Who or what is to blame

[yave1964]

First off, I don't have a horse in this race, I am a Wings fan but have been watching this series with great interest, along with the Pens/Isles series it is the most absorbing series of the first round, IMHO. I have a simple question for Canadien fans as well as a few observations of my own.
Who or what do you blame for the 3-1 deficit?

My observations in no particular order:

1. Injuries. They happen to every team, Ottawa has gotten healthy at the right time while Montreal is trying to play through an assortment of injuries that have thrown the lines and matchups off.

2. Officiating. While I disagree with blaming every little thing on officiating this series has lost control every way possible. I think last night every close call went against the Canadiens, not saying the calls were wrong, they just didn't go your way. Breaks tend to even out over the course of a long series.

3. Therrien not having the team ready for playoff Hockey. They were very pedestrian down the stretch, especially defensively after losing Emelin. Personally, I believe Therrien needed to adjust his teams game to make up for the loss and did not do a good job.

4. Youth and inexperience. Ryder, Moen and Gionta have all won a cup, a half dozen others have had deep playoff runs but too many of the players have never faced the battle that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

5. Carey Price. Price played a heck of a game last night and the team still lost on two questionable calls. Gotta worry about where his head is right now.

6. Paul Maclean has his team better prepared for the rigors of the playoffs than Therrien has with his charges. Ottawa deserves credit, Montreal has just ran in to a team that is healthy at the right time and is lead by a coach that seems to have Therriens number.

THIS IS NOT AN ATTEMPT TO TROLL. I have, like I said watched every minute of the series with great interest, just wondering what everyone else thinks is going on and why. Thanks.

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[Ginu]

We are not built for the playoffs. It's simple. Players who have a lot of heart and take a beating all game will eventually run out of gas in the third period. It's why we haven't been able to keep leads all year. In my opinion at least.

Get guys who can protect Price's crease.
Get guys who can make the opposing goalie's life miserable in front of the net.

That's what's to blame for me. The makeup of this team.

 

[Marc the Habs Fan]

To me, it's the long 5 on 3 PP in Game 1.

Score there, make it 3-1, and I think the series is vastly different. Plus our PP has been terrible ever since then.

 

[WhiskeySeven*]

Therrien.

I've been saying it all year, this team's defensive structure is non-existent. Hyper-aggressive D makes for fast paced hockey, which benefits us, but almost every miscue is a great scoring chance against and good coaches can exploit that.

Bergevin.

He should've picked up depth. Pittsburgh is just as bad as us defensively, with an even worse goalie, but all their pickups looks great. Bergevin betrayed our season.

The D

God-awful play by Diaz, Gorges and Markov. Bouillon is his usual dopey self, good plays but bad IQ. Subban is trying to do too much and Tinordi is a rookie. It's Therrien to blame because we know that Diaz, Gorges and Markov are all really good defenseman but this system exposes them harshly.

Price.

I think he's a top5 goalie but he's paid a like a superstar and needs to lead the team to a few untimely victories. Last game he played very well but we needed him to play lights out a few games and he didn't. It's okay, I believe in him but he's not blame-free.

 

[Jee]

We can't pass.

We can't clear our zone.

We are weak physically.

 

[holyhabs]

Anderson

 

[Habskrieg]

The way I see it.

Nobody's helping Price in his crease. We see it to much, that a Sens player just stands in front of him.
Lack of proper defensive coverage. Most of our goals have happened because we failed to look around and cover a man.
Lack of setting a player that truly bothers Anderson. Yes, we've started putting some guys to take the rebounds. But they aren't screening, they aren't really menacing Anderson. Their goalie clearly sees the puck and makes the save, then keeps it.
Not crashing the net enough. Yes, we're shooting a lot. But most of them are perimeter shots. Most of our goals have been from standing really close to their crease.

We could blame the refs. Yest they sucked. But deep down, we weren't doing everything in order to win. And officiating could go bad for any side, it's a two option Russian roulette.

