Montreal Canadiens Trade Target: Andrej Sekera

With the latest injuries to Alexei Emelin (broken collarbone or separated shoulder) and Sergei Gonchar (concussion), the Habs' blue line is in turmoil. As result, the team called up prospect defenseman Jarred Tinordi after last night's defeat to the Ottawa Senators. Tinordi will join Bulldog teammate Greg Pateryn, who was called up earlier this week, to man Montreal's blue line.

If Gonchar and Emelin are out long term, it becomes critical for General Manager Marc Bergevin to bolster his blue line in prevision of the playoffs. With about 10 days before the March 2nd, 2015, trade deadline, it becomes important for Bergevin to assess all his options before making a bold move. Also, with Jeff Petry leaving last night's game with an apparent upper-body injury, and Tyler Myers and Zach Bogosian traded for each other, the options on the back end are getting somewhat limited. Oh and let's not forget that Cody Franson was also shipped to Nashville while Marc Methot was extended by Ottawa.

Another coveted option on the blue line, is offensive defenseman Andrej Sekera of the Carolina Hurricanes. Making only $2.75 million this season, the 28-year-old rearguard is having a tough offensive season with the lowly Hurricanes, scoring 2 goals and 17 assists for 19 points and a -7 differential in 54 games. However, Sekera enjoyed the best season of his career in 2013-14 with Carolina, potting 11 goals and 33 helpers for 44 points and +4 rating in 74 contests.

The puck-moving Sekera, who is slated to become a UFA on July 1st, will not come cheap as the asking price is reportedly a first-round pick and a solid prospect. Will Marc Bergevin be willing to pay that hefty price for a rental player? I highly doubt it.

Playing on average 22:50 per game this season, the left-handed blue liner is great on the power play and makes a very solid first pass, helping with the transition. Also, despite playing for a cellar-dwelling team, Sekera's possession numbers are pretty good with a 52.3 CF% and a 52.2 FF%. The problem with Sekera is that he is not physical at all with a mere 43 hits in 54 games.

In sum, if Bergevin wants to acquire an offensive-minded defenseman for the playoffs, Sekera is his man, but if he is looking for a physical and defensive-oriented rearguard, Andrej is really not his man. The team could also call up veterans Bryan Allen and Davis Drewiske if they don't want to mortgage the future by trading away prospects and draft picks.

Who would you want to acquire if you were Marc Bergevin?


Other options on defense include Mike Green, Jeff Petry, Zbynek Michalek and Marek Zidlicky.


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Follow me on Twitter at @FredPoulin98

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Game 42: Canadiens at Blue Jackets

#MTLHockey Preview

 

Match Up

The Canadiens (26-12-3) are in Columbus Wednesday night to face the Blue Jackets (18-19-3). The game is set to start at 7:00 and airs on RDS and Sportsnet.

This is the first of three meetings between the Habs and Jackets, and the first of two in Columbus. Last season the Canadiens won two of their three games against the Blue Jackets, including a 3-2 shootout victory in Columbus. The Habs erased a two-goal deficit and David Desharnais scored the only goal in the shootout to seal the victory.

What to Watch

It looks like the Canadiens will try a new look on the man advantage in Columbus, as coach Michel Therrien looks to spark the fourth worst power play in the league. In their last seven games, the Habs have scored just once in 21 opportunities.

Look for PK Subban to play the point on the first unit with Desharnais, P.A. Parenteau, Max Pacioretty and Brendan Gallagher up front, while the second unit should consist of Andrei Markov, Sergei Gonchar, Tomas Plekanec, Lars Eller and Alex Galchenyuk.

Injuries have taken their toll on the Blue Jackets this season, but Nick Foligno and Ryan Johansen have managed to stay healthy and lead the way this year. Foligno has 40 points in 39 games including ten points in his last seven. Johansen is right behind him for the team lead with 39 points on the year, he's in the midst of a ten-game point streak.

What's at Stake

Although they earned a point Saturday night against the Penguins, the Habs lost their second consecutive game for the first time since the first week of December. The losing streak hasn't hurt the Canadiens too badly yet, they're still the top team in the Atlantic in terms of point percentage, but they still trail the Lightning by three points heading into Wednesday's action.

