HF Habs: 24 Together: 25th Year Anniversary of Habs '93 Cup (May 28th on Sportsnet)

[SquiddFX]

Just finished watching it. It's only 30 minutes so doesn't take up much of your time.

Melrose still quite bitter about Demers calling for the stick check. But like Leeman said, don't like then don't get caught using an illegal stick.

Melrose was so bitter he's still stuck in '93 with his mullet

 

[JianYang]

To be fair though it's also a negative look at Canadian teams in general. In 25 years out of 6-7 teams only 5 teams have made it to the finals. That makes the 93 Habs even more memorable in addition to how fortunate they were that the stars aligned perfectly for them that year.

There's also some brutal luck in that time period. Canadian teams lost in game 7 finals in 94, 04, 06, and 11.

If you get that far four times, you figure you would have one cup at the very least.

Nobody has come closer than Calgary though. Perhaps gelinas scored the gwg in game 6 ot, but it wasn't conclusive.

I guess this is payback for canadian teams punching well above their weight in early 90s, 80s, 70s, 60's.... And I presume since the league was formed pretty much.

 

[Kimota]

Melrose was so bitter he's still stuck in '93 with his mullet

I love that cup even more because of the illegal stick. Something about the "Art of War" and all that.

 

[BrendanGallagher11]

I wish i will be alive to see a cup win

So far 0


That videos super cool though
I wonder what mtl woukd be like nowadays with the habs going that far

It was eletric downtown when we met rangers in east final 2015

 

[SquiddFX]

I love that cup even more because of the illegal stick. Something about the "Art of War" and all that.

All is fair in love and war. Especially when McSorely uses an illegal stick

 

[BenchBrawl]

A lot of people ought to be ashamed for what they did to this once great organization.

It's like Groundhog day in hell.Each and every front office kept screwing up again and again.They came with their bag full of excuses every year and every five years.No one was at the helm with the real killer instinct to do what was necessary to win.

Hey, at least we had Kovalev for a while that made it fun to watch hockey.Now what? They still lose but it's unwatchable.They ought to at least give us spectacular players if they plan on losing for the next 25 years.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

I've got few regrets in life but I was supposed to be at the game where McSorley got busted with the illegal stick and I ended up having to drop out, my buddies never let me live it down but at the time I needed the cash for College and never dreamed it would be this long without another Cup appearance

 

[Kriss E]

A lot of people ought to be ashamed for what they did to this once great organization.

It's like Groundhog day in hell.Each and every front office kept screwing up again and again.They came with their bag full of excuses every year and every five years.No one was at the helm with the real killer instinct to do what was necessary to win.

Hey, at least we had Kovalev for a while that made it fun to watch hockey.Now what? They still lose but it's unwatchable.They ought to at least give us spectacular players if they plan on losing for the next 25 years.

I think Bergevin is the biggest failure after Houle.
I get that Houle had to shed salary and so was put in a bad spot, but there is no excuse for the crap return we have gotten in some of those trades. It truly set us back.
Savard and Gainey started cleaning ship and redirected it on a good course. Gainey has his share of criticism, but still managed to turn us into a very entertaining bunch. Trading for Kovalev was huge. Then they did a good job developing some of our guys and made some good moves. Not to mention, the 2007 draft, our best one since arguably 1998.
Then came Gauthier, and while he made some blunders, he wasn't here long enough to really affect this club. He was only here for 2 years, so despite him trading away some picks and consequently the mediocre drafting, he didn't do serious irreversible damage.

In comes Bergevin. It's still too soon to see just how far back he will have set this team, and maybe by some miracle he will manage to fix it or even damage it further. As it stands today though, Bergevin is challenging Houle for being the worst GM.

 

[greyboy67]

When the Habs won in '93, I thought it was far too long of a stretch between Cups. I had no idea …

I became a fan during the Cup run of '71 when the Habs shocked the Bruins behind Dryden and came from behind in Game 7 to beat the Blackhawks in in Chicago—Beliveau's last game.

