Blogging About The Montreal Canadiens and Canadiens Hockey

It didn’t take Bob Gainey, Interim Coach and General Manager of the Montreal Canadiens, long to begin making changes with his team. Gainey has changed all three defensive pairings and has put Alex Kovalev on left wing with Matt D’Agostini and Tomas Plekanec.

Andrei Markov and Mike Komisarek are reunited as the #1 D-pairing, Ryan O’Byrne will play with Roman Hamrlik on the second D-pairing, and Mathieu Schneider will see slightly less ice-time playing on the third D-pairing with Josh Gorges.

The thing that really surprised me was that Max Pacioretty will be benched alongside Patrice Brisebois, and the injured Guillaume Latendresse.

I’m VERY happy to see the Tanguay-Koivu-A. Kostitsyn line stay together. That line absolutely dominated in the game against Dallas and had so many scoring chances.

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It was sad day in Florida yesterday as the Montreal Canadiens lost against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a game full of chances, unfortunately the Canadiens couldn’t take advantage of any of them. Heading into the second period we had a 2-1 lead, but the Lightning took that away quick with a 5-3 final.

Goals came from Maxim Lapierre, and Alex Kovalev in the first, with Guillaume Latendresse scoring midway through the third period, but we just couldn’t finish the comeback.

The Powerplay was again disappointing and needs to be improved indefinitely. The Canadiens need a consistent point producer to get them out of this funk, it’s retarded that we have to RELY on our third and fourth lines for points some nights.

Carey Price hasn’t seemed to find his comfort zone quite yet after returning from an ankle injury and had an uncharacteristic .791 save percentage last night.

Our next game is Thursday against the Atlanta Thrashers, let’s just hope that game doesn’t go down the shitter.

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Well, it was definitely a good night for the Habs, especially Alex Kovalev who left with a brand new Honda 4×4 for being game MVP.

The Montreal Canadiens totaled for four points, three of those going to Alex Kovalev who notched 2 Goals and 1 Assist. Andrei Markov had a goal late in the first period after an excellent feed from Alexander Ovechkin.

Mike Komisarek had the only penalty of the game, a hooking call late in the third. I’m so proud. You definitely wouldn’t find a better Penalty Kill on a team that’s for sure.

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That’s right folks, Alex Kovalev will be the Team Captain for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. Shocked? Me too. Oh well, it’s pretty cool though.

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Well, it definitely wasn’t a boring game. Goals came in every period, but I was expecting for consistency in the third period, which I didn’t see. I’m just very happy that the Habs were able to take a win out of this as Boston lost tonight, meaning we actually gained some ground on them.

Goals for the Montreal Canadiens came from Andrei Kostitsyn, Alex Kovalev, Tom Kostopoulos, Matt D’Agostini, and Maxim Lapierre, who had an excellent, but odd, shootout goal. It was Andrei Kostitsyn’s 16 goal on the season, giving him a goals in his last 6 games. This would be considered “Hot”. Matt D’Agostini scored his first goal in 10 games after going 6 for 10 in his first 11 NHL games.

Jaroslav Halak played an O.K. game, but I wouldn’t say it is the best he has played this season. When the stats come out I’m sure we’ll see he was under a .900 save percentageHalak managed an .850 save percent, nothing special, while Brian Elliot, the Ottawa Senators goalie, managed an .875.

Tonight was another night where out Power play notched a goal which is a good thing to finally see. The PP operated at 16% tonight, which gives us about a 30% – 35% in the last 6/7 games or so.

Now, let’s talk about Maxim Lapierre’s shootout shot, which I’ll have to post if it gets on the Internet. Basically, he came from center ice to just passed the Blue line going completely slow. All I could think about was, “Is he really going to do this?”. Then he sped right up and, after some nice hand work, roofed one passed Elliot. I was in shock, and surprised Lapierre could do that.

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Lots of news from practice today. Along with updates on many players, the Habs have decided to release more information on long term injuries. Instead of using vague discriptions like “upper and lower body injuries” the nature of the injuries will be released to the media.

Carey Price, Saku Koivu and Alex Kovalev did not practice today.

