Do you know what I love about this team? They take losing personally and make sure poor performances aren't repeated. They played 1/3 of a game on Monday, so every single member of the Montreal Canadiens made sure they played 60 minutes last night. Last night I noticed everyone, no one was invisible: well almost no one. I didn't really notice Spacek very much, but that's a good thing. I don't want to notice Spacek, that means he's not doing something terrible.
Did you know that a hockey game is 60 minutes long? That even if you are dominating for 20 minutes, you can still easily loose? I thought I knew that, but during the 1st intermission I was all "Habs are the best", "Carey Price will never let in a goal again", and "Philly is all talk, when a bunch of amateurs". Well, much like the Canadiens, I had a rude awakening once the puck dropped in the second period. Like most other fans out there, I realize our team can't win all 82 games in a season – and there will be stinkers, like last night... but that doesn't mean I can't point out the obvious deficiencies that lead to last night's collapse:
It's true...when it comes to sports, Montreal is just a better city than Toronto. We shut them out Friday in hockey, and the score wasn't even close in the Eastern CFL semi-final yesterday. But, that's not what I want to talk about. I'm already a day late when it comes to the hockey game, and I know almost nothing about football. Besides, I am a little bitter that my statistical analysis that predicted a loss to the Leafs was wrong! This throws off my whole game, and now I don't know what the results will be tonight. Thanks a lot Price and the rest of the Habs for totally embarrassing and blanking the Leafs. Thanks a lot Komisarek for forgetting what team you are on, and assisting Cammy for the go-ahead goal.
I wish I had PVR'd last night's game, because with 10-minutes left in the 3rd period all I wanted to do was hit the fast-forward button and get the game over and done with. Some interesting statistical facts presented themselves to the fans last night:
Before the season began, I predicted that Price wouldn't get a single shutout all season. It wasn't for lack of skill, but in the past he always let in a goal in those dying seconds. I described him as being " not a shut out" goalie. I usually really hate being wrong, but in this case, I am ecstatic about how wrong I was. His shutout last night wasn't a 20-save routine either. He made 41 stops, most of which came in a second period where the Habs coul have easily found themselves on the losing side of the game.
Wow! What a game to attend… I took a couple videos, a couple photos…they can be seen below. Where to start? I guess with the downer..Markov, his knee and the online rumour that he will likely be sidelined 3 months. On the positive, this isn’t the same Canadiens team from two seasons ago that couldn’t win without Markov, on the negative, this is terrible news for him, for his career, for his teammates and for the likelihood of a large contract extension with Montreal. When Markov went down, he punch the boards with his fist. He knows it’s his knee. He knows what this means. I can’t imagine the frustration he is feeling right about now. But enough depresso news: Here are my quick notes on the game: I’ve seen many many pre-game introduction videos in my time. This year’s is bar-none the best I have ever seen. Anyone have a YouTube link...
The big bad Bruins were more like beat-down burn-out Bruins. In a game that was worth far more than 2 points, the Habs once again showed that tight team play wins. Confession: I missed the first period last night due to a terrible meeting that took far too long. Needless to say that by the time I got into the car and drove to my favorite hockey watching spot I was stressed to the max and anxious for a beer. Imagine my elation when I heard the score was 1-1 and our goal came on the POWERPLAY! The game just got statistically better as the night wore on. A second powerplay goal by none other than Gionta followed by a go ahead goal by Gomez. (Look how big that tag is getting in the right hand column!) All that could go right did, and the Montreal Canadiens are proving that they...
O'Byrne has been traded for Colorado prospect Michael Bournival. Who? Exactly.... Bournival currently plays in the QMJHL for the Shawinigan Cataractes. He was drafted last year by the Avalanche. I've never seen Bournival play, in fact I never heard of him until 5-minutes ago, so who am I to judge this trade. Who knows what kind of player Bournival will turn out to be. He's big, he seems to score a decent amount in the Q, and he's a local (ish) boy, so the Journal de Montreal can rest easy. For now, I'm all optimism. It's just sad to see another Habs drafted and trained player go to wayside. I liked O'Byrne, he provided the fans and the media with a steady stream of story lines:
Habs vs Canucks, aka The Battle of the Goalies Playing their Hometown Team So happy that Price not only came out on top, but recorded his 2nd shutout of the season. In September, I predicted Price wouldn’t get a shutout all season (which is weird, since I picked him in my hockey pool), and I am thrilled he is proving my hack predictions wrong! The strangest part is that before the game began I was feeling very bitter about the Halak trade. I’ve been defending it since it happened, but for some reason I got all worked up about it over dinner and had a bad taste in my mouth. Why would Gauthier make the trade so early? Why wouldn’t he demand a player like Oshie or Perron? Well, I feel much better now. Eller played only 4-minutes, but they were a VERY strong 4-minutes, and like I just...
Yes, the Habs won one and lost one, but I wouldn't go so far as to say they split the back to back games. The Buffalo win was by hair, and they came up very very short at home against the Senators. A few disclaimers before I continue:
For those that didn't hear it, Max Pacioretty went on the Team 990 and basically said that he wants to spend the season in Hamilton because he doesn't like the way Jacques Martin coaches. Alright...who is in charge of this young man, and why isn't someone coaching him on making media appearances?
Blah! That sucked. What sucks even more is that my computer died yesterday and is only now starting to work again. Thankfully I work with a bunch of software engineers and they are able to fix these things for me. But, back to last night and the 3-0 loss in front of 35 Blue Jacket fans. Not much to say that hasn't been said already, but I do have some interesting facts for you all:
