Montreal Canadiens

Can we all take a moment to appreciate the genius of Mike Babcock? WIthout Lidstrom for the first time in forever, he's taken an aging team with one defenseman of any note to within one win of the conference finals. Simply astounding. On the other bench, Joel Quennville has been struggling with adversity for the first time this season, and his team seems to be wilting. Jonathan Toews has been a no show, Corey Crawford has been good but human, Brent Seabrook last games was awful. The Blackhawks seem to be in panic mode while the Red Wings function like the well oiled machine that won the cup in 2008 and made the finals in 2009. With their backs against the wall after owning the NHL all season, can the Hawks step up? Follow @AndrewBerkshire Follow @HabsEOTP

A little while ago Andrew Berkshire of Habs Eye On The Prize approached me and asked me to help him write the Puck Daddy Eulogy for the Ottawa Senators. Obvioulsy I said yes and we started it 2 weeks before they lost to the Pens because we're prepared douchebags. Here's the Eulogy, enjoy!http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/eulogy-remembering-2012-13-ottawa-senators-190501244.html

Tuukka Rask singlehandedly let the Rangers back into the series last game, bringing his record when the Bruins have a chance to eliminate a team to a sterling 2-8. But Rask can only allow so many goals against a team with as little offensive punch as the Rangers, and the Bruins' offense isn't going to be dormant. I think this series ends tonight. It's an early game today, starting at 5:30, which means Torts could be fired by the time you're finished dinner. Follow @AndrewBerkshire Follow @HabsEOTP

Do you remember the Bruins' Wheel of Excuses? How about the Youppi slapping the bear? Those wonderful things all came to us courtesy of a man known as Dr. Habs. Dr. Habs is also known as Marc Dumont, and we're very happy to say that Marc will be joining EOTP to bring us his humour on the regular. What can you expect from Marc? Laughs, probably some photoshops, and more laughs. So welcome Marc to the community officially and give him a follow on twitter. Follow @Dr_Habs Follow @HabsEOTP

Because my chances of going to the Bell Centre for the first time ever have increased greatly, due to the fact I’m moving to Montreal and should be no more than a handful of miles from there, I thought I’d search the web and see what I might be in for. (For those who might be wondering why I’ve never been, it’s because I moved across the country before it was built and was never able to get back). Here’s some reviews I found, and although the consensus is that things are pricey at the Bell, most say it’s a great experience nonetheless. Although one person said there’s some obstructed views, which surprises me. Here we go: Nice. Modern. Clean. Great place to watch a game. There are very few “bad” seats. Extraordinarily expensive, because they can. Can’t fault ‘em for that. This is one of the premiere arenas in the NHL and very well organized and modern.  Sure they soak you $11 for a can of beer and food is equally expensive but that’s how they make money! This place oozes hockey heaven for Quebeckers.  I’ve been here to see concerts in the past (John Mayer, U2 and Bon Jovi) and acoustics and sightlines are excellent! Centre Bell isn’t the nicest arenas I’ve been to and it’s not the biggest stadium I’ve been to but absolutely NOBODY can argue that they house some of the greatest fans in North America. Whether it’s a hockey event or a big fight, you’ll be guaranteed that the crowd will hold down their fort and minimize the amount of visiting fans, yes I’m looking at you other Canadian cities!!!!! as well as cheer on their hometown team or stars.  There’s not a lot of places with this much emotion, fun and pride all the time and not just when their team is doing well.  For that MTL I give your Centre Bell a 5 star review. The concerts here are cool too, and with any arena there comes a level where it’s difficult to make out the band but you have to expect that! With 95% of arena’s the food sucks and is overpriced. Was invited to see the last Habs game of the 11/12 season from one of the corporate boxes. The view was good and even though the boxes may appear far away the game is still enjoyable to watch from them. The service was good, each box has it’s own attendant (seemed like all the attendants were pretty girls) and ours was always asking us if we needed any drinks or anything. The boxes come with free food (depends on what was ordered but for us it was delicious smoked meat sandwiches, hot dogs, pizza, fries, and chips, the boxes next to us had different food) and free drinks (espresso, lattes, 3 kinds of beer, juice, pop, or water). Near the end of the game a dessert cart full of many different delicious desserts and alcoholic liquers comes by and you get your pick of what you want. Overall it was a good experience. A typical corporate box is usually pretty nice, has a mini kitchen, living room with a few TVs, and of course opens up to the seating area in the arena (with a few more tvs in front in case you don’t want to strain your eyes looking down). Each box has it’s own bathroom! Aside from having to wait 5 minutes for the elevator, leaving the arena was pretty easy. Packing a sold out arena of 22,000 fans every Habs home game is a great experience, however I’m not quite a fan of the location for concerts and smaller venues – somehow it just doesn’t do it for me. I love the Express Exits that they have – wish other arenas had the same. This hockey arena is any NHL fan’s wet dream come true. It’s comfortable, spacious and has the highest seating capacity in the league, along with the most prodigious franchise in the sport making for a very unique and incredible experience. I’ve been there to see my beloved Boston Bruins play the Canadiens and although the tickets were very expensive ($150 per ticket), all five of us had an abs

