First post :) A message to Hab haters
This is just a message I came up with when i had nothing else to do, and it is directed to all the habs haters out there:
Yes, i am a habs fan, so this message could be a little biased, but i still believe that i have some good points.
1. Questioning the habs lack of physicality - alright so to recap: Bob Gainey signed a bunch of small, talented players (gionta, cammalleri, just to name a few) and once again failed to address the habs lack of physicality in their starting lineup. Newsflash: there aren’t 10 Chris Neils or Zdeno Charas or Milan Lucics out there, so everyone has to stop believing that there are instant solutions to their lack of size. People also seem to forget about a farm system, the utilization of players from the affiliate. Why do they need to bring in outside tough guys for monster prices when they can breed the talent from inside their system? They are on the right track with this (Latendresse, O’byrne, Subban) and once these guys develop fully, they should be formidable tough guys and add to the physicality. Also, people are concerned about their games vs. the leafs and the big bad bruins. They play those teams a total of 12 times, not 82. To win games in the NHL, you need to score goals, not clog up the penalty box every game. This, I think, is what the habs have based their team around this year. People are forgetting that this is the NHL not the NFL, you don’t have to be huge and 300 pounds to have success.
2. Overpaid players, huge contracts: Gomez 7.5 mil a year, cammalleri 5 mil a year gionta 5 mil a year. I ask: Why not? These are all proven players, Gomez has 2 stanley cup rings, gionta has a stanley cup ring, and cammalleri still managed to post good numbers while playing in LA, yes good numbers in LA, that alone should stand out. Most of the blogs and articles i have read about the free agent frenzy period this july have criticized these contracts, saying that they are too big and that they will be hard to get rid of when the time comes. But why should a time come? Why should there be reasons to get rid of these players next year or in two years because of maybe one bad year? A good example of this is Alex Kovalev, remember him? He played for the habs for 5 years, up and down, rollercoaster, whatever you wanna call it, but they never got rid of him. Sure, there was always speculation, but like Chris Higgins says, “there is always speculation for everyone”. But anyways, the reason these players play the game of hockey is because they love is so much that they are willing to sacrifice every day of their lives to train and practice so they can perform as best as they can on the big stage. The curtain has opened on these 3 players, to one of, if not the biggest stage in hockey, and who is to say that they wont have admirable performances? And if they don’t? Well they have 5 takes. I am also opposed to the notion that Bob Gainey has backed his team up into a corner that will be hard to escape in future. This offseason the habs had 10 unrestricted free agents and a bunch more RFAs and there was a lot of turmoil and speculation about how they were going to fill their roster and make it competitive for next season. What if they signed a bunch of guys to one year deals, then had to do it all again next year? These contracts give them a sense of security for the upcoming seasons and hey, Gretzky was traded, so who is to say that they cant TRADE any of their players. Oh yeah, i forgot to mention the habs still have $9 mil in cap space left. Hmmm… ?
3. Aging team?: Spacek, Gill, Gomez, Gionta… These signings have led to the question: are they getting older? The answer is yes. The canadiens are aging, but who is to say that they aren’t gaining more skill as they age? Cammalleri, gomez, gionta is an upgrade from aging former superstars alex kovalev and saku koivu. Their defence corps is noticeably older though, with seasoned veterans Hal Gill and Jaroslav Spacek taking the helm from young star Mike Komisarek, but who is to say that this is a bad thing? It looked like, at times, the pressure of being the top shut down defenseman and one of the youngest players on the roster got to komisarek and had negative effects on his game. Perhaps the acquisition of 2 veterans who have seen it all (this is more directed to Gill, who has played for the leafs and won a stanley cup with the penguins) will help bolster the blue line and also act as mentors for the habs up and coming blue liners.
This is my attempt at clarification for all the people who think that the Montreal Canadiens are doing absolutely everything wrong. Sometimes the media has to look at the positives of what teams do, and have to remember that there are deeper reasons for doing what they do that the media cannot get their hands on. Sure, I can potentially be wrong about absolutely everything i said in this thing, but at least i have the guts to not undermine, ridicule and question the decisions of someone who is clearly more suited and experienced than I am. They clearly have a plan, every team does. They don’t just make signings or trades without reason.
So, to all you hab haters out there: you are all entitled to your own opinion, but i just wish and hope that in the future, you will take time to not only point out the negative aspects of a decision, but to also reflect on the positives, and the reasons behind them.
