Posted by Kyle

Let’s see how some of the Habs did at the World Hockey Championships this year in Switzerland. We’ll be able to take have a clearer picture if the shenanigans in Montreal dragged them down, or if they truly had dismal seasons.

Tomas Plekanec: 7 games played, 1 assist, 4 PIM, +1. Verdict? Ouch.
Chris Higgins: 5 games played, 1 goal, 1 assist, 2 PIM, +2. Verdict? Snooze.
Yannick Weber: 3 games played, 0 points, 8 PIM, even. Verdict? Meh.
Jaroslav Halak: 4 games played, 1W, 3L, 3.17 GAA, .872 SV% Verdict? Vomit.

So it appears that whatever malaise ruined Plekanec and Higgins’ season was not just isolated to Montreal. This has simply been a nightmare season for them.

Weber didn’t play much in Montreal, and performed admirably under dire circumstances against a far superior opponent. Halak had a decent season in Montreal, but this was pretty much a disaster tournament for him, including an 8-1 drubbing at the hands of the Czecks where teammate Tomas Surovy whacked him in the bean after yet another goal.

How about some former Habs…how did they do?

Mikhail Grabovski: (does he even count?) Either way, he went for 3 goals, 6 assists, 2 PIM, -1 in 7 games.
Janne Niiniimaa: He certainly doesn’t count, but for what it’s worth, he had an assist in 6 games.
Alexander Perezhogin: 3 goals, 3 assists, 6 PIM, +5. Impressive! And he didn’t try to play tee ball with anyone’s head.
Mark Streit: Ah our old friend Mark. He only had a goal and 4 helpers in 6 games. 8 PIM and -3 as Switzerland’s top ice time getter and scorer. Well done Mark!
Marcel Hossa: He did rather well for himself; 3 goals, 2 assists, 4 PIM, -1 in 5 games for Slovakia.
Ron Hainsey: He averaged the 2nd most minutes on the team, and as a result picked up 2 goals, 4 assists for 6 points. 0 PIM, and a +2. Perhaps the most impressive of the lot!

Is it me, or is a pattern developing? Former Habs have done a heck of a lot better than current Habs. I’m not going to bother getting in to the reasons why this happens, because, quite frankly, I have no idea. I’ll say that maturity is a part of it, as a few of those guys were boys when they played with us. Otherwise I’ve got nothing.

If there were any prospect Habs on any of those rosters, sorry…I missed them. Please feel free to add them below, as well as any other thoughts you may have.