At the beginning of this season, the Habs were well positioned for a playoff push, perhaps even improving on their surprising showing from the previous season and maintaining the number one seed in the East. The trades for Alex Tanguay and Robert Lang, two top six forwards, did much to create Cup anticipation amongst longtime Habs fans.
Unfortunately, injuries to key players and spotty goaltending have cast doubt on some of those lofty goals. Both Tanguay and Lang have been on IR for extended periods of time, as well as Koivu, Latendresse and Komisarek. Carey Price also was injured, only to come back as a shell of his former self. The Kostitsyn brothers and Kovalev sideshows, and constant trade rumors didn't do much for team psychology either.
But Gainey hasn't given up. Kovalev was given a two game sabbatical, and then came back with 7 pts in 3 games. Sergei Kostitsyn was shipped off to Hamilton. Mathieu Schneider rejoined the Habs for a couple of draft picks. Glen Metropolit was picked up off waivers. The Habs seem to have responded with aggressive defense, a vastly improved PP and most of all, Jaroslaa Halak's otherworldly goaltending.
Gainey's most recent move was somewhat surprising (or at least telling), as Metropolit still has another year on his contract. His pickup also solidifies Lapierre's role as the #3 center. One then wonders what will happen to Lang, a UFA in the off season, and a vital cog in the Habs offense this year. Like Lang, Metropolit also gives the Habs another right handed centerman, and is decent in the faceoff circle: he was the top faceoff man for the Flyers this year.
His pickup had repercussions: Steve Begin became expendable, and allowed Kyle Chipchura to be sent back to Hamilton -- no doubt for more seasoning. Chipchura's defensive play still needs work (-6 in 13 games), as well as taking draws (a woeful 43.9%). Metropolit buys Chipchura another year, and makes $300k less than Begin. Not much especially this late in the season, but still more breathing room under the cap.
The next Hab rumored to leave is Mathieu Dandenault. Also a UFA at the end of the year, he would seem to have more trade value as a two way player. Perhaps only Bob Gainey could get away with decreasing the "French content" of the beloved Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.
Still, if Dandenault were to leave, it would be either straight up for draft picks or packaged with picks and/or prospects for an impact player. Such an impact player would almost certainly be a top six forward, someone basically to replace the lost offense when Lang went down.
If Gainey were to do that, he would be essentially signaling a return to the three scoring line, one checking/energy line format. Since Lang's injury, Habs have been using old school lines: two scoring lines, one two-way/checking line, and an agitator/energy line, (more or less) something like this:
Higgins-Koivu-D'Agostini
A.Kostitsyn-Plekanec-Kovalev
Pacioretty-Lapierre-Kostopoulos
Stewart-Metropolit-Laraque
If Gainey were to pick up a top six forward, Carbo could dramatically reshape his forward lines for the playoffs. Assuming both Tanguay and Latendresse come back before the playoffs, the new lines might look something like this:
Tanguay-Koivu-new RW?
A.Kostitsyn-Plekanec-Kovalev
Higgins-Lapierre-Latendresse
S.Kostitsyn/Pacioretty/Stewart-Metropolit-Kostopoulos
D'Agostini will almost certainly be sent down once Tanguay and Latendresse are back. While he goes to the net, has lightning speed and has that rare right handed shot ... he is completely lost defensively. This is where outside help is needed.
LW on the 4th line is a toss up: Kostitsyn has the most experience; Pacioretty has been solid and deserves a shot; Stewart provides toughness. Laraque will almost certainly not play -- he is far too plodding for the playoffs.
Kostopolous (favorite nickname: Nonstopolous) has been a fixture on Lapierre's right side for virtually the entire season, even on the PK (which is odd, given that both are right handed). But if Gainey wanted three scoring lines, Kostopolous has to go down one line.
So who might the new RW be? Given that Lapierre is the only right handed shot on the top three lines, one would think another right hander would be ideal. Bill Guerin fits the bill, has size and experience, and is being shopped by the Islanders. But the last time he was a playoff rental, it didn't go so well: -3 and a measly 2 assists in 9 games for the Sharks.
