I want to start off by welcoming my buddy Daniel Iorio, a new regular guest on my show, The Montreal Forum. He is a singer and song writer and may I add, a very talented one. Until the end of the NHL playoffs, Daniel will produce at least 1 song per week. His first hit, which played earlier today was titled ''Big Sheldon Souray.'' The song was well received.....almost 100 emails to prove it. If you haven't heard it yet, email me and I will forward it to you. We should have it on The Team 990 website shortly. Check out Daniel's website at www.danieliorio.com
I have been monitoring The Sheldon Souray situation very closely. Last Saturday nite, I was at the Bell Centre and came across a headline on Sportsnet. The headline stated Bob Gainey assured Souray he wouldn't be traded and they were working on a long term deal. After the game, Souray said it was totally false. I don't like being critical of anyone in this business because it's not an easy business we're in. HOWEVER I will say this, I commend TSN for their work. TSN doesn't always get it first, but they almost always get it right.
Trade deadline day is quickly approaching and I have been working the phones, sending emails and texts, trying to find out who's talking to who. I guess you are wondering if Bob Gainey is talking to other teams? The answer is YES. Gainey, talked to Minnesota two weeks ago and has been talking with San Jose this week. But, Gainey won't make a deal just to shut people up. Lately, many Canadiens fans have started to question the job Gainey has done here for the past 3 years....After giving out some big contracts to several underachieving players and signing what has turned out to be a free agent bust (Samsonov); Gainey must make sure his next deal is a good one. If he does pull the trigger, I think it will be with a western conference team.
Recently, I have received many emails re: The Salary Cap. Here's 3 things you need to know.
1) You can't exceed the cap. The NHL won't let you make a move that would bring your payroll (projected until the end of the season) above the cap. Unless, you use a long-term injury exemption, in which case there is no penalty.
2) If a player is sent to the minors, his salary does not count against the cap. If a player clears waivers and isn't assigned to the minors, his salary does count against the cap as long as he is on the NHL roster. There are exceptions for players that are 35 years old or older that signed multi-year contracts.
3) A players salary is pro-rated based on the number of days the player is on your roster. At the deadline, there will be 40 days left out of 187 days in the season. So remember this formula when trying to figure out what the cap hit will be if a deal is done on Feb 27th.
(players annual salary / 187 x 40)
Hope you have it all figured out now. I will check back in a couple of days. Take care.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Blog 3
Its 11:30pm, I'm at the station.....just finished watching the Canadiens lose......again. I figured Florida would give Mtl a tough time because they are big, and they work hard. However, after the famous 29 minute players only meeting, I thought the Canadiens would be hungrier. Anything can happen in a game, but Mtl had to absolutely come out on top vs 40 yr old Ed Belfour, 40 yr old Gary Roberts and 40 yr old Martin Gelinas....I want to touch on: The system, the game plan, and Bob Gainey.
The System: We'll start with the Transition Game. Unfortunately, it's non-existent because most of the defencemen can't make a tape to tape pass. As for the forecheck: where is the speed everyone talks about? The problem is the team is playing a 1-2-2 system. Carbonneau, prefers this system because it insulates the defence and better protects the goaltender. However, when you have fast players, you should adopt a 2-1-2 system and be more aggressive on the forecheck. This system will help you create more turnovers and help create offense.
The Game Plan: The Florida Panthers came in with 1 line: Jokinen-Gratton and Roberts....Jacques Martin threw his number 1 line out there and Guy Carbonneau answered with Bonk-Begin and Murray......From that point on, Martin dictated the game and Carbonneau followed. Guy, put some trust back in your players....you cant be scared of the Florida Panthers, especially on your home ice.
Management: Last year when Claude Julien lost 18 of 25; Gainey fired him. One year later, Gainey now knows it wasn't the coaches fault. This team just doesn't have the horses and there are 3 areas the GM needed to improve: Size, Depth at Center and Scoring.....3 years later, those 3 things are still missing. When you keep losing games, your players lose value. I don't know what type of trade Gainey can pull off right now, but you get the feeling he has too because both the coach and the players are waiting for some new blood to help them out.
11:57pm, i'm outta here, going home to bed,,,,,i'll be back in studio tomorrow at 11am.....talk to you then.
The System: We'll start with the Transition Game. Unfortunately, it's non-existent because most of the defencemen can't make a tape to tape pass. As for the forecheck: where is the speed everyone talks about? The problem is the team is playing a 1-2-2 system. Carbonneau, prefers this system because it insulates the defence and better protects the goaltender. However, when you have fast players, you should adopt a 2-1-2 system and be more aggressive on the forecheck. This system will help you create more turnovers and help create offense.
