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Post by habsalways on Aug 26, 2024 21:29:05 GMT
With the Laine trade, one of the major upsides here is that the Habs have acquired a player with potential star-level production AND a former top 5 draft choice. I've said many times that to win, you need those types of players with strong pedigrees and elite output. Most of the Cup winners have players who fit that profile. With Laine, the Habs now have a plethora of former top 5 picks or recent top 5 picks who are coming: - Laine - Dach - Slafkovsky - Reinbacher - Demidov They also have some stars or potential stars outside the top 5 in Suzuki, Caufield, and Hutson. So suddenly, this line-up is starting to look like ones that win Cups. It'll take a couple of years for the Reinbacher's, Hutson's, and Demidov's to establish themselves (which is why the Laine addition still doesn't clearly help the window), but it's evident that HuGo understands how you build a winner... from the draft and with elite talent. Caufield likely would have been top 5 if not for his size. Suzuki in a redraft of 2017 is top 6, and if his name was Nick Smith, he'd have been top 5 Hutson, similar argument for Caufield Laines helps the window if your expecting Reinbacher, Hutson and Demidov to be secondary contributors and you're aiming this season or next to start pushing to rise in the standings. We do however have some dead wood that needs to be shed in Gallagher, Anderson and Armia |
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Post by HTL on Aug 26, 2024 22:30:38 GMT
With the Laine trade, one of the major upsides here is that the Habs have acquired a player with potential star-level production AND a former top 5 draft choice. I've said many times that to win, you need those types of players with strong pedigrees and elite output. Most of the Cup winners have players who fit that profile. With Laine, the Habs now have a plethora of former top 5 picks or recent top 5 picks who are coming: - Laine - Dach - Slafkovsky - Reinbacher - Demidov They also have some stars or potential stars outside the top 5 in Suzuki, Caufield, and Hutson. So suddenly, this line-up is starting to look like ones that win Cups. It'll take a couple of years for the Reinbacher's, Hutson's, and Demidov's to establish themselves (which is why the Laine addition still doesn't clearly help the window), but it's evident that HuGo understands how you build a winner... from the draft and with elite talent. Caufield likely would have been top 5 if not for his size. Suzuki in a redraft of 2017 is top 6, and if his name was Nick Smith, he'd have been top 5 Hutson, similar argument for Caufield Laines helps the window if your expecting Reinbacher, Hutson and Demidov to be secondary contributors and you're aiming this season or next to start pushing to rise in the standings. We do however have some dead wood that needs to be shed in Gallagher, Anderson and Armia Of the 3 you mention, i think Armia earned his contract last year and if we get a similar effort from him this season it makes him an asset at TD, or a playoff run, should we be in the race. Gally can still play in this League but his contract makes him hard to move without retention and i just don't know what to say about Anderson. If he can have a rebound year it makes him an asset but another year like last and he's an unmovable anchor. |
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regis
Le Gros Bill
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Post by regis on Aug 28, 2024 21:42:19 GMT
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Post by habsology on Aug 29, 2024 13:45:07 GMT
Caufield likely would have been top 5 if not for his size. Suzuki in a redraft of 2017 is top 6, and if his name was Nick Smith, he'd have been top 5 Hutson, similar argument for Caufield Laines helps the window if your expecting Reinbacher, Hutson and Demidov to be secondary contributors and you're aiming this season or next to start pushing to rise in the standings. We do however have some dead wood that needs to be shed in Gallagher, Anderson and Armia Of the 3 you mention, i think Armia earned his contract last year and if we get a similar effort from him this season it makes him an asset at TD, or a playoff run, should we be in the race. Gally can still play in this League but his contract makes him hard to move without retention and i just don't know what to say about Anderson. If he can have a rebound year it makes him an asset but another year like last and he's an unmovable anchor. I will go out on a limb and say that Armia will be paired with Laine and they will end up making a killer line with whichever centre they are given. |
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Post by habsalways on Aug 29, 2024 15:04:48 GMT
Of the 3 you mention, i think Armia earned his contract last year and if we get a similar effort from him this season it makes him an asset at TD, or a playoff run, should we be in the race. Gally can still play in this League but his contract makes him hard to move without retention and i just don't know what to say about Anderson. If he can have a rebound year it makes him an asset but another year like last and he's an unmovable anchor. I will go out on a limb and say that Armia will be paired with Laine and they will end up making a killer line with whichever centre they are given. Yeah of the three players I listed in my post, Gallagher, Anderson and Armia ... Armia is the one that on a friendly contract is decent value, but he's the wrong side of 30 and doesn't fit our window if we can get cheaper, younger players to fill his role. |
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Post by maasart on Aug 29, 2024 19:07:33 GMT
Of the 3 you mention, i think Armia earned his contract last year and if we get a similar effort from him this season it makes him an asset at TD, or a playoff run, should we be in the race. Gally can still play in this League but his contract makes him hard to move without retention and i just don't know what to say about Anderson. If he can have a rebound year it makes him an asset but another year like last and he's an unmovable anchor. I will go out on a limb and say that Armia will be paired with Laine and they will end up making a killer line with whichever centre they are given. I still think MSL starts with Armia-Newhook-Gallagher simply because you had 2 underperforming players really turn it around when they joined Newhook but I could definitely see them trying a Laine-Armia line too. There's a lot of possibilities & the only guy i dont really see fitting in is Dvo. I wouldnt be surprised if we move before the season starts. |
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regis
Le Gros Bill
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Post by regis on Aug 30, 2024 14:58:13 GMT
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Post by habsalways on Aug 30, 2024 20:05:41 GMT
Oofff. Signed a 5 year contract, played a total of 95 games for the team (out of a possible 400 or so) and is finally off the books after a buyout. Horrifically bad contract - both for the team & the player. Sure, he got paid, but I suspect if he had signed a contract more in line with his skills, he probbaly would have played for several more years in a smaller role. The funny thing is, people complain "top free agents wont sign in montreal" but Alzer *was* probably the top LHD free agent that summer... he just sucked. The Hockey News had Alzner as the #3 ranked available UFA thehockeynews.com/news/the-top-30-unrestricted-free-agents-of-2017 |
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RCAF48
Captain Kirk
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Post by RCAF48 on Sept 1, 2024 13:58:48 GMT
Credit to Steve Simmons .......... "I liked the games better when we didn’t know what every player earned. Then we just liked or disliked players based on their play — not on their dollar value."
