Speculation: Do the Habs have the toughest defense in the league?

[mariolemieux66]

Oh please, Gudbransson is the only one who hits. Edler is terrible, and the rest are not hard to play against at all.

Source : Father is a season ticket holder.

Vancouver's D is not soft. They have some big physical body this year.

 

[mariolemieux66]

There will never be a 100% healthy Price anymore ever again.

That is also my worries.

 

[Puck Luck Run Amok]

The Penguins won the Cup with a bunch of players who hockey dinosaurs (like Mr. Bergevin) would consider "soft". We're also not the "toughest" D in the league, for christ's sakes Markov (really slow and soft) is our #2 D-man now. Just because Nate fights doesn't mean he's "tough" or tough to play against btw.

 

[mariolemieux66]

The Penguins won the Cup with a bunch of players who hockey dinosaurs (like Mr. Bergevin) would consider "soft". We're also not the "toughest" D in the league, for christ's sakes Markov (really slow and soft) is our #2 D-man now. Just because Nate fights doesn't mean he's "tough" or tough to play against btw.

Beaulieu is not tough to play against you are right. He lack nastyNess, same with Pateryn. Emelin isn't nasty but he is big and strong, knows how to hit and do it cleanly 9 times out of 10. Weber is or can be nasty like taking a guy's head in the glass.

 

[Puck Luck Run Amok]

Beaulieu is not tough to play against you are right. He lack nastyNess, same with Pateryn. Emelin isn't nasty but he is big and strong, knows how to hit and do it cleanly 9 times out of 10. Weber is or can be nasty like taking a guy's head in the glass.

Being dirty isn't being hard to play against lol. Emelin and Weber are tough players, no doubt, but I don't think they're the toughest to play against.

 

[mariolemieux66]

Being dirty isn't being hard to play against lol. Emelin and Weber are tough players, no doubt, but I don't think they're the toughest to play against.

Oh for sure!

Just think Nicklas Lidstrom .

 

[Habitant#1]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

 

[Le Barron de HF]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

Boston is worse in speed.

 

[Tankster*]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

Damn too bad we don't have PK inc.

 

[sandysan]

Beaulieu is not tough to play against you are right. He lack nastyNess, same with Pateryn. Emelin isn't nasty but he is big and strong, knows how to hit and do it cleanly 9 times out of 10. Weber is or can be nasty like taking a guy's head in the glass.

Emelin throws the big opportunistic hit once every game or so but in front of the net, standing still, he's a kitten. All stick checks. Until weber we haven't had a guy who could clear the front of the net for such a long long time ( and before anyone asks, no beaulieu doesnt count).

Pateryn, although "big" never seems to leverage his size to his advantage. Even tinordi was pretty soft in front of the net before we shipped him out.

We don't need guys who can fight, we need guys to make sure that if the opponents are going to ride the blue paint that there is a cost associated with this decision. Weber is one, then there is a huge drop off. we are certainly tougher in the dirty areas but I'm pretty certain that we are not the toughest D in the league.

 

[Le Barron de HF]

Emelin throws the big opportunistic hit once every game or so but in front of the net, standing still, he's a kitten. All stick checks. Until weber we haven't had a guy who could clear the front of the net for such a long long time ( and before anyone asks, no beaulieu doesnt count).

Pateryn, although "big" never seems to leverage his size to his advantage. Even tinordi was pretty soft in front of the net before we shipped him out.

We don't need guys who can fight, we need guys to make sure that if the opponents are going to ride the blue paint that there is a cost associated with this decision. Weber is one, then there is a huge drop off. we are certainly tougher in the dirty areas but I'm pretty certain that we are not the toughest D in the league.

Look around the league. The days of the big bad Bruins or Kings are over.

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

We'll have to find a way to replace the elite poke check of Subban and the overall luck ratio.

 

[Habs]

Cool, your father has his own opinion. Tryamkin is some 6 foot 7 defenseman and had 31 hits in 13 GP. Sbisa had 151 hits last season, he's not soft by any means. If he was then he'd be utterly useless.

Sbisa isnt a punishing hitter .. he gets into more trouble when he attempts a hit, than it's worth. I suspect he's walking a fine line in Van this season. He is like Murray Baron.

anyways, back to the Habs..

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

Beaulieu and Petry are phenomenal skaters.

 

[axman88]

Nothing to do with the toughness of the habs defense...but something to note about the notion of Markov slowing down...

Yeah, there are times at the end of the season he looked slow and tired...and his average ice time was a full minute less than the year before...

