I think this is a playoff team if....

member 300185

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It means nothing. They have a weak defense and are having a slow start.

Me thinks you have wishful thinking of the Habs not drafting high because you know that if they do, the Leafs will have more competition.
Wrong. I want the Leafs and Habs to meet in the playoffs more than anything. You remind me of my wife. Always looking for a negative angle to put a spin on something.
 

Grate n Colorful Oz

Hutson Hawk
Jun 12, 2007
35,310
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Wrong. I want the Leafs and Habs to meet in the playoffs more than anything. You remind me of my wife. Always looking for a negative angle to put a spin on something.

Dude, it's 5 games. It's not being negative. It's having restraint and tempering expectations. I've been around the block long enough to know it takes a lot more than 5 games to properly asses a team, especially when they are playing over expectations.
 

member 300185

Guest
Dude, it's 5 games. It's not being negative. It's having restraint and tempering expectations. I've been around the block long enough to know it takes a lot more than 5 games to properly asses a team, especially when they are playing over expectations.
Agreed. Thats why I said "small sample size" but I like the positives. But I think we want the same thing.
 

Belial

Registered User
Oct 22, 2014
26,142
14,323
Montreal
Yea, actually go read the previous posts. Over 15 and to me that is "many" when considering the amount that don't believe in this team at all.

I don't know what you think but I'm pretty sure ~90% of this board thought we will be complete trash this season.

Now it's probably the same but around 30% started to doubt...
 

member 300185

Guest
I don't know what you think but I'm pretty sure ~90% of this board thought we will be complete trash this season.

Now it's probably the same but around 30% started to doubt...
Yes, its evident that some fans are starting to come to the positive side. But I can't blame the naysayers. Not many of us predicted such a strong team.
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
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Middle of the pack

Worse place to be is 17th, 18th, 19th and it's very possible we end up in that range.

Before the Pre-Season even started...
- I said I don't see the Habs getting off to a bad start like we did last year.
- I said I am worried about middle of the pack and we are tied 7th in the standings at the moment where teams like the Jets, Pens, Caps, Sharks, Lightning are behind us. 7 teams below us have played 3 or 4 games too.
- I said I expect a bit of rebound.

Pride/Hope/Rebound is nice to see but it's not the recipe that turns our team around into a cup contender for the future. False hope and I want another top 10 pick!

Middle of the pack has me more and more worried. It's a fools game
 

The Gr8 Dane

L'harceleur
Jan 19, 2018
10,829
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Montreal
I thought we would be middle of the pack this year and I still expect it. Parity in this league is real and it takes a special kind of suck to finish last. I would love a top 3-5 overall pick but I know this team is always all about competing it’s a gift and a curse
 

CauZuki

Registered User
Feb 19, 2008
12,289
12,110
I thought we would be middle of the pack this year and I still expect it. Parity in this league is real and it takes a special kind of suck to finish last. I would love a top 3-5 overall pick but I know this team is always all about competing it’s a gift and a curse

It's just a curse , find me a cup winner in the last decade that hasn't had multiple elite talents in their prime. Best we can hope for is an "everything goes right" deep playoff run? What garbage standards.
 
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member 300185

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Worse place to be is 17th, 18th, 19th and it's very possible we end up in that range.

Before the Pre-Season even started...
- I said I don't see the Habs getting off to a bad start like we did last year.
- I said I am worried about middle of the pack and we are tied 7th in the standings at the moment where teams like the Jets, Pens, Caps, Sharks, Lightning are behind us. 7 teams below us have played 3 or 4 games too.
- I said I expect a bit of rebound.

Pride/Hope/Rebound is nice to see but it's not the recipe that turns our team around into a cup contender for the future. False hope and I want another top 10 pick!

Middle of the pack has me more and more worried. It's a fools game
Just an FYI, you are one of my favourite posters. You make solid points almost every single time. We won't always agree, but I think you are solid enough to understand that.
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
25,920
East Coast
Just an FYI, you are one of my favourite posters. You make solid points almost every single time. We won't always agree, but I think you are solid enough to understand that.

Thanks. I have learned to avoid the post wars and try to stay as respectful as I can. I think you got a level head and you realize what is going on on our boards. All we have is opinions and to try to back them up. I have been wrong and not afraid to admit it. I did think Alzner would help out our D :facepalm: but I learned from it.

The beauty of this site is learning from each other. We all have something to offer IMO. Heck, maybe we even helped the Habs decide to draft Kotkaniemi cause they knew it would be received relatively well with our fan base. I have learned a lot from certain posters on this site for sure!
 

