Friday, December 3, 2010

Press Release - Andrei Markov To Undergo Surgery

5:29 PM  Unknown  6 comments

ANDREI MARKOV TO UNDERGO KNEE SURGERY

MONTREAL (December 3, 2010) – The Montreal Canadiens today announced that defenseman Andrei Markov will undergo knee surgery on Wednesday, December 8. The surgery, to repair a meniscus and reconstruct the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), will be performed in Alabama by doctor James Andrews.

“ We are very confident that Andrei will be able to fully recover from this injury ”, said the Canadiens’ general manager Pierre Gauthier.

The 31-year old Russian defenseman will not return this season. Markov suffered a knee injury during the November 13 game against Carolina at the Bell Centre, and missed the team’s last nine games.

Markov registered 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) in seven games with the Canadiens this season. He missed the first 10 games of the season, from October 7 to 29, due to a knee injury suffered on April 30, 2010.

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6 comments:

He just became a free agent (so to speak)
Montreal should shop now for a long term replacement.
Markov is done in Mtl, unless he takes a major home town discount.

Hi there anonymous and thanks for your comment!

The crazy thing is the as of now, Markov will still be recovering by the time he becomes a free agent. You've got to feel for the guy...

That being said, IF the Habs were to look for a long term replacement, who would you go after?

Bieksa seems like a good target and brings grit to the backend that the Habs need.

Who would you target?

I do like the Bieksa idea, but it's been talked about so much I have doubts it will ACTUALLY happen. I've heard Brian Campbell mentioned, but he's just too much dang money!

Whoever the replacement, there are some prerequisites. Must be an offensive minded guy who can fill a need on the powerplay (even though its been clicking recently) and more importantly, needs to be a much smaller contract than Markov. Why you ask? WE NEED A WINGER FOR GOMEZ! This is a much bigger need than another defenseman.

Who could this be? (Please don't mention MAB or I'll throw up in my mouth) I'm thinking of another former Hab. Someone who is on the "outs" with his current team. Someone who might be a perfect fit.

I'm talking about Craig Rivet. He did some fantastic things when he was in Montreal. Yes he's a little older, but he's also a free agent at the end of the year, and will likely be signable to a lower contract than the $3.5 he is getting this year.

With Markov's remainder of his $5.75 million coming off the books, the addition of Rivet's remainder of his $3.5 million would leave us with a nice chunk of change to get the big winger we so desperately need.

Hey Kamal,

Perhaps Bieksa is the right guy, he's not real big. I'm not sure exactly what we need is out there.

Habs D-zone coverage seems to revolve around giving up the perimeter, collapsing into the middle and blocking shooting lanes. This is effective a lot of times but tends to puts no emphasis on controlling your own end of the rink. Because of this style, once opponents get control in the offensive end it is easy for them to sustain pressure. They fire a lot of pucks at Price, crash the net, manhandle our D and then capitalize when he is lying on the ice with D on top.
Washington's reluctance to do this cost them the series last year but Philly, Boston and teams with both speed and power are difficult opponents for the Habs. Ideally you would want that grit and intimidation factor combined with ability to quickly get dumped in pucks to start transition.

Price's puck handling and first pass can often take the pressure off the D but teams will often try to use soft dump ins so that our D has to turn and then there lack of speed and agility is exposed. We need that guy who will make forecheckers think twice and get easy clears/transition a la Dustin Byfuglien...but he's not going anywhere soon.

Keep up the great blogs!

OK, first off letting Markov go at the end of this season is ludicrous. I say do what they did with Tomas Plekanec, sign him to a value contract for 1 year and make him play and play well to earn a long term contract and raise. It is a gamble they must be willing to take. Markov is too good to just cut ties and let him become an all star again with another team.

Targets for a replacement, which i am guessing you are looking at the free agent crop for this coming year? I also like Bieksa who seems to be in a funk in Vancouver. I like his overall game. Maybe even an underrated guy like Christian Ehrhoff could be targeted given the Canucks cap space problems going forward.

Also, a guy like Steve Montador, at only $1.2M would be a steal. Good on both ends of the rink. Another potential free agent bargain would be Dallas' Trevor Daley, at 27yrs old and $2.5M. A very underrated Dman with a great shot.

I have always liked Joe Corvo, a value at 2.3M. A good PP Dman, and not scared to get dirty. Another guy not on the Free Agent market I would like in a Habs jersey is the Oilers Ryan Whitney. I think they need a good 2-way guy who can log mins no matter what the situation.

Maybe they can get Mike Komisarek back from the Leafs, he is doing nothing with them. LOL

On a side note i say save their pennies somehow and throw it all at Alex Semin. A great offensive talent the Habs could really use. A great winger for the 1st or 2nd line. I think he is going to hit the Free Agent market at the end of the year, unless he signs a ridiculously long contract to minimize the Caps cap hit and continue to play along side that Ovechkin guy.

Hey all and thanks for your comments!

@leshabitantssontmagnifique: I think that Bieksa is a good candidate because he is big (6'1 215lbs) and plays tough. I don't necessarily think that the player the Habs bring in must be offensive minded. If the Habs have Subban AND Weber on the team, that should help in that department.

Ideally, the Habs need size AND offensive skill. And that is not something easy to come by.

@Jeff: You are bang on with your assessment! The Habs absolutely shut down the middle and give up the perimeter.

As for Bieksa, as I explained above, he is pretty big at 6'1 205 lbs. Moreover, he brings a physical element that the Habs need on the back end. The problem, or potential problem, is that he is not very offensive.

Whoever the Habs go after, I think getting size and toughness is a must because IF the Habs want to go deep in the playoffs, they will need to get tougher.

@Hirky: I agree re: Markov and would be surprised if the Habs let him walk for nothing. Sign him to a minimal one-year deal for a LOW salary (1-1.5 Mil) with about 4 Mill of bonus clauses, most of all being how many games he plays. Markov is Markov, and imo, it is worth taking a shot on him to see if he can last all season. If he doesn't, you cut him loose. If he does, then you come out ahead.

I like your Montador and Corvo picks!

At the end of the day the Habs ideally need size AND skill to replace Markov. Despite thier success so far, and to Jeff's point, the Habs will get manhandled in the playoffs if they don't beef up some.

They need size in the top-6 and size on the back end. With almost 6 mil to play with, they have enough to find both. The problem is who is out there that is available?

Overall, the Habs' strong play has given them the luxury of time. If they keep winning, they can afford to wait close to the trade deadline before making any moves.

Thanks again for your comments people!

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