Cunneyworth and Ladouceur Out, Lapointe in?, Devils Win and More

The changes just keep coming.

Mere days after Michel Therrien was introduced as the Montreal Canadiens' new head coach, it was announced that both Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur were being relieved of their assistant coaching duties.

Meanwhile, Darren Dreger from TSN reports that Martin Lapointe will take over the Director of Player Personnel position with the franchise.

These moves leave a couple of evident questions.

Who will be brought on as Assistant Coaches? What does Lapointe's hiring mean for Trevor Timmins?

Habs News

HabsAddict.com - Panesar and Moustakas: Michel Therrien Named Habs Coach

TSN - Roy: No hard feelings I didn't get the Canadiens job

TSN - Habs fire Cunneyworth and Ladouceur; Lapointe to be hired

TSN - Insider Trading: Discussing Therrien, Burke and Luongo

Hockey News


The Hockey News - THN at the Stanley Cup: Brodeur plants doubt, Devils bring series back to New Jersey

The Hockey News - Ryan Kennedy: Kings GM Dean Lombardi's blueprint for success

The Hockey News - THN.com Top 10: Summer storylines

TSN - Krutov, the K in Soviet hockey team's KLM Line, dies at 52

TSN - Report: Preds to trade Radulov or release him back to KHL

TSN - McKenzie: Giving the Devils their due

USA Today - Brodeur, Henrique help Devils stay alive

USA Today - Kevin Allen's three stars of Game 4

(Photo: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images North America)

Read More

Habs Roundup: Is Montreal a seller, Randy Cunneyworth, NHL Trade deadline and more

The NHL trade deadline is fast approaching—approximately two weeks away—and the buying teams are starting to separate themselves from the sellers.

For the Montreal Canadiens, currently sitting in 12th overall in the East, the question is which category they will fall into.

Logic would dictate that this team should be selling, since squeaking into the playoffs hardly makes you a contending team. That being said, no one really seems to have a handle on what GM Pierre Gauthier plans on doing.

He's been seen scouting games across the league so it seems like a deal is in the works.

But is he looking to sell or add to his roster in an attempt to make the playoffs?

That is the real question.

Targets

If you listen to RDS' Norman Flynn, he thinks it's a joke that anyone would believe Montreal will make the playoffs. He goes on to say that this team didn't play .500 hockey over the first 50 games, yet everyone expects them to solve everything over that last 32.

Amen brother.

That said, his stance is that Gauthier should be selling and selling fast.

If the Canadiens do decide to sell, by most accounts the three most tradeable assets in their lineup are Travis Moen, Hal Gill and Andrei Kostitsyn.

Gill and Moen both have Stanley Cup rings and boatloads of experience. Kostitsyn, on the other hand, is a player who has scored 20 or more goals in three out of the last four seasons.

He could surely be a solid addition on a contending team looking for a little offense with size.

As for Gill, he is a slow skater but his leadership skills and ridiculous penalty killing prowess make him a desirable acquisition to any team with Cup aspirations.

Moen, on the other hand, is a player whose secondary scoring ability, toughness and ability to win in the playoffs make him a hot commodity. The problem is that he is currently injured with a mysterious upper body injury.

Word around the campfire is that it could actually be an injury to his head. Ummm, concussion anyone?

If that were to be the case there could not be a more disastrous scenario for the Habs. Because if Moen has anything seriously wrong with his head, including a concussion, he could become untradeable.

As a player who will be a free agent this off-season, and one who I don't believe the Habs should re-sign, Montreal could end up losing him for nothing.

But they are not there yet. Officially, he has an upper body injury, and was supposed to play against the Leafs last Saturday but suffered some kind of setback.

This will be a situation to keep an eye on.

Outside looking in

I've taken a lot of flak lately for seeming to come off on a very negative tilt, when talking about the Habs playoff chances.

I, generally speaking, am a pretty optimistic person. But in the case of the Habs, I think I'm just being realistic.

As much as their four-game winning streak got fans excited with dreams of first round playoff exits dancing in their heads, the reality is that Montreal didn't make up any ground in the standings.

None.

In fact, despite going 6-4-0 in their last ten games, the Habs are closer to the 15th overall spot than they are to eighth place. Carolina, last place in the East, is only two points behind Montreal while Toronto, currently in eighth, is seven points ahead.

As of this morning, the Habs chances of making the playoffs sit at 13.4 percent, according to Sports Stats Club.

