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The Gainey era
posted by Mike Boone at 21h50 EST on Feb 8
A speedy winger who could score seemed like a good idea at the time.
So did Niinimaa. The Canadiens headed into training camp in 2006-'07 with two injured defencemen: Mathieu Dandenault and Francis Bouillon. Gainey thought he needed help on D.
He didn't know Niinimaa was damaged goods – but that ignorance is on pro scouting, run by that Gauthier guy.
We can pick over all the significant moves of Gainey's tenure, and each can be debated until the bar closes.
Sheldon Souray? A pylon, and Bob decided to show Markov the money instead.
Cristobal Huet? He'd played himself into a long-term contract. And with Carey Price in the wings, Huet wasn't going to get what he thought he deserved.
Mark Streit? Gainey made a reasonable offer that morphed into a lowball as Streit played himself into huge $$$.
Last season's pending free agents? Gainey believed insecurity would spur great performances. And it probably works that way in Harvard Business School case studies.
Not in the Canadiens' room ... not when the core group of promising young talent, painstakingly assemebld by Gainey and Trevor Timmins, were happily partying themselves into a eight-place finish.
Unlike Pollock, who was able to send Frank Selke, Jr. (no chip off the old block) a bag of pucks for the draft choice that yielded Guy Lafleur, Gainey had to compete with general managers who knews what they were doing.
Pollock snatched Lafleur with the first overall pick in 1971. The Canadiens' fourth choice that year was Larry Robinson.
The Canadiens drafted Steve Shutt, Bunny Laroque, John van Boxmeer and Bill Nyrop in 1972. The next year's first-round choice was a Left Wing from the Peterborough Petes whom no one knew much about: Bob Gainey.
In 1974, Cam Connor, Doug Risebrough, Rick Chartraw and Mario Tremblay.
Those bountiful drafts are a distant memory. Bob Gainey inherited a team that spent the 1990s drafting Brent Bilodeau, David Wilkie, Brad Brown, Terry Ryan, matt Higgins, jason Ward, Eric Choinard and Alexander Buturlin.
Oh yeah, and Saku Koivu in '93. Even a blind squirrel finds nuts once in a while.
Again, we could pick over the drafts (David Fischer?), trades and free agent signings until the cows and Pat Hickey come home.
Gainey made mistakes.
Perhaps the biggest was the handling of Carey Price.
The Canadiens brought him up too soon, rushed him along and, worst of all, left a 20-year-old hick from the backwoods of B.C. to disport himself in Old Montreal.
If billeting was good enough for the Sidney Crosby, the first overall choice of the 2005 draft, why not for the fifth?
The team did not take proper care of its most precious young asset. And the cost of that neglect will be a bill tha falls due on Pierre Gauthier's watch.
But in a league jam-packed with smart general managers – Ken Holland, Darcy Regier, Lou Lamoriello, Doug Wilson, Brian Burke, Dean Lombardi and David Poile would be on my short list – Bob Gainey kept the Canadiens competitive.
Competitive isn't good enough .... not in Montreal, the city of a million hockey coaches and 500,000 general managers.
Gainey was second-guessed on a daily basis by a motley collection of pundits, unemployed hockey coaches, former NHL goons and sports radio blowhards.
To his credit, he was able to soar above the fray.
But it bugged him, as attested to by the infrequency of Gainey's media availabilities.
Factor in family sadness that would have crushed a lesser man and one can imagine Bob ganey reaching the point of "Who needs the aggro?"
The timing saves the Canadiens some embarrassment.
Gainey's contract is up in June. If the Canadiens miss the playoffs, the Molson group might have been obliged to fire him.
That shouldn't happen to a man of Bob Gainey's stature.
But keep that axe honed for Pierre Gauthier.
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...re the above links to Farber's and Renaud Lavoie's columns on Gainey
...Farber's was facile, regurgitated journalism ...Lavoie's gave context and knowledgeable insight about WHAT Gainey was actually doing behind the scenes
...it is just the dumbing-down and extremism of a great proportion of The Habs' Fandom ...in addition to politics and economics ...which made the success of Bob Gainey convincing talent to Quebec/Montreal ...and The Montreal Canadiens ...so hit 'n miss
...I Myself doubt whether The Montreal Canadiens will ever again win a Stanley Cup ...unless Habs' Fans and media come to Their sanity
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Dunno if this will change much, the fact remains that Gauthier was there through all of the mistakes that where made, but is he any different? With such a huge turnover in GM's in the last 5 year,s why did nobody ever ask for permission to speak to Gauthier?
