By Joce, Senior Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine
PENTICTON, BC. — Here are a few thoughts on different topics surrounding the Habs’ and the NHL over the past few weeks. We’re touching on Subban, Therrien, Price, Pacioretty, Plekanec, Galchenyuk and more. Feel free to post your comments as they are always welcomed.
1- The news came out that P.K. Subban was selected to represent Canada in Sochi next month, which brought some fans and media talking about it raising his value for his next contract. I disagree. Subban was named the best player in the NHL last year, all nationalities included in the best league in the world. Being named as one of eight Canadian defenseman, while prestigious in itself, comes nowhere close to his Norris trophy when it comes to his value. Subban will be paid big money, not because he made Team Canada, but because he’s just that good and none know it better than the Habs’ brass.
2- Too much has been said about the fact that Subban was sat for eight minutes at the start of the third period while his team was down 3-1 to the Flyers. Media and fans crucifying coach Michel Therrien for his decision. Has anyone stopped to think that perhaps, this is not the first occasion that Subban has taken selfish retaliation penalties and inopportune times in games, costing precious points to the team, and that there might be an ongoing discussion between the coach and the player about it? Whether people agree or not with Therrien’s decision at the time, the fact remains that he knows the implication as it’s his job that’s on the line, not the one of a few reporters or fans, as well intended as they might be.
3- Which brings me to Therrien’s comments about how the coaching staff helped Subban being selected by Team Canada. I was listening to Rodger Brulotte who had a different take on it and to be honest, it makes sense. He pointed out that at the end of his statement, Therrien said: “Trust me, I know.” Brulotte suggested that Therrien (and perhaps Subban) know that back in October, they might have been informed that the star defenseman had things to work on in order to make that select team and they worked together to fix those things. He did give credit to Subban but at the same time, mentioned that perhaps, the coaching staff had something to do with it. It’s hard to argue on that, whether we agree or not if he should have said it to the media.
4- Another key member of the Canadiens and one of the main reasons why they sit where they sit in the standings today, Carey Price, was also announced as one of the three goalies for Team Canada, along with returnee Roberto Luongo as well as Phoenix Coyotes’ Mike Smith. The starter’s job will be played out in the next month or so, with Price and Luongo being neck in neck, although Bobby-Lou might have a slight advantage having won the Gold in 2010 in Vancouver. Price should see some playing time regardless while Smith should act as the third goalie, pending injuries.
5- The announcement of the US Olympic team stirred some controversy as Bobby Ryan was left off the team, move that might have been forced by the play of Max Pacioretty. Patches is having a very good season and he’s the catalyst of the Habs’ offense, along with line mate David Desharnais. Pacioretty has more than earned a spot to represent his country and with his speed, should do well on the Olympic-size ice. It would be interesting to see a Pacioretty/Price showdown.
6- The Czech team didn’t surprise anyone by selecting Canadiens’ center Tomas Plekanec, but might have by giving him the captaincy of the national team, ahead of guys like Jaromir Jagr and Patrik Elias. This is a great compliment made to Plekanec, which prompted this response: “Well I hope he talks more in Czech than he does in English,” joked Carey Price. Plekanec has always been said to be a true pro who takes his career very seriously. I wonder if he’ll convince the Czech team to all wear turtlenecks?
7- The Russian team will rely on two Canadiens to help them in Sochi, as both Andrei Markov and Alexei Emelin received the good news. Markov has come a long way since his knee injuries and he’s having himself a great season for the Habs. Emelin came back after missing the first few weeks of the season after having knee surgery and the team went on a winning streak upon his comeback, but both he and his teammates have been struggling as of late. Here’s hoping that Emelin uses his time on the national team to regain confidence and comes back with a strong second half.
8- Another Canadiens’ defenseman who should be playing a lot of minutes for his team is Swiss-born Raphaël Diaz. Ironically, the 28-year-old defenseman will be teamed up with two former Canadiens in Mark Streit and Yannick Weber in Sochi. Diaz joined Team Switzerland after the Habs were eliminated last spring and played three games with them, getting one assist. After a great season last year, Diaz is having more problems establishing himself as an impact player and his ice time has dropped below the 20 minutes per game and he found himself watching from the press box at times.
9- Both Canadiens’ goaltenders will be in Sochi next month representing their respective country as it was announced that Peter Budaj was named to the Slovak team. Like Diaz, Budaj will also be sharing his position with another former Habs as the hero of the Vancouver Olympics, Jaroslav Halak, will also be playing on team Chara. Budaj should be playing the role of backup to Halak but he might see some action in the round robin. Budaj is having a good season as Carey Price’s backup but his play has suffered lately, like the rest of the team.
10- One player who won’t be representing his country is sophomore player Alex Galchenyuk as he wasn’t named to the Olympic roster. The fact that he received considerations as a 19-year-old speaks of his talent but ultimately, the US had many good players to pick from. You can bet that he will play for them before long. Unfortunately for him though, the one bad news came with a worse one when he broke his hand and found out that he will have to miss six weeks of activity. This is a serious blow to a Habs’ team already struggling to score goals.
11- To finish on the Olympics’ topic, there are two names that I would have liked to see in Sochi that were ignored. Martin St-Louis is the NHL’s reigning scoring leader and he has 41 points in 44 games this season, without Vinny Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos injured for part of the season. Why they picked a guy like Rick Nash ahead of St-Louis on the Olympic ice is beyond me? The other one who really impressed me the past couple of seasons with his overall play is Panthers’ defenseman Brian Campbell. Forget the overblow salary, the guy is second in the NHL in ice time per game and he is now a complete player, even defensively. He’s a smooth skater and makes excellent passes and decisions with the puck. I would have picked him well ahead of Dan Hamhuis, especially on the big ice.
12- The NHL trade deadline is March 5th this year and there is a trade freeze during the Olympic period, between February 7th to February 23rd, which will leave 10 days to complete trades between the Olympics and the trade deadline. For that reason, it wouldn’t be surprising to see teams attempting to adjust their roster prior to February 7th, although there will still be time to tweak their line-up after the freeze is lifted.
The Canadiens need to find their game and do it quickly as they don’t want to lose any ground on the Bruins and Red Wings, especially not this season with the Wild Card coming into play. It will be interesting to keep an eye on Marc Bergevin who says that he is not excluding the possibility of adding to his team, although it is commendable to see that he won’t overpay for rental players. Here’s hoping that the right hockey deal comes about. Go Habs Go!!!
En français: Repassage en famille: Repassage en famille : Subban et Therrien, les Canadiens aux Olympiques et plus
