Habs For Breakfast - Time Is Tight In More Ways Than One

My apologies to regular readers who tune in for these "Breakfast" posts, today's links were thrown up here in a mad hurried rash due to a busy Friday schedule on my part.

For that reason, I am bypassing quotes and photos for each piece today. It is also well before sunup as I post these 17 interesting links.

The usual articles from Gazette, Habs Inside Out, La Presse, and Le Journal aren't posted online at this early time, but can be accessed via the main page link I usually provide at the end of these daily posts.Time allowing, I will add them later in the day.

On my plate today are an abundance of "more important than Habs blogging" neccessities.

Other than driving my wife to work and youngest child to school, I have to bring my oldest girl to a ball hockey tournament 15 minutes out of town between those daily duties. Then I have to return for a poem recital by my youngest before heading off to a job interview at 10 o' clock. The oldest has a game at 10:30 that I hope to catch. My wife and I have lunch at noon. I have a second job interview for 1:30 PM, and a second game to take in at 2 PM if my oldest makes the semi finals. I pick up my youngest at school at 3 and my cuter half at 5. If the oldest reaches the ball hockey finals, I'm going to miss a bit of the game.

In the Robert L home these days, the cash has gotten tight. I've tried to divide family and children responsibilities, job searching, and "Eyes On The Prize" blogging with equal amounts of responsability.

It ain't easy to do.

Maybe I have too many loyalties.

My two young girls are lifers, and I wouldn't want it any different. The two interviews I have today are not all that important. They are longshot job opportunities I owe to myself to investigate. I have been without work for about three weeks now due to a layoff. I will be starting a new job Monday coming either way, with a computer manufacturing firm.

My oldest girl has scored 13 goals in 4 tryout games as a defenseman with her schools Grade 9 AA team. She's only 13 and in Grade 7 at her school. She's usually a center on her travel team.
A full out, interesting day awaits me for sure.

I have a couple of other Habs related posts in the works, which I hope to have up here by Friday's end.

My apologies for the lengthy excursion into my private life details, but I was moved to state my head and where it is at in regards to the rising numbers of readers at this site in the past 2 months. There were close to 33,000 readers here in April and more e-mails than I could answer on a day to day basis.

All I can think of to say is, thank you - over and over.

BRUNNSTROM TALKS TO RED WINGS, CANADIENS NEXT - TSN
WOEFUL POWERPLAY THE HABS BIGGEST CONCERN - TSN
CARBONNEAU TIGHT-LIPPED OVER GAME 5 STARTER - TSN
Brière the invisible superstar makes his mark - Globe Sports
Philly Makes Phour habs Phans Phrustrated - Four Fabs Fans
Rodney Helps me Out In Dealing With Those Flyer Fans - Dennis Kane's Excellent Montreal Canadiens Blog
The Bright Spots / A Top Ten / Hubris - The H Does Not Stand For Habs
It Ain't Over Until It's Over - Montreal Canadiens.com
What Will It Take? - Montreal Canadiens.com
Game 4 In Numbers - Montreal Canadiens.com
Le CH n'a pas oublié 2004 - RDS
Carbonneau comprend très bien Bégin - RDS
Carbonneau demeure optimiste - La Presse
Carbonneau demeure optimiste - Le Journal
Le Bélarus espère l'arrivée imminente des frères Kostitsyn - Le Journal
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Habs For Breakfast - Crunch Time

Game 3 will be a pivotal one for the Canadiens, after having lost home ice advantage in the series against the Flyers. The Habs who have been good on the road this season, good enough for the league's third best road record, haven't fared as well in the playoffs.

In the 9 games played so far in two rounds, Montreal is 4-2 at home and 1-2 on the road.

Perhaps the Canadiens need a pair of road games to refocus their armour. While they may have created all kinds of scoring chances on Saturday, at times they tried too hard to razzle dazzle the Flyers, and it may have cost them the win and the momentum of the series.

A couple of games where the focus is to shoot first, crowd the net, and pounce on rebounds will do them good. The fancy dancing can come after Biron is off balance.

Tonight in Philadelphia, muscle will beat finesse. The Canadiens will need mental toughness as much as the physical kind to get through it and win.

War Of Words - Gazette

"One day after Philadelphia coach John Stevens complained of a cowardly act by a Montreal player, Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau issued his own retort, suggesting the Flyers lack class. "They're one team that shouldn't talk. Over 82 games, they had the most suspensions in the league," Carbonneau said, following an optional practice in LaSalle yesterday morning." - Herb Zurkowsky

Kostopoulos accepts blame for sucker punch - Globe Sports

"If Montreal Canadiens head coach Guy Carbonneau was hoping to exploit a late-game incident in which Tom Kostopoulos sucker-punched Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Kimmo Timonen, the guilty party threw cold water on his coach's ploy. Carbonneau defended the late-game behaviour of Kostopoulos. The Canadiens' coach also accused the Flyers of taunting his players after they scored the game's final goal with 2 minutes 21 seconds remaining in Philadelphia's 4-2 win to tie the second-round best-of-seven series 1-1." - Tim Wharnsby

Habs Land In Philly - Gazette

"Listen for Flyers fans to tongue-tie themselves as they derisively chant "Kos-to-pou-los." That will be in recognition of the winger's emerging from Game 2 as a prime Philly target for his late-game dustups with Kimmo Timonen and Scott Upshall." - Dave Stubbs

Biron Savours Time At Home - Gazette

"We fed off the energy from the crowd in the first series against Washington when we came back here for Games 3 and 4, and we have to keep doing that," Biron said. "We did what we had to do in Montreal and now we have to take care of business here." Biron has been feeding off the energy of seeing action in the playoffs. He has been in the NHL for nine seasons but this is the first time he's seen playoff action.




















A Test Of Character - The H Does Not Stand For Habs

"It's one thing to know you lost because you didn't play hard enough or because you took a bunch of stupid penalties. But to know you completely outplayed the opposition, yet they're the ones laughing at you in your own building (cheap bastard Flyers), is very difficult to accept." - J.T.

Une question de sang-froid - RDS

"La rivalité avec les Flyers a atteint un autre échelon samedi soir quand Tom Kostopoulos a frappé sournoisement Kimmo Timonen après le quatrième but des visiteurs marqué par R.J. Umberger. Personne dans le camp du Tricolore ne s'attend à ce que Kostopoulos soit puni pour ce geste gratuit." - Luc Gelinas

Markov doit être meilleur - RDS

"Parmi les joueurs qui doivent produire davantage, je songe immédiatement à Andrei Markov. En ce moment, il devrait être le général à la ligne bleue pour le Canadien, mais il est incapable de jouer à son niveau de la saison régulière. Il effectue quelques bonnes présences, mais ce n’est pas suffisant. Il doit être meilleur pour donner des chances au Canadien d’aspirer aux grands honneurs." - Bob Hartley




















CH: Qui écopera ce soir? - La Presse

"Guy Carbonneau n'a pas encore décidé quels changements il entend apporter en vue du match de ce soir à Philadelphie mais chose certaine, il y en aura. À l'attaque, le trio formé par Maxim Lapierre, Mathieu Dandenault et Mark Streit apparaît le plus vulnérable. "Ils passent beaucoup trop de temps dans notre territoire", a indiqué l'entraîneur, hier." - Marc Antoine Godin