I'd say we have a lot of inexperienced players. But so far, the most inexperienced have been the better surprises and the least of our worries. Galchenyuk has shown that he has a lot of potential. Gallagher has been a genius, amazing to watch and the usual little ball of hate we all love. And while Tinordi has done, one big mistake, he's been excellent so far. For a rookie, that's huge, feels just like when Subban made his debuts.

What has annoyed me most is how some players haven't been giving it their all like some other players have. This is the playoffs. Only half the teams get there and even rarer are those who reach the finals. You have to give it your all to the point of self sacrifice if you want to win. It's important to pace yourself, but you always have to be on top of your opposition.

However, our biggest flaw is not having a team that plays better defensively. We play great offensively, but in the playoffs, defense is most important.

 

[Seb]

Their inability to hold a god damn lead. It's been like this for years. Damn tired of this crap.

 

[Bob Cole]

1. our play in the third period
2. injuries
3. Therrien

 

[That Habs Fan]

With Emelin out Subban is our only remotely intimidating dman (aside from the rookie Tinordi).

Our D needs a world of help this offseason.

Also, injuries.

Also, no size in our top 6 since Pacioretty is obviously playing hurt (hate to say it, but, I wish we had 11/12 Cole around...

 

[Sterling Archer]

Am I the only one who thinks that we outplayed Ottawa 3 of the 4 games. If not for Anderson (Neo from the Matrix) this series is easily 3-1 Montreal.

As a result of some shaky goaltending, poor team play, bad calls and no puck luck, it's the opposite and we're down 3-1.

Good news is that if we keep playing the way we have been, I'm fairy certain we can win a couple more to take it to a game 7, if they haven't checked out mentally which they haven't done all year.

I don't blame anyone in particular, some times you just lose, deserving or not. If I had to blame someone, it's Tim Peel and the linesmen last night. We go from taking back home ice and a 2-2 series to being down 3-1 based on a multitude of missed calls and blind eyes.

 

[yave1964]

With Emelin out Subban is our only remotely intimidating dman (aside from the rookie Tinordi).

Our D needs a world of help this offseason.

Also, injuries.

Also, no size in our top 6 since Pacioretty is obviously playing hurt (hate to say it, but, I wish we had 11/12 Cole around...

I am not going to lie, I have only seen about a half dozen Canadien games this year, Emelin impressed but he didn't remind me of Larry Robinson or anything, is he that good that when he went out the whole defense fell apart? How is that possible? Even down the stretch in the regular season Price was giving up 4-5 goals a game after Emelin went out. How is that possible?

 

[Monctonscout]

First off, I don't have a horse in this race, I am a Wings fan but have been watching this series with great interest, along with the Pens/Isles series it is the most absorbing series of the first round, IMHO. I have a simple question for Canadien fans as well as a few observations of my own.
Who or what do you blame for the 3-1 deficit?

My observations in no particular order:

1. Injuries. They happen to every team, Ottawa has gotten healthy at the right time while Montreal is trying to play through an assortment of injuries that have thrown the lines and matchups off.

2. Officiating. While I disagree with blaming every little thing on officiating this series has lost control every way possible. I think last night every close call went against the Canadiens, not saying the calls were wrong, they just didn't go your way. Breaks tend to even out over the course of a long series.

3. Therrien not having the team ready for playoff Hockey. They were very pedestrian down the stretch, especially defensively after losing Emelin. Personally, I believe Therrien needed to adjust his teams game to make up for the loss and did not do a good job.

4. Youth and inexperience. Ryder, Moen and Gionta have all won a cup, a half dozen others have had deep playoff runs but too many of the players have never faced the battle that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

5. Carey Price. Price played a heck of a game last night and the team still lost on two questionable calls. Gotta worry about where his head is right now.

6. Paul Maclean has his team better prepared for the rigors of the playoffs than Therrien has with his charges. Ottawa deserves credit, Montreal has just ran in to a team that is healthy at the right time and is lead by a coach that seems to have Therriens number.

THIS IS NOT AN ATTEMPT TO TROLL. I have, like I said watched every minute of the series with great interest, just wondering what everyone else thinks is going on and why. Thanks.