Who's Out

With Parenteau set to return, the Habs are healthy again. The only other change to the line-up could be on defense, where Mike Weaver might play Wednesday in place of the struggling Alexei Emelin.

The Blue Jackets have been without Nathan Horton (back) all season. Ryan Murray (knee) has also missed most of the year, but he has started to practice again. Artem Anisimov (triceps), Brian Gibbons (knee), Boone Jenner (back) and Jack Skille (lower body) are also out.

What Else

In just over a week, Columbus will play host to this year's NHL All -Star Game. Only Carey Price was named to the All-Star team from the Canadiens, although Jiri Sekac was selected to take part in the rookie skills competition, filling in for an injured Tanner Pearson. Despite an impressive first half of the season, PK Subban was not named an All-Star this year, although there is a chance he'll be called to fill in for the injured Victor Hedman.

The Question Mark

We want to hear from you, express your outrage at the fact that PK wasn't selected as an All-Star this season.

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 to preview the Canadiens and the Blue Jackets.

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Game 29 - Canadiens at Stars

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

The Canadiens (17-9-2) wrap up their road trip Saturday night when they play the Stars (9-12-5) in Dallas. The game starts at 7:00 and can be seen on TVA and City.

This is the first of two games between the Habs and Stars this season. The Canadiens will play host to Dallas at the end of January. Last year the Habs took both their games versus the Stars including a 6-4 victory in Dallas. Max Pacioretty and PK Subban each tallied four points in the victory.

What to Watch

Sergei Gonchar scored his first goal in a Canadiens uniform on Friday, becoming the oldest player in franchise history to score for the team. Gonchar played 79 games over two seasons with the Stars before being traded to the Canadiens picking up two goals and 23 points with the team, just a fraction of the 801 career points he's earned the the NHL.

The Canadiens will have their hands full Saturday night as they'll try to neutralize the league's top goal scorer, Tyler Seguin. Seguin has 19 goals on the season and 32 points on the year. New addition, Jason Spezza, is also off to a fine start in Dallas with five goals and 21 points in 26 games.

What's at Stake

The Canadiens are mired in a mini-slump that's cost them points and place in the standings. The Habs have slipped into a tie for third place in the Eastern conference with a Penguins team that holds three games in hand. The Stars are at the other end of the spectrum, but have a high-powered offense that could cause trouble for Montreal.

Who's Out

Lars Eller (upper body) left Friday's game with an apparent left shoulder injury; he's not expected to play on Saturday. Sven Andrighetto has been called up for from the Bulldogs and could dress Saturday night.

Rich Peverley (chest) has not played since collapsing on the bench in March last season. Peverley had surgery the next week to correct an irregular heartbeat but has been limited to off-ice workouts since. Patrick Eaves (ankle) and Valeri Nichushkin (hip) are also both out for Dallas.

What Else

The Canadiens went one-for-three on the power against the Hawks on Friday, improving them to 11-for-74, or a 14.9% efficiency. In 12 games with Gonchar in the lineup the Habs have gone 8-for-32, an even 25% conversion rate and a world of improvement on their 3-for-42 effectiveness before he arrived.

The Question Mark

What is the biggest problem the team needs to address in order to find success again this year?

Tonight's Show

Join myself Rob Elbaz along with Steve Farnham and Jesse Dorais for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 on Saturday to preview the Habs and Stars.

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Game 26 - Canadiens at Avalanche

#MTLHockey Preview

 
Match Up

The Canadiens (16-7-2) start their four game road trip in Colorado on Monday to face the Avalanche (9-10-5). The game starts at 9:00 Eastern time and airs on RDS and Sportsnet East.

This is the second and final meeting between the Habs and Avs this season. The Canadiens won the first game 3-2 in Montreal on the strength of three second period goals. PK Subban scored twice in that match, including the game winner, and took first star honors.

