Habs Drop Opener To Leafs, Gomez A Shark?, Schneider/Luongo Controversy And More...

Good Morning Addicts!



Carey Price was one of the few bright spots in last night's loss

 Well hockey is back but it seem the Habs didn't get the memo. In losing 2-1 in their home opener against the Maple Leafs it seemed quite evident that it will take some time to adapt to Therrien's system.

There was a lot of negativity online following the game but it's important for everyone to remember that it was just one game. Understandably each game carries a ton of importance due to the shortened season but if it makes anybody feel better the Red Wings got trounced, the Blue Jackets won and the defending champion Kings looked nothing like they did when they lost only four games while on their way to winning the cup.

The Canadiens had a handful of players play overseas during the lockout but as ESPN's Pierre LeBrun points out, it was the Toronto Marlies graduates who appeared more fresh while leading their team to their first two points.

For those optimists out there, there were a few positives you could pick out of las night's loss if you tried. For one, it didn't seem too obvious that goaltender Carey Price hasn't played since last year. Price played well enough to give his team a chance to win had they provided any offense at all.

Andrei Markov finished the game healthy. Not only that but he lead the team in minutes with 24:08 minutes. Not one player on the Habs finished with a faceoff percentage lower than 50%. That is an area that has hurt the Habs since Yannick Perreault left the team and will play a huge part in their success or lack thereof.

The Canadiens play next on Tuesday when they host Alex Kovalev and the Florida Panthers. Kovalev enjoyed his debut with the Panthers scoring his first goal of the season and adding two assists.

Habs And Hockey News

- It seems Scott Gomez may be a Shark sooner rather than later. Gomez is set to meet with the Sharks this week. I'm not going to lie, I wish him the best!

- Keep your eyes on Vancouver if you enjoy a good goalie controversy. In his first game as the Canuck's starter, Corey Schneider lasted only 26:37 before being replaced by Roberto Luongo.

- Richard Garneau who hosted La Soiree du Hockey as well as covered the Olympics for Radio Canada passed away this morning at the age of 82.

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Daly/Fehr Talk, Politics in Sports, Kane Leaves KHL And More...

Good Morning Addicts!

Just days after league commissioner Gary Bettman suggested the two sides take a two week break from negotiations, it seems the two sides have resumed talking. While there were no negotiations Deputy commissioner Bill Daly spoke over the phone with special councel Steve Fehr.

The two were expected to speak more over the weekend about further steps in bargaining talks.

With every article I read on this topic I can't help but notice words like "optimistic", "progress" and "positive results". And each time I see these terms I can help but wonder, who is buying this?

When you have one side that seems to have made it's best offer by giving up a billion dollars worth of concessions and another that would prefer to take a break rather than continue to work towards common ground, how can you see an end in sight?

After going over that last paragraph I realize it looks like I'm taking the players side. I'm not. I don't back the players and I in no way back the owners. In fact, I'm not even on the fans side.

At this point how can I feel bad for fans? If it's been this long and you haven't found anything in life to keep you busy Saturday nights then perhaps the lockout isn't your biggest problem. Go to dinner, catch up with friends, spend time with your family...

I refuse to feel pity for anybody who follows this lockout too closely. Both sides are trying to win sympathy and too many fans are falling for it. Just sit back and let the billionairs argue with the millionairs and when they finally agree on what to do with your money then turn the game on. Or don't.

Personally, I will. I love the game. If they take another season to figure this whole mess out I will still return when hockey does. I just refuse to make my non hockey life about waiting for it's return and falling for every line I'm fed by either side.

And with that said I apologize for the bitterness. I don't mean to start your Saturday morning with negativity, I have just become fed up with how too many (not all) fans have fallen victim to false hope. I don't blame anybody for being opinionated, I just feel bad for anybody who thinks that what they think about this mess matters. It doesn't. Your money matters, the owners and players can whisper all the sweet nothings into your ears to win you over but the bottom line is they don't care. Whether or not we forgive and forget doesn't mean anything to them as long as they get paid. And they will.

Habs And Hockey News

- Avi Goldberg (@avigoldberg) featured writer over at Allhabs.com takes an interesting look on politics, sports and the lockout.

- It seems the KHL was too much for Winnipeg Jets forward Evander Kane.

- TSN reports that Philadelphia Flyers owner Ed Snider may be getting tired of the lockout.

- Habs prospect Brendan Gallagher's two goals lead the Bulldogs to a 6-3 win over the Toronto Marlies last night.