Not exactly something you'd bet the bank on.

Dust-up

So it seems that the much maligned Scott Gomez is in headlines again this morning. This time, however, it is not because of his lack of scoring ability or his ridiculously high salary. No, this time it is because of a verbal yelling match he had with Assistant Coach, Randy Ladouceur, at practice yesterday.

Most media in attendance said they have never seen anything like that before, with the two yelling at each other in front of the other players. Eventually, they took the argument into a corner of the rink to continue in private.

But it lasted a long time.

And this on the heels of Gomez seeing a meager 7:49 of ice against the Canes.

Gomez brushed off the incident as something that happens all the time. A coach giving heck to a player for messing up a drill. And that may be the case, but the timing of it is definitely curious.

Love him or hate him—and I personally love what he's doing with the team—you've got to hand it to Randy Cunneyworth and co. They simply do not take crap from their players.

Moreover, and unlike under the veteran-loving Jacques Martin, Cunneyworth couldn't care less the name on the back of the sweater or the price tag that comes with it. He plays the players who he feels will give him the best chance of winning. Period.

And that, ladies and gentleman, is the way you should run a bench. Favoritism, coddling veterans, and constantly punishing young guns is a recipe for the unemployment line.

Just ask Jacques Martin.

Habs top-10s

My HabsAddict.com colleague, Fred Poulin, recently wrote an excellent piece on the top-10 worst players in recent Habs history. If you haven't read it, check it out. Man is that an ugly list.

I have two words for you: Juha Lind.

Ugh.

That list aside, I found this great video of the top-10 Canadiens hits for this season (so far). I thought you'd all get a kick out of it so take a look below and enjoy the calm before the Bruins storm tonight.

No.1 is awesome...I'll let you guess which hit it is...

Enjoy!



---
Kamal is a freelance writer, Senior Writer/Editor-in-Chief of HabsAddict.com, Montreal Canadiens Blogger on Hockeybuzz.com and featured columnist on PowerScoutHockey.com. Kamal is also a weekly contributor to the Sunday Shinny segment of The Franchise weekend morning show, on TSN Radio 990 (AM 990) every Sunday from 9 - 10 AM. Listen live at http://www.tsn.ca/montreal/

Follow Kamal on Facebook and Twitter

(Photo by Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images North America)

Read More

Habs Firing of Perry Pearn: In Retrospect It Actually Makes Sense

Imagine, for an instant, the Vice President of Marketing at any given firm under the following scenario:

After many years in the top-tier of sales, the firm begins to struggle. Where the company once seemed assured of success, sales have dipped dramatically and the organization is now well behind its competitors.

And this, even though the VP of Marketing has been given significant new resources to help promote and improve the product. Eventually, the CEO decides to shake things up and fires the VP of Marketing.

Does this story sound so farfetched? Does it seem so out of line?

I didn't think so. So why then would the firing of Perry Pearn mystify so many people?

When a team regularly ranks at the top of the league in powerplay efficiency and suddenly—in spite of additional tools in Erik Cole, David Desharnais and Raphael Diaz—finds itself floundering, it's not complete folly to fire the coach responsible for this particular facet.

Add to that the fact that the team had an overabundance of coaches and a rather quiet group at that. As such, putting the much more vocal Randy Ladouceur behind the bench makes sense on other levels as well. Also, as a former defencemen, Ladouceur brings a perspective behind the Habs bench that has been lacking since the departure of Rick Green in 2005.

Fans and media constantly decry Pierre Gauthier’s stoic demeanour and seemingly infinite supply of patience. Yet, when he decides to replace someone responsible for an underachieving area, Gauthier is accused of using Pearn as a scapegoat in order to deflect criticism or to buy time.

Jack Todd, amongst others, even said as much in today’s edition of the Montreal Gazette.

Perhaps Gauthier truly felt Pearn's performance had slipped. Perhaps the two had a disagreement. Perhaps he was buying time. Perhaps he was simply trying to shake up his team.

So what?

Pierre Gauthier’s job is to use the best people at his disposal to promote a winning environment, not to look like a "good guy" in the eyes of the media.

At the end of the day, Gauthier fired an Assistant Coach who was running an anemic powerplay. He replaced the coach with a more vocal, motivating figure who, due to his previous experience as an NHL blueliner, also offers fresh insight to the team.

