Czech it out! Canadiens on four game winning streak

Roman Hamrlik celebrates his overtime goal against the Islanders

Travis Moen had a goal and an assist and Roman Hamrlik scored the overtime winner, as the Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Islanders 3-2.

It was Montreal’s second win over the Islanders in just four days. The two teams remaining two regular season meetings will take place on Long Island.

Montreal opened the scoring when Glen Metropolit found Jaroslav Spacek, for his first goal of the season, beating Martin Biron at 13:38 of the first period.

Metropolit had missed the Canadiens morning skate, and had been a game time decision. He would finish the night with two assists.

The Canadiens were caught with two many men on the ice, in the second period, and the Islanders capitalized as Jeff Tambellini beat Jaroslav Halak to tie the game at one apiece.

In the third period, Montreal took a lead, just under eight minutes into the third period, when Travis Moen scored one of those “right place at the right time” goals.

“We didn’t play our best in the second period  but we found a way to win,” said Moen. “It’s nice to chip in (with a goal) once in a while.”

The Islanders battled back as Tambellini scored his second power play goal of the night.

In overtime, Tomas Plekanec freed the puck from the Islanders defense,made a little soccer kick and fed a saucer pass to fellow Czech Roman Hamrlik for the win.

“They were changing out there so I took the puck,” Plekanec said. “I kicked the puck out a little bit and it went well.”

Plekanec has 10 points in 11 games this season.

“So far I feel very good,” he said “I’m playing  with strong details and play a good defensive game this year. I feel good. I feel confident.”

“I knew Tomas was going to pass it to me,” said Hamrlik. “I had the empty net so it was easy for me to finish.”

Halak made 29 saves for the win and has been in goal for each of game of the Canadiens current four-game winning streak.

“I probably could have stopped the first one, but the guys rebounded back,” Halak said. “We kept playing at it paid off at the end of the game.”

“We’re going to take one game at a time,” said Canadiens coach Jaques Martin, who danced around any kind of goaltending controversy.

“I’m happy for how he (Halak) is performing, but we’re going to need two goalies to do the job.”

While the shot total was almost even throughout the game, the Canadiens showed they had better puck possession as 26 of their shots were blocked and 18 missed the net. The Islanders had 16 shots blocked and 6 misses.

The Canadiens improved their record to 6-5-0 and are 5-0 in overtime or shootout games so far this season.

They will embark on a two-game road trip to Pittsburgh, on Wednesday, and Chicago, on Friday, before returning home to face the Maple Leafs on Saturday.

Game Photos: HabsInsideOut/Montreal Gazette

Three Stars: 1. Travis Moen 2. Jeff Tambellini 3. Roman Hamrlik

Canadiens 43 shots dominate Islanders 5-1

Glen Metropolit and Tomas Plekanec each had two assists, and Jarolav Halak made 21 saves as the Montreal Canadiens defeated the New York Islanders 5-1.

It was the Canadiens first regulation win this season , and first in 17 games dating to last season, as they improved their record to 4-5.

Montreal opened the scoring when Jaroslav Spacek foiled the Islanders attempt to clear their zone, feeding Scott Gomez at 7:55 of the first period.

Marc-Andre Bergeron scored his first goal, on the power play, in his second game with the Canadiens with a monstrous blast from the point past Martin Biron to close out the period.

“It felt great,” Bergeron said. “I had my family and friends (here). To get that goal for the Canadiens, with the reaction of the crowd, let's just say it was a little louder than I'm used to. I’m very proud to be with the Montreal Canadiens.”

Max Pacioretty scored his first goal since January 2009 at 3:34 of the second period, to give the Canadiens a 3-0 lead.

“I feel like I got the monkey off my back,” Pacioretty said. “Metro told me (in practice) that you got to want the puck. Hopefully I can build off that and I feel like I’m ready to go now.”

Montreal outshot the Islanders 30-12 in the first two periods and New York had 23 giveaways in the game.

Halak, perfect through two periods,  made his sole mistake, early in the third, when he misplayed the puck behind his net, allowing Josh Bailey to score into the empty net.

“I don’t like shutouts,” Halak joked. “Every time you lose a shutout it’s not easy, but the point is to win the game.

“It was a mistake that he (Halak) made,” said Canadiens coach Jacques Martin. “The key is he recovered and we won the game.”

Martin would not tip his hat as to whether Halak would get a third straight start on Saturday night.

Mike Cammalleri replied with a second power play goal and Maxime Lapierre later added a fifth goal for the Canadiens.

