Rocket:
This is a first on this blog for me: a postscript to last night’s game review.
I simply want to make it clear that I stand by the comments made in last night’s review. I actually saw a lot of positives in the game. I believe that the Canadiens lost the game via the failure of their special teams and the inability of their star offensive players to put away their chances. In particular, the play of Alexei Kovalev was poor for the reasons I described.
Do I think that Kovalev should play on the 4th line?; be sent to the press box?; or traded? No, no and no! But something is clearly wrong. He was playing like this two years ago and it turned out to be a conflict with the coach that required Gainey’s intervention over the summer. If that’s the case, do it now…or find a new coach who will motivate him. It’s not all about Alex Kovalev and there are plenty of other reasons right now to demand that the coach do a better job or be replaced. And there are a number of other players who in several games this year have stopped playing for this coach.
Now on to the some of the errors in last night’s game. None of them alone were responsible for last night’s defeat. The major failures above should be receiving more focus. Ryan O’Byrne’s mistake was excusable as mentioned by Eklund. It was a mistake by a good young defenseman who requires the coach’s confidence to play error-free. In my opinion, the play by Brisebois was far worse because it was selfish. Brise took himself out of the play (not very quickly) for a minor ‘injury’ which left his team short-handed. To tolerate a bit of pain to support your teammates is a small price to pay, and it apparently Brisebois wasn’t willing to do that.
I prefer team players; guys who will stand shoulder to shoulder or step in for a teammate when necessary. The Canadiens have those guys: Bouillon, Kostopoulos, Komisarek, Sergei Kostitsyn, Koivu..and it has nothing to do with country of origin (quite a United Nations type group). Brisebois is not one of them, and he no longer has the skill to compete at the NHL level.
I’m sure that the rest of the league finds the reaction to the O’Byrne incident quite fascinating. Some players may find it humorous or feel some sympathy for Ryan. For certain, many forwards would relish the opportunity if O’Byrne is benched or plays with broken confidence. Who would they rather meet in the corner or at the top of the crease: Ryan O’Byrne or Patrice Brisebois?
Some players such as Jay Bouwmeester are probably re-evaluating their options getting a chance to see how non-francophone players are treated by fans and some media in Montreal. It has certainly been a negative factor in attracting free agents to this city in the past.
And then there are GM’s around the league who are salivating at the chance to trade for Ryan O’Byrne if he is run out of Montreal. O’Byrne was one of the players like Higgins and McDonagh who is highly coveted and mentioned by other GM’s in trade talks last Spring. Does anyone seriously believe that teams around the league have a similar interest in Patrice Brisebois? The truth is that the Montreal Canadiens are the only team in the league who would employ Brisebois.
It’s time to put the loss, the failures and the mistakes in context and get on with the job of ensuring that this team plays at its maximum potential.
TSN: Ready To Bounce Back
previous articles published on this topic:
Look Inside the Habs Room, After O’Byrne’s Unfortunate Mistake