Quick Announcement:
After a summer of planning, I'm extremely pleased to let you all in on a new project I'll be participating in.
The fine people at CTV have created a new
Habs Section, in which you will find my regular post-game analysis, as well as the incredible work that long-standing CTV reporter/anchor Brian Wilde is doing, and newly appointed NHL.com reporter and ever-popular author of "The Daily Hab-It" Arpon Basu has joined the party too.
The Habs Hub will also include "The Scrum"- a video feature that brings you inside the lockerroom after practices and games. It will also include K103's Ted Bird, who regularly chimes in with "Bird's Eye View".
My first submission of
The Engels Angle is now live.
Note that I'll maintain both my blog here at hockeybuzz and the new one over at CTV-Montreal.
Season Preview:
To say the Canadiens have an uphill battle to make the post-season may very well be understating it. In losing Jaroslav Halak and adding Alex Auld it's much harder to argue the Canadiens are an improved squad.
Newly acquired Dustin Boyd, Jeff Halpern and Lars Eller bring more balance to the equation, and the stability of having 18 players from their playoff-push return this season bodes well for the chemistry of the team.
It's been noted, and eloquently stated by Mike Cammalleri recently that "The getting to know you excuse" isn't going to cut it this season. The Canadiens have had their time to learn each others' idiosyncrasies, to grasp the mechanisms of the system and to bond as a team needs to in order to enjoy the type of success they had last spring. The pressure is on, and it's time to see if the Habs can battle through it or ultimately succumb.
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Given Carey Price's Bell Centre reception in the pre-season, it's quite obvious he's been put in a nearly impossible position this year. Can he succeed knowing any sub-par performance will be greeted with the melancholy pessimism of the Bell Centre's loud minority? Can he succeed when people expect that he consistently play as well as Jaroslav Halak did in the playoffs?
It's quite clear he'll have to deliver on a very consistent basis if the Canadiens have any hope of making the post-season.
A lot has been made of the pressure on Price and while there's no question he has the talent to bear the responsibility he now faces, it's his attitude that will ultimately determine his fate in Montreal.
He'll be the first to tell you there's nothing he can do about the pressure or about the ups and downs he's sure to face this season, but if Price can find a way to see beyond the horizon he may have an easier time navigating the Canadiens to where they need to be.
When things don't go as planned he can choose to sulk about the position he's been put in...
Or he can choose to view this as the opportunity of his career. It'll take an incredible effort on his behalf to win enough for the Canadiens to make the playoffs, and if he's able to do it in spite of everything that's been said about him, in spite of the way he's been treated by part of the fan base, and in spite of the position the Canadiens have put him in then it'll be confirmed that he has what other parts of the fan base truly believe he has.
And you better believe Pierre Gauthier and Jacques Martin are praying that Price has that approach. If he doesn't, and if Lars Eller falls short of expectation, both men will find themselves in hot water with incumbent Geoff Molson taking over the team's presidency at season's end.
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It's been acknowledged that Price's performance will have the greatest influence on the Canadiens post-season hopes, but let's get into how the team can help him.
Chemistry is that all-important factor, and the Canadiens have it. That's going to help a great deal, but if they're to learn anything from last year they'll need a greater offensive effort in front of Price.
You have to worry about the line combinations because they essentially tell quite a bit about what style the Canadiens plan on employing. For instance, with Mike Cammalleri in the lineup, Martin had Lars Eller next to Jeff Halpern and Travis Moen in practice this week. Not exactly a recipe for more offense.
It's not as if Jacques Martin's done a 180 in his philosophy. That the Canadiens will be a defense-first team will serve Price well. But somehow, they need to find a way to get more 5-on-5 scoring and there's no doubt they'll need to ice one of the best powerplays in the league if they hope to make the playoffs.
I don't know how much last year's performance proved about Price's ability, but one thing that became clear is that the team couldn't play the same way in front of him as they did in front of Halak. They managed more than two goals on only four occasions in front of Price last year. He's not going to win enough if they continue to do that. He's not going to win enough if they play on their heels when they fully have the ability to attack.
Health and depth, as always, will make the difference this season. If the Canadiens sustain 6-week injuries to players like Gionta, Gomez, Plekanec, Cammalleri, Kostitsyn, Markov, Gill, etc..., they won't be able to do what they did last season. But if they have one or two injuries on their top lines, they now have the depth to fill those positions with scorers. Eller may not rip it up next to Moen and Halpern, but he can make a difference with Plekanec and Kostitsyn (a theory that'll be put to the test as early as tonight).
Continuing on the theme of offense, expect more from Tom Pyatt and much more from Maxim Lapierre. Both players are ready for a breakout season. Dustin Boyd proved in the pre-season he's got some touch as well.
And the Canadiens have to get more offense from the blueline this year. Markov missed the first 35 games of last season, and that didn't help, but the Habs got very little out of Jaroslav Spacek. P.K. Subban's full-time addition this season will dramatically help in that regard.
Josh Gorges accumulated 6 assists in the pre-season and he may be able to factor into the scoring more than he ever has. Not that he'll be an offensive machine, but anything he can add will help.
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On the defensive side of things, the team is full of cagey and experienced vets. Hal Gill is coming off his three best seasons in the NHL. Andrei Markov is recovering and set to perform for a new contract. Jaroslav Spacek struggled through the pre-season but how much can you read into that regarding a 36-year old vet? He's going to need to play the way he did in the first half of last season. Josh Gorges is entering his prime, and doing so with more confidence than ever before. Unleash P.K. Subban and the sky is the limit...
Ryan O'Byrne and Alex Picard will complement the defense core, and if they're able to exceed very low expectations the Canadiens will be in good standing.
There's no reason this team shouldn't have one of the best penalty kills in the league. With personnel like Plekanec, Moen, Lapierre, Pyatt, Halpern, Boyd, Gorges, Spacek, Hamrlik and Gill, this is an area where expectations should be very high. Anything less than a top 5 finish will be a disappointment and will greatly hinder the team's hopes for a playoff berth.
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All in all, I see a team that's worthy of a playoff spot. Carey Price will have to get them there, and I believe that he will. The team will have to score more and they'll need to be excellent on special teams-- I believe that they will.
I'm saying they finish 7th in the East.
It all starts tonight...
A quick Word of Caution about the first couple of games.
Enjoy!
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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