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Canadiens Mailbag: The Injury List, Intro Music, Habs Prospects

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1 year ago

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Montreal Canadiens

Welcome back to another edition of the Montreal Canadiens mailbag!

Today we cover intro music, the media in Montreal, poutine (of course), prospects, and much more.

Let’s dive right into it.

 

This is a genuinely difficult question because music is by far the aspect of life that I enjoy the most. I have thousands upon thousands of songs in my library, and my favourite band/tune changes from day to day, if not hour to hour. Ask me again tomorrow, and I’ll provide an entirely different list of songs.

The first song that comes to mind is Cochise from Audioslave. Not only was Chris Cornell one of the best male voices in the history of music, but there are also very few songs that set the tone better than Cochise.

Of course, that’s the Boston Bruins’ intro song, which means it’s out of the running.

I’d probably consider some old-school hip-hop, stuff from Common or Wu-Tang because the fantastic beats put me in the right frame of mind, and when it comes to heavy-hitting lyrics, no other groups come close to the Wu-Tang Clan. With that in mind, Step Into A World by KRS-One would also be a great choice. If I was feeling a little funky I would look into some Jurassic 5. If I was looking for a great vibe, Mathematics by Mos Def would be in the running. If I was feeling particularly aggressive, I’d probably dip into some Hit’Em Up by Tupac.

And then there’s also almost every song on Adam Heart Mother, which I always visualized as great war tunes. Not to mention, Battery by Metallica, which, frankly, is an awesome entrance song in every respect. Whiplash would also fit the bill.

I’d also consider Helter Skelter by the Beatles, because, well, it’s a great song.

Oh, and how about Can’t You Hear Me Knocking by the Rolling Stones?

Maybe even some Smashing Pumpkins for the 90s crowd.

There’s also the option of going the heavily emotional route, as to confuse your opponent, and for that, I would turn to Sinead O’Connor.

But in the end, I’d probably go with something that you would rarely hear in such a situation. Perhaps even the Johnny Cash tune I used to make my only highlight video about 7 years ago.

However, if the event took place in Canada, let’s be honest, there’s only one proper choice.

 

They could ask Rogle if they are willing to change their defensive makeup to place Engstrom on the right, but frankly, it probably wouldn’t work out for either the player or the team.

I understand why you want to see a top prospect like Engstrom play on the right. Other than Logan Mailloux and perhaps Miguel Tourigny, there are very few quality right-handed prospects in the organization. Frederic Allard and Justin Barron play on the right, but I’m talking about players that are yet to make their professional debut.

In that vein, the Canadiens should continue to search high and low for right-handed defencemen, but I don’t think changing the development plan for one of their top prospects is the right approach.

Engstrom is developing nicely in Europe without too much interference from the Canadiens, which is not a coincidence. I’d be cautious about throwing a complicated position change into the plans at such a late stage in his career.

And frankly, I doubt Rogle would be interested in such a proposal either.

 

I’ll be interested in seeing how the Colorado Avalanche perform in the first round given their tumultuous regular season.

But other than that? Frankly, I don’t really care which team advances. Of course, it would be funny to see the Maple Leafs fail miserably because they’re the living embodiment of crushed hopes and dreams, but hey, even failure has to end at some point, and I think we may be in for a second round of Leafs playoff hockey this year.

I just want to see drama, excitement, and top-notch hockey, which is the benefit of not having to worry about the teams involved in the NHL playoffs.

Oh, and if I am being honest, I want to see Artturi Lehkonen lift another Stanley Cup. Perhaps even pass it to Lars Eller as all the analysts in Montreal that did a terrible job analyzing their value quickly delete their sarcastic tweets dating from years ago.

But since both already have Stanley Cup rings, I’m not exactly stressed about the situation.

 

The question is “If the Habs decide to buy out Hoffman’s contract, how much would it cost, and for how many years?”

For this, we turn to the awesome folks at CapFriendly, who, frankly, do not get enough credit for their hard work. I see cap numbers quoted everywhere without a source, and it’s unfortunate because we all know where the information is coming from.

On that note, despite linking back to their website about 100 times per year, I have to admit I also forget to source my cap numbers at times, and for that, I do apologize.

To make it clear, CapFriendly is always my source.

