All The Pieces Are Starting To Fit

By Ryan Walsh - March 18, 2010

The 2009-10 Montreal Canadiens are the cockroach after the Nuclear blast. Every analyst, columnist & 'insider' has written them off at least once this season... And they had every right to do so. Going into the year, experts laughed at an already notoriously small team getting smaller in the off-season.

They're too small.

They overpaid for second liners that will get top line minutes.

They have shaky goaltending.

They don't have a Captain, they'll flounder without any leadership.

Grading The Habs At The Halfway Point

By Ryan Walsh - January 3, 2010

First off, Happy New Year from all of us at Fadoo Hockey!! Since I'm getting ready to teach at Centennial College for the first time, I'm in the marking mood... Let's have a look at all the players on the Habs roster and grade them for their first half performance:

Tomas Plekanec: 10G-36A-46P A+

Plekanec had the kind of season in 08-09 that destroys a player's confidence. A 30 point drop from the year prior, rumours all season long about being dealt to Tampa in the Vincent Lecavalier deal, and having a crisis in faith about his own abilities. He seemed depressed and at a loss for words at the post mortem last year. The Habs showed they were worried about the drop off in play by signing Plekanec to only a one year deal this summer, making him a UFA July 1, 2010. But since the second week of the season, Plekanec has been one of the best players in the league and a joy to watch. One of the best two on one passers in the game, solid penalty killer, decent faceoffs, just awesome. Since January 1st, he's eligible for a contract extension and if Gainey hasn't called Plekanec's people by now, you really have to question his management style. He's a top 10 Centre in the League this season and with every game, his stock keeps going up.

Halak Demand Is The Farthest Thing From Shocking

By Ryan Walsh - December 15, 2009

Jaroslav Halak's NHL career has been the farthest thing from smooth. Not because of his ability or performance. Hell, he's been the most consistent goaltender the Habs have had for a while. He quietly won big games when Cristobal Huet was hurt or had his bad spells. He gave Price a run for the reigns between the pipes but always came out as goalie 1A.

If you remember back to the nightmarish 82nd game of the season in 2006-07 VS the Leafs where all the Habs had to do was get a point and they were headed to the playoffs. The games leading up to the Leaf matchup were played & won by Halak because Huet had yet another injury. The team decided to rush Huet back and shove him into playing from the infirmary, disregarding the hot goalie for the Season finale... And every fan of the Canadiens remembers what happened.

The Canadiens At 100

By Ryan Walsh - December 4, 2009

Friday, December 4th, 2009 marks the 100th Birthday of the Montreal Canadiens. The greatest franchise in the history of Hockey. 24 Stanley Cups in 100 Years. 42 Hall of Famers. 17 retired numbers. Fans all over the Globe. The Logo, the Forum, the passion, the history… the importance of a hockey team to a culture, a Province, a nation… it's overwhelming. An evolving entity, summed up by its colours: Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.

Heroes overlapped, as did generations, the torch passed to hold high and inspire the next flock to carry with the very same pride & dedication. Howie Morenz & Georges Vezina built the foundation for the temple known as the Forum... Which exploded with Provincial Pride and passion when Maurice Richard transcended the game. His cobalt eyes, as important to the legend as his Herculean shoulders that had to reluctantly carry an entire culture into post war prosperity, and equality amongst the English speaking nation.

Much Ado About Latendresse

By Ryan Walsh - November 26, 2009

Man, what an odd start to the week. Usually Monday just means a skate, stale words from Coach Jacques Martin and Michael Cammalleri talking like a McGill philosophy major. That's it, oh and the announcement that another player will miss time with an injury. Not this Monday kids... This Monday's news was devoted to Guillaume Latendresse being moved to Minnesota for fellow 2005 pick Benoit Pouliot. In some markets, moving a slumping, sulking forward playing under ten minutes a game and three points to his name more than a quarter into the season would be news, hell in Toronto it would still be the first story BUT in Montreal, with a name like Guillaume, it takes on a life of its own.