What to Watch

Carey Price is 6-2-0 in his last 8 games, allowing just 12 goals in that span, and just 8 at even strength. Price has stopped 87 of the last 90 shots he's faced, good enough for a .967 save percentage in his last three games. Dale Weise picked up his sixth assist of the season in Montreal's 4-3 shootout loss to the Sabres on Saturday. With 10 points in 22 games this season, Weise is just six points away from matching his career high.

The Avalanche have won three of their last four coming into Monday's game, led by Gabriel Landeskog, who has two goals and six points in that span. Nathan MacKinnon has also been hot as of late, he has seven assists in his last five games.

What's at Stake

The Canadiens are one of six teams leading the NHL with 34 points on the season, although they've played more games than the other five. Colorado is at the bottom of their division and, like the Sabres, are allowing on average more than three goals a game. The Canadiens can use a solid victory against the Avs to rebound from a less than stellar pair of games against the Sabres Friday and Saturday.

Who's Out

Tom Gilbert was a healthy scratch in Montreal's last two games as Michel Therrien has had to juggle his defensive pairing to make room for new additions Sergei Gonchar and Bryan Allen. Michael Bournival (shoulder) is nearing a return to action, although there is still no word on when he is expected to dress next.

The Avalanche are without their starting goalie, Semyon Varlamov (groin). They're also missing center John Mitchell (leg), Mark-Andre Cliche (undisclosed), and Jamie McGinn (back). Veteran defensman Brad Stuart (hamstring) is day-to-day.

What Else

After a long break last week, the Habs go right back to the grind with four road games in six nights. They'll travel over 2100 miles during the trip, from Denver to Minneapolis to Chicago and then Dallas, before returning home to the Bell Centre for a five game homestand.

The Question Mark

Who was your Habs top performer of the month for November?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 8:00 to preview the Canadiens and the Avalanche.

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Game 25 - Canadiens vs Sabres

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

The Canadiens (16-7-1) return to Montreal to host the Sabres (7-14-2) and complete the home and home series between these teams. The game is set to start at 7:00 and airs on TVA and City.

The Sabres to the second game in this four-game season series Friday night in Buffalo thanks to a little bit of skill and a little bit of luck. The skill came on behalf of Tyler Ennis who combined speed, dexterity and some nifty hand-eye coordination to put the Sabres on the board. The luck also came courtesy of Ennis, who's late game dump in ricocheted off the boards in the Canadiens zone leaving Carey Price stranded and Matt Moulson alone in front with a tap-in game winner.

What to Watch

The Canadiens have no scored just one goal in their last two games and three in three. At 2.42 goals per game, the Habs are 23rd in the league in scoring, a stat they'll need to improve before they can truly compete with the league's best. Considering Buffalo is in the bottom four in terms of goals against, the Habs should be able to take advantage of home ice advantage to rally their lethargic offense.

The Sabres will hope that Ennis, their leading scorer with seven goals and 15 points, has another goal like this in him for Saturday night:

What's at Stake

Passing up points once against the worst team in the league doesn't bode well, but the Habs have an immediate opportunity for redemption on home ice. At 33 points the Canadiens still hold the Eastern conference lead, but Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh and the Islanders are each right behind the Canadiens with 32, and Detroit is in the mix as well with 31 points this year.

Who's Out

Michael Bournival (shoulder) is nearing a return but still might not be ready to play on Saturday. Aside from that the team is healthy, but Alexei Emelin will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety prior to Saturday's game and may receive a suspension for his hit on former teammate Brian Gionta.

The Sabres were without Josh Gorges (knee) and Cody McCormick (concussion) on Friday, although Gorges may make his return at the Bell Centre. Drew Stafford (lower body), missed part of Friday's game and may miss Saturday's action as well.

What Else

The Canadiens power play found success in Buffalo using four forwards and a 1-3-1 set up. After an ugly stretch of extra man opportunities, the Habs have found a bit of consistency with the man advantage, especially since the arrival of veteran power play specialist Sergei Gonchar. In the eight games since Gonchar joined the team the Habs are 6-for-24 on the power play, after going 3-for-42 up to that point.

The Question Mark

What are your thoughts on the "new look" power play the Habs experimented with on Friday, and the power play in general since Gonchar joined the team?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 Saturday night to preview the Canadiens and the Sabres.