Also out of left field, I remember there being some undrafted local D-man we signed this year after training, anyone remember his name?
Signed him or simply let him tryout? There's a difference.
It was time for a change. My fear is that Gauthier will not be an upgrade. Read more at:
http://www.habsaddict.com/2010/02/bob-gaineys-tenure-was-full-of-mistakes.html
This might sound crazy, but crazier thing have happened.
I predict Jacques Martin will be promoted in the off season to the GM position.
________________________________________________________
"Hey Richard, two minutes for looking so good!"
Gauthier just signed a long term contract as GM. Not likely.
Really? Do you have a link?
Where have you been?
Why aren't we looking at successful organizations for management and coaching talent? Remember when our ex-players were siphoned out of the organization and into late career playing roles that eventually turned into post playing career upper level roles? Jacques Lemaire, Larry Robinson, Doug Risebrough, Jarvis, etc. etc. You heard about the team's who hired these guys saying they wanted to bring that winning culuture and attitude into their own environs.
We are no longer they dominant organization although we put on the greatest marketing shows in hockey history spotlighting our glorious past. Time to bring in winners who know how to put an organization together IN THE MODERN AGE we live in. Not how it was done in the 70`s.. Hiring the best people..not the most convenient or the most fluent in both languages or someone who is chummy with the Molsons..none of that is going to restore this team to prominence.
It's an obvious point but I hate watching the Canadiens "settle" everytime a momentous change is made. PG is not a bold move. Jacques Martin was not a bold move. It's a predictalbe settling for just good enough. If a modern *** Irvin SR. was available today he'd probably be ignored. You want a winner? Hire the best. Hire a translator for him if you have to.
sigh....It's not getting better in MTL folks..
Unfortunately this isn't the dark days when Frank Selke and *** Irvin could be brought in to right the floundering ship. Hockey is big business now, and the owners hire people to make them money not to win Cups. As long as those sweaters sell and the tickets are gone the owners are happy and the front men will be pure laine if at all possible. This isn't odd, it simply reflects the demographics of the perceived fanbase.
The Montreal Canadiens have had a huge and traditional fan base, but their market is fragmenting. Without a player like young Crosby, or others who dreamed of playing for the team, they need to maximize that market. That means inside Quebec. I'm not sure the Molson's will get their money back, but they have the clout to prevent another team relocating to the province, so their revenue stream should be good.
Now if this was some young upstart internet company they would look outwards and go for the world market. But it isn't. This is big bucks from established families and traditional business. They could no more look to maximizing the internet, using the global village, to increase their market than they could look to Detroit for their new GM.
That is just the way it is.
Quite frankly because Boivin seems more concerned about what language his hireds speak then how hockey smart they actually are. Much like the NFL has, the NHL is just starting to transition out the old dinousaurs in the coaching (Hitchcock, Murray, Keenan) and management (Feaster, Risebrough, Wadell soon unless Atlanta's that nuts, Milbury, Bob Clarke, etc.) and the young blood in both catagories (Cory Clouston, Dan Bylsma, Bruce Boudreau, Scott Gordon in long Island is doing a good job, GM's like Ray Shero, Peter Chiarelli, Don Maloney, Mike Gillis) who have grown with the post lockout NHL are having success. Instead Boivin brings in a retread with two unsuccesful stints in Ottawa and Anaheim because he can speak both official languages. Why can't you just hire the right hockey guy and then have him learn french?
http://5-10andagamemisconduct.blogspot.com/
fantastic post rob
totally agree
I think that it has likely already been stated by others but if you are a Habs Fan and you can live with badmouthing Bob Gainey then you should have your head examined...sure...some of his moves did not work out... but I am quite sure that EVERY other GM in the league has a few black spots on their resumes. The man poured his heart and soul into the team as a player, coach, and GM, and I will NEVER forget the chills I got when he walked out onto the ice in full gear for his jersey retirement ceremony...that moment was pure Habs Magic...UNREAL
God Bless You Bob
Best of Luck to you from the East Coast
PS: John Lennon has some of the most beautiful songs including piano EVER recorded...I would start with those Bob..Enjoy...you certainly deserve a nice relaxing break away from the madness that is Montreal
Cheers
The Molson's should make a reality television game show! Call it "General Manager Idol" or something, and let the winner run the team. Joe Everyman could do no worse than Gainey or Gainey Light.
