All Habs Headlines: Friday June 7, 2013
On June 6, 1969, Montreal General Manager Sam Pollock swung a deal to acquire Peter Mahovlich, who had until that point struggled to stick in the NHL full-time with the Detroit Red Wings. In return for Mahovlich and Bart Crashley, the Canadiens gave up only Garry Monahan and Doug Piper in a fairly one-sided transaction. Mahovlich scored 569 points in 582 games for the Habs, but though he won four Stanley Cups, unlike brother Frank, he is not a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
ALL HABS HEADLINES
► Vail invited to U.S. camp: Canadiens prospect Brady Vail got some good news Thursday, as he was invited to participate in USA Hockey’s upcoming summer camp in preparation for the 2013 World Junior Hockey Championship. Vail, 19, was seen as an early candidate to make last year’s American squad, but was left off the invite list when a hot offensive start cooled down. With only five returnees on the list of 24 forwards (out of 40 total players) announced today, there are certainly jobs to be won for the older and more experienced two-way center.
Vail finished second in scoring on a disappointing Windsor Spitfires team with 55 points in 68 games, finishing the season on a tryout with the Hamilton Bulldogs where he notched a goal and four points in 12 games playing mostly fourth line minutes. Unlike fellow members of his draft class Alex Galchenyuk, Sebastian Collberg, Tim Bozon, and Charles Hudon, Vail has yet to sign a contract with the Canadiens, but provided he has another season of development like his last, it should be a foregone conclusion.
Read more: Forty players invited to 2013 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp
► Canadiens consolidate development camps: The past few off-season, the Montreal Canadiens brass has taken the approach of holding two separate prospect development camps. The first would focus on previously drafted players, while the second would serve to introduce that summer’s latest selections to the organization. It would seem that philosophy may have changed, given the timing of this year’s camp, with medicals beginning on Monday, July 1st, as announced this week. On-ice sessions are scheduled to run July 3rd to 7th at the Complexe Sportif Bell in Brossard.
Both recently signed Swedes – Magnus Nygren and Sebastian Collberg – are expected to be in attendance, as is France native Tim Bozon, who will make Montreal his training base this summer. The decision on NHL-experienced prospects is always an interesting indicator as to how the organization sees the development of some of its young players, though one should anticipate the presence of defensemen Nathan Beaulieu and Jarred Tinordi, while forwards Brendan Gallagher and Alex Galchenyuk would be surprising invitees.
With six picks in the first three rounds on June 30th, the camp could see a number of new faces alongside the returnees, though given the quick turnaround from draft day to camp opening, it remains possible these players are invited back for a second camp only later in the summer.
As always, All Habs looks forward to bringing you exclusive reports and updates from the development camp(s).
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Centennial Plaza is on the move: No first-time pilgrimage to the Bell Centre is complete for Habs fans without a visit to Centennial Plaza. That’s been difficult these past few months as many of the statues had been removed as a temporary sales centre had been plunked in the middle of the plaza to promote the future Tour des Canadiens condominium project.
The new Centennial Plaza will be found on the east side of the Bell Centre next to Windsor Court and is scheduled to open in 2016. It will again feature the statues of Howie Morenz, Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau and Guy Lafleur along with the displays of jerseys that have been retired by the Canadiens.
“It has always been essential for us to honor our greatest legends and teams, coupled with the bricks personalized by fans as testament to their passion and attachment to the club, in an area accessible to the public at large for generations in a setting worthy of the iconic moments and history it celebrates. We are happy to unveil to you our vision for what will become the permanent home for Centennial Plaza, a place Montrealers and visitors to the city will be able to enjoy for decades to come.” — Geoff Molson
► Another ‘Q coach to Avs? Steve Turcotte reported that Mario Duhamel, head coach of the Drummondville Voltigeurs could be on his way to become an assistant coach on Patrick Roy‘s staff in Colorado.
► Calder Cup final online: The AHL has announced that the Calder Cup finals will be available via free live-streaming on their website. Game 1 is Saturday night between the Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) and the Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings.)
► Flames sign Ramo: It was clear by the trade deadline that the Calgary Flames were preparing to move beyond the Miikka Kiprusoff era. But who was the heir apparent? After the Mike Cammalleri – Rene Bourque trade I can remember debating many a fan about the player Jay Feaster stole as a throw-in. Karri Ramo was that player and is often mentioned as one of the best goalies playing outside the NHL — Ramo has posted stellar numbers for Omsk Avangard of the KHL. Ramo will have the inside track to taking over the crease for the Flames come the Fall.
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New duds for Stars: When you miss the playoffs for five straight years you have to change it up. The Dallas Stars are abandoning their predominately black and gold look for a return to green, reminiscent of the days of the Minnesota North Stars. Forward Jamie Benn and special advisor Mike Modano were on hand for the unveiling.
“I came from Minnesota and it [that color] is just something people recognize. Over the years, we got away from that. It’s a good color. It’s different. Obviously, no one has it [in the NHL], and that’s the way it was with the North Stars. Green was kind of unique and different.” — Mike Modano
► How do you use Twitter? Rocket Sports Media (the parent company of All Habs) has collaborated with a UQAM master’s student to develop a survey that will study how fans use Twitter to follow their favorite sports team. It’s fun, it’s easy and it won’t take too much of your time. Take the survey:
French version of the survey
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/twitter_et_sport
English version of the survey
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/twitter_and_sport
