All Habs Headlines: Game Day Skate, Tremblay, Therrien, Norris, CWHL

All Habs Headlines: Saturday March 21, 2015
	On this day in hockey history… 1948 –  Montreal’s Elmer Lach scored twice in the final game of the season to win the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring champion by one point over the New York Rangers’ Buddy O’Connor.
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► Montreal Canadiens: March 21

• The Canadiens had an optional skate at the Bell Sports Complex in Brossard on Saturday morning.  P.K. Subban, Max Pacioretty, Dale Weise, Lars Eller and Torrey Mitchell were not in attendance.
• Michel Therrien announced that Carey Price will start in goal against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night.  Jeff Petry will return to the lineup after recovering from the flu and will replace Nathan Beaulieu.  Petry will be paired with Alexei Emelin.
• David Desharnais was absent from practice with the flu on Friday but is expected to play.
• Check out Game Day – Sharks vs Canadiens for lineups, starting goaltenders, start time and TV broadcasts.
• Missed Thursday night’s game? Check out our game report which includes the game summary, video highlights, 3-stars and post-game quotes: Recap – Hurricanes vs Canadiens: Price Earns Shutout, 39th Win of the Season

► Tremblay allegedly insulted Subban

• An intoxicated Mario Tremblay tried to use his fame to bully a police officer during his arrest for drunk driving on January 25, 2013.  The information was revealed during a pretrial appearance at municipal court in Mascouche, Quebec.  The arresting officer testified that Tremblay said, “You can’t do this to me. I’m Mario Tremblay.”
• Tremblay criticized the officer and Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban saying, “He compared me to hockey players, (saying) I’m like P.K. Subban and I have no judgment and I’m stupid.”
• You can read the full story here.

► Therrien’s contribution to Canadiens Cup run

• Does Canadiens coach Michel Therrien deserve more credit for the team’s success?  Or is he simply riding the coattails of an MVP goaltender?  What is his system anyway?
• Adam Gretz from CBS Sports takes an interesting look at these questions in a piece titled “Can Michel Therrien hockey lead to a Stanley Cup for the Canadiens?”
• Gretz writes, “But there is still something about the way this team plays that just does not feel right. A team this good and this talented should not be as dependent on its goalie as the Canadiens are. A team with this much skill should not be satisfied chipping it off the glass and dumping it in the zone.”
• He notes that Therrien-coached teams have a couple of points in common: “They don’t generate many shots. For a team that is always supposed to be strong defensively, they give up a lot. And the success always comes down to either, A) A goaltender playing out of his mind, or B) A couple of superstars shooting the lights out.”

• Gretz concludes, “Therrien has a reputation for being a great defensive coach and having a strong defensive system. But good defensive hockey doesn’t result in consistently being one of the 10 worst teams in the league when it comes to preventing shots and being fortunate enough to have a great goalie.”

► Markov, Subban get Norris consideration 

• It’s time when analysts begin looking ahead to awards season. Our friend Rob Vollman has explored the field of Norris Trophy contenders in a piece for ESPN titled Handicapping the Norris.  Vollman believes that with front-runner, Mark Giordano suffering a season-ending bicep injury, the race has become wide open.
• After a sub-par first third of the season, P.K. Subban has turned up his offensive game bringing him right into a group vying for the scoring lead among defencemen.
• Vollman writes, “Ottawa’s Erik Karlsson was the runaway winner of the scoring race in two of the past three seasons, but it’s a much tighter pack in 2014-15. Letang just passed him atop the leaderboard with 51 points, San Jose’s Brent Burns and Montreal’s P.K. Subban are just one point behind, followed by Nashville’s Roman Josi with 47 and Washington’s John Carlson with 46. Beyond those six, there are eight more uninjured defensemen who have at least 40 points. The scoring race is almost anyone’s to win.”  Update: Karlsson has retaken the lead with 56 points followed by Letang (53), Bruns (52), Subban (52) and Josi (51).
• Andrei Markov has clearly been the Canadiens most consistent defenceman this season.  Vollman includes him in the dark horse category for the Norris writing, “Combing the league for any remaining all-around defensemen who play in both zones, take on top opponents, kill penalties, drive possession and score at both even strength and the man advantage without getting boosted by their teammates yields just three more players: Carolina’s Justin Faulk, Montreal’s Andrei Markov and Boston’s Dougie Hamilton.”