The more interesting rumor is Milan Hejduk. He's a proven scorer with a right handed shot. He's far removed from his 50 goal year, but his 50 pts would tie for the team lead right now, and his 23 goals would be tops. However, he's not exactly the type to drive to the net and get the typical playoff-type garbage goal. And he's still under contract for next year, at $4M/yr. With all the other UFA's Gainey has to sign, this trade would saddle the club even further.
Gainey might decide to stand pat, and not sacrifice future cap room or prospects for a single shot at the Cup. But how fun could that be?
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Lecavalier rumours
TSN is trying to stir up some mid-season interest by circulating a rumour that Tampa Bay may be shopping Vincent Lecavalier and that the Habs are interested. Now the first part of that rumour may indeed be true. The Bolts committed way too much of the future cap space to just one player. Such was the reasoning for trading Brad Richards ($7.8M/yr through 2011) and Dan Boyle ($6.667M/yr through 2013) .
But Lecavalier is the one player that eats up most of the Bolts' cap space for the next few years. As the Tampa Bay brass is finding out, hockey is a team sport. You need more than just one superstar to carry the team. And if you're going to pay that kind of money, it better be for a true superstar who can change the outcome of any game almost single handedly.
There aren't many players like that, esp those that don't mind the pipes. But even then, even Luongo and Brodeur don't make that kind of money. And for those non-goalkeepers, there are only a few true game-changers like Ovechkin and Crosby.
And that's an interesting comparison. Ovechkin makes $9M/yr. So does Crosby -- and Malkin too. But Ovechkin is surrounded by cheap, young talent. Pittsburgh traded away all of that when they bet the farm on last year's Cup run. And as of this post, they are mired in the 10th spot in the East.
Instead, look at what Gainey has done in Montreal. No real superstars. But lots of balance across all the lines. And when top scorers like Koivu and Tanguay get hurt (or even a top 3 dman like Komisarek), they still don't miss a beat. Gainey has built a team with depth, and that can't be done in the cap era when you OD on a superstar.
And what would happen next year, when the likes of Koivu, Tanguay, Lang, Kovalev and Komisarek are all UFA's? How exactly are the Habs supposed to keep even some of that talent, AND pay Lecavalier AND keep winning? Sure the cap adjusts from year to year, but with this economy, it just might adjust downward.
So thanks, Tampa, but no thanks. Vinny and his enormous salary are simply not sustainable. While it would be nice to get one of the biggest Quebec-born stars in the bleu, blanc et rouge, such a move would be franchise suicide.
But Lecavalier is the one player that eats up most of the Bolts' cap space for the next few years. As the Tampa Bay brass is finding out, hockey is a team sport. You need more than just one superstar to carry the team. And if you're going to pay that kind of money, it better be for a true superstar who can change the outcome of any game almost single handedly.
There aren't many players like that, esp those that don't mind the pipes. But even then, even Luongo and Brodeur don't make that kind of money. And for those non-goalkeepers, there are only a few true game-changers like Ovechkin and Crosby.
And that's an interesting comparison. Ovechkin makes $9M/yr. So does Crosby -- and Malkin too. But Ovechkin is surrounded by cheap, young talent. Pittsburgh traded away all of that when they bet the farm on last year's Cup run. And as of this post, they are mired in the 10th spot in the East.
Instead, look at what Gainey has done in Montreal. No real superstars. But lots of balance across all the lines. And when top scorers like Koivu and Tanguay get hurt (or even a top 3 dman like Komisarek), they still don't miss a beat. Gainey has built a team with depth, and that can't be done in the cap era when you OD on a superstar.
And what would happen next year, when the likes of Koivu, Tanguay, Lang, Kovalev and Komisarek are all UFA's? How exactly are the Habs supposed to keep even some of that talent, AND pay Lecavalier AND keep winning? Sure the cap adjusts from year to year, but with this economy, it just might adjust downward.