If a CEO replaced the Vice President of an underachieving department in any other company, no one would blink an eye. Why is this any different? We constantly sing the refrain that hockey is a business. Yet, when Gauthier makes an executive decision, he is painted as a bad guy.

He is not a bad guy. Just a manager doing his job.

---
Louis is an Associate Editor at HabsAddict.com and an Editor at HabsWorld.net. Louis was born in Chicago but grew up in Quebec City where he earned Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Université Laval. He currently lives in Ottawa and works for the Coaching Association of Canada. He can be reached at l.moustakas@habsworld.net

(Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images Sport)

Read More

The Sunday Shinny - Oct 30, 2011 - Pearn, Ladouceur, Gomez, Markov, Weber, Diaz and more

In this episode of the Sunday Shinny, Gary Whittaker, Nick Murdocco and Kamal Panesar welcome former NHL defenseman, Bobby Dollas, to the studio.

Topics include:

-The Perry Pearn firing
-was it the right move?
-How are people around the league seeing it?
-is Randy Ladouceur an upgrade?
-Scott Gomez: What happens to the lineup once he comes back?
-Who sits?
-Does Gomez sit?
-Andrei Markov: What happens to the defense when he is back
-Emelin is currently 7th D-man, will he stick around as 8th?
-Weber or Diaz?
-and much more...

Click play below to listen in (listing time 51:05):


(Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images Sport)

Read More

Montreal Canadiens: Time for new shoes

As a letter carrier I have sometimes had the misfortune of stepping in dog poo. I avoid it whenever possible, but sometimes I just don't see it and put my foot down wrong. Then, attempting to tidy up, I scrape it off my shoe, leaving it all over the sidewalk. Even then it usually necessitates a power washing with a borrowed garden hose. Once I actually just gave in and tossed the shoes.

When it comes to the Habs, they too new shoes, or in their case, skates.

I've seen a lot of hockey, and a lot of Canadiens hockey in particular. Even when they were routinely Cup champs they still sometimes stepped in a pile and dragged it all over the ice.

But last night had to be one of the worst starts to a hockey game by the Montreal Canadiens I've ever witnessed, bar none.

I suppose I could just pick it apart, but I did so on twitter along with a bunch of savvier writers and today I'm too tired and jaded to do it.

But here's my five cents worth — really only two cents but adjusted for Quebec taxes.

A lack of communication is mucking everything up

Remember how Kirk Muller used to stand behind the bench with a headset in one ear? The other ear would be tuned towards Jacques Martin, and Muller would usually be nodding, lean over and pat the players on the back and whisper sweet somethings in their ears.

I have yet to see the "Randys", Cunneyworth or Ladouceur, doing any of that.

Why we need four coaches that don't talk to each other or the players is beyond me. Lars Eller said after the game that he was unaware that Jonas Gustavsson had taken over for James Reimer in the Toronto net for the second period.

There's your problem right there.

Linemates are also not talking to each other. All of the Habs vaunted leadership and chemistry has vanished. Likely lost to the same place my socks go whenever I throw them in the dryer.

Even players who tend to survive most of Martin's pureed line combinations seem disjointed. There were times when Tomas Plekanec and Michael Cammalleri couldn't find each other on the ice if they were wearing flashing neon signs, using a seeing eye dog and a GPS, let alone the back of a wide open net.

Flopping defense

On the defensive side, the defense corps is young and soft, but the veterans are not helping either. Josh Gorges is routinely making mistakes and P.K Subban is definitely experiencing some sophomore season slump.

As such, I hate seeing them paired up together.

In a couple of years the Habs blueline will be giving the opposition fits, but right now they are still cutting their teeth while I gnash mine.

The Coach

I know Jacques Martin is a favorite whipping boy of mine, but I really do try to be open minded with him. I want to like him and I want him to succeed, because that means my team succeeds and that will always be a good thing. And this regardless of who is wearing the jerseys or standing behind the bench.

Did anyone else notice Martin's demeanor on the Leafs first tying goal, as the Habs went into full panic mode? The usually bland-faced calm and give-nothing-away facade was gone and I saw nervousness, frustration and panic.

You didn't have to be a hockey fan or a Habs fan to notice it.

His nervousness, frustration and panic are not helping the Habs to overcome theirs—which is palpable from this side of the 50" high def.

His use of players in certain roles is head scratching to say the least.

Forget using Erik Cole on the power play anymore. How about anyone but Mathieu Darche—who has a grand total of three power play goals in his entire NHL career?