Laissons donc Brière se faire huer en paix - La Presse

"Avez-vous bien regardé les yeux de Martin Biron? Jamais vu quelqu'un avoir l'air de venir autant d'ailleurs. On dirait E.T. On dirait un monsieur d'une autre planète tellement son regard un peu space indispose. Et Daniel Brière, lui? L'avez-vous bien examiné, celui-là? Sérieux, il a l'air de tout sauf d'un joueur de hockey. Avec sa voix haut perchée, son physique de petit vicaire, vous lui mettez un béret sur la tête, un bréviaire entre les mains et voilà que se dresse devant vous le nouveau curé de la paroisse." - Michel Blanchard

"Il faut tirer souvent et lui gêner la vision" - Le Journal

"Mine de rien, les Flyers totalisent sept buts après deux matchs contre le gardien recrue. C'est quatre de plus que Price n'en avait accordé aux Bruins après le même nombre de rencontres." - Marc De Foy

"Deux matchs pour commencer à les haïr..." - Le Journal

"Francis Bouillon ne trouve pas que les deux premiers matchs de la série Canadien-Flyers aient donné lieu à du jeu très rude, mais ça pourrait changer dans la Ville de l'amour fraternel. "C'était pas mal plus dur contre les Bruins de Boston, une équipe qu'on détestait déjà avant d'amorcer les séries puisqu'on les avait affrontés huit fois durant la saison", a-t-il fait remarquer. - Pierre Durocher

Price a perdu le trophée Calder et 500 000 $ - Le Journal

"Il y a une énorme différence entre passer le premier mois de la campagne dans les ligues mineures et y être renvoyé en plein milieu d'une saison, ce qui laisse suggérer qu'on ne le jugeait pas apte à aider l'équipe à ce moment-là." - Bertrand Raymond

More from Habs Inside Out, RDS, La Presse, and Le Journal.
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Habs For Breakfast - Canadiens Let One Slip Away

I'm in a foul mood!

As you have undoubtably seen and will read through today's link, the Canadiens kicked total butt last night, but couldn't thread the needle.

They made a lucky Biron look, by either throwing things right at him or shooting wide.

What I found worse, were the multitude of calls that went missing in this game. The officiating was so brutal, I was tempted to watch the game a second time, and chronologically take note of everything that went uncalled.

I didn't need the additional excercise in frustration, but it was apparent that the officials that worked this game were so far out of step with the play, it was embarrasing. I could get into detail...but enough already.

Carey Price is being pointed as having let in a pair of softies, but those Flyers goals were wicked accurate top corner shots that are exactly what they need to do to beat him.

The bottom line is that the Flyers nailed their few scoring chances and the Habs missed a whack of them. Some games just go that way.

What really riled me up were the Flyers arrogant smirks near the end of the game. Is that what they do when they get lucky and take a game they had no business winning?

For the entirety of the contest, it was the Flyers tactic to have sticks, gloves and elbows up by the Habs faces and heads. A Flyer would hit a Canadiens player, then another would charge into him three seconds later while he was still pinned. I saw a dozen blatant infractions worthy of penalties and the Flyers were allowed to set a real ugly tone in this one.

I couldn't believe my ears then, when after the game, Flyers coach Stevens starts ragging on the Kostopoulos sucker punch late in the game to Timonen. After the Flyers filled the keg with gunpowder, he brings this up?

Clearly, Stevens didn't want to discuss what really went on.

When sticking simply to the game of hockey, the Flyers obviously can't match the Canadiens. How they plan to counter this was apparent in this game.

It should be an all out war in Game 3.


















Flyers Even Series - Gazette

"Martin Biron stymied the Canadiens in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinal, but he had help from the gang that couldn't shoot straight. The statistics speak to Montreal's shortcomings. In addition to the 36 shots on net, the Canadiens had 23 shots blocked and another 21 missed the mark." - Pat Hickey

This Time, The Other Goalie Was The One Stealing The Show - Gazette

"Next Saturday, it's a pretty safe bet you'll be a moist-palmed spectator of your heroes at the Bell Centre, where depending on the work of Biron and Price, this already-fine series will: a) send Montreal to the conference final, eight victories from their 25th Stanley Cup; b) dispatch the Canadiens into summer, or; c) head back to Philadelphia a week from tonight for Game 6." - Dave Stubbs

Flyers Brière, Biron Deserve 'A' For Effort - Gazette

"What's that they say about the acquisitions and/or trades you don't make are often are the best? Canadiens management hasn't spent any time feeling sorry about their inability to land Brière - and shouldn't - but they must have felt at least a small twinge last night when 13:33 into this game Brière." - Red Fisher

Missed Chances Cost Canadiens - Globe Sports

"We're obviously disappointed with the loss, but we carried that game," said Montreal goalie Carey Price, who did not have a strong game. "If we could have buried half of our open-net chances we could have won 8-4." - Tim Wharnsby

Biron Stands Tall - TSN

"I think Carey said he could have played better," said coach Guy Carbonneau. "Three goals on 13 shots, that's not what we've seen from him in the past. But those first two goals were good shots. We had open nets and missed them, but a good player makes his own luck and Biron was good."

Habs Outplay Philly, Biron Outplays Price - Lions In Winter

"For the third time in 4 games Saku was our best player. He was absolutely dominant tonight as he seemed to be involved in almost every one of the Canadiens' serious chances. His play has inspired Higgins who is playing great hockey right now too. What I continue to notice about Saku that is so unique is the way he uses his body, his stance and his skates to keep and win the puck. He is constantly not only winning open pucks, but is holding on to them long enough to find an open winger or point-man." - Tobalev

Flyers Even The Series, Montreal Will Now Have To Win In Five - Dennis Kane's Excellent Montreal Canadiens Blog

"Montreal had their chances, to be sure. They could have won this game by three or four goals. Christopher Higgins hit the post late in the game. Almost everyone came close at one time or another. But Flyers goaltender Martin Biron was good, Carey Price not quite so good, and Mike Richards and Derian Hatcher are a couple of pricks." - Dennis Kane



















Il faudra s'ajuster en défensive - RDS

"Défensivement, il faut se poser la question au sujet d'une possible blessure à Markov. Il ne joue pas le hockey auquel il nous a habitué en saison régulière. Et c'est évident que lorsque Markov ne joue pas à la hauteur de ses capacités, ça a un effet sur Komisarek." - Jacques Demers

"Martin a été incroyable" - RDS

"C'est bizarre, mais on connaît nos meilleurs matchs quand on accorde beaucoup de tirs", a relevé le gardien natif de Lac Saint-Charles, dans la région de Québec. "Au premier tour, ç'a été le cas dans trois victoires de la série contre les Capitals de Washington."

Price: "Je peux mieux jouer, c'est clair" - La Presse

"Globalement, j'évaluerais ma performance à 6 sur 10, a noté Price. Sur le premier but, j'ai tenté de soulever mon épaule, mais je n'ai pas réussi à temps. Sur le dernier, on a frappé mon gant avec le bâton..."C'est clair que je peux mieux jouer, et c'est ce que je vais faire dès le prochain match."

Higgins: "Les occasions sont là" - La Presse

"Les occasions sont là et on finira bien par en profiter, a pourtant assuré Chris Higgins. On en a eu suffisamment pour se sentir bien à propos de notre attaque. Le problème, c'est que les séries sont une affaire d'exécution."