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Game 24 - Canadiens at Sabres

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

After four days without hockey, the Canadiens (16-6-1) are finally back in action Friday night when they meet the Sabres (6-14-2) in Buffalo. The game starts at 7:00 and airs on RDS and Sportsnet East.

This is the second of four meeting between the Habs and Sabres this season and the final match in Buffalo for the year. The Canadiens beat the Sabres in unconvincing fashion the first time these teams met, taking a 2-1 shootout victory on a regulation and shootout goal by P.A. Parenteau.

What to Watch

At just past the quarter mark of the season, the Canadiens have seven scorers with five goals or more, led by Max Pacioretty who is ninth in the league with ten goals already this year. At 18 points, Pacioretty leads the Habs in that department as well.

The Sabres are at the bottom in of the league in a handful of offensive categories, including goals per game (1.59), power play efficiency (6.2%) and shots per game (23.1), so it should be no surprise that they're also last place in terms of points and points percentage. With 13 points on the season, Tyler Ennis, the team's leading scorer, is 100th in the league in points.

What's at Stake

The Canadiens set out on a four game road trip in the coming week, visiting Colorado, Minnesota, Chicago and Dallas. Friday and Saturday's home and home versus the basement dwelling Sabres is an opportunity to secure points that the Habs won't want to pass up.

Who's Out

Over the past week, Nathan Beaulieu and Drayson Bowman have been sent to the AHL Bulldogs in favor of pre-season acquisition Eric Tangradi. With Michel Therrien favoring a seven-defensemen set-up since acquiring first Sergei Gonchar and then Bryan Allen, there's no guarantee Tangradi plays. Also, Michael Bournival (shoulder) is close to making his own return.

Former Hab Josh Gorges (knee) has missed the Sabres last four games but could be ready to play on Friday. Tyler Myers (undisclosed) is questionable for Friday's game while Cody McCormick (concussion) is out.

What Else

The Canadiens have won their last six games against the Sabres, going back to April 2013. The shootout loss earlier in the season was the first time the Sabres came away with any points versus the Habs since their 2-1 win on March 23, 2013.

The Question Mark

Since taking over as Habs GM in May 2012, what is your favorite move that Marc Bergevin has made to improve the team?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 Friday night to preview the Canadiens and the Sabres.

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Interview With New Habs Acquisition Sergei Gonchar

In this translated interview from Russian, originally appearing on the popular Russian portal Sport Express, Sergei Gonchar shared his views on the trade that brought him to Montreal and confirmed that he’s very happy about playing for the Habs.

- In Russia, one of the most chatted-about NHL topics is your inclusion in the club of players who scored 1,000 points. You are only eight points away from being the first Russian defenseman to get into the “Club 1000”. It looks like you have more chances to get into the club with Montreal, rather than with the Stars.

- You can always hope for the best, but as in any interview regarding the “Club 1000”, I’ll tell you that I’m not running ahead of time. Once I’ll score my thousandth point, then we can gather and discuss this achievement. But for now, I don’t want to think about it.

- Did you manage to say your former teammate Valeri Nichushkin goodbye a last time?

- Yes, of course. He had a major injury, had to undergo surgery… Of course, now it will be hard for him. He’ll be the only Russian in the team. But this is life and hockey players have to deal with this all the time.

- Are you satisfied about the trade?

- Yes, everything went very well. The results of the team are very good, the environment is great and I know the coach as I worked with him in Pittsburgh; therefore, I more or less know what he wants. This really helped in adapting to the new team. Generally speaking, I’m very happy about the trade. Everything went very well. Even if, of course, it wasn’t easy to leave my teammates and, even more important, my family.

- Since you moved to one of the contending teams in the Eastern Conference, probably now you constantly hear talking about the Stanley Cup.

- Well, they always talk about it in Montreal. Here you have such an impression that they’re always talking about it. But well, yes, the team has a chance because all is going well, not only looking at the results, but also looking at the way the team plays. The team is very balanced and the results are a consequence of it.

- Will your family join you in Montreal?