Good Morning Addicts! Alexei Emelin tore a ligament in his left knee after bouncing off of Bruins forwards Milan Lucic in April. When Alexel Emelin tore a ligment in his left knee after a hit on Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic went wrong in April, it became evident just how important the hard hitting Habs defenseman was to the team. The absence of Emelin created a void on the blue line... Visit HabsAddict.com for more...

The 2013 Montreal Canadiens were not favoured to do much of anything. Speculated to miss the playoffs by many pundits, or just scrape in (as I had predicted for them), they surprised with a dominant run over the Eastern Conference, finishing 2nd only to Pittsburgh. They showed a promising future and delivered the concept that perhaps the best was yet to come, rather than that they were merely overachieving such as in 2008. The playoff exit was a bitter pill to swallow, but there is much to be excited about. The Six Best of 2013 With that in mind, we will examine the team’s six best players over the course of the 2013 season. Given that I have also gained a reputation as a pessimist, I would be remiss if I did not also share my concerns about the future of six members of the team who are on next season’s roster. No. 11 Brendan Gallagher Games Played Goals Assists PIM Regular Season 44 15 13 21 Playoffs 5 2 0 5 Brendan Gallagher was doubted from the moment he was drafted by many observers, citing the size issue as an impediment to his chances to playing in the NHL. The actual result of his NHL debut silenced his critics and surprised even his supporters as his rookie campaign stole headlines in Montreal. Gallagher’s 15 goals this season tied with Pacioretty for the team lead (not including Ryder's combined total), which is a notable accomplishment for a rookie playing under 14 minutes a game. He was not only one of the team’s best sources of offense, but a player who often helped define the game when he was on the ice. A fearless attitude around the net saw him earn the ire of about every defensemen and goaltender he played against this past season and allowed him to draw a number of penalties. It was observed in the later points of the season that the best player on the line of Pacioretty-Desharnais-Gallagher was Gallagher himself, and his veteran linemates seemed to look to him to spark things. His playoff debut was just as impressive as his regular season play as well, collecting two goals in his first two playoff games. It is not hard to argue that after Pacioretty, he is the team’s best natural goal-scorer under contract. One does have to worry about Gallagher’s durability in the NHL over the long term. He missed three games recovering from a concussion and there were more than a few attempts to take his head off this season by opposing players. No doubt he will be become better at protecting himself and being aware on the ice, but the league’s tendency to ignore hits to the head that do not cause massive injuries is not going to be good for Gallagher’s long term safety on the ice. Right now, the only way for Gallagher to go is up. He is responsible at both ends of the ice, he is fearless and has a natural scoring instinct. With two years remaining on his rookie contract, the Canadiens have arguably one of the best bargains in the NHL. No. 14 Tomas Plekanec Games Played Goals Assists PIM Regular Season 47 14 19 24 Playoffs 5 0 4 2 He is the man who can never quite get his due in Montreal or in the NHL at large. Tomas Plekanec has been Montreal’s de factor number one centre since Saku Koivu was let go in 2009 and for the moment, the job is his by the merit of his skill and drive. While Plekanec began the season shooting the lights out with 15 points in his first 15 games, he predictably slowed down as that level of production is outside of his regular pace especially with his defensive responsibilities. He continues to be the team's leading centre for top matchups and that is of much more value than most appreciate. Tomas Plekanec also marked five straight 20-goal seasons in the NHL before the 2011-12 team collapse, and was paced for a 6th 20-goal season over a full season in 2013. As was demonstrated by the injury to Eller in the post-season, Canadiens are in need of at leas

