Weber back with Bulldogs, biding his time for Habs call

Garry Mckay
The Hamilton Spectator

(Oct 14, 2009)

Yannick Weber was back on the ice with the Hamilton Bulldogs yesterday although for most of the day no one connected with the club, including Weber himself, could quite figure out why.

The defenceman was called up to the Montreal Canadiens on November 2 ostensibly because both Andrei Marcov and Ryan O’Byrne had gone down with long-term injuries.

The Canadiens did sign free-agent defenceman Marc-Andre Bergeron who played for the Bulldogs in their home opener Friday night as part of a conditioning stint.

What made Weber’s return to Hamilton a little odd was that the injured defencemen in Montreal were still out, and will be for some time, and the Habs didn’t call up Bergeron or any other defenceman for that matter.

That changed late yesterday afternoon when the Habs called up Shawn Belle.

Bulldogs coach Guy Boucher just shrugged his shoulders after practice when he was asked what it all meant.

“All they told me was that Weber’s coming down and what we need to work on with him,” said Boucher. “With Bergeron it’s just a matter of time.”

Weber played three games for the Habs when he was called up. He was held pointless.

“They didn’t say much to me,” Weber said about his demotion. “I think Bergeron is the guy they want up there so we’ll see what happens in the next couple of days.”

Bergeron had two assists in the Bulldogs 3-0 win over Rockford Friday night but his timing also looked a little off since he hadn’t really played or practiced with anyone until Montreal signed him.

Giving Bergeron a little more time to get in game shape may have been one of the reasons the Habs decided to call up Belle, although he certainly had a good enough training game to warrant another look.

Regardless of the fact that he didn’t stick in Montreal. Weber still benefitted from the time, however brief, he spent in Montreal.

“It’s always good for them to go up no matter how many games they get or even if they just practice,” said Boucher. “Every time they go up they learn something.

“For me, it’s very positive and who knows, he could be called up again this week.”

Weber is pleased that the Habs are keeping an eye on him in Hamilton.

“They have to know that there’s somebody ready down here and it was good that I was the first guy,” he said. “It’s good to be in that situation because it puts your confidence up and you work hard down here to get the chance to go up there.”

The Dogs are on the road for a pair of games this week. They leave tomorrow for games in Peoria on Friday and Chicago, Saturday. They’re back at Copps next Monday and Tuesday to host the Manitoba Moose.

Notes: Here’s the Dogs latest injury update. Alex Henry (broken finger) is expected to start skating next week. He’s another 3-4 weeks away. David Desharnais (broken foot) will be X-rayed again on Friday but is 2-3 weeks away. Mikhael Johansson (groin) resumed skating yesterday. He probably will miss another 7-10 days.

Former Bulldog Corey Locke leads the AHL in goals with five in his first four games. Another former Bulldog is not off to a great start, however. Duncan Milroy has no goals, no assists and is minus 3 in his first three games with the Houston Aeros.