So thanks, Tampa, but no thanks. Vinny and his enormous salary are simply not sustainable. While it would be nice to get one of the biggest Quebec-born stars in the bleu, blanc et rouge, such a move would be franchise suicide.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
In praise of Josh Gorges
When Bob the builder traded Craig Rivet to the San Jose Sharks for Josh Gorges and a 1st round pick, many were left scratching their heads. Why trade a veteran clubhouse leader and top-four dman for someone who was in and out of an inexperienced SJ blueline corps?
It turns out Bob saw more than most. Gorges in essence is Mike Komisarek without the bulk. Sure, he won't have as many thumping hits or intimidate many forwards -- the traits that most observers associate with Big K. But Gorges plays excellent defense, and makes smart, precise passes out of the defensive zone -- just like Big K.
It was no wonder that Carbo chose Gorges to pair up with Markov, who tends to wander into the offensive zone to create scoring chances. Gorges can be counted to not only stay at home, but to be exactly where he should be if the rush comes the other way.
And there may be no single greater measure of the success of this experiment than looking at Gorges' plus/minus: +12, enough to lead the team. And this after playing significant minutes, mostly against the opposition's top scorers. His TOI is now third on the team, and might even surpass Hamrlik's had he not been stuck on the third pairing for so long.
But now that Komisarek is coming back, what to do with Gorges? He's certainly too valuable to be relegated to the third pairing again. He will probably end up paired with Roman Hamrlik, except this time on his more natural left side. Hamrlik usually plays the left side, but has a pretty good backhand.
Brisebois will slide down to the third pairing, a more appropriate place for his limited defensive abilities. Limited not because of his skills, but simply because he gets pushed around far too easily. As the 6th dman, he can have limited 5-on-5 play, but get trotted out for the PP where his offensive skills can best be put to use.
Not that any of this will instantly cure the Habs' goal scoring woes. But great teams are built from the goalie out. The Habs have maybe the best goalie tandem in the league, and with the emergence of Gorges, a pretty solid blueline as well.
It turns out Bob saw more than most. Gorges in essence is Mike Komisarek without the bulk. Sure, he won't have as many thumping hits or intimidate many forwards -- the traits that most observers associate with Big K. But Gorges plays excellent defense, and makes smart, precise passes out of the defensive zone -- just like Big K.
It was no wonder that Carbo chose Gorges to pair up with Markov, who tends to wander into the offensive zone to create scoring chances. Gorges can be counted to not only stay at home, but to be exactly where he should be if the rush comes the other way.
And there may be no single greater measure of the success of this experiment than looking at Gorges' plus/minus: +12, enough to lead the team. And this after playing significant minutes, mostly against the opposition's top scorers. His TOI is now third on the team, and might even surpass Hamrlik's had he not been stuck on the third pairing for so long.
But now that Komisarek is coming back, what to do with Gorges? He's certainly too valuable to be relegated to the third pairing again. He will probably end up paired with Roman Hamrlik, except this time on his more natural left side. Hamrlik usually plays the left side, but has a pretty good backhand.
Brisebois will slide down to the third pairing, a more appropriate place for his limited defensive abilities. Limited not because of his skills, but simply because he gets pushed around far too easily. As the 6th dman, he can have limited 5-on-5 play, but get trotted out for the PP where his offensive skills can best be put to use.
Not that any of this will instantly cure the Habs' goal scoring woes. But great teams are built from the goalie out. The Habs have maybe the best goalie tandem in the league, and with the emergence of Gorges, a pretty solid blueline as well.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Manufacturing goals
It's no secret that the Habs have been offensively dismal over the past month or so. What is puzzling is why. The same players that had much success last year and early this year(at least ES) have been struggling to find the back of the net.
The lack of a sustained forecheck is certainly part of the problem. Carbo used to have the boys dump the puck in the zone and use their speed to get possession, then cycle the puck around trying to create a scoring chance. The crispness and creativity of those passes were a wonder to behold.