“We had to really get on them and make them work.” said Cammalleri. “It was nice to get five goals in instead of two goals.”

The Canadiens finished with 43 shots on the night.

“The effort has been there the last two games,” Scott Gomez said. “it’s good to get it at home.”

Metropolit had missed the last six games with a rib injury with the Canadiens. In that span, Montreal went 1-5.

He was a dominant factor in he faceoff circle going 5 for 7, and showed no signs of wear in eighteen minutes of ice time earning the games first star.

“I don't know if I've ever had that before, maybe once when I was with Washington,” said Metropolit who also saw time on the second power play wave.

“It was good to be back there. I'm just trying to make room on the ice in front of the net.”

For Islanders center John Tavares, his second visit to the Bell Centre was not as pleasant as his first when he was the first overall pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

New York’s star prospect went minus 2, and had no shots on goal.

“It was probably my worst game of the year,” he said after the Islanders got their first win of the season the night before.

“It’s tough after getting over the hump last night.”

The two teams will meet again, in Montreal, on Monday.

Three Stars: 1. Metropolit 2. Pacioretty 3. Bergeron

Official Game Summary and Recap from NHL.com

Game Photos: Montreal Gazette/HabsInsideOut

They really think this will sell???

Looking at the cover, I presume they mean just 10 great for a game Leafs and not the ten greatest. A scant few are legit greats.

Maple Leafs Sport and Entertainment will pretty much do anything for a buck!

Coming September 29, Toronto Maple Leafs: 10 Great Leafs and their most Memorable Games.

Now you’d think they’d really focus on their moments, Stanley Cups, great individual achievements, etc.

Well this 10 disc set is far from that.

While the first two discs acknowledge their Stanley Cup glory of 1964 and 1967, after that it gets rather desperate.

Disc three highlights Lanny McDonald’s winning goal to upset the New York Islanders in the 1978 Stanley Cup playoffs. I’ll give them that one.

After that, it’s seven discs of mostly upset playoff games from 1987 to 2002.

Essentially trying to let the current generation of young Leafs fans know that yes, they Leafs once made the playoffs, an won an early round or two.

Clearly it pales in comparison to recent DVD editions released by the Montreal Canadiens or even the Islanders.

I think even the smartest of Leafs Nation will know what to expect when they look at the cover. Seeing Ken Wregget and Nikolai Borschevsky as one of the 10 greats, you gotta know what to expect.

You’d think Sittler’s ten-point night may have been added??? Just saying!

Captain Kirk’s days with the C were short in Montreal

On August 30,1994, the Montreal Canadiens named Kirk Muller as their captain.

The Kingston native, and former New Jersey Devils captain, was chosen to take over after former captain, Guy Carbonneau, was traded to the St. Louis Blues eleven days earlier.

“This is Kirk Muller’s team now,” said coach Jacques Demers.

Unfortunately, timing is everything and for Muller his time as captain would be short.

A players strike would shorten the 1994-95 NHL season to just 48 games. The season would start on January 21, 1995.

Muller and then captain Guy Carbonneau celebrate their ‘93 Cup victory

The Canadiens struggled offensively that season, and Muller’s numbers were down.

Despite a trade made by Serge Savard to acquire Mark Recchi, the Canadiens were still desperate to make the playoffs.

Savard then made another deal, this one involved Muller, Mathieu Schneider and Craig Darby going to the New York Islanders for Pierre Turgeon and Vladimir Malakhov on April 5, 1995.

Although excited to be getting a scorer in Turgeon, fans were shocked and outraged that their captain had be sacrificed to get him.

Teammate Denis Savard said Muller was in near tears eyes when he faced the scrum of reporters and categorized his friend as being "devastated."

Muller, being the classy and professional man he was, kept his composure.

"I'm shocked, but it's a business," said he said. "I enjoyed it here, but life goes on."

In an October 2007 article, by the Montreal Gazette’s Red Fisher, Muller talked more on the trade.

"I was more shocked being traded from here than when I was in New Jersey," Muller said.

"First, I loved it here and I didn't want to go anywhere. I was learning French. We were settled here. I was just named captain. The style was for me. The numbers were there. I was happy. There were no problems. Zero."

Muller retired eight seasons later. After a season as head coach with his hometown Queen’s Golden Gaels (OUA), he became an assistant coach with the Canadiens.

Muller playing in the Legends Classic game in Montreal

More on Kirk Muller

My interview with him from this past July at Wayne Gretzky’s golf tournament.