Le Canadien a tout fait sauf gagner - La Presse

"Benoît Brunet a dit qu’il ne l’avait jamais vu jouer aussi bien en séries. Moi j’ajouterais que je ne l’ai jamais vu joué aussi bien, point. Brillant lors des mises en jeu, agressif, rapide, hier, avec un but et une passe, il a été le cœur et l’âme du Canadien puisque de Kovalev, même s’il a obtenu une aide sur le but Koivu, on n’a pas vu grand-chose." - Michel Blanchard


"J'ai toujours dit qu'un bon joueur fait sa chance" - Guy Carbonneau - Le Journal

"Le Canadien a-t-il été volé par Martin Biron ou a-t-il raté trop d'occasions de marquer ? s'est fait demander l'entraîneur en chef Guy Carbonneau au début de son point de presse hier soir." - Marc De Foy

L'émotion a monté d'un cran - Le Journal

"Nous avons davantage montré nos vraies couleurs ce soir", a déclaré Scott Hartnell. "Mais, il faut l'admettre, nous ne nous rendons pas la vie facile. Lors du premier match, nous avons laissé filer une avance de deux buts. Cette fois, nous avons tenu le coup, mais nous n'avons certes pas été parfaits." - François Foisy

"Je n'ai pas soulevé le disque suffisamment": Tomas Plekanec - Le Journal

"J'avais regardé comment Andrei Kostitsyn s'y était pris lors du tir de pénalité qu'il avait obtenu dans le premier match. J'ai essayé un tir du revers, mais ça n'a malheureusement pas réussi."
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Habs For Breakfast - A Wild Way To Start Things Off

Man is this series is going to live up to it's billing! Talk about drama and turning points.

Game 1 was one of those games that just had it all, from swift shifts in the games pace to spectacular goals and controversial calls. Lots of very strange goals too.

Everyone is talking about the Kovalev bat in goal like it was a blown call - it wasn't from what I saw. This didn't get much mention, but the trajectory of the puck after Kovalev swung at it, went straight into the net as if along a flat line, parallel to the ice. Kind of hard to do if he were to have made contact above the cross bar,isn't it?

I've searched for clips of the goal to find the one aired briefly and showed it in slow motion but I could not find it. I'd just like to see it over again once more.

The Flyers third goal by Joffrey Lupul's goal bothered me a good bit, as it stood to be the game winner for much of the third period. It was reviewed as well and to me, you could see a clear motion with his leg when the puck hit. Lupul didn't kick it in. With his skate firmly planted in the ice, you could see a motion between his knee and ankle that pushes the puck toward the goal. In other words, he used his shin to direct it. It was obvious.

But, with calls like that, you win some and you lose some.

What strikes me really funny with all this is the perception that the Flyers let one get away and Montreal again were the lesser team on the ice. What a load!

The Habs never quit in this one. The Flyers for their part, scored only one goal with their sticks proper. If they are counting on breaks such as this to give them a pair of goals and keep them in each game, they are in for a short series.

And they are!

No Quit Habs Win In Overtime - Gazette

"T.K. continues to show the soft hands of a scorer - he's got three in his first-ever playoffs - and the hard body of a banger who's only too happy to play the physical game. "But as exciting as it is, we don't want to get ahead of ourselves," Kostopoulos added. He said he'd flip through the channels when he got home in the hope of seeing his winning goal. " - Dave Stubbs

Them's The Breaks: Carter, Richard - Gazette

"For the record, Jeff Carter uses a Bauer composite hockey stick. And, just so you know, he has no plans on changing brands. Carter, a Philadelphia centre, was beaten by Saku Koivu on a faceoff late in the third period last night. Almost immediately, Carter's stick broke, deeming him virtually moot on the play. Alex Kovalev jumped on the loose puck and beat goaltender Martin Biron with a laser high to the glove side. Only 28.6 seconds remained in regulation time and the score was now tied, 3-3." - Herb Zurkowsky

Canadiens OT Win Anything But Easy - Gazette

"The better team in the standings won this opener, but not the better team on the ice last night. A chap named Saku Koivu, who set up the tying goal that sent the game into overtime, rolled his eyes when he was asked about it in the team's gymnasium. "Too close," he muttered, "too close. But you know ... emotion plays a big part in this. You're coming off a tough series with Boston ... you're going through emotional highs and then it's gone. I know we've got to play better than we did tonight, but when that emotion falls off the table, it's pretty hard to get it back right away. I guess we had it at the end," he said. " - Red Fisher

Granny With Cancer Set For Game - Gazette

"Habs captain Saku Koivu, a cancer survivor, arranged for three tickets for Sousa's family after he heard about her wish. Saku's wife normally has two tickets reserved for herself and a guest, said Sousa's grandson, Bryan Frois. But Thursday the family found out Koivu had arranged for a third ticket to Game 2 of the semifinal playoff series against the Philadelphia Flyers."


















All The makings Of A Dream Series - Globe Sports

Whose dream is this, anyway? Pick a number. Start with the obvious, No. 31 in the Montreal goal, a 20-year-old rookie sensation from Vancouver who has the Zamboni resurface his veins between periods. Carey Price has taken the Montreal Canadiens into the second round in his pursuit of repeating what another untried youngster managed 37 years ago, when Ken Dryden came out of nowhere to steal a Stanley Cup." - Roy MacGregor

Habs Steal A Stunner - Globe Sports

"It was a weird game," said Kostopoulos, who, for the second series-opener in a row, played the role of hero. He had a goal and an assist in the first-round curtain-raiser against the Boston Bruins, and added his first career NHL playoff overtime goal last night." - Tim Wharnsby

Flyers Lose To Montreal in OT - Philadelphia Inquirer

"A lengthy review upheld the goal. The key language in Rule 80.4 on disallowed goals is "where the puck made contact with the stick." In this case, the contact was above the crossbar. The goal should not have counted." - Tim Panaccio

Canadiens Beat Flyers In Overtime To Take 1-0 Series Lead - TSN

''Hard work by my linemates created the turnover and Markov made a good play to get the puck on net,'' added Kostopoulos, who is in the playoffs for the first time in his six-year NHL career. ''Biron made a good save on the first shot and I was lucky to get the rebound.''