“Of course I'm crazy, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong.” - Robert Anton Wilson
Post it in a few more threads, it still won't sound any more intelligent.
Just been catching up on the post-Gainey articles.
Just read this one... and it feels like the others written by Montreal writers who seem too close to the action to really get a sense for what Gainey's leaving really means. Does the 'handling' of Carey Price or the Ribiero trade really matter in the big scheme of things? An iconic star - far larger in the Canadiens constellation than anything else going on with the team right now just left - and we are reduced by Montreal writers to parsing over petty details.
If you want to get a sense for what Gainey's leaving really means, visit Damien Cox at the Toronto Star. He's a good writer at the worst of times and maybe the perspective of being outside the city has helped him capture the real meaning behind the last few days.
http://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/nhl/article/762503--cox-gainey-was-one-of-the-best
Not a bad article and I'm trying not to nit-pick, but in true Torontonian fashion, Cox just couldn't write an article about Bob Gainey without mentioning Brian Burke. Get over him, already.
Trader Bob is a good man and bore a heavy burden, both professionally and personally, under the spotlight of a city he sincerely loves. He seemed weary the past year or so and I'm sure that he will benefit from a well-deserved rest fro mall the B.S. I am proud for him being able to leave with his honour intact and gratefully recognize how far this team has come since Bob first came back in from the cold.
Time will tell whether the picks and signings pay off since it often takes years to determine a GM's true legacy. I personally think Bob will come out looking quite good, as long as Gauthier or his inevitable successors don't fritter away what's been built.
We'll be skating on ice sheets
With the call-ups at our feet
And the lessons that they picked up will be gone
And the coach who spurred us on
Has got a system that's all wrong
They decide and the slapshot sings the song
I'll tip my hat to the Habs institution
Laugh out loud 'cause it's just more delusion
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Get my hockey stick and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll put on knee pads and skates
We just got fooled again
Change it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the fall that's all
But the team looks just the same
And history ain't changed
'Cause the banners, they all flown since last Cup
I'll tip my hat to the Habs institution
Laugh out loud 'cause it's just more delusion
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Get my hockey stick and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll put on knee pads and skates
We just got fooled again
I'll move myself and my family inside
the Bell Centre cuz I just got skinned alive
I'll get all my hot-dogs and smile at the sky
For I know that the hypnotized never lie
There's nothing on the team
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the French
Is now the parting all the time
And the years without a Cup grow longer every night
I'll tip my hat to the Habs institution
Laugh out loud 'cause it's just more delusion
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Get my hockey stick and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll put on knee pads and skates
We just got fooled again
MEET THE NEW BOSS
SAME AS THE OLD BOSS
________________________________________________________
"Hey Richard, two minutes for looking so good!"
Nicely thought out piece, Booner. Kinda touches both sides of the madness and still comes out sounding sane... kinda like Gainey himself.
I sure hope they keep price. I would love to see them bring in Turco this off season to mentor him and spilt the load of games for the first few seasons until he is capable. I agree he was rushed but I don't think he should be thrown away because of that mistake. If you can get a solid vet in I think he can still flurish in this city in years to come.
Why do you say he was rushed? A 22year-old with a .913 save percentage is phenomenal. You just don't see it because we have a 24 yr-old goalie doing even better. Brodeur at 22 had his first year in the NHL and he had a .915 percentage.
Take just about any elite goaltender and check where he was at 22 - Belfour wasn't in the NHL, Hasek was still in Czech., Miller has a .902 in 14 games, Vokoun was in the AHL, Kipper was still in Finland (didn't play NHL until 25), Nabokov was in Russia (played NHL at 25)...
Roy had already won a cup, but his percentage was still below .900.
Point is, Price is WAY ahead of the curve. Of all the elite tenders right now, only Brodeur had similar qualities at that age, and Price has played two more seasons than he had.
Price is blue chip. Even if Halak is playing better right now.
although i appreciate your numbers - numbers are not everything. you neglect the weakness in Price that is disturbing everyone - fans, media, and even his team mates ;
Price seems disinterested.
His own coach has suggested several times that he needs to work harder in practice.
