This Team is The Real Deal!

[simplysincere*]

This team is the real deal. That's all I can say. It's amazing what great management/coaching can do, literally. With the exception of 5 new players (Gally, Chucky, Ryder, Prust, and Bouillon), this team has the exact same core as last season, yet somehow, someway, they are a solid 1st place team, and have been for a while. Mind over matter. A good coach/management, can take almost any team or player, and make them into contenders. Eller has to be the biggest improvement too, for the first time in his career, he looks confident.

They even have our backup, Budaj, playing like a starter. This season, I can say, I'm proud to be a Habs fan, not because of our position in the conference, but because the team more importantly is playing with effort, and you can never fault effort, win or lose.

Click to read more...

 

[TennisMenace]

Good post, but Gionta and Markov are now healthy, unlike last year, and PK and Diaz are one year wiser.

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

Could use a top player in a trade, maybe it's too expensive but a Perry or a Iggy if Bergy believe we can be a contender.

 

[Undertakerqc]

Very impressive start indeed!!

 

[HBDay]

We were bad last year....


But we weren't florida panthers bad. Jacques martin ranks probably number one on my list of worst nhl coaches ever.

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

We were bad last year....


But we weren't florida panthers bad. Jacques martin ranks probably number one on my list of worst nhl coaches ever.

We added Markov, Gionta, Bourque, Galchenyuk, Gallagher, Prust and Bouillon since he left.

 

[Nedved]

until they beat a team in the west, they have not proved anything. will see if they can even make it to the cup, probably will not get that far though because they don't have a heavyweight.

 

[Bob b smith]

It's getting to fans of teams that are chasing us that we're always winning or finding a way to come back and get a point. They don't understand (tbh I don't completely understand either).

 

[Kriss E]

We were bad last year....


But we weren't florida panthers bad. Jacques martin ranks probably number one on my list of worst nhl coaches ever.

Martin didn't even coach half the games last year. Our crap year falls on Cunneyworth.

 

[Whitesnake]

It's all good....if you think that the Florida Panthers are the measuring stick...but I don't. Yes, I know...it's not SOLELY about beating the Panthers but yet...think about that. Would you have started a "This team is the real deal" if we would have lost that game?

 

[MSLs absurd thighs]

Martin didn't even coach half the games last year. Our crap year falls on Cunneyworth.

It might be, but still. How could this team, with many players that are the same, be at the very bottom of the league for offense in Martin's year, and go straight to the top (almost) with Therrien in?

Now, Emelin, Diaz improved, Markov is back, and Gallagher is there. Gionta is also healthy. But does it make the difference between a 28th offense and a top-5 offense? Some of it has to come from the coaches' philosophies.

 

[Luigi Habs]

We were bad last year....


But we weren't florida panthers bad. Jacques martin ranks probably number one on my list of worst nhl coaches ever.

We were like 9th or 10th when Jacques Martin was fired. Jacques was a very good coach who was entitled to play with his own way.

 

[Kriss E]

It's all good....if you think that the Florida Panthers are the measuring stick...but I don't. Yes, I know...it's not SOLELY about beating the Panthers but yet...think about that. Would you have started a "This team is the real deal" if we would have lost that game?

I think it has more to do with being 1st in the East, and staying there, and seemingly always finding ways to pull out the wins, than beating the Panthers.

 

[BenchBrawl]

We were like 9th or 10th when Jacques Martin was fired. Jacques was a very good coach who was entitled to play with his own way.

I loled

 

[CHarlie]

Yeah this game is no measuring stick for sure...........but the road trip, and the system that has been played, to a tee, versus every team, on this trip, deserves major credit,,,,,,for show!!!!

 

[Whitesnake]

I think it has more to do with being 1st in the East, and staying there, and seemingly always finding ways to pull out the wins, than beating the Panthers.

Well I guess we have to start somewhere. A team that is THE REAL DEAL prooves it in the playoffs. A very good team in a parity league might be doing what we're doing. Which being 1st....or 4th....while not destroying the other teams around us. In the end, we won't have 10 points over the next team behind us. And on a 48-game schedule...everybody around +/- 5-7 points can beat each other when it count the most.

Make no mistake. We are doing much better than I anticipated. We do end up a very good team. But we will remember it as the last game we will be playing.

 

[Jee]

I loled

He is.

Just ****ing boring to watch his games.

 

[Hackett]

I don't think this team is built well for an immediate playoff run, so the only thing I will say is that the team is making quick strides and progressing very well.

Its still a work in progress with very encouraging results.

 

[Kriss E]

It might be, but still. How could this team, with many players that are the same, be at the very bottom of the league for offense in Martin's year, and go straight to the top (almost) with Therrien in?

Now, Emelin, Diaz improved, Markov is back, and Gallagher is there. Gionta is also healthy. But does it make the difference between a 28th offense and a top-5 offense? Some of it has to come from the coaches' philosophies.

Well I think you answered your post.
Gionta and Markov are back, and doing well.
Bourque was having a pretty good bounce back year before getting injured.
Diaz was having a break out year.
Emelin has progressed nicely and is more solid.
Bouillon has been a very pleasant surprise.
Our rookies have had a positive impact.
Young players like DD, MaxPac, Eller and PK have continued their progression.
Prust has had a key role.

So, ya, it's a much different team than last year. Doesn't mean Therrien doesn't deserve any credit, our coaching staff has done a good job.
But pinning last year's result on Martin isn't fair.

 

[Teufelsdreck]

until they beat a team in the west, they have not proved anything. will see if they can even make it to the cup, probably will not get that far though because they don't have a heavyweight.

Is that the only thing in the way?

 

[Alexdaman]

until they beat a team in the west, they have not proved anything. will see if they can even make it to the cup, probably will not get that far though because they don't have a heavyweight.

Bah I agree Anaheim and Chicago probably take the #1 and #2 spots but this year there is no match in the rest of the conference for MTL, PIT and BOS.

And in the playoffs anything can happen.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Meh, we're still winless against the west.

 

[snakeye]

This forum is pathetic sometimes. Reading some posts it seems like Jacques Martin was worse than Cunneyworth. When the team was doing well, everyone else took the credit (Halak, Markov), and when the team was doing poorly, it was his fault. His system may have been boring to watch, but look at his stats as a coach; he's not nearly as bad as people think.

That being said, I prefer Therrien.

 

[disturbedraven]

As great of a season its been, and may continue to be. This team is far from the "finished" product. Still a long ways to go and a lot to prove come playoffs, but its nice to see how well this team has come together. MB still has a lot of work to do in his re-tooling of this team over the next few seasons. Great to see some hard work paying off though.

 

[Habskrieg]

If only we could start winning more against our own division. We're aren't terrible. But when comparing only games within our division, we're not doing so well. The NE has tough competition with Boston, Toronto and somehow Ottawa. We've got a great team. But we need to be a bit more convincing against our own division.