The Gr8 Dane

L'harceleur
Jan 19, 2018
10,829
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Montreal
It's just a curse , find me a cup winner in the last decade that hasn't had multiple elite talents in their prime. Best we can hope for is an "everything goes right" deep playoff run? What garbage standards.

Yeah but it’s reality. As a fan we cant do anything about it man.Beer keeps flowing and hot dogs just get better and better too.

Would you rather fold for years like Edmonton and buffalo? Or be mediocre like us...both outcomes suck. Our management would have most likely screwed up tanking just as much as those two lol. Maybe not if we got McDavid but still you get my point. It’s always a lose lose situation with bad management
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
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East Coast
Yeah but it’s reality. As a fan we cant do anything about it man.Beer keeps flowing and hot dogs just get better and better too.

Would you rather fold for years like Edmonton and buffalo? Or be mediocre like us...both outcomes suck. Our management would have most likely screwed up tanking just as much as those two lol. Maybe not if we got McDavid but still you get my point. It’s always a lose lose situation with bad management

This is a good conversation... Many people treated the Habs like we were for sure bottom 5 but overlooked that we have certain pieces that are valuable. I think the measure of success here is how we would look in the short 2 or 3 year window (Price at 33, 34, 35 and Weber at 35, 36, 37) if we are able to get top 10 picks 3 drafts in a row and were able to hit with some of our other top 100 picks.

Honestly, we are to legit to tank if we are healthy and we are not good enough to go on deep playoff runs. It's what I believed before the pre season started and it's starting to look like it.

We are far from being the Oilers, Canes, Sabres, Wings. We still have pieces in place but it comes down to how we address our holes and how fast we can do it
 

CauZuki

Registered User
Feb 19, 2008
12,289
12,110
Yeah but it’s reality. As a fan we cant do anything about it man.Beer keeps flowing and hot dogs just get better and better too.

Would you rather fold for years like Edmonton and buffalo? Or be mediocre like us...both outcomes suck. Our management would have most likely screwed up tanking just as much as those two lol. Maybe not if we got McDavid but still you get my point. It’s always a lose lose situation with bad management

I'd rather a change in culture , in the same way the Leafs did when they cleaned house and got lucky winning the lottery. There are many teams that got a bunch of solid lottery picks and are now top of the food chain... When is our time to really contend and not just this hypothetical anything can happen logic that doesn't hold any value but to save the optimists from crying in a corner.

It's absolutely ridiculous and unbecoming of such a historic franchise. Things can change, accepting mediocrity is exactly how issues stagnate. We need to stop looking for any sliver of hope to overanalyze and put all our hope in... It's insanity.
 
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The Gr8 Dane

L'harceleur
Jan 19, 2018
10,829
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Montreal
This is a good conversation... Many people treated the Habs like we were for sure bottom 5 but overlooked that we have certain pieces that are valuable. I think the measure of success here is how we would look in the short 2 or 3 year window (Price at 33, 34, 35 and Weber at 35, 36, 37) if we are able to get top 10 picks 3 drafts in a row and were able to hit with some of our other top 100 picks.

Those two will not raise a cup for Montreal lol. Think long term 7-8 years in the future that’s where I’m at right now.
 
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Draft

Registered User
Jan 23, 2013
8,368
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1) Players continue to play toward the top end of their ability.
2) A top-6 center is brought in to replace KK.
3) Weber returns and plays at his typical level.
 

The Gr8 Dane

L'harceleur
Jan 19, 2018
10,829
20,638
Montreal
I'd rather a change in culture , in the same way the Leafs did when they cleaned house and got lucky winning the lottery. There are many teams that got a bunch of solid lottery picks and are now top of the food chain... When is our time to really contend and not just this hypothetical anything can happen logic that doesn't hold any value but to save the optimists from crying in a corner.

It's absolutely ridiculous and unbecoming of such a historic franchise. Things can change, accepting mediocrity is exactly how issues stagnate. We need to stop looking for any sliver of hope to overanalyze and put all our hope in... It's insanity.

The mediocre culture within this ownership and management stems deep a change won’t come overnight and won’t come from the fans being pissed off. 5 games in and nobody’s even talking about bergevin anymore because we are somewhat decent to start the season lol. Fans won’t change a thing and molson is making money id love to hear what else we can do about it than complain on a message board
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
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East Coast
Those two will not raise a cup for Montreal lol. Think long term 7-8 years in the future that’s where I’m at right now.