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NHL Withdraws Offer, Hamilton Bulldogs, Habs' CHL Prospects, More

Happy Friday!

The October 25th deadline imposed the NHL for the scheduling of a complete, 82-game season has passed.

As a result, actual games will now be removed from the 2012-13 calendar and the NHL has withdrawn it's previous offer.

Both sides unfortunately seem quite distant on the subject of a new CBA.

Habs and Hockey News

- The Hamilton Bulldogs get set to face the Toronto Marlies tonight for the third time this season. The farm team lost Tuesday's contest against the Rochester Americans and will have to face their cross-province rivals without Louis Leblanc.

- HabsWorld reports on the progress of the Montreal Canadiens' CHL prospects.

- Amidst all the doom and gloom surrounding the CBA negotiations, Stu Hackel focuses in on some of the more positive news surrounding the Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Islanders.

- Russia's KHL was scheduled to play two regular season games in Brooklyn this January, but it now appears those games have been cancelled.


(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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More Games Cancelled, Fehr's Latest Letter, Coach K's "What If?" And More...

Good Morning Addicts!

Here's a quick recap of the labor negotiations over the past week. On Tuesday, Bettman and the owners made what seemed like a groundbreaking offer at first glance to the players. A 50/50 split of revenue, no rollback, players would get paid for lost time and a November second start would salvage a full 82 game schedule.

Beautiful.

With more details emerging it became clear that the deal wasn't as great as it sounded. Perhaps just the idea of hockey returning made it sound so sweet. While there was no rollback, the players still would have to make concessions in salary and benefits. fehr was not willing to accept the deal and sent a letter to players and agents explaining why.

On Thursday the two sides met again. When the players rejected the offer they brought three of their own to the table. The first two had players accepting a gradual decrease in their share of HRR eventually meeting the 50/50 split the owners are seeking. The third proposal included an immediate 50/50 split as long as the owners were willing to honor all existing contracts.  According to Donald Fehr, the owners took 12-15 minutes before shooting down all three proposals.

This outcome had many fans begin to aim their anger and blame at the players rather than Bettman. You can't help but wonder if this was Bettman's plan when the proposal was made.

With no deal made by Friday, more games were wiped off the schedule. The league announced that all games up to November 1st have been cancelled. An optimist can take solace in the fact that less than two weeks worth of games were cancelled, but if there is no headway made by next Thursday there will more games lost.

Habs And Hockey News

- Here is Donald Fehr's latest letter to the players.

- The Bulldog's defeated the Toronto Marlies 4-1 in their home opener.

- Coach K is back with another "What If?" this time focusing on life after Bettman.

- Mark Spector of Sportsnet believes that the pressure is mounting on NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

- Shawn Horcoff of the Edmonton Oilers is not surprisingly unhappy with the whole situation.And after signing a huge 13 year $98 million dollar contract in the weeks leading up to the lockout, it's even less of a surprise that the Minnesota Wild's Zach Parise is less than impressed.

(Photo by Source: Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images North America)

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Gomez In Alaska? Gorges Playing Mentor, Subban Not Signing A Plus And More...

Good Morning Addicts!

We are now two weeks into the NHL lockout, and the news of NHL'ers flocking overseas to find work is starting to overshadow the endless CBA play by play.

Among the recent handful of outsourced NHL'ers is Canadiens own Scott Gomez. Or is he?

There were reports online yesterday that the Habs forward had signed with the Alaska Aces of the ECHL. Gomez, an Anchorage native played with the Aces during the previous lockout and lead the league in points.

Dave Stubbs of the Montreal Gazette however, reported via twitter that Gomez simply signed a pro tryout contract with the team in order to practice with them and stay in shape.

Stubbs tweeted that Gomez had reached him through text assuring him that he would not be a part of the team during the lockout.

Habs and Hockey News

- In other Habs news, Josh Gorges has taken prospect Brendan Gallagher under his wing trying to help him develop into a pro.

- Nicholas Goss explains why not signing defenseman P.K. Subban before the lockout was not a mistake.

- Stu Cowan has in interesting - but not very encouraging - article on the lockout. Cowan spoke with Aubrey Kent, an associate professor of sport management at Temple University in Philadelphia. Kent shared his views on why the players can't win over economics.

-  Nail Yakupov has been cleared by Hockey Canada to play in the KHL.

-  If anyone is benefiting from this lockout it's the Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs AHL affiliate.

- 40 of the top American born prospects eligible for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, will play today in the inaugural CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game at First Niagara Center in Buffalo.

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