- Yes, they will be here next week, during the Thanksgiving Day holidays. But then they will be back. Since the children go to school, it’s hard to make them move. Of course, they’re sad because they don’t spend a lot of time with me. But in hockey you never know if you have to move. Like they say here, “it’s part of the business”.

- How many journalists wanted to interview you after the first game for the Habs?

- Oh, they were a lot! I never seen anything similar. Radio, televisions, both English and French speaking channels. I didn’t expect such an attention on me.

- Is Montreal happy about you?

- Hard to say. I try not to give attention to the public’s reaction, I try to focus more on my game.

- The Habs have two great defensemen in Markov and Subban. Will it be hard to get space and playing time?

- The guys accepted me very well. The coach had some tasks for me since I arrived here. Maybe I’m still not fully complying with them, but the process is going on very well.

- Can you remember when three Russian defensemen played in Montreal at the same time?

- Igor Ulanov and Vladimir Malakhov played for the Habs. Did they have a third [Russian defenseman]? Honestly, I don’t remember.

- Was the trade a surprise to you?

- Yes, of course. Everything happened fast, there weren’t many discussions. It was more like my agent calls me and says “You’re gonna be traded to Montreal, are you ready?” The fact is that, according to my contract, each trade should have my consent. I quickly signed all the papers, then I went to get my passport, got on the plane and that was it.

- Did you think a lot about approving the trade?

- No, I didn’t even think about not approving it. The team is good, I know the coach; therefore, I didn’t worry and I gave my consent right after.

- Did Therrien explain what he’s expecting from you?

- Well, I won’t unveil any secret. We talked a bit, and he showed me in the team’s schemes. We didn’t have any time for long conversations. I got to Montreal in the game day itself.

- According to that game’s outcome, it looks like your role in the team is pretty important.

- I don’t know, but I hope that it will be like that. Everything works so far.

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Translation by HabsAddict's Russian Correspondent Alessandro Seren Rosso @AlexSerenRosso.

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Game 20 - Canadiens vs Penguins

#MTLHockey Hockey

Match Up

The league leading Montreal Canadiens (14-4-1) are home to host the Metropolitan leading Pittsburgh Penguins (12-3-1) Tuesday night. The game is set to start at 7:30 and airs on RDS and Sportsnet East.

This is the first of three meetings between the Habs and Pens this season, and the first of two in Montreal. Last season the Canadiens took two of three from the Penguins, including a wild 6-5 shootout win to end the season series. Daniel Briere had a pair of goals and an assist in that game while David Desharnais had two assists and the only goal in the shootout.

What's to Watch

While he's seen his average ice time shrink since Sergei Gonchar became a Canadien, Nathan Beaulieu has now dressed in eight consecutive games and continues to have a positive impact. He has two assists in the last three games, including one on the Habs' first power play goal in November towards the end of Thursday's victory over the Bruins. All this despite playing a total of 21:42 in three games, over three minutes less than PK Subban played in Sunday's game versus the Red Wings alone.

With the second most potent offense in the league, the Penguins currently have four players at a point per game or better. Through 16 games Sidney Crosby (25 points), Evgeni Malkin (19), Patric Hornqvist (19), and Chris Kunitz (16) each have at least a point per game. Meanwhile in nets, Marc-Andre Fleury is top ten in the league in wins (10, 3rd), save percentage (.925, 8th), goals against average (2.13, 9th), and is tied for the league lead in shut outs with three.

What's at Stake

It's lonely at the top, but the Canadiens probably don't mind. They're on top of the league for now, but just a single point ahead of the Lightning and well within reach of the Penguins, who hold three games in hand. The Habs will look to extend their lead and keep their foes at bay for another day on Tuesday, they'll also be trying to improve their season best six game win streak.

Who's Out

The Canadiens are without Michael Bournival (shoulder), but are otherwise healthy heading in to Tuesday's game.

Olli Maatta (neck) who had surgery at the beginning of November to remove a tumor from his thyroid gland, could possibly return to action Tuesday in Montreal. Pascal Dupuis will not play on Tuesday, he's sidelined with an undisclosed injury.

