Mats Sundin: Why so quiet this summer?

Remember the summer of 2008?

All the hockey world was hearing was Mats Sundin this, Mats Sundin that.

Well after the Montreal Canadiens gained the rights to talk to Sundin before the July 1 free agent deadline (in an unofficial exchange for Mikhail Grabovski), rumors flew out of the woodwork.

First Montreal, then the New York Rangers, and then the Vancouver Canucks (who reportedly offered a two-year $20 million deal ) were front runners for the then 37-year old center.

The only Sundin signing news that arrived, over the summer, was the fact that he had signed on with PokerStars.

There was talk that Sundin would make his decision by August 1, which turned out to be a “soft deadline” according to agent J.P. Barry.

In a few weeks, later this summer, in a few weeks, later this summer as all that was heard from that point on.

Habs GM Bob Gainey clearly dropped out of any further talks and picked up Robert Lang to fill the void.

Sundin did sign with the Canucks, joining them for the second half of the season at $5.36 million.

I questioned whether or not he was worth it to the Canucks in a prior piece I wrote.

Clearly Canucks GM Mike Gillis felt he wasn’t.

After seeing Sundin battle injuries through the playoffs, he made his focus on successfully signing the Sedin twins to new contracts.

In a story on the Swedish newspaper Expressen’s website, back in June, Sundin did clarify that he would not participate in the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

Sundin won an Olympic Gold medal with Sweden at the 2006 Games

“There will be no Olympics in Vancouver for me next year,” Sundin said.

“I will not change my mind, I think it’s time that the next generation takes over. We have many good players.”

When asked by Expressen on the possibility of returning to the NHL:

“Absolutely,” he said 

“I will think about my future over the next couple of weeks. I will make a decision in the summer.”

Sundin reportedly has stated that he would make a decision on returning at the end of July as he will be getting married in August and would prefer not to have that distraction waning during that special moment in his life.

Many analysts and media types, clearly did not want to chase the bone that Sundin and Barry fed them all last summer.

Many of them feel that Sundin will retire.

I had the chance to catch, and interview, Rogers Sportsnet’s  Nick Kypreos earlier this month at the Gretzky Golf Classic.

Kypreos flew to Sweden last summer for an exclusive one-on-one interview with Sundin. 

I asked Kypreos if Mats Sundin would return to which he emphatically answered with one word, “No.”

In the event that Sundin does call it quits, he clearly has the offensive numbers to join the Avalanches’ Joe Sakic as a member of the 2012 class of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

That or he may opt for one last kick of the can for a shot to win the one trophy that has eluded him since joining the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques, the Stanley Cup.

Time will tell.

The Habs 2009-10 Schedule is out!!! Bulldogs and Cyclones sked news also released

 

The NHL officially released the Montreal Canadiens 2009-10 Regular Season Schedule this afternoon. The official press release can be found here.

The Canadiens will kick off Season 101 on Thursday October 1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs at the ACC.

It will be the first game of a five-game road trip to start off the season.

Maybe a good thing to get it over with early:

The Canadiens head west to play back-to-back games in Calgary and Vancouver on Oct 6-7, wrapping up the trip on Oct. 10 in Edmonton.

We all remember the disastrous western trip from last year, and so far coach Jacques Martin has not planned a team bowling night.

The Canadiens’ home opener is against the Colorado Avalanche on Oct 15 where they will have a six game home stand.

We’ll get a possible look at John Tavares twice in Montreal in four days (Oct  22 and 26)

Montreal then faces the Stanley Cup Champion Penguins in Pittsburgh on Oct 28.

The First Must-See home game: Saturday Oct 17th,when Alex Kovalev returns with his Ottawa Senators.

Christopher Higgins returns Oct 24 with the New York Rangers

Komisarek returns Oct 31, where it will be brick night: First 5000 fans get unused off-cut bricks from the Centennial Plaza to do…

Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals roll into the Bell Centre on Nov 28. The game will be at the Bell Centre and not at Olympic Stadium as rumored.

Dec 4 against Boston will mark the 100th Anniversary of the Canadiens’ formation. Note the starting time of 8pm as there will be a ceremony beforehand.

Montreal looks to have a tough schedule in December, playing 11 of 17 games on the road and ends the month with seven in a row during the holidays.

Montreal has 15 back-to back games with just one of these at home, so Jaroslav Halak could see lots of work this season.

The NHL shuts down for two weeks, after Feb 13, for the Olympics.

Even with 21st Century technology, the NHL’s logistics team still cannot find a system to make it work evenly:

After the Olympics, the Habs are in Boston on Mar 2, then off to California (if it’s not in receivership) to play San Jose, L.A. and Anaheim and back across the country to face Tampa on Mar 9. That’s a lot of travel.

