Who is Right? Me or my Son? You Decide?

Hello my fellow HabAddicts.

Please help me with this argument I had the other night over the Sens game.
Watching the Sens/Habs game with me the other night was my son who has been a Habs fan since the late nineties. I was really frustrated watching the game because the Habs were playing poorly. So as I usually do during a Habs game, I voiced my opinion towards the TV.  I stated rather loudly that these damn Habs are just an average team and will not go far in the playoffs. That is when my son retorted and said to me that I had to be kidding. This Canadiens team is in the top three in the league!! With the best goalie in the league!!! And the best defense in the league!! I chuckled.

Well that is when I had to enlighten my son who did not have the pleasure to watch the Canadien teams that were assembled in the 60's and 70's. I began by telling him about the Big Three who made sure no one came near Roggie Vachon and Ken Dryden back in the 60's and 70's. No one would dare run our goalie when Larry Robinson, Serge Savard and Guy Lapointe were on the ice. Something which is sorely lacking on our defensive line-up today. Our toughest defenseman is Alexei Emelin and compared to the big three he is a marshmallow. Man would Carey Price love to have those three in their prime in front of him today.

Today's team is small and soft with one big offensive weapon, Max Pac, and pray he does not get hurt. And looking at the farm team, there really is no big, tough, talented players who can come up and make an impact on the team. I went on to tell my son about when the Canadiens called up Doug Risebrough and Mario Tremblay just before the playoffs and they went on to make huge contributions to the team with their toughness, hustle and goal scoring. And this was the Canadiens 4th line at that time. Look at our fourth line today. When was the last time they scored a goal or challenged an opposing goon. Speaking of goons, Ottawa exposed a big weakness the Canadiens have that will prevent them from winning a Cup until they address it. The Senators were just hitting and smacking around every Canadien player that came near them. It was ridiculous to watch, it was like watching a Pee-Wee team trying to take on a AAA team. The Sens did what ever they wanted and Montreal could not respond because they are just too small and lack toughness. Besides Brandon Prust and Dale Weise which Hab could step up and turn that abuse around? None. This would have never happened back in the 70s.

That is when I introduced my son to the Canadiens/Flyers Stanley Cup final of 1976. The Big Bad Broad Street Bullies who had just won two straight Stanley Cups by intimidating the opposition were now facing the Habs. The Flyers were big, mean, tough, SOBs who could score. They thought they were going to just run over the Habs (like the Senators did other night). Well, guys like Risebrough, Tremblay, Chartraw, Bouchard,Wilson, Lambert, were not going to be pushed around. The Habs went on to spank the Bullies in four straight games to take the first of four cups. No one on today's roster comes anywhere close to those warriors Montreal had in their line-up back in the 70's. I respect Prust, and Weise but they are not heavy weights and they are the only "tough guy" Montreal has. In the 70's Montreal's tough guys were tough but could also score. Risebrough, Tremblay and Lambert combined for 64 goals; and they were a fourth line. Guys like Lafleur, Shutt, Lemaire , Gainey, Mahovlich were taking all the top spots on those 70's teams.

Look what happened the last couple of times the Canadiens got close to the cup. In 2010 they beat out skilled teams like Pittsburgh and Washington; but then against a physical team like the Flyers they got their butts kicked. Then last year against the Rangers, Kreider runs over Price and our season is over. Now back when the Big Three were watching the blue line Kreider would have never came near our goalie. If he did get lucky and did touch our netminder, he would face the wrath of the whole team. He would be lucky to get off the ice in one piece. Last year, Kreider just walked away smiling knowing that he just killed the Habs playoff chances with no   payback, shameful!!

Bergevin has a lot of work to do. He needs to make our team bigger and tougher to play against, and get some scoring punch out of that line-up. So, hopefully through a combination of trades and good drafts we will get there. 

So then my son tells me we have Max Pac, Plekanec, Gallagher, etc. We have Subban and Markov on defense. And of course we have Price in net. We are a great team. We will compete for the cup, We have beaten the Bruins, Rangers, Islanders, Penguins. We are a top team!! I am just too spoiled by the great teams of the 70's. Unfortunately I have to disagree with my son.

So what do you think? Who wins this argument me or my son? Am I spoiled as a Habs fan of the 70's? Let me know?

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Playoff Preview: Canadiens at Rangers (Round 3, Game 6)

 
Match Up:

The Canadiens will still have their backs against the wall when the puck drops for Game 6 against the Rangers Thursday night in New York. The Habs still trail in the series 3 games to 2 after a big win in Montreal on Tuesday.

The Canadiens chased Henrik Lundqvist from the Ranger goal after he allowed 4 goals on 19 shots. New York did manage to draw the game even at 4 after that, but the Habs scored the next 3 to cruise to a 7-4 victory. Rene Bourque scored his first playoff  hat trick in Game 5 and Andrei Markov pitched in with 3 assists. Chris Kreider had a goal and 3 assists in the losing effort.

Game 6 starts at 8:00 on Thursday and can be seen on RDS and CBC.

What to Watch:

The Canadiens were able to assert their will offensively in Game 5 for the first time this series. Bourque's hat trick gave him 4 goals and 6 points against the Rangers, despite playing under 13 minutes per game on average. Max Pacioretty picked up a goal and an assist in Game 5, giving him 5 points and goals in each of Montreal's 3 elimination games these playoff.

