Gionta Signs with Habs

Another small player

Maybe Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri play on the same line?

Henri Richard and Yvon Cournoyer weren't 'big'...except in the way they played.

Anyway, Hal Gill and Le Grand Georges will be on call if things get rough.

And as I remember, Cammi has a fair bit of nasty in him.

davetherave wrote:

And as I remember, Cammi has a fair bit of nasty in him.

That nasty is in the form of Heatley-style hacks and stick work

davetherave wrote:Maybe Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri play on the same line?

Henri Richard and Yvon Cournoyer weren't 'big'...except in the way they played.

Anyway, Hal Gill and Le Grand Georges will be on call if things get rough.

And as I remember, Cammi has a fair bit of nasty in him.

Weren't the Sens criticized for the last few years for being a 1 line team ?

cas wrote:

davetherave wrote:

And as I remember, Cammi has a fair bit of nasty in him.

That nasty is in the form of Heatley-style hacks and stick work

he's like Heatley too in the sense he disappears when the going gets tough (playoffs)

davetherave wrote:Maybe Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri play on the same line?

Henri Richard and Yvon Cournoyer weren't 'big'...except in the way they played.

Anyway, Hal Gill and Le Grand Georges will be on call if things get rough.

And as I remember, Cammi has a fair bit of nasty in him.

Dave, seriously, it's a different game now. Karlsson would probably tower over Kharlamov.

Hal Gill won't there to help them out in the opposite end corners. And even in his won end he's not quick enough or fast enough to keep up. These guys are quick and are not going to get hit a lot, but when they do they won't be getting up very quickly. Plus a lot of the plays where their size will go against them will not be rough plays at all, but just trying to push their way forward against the boards. Actually, the more I think of it the less likely I see the three of them playing on the same line.

5 x 5

What a god-awful deal. Gionta was overpaid last year. That guy deserves Mike Comrie money at best. He'll never top 60 points again.

Montreal took plenty of swings this week and definitely hit a few balls -- problem is, they were all foul balls.

Yikes. Gainey won't last the year. Or at least he shouldn't.

rooneypoo wrote:5 x 5

What a god-awful deal. Gionta was overpaid last year. That guy deserves Mike Comrie money at best. He'll never top 60 points again.

Montreal took plenty of swings this week and definitely hit a few balls -- problem is, they were all foul balls.

Yikes. Gainey won't last the year. Or at least he shouldn't.

I guess he wanted to make a splash for the 2nd part of their 100th celebration, wrong splash to make, they are smaller and will get beat around senseless.

Gionta and GOmez will get many points on the PP, as long as Markov is still there.

I like the new habs, one element missing ... I'm trying to figure out how much cash they have left, it's hard to determine.

Either Kovalev or Tanguay would be nice to return. I know Tanguay is younger, but my heart's with kovy. ....

I like that Gainey re-united Gomez and Gionta. They need more offensive depth, but I didn't mind this move. They overpaid, but that's how it works sometimes.

I'm still a little bitter than Gainey helped out Sather though. He was diddled.

SpezDispenser wrote:I like that Gainey re-united Gomez and Gionta. They need more offensive depth, but I didn't mind this move. They overpaid, but that's how it works sometimes.

I'm still a little bitter than Gainey helped out Sather though. He was diddled.

SpezD> NHL GMs actually do help each other out when it serves their purposes.

Yeah, Gainey might have 'overpaid' to get Gomez...but it allowed him to put together the components of what could be a very productive line for the Habs. Gionta-Gomez-Cammalleri is a trio that can skate circles around the opposition, score big goals, forecheck and backcheck. Hey, how about that...

And all three are nasty. Call it hacking and stick work, whatever you want, these guys aren't floaters. Gionta, in particular, crashes the net like he's six inches taller.

Gomez and Gionta are also Cup winners.

No predictions on how the Habs fare next year, of course...but IMHO the Canadiens now have the potential to play as a team again...with the distractions subtracted.

I'm actually more leary of the Leafs this season than I am against the Canadiens.

Losing Komisarek made Montreal's defense softer than velour.

HowieMorenz wrote:I like the new habs, one element missing ... I'm trying to figure out how much cash they have left, it's hard to determine.

Either Kovalev or Tanguay would be nice to return. I know Tanguay is younger, but my heart's with kovy. ....

