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Bettman Offends All Sponsors, Most Notably Molson!

March 11, 2011, 11:42 AM ET [ Comments]
Habs Talk
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1) Obvious point: the Canadiens didn't have it last night. It might have been their most disjointed effort of the season.

Habs didn't use the excuse readily available to them after this one, but they'll have a tough time battling the perception that they are distracted, until of course they win their next game.

2) It's a shame the Canadiens couldn't muster any passion for last night's game. The storyline was rich with the Halak-Price match up, but the Canadiens left us with very little to discuss after falling so far from the grace that netted them five-straight wins.

Would've been nice to be able to focus purely on the hockey game, versus the discussion we unfortunately need to continue, because there are endless discussion points to entertain.

3) Here's the closer from Dave Stubbs' morning column:

"As Max Pacioretty heals his broken body, he might want to consider this:

It's possible that his injury could finally stir the NHL into action on the stupidity that's overtaken hockey. This could, at long last, be the tipping point in a game that's crying out for a little balance."

I'd like to take the "possible" part out of the sentence, though I concur it's only responsible to phrase it as such.

The haunting image of Pacioretty motionless for several minutes, face-down and in a position where doctors and attendants would have no choice but to immobilize his neck, had almost as profound of an effect as him actually dying or being paralyzed.

We are eternally thankful that the worst did not occur, but that it entered everyone's mind that he could plausibly be dead in the moment-- this is the tipping point Stubbs refers to. It has stirred the people that won't relent until change is implemented, let alone discussed.

The power of that image is beyond words. It provokes the deepest emotional response, and in this case, emotions shouldn't be separated from the issue. Those emotions will fuel the movement for immediate and explicit change.

Geoff Molson's statement; his emotional and incredibly well-framed letter won't be ignored.

That this happened in Montreal--where the game is forever enriched by the passion of Canadiens fans--is more significant than it happening in any other NHL market other than Toronto. Because these fans won't let it go. The important hockey people of Montreal, with tremendous influence on the game, won't let it go.

I do believe this is the final straw that will set in motion the drastic re-evaluation of hockey's state, and that change is waiting on the other side of that long-winded discussion.

4) Stephen Brunt of the Globe and Mail has taken aim at Gary Bettman once again. It's so easy to do at this point, but honestly, who does it better than Brunt?

The man is open about despising Bettman, and yet he still offers a clear-cut, well-evidenced case for the commissioner's removal , without his opinion outweighing the facts.

You know what's funny?

I'm not sure anyone's mentioned this, but in light of Bettman's comments, how much angrier do you think Geoff Molson was by the end of yesterday?

This isn't just about his Canadiens anymore. We're less than a month removed from Molson being named the NHL's official beer...

Bettman's arrogance and his inability to control his own temper in response to Air Canada's call for progress on the issue was a shot across the bow of the league's corporate citizens.

The message he sent to virtually every other sponsor/potential sponsor would have had him canned before day's end if he was the CEO for any multinational corporation other than this failure of a league.

Instead, the Globe and Mail reports his contract was secretly extended for five years, in November.

5) I keep coming back to it. The NHL isn't going to change this endemic of unnecessary violence without the players spearheading the movement.

There are a couple of owners who care about the safety of the players. And let's not kid ourselves, Mario Lemieux and Geoff Molson are much more important than whoever the shmohawk is that runs the Phoenix Coyotes (Gary Bettman?).

But most the owners don't care enough. If they don't care enough to remove Bettman from the equation despite the abysmal state of his Sunbelt strategy; if they don't care enough to remove him after his league embarrasses itself time and time again with impotent regulation; if they don't care enough to remove him after he shoots from the hip without their approval--like he did yesterday in front of a U.S. Congressional contingency....well you get the point...

The players, who have no problem showing solidarity when it comes to fighting for what % of the revenue they own rights to, have to find a way to do so as it pertains to their own safety.

To all the players who have publicly stated they have no problem with Chara's hit, that they won't question his intention because proof is too hard to come by, that it's "just a hockey play", I view your statements as cowardly.

It is cowardly, and irresponsible at this point to not use this opportunity to change this game for the better. Next time, it could be you laying face-down on the ice while your family in attendance has your life flash before their eyes. But don't worry, you won't remember the incident...

6) “I'll tell you this: if you say that you don't know where things are around the ice, I think you're not telling the truth,” Henrik Sedin said. “You play the game for 20 years, you know it's there.

“I don't think players know where the limit is. That's the bottom line.”

“What are you doing to do the next time Trevor Gillies comes down and runs a guy into the thing? You can't give him anything. And you tell the guys [Chara] has no history, so the next time he does it he still has no history because he didn't get suspended. I don't see the reasoning behind it. Give him at least something to show that's not acceptable.”

read the article.


Boy am I happy Henrik Sedin said it.

Doesn't matter if I say it.

I was reluctant to voice my pure hockey opinion on this incident because I couldn't prove it. I didn't want to stir a controversy by alleging I believe to the core that Chara knew exactly what he was doing, that he knew it was Pacioretty, that he could've rubbed him out well before they got to the stanchion, and that he followed through on the hit to send a message (not with the intent to break Pacioretty's neck).

I'd have been met with "you're biased", and though I'd staunchly retort that I'd feel the same way if it were Pouliot or Cammalleri on Krejci, you likely wouldn't believe me.

Instead I presented why I thought the results of an illegal play were devastating enough for Chara to receive some kind of punishment for them.

Sedin agrees: "It's gotten to the point, you have to suspend guys if you hit the head. You have to do it even if guys say they didn't mean to do it or it's an accident. You have to start somewhere."

So thanks for doing that Henrik. Thanks for having the balls too many other players don't have. Will never agree with another person who thinks you're a soft player...

7) Back to the Habs, Mike Cammalleri has got to find a way to get his game to a level we haven't seen from him all season.

I'm not sure when he'll find it. But if he doesn't, the gaping hole Pacioretty's absence from the lineup leaves widens.

8) When's the last time Carey Price lost 4-1 and played exceptionally well? Last season?

9) The Canadiens played a very similar game in Pittsburgh at the beginning of the season to the one they played last night.

Price stood on his head, and somehow the Habs found a couple of goals when they needed 'em most, and stole what should've been sweet redemption for the Penguins.

They won't be successful this time around if they fail to summon the passion required to win. It'll look more like last night...

10) Not sure why it takes some sort of drastic losing streak for the coaches to think outside the box and get everyone in on a group activity outside the rink and away from hockey.

I think, right now, that would be the best idea for a team that's understandably distracted and imprisoned by the gravity of the last 72 hours.

Don't just give them the day off. Spend the day together, away from the cameras, reporters, the rink, their equipment, the gym...all of it.

Come back on Saturday with your best game. Just another opinion of mine...

From Yesterday:




Brain Savage, former Montreal Canadien, suffered similar injuries to those suffered by Max Pacioretty, when he collided with Ian Laperriere in 1999-2000. He offers his opinion on the Chara hit and some advice for Max on his road to recovery.


Red Fisher: How Did Chara Escape

Marc-Antoine Godin: On ne revient plus le même, selon Brian Savage

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Steve and Eric talk about the NHL's need to return to the days of respect and responsibility in lieu of the Pacioretty hit as well as touching on the Habs 5 game winning streak and what it means for the final month of play...

*Songs featured in this ep are from some of our favorite artists, including Radiohead, 2001 Space Odyssey Theme and Bill Whithers
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