Price doesn’t appear to be coming back any time soon and may miss the All-Star game. Carbonneau told the media if he doesn’t play a game with the team before the All-Star game, he should not participate. There is 4 games between now and the All-Star game on January 25th.

Saku Koivu, who practiced with the team Monday, suffered a “setback” in his recovery and may return for Saturday’s game against Ottawa.

Alex Kovalev missed practice because of a sickness. No word if he will miss tomorrow’s game against Nashville.

Mathieu Dandenault (broken arm), Chris Higgins (shoulder) and Georges Laraque (back, I’ll get to that below) all skated today. With the new injury policy, we learned today that Laraque is suffering from a back injury, not a groin as was speculated. He has been skating and hopes to join the team in practice next week.

Yannick Weber has been sent back to Hamilton. He only played one game with the team since being called up January 1st.

**Side Note: I wish they had kept him up, the schedule the this week is pretty light with the Predators and Senators. He only played one game, that mess against Toronto, not really a good chance to see what he could do. I liked what I saw though.**

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Kovalev on NHL Network Online telling everyone about his love for flying. He also goes through some pre-flight checks and shows everyone how to take-off, fly, and land.

Taking to the Air with Alex Kovalev

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What a game! If you were at this game, and you were a Montreal Canadiens fan, then you are one lucky son of a gun. This one was action packed with everything a good hockey game should have; Lots of goals for the home team, and fighting. The Canadiens and Leafs combined for a total of 140 minutes of penalties including 2 fights and god knows how many misconducts.

Another rivalry made it’s appearance tonight between the likes of Mikhail Grabovski and Sergei Kostitsyn, two Belarussian youngsters. The final score in this game was 6-2 for the home team, Montreal Canadiens. Goals came from Sergei Kostitsyn, Andrei Kostitsyn, Maxim Lapierre, Guillaume Latendress, Alex Kovalev, and Max Pacioretty.

For a team with a rash of injuries and a Power play that is 27th out of 30 in the league, they played with desires, heart, and a ton of grit. Not to mention that the PP went 2 for 8, another solid performance, for a poorly performing PP unit.

It was milestone night for Patrice Brisebois as his three assists launched him into the 5th most scoring Defenseman in Montreal Canadiens history, just ahead of Tremblay.

Jaroslav Halak has played with vindication the last two games and made some excellent saves to keep Montreal ahead in this one. I think he’s starting to realize that this is his opportunity to show that he can start games and finish them. We need him to continue to play like this, unfortunately Price can’t play every single game.

This was Yannick Weber’s first NHL game, and considering that, he played fairly well. He was very nervous at first and ended up getting a slashing penalty after chopping a stick a little too hard. He was played mostly on the Power play, but saw time on the fourth line, and played Defense at the end of the game. Overall, I would say he’s not quite ready for the NHL as of yet, but can’t wait to see him.

This game had probably the most penalties that I have every seen. Rather than telling them to you, let me show you.

Related Links:
Canadiens trounce Leafs – Canoe.ca
Canadiens humble Maple Leafs – CBC
Game Highlights: Canadiens 6 Maples Leafs 2 – All Habs
Grabovski the street fighter – The Daily Hab-it
Habs Give Leafs And Grabovski The Boot – Dennis Kane
Ugly Game, Important Win – All Habs
Canadiens 6, Maple Leafs 2 – canadiens.nhl.com
About last night … – Habs Inside/Out
Rivalry between Leafs and Habs takes on new Belarussian twist – NHL.com
Montreal offense clicks again in 6-2 win over Toronto – NHL.com
Kostitsyn, Lapierre and Latendresse lead Habs over Leafs in chippy 6-2 rout – NHL.com
Hostilities resume in rivalry as Habs, Leafs head in opposite directions – Globe and Mail
Kostitsyn leads Habs past Leafs – Associated Press
Maple Leafs no match for Canadiens – National Post
Canadiens blow out Maple Leafs – The Sport Network
Rivalry between Leafs and Habs takes on new Belarussian twist – The Hockey News
Canadiens drub Leafs 6-2 in skirmish-filled battle between old rivals – The Hockey News
Canadiens Thump Maple Leafs in Nasty Affair –
Kostitsyn leads Habs past Leafs – Yahoo!
Canadiens ride early outburst, blast Maple Leafs – SBRForum

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For a team riddled with injury after injury to some big players, we seem to be getting a lot of hattricks, and tonight was no exception. Everyone seemed to step up including Jaroslav Halak making some nice saves, now if he could just play like this every time he started we’d have no problems.

