Speculation: Not as much pressure to make the playoffs next year for the Habs?

justafan22

Registered User
Jun 22, 2014
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An interesting tidbit that was buried in the Pacioretty piece here, where Friedman thinks he's getting dealt, and the hangup won't be about if he's getting dealt and it's more about the return he potentially could bring back. Mentions Trochek being the ask at the deadline.

Friedman thinks Pacioretty still likely getting dealt

Anyways. Here's the salient point that makes me wonder if MB is indeed here for a while longer:

“I think the other thing going on there is that I think in Montreal, I don’t think there’s as much pressure to make the playoffs next year. I think the direction is now to rebuild a bit, and that says to me they can be a little bit better about, ‘We don’t necessarily need to trade Pacioretty.’ Help now would be nice, but it says to me it could be more of a potentially futures deal because Montreal is trying to restock.”
 

Runner77

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Jun 24, 2012
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Seeing this post on another fan board makes it all the more obvious how vulnerable some people think the Habs are and extrapolate from that, how willing they are to trade futures. I've withheld the fan's name as it's irrelevant, but this kind of thinking is probably universal:

Now if we could acquire the #3OA from MTL, that would be interesting. Because we all know MTL is in perpetual "win now" mode.

This is what you get with 6 years of Bergevin patchwork, "build through the draft". We have a unique opportunity for a rebuild of some kind. That 3OA shouldn't be going anywhere.
 

Habs100

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Nov 6, 2013
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Well I for one hope we miss the playoffs, so Bergevin gets fired and we get another high draft pick to add to a talented young core to build around.

So if other fans are also rooting against team success, maybe there won't be pressure to win. But then again, if the team isn't winning there will be a real ugly feeling in the air, as there always is when we're not winning in Montreal.
 

Adam Michaels

Registered User
Jun 12, 2016
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Montreal
Well I for one hope we miss the playoffs, so Bergevin gets fired and we get another high draft pick to add to a talented young core to build around.

So if other fans are also rooting against team success, maybe there won't be pressure to win. But then again, if the team isn't winning there will be a real ugly feeling in the air, as there always is when we're not winning in Montreal.

If the expectation is to not make the playoffs, then missing the playoffs won't get him fired.
 
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Habs100

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Nov 6, 2013
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If the expectation is to not make the playoffs, then missing the playoffs won't get him fired.

From the sounds of the press conference, Molson wants us to be competitive. The fan base will be very pissed if at the end of the year Molson says he wanted us to be better this year, and we were. That would really suck if Bergevin's new emphasis on speed allows us to have a "better" team that still sucks, and he keeps his job because of it.

Wake up Geoff. We're in this mess because of Bergevin's decisions: letting Subban, Radulov, Markov, Sergachev, and even Eller go, and bringing in Shaw, Alzner, Drouin, Hemsky, Schlemko and aging Weber to replace them. It's horrible decision making.
 
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Adam Michaels

Registered User
Jun 12, 2016
77,277
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Montreal
From the sounds of the press conference, Molson wants us to be competitive. The fan base will be very pissed if at the end of the year Molson says he wanted us to be better this year, and we were. That would really suck if Bergevin's new emphasis on speed allows us to have a "better" team that still sucks, and he keeps his job because of it.

Wake up Geoff. We're in this mess because of Bergevin's decisions: letting Subban, Radulov, Markov, Sergachev, and even Eller go, and bringing in Shaw, Alzner, Drouin, Hemsky, Schlemko and aging Weber to replace them. It's horrible decision making.
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Why is it "ageing" Weber? Isn't everyone else ageing, too? It's not like Weber's 36 about to turn 37. He'll be 33 to start this coming season. And yet you complain that they let Markov go, yet he's 7 years older than Weber.
 
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My body is ready for another trainwreck season, if it mean a top 5 big again next year - and Bergevin departure probably as well.
 

habsgirl5000

Registered User
Jul 15, 2017
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i fully expect us to not make the playoffs.....im just hoping we finish low enough for a good draft pick and not something like 9-10 in the conference

i really can't see how this team can seriously compete with anybody in our conference, with the exception of buffalo and ottawa
 

Habs100

Registered User
Nov 6, 2013
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Why is it "ageing" Weber? Isn't everyone else ageing, too? It's not like Weber's 36 about to turn 37. He'll be 33 to start this coming season. And yet you complain that they let Markov go, yet he's 7 years older than Weber.

Markov was available without giving up an asset, coming off a season where he was on pace to be top 15 in the NHL in points by a dman and the coaching staff couldn't keep off the top pair.

Yes I'm upset about losing 4 of PK's prime years 27-30 to acquire for Weber at 31 when he can only slow down and the league is getting younger and faster.

It was a bad move by a bad GM who wants players (Alzner and Shaw) that were more effective in a different NHL.
 

Habs Icing

Formerly Onice
Jan 17, 2004
19,520
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Montreal
And yet people become moderators all the time on this shindig. :sarcasm:
Wilde wrote a third line to that saw but his lover at the time told him it was downer so Oscar scratched it off.

Moderation is a fatal thing. Nothing succeeds like excess. And nothing fails like excess.

I hope you guys know I'm joking about Oscar, his lover and the third line.
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
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I think we get a 10-20 range pick in 2019... so We either just make it or are in middle of the pack to bottom 3rd range.

No way we start the year next year like we did this past season. It won’t be easy for our team to tank into a top 5 pick again. Possible but I think we rebound a bit
 

Skip Bayless

The Skip Bayless Show
Aug 28, 2014
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It's probably wiser for fans to truly tame their expectations for next year and I hope the organization stops selling fake hope for their own sake.
 
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Zorba

Registered User
May 26, 2011
11,505
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An interesting tidbit that was buried in the Pacioretty piece here, where Friedman thinks he's getting dealt, and the hangup won't be about if he's getting dealt and it's more about the return he potentially could bring back. Mentions Trochek being the ask at the deadline.

Friedman thinks Pacioretty still likely getting dealt

Anyways. Here's the salient point that makes me wonder if MB is indeed here for a while longer:
That’s complete BS. If there’s no pressure to make the playoffs , Bergevin woulda been canned and new gm would start the rebuild
Also then you have to trade Weber and try unloading price
 

sandviper

No Ragrets
Jan 26, 2016
13,365
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Toronto
If the expectation is to not make the playoffs, then missing the playoffs won't get him fired.

Guess it depends how we miss the playoffs. If we’re battling, losing mostly 1-2 goal games and putting in a solid effort, I think that is the best they can hope for (and MB not getting fired).

If we’re dominated and blown out a bunch of times and putting in terrible effort levels, much like this season, then MB will be shown the door, he can take CJ with him.
 

Chili

En boca cerrada no entran moscas
Jun 10, 2004
8,440
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Why is it "ageing" Weber? Isn't everyone else ageing, too? It's not like Weber's 36 about to turn 37. He'll be 33 to start this coming season. And yet you complain that they let Markov go, yet he's 7 years older than Weber.
That phrase `so and so isn`t getting any younger` seems oft repeated.

Who is getting younger?

We`ll see what moves they make this summer, hopefully low on bad contracts and quick fixes.

If they start committing to younger players over the next couple of seasons, there will be growing pains.

If they want to be transparent, they should be honest too about the long term direction of the team.
 

GHJimmy

We made it here.
Mar 30, 2018
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I'm hoping we have another shit season next year so that we either acquire Lafrenierre or Jack Hughes! Finally a top centre we may get or badly need for long term! Tankathon for one more season and bam! Let's hit number 1 overall pick, maybe get couple first round picks like 2018 second round picks we got!
 

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