But no longer. Instead, opponents have been able to gain possession on those dump ins, reducing the Habs into a neutral zone stacking and trapping team. As in Detroit, they sometimes won't even try to forecheck, and instead hope to create a turnover by stacking the neutral zone with five players. Boring and certainly not using their natural talent, but it can be effective.
In so doing, Carbo announced that his patience was wearing thin. Out went Laraque's intimidating but offensively incapable presence. In went everyone that might help manufacture a goal. No longer would talent and line chemistry be relied upon. Those had somehow vanished anyway.
Part of this effort was to reshuffle the lines, most notably to get some right handed shots on scoring lines. The Habs are stacked with left handed scoring forwards, the only exception being Lang. They are also deep with right handed fourth liners, the only exception being Begin.
Every year when shopping for off season pickups, Gainey signs mostly right handers in an effort to rebalance this mostly left handed team. This has been noted before -- the recent additions of Robert Lang, Georges Laraque, the resigning of Patrice Brisebois and the eager pursuit of Brendan Shanahan and Mats Sundin makes the same case. I fully believe that even Michael Ryder would be in bleu, blanc et rouge had the Bruins not given him crazy money.
But right handed scoring forwards aren't always easy to come by, as evidenced by Bob's success on the free agent and trade market. So Carbo has been reduced to playing Kostopolous on the third line and sometimes higher. The only other right handed winger on the team is Dandenault, and he's clearly suited for fourth line or 6th dman duties, if skating at all.
So when Tanguay and Komisarek went down, Bob called up Matt D'Agostini, a right hander with offensive flair. Carbo stuck him on the first line of all places. But the more significant lineup news was that he finally was able to put a right hander on every line: D'Agostini with Koivu and Higgins; Lang with Kovalev and Latendresse; Kostopolous with Begin and Plekanec; and Lapierre with the flying Kostitsyns.
Those combinations made it difficult to tell a fourth line from a first (at least before TOI made Carbo's intentions clear), and had some obvious flaws: D'Agostini is a raw rookie; Lang, Kovalev and Latendresse might be the three slowest skaters on the team; Kostopolous and Begin would surely weigh down Plekanec -- if his lack of scoring could get any worse; ditto for Lapierre with the Kostitsyns.
But those standard appraisals only work when the scoring forwards are actually scoring. With the goal drought, Carbo has pulled out all the stops. Nobody's roles are a given, and he will try to manufacture goals from the bench until les gars can snap themselves out of this funk. Then maybe Carbo might let his crew use their talent alone to score goals and go back to his odd October lineups of all lefties on the scoring lines and all righties on the fourth line.
And for a lesson in how to put together a lineup with almost perfect shooting balance, just look at the league leading SJ Sharks (3.75 goals per game). Here's a typical lineup:
Marleau (L) - Thornton (L) - Setoguchi (R)
Michalek (L) - Pavelski (R) - Clowe (R)
Grier (R) - Goc (L) - Cheechoo (R)
Shelley (L) - Roenick (R) - Plihal (L)
Blake (R) - Vlasic (L)
Boyle (R) - Lukowich (L)
Ehrhoff (L) - Murray (L)
Of course, it doesn't hurt that they're loaded with talent, blue line experience and speed.
The lack of a sustained forecheck is certainly part of the problem. Carbo used to have the boys dump the puck in the zone and use their speed to get possession, then cycle the puck around trying to create a scoring chance. The crispness and creativity of those passes were a wonder to behold.
But no longer. Instead, opponents have been able to gain possession on those dump ins, reducing the Habs into a neutral zone stacking and trapping team. As in Detroit, they sometimes won't even try to forecheck, and instead hope to create a turnover by stacking the neutral zone with five players. Boring and certainly not using their natural talent, but it can be effective.
In so doing, Carbo announced that his patience was wearing thin. Out went Laraque's intimidating but offensively incapable presence. In went everyone that might help manufacture a goal. No longer would talent and line chemistry be relied upon. Those had somehow vanished anyway.
Part of this effort was to reshuffle the lines, most notably to get some right handed shots on scoring lines. The Habs are stacked with left handed scoring forwards, the only exception being Lang. They are also deep with right handed fourth liners, the only exception being Begin.