Habs Eyes on the Prize looks at the revolving door of Canadiens captains in the mid to late ‘90s.

Muller also does regular speaking engagements and recently joined Montreal-based Luxury Rentals as a promotional associate.

Red Fisher’s afore-mentioned article citing the trade to get Kirk Muller was the tenth best in Canadiens History.

Dollars and lack of sense. How much would you pay for pre season tix?

For the prices fans pay for pre-season tickets these days, you’d think you were paying for regular season or playoff games.

As the 2009-10 NHL season approaches, ticket sales for your favourite teams are slowly beginning to start.

Pre-season tickets are now readily available for most teams. By next Saturday, all 30 teams will have their pre-season tickets on sale.

I did a little shopping around to see where the deals might be.

As I live in Ontario, I started with the Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Sens have tickets available for their three home pre-season  games, ranging from as low as $12.94 and cap out at $150.

The Leafs have four pre-season games at the ACC. Tickets there start at $27 and peak at, sitting down? $416.00!! Prices are the same be it the Buffalo Sabres, or the Pittsburgh Penguins.

I received an insider email today to purchase Leaf pre-season tickets in advance of the public sale.

There’s some clever strategy by Ticketmaster and the Leafs. When you choose the Pittsburgh game. There is no choice in seat preference. You have to take what they offer.

Now let’s see what pre-season tickets sell for elsewhere in the league.

Montreal Canadiens: I didn’t see any pre-season pricing. But since they typically go close to regular season prices, we can assume a range from $28.00 to $201.00

Calgary Flames: $34.00 to $256.00

Edmonton Oilers: $38.50 to $205.00

Vancouver Canucks: $26.50 to $382.50

Detroit Red Wings: $9 to $150.00 (US)

Washington Capitals: $35.00 to $280.00

Boston Bruins: $32.50 to $251.50

Pittsburgh Penguins: $54.00 to $184.00

Tampa Bay Lightning: $15.00 to $349.00

New York Islanders: $19.00 to $175.00

Tix for the Islanders pre-season game in Kansas City ; $10 to $150

Phoenix Coyotes: $10.75 to $325.75

Now the question, would you pay these high-end prices for a pre-season game, in which you may, or may not, see the teams top stars?

For me, I think $100 would be my max.

I’ve made the weekend trip to Ottawa, in the past, to see the Canadiens/Senators in pre-season before. Even with gas and a hotel, you still pay far less than in other cities. Not to mention for $100 I was right on the glass.

But sorry, there’s no way I’m paying over $300 in September to see a team that I wouldn’t pay the same amount to see in the regular season, especially if they have no hope to even make the playoffs.

How a simple letter, and a bit of luck put Jimmy Devellano on top

I had the opportunity, this past week, to meet Jimmy Devellano, the Detroit Red Wings’ Senior vice-president and alternate governor.

Speaking at the Toronto chapter of SIHR (Society for International Hockey Research) monthly meeting , Devellano recanted his early life growing up in Cabbagetown and Scarborough,

Despite being an admitted lousy hockey player, his passion and quest for a career in the game drove him to write a letter to Lynn Patrick, general manager of the expansion St. Louis Blues in 1966.

Devellano just wanted the opportunity to be a scout and said that he would work for free for the team. Patrick agreed and after a year, he was a full time scout for the Blues.

After a five year tenure, he was let go by the Blues due to personnel issues. As luck would have it, the NHL was expanding again.

He made a trip to the NHL draft that July  and got in contact with the expansion New York Islanders GM Bill Torre.

After a dismal first season in Long Island, Devallano and Torre quickly scouted and drafted some of the greatest players in NHL history; Denis Potvin, Bryan Trottier, Clark Gillies and Mike Bossy.

He told the audience how drafting Mike Bossy nearly didn’t happen.

It was down to Bossy or Dwight Foster, who had led the OHL in Scoring.

Bossy had 77 goals in his last junior season, but couldn’t check.

Devallano said how coach Al Arbour told Bill Torre that it’s hard to find a big-time scorer. They had the playmaker in Trottier and the protector in Gilles. Arbour said he’d teach Bossy how to check.

“He’s the greatest, purest goal scorer that I ever saw in my life”, he said. “And Al Arbour was right, he did teach him how to check.”

A trade later for Butch Goring, were final pieces and in their eighth season, the Islanders were Stanley Cup champions.

Devellano was not around for the Islanders fourth straight Cup.