I think MacLean gets massively overrated as a coach. Having your goalie stand on his head and stealing games doesn't make you a great coach. If he was that smart we wouldn't have gotten 50 shots in game 1 including 27 in the 2nd period.

 

[Markowicz]

The refs.

No team that works as hard as we do should have gotten so few PP's in last night's game. And of course that was just the tip of the iceberg, with blown faceoff call, the blown pucking kicking goal, and the icings that were marginal at best.

I hate to say it, because i truly believe in the "no excuses" mantra, but we've been seriously screwed by the refs this series.

Besides that, obviously the injuries have hurt us a lot. But there is no doubt in my mind that we've been the better team this series, absolutely no doubt. Its really been a case of biased reffing and Anderson sitting on his head.

 

[habdynasty]

We are not built for the playoffs. It's simple. Players who have a lot of heart and take a beating all game will eventually run out of gas in the third period. It's why we haven't been able to keep leads all year. In my opinion at least.

Get guys who can protect Price's crease.
Get guys who can make the opposing goalie's life miserable in front of the net.

That's what's to blame for me. The makeup of this team.

I would agree, it's hard to believe the habs had a bigger stronger team 30 years ago.

 

[Markowicz]

I am not going to lie, I have only seen about a half dozen Canadien games this year, Emelin impressed but he didn't remind me of Larry Robinson or anything, is he that good that when he went out the whole defense fell apart? How is that possible? Even down the stretch in the regular season Price was giving up 4-5 goals a game after Emelin went out. How is that possible?

Emelin made Markov look good, kind of like how Pacioretty has made Desharnais look good.Basically Markov rarely hit i the corner when Emelin played alongside, he was able to play a more free and easy approach. Once we lost Emelin had to start shuffling the D pairings, Markov started to become a serious liability. Even playing with Subban, the best D on the team, he's still not as comfortable as he was with Emelin.

Losing Emelin has forced Tinordi into an important role, and he's barely played at all this year. We went out at got Drewiskie, but he was simply a stop-gap til Diaz came back.

 

[Znthnk]

First off, I don't have a horse in this race, I am a Wings fan but have been watching this series with great interest, along with the Pens/Isles series it is the most absorbing series of the first round, IMHO. I have a simple question for Canadien fans as well as a few observations of my own.
Who or what do you blame for the 3-1 deficit?

My observations in no particular order:

1. Injuries. They happen to every team, Ottawa has gotten healthy at the right time while Montreal is trying to play through an assortment of injuries that have thrown the lines and matchups off.

2. Officiating. While I disagree with blaming every little thing on officiating this series has lost control every way possible. I think last night every close call went against the Canadiens, not saying the calls were wrong, they just didn't go your way. Breaks tend to even out over the course of a long series.

3. Therrien not having the team ready for playoff Hockey. They were very pedestrian down the stretch, especially defensively after losing Emelin. Personally, I believe Therrien needed to adjust his teams game to make up for the loss and did not do a good job.

4. Youth and inexperience. Ryder, Moen and Gionta have all won a cup, a half dozen others have had deep playoff runs but too many of the players have never faced the battle that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

5. Carey Price. Price played a heck of a game last night and the team still lost on two questionable calls. Gotta worry about where his head is right now.

6. Paul Maclean has his team better prepared for the rigors of the playoffs than Therrien has with his charges. Ottawa deserves credit, Montreal has just ran in to a team that is healthy at the right time and is lead by a coach that seems to have Therriens number.

THIS IS NOT AN ATTEMPT TO TROLL. I have, like I said watched every minute of the series with great interest, just wondering what everyone else thinks is going on and why. Thanks.

Excellent post, and appreciated from a potentially new division rival's fan.

1. Injuries surely hurt the Canadiens, yet what I found is that Therrien is a bit slower than MacLean to adapt. In this category, the Sens coach has been brilliant all season long. In fairness to Therrien, in a shortened season and training camp, he hasn't fully gotten to know his players. There were hints of Martin in overplaying the vets at the expense of the youth in the last game. Also it is becoming increasingly apparent that NHL hockey is a big man's sport, with a few exceptions. The wear and tear of a 82 game season seems to affect smaller players more than bigger ones, particularly on defense.