Without rambling on... point form is more effective. This is how I would manage things:

1) I rest vets and anyone with nagging injuries. I let the youth learn on the job but when I say youth, I'm talking about DLR, Scherbak, Mete, Hudon, Lehkonen, Juulsen types.
2) Kotkaniemi goes back to Finland. Reasons are smart management. Might not have to protect him in the next expansion draft and I value him on his ELC from age 19/20+ and not from 18+.
3) I engage in what other teams are willing to pay us for Petry, Byron, Tatar, Danault, Schlemko, Shaw. I'm not trading them all at once but I want futures for them sooner rather than later. I also am not 100% sure I would trade them all. It just comes down to what we are offered for each of them.
4) I want 3 drafts in a row with top 10 picks (including Kotkaniemi).
5) The 20/21 season is where I evaluate our current NHL youth and how our current non NHL prospects have developed. That is 2 more seasons from now and we will have a good idea how they look. Depending on how promising our youth looks (Gallagher and under) and also how Price/Weber look at that point, I decide how to proceed.

Lets say Price and Weber decline more than the average. We just continue with the Gallagher and under core and try to unload their salaries. But I actually think both of these assets are not melting away at rapid rates.

I believe in a short 2 or 3 year window with Price/Weber (33,34,35/35,36,37) and then if that don't work, we still have a very young core with Gallagher and under to keep building on.

I don't believe it will go down like the Leafs and we have 10 years+ of misery
 

CauZuki

Registered User
Feb 19, 2008
12,289
12,110
The mediocre culture within this ownership and management stems deep a change won’t come overnight and won’t come from the fans being pissed off. 5 games in and nobody’s even talking about bergevin anymore because we are somewhat decent to start the season lol. Fans won’t change a thing and molson is making money id love to hear what else we can do about it than complain on a message board

Please, the fans are more fickle than a 13 year old high school kid... The second the Habs go on a losing streak is the moment 99% of the fans jump off this ridiculous bandwagon.

I can only think of the longterm and right now we are on pace to repeat the cycle from 2012, how did that turn out the first time?

There isn't one example of a previous cup winner to do so without multiple top picks. It simply doesn't happen and we are just going down a road of futility and my heart(brain?) can't take it. It's like witnessing a car crash that's about to happen in slow motion but you can't do anything about it...
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
25,920
East Coast
I'd rather a change in culture , in the same way the Leafs did when they cleaned house and got lucky winning the lottery. There are many teams that got a bunch of solid lottery picks and are now top of the food chain... When is our time to really contend and not just this hypothetical anything can happen logic that doesn't hold any value but to save the optimists from crying in a corner.

It's absolutely ridiculous and unbecoming of such a historic franchise. Things can change, accepting mediocrity is exactly how issues stagnate. We need to stop looking for any sliver of hope to overanalyze and put all our hope in... It's insanity.

The problem is at President. We need a hockey guy with some business background. Not a business guy with no hockey background. It takes vision and a strong character (Shanahan) to go to the ownership group and tell him the best way to proceed if we want a cup vs just a playoff team

What does management value? A rebound where they can tell us that we are not as bad as we were last year? Who the f*** cares if we are better than our record last year. The point is winning a cup in Montreal and what the best plan moving forward is. It's not rocket science.

Last year was a humbling experience and we should take advantage of it. Stay at the bottom for a few years, the Habs fan base will forgive you if we get a few more Kotkaniemi types.

Worried about putting people in the seats? Supply and demand. If someone wants to cancel their season passes, someone is in line to pick them up. It's the Montreal Canadians! Management needs to give their head a shake
 
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The Gr8 Dane

L'harceleur
Jan 19, 2018
10,829
20,638
Montreal
Please, the fans are more fickle than a 13 year old high school kid... The second the Habs go on a losing streak is the moment 99% of the fans jump off this ridiculous bandwagon.

I can only think of the longterm and right now we are on pace to repeat the cycle from 2012, how did that turn out the first time?

There isn't one example of a previous cup winner to do so without multiple top picks. It simply doesn't happen and we are just going down a road of futility and my heart(brain?) can't take it. It's like witnessing a car crash that's about to happen in slow motion but you can't do anything about it...

All I’m sayin is your heart (brain) is going to have to keep on taking it because we ain’t tanking anytime soon lol mine is already fried I literally don’t care anymore but I’ve been trying to watch some games to see kotka. I’m assuming there’s alot of people tunning In to watch the kid which is another reason they might keep him up lol
 

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