Every year when shopping for off season pickups, Gainey signs mostly right handers in an effort to rebalance this mostly left handed team. This has been noted before -- the recent additions of Robert Lang, Georges Laraque, the resigning of Patrice Brisebois and the eager pursuit of Brendan Shanahan and Mats Sundin makes the same case. I fully believe that even Michael Ryder would be in bleu, blanc et rouge had the Bruins not given him crazy money.
But right handed scoring forwards aren't always easy to come by, as evidenced by Bob's success on the free agent and trade market. So Carbo has been reduced to playing Kostopolous on the third line and sometimes higher. The only other right handed winger on the team is Dandenault, and he's clearly suited for fourth line or 6th dman duties, if skating at all.
So when Tanguay and Komisarek went down, Bob called up Matt D'Agostini, a right hander with offensive flair. Carbo stuck him on the first line of all places. But the more significant lineup news was that he finally was able to put a right hander on every line: D'Agostini with Koivu and Higgins; Lang with Kovalev and Latendresse; Kostopolous with Begin and Plekanec; and Lapierre with the flying Kostitsyns.
Those combinations made it difficult to tell a fourth line from a first (at least before TOI made Carbo's intentions clear), and had some obvious flaws: D'Agostini is a raw rookie; Lang, Kovalev and Latendresse might be the three slowest skaters on the team; Kostopolous and Begin would surely weigh down Plekanec -- if his lack of scoring could get any worse; ditto for Lapierre with the Kostitsyns.
But those standard appraisals only work when the scoring forwards are actually scoring. With the goal drought, Carbo has pulled out all the stops. Nobody's roles are a given, and he will try to manufacture goals from the bench until les gars can snap themselves out of this funk. Then maybe Carbo might let his crew use their talent alone to score goals and go back to his odd October lineups of all lefties on the scoring lines and all righties on the fourth line.
And for a lesson in how to put together a lineup with almost perfect shooting balance, just look at the league leading SJ Sharks (3.75 goals per game). Here's a typical lineup:
Marleau (L) - Thornton (L) - Setoguchi (R)
Michalek (L) - Pavelski (R) - Clowe (R)
Grier (R) - Goc (L) - Cheechoo (R)
Shelley (L) - Roenick (R) - Plihal (L)
Blake (R) - Vlasic (L)
Boyle (R) - Lukowich (L)
Ehrhoff (L) - Murray (L)
Of course, it doesn't hurt that they're loaded with talent, blue line experience and speed.
Friday, May 30, 2008
A new business model
An interesting, supposedly confidential internal NHL report was published by the Toronto Star recently. The report lists the Habs as second in the NHL in overall revenue. It doesn't list actual profit, but this one sentence stood out: "The six Canadian teams account for 31 per cent of the $1.1 billion (U.S.) in league ticket revenue, and have gone through league-leading double-digit increases over last season."
Granted, most of the revenue increases are due to the strength of the Canadian dollar -- assuming this report was accounting for inflation and using one currency (either US or Canadian) as a baseline for comparison. Also, this is overall revenue, not profit. Given the Canadian tax situation, which can differ widely by province, it is doubtful that Canadian teams are going to turn into the NY Rangers of free agent signings.
Still, the fact that Canadian teams are getting back on a more equal footing bodes well for the future. Especially so for the Habs, who have been building from within by drafting very well. One would hope that the improved revenue situation would enable the Habs to keep their talent after having nurtured their progress for so long -- assuming the salary cap will allow them to do so.
But perhaps more interesting was the note that the NHL derives almost half its revenue from ticket sales. The NFL, on the other hand, has billion-dollar, multi-year television contracts, and is expanding its prime time television viewing with Thursday and Saturday night games.
Such was the model Gary Bettman wanted to follow when he pushed expansion teams to such hockey hotbeds as Nashville, Columbus, Phoenix and the like. The logic was that better geographic coverage in the US would lead to a big national deal with one of the four American networks.