Flyers Lose To Montreal in OT - Philadelphia Inquirer

"A lengthy review upheld the goal. The key language in Rule 80.4 on disallowed goals is "where the puck made contact with the stick." In this case, the contact was above the crossbar. The goal should not have counted." - Tim Panaccio

Late Comeback Gives Habs Early Series Lead - Lions In Winter

"His situational awareness is something else. Alex scored PP and a SH goals tonight, both of which were such good, heads-up plays. He looked much more active tonight than he did for most of the Bruins series as he no longer had the big Zdeno Chara keeping a watch on him. He basically did what we needed him to do tonight - score exactly when we needed. He tied the game up twice with two very good goals proving that he always knows exactly where the puck, the net and the chances lie. Not many people would have scored the goals he did tonight; he is the main reason we are now not trailing this series by one." - Tobalev

You Want Drama In Your Life? Just Follow The Habs You'll Get Lots - Dennis Kane's Excellent Montreal Canadiens Blog

"Two games were played tonight. The one Bob Cole saw, which was Philadelphia all over Montreal most of the game. And the one the rest of us saw, which was a couple of posts hit by Montreal, a penalty shot, a shorthanded goal by Kovalev, a couple of comebacks, overtime, a dramatic goal by ultimate warrior Tom Kostopoulos, and a pretty tip-in by Patrice Brisebois, which was, unfortunately, into his own net." - Dennis Cole

Go Greek Lightning - Four Habs Fans

"Turtleplek fires a shot on Biron while penalty killing, which is deflected up. Kovy, following the play, swipes it out of the air and the refs call a goal. Replays show Montreal fans inconclusive results, which I'm pretty sure at least some Flyers fans felt was a high stick (good thing they don't riot over these types of things in Philly). Well, too bad - the Habs have suffered from enough bad replay calls (I still can't let that early-season game against the Pens go), so it's nice to catch a break." - Panger76

"Difficile d'entrer dans leur zone" - RDS

"C'était un premier match, on ne savait pas trop à quoi s'attendre de leur part. Ils ont très bien joué. Il n'y avait pas beaucoup d'espace sur la glace. Ils ont tenté de me déconcentrer en me frappant pendant tout le match. On va devoir apporter des ajustements à notre jeu afin d'être meilleurs." - Alex Kovalev

La série sera courte - RDS

"La brigade défensive des Flyers est plutôt vieillissante. Les Derian Hatcher et Jason Smith sont des grands guerriers mais leurs meilleurs jours comme joueurs sont derrière eux. Outre Braydon Coburn et Kimmo Timonen, la ligne bleue des Flyers est relativement lente. Le Canadien devra l'exploiter avec sa vitesse.' - Bob Hartley

Kovalev, comme un chef - La Presse

"Son entraîneur l'a employé durant neuf minutes en troisième période et il a terminé le match avec plus de temps de jeu que n'importe lequel de ses coéquipiers (23:10). "Il était bien reposé, ça faisait deux jours qu'il ne pratiquait pas!" a lancé Guy Carbonneau en boutade. - Marc Antoine Godin

Quelle victoire bizarre du Canadien - La Presse

"D’entrée de jeu, Carbo jette dans la mêlée son trio de gros travailleurs : Smolinski, Begin et Kostopoulos. Les Flyers tentent de dégager leur territoire mais Markov s’interpose et lance en direction de Biron. Qui bloque mais accorde un retour. Kostopoulos s’empare de la rondelle et lance à nouveau. Biron bloque et accorde un autre retour. Kostopoulos récidive et loge cette fois la rondelle derrière le gardien des Flyers après seulement 48 secondes de jeu.Ouf !" - Michel Blanchard

"Kostopoulos va s'en rappeler": Guy Carbonneau - Le Journal

"Il est le genre de joueur qui ne reçoit pas souvent des accolades parce qu'il joue dans l'ombre, mais Tom travaille fort à chaque rencontre, a souligné Carbo. Il bloque plusieurs tirs et il joue très bien en infériorité numérique." - Pierre Durocher

"On a trouvé une façon de gagner": Alex Kovalev - Le Journal

"Saku y est allé d'un deuxième effort pour remporter la mise en jeu devant Carter, a expliqué l'attaquant russe. Sur le coup, je croyais que Saku venait de perdre la rondelle. Personne ne savait trop où elle était jusqu'à ce qu'elle se retrouve sur mon bâton." - Pierre Durocher

More from Habs Inside Out, RDS, La Presse, and Le Journal


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Philadelphia Scouting Report Gives Habs Slight Edge

Robert L Note: I came upon this piece at Philly.com in which Daily News sports scribe Ed Barkowitz gives his opinion on which team has the edge in 6 crucial categories. It's an interesting piece, but I don't really agree with most of his assessments. I think Barkowitz is being too kind to the Flyers in some areas and slighting the Habs in a couple of others. Where this series will be close, Barkowitz misses completely. After you read each of his points on forwards, defense, goaltending, special teams, coaching and intangibles, I'll weigh in with in with my added thoughts - where I agree and disagree with him.


Daily News sports writer Ed Barkowitz breaks down the Eastern Conference semifinal series between the Flyers and Canadiens that begins tonight in Montreal:

History

For the Flyers, it ain't pretty. They lost all four games to Montreal this season and by an ugly combined score of 15-6. The Flyers are just 1-5 in Montreal over the last three seasons. In the playoffs, Montreal has won three of the four playoff series, the most recent occurring in 1989.
The one playoff series the Flyers won against the Canadiens was in the 1987 conference finals. The Game 6 clincher followed a wild pregame brawl that was ignited by Montreal's ritual of ending the warmup by firing a puck into the opponents' net. Philadelphia's Ed Hospodar wouldn't allow it and things escalated quickly. Players from both sides sprinted out of their respective locker rooms, several wearing just undergarments, for the free-for-all. Old-time hockey. Eddie Shore!

Forwards

Flyers: Danny Briere had a huge first round against Washington (NHL first- round highs of six goals, 11 points) and obviously will be heavily counted on again. But Briere has to be careful not to press. Briere, who hails from just outside Montreal, has been a target for Canadiens fans since turning down an offer to play for his hometown club during last season's free-agency period ... Joffrey Lupul scored the series clincher in overtime against the Caps. Let's see if it gives him a shot of confidence.

Canadiens: The resurrection of Alex Kovalev has been the primary reason the Habs earned the conference's top seed. Kovalev took a lot of the blame when Montreal failed to make the playoffs last year. He rededicated himself over the offseason and his 84 points were his best total since 2000-01. Last year, Kovalev was minus–19. This season, he was plus-18 ... Montreal's speed will give the Flyers fits. Tonight could be a problem depending on how weary Philadelphia is after playing and traveling both Monday and Tuesday night ... Steve Begin (pronounced Bay-Zhan) is the Canadiens forward most likely to draw Flyers fans' ire.

EDGE: Montreal. While both teams are pretty deep at forward, the Canadiens are healthier.

Robert L: I say very slight edge to Montreal here. Philly has as potent an offense as the Canadiens do. Their powerplay can be just as fearsome and it finished second to the Canadiens this season. I'm tempted to call this a draw, but where Montreal gains an edge is in it's third and fourth line depth, which helped them over Boston when the PP stuttered.















Defensemen

Flyers: The top four are solid, but Jason Smith's nagging shoulder injury caused his playing time to diminish and his effectiveness to be compromised as the Capitals series dragged on ... Kimmo Timonen runs the power play and shouldn't have to exert as much energy defensively as he had to against Washington's Alex Ovechkin.

Canadiens: The NHL's top power play is anchored by Andrei Markov, who tied for the league lead among defensemen with 10 power-play goals. Mike Komisarek is the thumper of the unit. He is a big hitter who also led the league in blocked shots.

EDGE: Montreal. More depth.

Robert L: Barkowitz is right. From the first to down to the third pairing, the Habs defenseman have it all over the Flyers top six. We even have the luxury of a seventh and eighth D-man if injuries become a factor. Also factoring in is the Habs backline is much more mobile. On one hand, the Flyers blueliners might seem a tougher bunch, but that's just a miscinception based on the view that after Timonen, toughness is all they have going for them.