What Else

With their win against the Red Wings on Sunday, the Canadiens improved to 10-1-0 against Eastern conference teams and 6-1-0 against teams in their division. As far as teams from the East go, the Canadiens have only lost to the Tampa Bay Lighting. Unsurprisingly, the Pens and Bolts also have strong records within the conference, but neither are quite at Montreal's level. Tampa has a 8-1-1 record against the East while Pittsburgh boasts a 7-2-1 mark.

The Question Mark

Approaching the quarter mark of the season, how would you grade the Habs' offense, defense, goaltending, and coaching thus far?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:30 to preview the Canadiens and the Penguins.

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Game 19 - Canadiens at Red Wings

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

The NHL leading Montreal Canadiens (13-4-1) take their show on the road after a perfect four-game homestand that started with Guy Lapointe's Number 5 being lifted to the rafters. The Habs are in Detroit to face the Red Wings (8-3-5) Sunday night at Joe Louis Arena. The game starts at 7:00 and airs on RDS and City.

This is the second of four meetings between the Habs and Wings, and the first in Detroit. The Canadiens were held without a goal for close to 57 minutes the first time these teams played, and then Alex Galchenyuk put the Habs on the board to tie the game and set up a David Desharnais overtime winner.

What to Watch

The Canadiens power play is back on track with three goals in three attempts on Saturday. P.A. Parenteau, David Desharnais and PK Subban each scored with the man advantage, giving the Canadiens a 3-0 lead, before the Flyers broke the ice. Sergei Gonchar picked up his first point in a Canadiens uniform, and then his second, collecting a pair of assists on the night.

The Wings are coming off a 4-1 win of the Blackhawks on Friday, Luke Glendening came up big with a goal and an assist, just his second and third points on the year. Henrik Zetterberg had an assist on Friday, bringing the team leader up to 17 points in 16 games on the year.

What's at Stake

With the Habs on top of the standings, every win brings the team closer to the Presidents' trophy and first seed in the Eastern Conference. The team has won their last five straight, a season high and the longest streak in the NHL right now.

Who's Out

Michael Bournival (shoulder) is still missing for the Canadiens. Dustin Tokarski is expected to get the start Sunday night, giving Carey Price a break after Saturday night's performance.

The Red Wings are without Jonas Gustavsson (shoulder) and Stephen Weiss (groin), but the injuries to their team's core have cleared up since the last time these teams met

What Else

After being held without a power play goal for 10 games, the Habs have now converted on four opportunities in a row. Since Gonchar's arrival, the Canadiens are four for eight with the man advantage and have jumped up to 23rd in the league at a 14% success rate.

The Question Mark

Now that the power play is fixed beyond a shadow of a doubt, what do the Habs need to work on next?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 Sunday to preview the Canadiens and Red Wings.

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Game 18 - Canadiens vs Flyers

#MTLHockey Preview

Match Up

The Canadiens (12-4-1) wrap up their homestand Saturday night when they play host to the Flyers (7-6-2). The game is set to start at 7:00 and airs on TVA Sports and Sportsnet.

This is the second of three meetings between the Habs and Flyers, the final game takes place at the Bell Centre in February. The Canadiens took the first meeting of the season in a shootout after scoring three third period goals to draw them even. Andrei Markov started the scoring for Montreal and then added a pair of assists, while P.A. Parenteau scored the only shootout goal for either team to secure the 4-3 victory.

What to Watch

Max Pacioretty picked up a pair of goals Thursday against the Bruins, his first multi-goal and third multi-point game of the season. But even Pacioretty's strong performance didn't compare to Dale Weise's night.

Weise collected a Gordie Howe Hat Trick, starting with a fight against Gregory Campbell, followed up with a penalty shot goal to put the Canadiens on the board, and later adding an assist on Pacioretty's first goal of the night.

It might be hard to miss Jakub Voracek Saturday night if he stays true to form, the 25 year old has 24 points in just 15 games so far this year, just one point back of Sidney Crosby for the league lead. Voracek has points in his last nine games, and has only been held pointless once all season. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Flyers were shutout that game, 4-0 by the Blackhawks.