In some places, the strategy of building a hockey fan base where none existed did work. In San Jose, games are regularly sold out. Years ago, the Sharks had the longest sellout streak in the NHL, broken only on Oscar night. But that in itself was telling. Fans would rather watch the Oscars than the Sharks -- more or less because there wasn't much else to do in San Jose.
So now that Canadian franchises are doing so well, and the huge television contract dream has failed to materialize, talk is getting louder about moving one of the poor performing US franchises (like the Coyotes) back to Canada.
And perhaps along with that, a new business model for generating revenue is needed. Instead of relying on old models from other leagues that don't necessarily translate, why not embrace new models and new technologies, especially the internet. RDS, the Montreal-based television broadcaster that owns rights to all Habs games, recently began webcasting games, for a small fee.
For fans of such storied franchises as the Montreal Canadiens, this could have a huge impact -- especially for those fans who can't get RDS as readily as others. The financial impact could be huge as well, and the NHL would be wise to both encourage such endeavors as well as to guide them to benefit the league as a whole, especially financially.
Escaping the restrictions imposed by traditional broadcast television would only serve to further nurture the US market for hockey. Currently, many US viewers have to subscribe to insanely expensive cable and satellite packages to get the games they want to see. And that's only when the packages are even available. Center Ice, despite its advertising as carrying all NHL games, consistently drops games, especially in the playoffs -- even when Versus isn't carrying the game.
Unfortunately, due to broadcast licensing agreements between Canada and other countries, RDS webcasts are not available in the US and many other countries. The NHL would do well to lobby both Canadian and American governments to drop these restrictions, so that hockey fans can see their teams in action regardless of where they live.
Granted, most of the revenue increases are due to the strength of the Canadian dollar -- assuming this report was accounting for inflation and using one currency (either US or Canadian) as a baseline for comparison. Also, this is overall revenue, not profit. Given the Canadian tax situation, which can differ widely by province, it is doubtful that Canadian teams are going to turn into the NY Rangers of free agent signings.
Still, the fact that Canadian teams are getting back on a more equal footing bodes well for the future. Especially so for the Habs, who have been building from within by drafting very well. One would hope that the improved revenue situation would enable the Habs to keep their talent after having nurtured their progress for so long -- assuming the salary cap will allow them to do so.
But perhaps more interesting was the note that the NHL derives almost half its revenue from ticket sales. The NFL, on the other hand, has billion-dollar, multi-year television contracts, and is expanding its prime time television viewing with Thursday and Saturday night games.
Such was the model Gary Bettman wanted to follow when he pushed expansion teams to such hockey hotbeds as Nashville, Columbus, Phoenix and the like. The logic was that better geographic coverage in the US would lead to a big national deal with one of the four American networks.
In some places, the strategy of building a hockey fan base where none existed did work. In San Jose, games are regularly sold out. Years ago, the Sharks had the longest sellout streak in the NHL, broken only on Oscar night. But that in itself was telling. Fans would rather watch the Oscars than the Sharks -- more or less because there wasn't much else to do in San Jose.
So now that Canadian franchises are doing so well, and the huge television contract dream has failed to materialize, talk is getting louder about moving one of the poor performing US franchises (like the Coyotes) back to Canada.
And perhaps along with that, a new business model for generating revenue is needed. Instead of relying on old models from other leagues that don't necessarily translate, why not embrace new models and new technologies, especially the internet. RDS, the Montreal-based television broadcaster that owns rights to all Habs games, recently began webcasting games, for a small fee.
For fans of such storied franchises as the Montreal Canadiens, this could have a huge impact -- especially for those fans who can't get RDS as readily as others. The financial impact could be huge as well, and the NHL would be wise to both encourage such endeavors as well as to guide them to benefit the league as a whole, especially financially.
Escaping the restrictions imposed by traditional broadcast television would only serve to further nurture the US market for hockey. Currently, many US viewers have to subscribe to insanely expensive cable and satellite packages to get the games they want to see. And that's only when the packages are even available. Center Ice, despite its advertising as carrying all NHL games, consistently drops games, especially in the playoffs -- even when Versus isn't carrying the game.