The Game Plan: The Florida Panthers came in with 1 line: Jokinen-Gratton and Roberts....Jacques Martin threw his number 1 line out there and Guy Carbonneau answered with Bonk-Begin and Murray......From that point on, Martin dictated the game and Carbonneau followed. Guy, put some trust back in your players....you cant be scared of the Florida Panthers, especially on your home ice.
Management: Last year when Claude Julien lost 18 of 25; Gainey fired him. One year later, Gainey now knows it wasn't the coaches fault. This team just doesn't have the horses and there are 3 areas the GM needed to improve: Size, Depth at Center and Scoring.....3 years later, those 3 things are still missing. When you keep losing games, your players lose value. I don't know what type of trade Gainey can pull off right now, but you get the feeling he has too because both the coach and the players are waiting for some new blood to help them out.
11:57pm, i'm outta here, going home to bed,,,,,i'll be back in studio tomorrow at 11am.....talk to you then.
Friday, February 9, 2007
Blog 2
Im feeling better today, not 100%, but better than the Habs thats for sure....Canadiens practiced at 12:15pm in Verdun today......most of the time Andie covers practice because Im usually on air when the players are on the ice. But, seeing as the players arrived at the Bell Centre at 2pm and the Samsonov saga going on, I decided to drop by......Being in the room is great; you really get a feel for the atmosphere and by asking a few good questions, you can get the answers you are looking for....here goes....
The dressing room is not what it used to be. IMO, Things started to "unravel" when Guy Carbonneau made Craig Rivet a healthy scratch. That, was a damaging strategy to date. Rivet, was indeed struggling on the ice, but he has alot of credibility in the dressing room. Why? Because he gives you everything he's got every night, night after night, season after season. That means alot to teammates.
Im disappointed with the head coach right now......Carbo did the right thing by saying he didn't use Samsonov properly early on. But, when the coach says that he should have talked to Samsonov back in November....i ask the question: why didn't he? I have been hearing for a while that the lines of communication are not great with the Head Coach. This is a perfect example.
IMO, Carbonneau completely botched the Samsonov issue. Yesterday, Carbo said he and Samsonov cleared the air and that they were starting from scratch. Today, Carbo was asked if he thought of playing Samsonov last nite in Ottawa. Carbo replied ''No, it never crossed his mind.'' If thats the case, then why did he send Samsonov out there for the pregame skate? The answer is simple, he was trying to teach him a lesson and show him who's boss. That's not the right approach. All it did, is deject Samsonov even more.....when a player is struggling a head coach has to put him in a position to get himself out of it. Samsonov, will play tomorrow and in my world he would line up alongside Koivu and Kovalev.....The line probably doesn't have the ingredients to succeed longterm, but it can give a short-term spark and thats what this anemic offense needs right now.....56 games in, these 3 players have only played 1 shift together and produced a goal in Pittsburgh. Hey Carbo....Put them together and for more than just a shift.
Maybe Carbo isn't ready to Coach in Montreal. Regardless, he's Gainey's guy and players will be moved before Carbo is let go. Im not going to blame just the coach for the Habs struggles. Its time for the leaders to step up and for the guys to pull in the same direction. There is not enough scoring and raw talent on this team for guys to take nites off.......Once again, remember what I have told you since October 1st; this team will battle for a playoff spot.....
My lines (for now):
samsonov-koivu-kovalev
higgins-plekanec-ryder
begin-bonk-johnson
latendresse-lapierre-streit
In ending; awesome news with George Gillett buying Liverpool FC. I want to tip my hat to my colleague Noel Butler.....over the past month, he has been on the case like no other member of the media worldwide.....Noel, has also been instrumental in putting together ''The 2006 Sports Personality of the Year.'' Great job Mr Butler!
The dressing room is not what it used to be. IMO, Things started to "unravel" when Guy Carbonneau made Craig Rivet a healthy scratch. That, was a damaging strategy to date. Rivet, was indeed struggling on the ice, but he has alot of credibility in the dressing room. Why? Because he gives you everything he's got every night, night after night, season after season. That means alot to teammates.
Im disappointed with the head coach right now......Carbo did the right thing by saying he didn't use Samsonov properly early on. But, when the coach says that he should have talked to Samsonov back in November....i ask the question: why didn't he? I have been hearing for a while that the lines of communication are not great with the Head Coach. This is a perfect example.
IMO, Carbonneau completely botched the Samsonov issue. Yesterday, Carbo said he and Samsonov cleared the air and that they were starting from scratch. Today, Carbo was asked if he thought of playing Samsonov last nite in Ottawa. Carbo replied ''No, it never crossed his mind.'' If thats the case, then why did he send Samsonov out there for the pregame skate? The answer is simple, he was trying to teach him a lesson and show him who's boss. That's not the right approach. All it did, is deject Samsonov even more.....when a player is struggling a head coach has to put him in a position to get himself out of it. Samsonov, will play tomorrow and in my world he would line up alongside Koivu and Kovalev.....The line probably doesn't have the ingredients to succeed longterm, but it can give a short-term spark and thats what this anemic offense needs right now.....56 games in, these 3 players have only played 1 shift together and produced a goal in Pittsburgh. Hey Carbo....Put them together and for more than just a shift.