Martin flew out to BC to meet Price in the summer - why do you think he had to do that?
Markov had a run in a few weeks ago - and Markov is the coolest cucumber around.
Price gained 30 pounds DURING last season - not muscle - just pounds.
"blue chip" is the way people described him BEFORE they uncovered his behavioural issues.
This is a guy who likes to party - it ruined many great players in the past, and it might be his downfall as well.
Why do we discuss trading one of our goalies? Because the team is not winning enough to be considered a true playoff threat and the goalies are our best bargaining chip in a trade.
You were ready to give up Price in a deal for Stamkos - you just feel like Vinnie is on his way down and I say he has a whole career ahead of him -
I was just looking at some stats... It's still amazing to me that Price has done so much, so young, even taking the last two seasons into account. Consider this: Dwayne Roloson, who I read in an article on Yahoo Sports recently is being considered as an option to replace Huet in Chicago in order to legitimize their Cup chances, turned 40 in October. Forty! Price is 22. Dwayne Roloson broke into the league in 96-97, the season he turned 27, with Calgary. 13 years later, he has 186 NHL wins under his belt.
If Price puts up an average of about 25 wins a season—that's just two more than he won last year or just one more than he won in his rookie season, playing in 41 and 52 games, respectively, though admittedly, due to Halak's steady play this year, probably a bunch more than he'll have by this season's end—over the next 5 years, and I'd say that's probably a reasonable estimate, he'll have more wins by the time he reaches the age Roloson began his NHL career than Roloson does now, nearing the end of it. Think about that. That's like lapping him. Can you even conceive of that? That blows my mind. Admittedly, 186 wins is not an impressive total over a 13-year career. The guy's played about 500 games. Price has about a quarter of that under his belt already. He's a little over half Roloson's age. I could compare their stats beyond just wins and games played but it would only make Price look more impressive. The kid, barring injury, probably has 15-20 NHL seasons left in him. And if a 40-year-old Roloson can legitimize a team like Chicago's Cup chances... I'm sure a 40-year-old Price could do wonders for someone 18 years down the line.
It may take a trade out of this place for it to happen, but 5 years down the line, all you armchair GMs calling Price washed up and a disappointment are gonna be eating your words.
Very true. But I think the damaged goods argument applies, if only to the possible repercussions of being brought along too quickly: making mistakes in the AHL is a lot easier to work through than making them in the Bell centre surrounded by 21,000 very fussy, knowledgable, and pathologically obsessive fans. What if Price decides he doesn't need the aggravation and bolts first chance he gets? If this were his rookie year, he'd be cruising along.
Full Breezer 4 Life
I couldn't agree with this post more. He hasn't lived up to his own expectations this year, but given his age, there is absolutely no way he should be considered damaged goods.
If there is some way to keep both Price and Halak I would be very happy, because they are both exceptional prospects. If it means having to send someone like Hamrlik to the minors next year to make space then the team should do that. What other team in this league can boast of two goalies under the age of 25 that each could develop into bona-fide stars in this league? Unless the return is phenomenal neither of these guys should be traded.
I agree if we can keep both let's do it... I'm saying though if they are going to trde one or the other let's keep pirce and bring in a veteran goalie to helh the molding of Price. That's all.
Until the Habs finish in the bottom five for a few years running they willl never amount to anything other than a great marketing organization with plenty of merchandise to sell.
The moment that b#$@# trade Price he'll be on my hitlist!:@
.::moen for GM::.
Price is as good as gone.
nice job Mike - that's a very fair assessment.
My heart broke for Gainey when he lost his daughter - I have teenage kids and I can't even imagine what gainey had to go through - the worst nightmare anyone can face.
However, I place the blame squarely on Pierre Boivin for the current situation.
With the change in ownership imminent, Boivin needed to take control of the team last summer - no way Gainey should have been given the green light to spend 30 million and put us right up against the cap.
I said it last summer and i'll say it again - where is the dominant leader on this team, the franchise player, the 'go to" guy, the "identity" of the team?
You decide to let Koivu and Kovalev go elsewhere but they were not replaced.
Gainey knew this was a problem - that's why he chased Lecalvalier last june at the draft.
i don't care who we have to trade - we need to build our team around this franchise player.
For example - the trade of price and Plekanec for Lecavalier would have been perfect!!!
now that there are new owners in tampa, maybe we can get it done.