As you can see in the chart below, it would actually lead to savings for the Canadiens, though not much. And frankly, I’d argue that Hoffman is not a valid buyout candidate anyhow, since he provided decent production for a team that struggles to produce offence and there’s only one year left once this season concludes.

Joel Armia on the other hand…

Mike Hoffman Canadiens buyout

 

The Columbus Blue Jackets mentioned they wanted to use the pick to replace the player who they trade for the pick in the first place, Vladislav Gavrikov.

If any team considers Joel Edmundson or David Savard legitimate top-4 options, of course, you’d trade them for first-round picks. But that’s not likely to happen.

More than anything, I see the Canadiens also trading their late first-round pick, perhaps for some immediate help. Perhaps even in a deal that involves Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois.

 

I mentioned this in another mailbag, but I was in charge of the Canadiens…I’d be fired within 12 minutes.

However, in those 12 minutes, I’d attempt to secure three things: a defenceman that has strong puck retrieval skills, a winger with shooting talent, and whichever player that’s available that would help the Canadiens in transition.

Shooting talent is the most pressing need in my opinion, as evidenced by the dearth of offence since Cole Caufield’s season-ending surgery.

And as previously discussed, I wouldn’t hesitate to reach out to former Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty.

If we take emotion out of the equation, he’s exactly what the Canadiens need: a winger with shoot talent.

Fans would have a hard time taking emotion out of the equation, but thankfully Kent Hughes and Co. would not.

Of course, health is the biggest issue in this case, so the Canadiens would have to tread lightly, but if he receives a clean bill of health and is willing to accept a ‘show-me’ type deal given his injury history, Pacioretty would be a great addition to this team.

 

Good news! Kirby Dach skated on Tuesday morning.

 

The Canadiens have until August 15, 2024, to sign Luke Tuch, so there’s no rush in that respect.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he returns to Boston University for another season. He was an alternate captain last season.

If not, perhaps a PTO with the Laval Rocket is in order.

 

I’m about to say something that will be wildly unpopular with Canadiens fans, but I sincerely believe it.

The ridiculous injury situation is likely nothing but a series of unfortunate events. In otherwords, it’s coincidental.

HOWEVER, yes, the Canadiens have to re-evaluate their entire training regime, from practice to recovery.

The only thing I would criticize this season is players returning to action too early, which, unfortunately, is something that has been happening for several years in Montreal.

Voir: Carey Price et Brendan Gallagher.

The issue, in this case, is that the final decision usually belongs to the player, and NHL players will rarely opt for erring on the side of caution.

Personally, I’d remove any decision-making powers from the player and rely entirely on the doctor’s diagnosis, though I’m sure the NHLPA would have something to say about it.

As for all the injuries, again, we have absolutely no way to say it’s a case of poor decision-making by the Canadiens or any medical professional in the organization.

I know the Canadiens’ injured reserve was busier than Chez Parée when opposing teams visit Montreal, and the injury bug is definitely worth looking into, but there are healthy odds it’s nothing but a terrible streak of bad injury luck.

Unfortunately, the odds are the only thing that is healthy in this situation.

 

Most of these guys don’t each much poutine, because, unlike me, they have to have things called “cardio” and “energy”, whatever those are.

But I do know for a fact that Rafael Harvey-Pinard’s favourite poutine is a travesty that deserves to be evaluated at The Hague.

Harvey-Pinard prefers ‘white sauce’ on his poutine. You know, like pasta sauce.

Gros Jos Montferrand is probably spinning in his grave.

I’m going to hold back here, because I think he’s genuinely a good guy, and he’s also an excellent hockey player, but it’s a good reminder that everyone has their flaws.

 

I don’t think there ever was a honeymoon phase with the media. Imagine having to deal with jerks like me every day. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. It’s tiring and will grind you down rather quickly.

From the very get-go, Martin St-Louis showed contempt for anyone presenting him with a stupid question, or those who did not even bother to formulate a question. You know, the “talk about…” laziness we hear during almost every scrum? The coach has no time for it, and frankly, we’re better off because of it.

That’s not journalism.

That’s simply the result of someone looking for a quote to fit into an article they’ve already written and can’t be bothered to even formulate a question.

St-Louis hates it, and to be perfectly honest, so do I.

It’s about time a coach pushes back. In the end, the media in Montreal will be forced to improve their process, and that’s great for everyone involved.

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