Little Caesar’s owner Mike Ilitch had bought the Detroit Red Wings in 1982 and his first move, as owner, was to hire Jim Devellano as their GM.

He was excited to be given his dream job with an Original Six team. At the time, the Red Wings were a struggling franchise and had just 2,100 season ticket holders.

“If (Jim) Balsillie were around then, he would have wanted to move the team to Hamilton,” he said.

By the start of his first season in Detroit, the Wings managed to double their season ticket sales but still had dismal attendance numbers.

The Wings battled through seasons of disappointments in the ‘80s. It didn’t phase Devellano or team owner Mike Ilitch’s confidence in him.

“I promised Mike and Marian Ilitch that we’d win the Cup in eight years. It took us fifteen.”

In 1983, Devallano drafted his franchise player, Steve Yzerman , and began building a team around him.

He was one of the first GMs to scout seriously in Europe and the “Iron Curtain”.

Then scout Ken Holland found the likes of Sergei Fedorov, Vladimir Konstantinov, and Niklas Lidstrom. These players quickly put the Wings as a playoff contender.

He felt that the 1989 draft was one of the greatest in the team’s history, if not NHL history and by 1990, Devellano was the team’s senior vice-president.

The players were there, but they lacked the right coach to get them to the pinnacle. Ilitch wanted Mike Keenan, but Devellano didn’t.

The owner put his trust in him again and couldn’t have been more happy with his choice, Scotty Bowman.

Devellano admitted that Bowman and Yzerman had their differences.

Yzerman was a scorer but Bowman wanted him to play a more defensive roll. Bowman even wanted to trade the team’s captain to the Ottawa Senators.

Fortunately for Detroit, the two worked things out and Bowman turned Yzerman into a much better defensive centre. A Frank Selke Trophy in 2000 was proof that it worked.

Finally, in 1997, the Red Wings clinched the first of four Cups in an eleven-year period. Not to mention, they are one of the most successful teams of the last fifteen years.

Devellano then briefly spoke on the tragic limousine accident involving Vladimir Konstantinov.

He told us that both Hall-of-Famer Ted Lindsay and Konstantinov still has his own stall in the Red Wings dressing room and visits it whenever he attends games.

During the Q and A session, Mr. Devellano answered a variety of topics on former players, coaches, the Phoenix Coyotes and New York Islanders situations and even offered advice for some up and coming scouts.

True story: Ilitch and Devellano signed future Hall of Fame defenceman Brad Park away from the Boston Bruins by awarding him two Little Caesar’s franchises, in Boston, as a bonus.

I asked him if there was a player that he really wanted as a scout and the team’s GM went against him . The essential “come back to bite you in the ass” player.

He couldn’t come up with a name off hand in St. Louis but that in New York he had the upmost confidence from Bill Torre.

It was interesting to learn to that the Wings initial choice before Yzerman was hometown boy Pat Lafontaine. The Islanders picked him right ahead of Detroit.

Bob Tindale, the former head of Boston Bruins scouting also in attendance, then added that Boston wanted Keith Brown in the 1979 draft but after Chicago picked him, they had to go with their second option, Ray Bourque.

Devellano concluded that the draft relies on a lot of luck, and that in his career he has been extremely lucky.

More of Mr. Devellano’s story in hockey can be found in his book “The Road to Hockeytown, Jimmy Devellano’s Forty Years in the NHL”.

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 !!!

May 19, 1984: The end of the Islanders Dynasty and the beginning of the Oilers

It’s already been a quarter century since Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers laid claim to the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

Led by Gretzky’s 205 points in 1983-84, the Oilers set a league record 446 goals in the regular season. That record still stands today.

Their opponents were the four-time defending champion New York Islanders, and they were not about to relinquish the crown easily.

New York, led by captain Denis Potvin and sniper Mike Bossy, had won their last nine Finals games, sweeping the Oilers in the previous season and outscoring them 17-6.

This season, the schedule for the finals format had been altered by the NHL with a two-three-two games format.

Opening the series in New York, a lone goal by Oilers tough guy Kevin McClelland, was all goaltender Grant Fuhr needed to blank the Islanders 1-0 in game one.

The Islanders countered in game two with a 6-1 shelling of Edmonton as the Nassau Coliseum fans chanted “Drive for five”.

However, gaining a split in the first two games gave the young Oilers a boost of confidence and a three game run at home.

The Oilers’ offence took advantage of their home arena, the Northlands Coliseum and pounded the defending champions in successive 7-2 victories in games three and four.

