The Hope
- Plekanec and Cammalleri unite to form the Habs best scoring duo since...Turgeon/Damphousse??! (needless to say, it's been awhile since Montreal has had 2 guys with the potential of breaking into the top 20 scorers in the league)
- Gomez & Gionta stay healthy and rekindle the magic.
- Kostitsyn and Pouliot overcome their inconsistencies and prove why they were drafted so high.
- Andrei Markov plays at least 75 games.
- P.K. Subban proves he is a rookie of the year candidate and why he should have been drafted in the 1st round.
- Lars Eller proves he is NHL ready as a rookie by potting at least 15 goals.
- Markov and Subban lead the powerplay to another top 5 finish.
- The penalty kill gets a drastic boost with the additions of Dustin Boyd, Jeff Halpern, a full season of Tom Pyatt and the return of Maxim Lapierre.
- Speed kills. Team quickness will overcome physical opposition.
- Finally, Carey Price starts a minimum of 65 games, earning wins in at least 35 of them.
The Fear
- Injuries once again destroy any hope of chemistry and consistency.
- Jacques Martin remains too focused on defense and doesn't allow his team, which has considerable offensive ability, the chance to flex their muscle.
- Speaking of muscle, the toughness factor continues to hang over the Habs head...if said speed cannot hold up against physical teams...
- Flat rookies; Pk & Lars are expected to account for a decent amount of production, if they struggle in their rookie year it may drastically affect Montreal's game plan.
- AK46 & BP57 remain their usual selves.
- Another catastrophic season for Price. If Carey struggles, it's evident Auld won't be able to handle the load.
What are your hopes and fears for this year's edition of the Montreal Canadiens?
Game 1: Habs vs Leafs
With the puck having officially been dropped at noon this afternoon(or 7pm if you were in Finland) as the Wild and Hurricanes opened up the NHL's 2010-11 regular season schedule, Habs and Leafs fans will once again be treated to the renewal of one of the most eternal rivalries in all of sports.
The last few years have been a struggle for the Canadiens in both their season openers and closers against the Leafs. Toronto constantly wreaking havoc with the Habs playoff chances, of course, seem to have a different look to their lineup this season and, some would even say, a shot at the playoffs for the first time in five years.
What, if anything, does that mean for the Canadiens?
Not all that much as, truthfully, Montreal has always seemingly had their hands full with the Buds.
Entering the ACC is never an easy thing to do and is not exactly a pleasant environment to kick off the season if you wear bleu, blanc et rouge, but it is exactly the right place to get this team into the season from the very first whistle.
The Habs are in need of a fast start this season, and beating the Leafs tonight will get them started in the right direction.
That said, the Habs will unfortunately be without 3, if not perhaps 4, of their most important players this evening as both Andrei Markov and Roman Hamrlik are still a few days away from being able to participate in games while Mike Cammalleri serves a one-game suspension for high-sticking Nino Niederreiter of the New York Islanders in the pre-season.
The other, possible, absence from this evening's opener is Carey Price. Carey has been suffering from a bout with the flu over the last couple of days and, although he was on the ice for practice this morning and all indications are finally pointing towards him starting this evening, nothing had been confirmed as of yet. Even if Carey does start, it's a tough beginning for a kid who needs to make the best impression possible.
Regardless of who or who is not in the lineup tonight, it really shouldn't matter. Anyone wearing a Canadiens jersey should jacked to finally get the season underway. If anything, Leafs or Habs fans, we should all be excited about the start of another glorious run to the Stanley Cup next June.
It will be a long year and the season will not end with a win or a loss this evening, but with new captain, Brian Gionta, ready to lead the Montreal Canadiens into(what is essentially) their second season together, it's going to be a great ride.
Buckle up, hockey's back!
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Go Habs!!!!!
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