Darche also sees ice time on a 5-on-3 over proven goal scorers, in Cole.

Martin stated afterwards that Darche does good things on the power play in front of the net. Since he plays for the Canadiens and not the Leafs, I'm pretty sure clearing the puck down the ice does not qualify as a good thing. Though I suspect Ron Wilson would beg to differ.

Meanwhile, the Habs get scored on and they start running around like the Keystone Cops, instead of like a team that went deep into the playoffs two years ago. That same team took the eventual Cup champ, Boston Bruins, to sudden death overtime in Game Seven of their first round series last season.

I'm pretty sure I've seen better composure from QMJ hockey teams.

The Canadiens are two years into playing a puck possession, disciplined and defense oriented system. But right now, they look like they've either tossed their coach's system out the window or developed a severe case of retrograde amnesia.

I really don't know which it is, but if it's the latter then Martin ought to start whacking the players upside the head to see if it will help any. If you want confirmation that this strategy sometimes works, just ask my grandmother or mother.

Either Martin reminds them more forcefully or his players will end up tossing him out the window.

People crying for Martin's removal as Head Coach of the Habs - and yes I'm one of them - might want to take a moment to consider the alternatives. They're out there, but the leading candidates are not likely to thrill any kind of a majority, from what I can gather online or off.

The Habs need a boot in the pants. Another minor deal to augment the fourth line is unlikely to be sufficient.

Ultimately, like Jack Nicholson said: "Something's gotta give".

---
Rosalyn used to frequent the old Forum during her early childhood when her father was a corporate season ticket holder, where she fell in love with Larry Robinson, so her lifelong obsession with the Habs is entirely his fault.

(Photo by Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images North America)

Read More

Around the League: Ilya Kovalchuk, What's the right Price? The two Randys

by Kamal Panesar

Kovalchuk-Gate
So, Lou Lamoriello is fallible after all!

In what is quickly becoming the Matt Sundin story of this off season, super sniper Ilya Kovalchuk still remains unsigned.

Well, that is not exactly the case since he did have a deal with the Devils which was quickly rejected by the NHL.

This has been discussed ad infinitum but in case you've been hiding under a rock, Lou Lamariello—the Devils' GM—signed Ilya Kovalchuk to a $102 Million, 17-year contract.

The contract was done-in by the last five years of the deal which saw Kovalchuk paid $500K per season taking him from age 39-44.

The combination of salary and age range of the last five years made it pretty clear to the league that neither side had any intention of Kovalchuk actually playing out the term of his deal. As such, the NHL deemed their move was circumventing the CBA and rejected the deal on that basis.

So what now?

Well, there are two well talked about options: The Devils and Kovalchuk can file a grievance with the NHLPA to try an dispute the rejection, or they can try to rewrite the contract.

Speaking with my colleague Michelle Kenneth (@MichelleKenneth)—the Devils beat writer—on Inside Hockey, she tells me that the Devils and Kovalchuk camps have always wanted to make a deal.

Moreover, she believes that they will rewrite the contract to something more palatable for the league.

If I was a betting man, I'd say there should be a new Kovalchuk announcement within the next week.


What is the right Price?
In other news, Habs' goaltender, Carey Price, still remains unsigned. This is puzzling to a lot of people since it is pretty clear that he is the Canadiens No.1 goaltender going forward.

As such, I think people are starting to get impatient and perhaps even a little nervous.

As a restricted free agent, Price could be tabled an offer sheet, but I think that is an unlikely scenario.

No, I think that GM Pierre Gauthier simply wanted to get all his other ducks in a row before really getting down to business with the Price negotiations.

Right now, Price is the only player left for Gauthier to sign before training camp and he has approximately $4.7 million left to sign him. That should be plenty of room.

I think part of the hold up is likely term versus dollars i.e. Price likely wants more term and more dollars, whereas I wouldn't be surprised if the Canadiens want the opposite.

At the end of the day, the deal will get done because it has to. I could very easily see a one to three year deal at around $2-3 million a season.

That being said, Arpon Basu (@ArponBasu), of the Daily Hab-It, makes a great case for Price on a one-year deal.

Hard to argue with his logic.


The Two Randys
This week, Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier announced the hiring of Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur as head and assistant coach of the Hamilton Bulldogs.