But the teams that were most special for me were the Cup winners of 1973 (Lafleur and the Mahovlich brothers; rookie season of Robinson and Shutt), 1976 (a very satisfying sweep of the Broad Street Bullies) and 1977—IMO, the greatest hockey team in the history of the NHL.

 

[David Suzuki]

I wish i will be alive to see a cup win

So far 0


That videos super cool though
I wonder what mtl woukd be like nowadays with the habs going that far

It was eletric downtown when we met rangers in east final 2015

late may/early june hockey >>>>

hope we see it again someday

 

[BenchBrawl]

I think Bergevin is the biggest failure after Houle.
I get that Houle had to shed salary and so was put in a bad spot, but there is no excuse for the crap return we have gotten in some of those trades. It truly set us back.
Savard and Gainey started cleaning ship and redirected it on a good course. Gainey has his share of criticism, but still managed to turn us into a very entertaining bunch. Trading for Kovalev was huge. Then they did a good job developing some of our guys and made some good moves. Not to mention, the 2007 draft, our best one since arguably 1998.
Then came Gauthier, and while he made some blunders, he wasn't here long enough to really affect this club. He was only here for 2 years, so despite him trading away some picks and consequently the mediocre drafting, he didn't do serious irreversible damage.

In comes Bergevin. It's still too soon to see just how far back he will have set this team, and maybe by some miracle he will manage to fix it or even damage it further. As it stands today though, Bergevin is challenging Houle for being the worst GM.

I'm fine with giving Gainey more slack, because he did create hope for a while, leading up and including the 07-08 and 08-09 campaigns, which unfortunately collapsed.The 07-08 team was extremely entertaining, I'd take that style of hockey anyday.I agree the Kovalev acquisition was huge, it is actually the greatest thing to happen to this franchise since the early 90s.

Houle was thrown into an unfortunate situation.I have no hatred for him whatsoever, seems like a very nice man, but yeah he didn't have what it takes to do this job.Bergevin blew it.Maybe he's not as incompetent as people say, but in the end he blew it so he should move on to other challenges elsewhere.

Gauthier didn't really have his chance, not that I thought he should.

I want an old snake, a guy with both street smart and a good analytical mind, plus good hockey judgement, all wrapped into one.I'm sure many exist, but they won't get hired because they're not in the social circle required to get this sort of job.

 

[CAR3YPR1CE]

Idk I find it makes me mad now, that we celebrate a cup 25yrs ago. No cup in Canada since. It saddens me and makes me question the integrity of the league.

 

[Kriss E]

I'm fine with giving Gainey more slack, because he did create hope for a while, leading up and including the 07-08 and 08-09 campaigns, which unfortunately collapsed.The 07-08 team was extremely entertaining, I'd take that style of hockey anyday.I agree the Kovalev acquisition was huge, it is actually the greatest thing to happen to this franchise since the early 90s.

Houle was thrown into an unfortunate situation.I have no hatred for him whatsoever, seems like a very nice man, but yeah he didn't have what it takes to do this job.Bergevin blew it.Maybe he's not as incompetent as people say, but in the end he blew it so he should move on to other challenges elsewhere.

Gauthier didn't really have his chance, not that I thought he should.

I want an old snake, a guy with both street smart and a good analytical mind, plus good hockey judgement, all wrapped into one.I'm sure many exist, but they won't get hired because they're not in the social circle required to get this sort of job.

Honestly, with how owners/presidents hire some of their GMs, they could hold open day interviews and find better candidates.
It really wouldn't be that hard to find more qualified personel than some of the bozos these guys hire.

 

[BenchBrawl]

Honestly, with how owners/presidents hire some of their GMs, they could hold open day interviews and find better candidates.
It really wouldn't be that hard to find more qualified personel than some of the bozos these guys hire.

I don't even think it's about qualification.I know some snakey people who are basically just smart hustlers who could become great GMs.These people have no CV to speak of.This is not a popular opinion, but I would bet my money on this if I had the chance.

