Monday, April 1, 2013

April 3rd Deadline approaches...changes?

4:48 PM  Unknown  19 comments

Will the Montreal Canadiens make a move before April 3rd deadline?

All of the rumors say someone is coming to Montreal via trade before April 3rd. Names bounced around were Clowe, Talbot, Smid, just to name a few. However the question to be answered is do they really need any outside help to go into the playoffs?

The way the team has been playing this year they seem to find a way to come together and win against all kinds of adversity. This team reminds me of another special team; the 1993 Stanley Cup Champions. There were no special players on that team. They were a group of guys who stuck up for each other and persisted against all kinds of obstacles. Guys like Kirk Muller led they way with selfless play; something that Mr. Prust has exemplified this year.

So should the Canadiens bring in help? I think the answer is no.

The pieces are all in place. They have goaltending. They have sound defense with good prospects in the AHL ready to step up and Diaz in the background. They have a solid group of forwards. Are they as good individually as the Pittsburgh Penguins? No. As a team though I would match them up against them anytime even with Jarome Iginla in the line up. As this past week showed, the Canadiens can play with the best and the toughest anytime and match them stride for stride.

I say leave the team as is and bring on the best time of year; playoffs in the spring!

What do you think? Do you agree we have the team we need or are changes needed? Let me know your thoughts as deadline day of April 3rd approaches.

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19 comments:

I think upfront we are fine although if an opportunity presents itself to trade Moen I hope they take it. I'm afraid he might not have much value on the market right now though.

On the back end I think they should try to pick up an experienced D especially since it doesn't look like Diaz will be back anytime soon...a guy like Keith Yandle or even Filip Kuba could certainly be useful to us I think.

Actually quite interesting to make that comparison to the Canadiens of 20 years ago. Guess time will tell.

team still doesn't have a reliable top flight goal scorer and are soft down the middle with the exception of plekanec... if guys start struggling there's no one there to pick up the slack on talent

Great post Mike I completely agree. I think the team is good enough the way they are. Ride the team we have because we`ve done very well to this point, why change what is working.

We may not be the Pens as you alluded to but those team don`t always win.

Plus, I`d like to see some of our boys get some playoff experience. We may not take it this year, but the experience this young team will gain will be great!

Definitely agree with you Mike and some of the other commentators on this post. I wouldn't change the team at all. Let them grow in the playoffs as a team and come into their own.

Only a TRUE, grizzled, experienced Habs fan would make a reference to 20 years ago and connect it to today. Kudos! Loved it

They have a solid team, but they need a fighter, a heavyweight. Meon can fight, but not with the best.

Montreal won't make any moves this trade deadline. They'll wait until next season, because they don't want to ruin any chemistry right now. The only thing I see them possibly doing is getting rid of Moen. If Moen goes, then they can fill that gap with Clowe, because Moen seems scared to go into the corners now and he isn't contributing nearly as much as he should. Other than that, they don't need to change right now. They're just riding high because let's face it, no one expected us to do so well this season.

You have to look at the team in the 'Healthy' state and ask what it needs to go deep and how deep do you want to go. Add Bourque and Diaz and you have your top 6 D and top 6 Forwards that should (in theory) get you to the second round. Now if you say you want to go to the Finals, you need a third scoring line who pops one in every other game and you need the first two lines as legitimate scoring lines every night. From that perspective I'm not sure if we have two bonafied scoring lines and we definitely don't have that third line. On D, we would need one top 6 to fill in for injuries. I'm not adding potential names or even what positions but when I look at this I think the asking price to get 2-3 bonafied players is too high. MB can tinker in the off season and get way more value and not sacrifice the team that right now should get us to the 2nd round.

Great post, bud. Nice '93 reference! We could always use more size, but not at the expense of the future. Sure we have a lot of draft picks this year, but we're still building up. I think we made our move with Ryder and Halpern. Halpern has sparked Moen a bit, scored his first goal. Ryder has been outstanding in his return. Almost worthy of extension talk...

Thanks Jamie for the reply

Yes that 1993 team was special. Demers high energy coaching and a team that truly was a TEAM. They did it in style, 10 overtime victories...no one will every match that.

Thank you everyone for the comments.
As a long time die hard hab fan(since 1968)there is nothing better I like doing than talk about our Habs.I have seen the best of the Habs with Beliveau,Lafleur and Robinson leading the way. And I have witnessed the hard times which I don't want to recall. So I am hopeful that MB is working on another copy of that 93 team chemistry to lead us back into that glorious spring time run.
Keep the comments coming; love to read them all.
Thanks again

Disagree... The deal that needs to be made is for depth..any trades made jow is to win the cup.. We are in the playoffs that's for sure.. We need depth to play deep into the playoffs.. Brining in this new D from LA.. 6'1 220lbs..if he stays and is not part of a bigger trade he can help with size

Getting rid of Moen? Making no trades until next year? No wonder you stayed anonymous.. This is when you push when you make trades to strengthen.. Add depth to a strong team... The chemistry won't be ruined because even after brining Ryder.. Halpern.. The team is still working well... Make a splash bring in Clowe and show the fans your pushing for the cup

I am a diehard Habs fan who lives in Bruin country. I should get an award for all the abuse I take. Habs never get any respect where I live. I am originally from New Brunswick. Now to the article. CHEMISTRY Thats the most important ingredient in hockey and Montreal has it. I wouldnt change it and go with the guys in the room. Then hope we can win the battle of nutrition and stay healthy for the playoffs. The way the team is now we are just as good as anybody else and underrated which could be to our advantage. Hopefully Rene Bourque comes back healthy and the way he was playing before the injury is as good as any forward being traded for at the deadline

See the habs and MB are on the right track. They just picked up a reliable, big defense man from LA at basically no cost. He will fit in nicely with Bouillon. Keep the team together and move forward. I agree with your post Mike, team chemistry is the most important thing.

yeah looks like he is coming to habs...rumour is gionta, bealieu and a 1st rounder...

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