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Hey all, I know I've been pretty much absent from this site the past couple of months but don't fret, I'm trying to find a format that will go easier on my schedule. Due to the Olympics this year, the schedule is pretty compressed and instead of having two-three games a week as it was the norm the past couple seasons, now we have to deal with four - sometimes five - games a week and I can't write a recap for each and every single one of them without running over games (posting recaps from a game after two other games have already been played). So, this is just a heads up to say that I'm still here and should be back to full throttle by New Year's.

Happy Holidays!!!!

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009-2010 NHL Season

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Game 9 Review: Canadiens Grab First Regulation Win Against Islanders

October 26th 2009 21:44

Montreal Canadiens, Habs, New York Islanders

Habs celebrate a goal

After stealing two games at the beginning of the season, the Montreal Canadiens embarked on a road trip to the West coast where they lost three in a row including a shameful display in Vancouver where the Canucks won 7-1 after losing their three previous games. The Canadiens came back to Montreal only to lose close-fought games against the surprising Colorado Avalanche and the Ottawa Senators. They finally ended their five-game losing streak with a shootout win against the Atlanta Thrashers. Finally, on Thursday, the team that kept losing games due to a lack of scoring finally exploded offensively when the New York Islanders came to town.

For the first time this season, the Habs scored twice in the first period. Gomez opened the scoring by stealing the puck from defenseman Martinek and beating Biron from close-range. The goal came during a dominating shift by the Gionta-Gomez-Cammalleri line and after a great play by Jaroslav Spacek who twice stopped the puck from exiting the Islanders' zone.

The Canadiens' newest acquisition, Marc-Andre Bergeron, scored his first goal of the season on the powerplay to put the Habs 2-0 up. The defenseman's rocket shot will be a welcome addition to a powerplay that's clearly missing Andrei Markov.

After a great first period, the Canadiens played a flawless second period where they limited the Islanders to five shots and scored another goal to put their lead at three. Max Pacioretty was the scorer in this period, getting his first goal of the season and consequently putting a huge load off of his shoulders. The last time the rookie had scored a goal was way back in January and he was slowly losing confidence this season as his play wasn't bringing any result. For the first time this season, the Habs had the lead after two periods and were completely dominating their opponent.

Unfortunately, the Islanders got a break early in the third when Jaroslav Halak mishandled the puck, allowing Josh Bailey to score in an open net during a Canadiens' powerplay. The goal revived the Islanders' spirits and the momentum was slowly shifting in their direction when Mike Cammalleri scored his second of the season during a powerplay halfway through the third period. Unlike the Habs of the last year, the team didn't sit back after Cammalleri's goal. Indeed, Maxim Lapierre (converted to a winger for this game) also got his first of the season by taking care of the garbage after Andrei Kostitsyn's shot. At 5-1, it was clear that the Islanders weren't going to come back and at the final whistle, Halak only had himself to blame for losing the shutout.

Although the team they faced was “only” the Islanders, the win comes as a relief for the Habs who were possibly starting to feel the pressure. The addition of Marc-Andre Bergeron has made the powerpaly more lethal but the real unsung hero of that game was Glen Metropolit who came back from a rib injury. Metropolit was a force in all three zones, showing some veteran smarts that is clearly missing from Chipchura's game. Flanked by Moen and Pacioretty, he had an excellent game, ending his night with two assists.

My 3 Stars:
3. Thomas Plekanec
2. Marc-Andre Bergeron
1. Glen Metropolit

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009-2010 NHL Season

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Game 3 Review: Canadiens Fall To Flames

October 11th 2009 03:24

After stealing their first two games of the season thanks to superb goaltending, the Montreal Canadiens were brought back to Earth on the West coast where their best performance of the young season ended with a bitter 4-3 loss against the Calgary Flames. Both teams were looking to go 3-0 in this game and Jaroslav Halak was given the start for the Canadiens in order to rest Carey Price for the Habs' next game against Vancouver.

As the Canadiens stepped onto the Saddledome's ice, many observators expected a blowout for the Flames considering the way the Canadiens had played in their two previous games. Surprisingly, the Habs held their ground for most of the period, going as far as winning the opening twenty minutes by the score of 2-1. Fourth-liner Eric Nystrom opened the score for the Flames after poor coverage by Montreal's fourth line (Kyle Chipchura in particular) in the defensive zone. Then, the Habs scored twice in the span of 30 seconds at the end of the period to take the lead. Scott Gomez grabbed his first of the season off of a nice pass by Mike Cammalleri and Guillaume Latendresse finished a great forechecking play by the third line to score the visitors second of the game.

Nystrom leveled the score for the Flames halfway through the second period and by that point, it was obvious that the Canadiens missed Glen Metropolit's veteran presence on the fourth line. The hosts then proceeded to take the lead with a powerplay goal by Jarome Iginla. Tomas Plekanec, who started the season like it was 2007-2008, saw his good work rewarded with his first goal of the season – a Malkin-like backhand that put both teams level right before the end of the period.

The score wouldn't stay the same for long however. Another gaffe by the Habs' fourth line led to the Flames fourth goal early in the third period. On the play, Gregory Stewart twice failed to clear the puck which was fired off from the point by Staffan Kronwall. Halak had no chance on the goal (or any other goal for that matter) as his view was obstructed by several players including Nystrom to whom the goal was originally awarded.

Despite outshooting the Flames 15-5 for the rest of the period, the Habs were unable to tie the game. It's a heartbreaking loss but you can't win them all as the rest of the season will show.

