forward to get one of our young goaly and their lost of offense for doing so could be alleviate if AK46 was made availlable to them in the same deal.<br /><br />If we dont want to end next season as the worst scoring team of the NHL when playing 5-on-5 new scoring talents will need to be brought over to ADD to the ones we already have working for us like Plekanec and Markov.pierrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04722439953017469433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-57249045444246400782010-06-02T15:56:02.946-04:002010-06-02T15:56:02.946-04:00personally after the run playoff run we just had I...personally after the run playoff run we just had I think this team has earned the benefit of the doubt and should be given a chance to show that this post season was not a fluke. <br />I would sign pleks at 4.5 -5 mil in a heartbeat. People just do not realize how effective he is defensively. Even when he is not producing he is helping you in other ways. I am not sure were this mythical big 1st line center to replace him would be coming from. Sure I would like one but who? and for what? Letting Plek walk would leave us a huge hole - basically we would need 3 top 6 players...<br />Trading Halak now would be a disaster and setting up price for failure. The pressure on price would be enormous and I do not think he is ready for it. He will falter and be ran out of town by the fanbase. You could try to trade price but ideally I would keep both for one more year. (or till the deadline)By then we should know if Halaks run was a fluke or if Price is ready to take over but the salary cap might make this impossible. <br />We need some size in our top six. That became quite clear in the ECF. I would look for at unloading the Bros and hammer too if necessary to make the room. I do not think the guys with size need to dominant. I am thinking along the lines of the less talent more heart types aka Ladd, Clarkson, Armstrong,... 20 goal scorers with some jam... <br />This combined with a solid 3rd line of laps/moen/ moore or belanger would make for a pretty solid lineup in my opinion. Not sure how the dollars would all work but PG said he was "etremely comfortable with the salary cap" so I'll let him figure out the math!pmknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-13967262057626219532010-06-02T14:53:42.032-04:002010-06-02T14:53:42.032-04:00@Olivier: I think the brass kind of expected that ...@Olivier: I think the brass kind of expected that the bottom six would take care of itself, with Lapierre/Latendresse/Pacioretty/Moen to pick from and a bunch of kids in the minors. As we know the kids pretty much all regressed and got shipped out of town, to Hamilton or other orgs, unless their name was Tom Pyatt (and you know who I blame for this) and, well, the Habs' "blackhole effect" really hurts players that weren't that good to begin with.<br /><br />The squad was lousy top to bottom at evens; the bottom six, being naturally worse players, of course naturally looked worse. I think you do have a point that a stronger bottom six could've kept some of the pressure off the top six, particularly Plekanec who was really pummelled with tough assignments. I personally still think that the more concerning issue is how the roster was craptastic at evens top to bottom and that guys like Gomez and Gionta who were demons on other clubs barely stayed afloat with the Habs.<br /><br />And yeah, I think people underestimate Plekanec's contribution because "handles ridiculously tough minutes" doesn't show up on a scoresheet, except by what's NOT there. The Habs would need to have an impact center to actually upgrade on him and if they downgrade they'll likely crash and burn.<br /><br />You know, it's ironic -- and a very important point -- that if the East hadn't been unusually weak this year and the 8th place threshold was 92 points again, the whole blogosphere would be going on about what a disaster this season was. And in some ways, it really was a disaster, and it's best not to lose sight of that; it could hurt the Habs very much long term if the mirages of this season guide the brass's thinking.MathMannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-26489506260896566982010-06-02T14:44:25.216-04:002010-06-02T14:44:25.216-04:00@Anonymous: Hamrlik has limited NTC, he must give ...@Anonymous: Hamrlik has limited NTC, he must give a list of 6 teams in both conferences where he agrees to be traded. And on Feb 1st 2010, his NTC evaporates, making him movable for the trade deadline (a good insurance for a team taking him). We may not have a big return for his services but there is a very real chance we can ship him out and come out of it with some more room under the cap.Olivierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18280119238261445564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-74506315052519371352010-06-02T14:43:33.628-04:002010-06-02T14:43:33.628-04:00Contrary to most people, I don't think the Hab...Contrary to most people, I don't think the Habs need, or even particularly should want to, "get rid" of Gomez. He's overpaid, of course, but he is a very good hockey player who excels at even-strength, even against tough opposition.