Sure we'd be giving up on a solid player in pleks and a top prospect goalie, but we would have vinnie for the next 10 years!!!!
Vinnie would be the captain, the franchise, the "identity" the habs desperately need.
You build your team with Vinnie up front and markov in the back - now you can start putting the other pieces together properly.
if that trade would have happened last summer at the draft, Gainey would still be here, we would NOT have had the money to get Gomez,...
When you gleefully say we would have Vinnie "for 10 years!!!!!!" you realize that five of those years would be from age 35-40 right? Is the guy really going to be worth a 7.5 million dollar cap hit at that age when he's barely - or not, in my opinion - worth that much now? If you think Gomez has a bad contract, try this exercise : when his deal expires, re-sign him to the same terms he has now - 5 more years at 7.3 million. That's more or less the same as Vinnie. In short, they are two of the worst contracts in the league, and I'd maintain Vinnie's IS the worst of all. How many times has Vinnie gotten his team into the playoffs since the lockout? You really think he's the answer? Tampa, despite their wealth of young talent, will never amount to much so long as they have his ball and chain contract on the books. Let's not make it our problem, m'kay.
If you say Montreal needs a franchise player - and I agree - why not target one that's not ALREADY 30!
wow! in an off year, vinnie is on his way to 80+ point season (55 points in 57 games).
he won a cup! forget about how many playoffs he played in - you want to judge his capacity to help a team - he was the best freakin player on his team when they won the cup!
6 months ago the habs were ready to take him for pleks and price - that was the deal on the table.
instead we ended up with pleks and gomez :-(
no size up the middle!
what franchise player do you have in mind? I would be very interested to read your list of AVAILABLE franchise players that are younger than 30 that we can target.
Pleks has more points than Lecavalier and is better defensively. Plus you would give Price. I'm sure glad you're not GM.
I would make that deal for Stamkos, though. He's 10 years younger than Lecavalier.
you would make the deal for stamkos; but Tampa can NOT trade Stamkos, and you know that.
a player's current stats do not always reflect their overall ability, nor do they speak to their value on the team.
Lecavalier is a leader, a captain, a CUP WINNER!
Lecavalier is 6'4 220 lbs - he is a physical force as well as a goal scorer.
Plus Vinnie has scored more than 50 and put up more than 100 points - a proven commodity
finally, Vinnie is a local boy hailing from the West Island.
pleks is a solid two way player - but he doesn't even come close to the total package that vinnie represents;
he'll finish with 75 maybe 80 points this year and the habs will be stupid enough to give him 5 million!!
I'd rather have vinnie at 7.5 than pleks at 5.0 and price at 2.5
Price? I'll trade Price and keep Halak - both are young, talented and have interesting upside; only one of them apparently is interested in playing hockey this year - I say 'apparently" because I have no proof of price's attitude other than the fact that he gained 30 lbs last year during the season - ??
Price alone is worth more than Lecavalier today. Uninterested in hockey? A 22year-old with a .913 save percentage is phenomenal. You just don't see it because we have a 24 yr-old goalie doing even better. Brodeur at 22 had his first year in the NHL and he had a .915 percentage.
Take just about any elite goaltender and check where he was at 22 - Belfour wasn't in the NHL, Hasek was still in Czech., Miller has a .902 in 14 games, Vokoun was in the AHL, Kipper was still in Finland (didn't play NHL until 25), Nabokov was in Russia (played NHL at 25)...
Roy had already won a cup, but his percentage was still below .900.
Point is, Price is WAY ahead of the curve. Of all the elite tenders right now, only Brodeur had similar qualities at that age, and Price has played two more seasons than he had.
Price is blue chip. Even if Halak is playing better righ now.
You should make this exact post 3 times a day, under every topic. Maybe then, and only MAYBE then, will we stop talking about needing to trade a goaltender.
"I lined up next to him at a faceoff, looked over and said "Hi Rocket". All he did was growl." -Gordie Howe
LOL - I worked so hard on it that I thought it could be posted twice, no? It must have taken me at least 10 minutes to look up the stats of today's best goalies when they were 22. I changed the first couple lines the second time I posted it...