As much as I hate plugging the other site, their cap central is really good. I actually used to go to it before they teamed with HB. If you'd rather somewhat bypass HB, you can go directly to www.nhlscap.com ... it still works. According to that site, the Habs currently sit at a cap hit of 47,961,390, and thus have a 8,838,610 remaining. And those are the updated numbers, including the Gomez trade, and the Gionta, Cammy, Spacek, and Gill signings.

PKC wrote:I'm actually more leary of the Leafs this season than I am against the Canadiens.

Losing Komisarek made Montreal's defense softer than velour.

That's why they picked up Hal Gill... hahahahah! That guy is the softest big guy in the league. Remember when he was in Boston and he had those bouts with Neil. Neil would own him, despite being over half a foot shorter. Lee could probably take Gill.

davetherave wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:I like that Gainey re-united Gomez and Gionta. They need more offensive depth, but I didn't mind this move. They overpaid, but that's how it works sometimes.

I'm still a little bitter than Gainey helped out Sather though. He was diddled.

SpezD> NHL GMs actually do help each other out when it serves their purposes.

Yeah, Gainey might have 'overpaid' to get Gomez...but it allowed him to put together the components of what could be a very productive line for the Habs. Gionta-Gomez-Cammalleri is a trio that can skate circles around the opposition, score big goals, forecheck and backcheck. Hey, how about that...

And all three are nasty. Call it hacking and stick work, whatever you want, these guys aren't floaters. Gionta, in particular, crashes the net like he's six inches taller.

Gomez and Gionta are also Cup winners.

No predictions on how the Habs fare next year, of course...but IMHO the Canadiens now have the potential to play as a team again...with the distractions subtracted.

You know, i've always found the Cup winners argument to be pretty weak. I think it's valid if they put up good numbers the year they won the Cup, but otherwise it's just overvalued. Both Gionta and Gomez put up paltry numbers the year they won the Cup. It's like saying you'd want Joe DiPenta because he's a cup winner. Well no one wants him, he's in Europe playing. I'd rather have all our defenceman over him. In my opinion, he would be about 9th on our depth chart. I'd have Bell over him, and I'm not a Bell fan.

Gomez was rookie of the year in 2000 when NJ won the cup... Gomez is over paid but the guy is a legit winner. Never missed the playoffs.

Neely4Life wrote:Gomez was rookie of the year in 2000 when NJ won the cup... Gomez is over paid but the guy is a legit winner. Never missed the playoffs.

That's kind of my point. He put up some great numbers in his rookie year, 70pts in 82 games. But when it came to the playoffs, he kind of disappeared, getting 10 pts in 23 games. Since his last cup, he's been dynamite in the playoffs. But during his 3 cup runs, he was pretty invisible.

NJ shuts it down in the playoffs, and the times they won it was because of steller defense. Gomez can play on both sides of the puck which is why he is such a solid player. Just an awful contract though...

Anyways, Gomez is going to make MTL better and more than likely a playoff team.

I agree about that. I'm not trying to take away from him, he's a phenomenal passer, and if he ever did play for a team that was offensively minded, he would put up some premier numbers. I'm just saying you can't value him based on his cups won. They may have been valuable experiences, but fact is, he didn't step up those playoffs... Even the later of the two playoffs, he was tied for 6th in scoring with Jay Pandolfo.

But I agree, he will make montreal better.

Fair enough. Ottawa is gonna get trounced this year.

Bass Destruction wrote:I agree about that. I'm not trying to take away from him, he's a phenomenal passer, and if he ever did play for a team that was offensively minded, he would put up some premier numbers. I'm just saying you can't value him based on his cups won. They may have been valuable experiences, but fact is, he didn't step up those playoffs... Even the later of the two playoffs, he was tied for 6th in scoring with Jay Pandolfo.

But I agree, he will make montreal better.

BD--the playoff experience is not about the numbers. It's about knowing what it takes to the get to the top of the mountain.

You win a Cup, you know what it takes.

You realize numbers mean squat...except that your team won four games, and the other team didn't. So you get the prize.

Whether you score, whether you don't, whether you play twenty five minutes a game, or just one shift.

Champions know something the others don't.

Not just in hockey...but in every walk of life.

One of the things they know is that success is as fleeting and fickle as it is intoxicating...

Gionta and Gomez are hungry to win. That hunger is what Gainey is paying for.

That hunger was missing last year from the Habs...in a way that was embarassing at times.

Bob Gainey is a Champion. So he wants Champions on his team.

