credit fanatique.ca

So we reach the midpoint of the season and the Centennial team shows a 25-10-6 record placing them third in points in the conference, only one behind Washington with two games in hand, and yet some people are thinking the team is playing below their expectations. Let me quote Guy Carbonneau for a second here. There are the fans expectations, the media expectations and then my expectations. And I guess mine were reflecting the coach’s because I am pretty happy with the result thus far. I think the main problem here is that some fans, and that include most of Montreal media, were expecting their favourites to be dominating the league like it was 77-78 all over again. Of course it can’t be. The rest of the league isn’t going to just roll over to please “the best fans in hockey”. The coach said it before the season started, the opposing teams would be prepared for “Les Glorieux” from day one and it was up to the players to answer the call. And by my account, they did.

Let’s start from the top with the players who should be the best players. Alex Kovalev didn’t have the same success as he had last year but it was to be expected. He is a marked man and the opposition knows he is one of the most dangerous players with the puck. Also, most teams understood that the most important thing to play against Montreal powerplay was to cut that Markov-Kovalev passing line which made “L’artiste” numbers go down. He is still prone to brain cramps and trying to overdo when he has the puck but that’s the story of his whole career. On the opposite wing you have Andrei Kostitsyn who missed four games due to an injury and was slow to come back at full strength but he is showing huge sings of improvement and should be one of the players to watch for the next half-season. Plekanec centering that line did a great job in many facets this year but just couldn’t keep the offensive production. He was probably the most consistent penalty killer and picked up the pace offensively since Christmas.

The teams “second line”, which will now be named the injury line, is a lot more tricky to talk about. Saku Koivu isn’t a problem, he was playing his heart out from day one up until his ankle injury. He missed 13 games already and I just can’t wait to see his fire back on the ice. Alex Tanguay numbers were there but he seemed to lack something. He already missed 7 games and shouldn’t be back in the lineup for another month at least. Christopher Higgins has been the only real let down for me this year. He has been injured a lot and already missed 20 games but a player of this calibre should have more than the 5 goals (including a hat trick) and 4 assists for 9 points in 21 games. Hopefully he’ll come back with the same fire I expect Koivu to have and we’ll see what Chris is able to give to his team.

What was originally supposed to be the third line is where most people are surprised. Many doubted Bob Gainey’s decision to bring Robert Lang into the fold instead of Mats Sundin but in the end the move was brilliant. He sits on top of the Montreal scoring leader board and is second in +/- at +11 (tied with Kovy, Markov, AK46 and Koivu). He also plays well defensively and takes some important faceoffs. His contribution this year has been amazing. Sergei Kostitsyn on his part also surprised, but the other way around. Many people expected much more from the sophomore but reality kicked in. The NHL is a tough league to play in and the effort, early in the season, just wasn’t there from the younger Kostitsyn. Thankfully his games picked up in the last month and he’s given his team some solid hockey. Guillaume Latendresse had a rocky year, starting on Koivu’s line and then being placed on every other line. He finally found his place on the hard working Lapierre line and could still replace on the top two lines if needed.

We then have what should have been a fourth line but ended up giving much more. Maxime Lapierre played by far his best hockey in career this season, especially after a short trip in the stands to remind the youngster his place on the team wasn’t a lock. His offensive game showed improvements and he is now in the top 15 faceoff leaders league wide. Tom Kostopoulos stayed the same hard working plumber we discovered last year and Steve Begin who had a rough start, being a healthy scratch more often than not, grabbed the chance he was given to make a good impression and stayed in the lineup most of the reminder of the season.

Then, there are the other players. Georges Laraque hasn’t contributed half as much as was expected. His “code” made it pretty much impossible for him to enforce the law on the ice and if he doesn’t do it, he isn’t fast enough to keep up the pace with the rest of the team. Matt D’agostini started on fire when he was called by the team and showed us what he may one day become, one of the best offensive tools for this team. As I predicted reality had to set in and there was no way he would keep the point per game pace but he still plays some very solid hockey. Max Pacioretty also grabbed his chance and is right now still riding the wave of his first callup. While I’m anxiously waiting his reaction to the end of the high wave, I have been impressed with this young player barely months removed from playing University hockey. Ben Maxwell sadly enough wasn’t ready for NHL time but should benefit from his 7 games stint while Kyle Chipchura keeps getting the bad part of the bargain being the only player who hasn’t got a chance to play anywhere else than the fourth line. Hopefully he will impress management enough to keep this spot for the next season.

On defense the evaluation is somewhat easier to do. We all knew how good Andrei Markov, Roman Hamerlik and Mike Komisarek were and this year isn’t any different. Komisarek’s absence for 16 games was actually a good indicator of how badly he was missed during the second half of November and his leadership showed as his presence on the bench as an assistant coach proved sufficient to turn the team around in early December.

We also knew before the season that Brisebois and Bouillon were 6^th defensemen at best and it showed as both were asked to play much more minutes with Komisarek injury. In such circumstances both played well enough and were doing some mistakes as we had to expect (note: not as many mistakes as Rocket sees) but if there is one place the team lacks depth, it’s there. Mathieu Dandenault was playing his best hockey since joining Montreal but he’s another player who was injured and missed 14 games already and shouldn’t be back for while.

The two biggest surprises are complete opposites. On one hand Josh Georges played the best hockey of his career trying the fill the giant shoes of Mike Komisarek for a month and is a team leader +16 this year. He clearly isn’t a top 3 defensemen but fully earned his place on the team as the fourth d-man. On the other hand is Ryan O’Byrne who seemed ready to make the big team as the fourth defensemen before the season started but doesn’t seem as ready for the NHL as originally thought. Even before scoring in his own net he was making one big mistake that lead to a goal in most games. And after the incident the youngster seemed even worst, probably due to failing confidence. He was sent back to Hamilton at the end of 2008 and we hope his time in Hamilton will have beneficial effects. I’m not going to start talking about Weber as I missed the only game he played anyway.

In the goaltending department we had what we were supposed to have. Carey Price clearly is something else, a player above the rest. He’s 21 years old and he still looks as cool as the other side of the pillow. He’s in the top 10 in goal against average and save percentage. More importantly, his absence shows. Jaroslav Halak is a fine choice as second string goalie but he clearly isn’t in the same category. His play has been like a rollercoaster ride, sometimes exciting, sometimes falling fast and sometimes makes me want to puke.

Last but not least the coaching staff. While we can obviously point the finger at Guy Carbonneau for not handling his team like we would, I’m still inclined to say he did a good job this season. I’ve heard some people say he lost his team. When I see the fun these guys have together, I’m thinking it’s the exact opposite. He created an environment where his players have fun together and the result give him the benefit of the doubt. And if you saw the Bob Gainey french press conference, he was asked “what do you consider your best move since taking helm of the Canadiens” His answer was “Guy Carbonneau”. And that was the only answer he didn’t hesitate.

All in all a fair first half season for your Habs. The team is well positionned for the playoff race that will start shortly after the All-Star break adn with the return of many injuries, I see a team that can at least give Boston a ride for the division and conference title.