IMO, I'd do Price for Vinny any day of the week. A proven superstar is always better than unproven potential. As for comparing Price to Roy/Brodeur at their ages, Remember that Brodeur won the Calder, and that Roy won a Cup and Smythe and multiple Jennings by age 22. You can't compare todays save % with those of the late 80s and early 90s. Roy and Brodeur were the best in the league at age 22. Price isn't.
I'd also do Vinny for Pleks any day of the week, if we didn't have cap issues.
In fact, I'd do Price+Pleks for Vinny, just because Vinny is so french and handsome.
Can't compare GAA but you can compare Save%. Brodeur won the calder with .915 at 22? My point exactly. Price has a .913, which means he would be a calder candidate if he was a rookie.
Vinny is 30 years old. I 'm glad you're not GM. A proven superstart on his way down is not worth more than a bonafide number 1 goalie and potential franchise player.
Even if he is handsome.
Did anyway see L'attaque a 5 last night where Jean Perron said about Pierre Gauthier: "il a l'air d'un gars qui sort d'une chambre à gaz"? I was shocked and outraged when I heard this. After he made this comment, the rest of the panelists proceeded to chuckle at the "joke." Haven't sportscasters been fired for less? I made a Facebook group to let as many people know about this as possible, and demand a public apology from Mr. Perron. This is simply unacceptable.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=318278904812&ref=mf
Please explain, what is wrong with his phrase "il a l'air d'un gars qui sort d'une chambre à a gaz." (He looks like a guy who just got out of a gas chamber) ???
Also please explain what your term "xenophobic comment" has to do with Holocaust survivors?
Thats what I found about this term:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/xenophobic
"an unreasonable fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange."
I would also appreciate if you explain me why you have mentioned only Jewish people as victims, but completely missed whole Slavic nation? Or Jews were the only people tortured in those nazi camps? Why did you forget about tens of millions of Russians, Ukrainians, Belorussians who were killed in that war?
Everything above was very sarcastic and ironic, cause we Slavians dont start the groups like this.
And my final question: would you start new group supporting Vietnameses if one of the hosts say "He looks like a guy who just escape napalm " ?
urgh
excuse me?
That's a bizarre thing for him to say, especially when one considers all the good he has done for the Israeli hockey program. I mean he has really built that up, not exactly something a rabid anti-Semite would be interested in doing. I imagine that this will just yield an apology at best, especially when his history is considered.
(for those looking for a translation, if this quote is accurate, Perron would have said that Gauthier looks like a guy who came out of a gas chamber)
/\\ike
GO HABS GO!
Translation, please.
_____________________________________ "Deserves" got nothin' to do with it.
"he looks like a guy that just came out of the gas chamber"
Jean Perron is a putz. He didn't win the Cup in '86, Steve Smith, Claude Lemieux and Patrick Roy did.
a composite professional, who gve his all to the team . He was the apitamy of class,as he fetched the organization from the gutter where it had fallen. He was a gentlemen and his presence restored the shine on the organization ala belliveau ... Remember .... he won the cup in Dallas ......he was never a failure....He was a winner on the ice behind the bench and in the management office...He will be missed if for no other reason , because his very presence brought class to the team and the game it played.......Les canadiens son la.......
I wish Gauthier best of luck too because he is going to need it. Here it comes. Ready?
FIRE GAUTHIER!!!!
(aah, that feels good)
I like Gainey better than Gauthier. At least he had past success.
I agree completely. We are labeled Gainey bashers and or Gainey haters. Nothing could be further from the truth, what we hate is mediocrity.
This decision to promote from within is a cynical business decision to calm shareholders and has NOTHING to do with hockey. The one thing the bankers fear is CHANGE and the UNKNOWN, this move satisfies these dullards.
I had hoped of more from the Molson Bros., I actually believed they wanted to WIN the CUP. Alas, the only thing they are concerned with is the continuation of the team as a cash cow who happens to be mediocre on the ice. Boivin has been a very good generator of cash for ownership and Gauthier was behind the Centennial extravaganza. The fact they are TERRIBLE hockey people is irrelevant to the Molson family.
We wanted and expected a full scale change in culture and direction. This is no better or worse than having Gainey at the helm. Mediocrity thy name is Montreal Canadiens.
We share the same problem as the Leafs now, we are run by bankers and shareholders NOT hockey people. Like the Leafs? That is OUR future.
A few points:
It is hard to hire a top GM mid-season. You have to wait to see if they remove the interim tag from Gauthier. The Molsons could not fire Gainey prior to the final centennial ceremonies.