Goaltender

Flyers: Martin Biron was in net for just one of the four losses to Montreal. (So what if he got shelled for five goals?) Biron is playing with a lot of confidence right now and was huge in the Washington series.

Canadiens: Carey Price, 20, became the youngest goalie to register 20 wins since Patrick Roy and Tom Barrasso did it 22 years ago. He helped Canada win the 2007 World Juniors and Hamilton, the Habs' AHL affiliate, the Calder Cup last spring. The Habs put all their pucks in one basket when they traded Cristobal Huet to the Capitals at the deadline, but Price has been right.

EDGE: Flyers. The Flyers need to create havoc in front of Price and get under the kid's skin. But watch it, he might be wearing Clearasil.

Robert L: Barkowitz makes no point on why the edge is given to Biron here, but all that I could see is the experience factor if looked in terms on NHL experience. Biron is a capable NHL goalie, but he has never displayed the consistency required to be considered among the game's best. In his eighth season he is appearing in his first NHL playoffs. He also has a reputation as being a goalie who tires when playing a string of game. I'll predict we'll see Nittymaki before the round is over.

Carey Price however, has greatness written all over him, but that doesn't amount to anything until he proves something. Twice this playoff he followed losses with shutouts. He has the experience of having won under great pressure twice before, and while that might make up for having played only 50 games in the NHL, there are still the odd question marks that only time can erase.

I'm tempted to hand Price the edge, but I'll be fair as I can and call this a draw for now. This could revisited by game 3.

















Special teams

Flyers: With Kimmo Timonen and sometimes Mike Richards up high, Danny Briere down near the goal line and Scott Hartnell in front, the Flyers had the league's second-best power play.

Canadiens: Couldn't get the power play cranking against Boston, but it's still a formidable unit. The penalty- killing unit was 15th during the season.

EDGE: Montreal. The Canadiens killed off 27 of 30 power plays against Boston in the first round.

Robert L: I don't dispute this, regardless of the Habs poor PP showing in round 1. The Canadiens PK gives them what I would say is just a small edge here. The big difference maker could be the Flyers tendency of making more trips to the box - something that may well decide the series along with golatending here.

Coaches

Flyers: John Stevens' primary concern is trying to figure out how to replace Mike Knuble, who is out indefinitely with a partially torn hamstring. He is soft-spoken, but can be stern and has done a nice job managing the locker room and relying on his leaders.

Canadiens: Guy Carbonneau is similar to Stevens in that he took over last year, but missed the playoffs. Carbonneau won two Stanley Cups as a player for the Canadiens and one with the Dallas Stars.

EDGE: Even. Since Stevens and Carbonneau are playoff rookies and each nearly blew a 3-1 lead in the first round, let 'em battle it out.

Robert L: I must have missed all those cries for John Stevens for coach of the year!

Carbonneau by a landslide here - not even close. Barkowitz places emphasis on the few similarities between the two to call it a draw. Last year might have been seen as disasters for both teams, but that is just a surface assessment. While the Flyers were the sinkhole of the NHL, Carbonneau's Habs missed the playoffs by one win and were feeled by illness, injury and feeble backup goaltending. I can't say Carbonneau did a whole lot different this year other than communicate better perhaps and get his star player Kovalev in line. The bottom line is what made the Flyers an improved team had everything to do with free agent signings and trades.

Coaching made a much bigger difference on the Canadiens.

And I haven't even factored Stanley Cups won into the argument.

Intangibles

Flyers: Even though both series went seven, the Flyers expended more energy to get to this point. Yet they summoned up the fortitude to win twice on the road, including in overtime of Game 7. They are playing with the house's money now.

Canadiens: Their inability to put away the Bruins was troubling, especially giving up four goals each in the third period of Games 5 and 6. All the pressure is on Montreal, the only Canadian team still playing. And here's to you, Mr. Price. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

EDGE: Flyers.

Robert L: Barkowitz is wrong again, I don't see a single intangible heading the Flyers way. They are less rested than Montreal for starters. They have an injury to a key player who will not be returning. The Canadiens have a goaltender they can rely on to win games when they are outshot. The pressure Montreal is under helps instead of hurting. They will be primed to Canada's last team alive. That the Flyers used more energy than Montreal to get to this point is his perception only. Even if the Flyers had, doesn't that go in that Habs favor as well.

Whatever went on in the teams prior series ends tonight at 7 p.m.



















Here are Barkowitz' 3 keys to the series for Philadelphia.

1. Stay out of the box. It's as obvious as making sure the Zamboni has gas, but the team that allows the fewer power plays is halfway home.
2. Keep them in front of you. The Canadiens can skate, and if they turn this into too much of a track meet with odd-man rushes, it will hurt the Flyers.
3. Get physical. The Flyers can't sag back and allow the Canadiens to gain the offensive zone with speed.

My view is:

1. Easier said than done against Montreal.
2. The Flyers defense is hardly mobile enough to consistantly contain Montreal over the course of the series.
3. Flyers can get as physical as they want to. It'll translate into a penalty parade that will suit the Canadiens assets perfectly. Besides, didn't the Bruins try that tact and still Montreal outhit them.

Barkowitz gives the edge to Montreal in 3 areas, to the Flyers in 2, and calls coaching a draw.

I give the edge to Habs in every department except for goaltending, which I suggest may only last two or three games in.

Having learned a lessons against the Bruins, I just don't see the Canadiens taking their foot off the accelorator in this one.

Only a fluke and some bad officiating could extend this round as far as seven games.

For a hard look at the Flyers merits, check out this post at Lions In Winter.
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Habs For Breakfast - Calling Habs In Five!

Maybe after 19 years, the Flyers will finally shake hands with the Canadiens?

In 1989, the last time these two teams met, the six game series that the Canadiens won ended without handshakes due to a game ending melee brought on by by Ron Hextall's mugging of Chris Chelios.

I'm not expecting anything different this time from the Flyers, whose game plans rarely include beating opponents by simply playing hockey.

Philadelphia can throw all the heat and physical beating they wish to at Montreal, it won't work.
It never has. It never will. It won't this time.

While the Flyers do have a decent offense, they have a slow footed defense, and a goalie who can only rise to it every second game.

What I'm saying here is, Habs in five, without a shred of overconfidence.

I don't even think I'm going out on a limb.

I've been wrong before, but I'm less worried by the Flyers than I was of a Bruins team the Habs ate all year long.

Canadiens Vow They Won't Repeat Mistake By Taking Flyers Lightly - CP

"It was only four games and they were so spread out," Higgins said Wednesday as the Canadiens returned to practice after a day off. "We might have just caught them at difficult stages of the season. They're a good team and they have good forwards. And with what happened the last series, I don't think we'll take anyone lightly from now on."