2. I'm not going to complain about one particular game, but would like to be greater consistency between the playoffs and the regular season when it comes to officiating. Also some sort of transparency and accountability when it comes to referees. I think refs should also get some sort of awards for fairness, maybe judged by GMs and coaches leaguewide.

3. Agree and addressed in point 1

4. I think that often experience can be overvalued, note how well Ottawa's youth has performed in clutch moments. Not to say that a judicious sprinkling of vets isn't necessary, yet I believe in the grueling journey of a cup run, the energy of youth shouldn't be overlooked.

5. I am somewhat concerned about Price's ability to handle pressure, yet I remain confident of his abilities and talent as a number one goaltender. I think a beefier D to help him in his crease, should increase his confidence, and his in turn would help his D.

6. I agree that MacLean has gotten under Therrien's skin, but I think it's too early to say he has his number for good. Therrien's comments about MacLean's commentary on the Eller hit was appropiate since a player was badly hurt, but his "timeout" complaints seemed more like whining. He's gotta live by his own motto, "No Excuses" if he's to have greater cred with his players and the fanbase. MacLean is a good coach, but his off the cuff remarks may hurt him in some other series where an opposing team has the horses to be motivated to defeat him. For now, it's clearly not the Habs.

I don't think this is a troll, and appreciate a rare insight from another team's fan. Thanks!

 

[CupInSIX]

Same old story for the Habs: too many small guys trying to play twice their size, not enough big, physical guys. Or rather, only 2 guys ever on the ice at a time to stand up for their teammates.

Ultimately, you have to point to the fact that the Habs just didn't get big enough. Well, not just big, physical. This has been the same story for a decade: smaller players getting abused, 1 or 2 bigger players having to take the brunt of the hits.

You can go back to Gilmour getting pushed around and Souray being bandaged up like a mummy; teams always know which guys to target: the small speedy guys & the players who want to protect them.

I'm not just talking about the post-season, this has gone on since the lockout ended. So instead of Gilmour and Souray the current incarnation is Gallagher and Prust getting injured and frustrated. Then one by one anyone else who wants to play physical gets injured trying to pick up the slack.

Then you have a team hobbling into the playoffs.

 

[habs88]

First off, I don't have a horse in this race, I am a Wings fan but have been watching this series with great interest, along with the Pens/Isles series it is the most absorbing series of the first round, IMHO. I have a simple question for Canadien fans as well as a few observations of my own.
Who or what do you blame for the 3-1 deficit?

My observations in no particular order:

1. Injuries. They happen to every team, Ottawa has gotten healthy at the right time while Montreal is trying to play through an assortment of injuries that have thrown the lines and matchups off.

2. Officiating. While I disagree with blaming every little thing on officiating this series has lost control every way possible. I think last night every close call went against the Canadiens, not saying the calls were wrong, they just didn't go your way. Breaks tend to even out over the course of a long series.

3. Therrien not having the team ready for playoff Hockey. They were very pedestrian down the stretch, especially defensively after losing Emelin. Personally, I believe Therrien needed to adjust his teams game to make up for the loss and did not do a good job.

4. Youth and inexperience. Ryder, Moen and Gionta have all won a cup, a half dozen others have had deep playoff runs but too many of the players have never faced the battle that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

5. Carey Price. Price played a heck of a game last night and the team still lost on two questionable calls. Gotta worry about where his head is right now.

6. Paul Maclean has his team better prepared for the rigors of the playoffs than Therrien has with his charges. Ottawa deserves credit, Montreal has just ran in to a team that is healthy at the right time and is lead by a coach that seems to have Therriens number.

THIS IS NOT AN ATTEMPT TO TROLL. I have, like I said watched every minute of the series with great interest, just wondering what everyone else thinks is going on and why. Thanks.

