Habster:
No great loss as Brisebois is struggling and had one of his worst game this year against the Lightning. The Canadiens had an incredible 27 giveaways against Tampa Bay and Brisebois was responsible for three of them by my count.
While we’re talking about defensemen, I was very disappointed with Guy Carbonneau’s decision to limit Ryan O’Byrne’s ice time after his giveaway (2 or 3 shifts after the second period mistake). How does a young player develop his game and gain confidence if his coach benches him after one mistake? Carbonneau should have put him back out there to make up for his miscue, he would have played his heart out and tried to reward the coach’s confidence in him. Instead, the coach benches him and still gives Brisebois a regular shift after numerous giveaways…….great coaching, Guy!!!
I haven’t been terribly critical of Carbonneau but it seems as though he can’t relate to his players (rookies or veterans) unless he is trashing them in the media or benching them after one mistake on the ice. Carbo hasn’t learned from last year and is alienating his players again, something he shouldn’t be doing in an already negative media circus called Montreal.