My 3 Stars:
3.Tomas Plekanec
2.Adam Pardy
1.Eric Nystrom

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009-2010 NHL Season, Calgary Flames

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Game 2 Review: Canadiens Top Sabres 2-1 In OT

October 5th 2009 02:09

Gionta celebrating his game-winning goal

For the second time in as many games, the Montreal Canadiens escaped with an overtime win against division rivals. After Josh Gorges against the Leafs on Thursday, it was Brian Gionta who scored the winning goal against the Sabres on Saturday.

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009-2010 NHL Season

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Game 1 Review: Canadiens Steal 4-3 Win Against Leafs

October 2nd 2009 20:43

Montreal Canadiens, Habs, Toronto Maple Leafs, Toskala

Canadiens win first game on the road

After a seemingly endless summer, NHL hockey is finally back. In the case of the Montreal Canadiens, the new season is an opportunity to wipe the slate clean with a new coach, new team, new approach. But Montreal weren't the only team to change direction during the summer. Down the 401, the Toronto Maple Leafs also went through some changes, getting bigger and tougher on the back-end by signing ex-Canadien Mike Komisarek and ex-Duck François Beauchemin.

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009-2010 NHL Season, Toronto Maple Leafs

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NHL Pre-Season: Canadiens Top Senators 2-1

September 19th 2009 15:10

It's a new era in Montreal as the Canadiens enter their second century of existence. With this new beginning comes several changes in the organization. Gone are veterans Saku Koivu, Alex Kovalev, Mike Komisarek, Chris Higgins and a slew of other players who had come to call Montreal their home. Gone is head coach Guy Carbonneau and most of the coaching staff from the big club all the way to the Habs' farm team in Hamilton. And gone is owner George Gillett who sold the team to the Molson family.

After a disastrous season, the slate has been swiped clean. Experienced coach Jacques Martin was brought in to give some direction to a club which had the ill-advised habit of signing rookie coaches since the mid-90s. Seven new players were acquired to replace the ten departing UFAs. Among them, veterans Bian Gionta, Scott Gomez and Hall Gill are counted on to bring some leadership to the squad while Mike Cammalleri brings the star-power that will (hopefully) help Habs fans forget Kovalev

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009 NHL Pre-Season, Ottawa Senators

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Summer Update

August 31st 2009 17:32

Hello all, I've pretty much ignored this blog this summer due to my shock and inability to cope with all the changes that happened in the Montreal Canadiens organization. All the free agents have gone to other pastures, and although a deep cleansing was required in that toxic locker room, it is still hard for me to move on and embrace the new players. Training camp is just around the corner so I'll be back soon. Right now, I'm writing a piece on all of player departures, especially Koivu and Kovalev. It might take awhile for me to finish it, so expect to see it in a week or two.

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009 NHL Offseason

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Canadiens Sign Forwards Mike Camalleri & Brian Gionta, Add Defensemen Hal Gill & Jaroslav Spacek

July 4th 2009 02:02

Montreal Canadiens, Habs, Mike Cammalleri, Jaroslav Spacek, Brian Gionta, Hal Gill

Canadiens' newest signings clockwise: Mike Cammalleri, Brian Gionta, Hal Gill, Jaroslav Spacek

Despite taking on Scott Gomez's huge contract the day before July 1st, Bob Gainey still add a considerable amount of cap space to make one or two splashes in the free agency period.

The Montreal Canadiens GM started the day by signing veteran defensemen Jaroslav

Jaroslav Spacek, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, Habs

Spacek to a three-year, $11.5 million deal. A puck-moving defenseman, the 35-year-old had 45 points (eight goals, 37 assists) with the Buffalo Sabres last season. His acquisition brings a much needed outlet for the Canadiens' transition game. Apart from Andrei Markov, Montreal defensemen able to make a decent outlet pass are few and far between. Spacek also provides a solution for the Habs' second wave of the powerplay. Here again, the Canadiens were weak except when forcing Markov to take a double-shift. Although he's old, Spacek averaged more than 22 minutes of ice time in each of the past two seasons. His size might be an issue. Indeed, at 5'11'' and barely over 200 pounds, his presence doesn't really bring much intimidation on a team that lacked toughness last year which brings us to Hal Gill's signing

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009 NHL Offseason

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UFA Watch: Mike Komisarek Signs With The Toronto Maple Leafs

July 2nd 2009 16:31

Mike Komisarek, Montreal Canadiens, Habs, Toronto Maple Leafs

Komisarek drops ex-Leafs Darcy Tucker

Mike Komisarek was dubbed “The Next Captain” of the Montreal Canadiens. Drafted seventh overall in 2001, the hulking 6'4'' defenseman quickly became a fan favorite thanks to his numerous highlight-reel worthy, bone-crunching hits. Always quick to defend his teammates, soft-spoken in interviews, Mike was simply a classy guy. Then, Milan Lucic happened.

In a game against the Boston Bruins on November 13 2008, Komisarek decided to drop the gloves against Lucic in order to salvage some pride in what was looking to be a embarrassing defeat for the Habs (Bruins were leading 5-1 at the moment of the fight). Komisarek's action didn't have the intended effect as Lucic suprised him by putting up a great fight, leaving the Canadiens feeling more inadequate than before. The worst part was that Komisarek also injured his shoulder during the fight and missed one month of action

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009 NHL Offseason

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Canadiens Trade Christopher Higgins For Rangers' Scott Gomez

July 1st 2009 18:22

Scott Gomez, New York Rangers, Christopher Higgins, Montreal Canadiens, Habs, Blueshirts

Gomez - in, Higgins - out

If there was one good thing to come out of the Montreal Canadiens' disastrous Centennial season, the huge cap space available at the end of the season with 10 unrestricted free agents was surely it. Indeed, with the salary cap estimated to go down in two years, having as much space to maneuver as the Canadiens do this summer is surely an advantage.

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Posted By: Ann 2 - Category: 2009 NHL Offseason

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