<br /><br />I do think that if the Habs are going to pay him over 7 millions, however, they need to play a style that maximizes his skills, not a style that stymies them -- which IMO they are right now.MathMannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-77183462633481263542010-06-02T14:42:31.253-04:002010-06-02T14:42:31.253-04:00@Arpon: Point taken. But Seeing Semin simply loose...@Arpon: Point taken. But Seeing Semin simply loose the net (he had a bajanormous amount of scoring chances, especially in the last 3 games) tells me we barely survived by luck. On the other hand, I think we all understimate how much of an improvment on this year's squad a Markov/Subban Spacek/Hamr Gorges/Gill squad can be.<br /><br />@Mathman: Also, the Flyers got Pronger because the Ducks already had Neidermayer.<br /><br />I think the team's brass focused so much on rebulding the core last summer that they sorta kinda neglected the bottom-6 forwards. Going in, this was a big weakness; retaining Moore and or signing a guy such as Bélanger or else will go a long way. I think they can massively improve if they can:<br /><br />a) Keep Pleks; effective, versatile player who can play agains't the opposition's best in all situation. I don't care about him being similar to Gomez, you never have enough of these guys.<br /><br />b) Build an effective third line who can take, if not some of the tough competition matchups, then at least soak up a bunch of defensive zone assignments and thus free up Plekanec from those chores. Moen, Moore and Lapierre would make a nice grinding line I think. Not too costly either<br /><br />That mythical beast, the big power forward, most probably is beyond our price range unless we can ship Hamrlik away. Knowing that Gill is part of the team's core (to my utmost dismay; dude is by far and wide the worst of our regular D once you replace O'Byrne with PK), you have to move either Spacek or Hamrlik to free some cap space and make sure everybody fits under the roof. It's kinda annoying, because I'd love to see all of our D come back, but reality tells me we may be in for a Carle / O'Byrne fight for the #6 spot whil Hamr ply his trade elsewhere.Olivierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18280119238261445564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-89087625478547418952010-06-02T14:36:59.859-04:002010-06-02T14:36:59.859-04:00mathman--i know what you are saying about markov b...mathman--i know what you are saying about markov but salary cap is going to be an issue--who in the right mind will take gomez at 7m a year--what a brutal signing that was--we need to trade somebody or else we'll players and get nothing in return--i don't want to trade markov either but i don't think the habs a choice<br /><br />gainey should have been fired 4 years ago as far as I'm concerned-he montreal he can do no wrong howeverAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-52994096289949847152010-06-02T14:23:45.516-04:002010-06-02T14:23:45.516-04:00And another thing: unless the Habs are going for a...And another thing: unless the Habs are going for a mid-term rebuild, dealing Markov would be all but insane. This is the sort of player teams tear up their roster to acquire. Top #1 D-men are exceedingly rare, and the Habs do not have anyone who can come close to replacing him in the short term (they'll be lucky if Subban does so in 4-5 years). A #1 D-man is the most critical player on any roster and I cannot think of any conceivable deal that sees the Habs deal Markov and improve.<br /><br />Dealing Markov is a sign that the Habs aren't planning on being competitive for at least the next 3-4 years. Spacek and Hamrlik have done yeoman's work in his absence, but there isn't such a thing as an elite club without a strong-to-elite #1 D-man.<br /><br />It may be fun to think about what the Flyers gave up to get Pronger and what that might do on the Habs, but without a Markov-type D-man on the roster and the Habs already terrible in transition, that answer is going to be "not very much". The Flyers broke the bank on acquiring Pronger because without him their D has been a major, highly exploitable liability. I don't think the Habs want to go there.MathMannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-703672817425686916.post-49136752963468736032010-06-02T14:17:45.161-04:002010-06-02T14:17:45.161-04:00Agreed, Arpon. Re: Plek, for sure, all we can get...Agreed, Arpon. Re: Plek, for sure, all we can get is a pick at this point.<br /><br />How high? Who knows. Late first, but likely second rounder, I'd think.<br /><br />Re: Markov, yep, he'll get the Habs one or the other. However, IF the Habs are planning on moving Halak, Markov, Plek or any combination of the three, they would be wise to try and put together a package for a young #1 D man and a #1 center.<br /><br />Given all the constraints of the cap, that might be a pipe dream to think you can get BOTH from one team. Move likely, moving Markov will get you either or, then perhaps packaging Halak and Plek get you the other.<br /><br />The Habs, surprisingly, have options but need to try and get themselves some cap space going forward too.<br /><br />K.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10147553463342944430noreply@blogger.com