Unfortunately, due to broadcast licensing agreements between Canada and other countries, RDS webcasts are not available in the US and many other countries. The NHL would do well to lobby both Canadian and American governments to drop these restrictions, so that hockey fans can see their teams in action regardless of where they live.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Hope for the future
Everybody wants to emulate a winner. Last year the Anaheim Ducks brutalized their way to the top. This year, some teams tried to do the same, most notably the Philadelphia Flyers. But some early (and very necessary) intervention by Colin Campbell seemed to have righted that ship, at least for the regular season.
Now its the playoffs, and the "sticky" play has returned (as noted ad nauseum in the last post). Occasionally though, there are breakthroughs, where the refs start calling the penalties as they should be. This was notably absent for much of the Bruins-Habs series, but the Habs managed to pull through.
For the Flyers series, the officiating has been better, but there has still been a lot of hooking and holding going on. Not egregious enough to pull down a player, but enough to eliminate space for the much more talented Habs.
Probably the best example is the supposed dominance of Biron. While he has played better than either Halak or Price (for the most part), he hasn't been unbeatable. He has always been prone to giving up juicy rebounds, and this series is no different. The difference is that the Habs can get to them. So much hooking, holding and general interference is happening in front of the net that they can't break free.
But Habs GM is still optimistic about the future. Most of the skilled teams have done well, esp the Red Wings and Penguins. The Sharks and Habs would also fall into that category, but are behind the 8-ball right now. Still, as pointed out over at Sisu Hockey, it might just all be bad luck. In almost every other statistical category, the Habs have outplayed the Flyers.
So while a 25th Stanley Cup championship would be the ultimate this year, a Red Wings-Penguins final would be a decent second best. Then instead of emulating the Ducks, maybe other teams will start playing catch up with the skill teams, and the NHL on-ice product would be that much more satisfying.
Now its the playoffs, and the "sticky" play has returned (as noted ad nauseum in the last post). Occasionally though, there are breakthroughs, where the refs start calling the penalties as they should be. This was notably absent for much of the Bruins-Habs series, but the Habs managed to pull through.
For the Flyers series, the officiating has been better, but there has still been a lot of hooking and holding going on. Not egregious enough to pull down a player, but enough to eliminate space for the much more talented Habs.
Probably the best example is the supposed dominance of Biron. While he has played better than either Halak or Price (for the most part), he hasn't been unbeatable. He has always been prone to giving up juicy rebounds, and this series is no different. The difference is that the Habs can get to them. So much hooking, holding and general interference is happening in front of the net that they can't break free.
But Habs GM is still optimistic about the future. Most of the skilled teams have done well, esp the Red Wings and Penguins. The Sharks and Habs would also fall into that category, but are behind the 8-ball right now. Still, as pointed out over at Sisu Hockey, it might just all be bad luck. In almost every other statistical category, the Habs have outplayed the Flyers.
So while a 25th Stanley Cup championship would be the ultimate this year, a Red Wings-Penguins final would be a decent second best. Then instead of emulating the Ducks, maybe other teams will start playing catch up with the skill teams, and the NHL on-ice product would be that much more satisfying.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
The Stanley Cup Playoffs: Gotta Hate It!
Yes, that borders on the blasphemous, but that's the only conclusion Habs GM can come to after watching the first few games of this year's Stanley Cup playoffs. Teams with more ability to play quasi-Charlestown Chiefs style hockey are rewarded. Those with actual skill? Not so much.
Let me be clear: I do not object to hitting. It's a natural and necessary part of the sport. Even in womens hockey -- where checking is banned -- one still sees plenty of contact. And in the Stanley Cup playoffs, the hitting seems to reach a fever pitch. That's all well and good.
But the hitting must be legal. That means no pinning an opposing player against the ice or boards when the opposing player does not have the puck. Or hitting him at all. That's interference, plain and simple. If he does have the puck, then he better look out (esp if the Habs' Big K is on the ice). And if, when defending against an opponent with the puck, you take your free hand off the stick to wrap it around the opponent -- that's holding. Even if it was only for the briefest of moments. These are basic definitions of penalties that were well understood during the regular season.