I wouldn't put as much blame on therrien as other people will but I will say the galchy move yesterday was weird. (Keeping his veterans on as long as he can to run down the clock and keep the 2-0 lead)?

The injuries are a big part, but Ottawa has injuries too, not as many but spezza would have helped them out a lot we can't forget that.

It's not price at all what a game last night price had a weak start a bit and let 2 soft ones in the last 4 game and they were both in the blow out so he's been really good for us(too bad he's out)

The officiating was terrible yesterday however these things happen (look at sedins penalty yesterday )

All in all a lot of the things you named we're spot on and to me shows your watching this series more than some other people who call themselves Habs fans.

And not trolling at all good thread buddy

 

[KingGallagherXI]

Therrien.

I've been saying it all year, this team's defensive structure is non-existent. Hyper-aggressive D makes for fast paced hockey, which benefits us, but almost every miscue is a great scoring chance against and good coaches can exploit that.

********. The Canadiens give up almost no odd-man rushes compared to the Senators, and we have a lot less turnovers than the Sens. Our coaching is excellent. This is a classic case of headless chicken arguments.

 

[RandR]

I don't blame anyone,

The Canadiens were not as bad as their 15-place conference finish last year, and neither are they as good as their 2nd-place conference finish this year. Therrien did a terrific job to lead them to a divisional title but I think that led to overly optimistic expectations going into the playoffs. As it was, on nhl.com, a bare majority of their writers/analysts (9-8) thought the Habs would win this series, not what one would normally expect in a 2 vs 7 series.

Bergevin was right not to make any big acquisitions before the trade deadline, because this team is not a contender yet. He did a great job in one year, but personnel is still the issue. Biggest problems are that their defense needs to improve, and they lack a number 1 line.

Fortunately, on the horizon their defense should get better with Tinordi and Beaulieu, and on forward I'm convinced Galchenyuk will become not only a first-line player, but a star.

I don't know what other moves would help; I trust Bergevin to figure that out.

 

[FloJack]

It's real simple, Habs aren't just good enough yet. Lots of great pieces, lots to look forward to, but still a work in progress. Bergevin is waiting for some contracts to expire and put his stamp on the team, he obviously doesn't love the roster that much if he didn't want to add anything to it for the sake of some futures at the deadline. You can look for all of the excuses you want, and some being found these playoffs are valid, but a good team wins when they have to. Habs just aren't there yet but are going in the right direction and we should be happy for that. Patience still required, this was a weird season all over the map.

EDIT: The series ain't over yet either.

 

[Dominator13]

Bergevin.

He should've picked up depth. Pittsburgh is just as bad as us defensively, with an even worse goalie, but all their pickups looks great. Bergevin betrayed our season.

Our depth is excellent, it's our main firepower that has sucked and especially the lack of size on the top 6 that has been evident. It's not like those kind of players grow on trees or anything.

 

[Young Gun]

Price, Markov, Gionta, Plex,( non playoff guy ) all the money guys ... stinky performances at best !!

The new rookies make the names above look old and worn out !!!

 

[Milhouse40]

1- The lost of Eller and Emelin

Eller was our best offensive center in the second half of the season (19pts in his last 25 games).

Emelin was 1st on the Habs for Hits and Eller was 3rd...both players didn't played all 48 games. Can't loose two of your big guys/Hittters without having problems.

These lost are huge..


The Desharnais-Pacioretty duo

These players are supposed to be our most offensive forward.
They didn't generate any offense, they were pretty much invisible in this series.
They killed our 5 on 3 in game 1, didn't generate nothing on the PP

They had one job to do and they failed to do it


Carey Price

Couple of soft goals here and there.....but still, even with top notch goalie, that serie would probably be 2-2 right now.


Inexperience from the kids

We've asked to much of them, they are rookies and rookies will make mistake.
It's totally normal.

But we can't ask Galchy to be at center while playing wings all year long, normal that the kid is a little lost, but still was pretty good offensively.

Gallagher is a workhorse but needed someone to protect him a little bit.....and playing with softies DD and Pacioretty while trying to carry that line on his back was too much to ask.