The final score in this one was 6-3 for the Montreal Canadiens with goals coming from Robert Lang(3), Alex Kovalev, Guillaume Latendresse, and Andre Markov with a snipers wrist shot from the top of the right circle. Goals for New York came from Drury, Rozsival, and Callahan.

The Power play actually clicked tonight going 2 for 5 which is a 40%, not bad for a team who has only three teams worse than them on the PP.

Max Pacioretty scored his second point in the NHL when he assisted on Alex Kovalev’s game opening goal with an excellent pass out front for Kovalev to bury.

With this win the Montreal Canadiens are now 7-2-1 in their last 10 games. You better watch out Bruins, we’re comin’ for ya!

Three Stars: 3. Jaroslav Halak 2. Andre Markov 1. Robert Lang

Related Links:
Canadiens double-up Rangers – Canoe.ca
Lang’s hat trick lifts Habs over Rangers – CBC.ca
Lang Scores 3; Reminds Fans ‘Who Needs Sundin? – All Habs
Halak And Mates Punch The Clock And Put In A Good Shift – Dennis Kane
Whenever you think they’re down.. – The Daily Hab-it
Canadiens 6, Rangers 3 – Canadiens.NHL.com
About last night … – Habs Inside/Out
Lang’s 3 goals lead Habs over Rangers 6-3 – NHL.com
Lang’s second career hat trick leads Canadiens past Rangers 6-3 – NHL.com
Lang lifts Canadiens – Freep
Rangers falter in third, lose to Habs, 6-3 – Newsday
Canadiens-Rangers: Lang’s Hat Trick Leads Habs – Kevin van Steendelaar, Bleacher Report
Robert Lang Hat Trick Sinks Rangers – The Epoch Times
Lang hat-trick powers Canadiens past Rangers – guardian.co.uk
Canadiens’ Lang puts on a show in New York – The Financial Post
Lang’s trick helps Habs double up Rangers – The Sports Network
Lang’s hat trick leads Canadiens past Rangers – Associated Press
Lang’s hat trick leads Canadiens past Rangers – Yahoo!
Lang’s Second Career Hat Trick Leads Canadiens Past Rangers – TSN.ca
Lang’s second career hat trick leads Canadiens past Rangers 6-3 – The Hockey News

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The Montreal Canadiens and Jean Beliveau have announced the All-Star lineup consisting of 4 Montreal Canadiens and 2 Pittsburgh Penguins, now if this wasn’t a popularity contest than please tell me otherwise, but I think it’s ridiculous.

The 4 Canadiens players were Alex Kovalev, Mike Komisarek, Andre Markov, and Carey Price. These players will also start with Evgeni Malkin and Sydney Crosby.

Not much I really have to say on this one besides the fact that I’m glad Fleury didn’t make it, I really don’t think he’s All-Star material at this point in his career, and I just hope Price plays a good period.

Eastern All-Stars
Carey Price (G/Montreal Canadiens)
Mike Komisarek (D/Montreal Canadiens)
Andre Markov (D/Montreal Canadiens)
Alex Kovalev (F/Montreal Canadiens)
Evgeni Malkin (F/Pittsburgh Penguins)
Sydney Crosby (F/Pittsburgh Penguins)

Western All-Stars
J.S. Giguere (G/Anaheim Ducks)
Brian Campbell (D/Chicago Blackhawks)
Scott Niedermayer (D/Anaheim Ducks)
Patrick Kane (F/Chicago Blackhawks)
Jonathon Teows (F/Chicago Blackhawks)
Ryan Getzlaf (F/Anaheim Blackhawks)

French Source: RDS.ca
English Source: NHL.com

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