Yet he still managed to pick up 44 points...6 less than in the previous year...and the team as a whole just sucked last year.

If managed well, I believe he along with the rest of our D-corp will be damn scary - offensively and defensively.

If you take into account when Subban went down...the defense actually performed quite well...add Weber into the mix and voila...

Weber - Beaulieu
Petry - Emelin
Pateryn/Barberio/Redmond - Markov

I'd alternate Petry and Beaulieu and at times have Markov paired with Emelin (even if one of them will be on their off side).

 

[The Great Weal]

Maybe, but it's one of the slowest in the league.

 

[tinyzombies]

Beaulieu and Petry are phenomenal skaters.

Two out of six ain't bad, right?

 

[Ezpz]

Our D is pretty physical. Markov is the least physical but has become quite grumpy in his old age. Rest of our starting 6 are physical guys. Even if Beaulieu/Petry only dabble in it. Weber/Emelin/Pateryn are all quite physical. Of course Barberio is a powder puff and may be paired with Weber by Christmas if Beaulieu falls out of favour.

 

[Habs Halifax]

Weber (6'-4", 236lbs): One of the hardest players to play against in the NHL

Petry (6'-3", 204lbs): Doesn't play as tough as he can but is very solid all around and will not be pushed around. He can play tough when needed.

Beaulieu (6'-2", 205lbs): He has a bit of edge to his game at times. Gets in fights which shows toughness. Can he play tougher than he does? yes IMO, but he has been working real hard with fitting in the system and this could be his break out year. We will see.

Markov (6'-0", 194lbs): Plays smart. Toughness is not part of his game but has proven to be reliable over a few seasons now.

Emelin (6'-2", 216lbs): Lays some pretty impressive hits at times. Very solid defensibly when he wants to be but got no offensive which limits his value and puck moving skills.

Pateryn (6'-2", 223lbs) Plays a very mean game in his own end. Has improved very very very slightly over the past few seasons.

Barberio (6'-1", 185lbs): His game is not toughness and can be pushed around at times. However, he is good all around, can move the puck, and has some offensive skills.

Toughest in the NHL?... One of the top 5 toughest with the addition of Weber for sure! Replace Markov with a few years of NHL experience of Sergachyov and I do believe the Habs may be the toughest!

 

[lynx]

Man, the disappointment level this year is going to be off the charts.

 

[Habs Halifax]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

Slowest? Just feels that way with the loss of Subban. We not the top 10 that's for sure. I prefer D to make good passes to forwards and move the puck up the ice together. Puck moving is not only skating with it. Passing it to others moves the puck much faster than skating with it. Just saying.

 

[Habs4ev*]

There will never be a 100% healthy Price anymore ever again.

agreed,

his best days are well behind him,

its time to start looking for a replacement NOW!

 

[yianik]

agreed,

his best days are well behind him,

its time to start looking for a replacement NOW!

If you are kidding...haha.

If you are not, we do have a good number of prospects in the system.

 

[Smokey Thompson]

Toughest? No.
Slowest? By a mile.

This might be a huge problem... mobility on the backend if very important in today's NHL, especially when playing against teams like Tampa and Pittsburgh.

 

[missthenet]

Weber (6'-4", 236lbs): One of the hardest players to play against in the NHL

Petry (6'-3", 204lbs): Doesn't play as tough as he can but is very solid all around and will not be pushed around. He can play tough when needed.

Beaulieu (6'-2", 205lbs): He has a bit of edge to his game at times. Gets in fights which shows toughness. Can he play tougher than he does? yes IMO, but he has been working real hard with fitting in the system and this could be his break out year. We will see.

Markov (6'-0", 194lbs): Plays smart. Toughness is not part of his game but has proven to be reliable over a few seasons now.

Emelin (6'-2", 216lbs): Lays some pretty impressive hits at times. Very solid defensibly when he wants to be but got no offensive which limits his value and puck moving skills.

Pateryn (6'-2", 223lbs) Plays a very mean game in his own end. Has improved very very very slightly over the past few seasons.

Barberio (6'-1", 185lbs): His game is not toughness and can be pushed around at times. However, he is good all around, can move the puck, and has some offensive skills.

Toughest in the NHL?... One of the top 5 toughest with the addition of Weber for sure! Replace Markov with a few years of NHL experience of Sergachyov and I do believe the Habs may be the toughest!

would much prefer a great puck moving D, you know like Subban. How many tough D men did Pittsburg have?