Habs Dominated Flyers During Regular Season - Globe Sports

"The Flyers not only lost all four regular-season meetings to the Canadiens, by a combined score of 15-6, but also Brière was abused by the Montreal faithful at the Bell Centre because he spurned a lucrative free-agent deal to sign with the Habs last summer. Brière had one measly assist in his two games in Montreal and only one more helper in the two defeats to the Canadiens in Philadelphia." - Tim Wharnsby























Price Ready For Traffic - Sun Media

"The traffic is just a logjam in front of the net. That's the way goals are going to be scored in the later rounds. There's going to be a lot of pushing and shoving and garbage around the net. It's not my job to be pushing guys around in front of the net. I don't concern myself at all. It doesn't bother me one bit." - Chris Stevenson

Demers: "Great Playoff Goalies Make Coaches Look Great" - USA Today

"Just look at Monday's Game 7 of the Montreal Canadiens-Boston Bruins series. The Bruins came out and bombarded 20-year-old Carey Price left, right and center and he just made the big saves and shut the door. Then the Canadiens got a break and boom, they're on their way to a win." - Jacques Demers

Flyer's Briere Replaces Chara As Public Enemy Number 1 - Gazette

"There's a very good reason for Canadiens fans to loathe Daniel Brière - and it's not because he spurned Montreal's courtship last July and signed an eight-year, $52-million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. It's because Brière blithely flipped the final puck used during Carey Price's first NHL shutout into the Bell Centre stands on Feb. 16. Even for a non-collector like Price, the vulcanized souvenir from this milestone is a keeper. And even if Brière didn't realize the significance of the Canadien rookie's 34-save effort that night, he did a very bad thing." - ave Stubbs

Being Only Canadian Team Left In Playoffs Great Motivation For Habs - Gazette

"What the Canadiens also have going for them is that following the elimination of the Calgary Flames, they're the only Canadian team still alive chasing the Stanley Cup. Know something? It's easy to imagine Carbo (when does this guy get his contract extension?) using that fact as a rallying cry for his team." - Red Fisher

Pulling Your Leg - Gazette

"Carey Price was the last player to face the media after practice Wednesday, but the rookie goaltender had a good excuse. "I was getting treatment on my broken leg," Price explained with a smile. "But it's okay, it's just a hairline (fracture)." - Pat Hickey


















Get Your Hate On - The H Does Not Stand For Habs

"I'm not a Daniel Briere fan, and I didn't want Gainey to sign him in Montreal for outrageous sums of money. In fact, I was very worried that the offer was on the table and very relieved when he went to Philly instead. I think that worked out just fine for Montreal, which finished in a better position than the Flyers and still has that money in the bank as well. However, I hate that Briere said he chose Philly because he had a better chance of winning with them. Come on...there is such a thing as diplomacy." - J.T.

Universal Inspiration - The H Does Not Stand For Habs

"Remember when you were a kid, and you thought you could really influence whether the Habs won or not? If you wore your special sweater for every game without exception or wished on your birthday candles, the Habs would do well. And everything reminded you of them." - J.T.

Bring On The Broad Street Broads - Dennis Kane's Excellent Montreal Canadiens Blog

"Daniel Briere didn’t want the pressure that goes with being a Montreal Canadien, so he signed with the Philadelphia Flyers instead. This young French Canadian star would have been a huge hero in Quebec. He would have been a star in the kingdome of hockey, Montreal. If he had a great seven years or so with the Habs, he’d be treated as royalty there for the rest of his life." - Dennis Kane

Le CH prêt à jouer robuste - RDS

"La saison régulière ne veut plus rien dire, a rappelé Saku Koivu. Les équipes sont bien différentes en séries. Le niveau d'intensité est plus élevé. On l'a bien vu dans la série Washington-Philadelphie." Le capitaine est convaincu que les Flyers aborderont la série dans le même état d'esprit. "On connait tous leur style. Ils sont robustes et ils terminent leurs mises en échec. On sait très bien à quoi s'attendre. Mais on sera prêts", a-t-il promis."

Gros Défi Pour Les Flyers - RDS

"J'ai joué quelques fois contre les frères Kostitsyn et ils sont très habiles, a dit Carter. Ils contrôlent très bien la rondelle et ils savent quoi faire avec. Ils tournent, tournent et essaient de fabriquer des jeux. Nous devrons les suivre de près et leur enlever le plus d'espace possible. La série contre les Capitals a été un grand défi pour moi et ça va m'aider pour les prochaines séries."



















Biron: "J'ai vraiment hâte!" - La Presse

"Hier soir, en revenant de Washington, des partisans nous attendaient à la gare. Ils fêtaient notre victoire comme j'allais fêter les retours des Nordiques à l'aéroport après les victoires contre le Canadien." - François Gagnon

Brière: "J'espère qu'ils me hueront" - La Presse

"Ça n'a rien à voir. J'ai croisé le Canadien alors que je me trouvais au milieu d'un gros creux de vague. Un creux de deux mois au cours duquel je jouais du mauvais hockey. Je suis le premier à l'admettre quand je ne joue pas bien. Cette période particulièrement difficile a coïncidé avec deux ou trois matchs contre Montréal." - François Gagnon

Brière: la vraie histoire - La Presse

"Que s'est-il passé pendant cette demi-heure où tout a basculé? Mon confrère Mathias Brunet a soutenu que c'était une ultime demande de Brière de jouer comme premier centre de l'équipe qui avait fait changer sa décision en faveur de Philadelphie. Affirmation qui a fait bondir Pierre Boivin à l'époque et provoqué une véritable tempête dans l'organisation et dans les médias." - Réjean Tremblay

"Plus dur que contre les Capitals" - Le Journal

"Ce ne sera pas facile, a concédé Brière. Par contre, nous sommes sur une lancée et en confiance. Quand on gagne un septième match (3 à 2, lundi) en prolongation, tout le monde est excité. On espère que cette poussée d'adrénaline va nous permettre de passer au travers de ce premier match." - François Foisy

"Le jeu sera encore plus rude": Komisarek - Le Journal

"Il sera important d'être bien positionnés en zone défensive pour contrer les efforts de leurs attaquants, a-t-il ajouté. Il faudra leur compliquer la tâche, tout en évitant de se retrouver au banc des pénalités. Il sera important aussi de s'assurer que Carey (Price) puisse bien voir bien les rondelles." - Pierre Durocher

Retrouvailles 19 ans plus tard - Le Journal

"Ça fait 19 ans que le Canadien et les Flyers ne se sont pas retrouvés dans les séries éliminatoires. En 1989, Guy Carbonneau avait aidé le Tricolore à battre les Flyers en six matchs. Le jeu avait été très rude et la série s'était terminée par une mêlée générale." - Pierre Durocher

More from Habs Inside Out, RDS, La Presse, and Le Journal.
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Habs For Breakfast - Ready To Rumble...Just Not Downtown, Please!

I should start off talking of the Flyers here first, but....

As a Canadiens fan who does not live in the city of Montreal, I was quite shaken and embarrassed by the events that followed Monday's game. Even living in Ontario and wearing a crested CH pullover does not escape one from snide comments from hockey followers who vehemently disagree with what went down two days ago. I agree myself, the sights were disgusting. It doesn't always help when putting the events in the perspective that they were caused by a small minority of outcast idiots.

A stain is still a stain.

Recently Montreal hockey fans were voted as the best NHL hockey fans by a poll of players. That would reflect the riot that goes on inside the Bell Centre, and not the foolishness that erupts outside it.

With the Rocket Richard riot in 1955, the Stanley Cup celebration gone afoul in 1993, and now this, Montreal is now know as the city that riots over hockey. Not the right image.

The best thing that can happen for the city now is for the Canadiens to go on winning this spring and for the violence and stupidity to cease. Seeing as the idiots that comprised the minority were practically turned in by the majority of onlookers carrying cellphones might be part of the detriment.