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Tonight at 7:30 the Pittsburgh Penguins will begin the 5th and final game of their second round victory over the Ottawa Senators. We talked to Daniel Alfredsson about the game tonight: EOTP: "Hey Alfie, can the Sens win this game?" Alfie: "Probably not" EOTP: "Do you think the Sens will get this far in the playoffs next year?" Alfie: "Probably not" EOTP: "Do you think you guys deserved to even get this far?" Alfie: "Probably not" EOTP: "Do you think you're going to retire this offseason?" Alfie: "Probably not" EOTP: "Oh really? I'm surprised! Do you think you'll want to continue playing for the Senators?" Alfie: "Probably not" EOTP: "Oh, the old trade to a cup contender, eh? Do you think many teams will be interested?" Alfie: "Probably not" He sounds a bit depressed. Follow @AndrewBerkshire Follow @HabsEOTP

John Kordic, as you know, was a rough and tough enforcer for the Habs in the latter part of the 1980s, and would eventually die at just 27 years old from a drug overdose and a scuffle with nine police at a motel in the Quebec City suburb of L’Ancienne-Lorette. A violent ending to a man who earned his living by being violent. We’ve seen issues before with guys whose roles it was to mainly fight, such as Derek Boogaard, and Kordic, like Boogaard, had issues. My banker was a friend of Kordic’s in Edmonton, from childhood through to adulthood, and he said that although Kordic had a dad who pushed him hard and always expected more, the real problems didn’t begin until Kordic made the NHL. Kordic admitted that it started when the Habs would go on road trips to Los Angeles, where parties and drugs can crop up at the snap of a finger, especially for young, rich, and famous athletes. So unfortunately, it began with the Habs. My question is, how do Kings players avoid this type of thing? Ultimately, Kordic became addicted to cocaine, and in the link I provide at the bottom of this page, Kordic revealed that cocaine was in use with some of the Habs back then, and if it’s true, it’s tremendously disturbing. Kordic wasn’t blessed with an abundance of hockey talent, although he enjoyed a decent junior career, beginning as a defenceman in junior in Portland before switching to forward as the years went by, but the need for fighters, or goons, in the NHL, became his ticket to fame and fortune. It also became crystal clear that if he wanted to stay gainfully employed in the bigs, he needed to be as strong and as fast as he possibly could, and so the pressure was on. Which meant drugs like cocaine to ease the mind, and steroids to thicken the muscles. Kordic would come home to Edmonton in the off-season with stretch marks on his neck from steroid-induced rapid muscle growth. I was told that Kordic drove a Corvette when he came back home to Edmonton, and when he would leave, he simply gave the keys to his buddies and they bombed around the city in the flashy car. Kordic also had no sense of money responsibilities, and would ask to borrow cash from his friends even though he earned so much more than them. “Really John?” they would ask, but that was the way it was. Kordic won a Stanley Cup with the Habs in 1986, and also toiled for the Leafs, Capitals, and Nordiques during his rocky and violent career. He once told my banker that it was great when he was with Toronto because it meant he, “didn’t have to backcheck, or forecheck, he just had to cash cheques. In the end, it all got away from him, and a man described as just a truly nice guy and a great friend to many, let it get the best of him. An excellent and somewhat disturbing 1992 Sports Illustrated story about John Kordic and be seen here Death of a Goon. Below, Kordic and Torrie Robertson go at it.