The rest, is just working your a$$ off...and hoping it all comes together.

davetherave wrote:

Bass Destruction wrote:I agree about that. I'm not trying to take away from him, he's a phenomenal passer, and if he ever did play for a team that was offensively minded, he would put up some premier numbers. I'm just saying you can't value him based on his cups won. They may have been valuable experiences, but fact is, he didn't step up those playoffs... Even the later of the two playoffs, he was tied for 6th in scoring with Jay Pandolfo.

But I agree, he will make montreal better.

BD--the playoff experience is not about the numbers. It's about knowing what it takes to the get to the top of the mountain.

You win a Cup, you know what it takes.

You realize numbers mean squat...except that your team won four games, and the other team didn't. So you get the prize.

Whether you score, whether you don't, whether you play twenty five minutes a game, or just one shift.

Champions know something the others don't.

Not just in hockey...but in every walk of life.

One of the things they know is that success is as fleeting and fickle as it is intoxicating...

Gionta and Gomez are hungry to win. That hunger is what Gainey is paying for.

That hunger was missing last year from the Habs...in a way that was embarassing at times.

Bob Gainey is a Champion. So he wants Champions on his team.

The rest, is just working your a$$ off...and hoping it all comes together.

So, why is Joe DiPenta playing in Europe?

asq2 wrote:So, why is Joe DiPenta playing in Europe?

Who the heck is Joe DiPenta?

won a cup with mtl in 93

Neely4Life wrote:won a cup with mtl in 93

Maybe we're talking about different DiPentas. The one I'm referring to won a Cup with Anaheim a couple years ago.

Either way, it's a Cup-winner out of NHL-work.

Neely4Life wrote:won a cup with mtl in 93

Is this the guy?

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=35562

...if it is, HockeyDB says he was a Duck.

We are... that's my bad.

davetherave wrote:

Neely4Life wrote:won a cup with mtl in 93

Is this the guy?

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=35562

...if it is, HockeyDB says he was a Duck.

Wow, didnt know he palyed for SMith Falls.

asq2 wrote:

Neely4Life wrote:won a cup with mtl in 93

Maybe we're talking about different DiPentas. The one I'm referring to won a Cup with Anaheim a couple years ago.

Either way, it's a Cup-winner out of NHL-work.

Yeah, OK...and? There are probably more than a few Cup winners out of NHL work.

Doesn't change that what I said is true.

Out of work Cup winners would know that more than anyone... 'cause after you've been part of a Championship team, nothing ever comes close.

ANyway,s Gomez or not that team has absolutely no secondary scoring, unless the Kostys Brothers decide to wake up, and make sure they don't go back to sleep.

They still need to re-sign Plekanec, Latendresse and D'agostini and even after that they will be at 11 forwards signed.

I like their D though.

I wonder how is the Jesus these days?

Andrei Kostitsyn's going to be a star in the NHL. Sergei's pretty good himself.

Latendresse, on the other hand, I don't care much for as a player.

Although I'm certain he won't, if A.Kost plays with Gomez, he could put up 35+ goals next season.

People talk about the size of these players, but they don't talk about how smart Gionta and Gomez are. They're not going to allow themselves into bad positions, they know where everyone is on the ice at all times. Plus, this new NHL is great if you have big, fast dudes, but most teams settle for just mid-sized fast dudes with skills. All three of these guys have skills out their arse. I'd rather Spezza over Gomez obviously, and I'd rather Alfie over Gionta and I'd rather Heatley over Cammelleri, but it's a lot closer than when it was Koivu, Kovalev and Tanguay. A lot faster, a lot more skilled and two of them are Cup winners (which I don't really care about, but it's a bonus).

If Montreal can sign some semblence of a 2nd and 3rd line, they'll be fine. A.Kost. is the good brother, he'll be fine, Latondresse faces a bit of a make or break season here, but he's got skills, Plekanic is a skilled player who has to shake out of his year long funk.

They're actually a pretty good team now - again, after a few more signings or trades. Their D is nice - overpaid (Hamerlik, Spacek), but quite good nonetheless.

Their goaltending is what it is. Price will continue to grow. Not sure how much he'll bounce back, but he will. And Halak is a very solid young tender.

Should be a decent team as long as Gainey maybe adds some size and skill (easier said than done obviously). Bertuzzi might go well there. I'd certainly be talking with Tanguay to come back. Some more skill and size and they're well on their way.