I feel two other things need to happen. I believe that if the Canadiens organization and their players spoke out loudly and became involved in a type of "Cool It" campaign it cannot hurt. The other thing that needs to happen is for the local police to take a good hard look at their prevention methods and tactics for calming down the enlivened spirits after games. Sometimes a simple police presence can fuel the behavior, and I don't buy for a second that the gathered forces have nothing to do with it.

The problem will not fade away without the involvement of some cool heads taking a deep look into why and how this repeatedly happens.

That's all I will say further on the subject. I've said enough....

Now for some hockey!

Captain Comeback Regains Stride, Confidence - Gazette

"The curtain had fallen an hour earlier on Act I of this playoff drama and even now, one of the lead actors was greeting visitors in his hardly private dressing room. You had to look closely to see the small bandage across his left arch. "Just a Band-Aid," Canadiens captain Saku Koivu joked late Monday night of the boo-boo, in fact a broken bone in his foot suffered 24 days earlier." - Dave Stubbs

Next Foe: Philly - Gazette

"Canadiens head coach Guy Carbonneau was being diplomatic when he said he didn't have any preference for his team's opponent in the next round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. But you would have to think that if Carbonneau and friends had their choice, they would have opted for the Philadelphia Flyers." - Pat Hickey

Carbonneau Gets Credit For Habs Success - Gazette

"The Carbonneau-Julien matchup was intriguing because it was Julien whom Canadiens general manager Bob Gainey fired on Jan. 14, 2005. Gainey took over the bench, with Carbonneau by his side, the plan being for Carbonneau to become the head coach for the 2005-06 season." - Tim Wharnsby

Carbonneau: "Lessons Were Learned From First Round" - TSN

"That this is the playoffs and you can't take games off and think that it will be easy and that you just have to show up," he said. "That's a process you go through to become a better team."

Order Has Been Restored, Habs Shut Bruins To End The Misery - Four Habs Fans

"If Montreal had lost this, it would have meant weeks of "what went wrong" articles, calls for Carbo's head, second-guessing of Gainey's deadline moves and non-moves, and taunts from opposing fans. Now we shake our heads, curse under our breath, and sweep the glass and debris off Ste. Catherine as we look forward to a hammering from the Rangers or a borderline assault from the goons in Philly. - Habsfan10

Please Don't Paint Us All With The Same Brush, These Hooligans Aren't Habs Fans - Dennis Kane's Excellent Montreal Canadiens Blog

"These fools, who wouldn’t know Jean Beliveau if he personally delivered their welfare cheques, saw an opportunity to show off their talent for lighting matches and breaking windows. They are, for lack of a better phrase, quite stupid. The only hooking and holding they know is when they spend twenty bucks to buy the girl of their dreams for half an hour." - Dennis Kane

Robert L Note: On a similar notion, one of our favorite Habs bloggers is having some concerns about how the embarrasing scenes in the city on Monday has made her feels as a Montrealer and as a hockey fan. I wasn't happy to see her post this yesterday. I'd like to encourage those of you who read the Theory Of Ice blog and disagree with this post to offer your voice to the comments section and give E some big time support, encouragement, and love. Thanks!























Une expérience inestimable - RDS

"Carey Price, Ryan O'Byrne, Tom Kostopoulos, Maxim Lapierre, Guillaume Latendresse et les frères Andrei et Sergei Kostitsyn sont désormais mieux aguerris pour entreprendre le deuxième tour contre les Rangers de New York ou les Flyers de Philadelphie, jeudi soir, au Centre Bell."

Price me fait penser à Joe Sakic - RDS

"Au cours de ma carrière au Colorado, j’ai vécu une situation identique à celle du Canadien à deux occasions et à chaque fois face aux Kings de Los Angeles. En 2001 et 2002, nous avions pris les devants 3 à 1 face aux Kings avant de les laisser forcer la présentation d’un septième match. Tout comme le Canadien, nous avons réussi à gagner ces deux matchs 7 de manière convaincante. En 2001, nous avons gagné 5 à 1 et en 2002 4 à 0." - Bob Hartley

Les Flyers élaborent leur plan anti-CH - La Presse

"Les Bruins ont fait du bon travail en contenant leur avantage numérique», explique Stevens au Philadelphia Inquirer. Il indique également que le CH peut compter sur «un très bon gardien, une défense solide et une attaque équilibrée."

Avec le recul, à quel rang serait choisi Price? - La Presse

"L'entraîneur Don Lever tentait de livrer le discours le plus émotif possible à ses joueurs dans le vestiaire. Et qui n'at-il pas vu bâiller dans un coin de la pièce? Carey Price, 19 ans, fraîchement rappelé des rangs juniors et qui avait seulement deux matchs d'expérience chez les pros! "Disons que ça m'a inquiété un peu sur le coup" a confié Lever, hier, au téléphone.

Premier trio un jour, mais pas toujours! - La Presse

"C'est quoi au juste un premier trio? C'est un titre qu'on colle à trois joueurs dominants. En principe, le trio de Tomas Plekanec, Alex Kovalev et Andrei Kostitsyn héritait de ce titre au terme de la saison régulière chez le Canadien."

De la graine de grand athlète - La Presse

"Carey Price n'a pas volé le statut de gardien numéro un qu'il a obtenu le jour où le Canadien a échangé Cristobal Huet aux Capitals de Washington. Sa performance contre les Bruins de Boston en première ronde des séries figure parmi les plus impressionnantes qu'il m'ait été données de voir chez un jeune gardien." - Jean - François Bégin























"La 1re série est souvant la plus difficile": Carbonneau - Le Journal

"Le Canadien a dominé dans plusieurs aspects du jeu. Il a effectué 35 tirs contre 25 pour les Bruins. Il a appliqué 38 mises en échec contre 24 pour ses rivaux. Il a bloqué 23 tirs contre 12. Enfin, il a remporté 30 des 54 mises en jeu." - Pierre Durocher

Déja dans une classe a part - Le Journal

"Au cours des sept derniers matchs, Millen n'a rien manqué de l'affrontement Boston-Montréal. Il n'aurait pu profiter d'un meilleur siège pour analyser et tenter de comprendre le comportement général d'une jeune merveille comme Carey Price. Aussi bien vous le dire, il a été impressionné par ce qu'il a vu." - Bertrand Raymond

La veille chemise fait encore l'affaire - Le Journal

"Damphousse s'est senti plus rassuré lorsque Koivu a repris son poste dans le sixième match après qu'une fracture au pied gauche l'eut tenu inactif durant trois semaines. D'accord, le Tricolore a échappé la victoire, mais Koivu a été le meilleur vétéran des siens dans ce match fertile en rebondissements. Après la rencontre, Koivu a mis la table pour le match ultime en prononçant un discours qui portait, au dire de Mike Komisarek." - Marc De Foy

More from RDS, La Presse, and Le Journal.

Habs Playoff Picture Getting Clearer

At the end of Friday night's games, with two days left in the regular season, here is what is known about the Eastern Conference playoff teams.

Philadelphia, who beat New Jersey 3-0, has clinched a playoff spot. They sit eighth and play Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Boston beat Ottawa 2-1, and clinched a spot. They currently sit sixth and have a date with Buffalo Saturday night.