For those who don't know these guys, get ready to be surprised. Cunneyworth has been an assistant coach—to the Thrashers—and has spent the last nine seasons coaching in the AHL including seven seasons with Rochester where he put up some impressive numbers and even won AHL coach of the year.

While most were upset with the departure of Guy Boucher form Hamilton, I can tell you that Cunneyworth will be a worthy replacement for him—no pun intended—and should do a good job of developing the Canadiens' prospects.

Cunneyworth knows what it takes to win and has an excellent track record of developing young, raw talent in the AHL. His presence should help the likes of Danny Kristo, Louis Leblanc, Jarred Tinordi, and others.

For people who are still upset about Boucher leaving for Tampa, know this: Cunneyworth is not a step down in coaching, for the Bulldogs.

The other Randy that came on board with Cunneyworth, is Randy Ladouceur. Older Habs addicts will remember him from his playing days with the Hartford Whalers in the 80's.

More recently, however, Ladouceur has spent a truckload of time as an assistant coach in the NHL with Carolina and Toronto, as well as plying his trade in the OHL.

A seasoned assistant, Ladouceur has seen a ton of game situations, both as a player and a coach, and his experience should prove invaluable for the young Habs prospects.

The combination of these two Randys should help the Canadiens player development train to roll in the right direction.

Read More

Official Press Release - Habs name Randy Cunneyworth Head Coach of the Bulldogs

RANDY CUNNEYWORTH NAMED HEAD COACH OF THE HAMILTON BULLDOGS
Randy Ladouceur appointed assistant coach with the Bulldogs

MONTREAL (July 20, 2010) – Montreal Canadiens General Manager Pierre Gauthier announced today that the club has named Randy Cunneyworth Head Coach of the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League. The Canadiens also announced the hiring of Randy Ladouceur as the Bulldogs’ assistant coach.

“We were looking for a strong leader to coach our farm team in Hamilton. In Randy Cunneyworth, we get an individual who knows the game inside out and who brings a wealth of experience, both as a player and as a coach, to the table. Together, Randy Cunneyworth and Randy Ladouceur combine for over 20 years of coaching experience at the professional level. We are extremely pleased that they have joined the Canadiens’ organization”, said Gauthier.

Randy Cunneyworth was an assistant coach with the National Hockey League’s Atlanta Thrashers over the past two seasons (2008-09 and 2009-10). He previously spent nine seasons with the American Hockey League’s Rochester Americans, including seven seasons as head coach from 2000 to 2008. During his tenure with the Americans, he led his team to three 40-plus win seasons, two 100-plus point seasons and six playoff berths. He left Rochester as the longest serving coach in franchise history and ranks second on the club’s all-time wins list. During the 2004-05 season, Cunneyworth led the Americans to a 51-19-4-6 record (112 points), en route to the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the league’s top team in the regular season standings. That season, Cunneyworth would earn the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Trophy as the AHL’s Coach of the Year. He also reached the AHL’s Calder Cup Finals with Rochester as a player/assistant coach in 1999-00, earning the Fred T. Hunt Memorial Award that same season (sportsmanship, determination and dedication to hockey). He played a total of 273 career AHL games with Rochester and Springfield, recording 270 points (166 goals, 104 assists) and helping Rochester win the Calder Cup in 1983.

A 49-year old native of Etobicoke, ON, Randy Cunneyworth played 15 seasons in the NHL between 1981 and 1999. An eighth round selection, 167th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in 1980, the left winger played 866 career
regular season games, suiting up with Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Winnipeg, Hartford, Chicago and Ottawa. He registered 414 points (189 goals, 225 assists) and totaled 1,280 penalty minutes. He served as the Ottawa Senators captain for four seasons (1994 to 1998) and reached the Stanley Cup Finals with the Sabres in 1999.

Randy Ladouceur, 50, served as an assistant coach for 10 seasons in the NHL, including eight with the Carolina Hurricanes (and Hartford Whalers), from 1996 to 2004, and two with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2006-07 and 2007-08. Last season, he was an assistant coach for the Ontario Hockey League’s Niagara IceDogs. He was also Head Coach of the OHL’s Oshawa Generals in 2005-06.

A native of Brockville, ON, Ladouceur enjoyed an NHL career that spanned over 14 seasons, from 1982 to 1996, with Detroit, Hartford and Anaheim. The defenseman played 931 career NHL games, registering 156 points (30 goals, 126 assists) and 1,322 penalty minutes.

Read More