Just like Gillet didn't care about winning, Molson did not buy the team to win a Cup. Gillet put up very little cash and used bank loans. He was always going to be an asset flipper. For Molson, this was about marketing. Winning a Cup is only on the mind of maybe five owners in the entire league. The rest are trying to make money or not go out of business.
I agree they are terrible hockey operations managers and that the team is mediocre. That's why I try not to invest any emotional energy in the team.
Mediocrity is the NORM in a league set up for PARITY. That falls squarely in Gary Bettman's lap.
Ask Ken Holland in Detroit or Lou Lamorella in Jersey if mediocrity is acceptable or the NORM. It only becomes the NORM if the organization lacks the initiative and the drive to demand better.
best posts ever.
never a truer word posted on this site.
Was he Bob's best decision?
Not even 24 hours eh? haha, bravo.
Gainey as a player, incomparable. Class, deportment, presence, and dignity as a person. The Victor Laslo of hockey, for Casablanca buffs.
We judge him now though as a GM. And as a GM, he has been only a modest success. His legacy will need a few years yet to play out. But in the immediate future, he leaves us now with a team that is mediocre and too tight against the cap for next year.
Perhaps the most telling comment he made was his pride in the Habs making the playoffs, when 45% of teams, he says, do not.
That is not something Gainey as a player would ever have felt was the measure of success. It is not what this franchise should ever settle for, though sadly for too many years we have had to.
So long Gainey. You did a lousy job and got by on what you did for this club as a player.
Thanks for nothing.
I will miss Bob's class. And I whish Pierre the best of luck. Remember too that not all of Bob's decsions have had a chance to bear fruit yet.
Class?
Like firing two coaches over the phone? (Julien and Lever)
Class?
Like calling a press conference to insult a 4th line player you just fired? (Laraque)
Class?
As in offering a player a contract, then signing a different player with the money he had offered him - without informing the first player that his offer was pulled? (Kovalev)
Yes....his 'class' will be greatly missed.
Fruit? Google the Durian.
ooo la stink
Hey, AHL - Hersey Bears... Which pro team are they associated with?
Thanks in advance.
Washington Capitals
Ouch.
Thanks.
Mike you forgot to include yourself in the list of folks who openly Bashed Gainey's every move.
Fair to say?
I disagree.
Mike, openly questioning Gainey's moves, and has praised Gainey at other times for other moves. This shouldn't be confused with the folks around here who say stuff like "That moron has to go", "That bum doesn't know anything about being a GM", "NHL 2010 says I can trade Metropolit for Lecavalier, why can't Gainey do it?" etc etc...
I came to the conclusion that its best to wait till all the dust settles first before making an opinion on Pierre Gauthier.
Losers Even After Forty two Seasons
Farber's article belongs in the "North Atlanta"
dude always been a goof
...aside from the fact You conveniently omitted 'sports writer hacks' from Your list ...I think You covered the premise and issues appropriately Mike
...a more passionate and engrossed Fan of Our Team I could not imagine, was Myself for much of My Life ...
...over those years, I left Montreal and Quebec 4 times for varied other destinations in this big ol' World of Ours ...and returned ...The Habs always came with Me, no matter where I was heading
...but somewhere post-1996, I left Montreal (Quebec) for the final time, with a self-acceptance I would not return to live ...and I found Myself further 'indifferent' to My Habs, which were for Me an essential part of My love of My former 'home'
...to make a long-story shorter, it was Bob Gainey returning that revived My emotional connection to My Habs, reminding Myself emotionally WHY this Hockey Team represented in-part My own identity
...did I not become perplexed with many of Bob's decisions, and frustrated by My Habs being essentially still a rather mediocre Hockey Team ...YES ...absolutely
...yet, as A Fan, of both Bob Gainey and The Habs, My energy in ranting in this zoo We call HabsInsideOut was always hopeful (stupid as it sounds) that Bob would 'hear' Me and I with Others can influence His decision
...at no time, in My own rantings and opinions did I ever mention I had no longer 'faith' in Bob Gainey to be the Face of Our Team
...for most other things in Life, I am a generally a rational Real-world Person, balanced with a tendency to think with My Heart when appropriate
...regarding My Habs thinking with My Heart was/is My tendency ...same with Bob Gainey ...as I believe(d) I would rather lose with Bob Gainey than win without Bob Gainey
...after sleeping on it last night ...waking-up and looking at the soul-less mugs of Boivin and Gauthier ...and understanding how much the Earth has shifted this morning ...and listening to some of the mean idiocy of a fair proportion of other Habs' fans ...I am worried whether My indifference may soon return
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Amen.