What's at Stake

The Canadiens are once again at the top of the NHL standings, tied with the Anaheim Ducks for first place in the league. The Habs will also try to extend their four-game win streak on Saturday and keep pace with the league's hottest team, the New York Islanders, who have won five straight.

Who's Out

The Canadiens are missing Michael Bournival (shoulder). With the arrival of Sergei Gonchar, Michel Therrien opted to dress seven defensemen of Thursday, making Drayson Bowman a healthy scratch.

The Flyers defense has taken a beating this season, Luke Schenn (upper body), Andrew MacDonald (lower body), Kimmo Timonen (blood clots), and even reinforcement Shayne Gostisbehere (knee) are all sidelined. Forwards Michael Raffl (lower body) and Ryan White (chest) are also out.

What Else

The Canadiens finally managed to score a power play goal Thursday night against the Bruins, just their fourth on the season. Jiri Sekac found the back of the net with the man advantage, the first Canadiens to do so since October 18 against the Avalanche, 10 games earlier.

Sekac is 15th on the Habs with just 2:35 of power play time. Lars Eller, who picked up an assist on the goal, is faring only slightly better with 3:16 of power play ice time. At the other end of the spectrum, PK Subban and Andrei Markov have both earned over an hour of power play time with the Habs already this year. Max Pacioretty leads all forwards with 43:29 this season.

The Question Mark

From what you've seen so far this year, where would you rank the Habs in the Eastern Conference and the League? Which team is at the top of the list?

Tonight's Show

Join host Steven Hindle along with Kosta Papoulias and Rob Elbaz for the Montreal Hockey Talk Pregame Show as we go live at 6:00 to preview the Canadiens and the Flyers.

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Habs' Bergevin Giving Fans What They Want

Greetings Habs Nation!

Rene Bourque has been sent down to the Hamilton Bulldogs
after clearing Waivers on Monday.

This past week has been quite busy for the Montreal Canadiens GM, Marc Bergevin. Either Bergevin is listening to the Habs faithful or he seems to have at least as much hockey sense as pretty much anyone who can sit through the god awful coverage of Canadiens' games provided by TVA and Sportsnet.

Since taking the reigns as the Habs general manager in May of 2012, he has done nothing but improve the most storied franchise in the NHL and arguably any other professional sport (The Yankees have more championships but... I mean... that's baseball). Bergevin's moves have always been mostly accepted and celebrated in Montreal, but none so far have been quite as popular as the double whammy he pulled off this past week. His moves have people in Montreal so ecstatic that I actually just used the term "double whammy". And for that I apologize.

While this week's dealings may not have been of the blockbuster variety, they saw two players who were at the top of 99% of the fan's hit lists head out of town.

First was the demotion of struggling forward, Rene Bourque. After having quite a successful playoff run with the team last season scoring eight goals and adding three helpers in 17 games, his game has somewhat dropped off in the current campaign. Bourque had registered a mere two assists in 13 contests before coach Michel Therrien decided to have him watch the games from the press box. Nobody could understand what happened to Bourque after his productive playoff run, but to be honest with you I was more curious as to what happened to him during the playoffs after heading into the post season with only 37 points in 128 games as a Canadien.

Bourque spent two games as a healthy scratch before being put on waivers and, not so unexpectedly, clearing them. The snakebitten winger has been assigned to  Hamilton to play for the Habs' AHL affiliate the Bulldogs. I use the term "playing" loosely.

Bourque's spot has since been taken over by 22-year-old Czech rookie, Jiri Sekac. Sekac has registered three points in as many games since re-joining the roster and has provided a spark on the third line alongside Lars Eller and Brandon Prust. Eller, who had also been struggling on Bourque's line has put up three points of his own since Sekac's return, heck even Prust has chalked up two assists.

Bergevin's decision to waive Bourque has forced Sekac into the line-up after sitting out for seven games. In doing that, the Canadiens have scored nine goals in three games, in fact with Sekac in the line-up the team has averaged 3.1 goals a game as opposed the the 1.6 they average without him.

Well played, Bergevin. Well played.

On to move two.

The Montreal Canadiens acquired defensemen
Sergei Gonchar in exchange for forward Travis Moen.