March closes out in the Canadiens’ favor for the playoff run however , with five of their last eight at home.

The season concludes on Apr 10 at the Bell Centre against the Maple Leafs.

The Canadiens will have seven pre-season games from September 17-26. Five games will be at home, while the other two will be in Ottawa (Sep 19) and Quebec City (Sep 20 vs. Boston)

 

First six Hamilton Bulldogs home games announced!

 The Hamilton Bulldogs have announced yesterday that Oct 9 will be their first home game of the 2009-10 AHL season.

Five other confirmed dates are also set with a Nov 6 game played in Montreal at the Bell Centre. Opponents are to be determined when the AHL releases the official schedule later this summer.

ECHL Cincinnati Cyclones Schedule released!

The Canadiens’ ECHL affiliate Cincinnati Cyclones (shared with the Nashville Predators) also announced their pre-season schedule today. Their regular season schedule is also posted.

It could be handy for our Ohio area Habs fans or those travelling south of the border on the way to Florida this winter! Catch a game on the way down I-75 !!!

Who will lead them?

Well the Montreal Canadiens roster officially got trimmed by one more player.

Despite a “rally of the masses” on Sunday afternoon at the Bell Centre, Habs GM Bob Gainey told CJAD radio on Monday that Alex Kovalev would not be returning.

 Fans rallied Sunday to keep Alex Kovalev in Montreal

Hours later, Kovalev took the money ($10 million over two years) and ran up the highway to Ottawa Senators.

The Northeast Division will be fun to watch this season without a doubt.

With Kovalev’s departure and the likely signing of Saku Koivu to either Buffalo, Atlanta, Anaheim or whatever square Eklund’s rumor dart hit this afternoon, this leaves the captain and all assistant captains off to greener pastures.

Mike Komisarek defected to the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1 and Christopher Higgins was traded to the New York Rangers on June 30.

The question now has to be asked, who will be the next captain?

Andrei Markov has been an assistant captain in the past but is unlikely as a captain.

You have to remember that Koivu was criticized for not speaking French. Markov can barely speak English so it’s safe to rule him out.

The Kostitsyn brothers??? Georges Laraque ??? Forget it!

Scott Gomez seems to be an early popular choice, despite not playing one game for the Canadiens.

Sorry Mr. Gomez, but there’s too much tradition to just walk in and take the “C”.

Ditto for Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta.

All likelihood two of these three will be alternate captains.

Young bucks Josh Gorges, Maxim Lapierre and maybe Guillaume Latendresse would be a good choices as an alternate captains in my opinion, but I feel none of this trio is at a full leadership level.

Roman Hamrlik is the long-time veteran on the team, but could be moved before the start of the season.

In any event, the Canadiens have never gone without a captain in their history.

Jean Beliveau is the Canadiens’ longest serving captain

Guy Carbonneau and Chris Chelios alternated months in the 1989-90 season when the team vote was as close as the Quebec Referendum vote.

The captaincy of the Montreal Canadiens has always been voted on by the players, so ultimately it will be up to the final roster when it is set sometime in late September.

The players may elect to go a shared route in the 2009-10 season.

Either way, that individual is the go-to man by the fans and media of a team with 100 years of history, and 16 years and counting without a Stanley Cup.

Preferably I want a long standing captain like Koivu (win or lose), and not a revolving door that we saw in the mid-90’s.

But let’s not rule out the current captain just yet, shall we?

List of Montreal Canadiens Captains

Jack Laviolette           1909-10	Emile Bouchard                    1948-56
Newsy Lalonde            1910-11	Maurice Richard                   1956-60
Jack Laviolette           1911-12	Doug Harvey                        1960-61
Newsy Lalonde            1912-13	Jean Beliveau                       1961-71
Jimmy Gardner           1913-15	Henri Richard                       1971-75
Howard McNamara      1915-16	Yvan Cournoyer                    1975-79
Newsy Lalonde            1916-22	Serge Savard                       1979-81
Sprague Cleghorn        1922-25	Bob Gainey                          1981-89
Billy Coutu                  1925-26	G. Carbonneau/C. Chelios    1989-90
Sylvio Mantha             1926-32	Guy Carbonneau                   1990-94
George Hainsworth     1932-33	Kirk Muller                           1994-95
Sylvio Mantha             1933-36	Mike Keane          Apr – Dec       1995
Albert “Babe” Seibert  1936-39	Pierre Turgeon                     1995-96
Walter Buswell            1939-40	Vincent Damphousse             1996-99
Hector “Toe” Blake     1940-48	Saku Koivu                           1999-??
Bill Durnan    Jan – Apr      1948

Remembering Rangers and Blackhawks HOFer Clint Smith

This past Tuesday, the hockey community lost another of it’s legends.

