May have been premature with a very young line-up. More pressure from outside the room. However the pressure also has to come from within. Young players need to raise their floor and develop consistency so have more A and B games. Less C games where they hit their floor. Like the higher expectations from that perspective.
Not sure whether it was a mistake or just premature, since they had no idea back then that Dach wasn’t quite in game shape, they would lose Reinbacher for the year and Laine for half a season, and the top line wouldn’t simply pick up where it left off in April.
There was no way they could have seen the latter 3 in particular though so I understand the need to throw patient fans a bone.
One of my frustrations this off-season was that the media did not understand how much of an uphill battle this season was going to be for Kirby.
Everyone was expecting him to have a total reconstruction done on his knee, miss the year and somehow comeback the same or better. It was overly optimistic to say the least.
The same will go for Laine (if not double) when he returns from this knee injury. Both of these players need this season just to recover themselves.
I do wonder whether playing Lane as much as we are playing him so far will pan out. There have been several examples of young defenseman having big responsibilities on bad teams, that are not adequately sheltered, that end up not fulfilling their potential, not fully developing the finer points of the game (basically bad habits stay as bad habits). That said, Lane does seem to have elite skill and hockey IQ, so perhaps that protects him (but I look at guys like Dahlin and Power that are still raw in aspects despite high draft pedigree).
Also, I’m a Habs fan despite being born and raised in Edmonton. I was also 9 when Patrick Roy and the Habs won the cup in 1993. Being in French immersion helped craft a bit of French Canadian identity for me among my friends, but the Cup win and seeing how cool Roy was in those days solidified it. Having lived in both Edmonton and Calgary, I think in general, hockey fans are more ardent, passionate in Edmonton. Calgary fans tend to be a bit more placid. I work at the Children’s Hospital, and marvel at how many kids wear Oilers merchandise (flames too, but not as much). McDavid is a transcendent star, and so many people in Calgary are already Oiler fans (hence, their kids likely become fans too), that being an Oiler fan in Calgary is pretty common.
Love the pod - dedicated listener. Thank you both.
Such a sad situation that we think Anderson and Gallagher are playing great hockey. The bar is so low with this team. They have two points each and while they are playing well away from the puck compared to prior years they are still a black hole of offense. Plays die on their stick constantly as they have no vision or awareness and can't execute basic NHL plays that other teams' 4th liners can. They've been in the league for a decade and can't one-time a puck. It's honestly embarrassing that we are looking at these guys as positives.
Points aren't the only thing that matter though. Look at Slaf; he's getting his points but has been struggling for the most part.
Of course, in his case, the injury he's dealing with may be the main factor. I just hope he doesn't push it too much. His long health is crucial to the rebuild.
Jake Evans is having a good season. Nothing precludes the Habs from resigning him at good value. Can have him play on the wing and have him still take key face-offs and play on the PK. Would allow them more depth at C. He has been very effective playing on the wing in the past.
Problem is the contract has to match the club's needs. The habs were not ready to pay for Monahan 5.5M$ for 5 years last summer... Evans should be cheaper, but at his age, this is his golden opportunity of his whole carrier to get as much money as possible. I can see the Habs wishing a 3 years contract. If another club propose him 5 years, I believe he will decide to leave the habs
Happy to hear Anderson get a little love, he's been playing really well.
I think it was a mistake to tell fans they wanted the team to be in the mix, unless they wanted to put pressure on the players as part of development.
May have been premature with a very young line-up. More pressure from outside the room. However the pressure also has to come from within. Young players need to raise their floor and develop consistency so have more A and B games. Less C games where they hit their floor. Like the higher expectations from that perspective.
Not sure whether it was a mistake or just premature, since they had no idea back then that Dach wasn’t quite in game shape, they would lose Reinbacher for the year and Laine for half a season, and the top line wouldn’t simply pick up where it left off in April.
There was no way they could have seen the latter 3 in particular though so I understand the need to throw patient fans a bone.
One of my frustrations this off-season was that the media did not understand how much of an uphill battle this season was going to be for Kirby.
Everyone was expecting him to have a total reconstruction done on his knee, miss the year and somehow comeback the same or better. It was overly optimistic to say the least.
The same will go for Laine (if not double) when he returns from this knee injury. Both of these players need this season just to recover themselves.
I do wonder whether playing Lane as much as we are playing him so far will pan out. There have been several examples of young defenseman having big responsibilities on bad teams, that are not adequately sheltered, that end up not fulfilling their potential, not fully developing the finer points of the game (basically bad habits stay as bad habits). That said, Lane does seem to have elite skill and hockey IQ, so perhaps that protects him (but I look at guys like Dahlin and Power that are still raw in aspects despite high draft pedigree).
Also, I’m a Habs fan despite being born and raised in Edmonton. I was also 9 when Patrick Roy and the Habs won the cup in 1993. Being in French immersion helped craft a bit of French Canadian identity for me among my friends, but the Cup win and seeing how cool Roy was in those days solidified it. Having lived in both Edmonton and Calgary, I think in general, hockey fans are more ardent, passionate in Edmonton. Calgary fans tend to be a bit more placid. I work at the Children’s Hospital, and marvel at how many kids wear Oilers merchandise (flames too, but not as much). McDavid is a transcendent star, and so many people in Calgary are already Oiler fans (hence, their kids likely become fans too), that being an Oiler fan in Calgary is pretty common.
I'm also an Edmonton born Habs fan who went through the French immersion program.
I used to talk Habs with my teachers to get myself out of trouble.
On the bright side, the special teams are doing fine especially the PK which is second in the league.
Love the pod - dedicated listener. Thank you both.
Such a sad situation that we think Anderson and Gallagher are playing great hockey. The bar is so low with this team. They have two points each and while they are playing well away from the puck compared to prior years they are still a black hole of offense. Plays die on their stick constantly as they have no vision or awareness and can't execute basic NHL plays that other teams' 4th liners can. They've been in the league for a decade and can't one-time a puck. It's honestly embarrassing that we are looking at these guys as positives.
Points aren't the only thing that matter though. Look at Slaf; he's getting his points but has been struggling for the most part.
Of course, in his case, the injury he's dealing with may be the main factor. I just hope he doesn't push it too much. His long health is crucial to the rebuild.
Jake Evans is having a good season. Nothing precludes the Habs from resigning him at good value. Can have him play on the wing and have him still take key face-offs and play on the PK. Would allow them more depth at C. He has been very effective playing on the wing in the past.
Problem is the contract has to match the club's needs. The habs were not ready to pay for Monahan 5.5M$ for 5 years last summer... Evans should be cheaper, but at his age, this is his golden opportunity of his whole carrier to get as much money as possible. I can see the Habs wishing a 3 years contract. If another club propose him 5 years, I believe he will decide to leave the habs
I like Jake but I can't see him getting a five year offer with his injury history and modest resume.