More about having a combination of insane will to win and obsessive drive to get it done, some experience with long-term decisions (capable of shaking things up or staying patient for a long time as the situation demands), good negotiator (and so good at whatever political game is going on between GMs), have an eye for hockey, good analytical abilities (not necessarily talking about advanced stats, I don't believe in them much and I like math).Also capable of creating a winning management team around them, which should somewhat follow if the first and second points are genuinely there.

 

[nilan30]

I remember us going into Quebec city down 2-0 and the seeds of doubt were very strong, when that team tied the series 2-2 they became a team, a real team and it seemed like the hockey Gods would not turn their favourable eyes from that edition of Le Bleu Blanc et rouge! I lived and died with that team, Bob Cole yelling "Desjardins" was burned into my heart and memory and still to this day when I rewatch the clips I get goosebumps when I hear this.

I started watching the habs in the late 70s with my father but it felt like the 92-93 team were my habs, my chance to be a young man watching guys around my age win the cup, I look forward to watching this.

I'm pretty sure they lost the first 2 in Quebec City. The reason I always remember that is because the final four teams were the 3rd place teams from each division.

 

[Kriss E]

I don't even think it's about qualification.I know some snakey people who are basically just smart hustlers who could become great GMs.These people have no CV to speak of.This is not a popular opinion, but I would bet my money on this if I had the chance.

Well that depends. I am okay not hiring a scholar so long that whoever comes in has proven himself in similar situations and has a good understanding of where the game is moving towards.
Need a GM that can be ahead of the curve and/or a trend starter. Bergevin is always 3 steps behind.
He just realized now that the game is aimed towards speed and puck movement....I mean, it's been pretty obvious for quite some time, but he trades Subban for Weber, brings in Alzner, gets rid of our puck movers....
Next year, maybe he will realize the importance of puck movement from the back end.

 

[Rosso Scuderia]

What went wrong in the past 25 years? Who's to blame?

Players? Coaches? Gms? Owners?

 

[BenchBrawl]

Well that depends. I am okay not hiring a scholar so long that whoever comes in has proven himself in similar situations and has a good understanding of where the game is moving towards.
Need a GM that can be ahead of the curve and/or a trend starter. Bergevin is always 3 steps behind.
He just realized now that the game is aimed towards speed and puck movement....I mean, it's been pretty obvious for quite some time, but he trades Subban for Weber, brings in Alzner, gets rid of our puck movers....
Next year, maybe he will realize the importance of puck movement from the back end.

Some hustlers are more scholarly than many scholars.Going head on against reality and coming out on top requires a lot of subtlety.When I say hustler I'm not really talking about a coke dealer here obviously, but even then I don't rule out that a smart coke dealer could become a great GM.

Problem with requiring experience, is that how the hell do you get experience GMing a team? That's not an easy thing to get into, even at the smaller levels.And even if it easier to get in, it's not something people would think about doing.This is why I would always try to find these guys prior to needing them, so you can keep them around so they learn in the shadows.

And Bergevin, from what I see, has no street smart and the only scholarly thing about him are his glasses (and even then, they're not scholarly).The worst of both worlds.But I leave the possibility open that I miss crucial information and that he did all the perfect moves in a very bad situation.

I agree I want a trend starter and not someone always reacting or copycatting.

 

[BenchBrawl]

What went wrong in the past 25 years? Who's to blame?

Players? Coaches? Gms? Owners?

But for example, it's hard to blame the Gainey era.Yeah OK, ultimately Gainey failed, but he still brought the team forward until his centennial plan collapsed.Gillett was a good owner, left Gainey do his thing and was a positive figure, respectful of the societal importance of the club (even if ultimately the team was a flip for him, which is not something that should happen, but Gillett was allright in that morally wrong framework (The Montreal Canadiens should belong to someone from Quebec, always and forever)).Honestly the superstar of that era was Pierre Boivin.Holy smokes did Boivin did an amazing job in that era to boost the fanbase, and he used history for it, which I have a positive bias for since I'm somewhat of an hockey historian.

So that's just one era where things didn't pan out, but it was still a decent shot.Many teams will have those and fail, that's allright.This current era seems unforgivable though.That's the apparences anyway.The Houle era is more complicated and I don't feel like getting into it all.It's been covered completely before.