Clint Smith was a Hall of Fame center with both the New York Rangers and the Chicago Blackhawks, as well as an icon in the Vancouver area hockey scene.

He was the last surviving member of the 1940 New York Rangers Stanley Cup team, and passed away at age 95.

Born in Saskatchewan, Smith’s hockey career began with Springfield of the CAHL and Saskatoon of the WCHL.

He then moved on to the NWHL where he became a star for the Vancouver Lions. Smith would lead the league in goals, as a rookie, with 25 then lead in points the following two seasons.

In 1936, Smith played with the Philadelphia Ramblers in the I-AHL (now known as the AHL).

That season, he would see two games with the New York Rangers, scoring his first career NHL goal.

In his second full season with New York (1938-39), Smith led his team in scoring and was the recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy having just two penalty minutes all season.

When asked decades later how he managed to go 48 games with just two minutes in penalties Smith replied with a wink, "Ah, it was nuthin’. I knew the referees."

In 1939-40, Smith would help bring a Stanley Cup to New York by defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games.

“I can't explain the feeling of winning the Stanley Cup. It's the ultimate,” Smith said.

“It's something you always strive for—just to get into the Stanley Cup Final. And then when you win, it's something you always remember.”

The Rangers would not bring another Cup to the Big Apple for another 54 years.

In September of 1943, Smith found himself as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.

On a line with Hall of Famers Bill Mosienko and Doug Bentley, he tallied 23 goals and set an NHL record with 49 assists.

It would also see a second Lady Byng Trophy for the star center.

He would lay claim on another NHL record the following season, scoring four goals in one period against Montreal on March 4, 1945.

Smith would leave the NHL after the 1946-47 season with 161 goals and 236 assists in 483 regular season games.

More astounding is his miniscule 24 minutes in penalties accumulated in that span, which included a four year span without even a minor call.

He joined the Tulsa Oilers of the USHL the next year, leading the league in scoring and winning the league’s MVP.

For the next three season’s as a player coach for the St. Paul Saints.

He would play two games for the Cincinnati Mohawks of the AHL in 1951-52, becoming a full time bench boss.

Smith then returned to his adopted home, playing old timers games in the NWHL.

Building support for the game of hockey in the British Columbia area, Smith founded the British Columbia Hockey Benevolent Association and held several positions in the organization, including president.

His dedication helped build a solid hockey market in Vancouver and led to the formation of the Vancouver Canucks.

The association that he founded is now commonly known as the Canucks’ Alumni.

Smith was finally elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1991 and was the oldest living, Honored Member at the time of his death.

Ever lyal to his NHL beginnings, Smith participated in the Rangers' 75th Anniversary celebrations at Madison Square Garden in 2001.

During the 2004-05 NHL Lockout, the league made a practice of sending the Stanley Cup to past members of winning teams.

Unlike the present day, players on a Cup winner did not get to take the Cup home for a day.

That opportunity came for Smith on July 26, 2005. Fans, friends and family (his daughter was flown in from Florida) made the visit to North Vancouver to honor him. "

Smith was as proud then as he was 65 years before when his team claimed the Cup.

“Howie Meeker brought the Cup out to Vancouver Island, and while it was out here, they phoned and asked me if I would like it for a day,” Smith said. “And of course, I said I'd be glad to take it for a day.”

“We had a pretty good display. It was nice. But I had to laugh -- the Cup was so small, you could carry it around. You couldn't carry the Cup that we won around. I think we had 13 rings on that Cup -- I think they have five now.”

Funeral arrangements were still pending as of Thursday.

The family has requested in lieu of flowers that donations be made in Clint Smith’s name to:

The British Columbia Hockey Benevolent Foundation
Registered Charity: #0738021-23-27
#104 – 2433 Bellevue Ave.
West Vancouver
V7V 1E1

Photos: Hockey Hall of Fame

May 21, 1979: The Montreal Canadiens close out the ‘70s Dynasty

The most dominant NHL team of the 1970’s was closing out the decade in style.

Having defeated their rival Boston Bruins in a seven game series, climaxing with the “Too many men on the ice game”, the Habs were on the path for a fourth straight Stanley Cup.

The New York Rangers were looking to spoil Montreal’s party, and had momentum coming into the series by upsetting the, regular season champion, New York Islanders in a six-game semi-final.

That momentum did carry into game one with a 4-1 Rangers victory, stunning both the Canadiens as well has the Montreal home crowd.

The general consensus, amongst many Canadiens fans and critics, that spring was that the team was not the same as it once was just a year ago, and game one seemed to prove them right.

The Canadiens proved them wrong the rest of the series with a dominant 6-2 victory in game two.

Home ice advantage was just the opposite for the Rangers as they lost game three 4-1 and were beaten in overtime of game four, 4-3, by the defending champions.