The Kids Ain't Alright

By Ryan Walsh - November 18, 2009

At the present time, the Montreal Canadiens have drafted more players currently on NHL rosters than any other organization. That's a testament to Head Scout Trevor Timmins, his staff and previous regimes. They've found some nice little gems in later rounds but still no real, slam dunk, bonafide all-star (aside from Andrei Markov, one of the few bright decisions from the Rejean Houle era). Defencemen have been decent from a prospect perspective but the Canadiens have been kinda snake-bitten up front draft-wise. Over the last 15 years, Montreal can only boast the development of three top two line forwards (Saku Koivu, Michael Ryder & Mike Ribeiro). You can make the case for players like Andrei Kostitsyn & Tomas Plekanec but as far as a no doubt top two line forward, there's only been three. That's awful.

Time To Say Goodbye To The Brothers Kostitsyn

By Ryan Walsh - November 6, 2009

A General Manager is essentially a mad scientist, throwing 23 very different, sometimes volatile ingredients into one beaker… he could come up with just the right chemistry or he could end up looking like Uncle Leo, blowing his eyebrows clean off his face. Every team has a player or two that doesn't quite fit in. Either it's the scouting staff and management hoping for the player to give them something he's just not providing or it's a round peg in the square hole.

You could make the case that the Montreal Canadiens are the posterboys for round pegs being violently rammed into square holes. A fellow broadcaster keeps telling me that players over the last 15 years come to Montreal to die… and you know what? That's a pretty fair summation. Players who excelled at other stops in their NHL careers leave a black mark on the back of their hockey card when they come to La Belle. Players like Randy McKay, Mariusz Czerkawski, Sergei Samsonov… they all had solid NHL careers, they all jumped the shark when they went to the Habs. It works the other way too… players who leave the Montreal machine, guys like Mike Ribeiro, John LeClair and Craig Conroy move on and have solid NHL careers. And when you're a player that has talent, and KNOWS he has the talent and it's not working with the team he's on, you know you ain't getting any younger. There's only one thing you can do… ask to be moved to another situation and see if the chemistry works elsewhere. And my friends, that's another category where the Habs lead the League. With the added pressure from the most ferocious media in Hockey, struggling teams lead to pissed off players. And pissed off players in front of 21,273 bilingual executioners lead to wanting to get the hell out of dodge as quickly as possible.

Don't Blame Carey

By Ryan Walsh - October 20, 2009

Sometimes I hate the business I'm in. I'll sound like a complete hypocrite here but it drives me crazy when National media outlets jump on a team for a story that really isn't accurate. They incite panic when a team loses back to back games. What's the matter with Vincent Lecavalier? (6 points in 7 games… but no goals) Is Minnesota trading for Chuck Kobasew a panic move because of their record? (first off, it's 7 games into the season.. Relax…secondly, it's CHUCK KOBASEW! If a team was panicing, they wouldn't make Kobasew their answer) Anointing the Stanley Cup to the Penguins because of their great start… choosing who will be on Team Canada at the 2010 Olympics… seriously, come on. Man, panels are really getting to me. Just such an over analyzation of EVERYTHING.

Bitter Sweet Homecoming For L'Artiste

By Ryan Walsh - October 17, 2009

Every fan of the Montreal Canadiens at one point over the last five years watched a game and started digging their Cheeto-stained fingernails into their couch watching Alex Kovalev. His style is, um, hell, I don't know how to explain him. I think the French moniker of 'L'Artiste' is probably best. He doesn't conform to systems. He looks like he moves at half speed but he somehow out skates younger defenders. His rear end essentially buffing the boards on the Right Wing, thinking two moves ahead, sneaking in, waiting for a cross ice pass to one time.

About Damn Time The Habs Are Home

By Ryan Walsh - October 15, 2009

I understand why the National Hockey League wants to go to the Olympics. It's a huge stage for a truly international game. New Advertisers for a floundering American product could always help prop up a Florida or a Phoenix for another year or two. I'm not saying our friend Gary Bettman'll be sprawled out naked on a hotel bed in a pool of money (ugh, sorry) but every ad campaign helps. But what pisses me off so much is how a three week hiatus in February destroys the schedule and, in turn, momentum in the League. Pundits and fans seem to always believe that 82 games are too much as it is. then you jam three more weeks worth of games into the remaining months. It's just too much.