► Offense

• Carey Price has been outstanding this season, ensuring the Habs always have a shot at winning a game, sometimes however the team cannot produce offensively.
• Montreal coach, Michel Therrien, touches on this issue, “I want there to be as much balance as possible when it comes to our lines. It’s crucial to spread the offense around. We want and we need contributions from everybody to have success, even if it’s guys on the third and fourth lines or our defensemen.”

► Recipe for success

• P.K. Subban shares what he believes to be the key to success, “Sometimes, it’s just a matter of playing smarter. You can work hard, but you also have to work smart, making sure you’re putting the puck in good positions and retrieving it so you’re not always on defense and you’re not always chasing the game. I think we need to remember that we need to make smart decisions with the puck. We don’t want to turn the puck over. That doesn’t mean we want to take anything away from a player’s creativity. We want to make plays at the right time. If you don’t have the time or space to make a play, you want to chip the puck where you can get it back. I think we have to pay attention to those types of details to have success at this point in the season.”
• Forward, Brendan Gallagher, contributes to the topic, “You just have to understand that we’re at our best when we’re rolling four lines and six defensemen. Everyone keeps their shifts short and line after line we’re coming at teams and wearing them down and making sure that as the games go on they’re getting tired. You try to avoid tough-minute shifts where you get caught out there too long and spend some time in your own end. You’ve just got to be smart and efficient with your ice time. If you do that, by the third period you should be fine.”

► Partnership with women

• The Canadiens announced on Thursday that they have partnered with the Montreal Stars of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. The Canadiens have agreed to do what they can to help raise the interest in women’s hockey.
• The Canadiens have agreed to share their resources with the Stars, as well as aid with marketing, advertising, sponsorships, merchandising and promoting their brand.
• Geoff Molson, President of the Canadiens organization, spoke about the newly formed partnership, “As a professional hockey organization, we have been closely involved in minor hockey development for many years in Quebec, and with the growing popularity of women’s hockey over the last decade, I think this is the right time to concretely support women who play professional hockey, and, at the same time, promote the sport among up-and-coming players.

► Homecoming

• The Canadiens’ farm team, the Hamilton Bulldogs, will be relocating to St. John’s Newfoundland for the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 seasons. After which, it is expected that the team will be moved to Quebec for convenience.
• If you live in Hamilton, do not worry about the lack of hockey, as the Belleville Bulldogs are going to be moving to Hamilton.
• The Winnipeg Jets will also be bringing their farm team home, as the current St. John’s IceCaps will be relocated to Winnipeg this coming season.

► Price’s selfie

My hero price

A photo posted by Justin (@jazouri31) on Mar 15, 2015 at 6:10am PDT

• Selfies have become a phenomenon over the last few years and Carey Price joined the fad last week when he took a selfie with a young fan.
• The fan, Justin, wrote a letter to Price afterwards explaining how thankful he was and how much it meant to him:

To my hero Carey Price,

I have always regarded you as one of my heroes, but it was only yesterday that I started to think long about what a hero means to me.

A hero is someone who you not only admire for their outstanding achievements, but also for their kindness.

You, Mr. Price, do both.

Our family travelled to New York City for Saturday night’s game. I tried to take a selfie with you. You noticed me and gave me the memory of a lifetime. You looked and asked me for my selfie in the middle of an intense game and I wanted to say thank you.

Thank you for being the generous person I have always believed that you were.

Who would have thought that the selfie would be captured by a cameraman during the break and make the headlines? But it happened!

The story went viral and since then we have been contacted by several radio stations and sports television stations for interviews.

This story is not really about me. I am not different from the other millions of fans. This story is about you, and proof that a true hero is not measured in the greatness of his strength, but the strength of his heart.

Carey, the truth is that you were my hero before Saturday night and now it may well be that you become a hero and an inspiration to many other fans who often need to believe in the power of a single moment. A unique moment that I will replay in my head and possibly play again in the heads of every young fan who has the feeling of being part of a selfie.

Because it could have been anyone else posing with you.

This is perhaps my selfie, but this has nothing to do with me.

So, Mr. Price, thank you for proving that your skills on the ice are secondary to your kindness!

You gave me a memory that will last a lifetime and there is nothing more generous to a young hockey fan like me.

Sincerely,

Justin

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