Defenseman Kevin Lowe recalled how Gretzky stood up in the Oilers dressing room, before the start of game five, and said, "I've had a lot of individual honors and personal recognition, but nothing I've ever done, won or received means as much to me as winning the Cup."

Led by their captain’s words ,Edmonton was determined to clinch the series at home and opened a 4-0 lead in game five after two periods.

Proving they were not done, a young Islanders rookie named Pat Lafontaine answered back with two goals in the first 35 seconds of the third period.

With Fuhr injured in game three, Andy Moog kept the relenting Islanders attack at bay.

Dave Lumley added an empty net goal late in the third and the game was over with a score of 5-2.

The Oilers were the new Stanley Cup Champions.

"I hope we're an influence on the game," said Gretzky during the team’s dressing room celebration.

"We proved that an offensive team can win the Cup. We showed you can win by skating and by being physical without having to fight all the time," he added.

"The first thing that sticks out in my mind from that first Stanley Cup was the team that we beat," recalled Oilers’ defenseman Lee Fogolin.

"The Islanders were such a great team and they were great champions. They had a never-say-die attitude and playing against them, you could never trust any lead you had.”

With eight goals and eighteen assists in nineteen playoff games, Mark Messier emerged from Gretzky’s shadow and won the Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP.

"We had a great teacher in the Islanders," said Edmonton general manager and coach Glen Sather.

Edmonton’s patterned forechecking and disciplined play in front of its own goal were crucial to the team’s success, and was a key element missing in the previous season.

The Islanders dynasty was finished and the Oilers dynasty was about to begin.

Edmonton would repeat as champions the following season as well as in 1987, 1988 and add a Gretzky-less Cup victory in 1990.

Does New York Islanders Owner Charles Wang Regret Buying The Team? YES!

The owner of the New York Islanders, Charles Wang has gone on record that if given the chance to buy the team again, he would not do it.

In an article in Newsday on Saturday, it was reported that Wang has spent $208.8 million -an average of $23 million per year- to keep the team operating.

Wang also spent $74.2 million when he and Sanjay Kumar bought the club and responsibility for it's estimated $97 million in liabilities.

The NHL's deputy commissioner, Bill Daly, confirmed the numbers stating, "Yes, we’re aware the Islanders lose money, a significant amount of money. And it goes back to the team’s need for a new arena.”

Wang, 64, said he initially assumed Nassau Coliseum would either be renovated or replaced within a few years, as part of his $3.7 billion Lighthouse Project.

The project, that also includes a five-star hotel, condominiums, an Athletic Complex featuring four ice rinks, basketball facility, a state-of-the-art health club that will serve as the Islanders’ practice facility that will be open to the public, a Sports Technology Center, open air plaza, and conference center.

The go ahead on the project has been held up and is still under review by the Town of Hempstead.

“Never in my life, would I have anticipated this thing could be dragged out for seven, eight years,” he said.

Wang, the co-founder of Computer Associates and Kumar - former CA CEO- bought the Islanders in 2004.

Kumar, was bought out by Wang in 2004 and is serving a 12-year prison term for a $400 million accounting fraud scandal.

Wang grew up in Queens after immigrating from China at age eight.

He was determined to keep the franchise in New York, after acquiring it, but has threatened to move the club if the project does not go through.

"I knew going in that I was going to lose money," Wang said.

“I’m not saying I’ll move, I’m saying I’ll explore all my options.”

Wang's ownership tenure has brought a mash of controversial player trades, draft choices, managerial or coaching hirings/firings and contract signings in the past nine years.

A Forbes Magazine article investigated why certain NHL franchises could remain profitable despite poor attendance and overall league profit loss.

They found that several league owners under reported their cable broadcast revenue.

The magazine specifically accused Wang of excluding half of the $17 million paid to the Islanders for the 2003 cable broadcast season.

In Oct 2008, Forbes listed the Islanders along with the Nashville Predators and Phoenix Coyotes in their top-ten list of pro sports franchises expected to move.

Later that month, the magazine ranked the franchise 29th on it's list of the 30 teams in the league with a value of $154 million.

Wang bought the team for $170 million.

The Islanders have made the playoffs just once in the last four season and finished dead last this season.

In April, the franchise won the right to draft 1st overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

Since that, Islanders representatives claim that their ticket sales department has seen a 300-percent increase in phone calls and e-mail inquiries over last year at this time and also is on pace to renew 90 percent of its season tickets.