Derek Stepan returned to the Ranger lineup on Tuesday after missing Game 4 with a broken jaw. Stepan picked up 2 goals in Game 5, extending his point streak to 6 games with 3 goals and 9 points in that span. With 13 points in the postseason, Stepan is tied with Martin St. Louis for most points on the Rangers. St. Louis was held pointless in Game 5 for the first time in this series.

What's at Stake:

The Canadiens survived their third elimination match of these playoffs on Tuesday but they must still win two more games against the Rangers starting Thursday night.

Also at stake is the potential return of Carey Price. Price has been ruled out for Game 6 but it looks like he might be ready for a return before the Stanley Cup is raised. For now, it's up to the rest of the team to stay alive until then.

Who's Out:

Price (knee) was joined on the sidelines by Alexei Emelin (undisclosed) in Game 5. Emelin was leading the team in blocked shots (44) and hits (52) before the puck dropped on Tuesday. Dale Weise was shaken up by John Moore and spent time in the dark room during Tuesday's game but returned in time to finish with his teammates.

The Rangers are missing J.T. Miller (upper body), while Derek Stepan (jaw) and Derick Brassard are playing through injuries. John Moore and Daniel Carcillo are both serving suspensions and won't return this series.

What Else:

With their win on Tuesday, the Canadiens are now having their most successful playoffs since their last Cup win in 1993. The Canadiens are up to 10 playoff wins so far this season, the only other time they've made the Conference Finals in the past 20 years they were beaten in 5 games by the Flyers. Aside from their run in 2010, the Canadiens have won 31 playoff games and just 4 other playoff series in the past 20 years.

The Question Mark:

Tell us what you think:

How do the Habs recreate Game 5's results on the road in Game 6?

Let us know by sending us your answers on Twitter using the #MTLHockey hashtag, or leave a comment below.

The Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show starts an hour before puck drop, join the live conversation by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter. And don’t miss the Post Game Show starting 5 minutes after the final siren.

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Playoff Preview: Canadiens vs Rangers (Round 3, Game 2)

 
Match Up:

The Canadiens are seeking redemption in Monday night when they host the Rangers at the Bell Centre for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Game 1 of the series was disastrous in more ways than one for the Habs. They were beaten 7-2 and Carey Price did not play in the third period after allowing 4 goals on 20 and potentially suffering a leg injury when Chris Kreider went sliding into the Canadiens' netminder late in the second period.

Monday's game starts at 8:00 and airs on CBC and RDS.

What to Watch:

Lars Eller continued to shine in the playoffs with a goal and an assist in Saturday's contest, bringing him up to 11 points in 12 games in these playoffs. The Canadiens as a team had their weakest start of the playoffs on Saturday, going down 2-0 by the end of the first period after being out-shot 12-6. Up to Saturday's game the Habs had allowed just 3 goals in the first period in 11 playoff games combined.

The Rangers looked a lot different in Game 1 of the third round than they had leading up to it. They scored 34 goals in the previous 14 games but put up a converted touchdown on Saturday. The Rangers got goals from 7 different players on Saturday, including Rick Nash who scored his first of this year's playoffs. On top of that, the New York power play converted 3 times in the third period, going 3-for-7 on the afternoon after going 6-for-55 in the first two rounds.

What's at Stake:

The Canadiens didn't simply lose Game 1, they were humiliated. Aside from a brief glimmer of hope in the second period when Rene Bourque cut the Rangers lead to 2-1, the Habs never looked competitive on Saturday. With Price's status uncertain for Game 2 the Canadiens may need to rally around Peter Budaj in order to draw the series even. Another poor showing by the Habs and this series could be over before it started.

Who's Out:

The big question mark heading into Game 2 is whether or not Carey Price will play, not just Monday night, but whether he'll play again this series. Alex Galchenyuk (knee) could be ready for action Monday night for the first time since April 9.

Derrick Brassard suffered either an undisclosed injury in the first period in Game 1 and is uncertain for Monday.

What Else:

This isn't Chris Kreider's first run-in with a goalie, it's not even his first run-in with a goalie in these playoffs. In February 2013, Craig Anderson was in Vezina Trophy form until Kreider was sent sprawling into him by Senators defenseman Marc Methot. Anderson's left ankle was pinned against his goalpost and the resulting injury kept him out of action for 6 weeks. Just over a week ago, in Game 6 against the Penguins, Kreider went barreling into Marc-Andre Fleury after Kris Letang bumped him en route to the Pens net.

Brandon Prust had this to say on Kreider's contact with Price, "He went skates-first right into [Price's] leg. We know how to slide, we know how to fall. We're in the NHL. We're taught how to fall when you're 5 years old...I don't think [Kreider] is a dirty player but he did nothing to slow-up or avoid him."

The Question Mark:

What type of response are you expecting from the Habs in Game 2 with or without Price?

Let us know what you think, leave a comment or send us a tweet using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter.

The Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show starts an hour before puck drop, join the live conversation by using the #MTLHockey hashtag on Twitter. And don’t miss the Post Game Show starting 5 minutes after the final siren.

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