All Habs Headlines: Tuesday May 8, 2012
On this day in hockey history… Lars Eller celebrates his 23rd birthday today! Happy Birthday Lars!
ALL HABS HEADLINES
►Are we dreaming? He’s one of the best talent evaluators in the hockey world. He has been the architect of multiple Cup-winning teams. And he could very well be the next assistant GM of the Montreal Canadiens.
Rick Dudley has been a mentor to Marc Bergevin and the newly-minted Habs GM is smart enough to realize that his own inexperience could quickly be a fatal flaw. The deal to bring Dudley to Montreal is all but done. The sticking point is that Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke would like the genius of Dudley sitting next to him at the draft table in Pittsburgh.
Expect an announcement to be made soon with Dudley’s duties to commence with the Habs sometime after June 23rd.
►Quenneville not available: Rumours have been swirling in the windy city of Chicago that Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville could be on his way to Montreal. Quenneville is one of the top coaches in the NHL and was the All Habs choice to replace Guy Carbonneau back in 2008. Better late than never, I suppose.
The rumours prompted Hawks GM Stan Bowman to reinforce that Quenneville will be returning to coach the club next season.
Let the speculation now begin on Lindy Ruff.
►Toughest thing you’ve ever done: What is it? How would you react if you were expected to shake the hand of the thug who tried to end your career? Your life?
Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty found himself in that position on Monday at the IIHF World Championships after his Team USA was defeated by Team Slovakia 4-2. In the post-game ceremony, Pacioretty shook the hand of Slovakian defenseman Zdeno Chara — the player who viciously rammed Pacioretty’s head into a Bell Centre stanchion on March 8, 2011. Pacioretty suffered a severe concussion and a fractured cervical vertebrae.
►Galchenyuk gives back : We’re not quite ready to declare the All Habs recommended choice for the Canadiens in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. But let’s just say, Alex Galchenyuk is high on the list for the Number 3 pick. Galchenyuk is blessed with size, skill and self-discipline to further build his superb conditioning.
“His work ethic is unreal, I’ve never seen a kid with a work ethic like that in my life.” — Dan Lavender, coach Bluewater Sharks
Galchenyuk also feels a responsibility to give back to the game that has brought him so much success. He attended a practise of 8-year-olds where “Galchenyuk skated drills with the kids, deked out the goalies during a scrimmage, and even traded sticks with one of the Sharks players.”
Read more: Galchenyuk Gives Back
►Blame Pierre: We have maintained for some time that while Bob Gainey rebuilt the Canadiens from ashes, his mistakes stemmed from loyalty — that is, placing too much trust in people around him. That includes Pierre Gauthier. When criticizing the Scott Gomez trade, most fans (and media) forget that it was Gauthier and his pro-scouting department that recommended the acquisition of the $7 million man.
At the time of the trade there were whispers that Gauthier wasn’t very enthused about then-Canadiens prospect Ryan McDonagh.
“Bob’s daughter had died (swept overboard at sea while working on a training ship) before this and he was letting Pierre (his confidant) do a lot of the work. Pierre didn’t like McDonagh, for some reason. Saw him play in the world juniors and didn’t like him. The scouts loved McDonagh, though. When he was traded, they couldn’t believe it.” — Edmonton Journal
Read more: Why did Habs trade McDonagh to N. Y.?
►Habs in Quebec City: The Canadiens pre-season schedule will bring them to the Quebec capital again in the fall. On October 2, 2012 the Habs will face the Carolina Hurricanes at Colisée Pepsi.
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► New at All Habs Hockey Magazine:
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The more I read about Galchenyuk, the more I like him. I just hope Habs’ brass feel the same.
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