 

[Kriss E]

Some hustlers are more scholarly than many scholars.Going head on against reality and coming out on top requires a lot of subtlety.When I say hustler I'm not really talking about a coke dealer here obviously, but even then I don't rule out that a smart coke dealer could become a great GM.

Problem with requiring experience, is that how the hell do you get experience GMing a team? That's not an easy thing to get into, even at the smaller levels.And even if it easier to get in, it's not something people would think about doing.This is why I would always try to find these guys prior to needing them, so you can keep them around so they learn in the shadows.

And Bergevin, from what I see, has no street smart and the only scholarly thing about him are his glasses (and even then, they're not scholarly).The worst of both worlds.But I leave the possibility open that I miss crucial information and that he did all the perfect moves in a very bad situation.

I agree I want a trend starter and not someone always reacting or copycatting.

By similar experience, I didn't necessarily meant as a hockey exec.
A hockey GM is someone that is pretty much in charge of overseeing a huge business. He needs to build a team of advisors underneath him that will be in charge of their own departments.

I'm fairly certain any savvy business man, who's proven himself, would be smart enough to know how to surround himself properly in any type of business.
Hockey is simply a different industry, the details change but the bulk of the work remains similar.
Just look at our own situation. Bergevin has someone overseeing the draft, has amateur and pro scouts that are working with their own directors. He has someone in charge of the farm team.
The only thing Bergevin is really in charge of are negotitions and the NHL head coach.
Who he targets on the free agency, trade front or draft, will stem from reports he gets from his troopers.

What is important is to have someone that understands the game, know where it's headed, with an innovative mind. He needs to be a good staff evaluator too, because hiring bozos like Sly isn't going to help you.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

What went wrong in the past 25 years? Who's to blame?

Players? Coaches? Gms? Owners?

Media then Fans

Incredibly boring hockey with limited/no success and they're still treated/followed like the legendary teams of the past and sell out every game

Restrictions on who can manage/coach/play based on language

Such history, Original 6, so many HOFs/Cups, tradition, blah blah blah, such bullshit is more like it

If 10 people showed up in the stands to start the 2018-19 season and no media there would be a day of reckoning

Management need to know it's ok to rebuild and it's ok to get the best people for the job on or off the ice but after that just making the playoffs should never be a goal nor celebrated as an achievement

 

[OldCraig71]

I'm pretty sure they lost the first 2 in Quebec City. The reason I always remember that is because the final four teams were the 3rd place teams from each division.

You are correct, my memory failed me on that one or it might have been the Gibsons or Grants or whatever I was drinking when I posted that. Cheers.

 

[Tighthead]

You are correct, my memory failed me on that one or it might have been the Gibsons or Grants or whatever I was drinking when I posted that. Cheers.

I think in game 3 (maybe 4) the Habs scored in OT. It was under review, and Demers sent them to the room. It was waived off and they came out and scored again.

Those games were so fun to attend.

When the Habs knocked them out in game 6, Pagé pulled Hextall, them out him back in. DiPietro got a breakaway and scored again. Yanked again. Fans were eating it up.

As time wound down, Pagé went up and down the bench, unloading on his players. I remember him being in Sundin’s ear for what must have been 20 seconds, cursing a blue streak and calling him soft.

 

[FloJack]

Watched it last night, it was great and transported me back to being 14. Geez, I remember game 2 so well, those last 2 Desjardins goal forever etched into my soul. I had to watch game 5, recorded on VHS after it was over due to being the lead in my grade 9 drama class play. My dad didn't come to the play.

 

[JianYang]

I'm pretty sure they lost the first 2 in Quebec City. The reason I always remember that is because the final four teams were the 3rd place teams from each division.

They did lose the first two in QC, and obviously went on to win the cup. Caps have a chance to pull that feat this year, although it's not a completely foreign concept recently. Canes did it in 06, and bruins did it in 2011.... And that's just series involving the habs... Maybe there are more examples out there.