Gallagher and the play of others on the team may look a lot different to us if we watched the games as sports fans rather than accountants.
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Post by BigTed3 on Sept 2, 2024 0:44:17 GMT
Credit to Steve Simmons .......... "I liked the games better when we didn’t know what every player earned. Then we just liked or disliked players based on their play — not on their dollar value." Gallagher and the play of others on the team may look a lot different to us if we watched the games as sports fans rather than accountants.
This is absolutely true. Because Anderson and Gallagher, despite their failings, are still better hockey players than Pezzetta. But the fact remains that in today's cap world, what you make matters. It's not just a question of whether Gallagher is better than Pezzetta, it's a question of what Gallagher being here prevents us from doing. If it means we can't spend 6.5M on another player, then it's not Gallagher vs. Pezzetta, it's Gallagher vs. whatever other player we'd be spending that money on if we could cut Gallagher without penalty. Furthermore, it's not just a question of 2024 Gallagher, it's a question of what 2025 Gallagher and 2026 Gallagher look like, because we've already pre-paid for those versions of him too. So Simmons is right, but unfortunately, that's not the reality we live in.
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Post by graeme on Sept 2, 2024 15:13:21 GMT
Credit to Steve Simmons .......... "I liked the games better when we didn’t know what every player earned. Then we just liked or disliked players based on their play — not on their dollar value." Gallagher and the play of others on the team may look a lot different to us if we watched the games as sports fans rather than accountants. I don't know how far back Simmons is going here, but even before the hard cap it's not like player's salaries didn't matter. I like that the cap at least gives a level of transparency and reduces (although not eliminates, as fans in say Ottawa will tell you) worries that your own owner isn't rich enough or too much of a cheapskate to keep up with the other owners.
The problem is that players make so much now and there's such a discrepancy between say a fourth liner and a superstar, that salaries are going to be a huge part of building a winning club regardless of the cap or anything else. Back when players didn't make a lot, the NHL probably was more like the OHL where you just watch the hockey and don't really think of the financials. But the state of the NHL today means fans need to care about salaries, even if the NHL would rather we not know or care (as Bettman's repeated idiotic takes on salary cap websites show us)
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regis
Le Gros Bill
Posts: 1,272
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Post by regis on Sept 2, 2024 22:01:30 GMT
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Post by graeme on Sept 2, 2024 23:42:17 GMT
If enough things break the right way, I think there's certainly a chance, but our base assumption should probably be that the team isn't making the playoffs, or even coming particularly close. Bottom-ten finish seems like the most likely outcome. |
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Post by claremont on Sept 3, 2024 15:37:45 GMT
If enough things break the right way, I think there's certainly a chance, but our base assumption should probably be that the team isn't making the playoffs, or even coming particularly close. Bottom-ten finish seems like the most likely outcome. That is a fair evaluation as I am not convinced without a lot of "what if's" happening, that there are more than 9 teams in the NHL that will be actually worse that les habs. I do have some expectations though as follows: 1) Improve that power play especially with Laine providing some more firepower 2) Slafkovsky getting a little more physical and using that size, reach and being stronger on puck possession 3) Getting rid of assets that no longer fit the longer term - Armia, Savard, Dvorak. It's too much wishful thinking on Gally and I hope Anderson can rebound 4) Further breakout of at least 3 youngsters - whether it be Hutson, Mailloux, Roy, Heineman, Beck, Barron, Primeau - Need to provide some hope that an upward trajectory continues. 5) A lower # of injuries than the previous years - stay healthy and 6) Just beat the leafs into oblivion! |
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Post by archey on Sept 3, 2024 17:49:04 GMT
Seems to be a comment more about the captain than the individual player compendium. To my mind. |
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regis
Le Gros Bill
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Post by regis on Sept 4, 2024 0:24:05 GMT
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Post by ramcharger440 on Sept 4, 2024 1:10:40 GMT
Laine on the ice with some of the guys in Brossard nice vid over on Facebook.
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Post by kinot3 on Sept 4, 2024 2:37:51 GMT
CC will wear #13 in honour of Johnny Gaudreau.
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regis
Le Gros Bill
Posts: 1,272
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Post by regis on Sept 5, 2024 14:02:43 GMT
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regis
Le Gros Bill
Posts: 1,272
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Post by regis on Sept 5, 2024 21:28:24 GMT
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