The Senators gain entry into the playoffs back door style thanks to Carolina losing to Florida 4-3. Believe it or not, the Hurricanes had 9 powerplays while the Panthers had none. They outshot Florida 46-17, chased Tomas Vokoun and still couldn't win. Ottawa sits in seventh place and have no games remaining.

Now because both Washington and Carolina currently have 92 points it is not possible for both teams to make the post season. You'll notice that the Capitals currently hold the 3rd seed in the conference and that is due to their game in hand over Carolina, who are bumped down to ninth with the loss.

Washington needs one point against the Florida Panthers to make the playoffs and eliminate the Hurricanes.

New York gained one point for a 4-3 OT loss the Islanders, and New Jersey remain in fourth with 97 points, one up on the fifth place Rangers.

Now here is what can happen in regards to who the Canadiens can meet in the first round.

Montreal and Pittsburgh are currently tied with 102 points, and the Habs fate is tied to the Penguins / Flyers game on Sunday. With Philadelphia now guaranteed a spot, they will surely be less hungry than they would have otherwise.

Montreal, of course can make that game matter win a win over the Maple Leafs on Saturday. Should the Habs lose, they finish second, simple as that.

Either way, the Canadiens will be playing teams that finish seventh or eighth, and there are only three possibilities - Boston, Ottawa, or Philadelphia.

The way it works out is that the Rangers can fall no lower than sixth with a loss to New Jersey. With a win, the Rangers gain home ice in round one against the Devils. If the Rangers end up with a overtime point, they will open in New Jersey.

Boston can catch New York should they win and the Rangers lose. Both teams would have 96 points and 42 wins, but the Bruins have the season record tiebreaker.

The Flyers can change their fate with a win in Pittsburgh on Sunday. They would pass the Bruins in the standings, should Boston lose.

If that scenario plays out, Boston would then drop to eighth place and the Senators would remain seventh.

A Philadelphia tie does nothing for their standing. They cannot move ahead of Boston if tied with them, as the Bruins has the season series 3 games to 1.

In regards to Ottawa, they can only fall into eighth spot should both Boston and Philadelphia win. A Flyer win and a Bruins loss leaves Ottawa in seventh, and Boston and Philadelphia would flip flop positions.

Ottawa can in fact move up to sixth, but it would take a Bruins loss and nothing more than a Flyers single OT point combined.

The Bruins might be motivated to win, simply to avoid the Canadiens and instead play the Southeastern Division champions, be it Washington or Carolina.

So for the Canadiens, this is how it all shakes down.

First, their fate can only be determined on Saturday night with a loss to the Leafs. If the Habs win it is wait and see what the Penguins do on Sunday.
















Now here are the scenarios of who the Canadiens could meet should they lose to Toronto.

A Bruins win or tie, eliminates the possibility of a matchup against the Canadiens. A Bruins loss, if Montreal also losses, throws it into Philadelphia's hands on Sunday.

A Bruins win or tie, combined with a Sunday Flyers loss, irregardless of what Montreal does Saturday, means the Canadiens will play the Senators in the first round.

If both the Flyers and Bruins lose on the weekend, the Canadiens would meet Boston in the first round.

There is only one way that the Canadiens could possibly meet up with the Flyers in the first round round. It would involve Montreal losing to Toronto and both the Flyers and Bruins winning their last games, which would place Ottawa in eighth and Philly in seventh.

If both the Habs and Flyers win their games on the weekend, OT for Philly or not, then they cannot meet in the first round.

Wow, now my brain hurts.

Yes, it's all clear as mud in someways, but it is getting clearer.

Here's the standings for right now, before any games are played Saturday.
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Playoff Tuned Habs Ready To Roll Over Any First Round Opponant

If you were tuned into the RDS Sports 30 sports news after last night's game, you might have heard from commentator Reneaud Lavoie, that according to a well informed source within the Canadiens organization that all players currently on the sidelines nursing injuries will be ready to go come the first game of the playoffs.

Yes, including captain Koivu, broken foot bone and all.

That would mean that Koivu, Komisarek, Bouillon and Ryder are all ready to go by the middle of next week.

Now that's freaking awesome news.

I'm sure we will hear more about it in the coming days, but it seems that an assessment on the captain's foot has determined that Koivu can play on it.


















As a mentioned earlier this morning in the Breakfast post, the elements are in place for the Canadiens to go deep this season.

I listed goaltending, team harmony and faith, and lineup depth as the reasons why I believe the Canadiens can achieve the final four, the conference final to be precise.

I did fail to mention health. Perhaps because the Canadiens have played like such a focused group since Mike Komisarek has gone down, winning six of their last seven, I totally failed to worry about health as a concern.

When these players return, it will make the team all the more stronger.

I like what I see in this group of players. There is a self confidence about them that is reassuring.
Carey Price is making Bob Gainey look brilliant, this despite Cristobal Huet's heroic play with the Washington Capitals. Price is in a zone, playing the like focused goaltender that the reputation that preceeded him foretold.


















Watching him and the Habs go, I sense a familiar story rewritting itself. There are the omnipresent Dryden and Roy comparisons that proliferate any talk of Price. Some say it is getting ahead of ourselves when we indulge in that kind thinking, and those wise voices are correct, as nothing is ever won in advance.

Then again, Dryden and Roy were not on first place teams when they won Cups in their rookie seasons.

Price is the backstopper of a division winning team, one that could well be a regular season conference champion by the end of the weekend.

Maybe we as fans are finally coming to the realization that this group is alot sounder that we give them credit for at times.

It is an extremely well built and thought out team, run by a coach and GM who don't give away what is inside their minds.

This morning, when I was driving my kids off to school and my wife to work, I was listening to the call in show on radio CKAC. Today's question had to do with which opponant would listeners most like to see the Canadiens face off against in the first round.

I was tuned in for a good 30 minutes, and not once did I hear somone speak my opinion.

I don't care who they meet in the first round! Habs will take it, game over - next!

Callers were choosing between the Bruins, Flyers, Capitals and Senators and listing why they favored one or feared another.

Reasons for either were quite split up.

The Capitals would present an exciting opposition, one said, with the always explosive Ovechkin ( Oven Chicken in Russian ) and Cristobal Huet.

Yeah that would be fun! The Capitals are not that deep - Habs in five and fun while it lasted.















One caller said he feared the Bruins, and the next caller said bring 'em on.

The opinion was that Boston were bigger and more physical than the Habs, and that wasn't a good thing.

Okay, well when was the last time they beat the Canadiens?

The show's host thought the same, and the caller named Zdeno Chara as a player that could wreak havoc on the Habs.

Guess he missed a pair of highlight reel goals by Kovalev a few weeks back where Chara looked about as mobile as a fire hydrant on them.

The Habs have keyed their games against the Bruins by overworking Chara, whereas other teams avoid him. They keep him busy, know the flaws in his game and expose them. They did it with success when the big defenseman was in Ottawa, and learned something they have applied to him since he farted off the Beantown.

Gimme Chara and the Bruins. Bring out your brooms!















The Flyers and their neanderthal brand of hockey?

One caller wished for it, just for the sake of making Daniel Briere eat his words!

Briere, if you recall and I'm sure you do, said he chose the Flyers over the Habs when he signed as a free agent because he felt they were a better team.

The show's host was licking his