Travis Moen was shipped to Dallas in return for 83-year-old defenseman, Sergei Gonchar. Moen was under scrutiny after registering a whopping zero points in nine games this year. Granted, Moen was never really brought to Montreal to score goals, but when your taking up a spot that can be given to players with more offensive upside such as Michael Bournival (who wasn't injured at the time) or the aforementioned Jiri Sekac, fans tend to lose patience quickly.

This trade benefits both sides in a less than drastic way. The Stars make room for their defensemen who could be Gonchar's grandchildren, they drop the $4.6 million cap hit that came with Gonchar (-8% that Dallas will retain... I don't really jump head first into the whole math thing but the numbers are there for you) and they acquire a hard working 3rd/4th liner in Moen.

The Canadiens get a player who can potentially add to the team's man "advantage". Now, one player won't fix this "power"play, but having Gonchar there can't hurt. Until this team starts skating with the extra man and Therrien mixes the lines nothing will change, but that's a whole other story. Finally, while the Habs do have to pay quite a bit for a defenseman whose first defence partner was a triceratops, they drop that next season along with Moen's $1.85 million that was owed on his last year of his contract. This freed up cap space will be crucial in re-signing Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher.

Moen out, Gonchar in. Another fantastic move by Bergevin.

How about your thoughts.

Have we seen the last of Bourque?
Was Bergevin out of line by waiving him just to get Sekac in the line-up (if that was indeed the case)?
What do you feel about the Gonchar signing?

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Moen vs Gonchar Trade Analysis

What a great surprise today! Habs GM Marc Bergevin sure is not fooling around when it comes to building a team, and he has shown us that again today by trading veteran forward Travis Moen to the Dallas Stars in return of veteran defenseman Sergei Gonchar. Not too long ago, I wrote a post where I analyzed Moen's game with the Canadiens where I was saying he needed to go. (for reference, visit: http://www.habsaddict.com/2014/10/why-travis-moen-needs-to-go.html)

For those of you who haven't read my article, I was mostly saying how Moen's intensity dropped down dramatically in the past few years and how he was stealing a spot for a young rookie on a 3rd or 4th line. With Rene Bourque out and Moen traded, now's a great time for Therrien to have rookie Jiri Sekac be part of his main roster as well as trying out players like Drayson Bowman (who just got called back yesterday) for example.

But enough of that, let's analyze Gonchar's play. The veteran defenseman has been out due to an injury since the beginning of the season. He got back in Dallas' line-up on November 4th. In three games this year, he managed to get one assist, a -1 rating, one shot on goal and three hits. Surely it is a pretty slow start, but let's not forget he just started skating about a week or so ago. Let's give him some time.

In his career, Sergei Gonchar managed to notch 219 goals and 579 assists for a total of 798 points in 1,256 games (including 102 powerplay goals and 321 powerplay assists, for a total of 423 powerplay points). At 40 years of age, we aren't expecting him to stay with Montreal for a lot of years. In fact, he will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this year. The reason why Bergevin traded for him is mostly to have another defenseman to help Subban and Markov on the powerplay. At first, we got told Tom Gilbert could do the job, but Marc Bergevin is known for acting quickly when things are not working out, and it's not a secret to anyone that Montreal's powerplay was really terrible.

Financially speaking, Gonchar will earn $5 million this year, while the Dallas Stars will retain 8% of his salary ($400,000, which brings the cap hit down to $4.6 million. Moen is earning $1.85 million for the next two seasons. Technically, Gonchar will cost $2.75 million more than Moen, but considering how Moen played this year (0 point in 9 games), I highly doubt Gonchar could do worst, especially with his background. It is also worth noting Bergevin tried to acquire him last summer.

We will have to wait and see if Gonchar's ankle injury, which kept him out of the line-up at the beginning of the season, will truly affect him in the long term. But as a personal opinion, I am really impressed with this trade and I honestly believe Montreal's powerplay will get back in business, especially right on time for the game against Boston Bruins this upcoming Thursday.

Do you like this trade?

Do you think Marc Bergevin will trade a defenseman for a forward now?

Follow me: @Azgarde54

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