And perhaps some will argue that the officials should just let the players play, lest the officials insert themselves into the outcome of the game. This argument never made much sense to me. The officials are there to enforce the rules. If someone breaks them, they get penalized. If they don't call the rules, the players are penalized anyway -- and usually the ones with the most skill. So not enforcing the rules changes the outcome too, and the officials are still center stage.
Part of the argument against the obstruction crackdown in the post-lockout NHL was that too many penalties detracted from the flow of the game. Games would be decided by special teams play, as 5-on-5 play would be few and far between. Indeed this was the case initially. But eventually players grew accustomed to the play, and penalties were called with less frequency. Coaches adjusted their game plans as well, emphasizing shot blocking since clutching and grabbing were now outlawed.
But somehow those lessons keep getting lost every time the playoffs roll around. Let's take a few examples from this year's early series:
Does every team have to turn into the thuggish Anaheim Ducks to smashmouth their way to the Cup? I sincerely hope not.
Let me be clear: I do not object to hitting. It's a natural and necessary part of the sport. Even in womens hockey -- where checking is banned -- one still sees plenty of contact. And in the Stanley Cup playoffs, the hitting seems to reach a fever pitch. That's all well and good.
But the hitting must be legal. That means no pinning an opposing player against the ice or boards when the opposing player does not have the puck. Or hitting him at all. That's interference, plain and simple. If he does have the puck, then he better look out (esp if the Habs' Big K is on the ice). And if, when defending against an opponent with the puck, you take your free hand off the stick to wrap it around the opponent -- that's holding. Even if it was only for the briefest of moments. These are basic definitions of penalties that were well understood during the regular season.
And perhaps some will argue that the officials should just let the players play, lest the officials insert themselves into the outcome of the game. This argument never made much sense to me. The officials are there to enforce the rules. If someone breaks them, they get penalized. If they don't call the rules, the players are penalized anyway -- and usually the ones with the most skill. So not enforcing the rules changes the outcome too, and the officials are still center stage.
Part of the argument against the obstruction crackdown in the post-lockout NHL was that too many penalties detracted from the flow of the game. Games would be decided by special teams play, as 5-on-5 play would be few and far between. Indeed this was the case initially. But eventually players grew accustomed to the play, and penalties were called with less frequency. Coaches adjusted their game plans as well, emphasizing shot blocking since clutching and grabbing were now outlawed.
But somehow those lessons keep getting lost every time the playoffs roll around. Let's take a few examples from this year's early series:
- The supremely skilled Plekanec line has been replaced in offensive effectiveness by the so-called "buzz cut boys": Begin-Smolinski-Kostopolous. The most recent example was the lone Habs goal in the 2-1 loss at Boston. Smolinski clearly interfered with the Bruins dman behind the goal line, allowing Kostopolous to break free in front and shove the puck under Thomas' pad.
- Plekanec now likens his play to that of a "little girl" -- as if somehow he has to transform himself into one of the Hansen brothers? More telling is Carbo's reaction to Plekanec's assessment: "Most of the time, you have more room in the regular season, more time to make your plays. But playoff time is a little different. You have to put (aside) a little of the skills and use more grit." Put aside skill??? One would think that the playoffs is when true skill is elevated, not to mention rewarded.
- In the West, probably the best example of skill vs thugs are the Sharks vs the Flames. In game 3, the Sharks opened the game with 3 goals in less than 4 minutes. Then the Flames turned up the hits, most savagely exemplified by Cory Sarich's head crushing hit on captain Patrick Marleau 12 minutes into the first. Seemingly everyone but the refs thought it was a penalty. Sarich even started heading toward the penalty box, escorted by a linesman. But no penalty was called, and the Sharks went on to allow 4 straight goals by the Flames.
Does every team have to turn into the thuggish Anaheim Ducks to smashmouth their way to the Cup? I sincerely hope not.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)