Maybe Carbo isn't ready to Coach in Montreal. Regardless, he's Gainey's guy and players will be moved before Carbo is let go. Im not going to blame just the coach for the Habs struggles. Its time for the leaders to step up and for the guys to pull in the same direction. There is not enough scoring and raw talent on this team for guys to take nites off.......Once again, remember what I have told you since October 1st; this team will battle for a playoff spot.....
My lines (for now):
samsonov-koivu-kovalev
higgins-plekanec-ryder
begin-bonk-johnson
latendresse-lapierre-streit
In ending; awesome news with George Gillett buying Liverpool FC. I want to tip my hat to my colleague Noel Butler.....over the past month, he has been on the case like no other member of the media worldwide.....Noel, has also been instrumental in putting together ''The 2006 Sports Personality of the Year.'' Great job Mr Butler!
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Samsonov struggling...Habs are too
This past Sunday I accompanied my wife Angie and my son Anthony to the Bell Centre to watch the Habs vs Sid the Kid and the Pittsburgh Penguins…….As the game went on Anthony started sneezing and coughing ….....After the game, my wife wanted to take some pictures with some of the players…….I said no problem as long as Anthony doesn’t sneeze on any of them. As he’s about ready to take a picture with Mike Johnson, what do you think happened? Yep, you guessed it,…..he sneezes right in Johnson's face……my wife and I felt terrible; but being the gentleman that he is, Johnson looked at us and said, ‘‘don’t worry my kids do the same thing to me all the time.’’ Gotta love Mike Johnson…..he’s a class act.
3 days later, the good news is Anthony feels a lot better, bad news is I have been in bed for the past 2 days with the flu…..thats ok I needed a break from PJ; I’ll be back Thursday.
OK; lets talk about Sergei Samsonov….5 things you need to know.
1) In the offseason; a free agent Centreman was priority # 1; not a winger
2) Canadiens overpaid for Samsonov; he’s not the player he used to be.
3) 9 games in, he had 2 goals and Carbo wanted to relegate him to the 4th line. Carbonneau should have been more patient.
4) It was obvious the line of Plekanec, Samsonov and Kovalev couldn’t play together;
why did it take 50 games to split them up?
5) Carbo should have given Samsonov an opportunity to play with Koivu.
Bottom Line: Early in the season, Samsonov and his agent let their displeasure be known to everybody; add to that Samsonov didn’t produce. Those two things don’t mix well, especially in Montreal.
As for the Habs, going into the season, I predicted them to finish 8th in the East. Their start surprised everybody; but since January 4th, the Canadiens have lost 10 of 16. During that span, they have scored 38 goals and have given up 52 goals. Their #1 goalie, Christobal Huet has been struggling with a save percentage of .883. As for their PK; it has dropped 6 percent going from 2nd best in the NHl to the #10 ranking. Folks, what happened in the first half was a ‘mirage’ because the team overachieved. This team will once again battle for a playoff spot.
3 days later, the good news is Anthony feels a lot better, bad news is I have been in bed for the past 2 days with the flu…..thats ok I needed a break from PJ; I’ll be back Thursday.
OK; lets talk about Sergei Samsonov….5 things you need to know.
1) In the offseason; a free agent Centreman was priority # 1; not a winger
2) Canadiens overpaid for Samsonov; he’s not the player he used to be.
3) 9 games in, he had 2 goals and Carbo wanted to relegate him to the 4th line. Carbonneau should have been more patient.
4) It was obvious the line of Plekanec, Samsonov and Kovalev couldn’t play together;
why did it take 50 games to split them up?
5) Carbo should have given Samsonov an opportunity to play with Koivu.
Bottom Line: Early in the season, Samsonov and his agent let their displeasure be known to everybody; add to that Samsonov didn’t produce. Those two things don’t mix well, especially in Montreal.
As for the Habs, going into the season, I predicted them to finish 8th in the East. Their start surprised everybody; but since January 4th, the Canadiens have lost 10 of 16. During that span, they have scored 38 goals and have given up 52 goals. Their #1 goalie, Christobal Huet has been struggling with a save percentage of .883. As for their PK; it has dropped 6 percent going from 2nd best in the NHl to the #10 ranking. Folks, what happened in the first half was a ‘mirage’ because the team overachieved. This team will once again battle for a playoff spot.
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