The stage was set back in Montreal and coach Scotty Bowman had no intention of letting the series return to New York.

Canadiens’ defenseman Rick Chartraw opened the scoring in the first period of game five and the Rangers replied with a goal by Carol Vadnais late in a period.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, Canadiens’ goalie Ken Dryden decided that one goal was all his opponent would score against him that night.

Jacques LeMaire would pot two goals in the second period, and Bob Gainey would add one more to put Montreal up 4-1.

With no scoring by either team in the third period, the Canadiens would clinch their fourth straight Stanley Cup Championship.

It would also be Montreal’s sixth Cup in the ‘70s and the 22nd in the franchise’s long history.

Serge Savard, filling in for the team’s injured captain Yvon Cournoyer, would lead his team as they carried the Cup around the Montreal Forum ice.

Gainey, who was better known for his defensive abilities as a forward, scored 16 points in the playoffs to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

It was the first time since 1968 that Montreal had clinched the Cup on home ice, a fitting end to one of hockey’s great dynasties.

This was also the last time two Original Six teams have met in a Stanley Cup Final.

In the aftermath of the Cup victory, three key player elements (Cournoyer, LeMaire and Dryden) all retired and ended their Hall of Fame careers as winners.

Coach Bowman would jump ship, to the Buffalo Sabres, after being looked over by the Canadiens for their GM position in 1978.

His legendary coaching career carried on for 13 more years, bringing him Cup success with Pittsburgh (1992) and Detroit (1997, 1998, 2002).

In light of their coaching and roster losses, Montreal would win their division in the 1979-80 season only to be upset in a seven game quater-final series by Minnesota.

Their next Stanley Cup would not come until 1986, when a 20 year-old rookie named Patrick Roy led them to victory.

Sean Avery is back in a New York Groove

The New York Rangers' Sean Avery made a return to New York this city, making a stop at NHL HQ.

This time, instead of paying a visit to commissioner Gary Bettman and "truant officer" Colin Campbell, the Rangers forward had an enjoyable visit at the league's NHL Powered by Reebok store located next to the league's headquarters.

He had stopped in to make an appearance on the weekly Sirius-XM radio talk show Ice Breakers, hosted by ex-NHLers Ron Duguay and Ken Daneyko.

Avery has been critical of the NHL's marketing tactics in the past, suggesting the league focus on villain-like players as well as well-known stars.

He has since appeared to have softened his stance, and even though he was right in the shadow of NHL headquarters it wasn't because the league chose to focus a promo on him.

"All of that stuff is out of my hands at this point," Avery said after his radio appearance.

"If I come in and do an interview, I represent the Rangers and represent New York. I'm not concerned about who is doing their job or who isn't doing their job. I did enough worrying about that and it didn't really get me anywhere. They can go in whatever direction they feel like."

The 29-year-old reflected on the Rangers dismal playoff performance, where they blew a 3-1 series lead and still lost in seven games to Washington.

"Usually for a couple of days you're bummed out about it and you play over all the games in your head three or four times, but I went away and it's kind of out of my system," Avery said.

"I'm more excited about next year than dwelling on last year."

After taking a week's vacation in Jamaica, he returned to New York for the radio appearance and also to open a new downtown bar and restaurant called Warren 77.

Apparently the restaurant opening had more people attending than the"Save the Coyotes" rally in Phoenix.

With his early season critic, John Tortarella, now behind the Rangers bench, Avery had nothing but positives for his new bench boss.

"One of the most important things that has happened to me in my career so far, and I'm extremely grateful, is Tortorella," Avery told Duguay and Daneyko on their talk show.

"It was funny, because he was on me right from the get-go, checking in on me. Torts would check in and just make sure I'm there. That's what makes a good coach."

With some undisciplined penalties in game four, Avery found himself sitting out game five.

The winger had no arguments with his coaches decision.

"I knew after that game, if he didn't scratch me, it would be a mistake for our team, not this year but next year and the year after that," he said.

"Whatever he's instilling now is something that had to be done. It was in the middle of the playoffs and I put myself and the team in jeopardy, but he had to do it."

Avery admitted he played less aggressive in game six, but was back in form for game seven.

"No way would I ever go into a game being gun-shy again," Avery said.

"The worst thing you can ever do as a player is to question yourself, and I did."

Tortorella has sternly told the Rangers squad to be in top condition before they report for what will be an intense training camp in September.

Still having three years to go in his contract, Avery is eager to get back in the game next season.

"I'm excited about it," Avery said.

"All of the stuff that happened this year is just going to help me to become a better player. With Torts thrown into the equation and (general manager) Glen Sather, these guys are all here to help me and it feels good to have that support system and have an organization behind you.

"That's what makes being a Ranger so special. Moving forward, that is going to be emphasized so much more."