Thanks Mike for posting something reasonable that puts it all in perspective. I agree 100%. BG was not able to bring a losing club to the holy grail, but he was able to bring it into respectability and a positive winning percentage. Not easy to do nowadays. It's not easy to climb the hills.
I believe that without injuries to major players in the past 3 years, we would have gone far into the playoffs. The only teams that have climbed greater hills did it with high draft picks (Pit, Wash, Chi, LA..), a luxury not allowed here in Mtl.
On this site...some articles are considered "great" if they agree with one's viewpoint...the ones who wanted Gainey out pointed to Farber's article and ESPN's Burnside article...although, I think the Farber article holds infinitely more water than that nimrod Burnside...so for those who wanted Gainey to remain, here is an article from Cox of the Star:
http://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/nhl/article/762503--cox-gainey-was-one-of-the-best
Up front, I wanted Gainey to stay...he did his job in bringing the team back from the depths of garbage, but could not get over the hump. Since the change is because he could not get over the hump, then I am ok with the change, it is just too bad that he wasn't the one to get over that last hurdle.
"Even Roy can be run out of town after 2 Stanley Cups."
Alot of people were calling for Bobs head on a plate. They got it.
Now people are already pissing and moaning about the replacement less than 24 hours later.
In all honesty, what did people expect? The winningest GM in history to take over and walk us off to the holy grail? Bob Gainey is gone, for better or worse (to be determined), Gauthier is the new man. Enjoy it, the majority of you asked for it.
Thanks Boone for putting a much needed positive face to this circus.
The Gainey haters had their day yesterday and should keep them happy until things start going south with Gauthier, if and when that happens. So be it.
Next up, the Price haters to be followed by the Martin haters then the Gomez haters. Could the Gainey haters please step aside and let the Price haters come to the front of the line? Thank you.....
In a perfect world and I suppose the ones in which the Gainey haters live, Gainey would be the only GM going after young players and the superstars in the league because Lord knows, it sure seemed that way on here. "Why didn't Gainey go after so and so or why couldn't he sign this guy or why did that guy leave?"
M-O-N-E-Y drives this league now. Welcome to the new NHL driven by greed. You can't trade the farm away for one player when your team needs help in a lot of areas (see the Vinny sweepstakes). This team was driven into the ground from years of mis-management and it takes years to turn this baby around. It didn't happen in the 5 years Gainey said it would so fire the bum, right?
Once a Habs fan, always a Habs fan
All I have to say is we don't need a ex-Habs GM to be our next GM or a GM that has to be bilingual!
Why can't we pry away Doug Wilson from the Sharks?
Finally, Pierre Boivin I really hope you get the axe as well, you are at fault as well in our demise and sticking your nose in daily hockey operations since you came here from Nike Bauer and appointed President.
Sooner or later, what goes around, comes around Boivin.
"We will win the Cup one day only with ? in the nets "
Good call on the unnecessary pre-requisites of the future permanent GM...
I am not sure I agree with your call for Wilson, though: yes, he has built absolutely awesome teams that crush everyone during the regular season....but they have not been able to get past the 2nd round either for years...imagine the rage amongst Habs fans if their team was 1st overall and could not make it past the 2nd round? That playoff choke is what would make anyone hesitant about Wilson...
As for Boivin...maybe he is the true owner of the Canadiens and the Molsons are just figureheads (maybe Boivin is the head of the mob, gasp!), what is his net worth?
"Even Roy can be run out of town after 2 Stanley Cups."
At what point do players have to become responsible?
I mean, you have a team which makes the playoffs year after year, flops year after year. That could be the GM's fault... But at a certain point you have to look at the players and coaching staff, as GM's really can only do so much.
I absolutely agree that it is the players' fault...but the microscope also looks at WHO brought these players together...so if we look at the Sharks from very strict point of view, it was Wilson who put together a group that cannot perform when it truly matters...
"Even Roy can be run out of town after 2 Stanley Cups."
... Mr.Boone referred to sports radio blowhards who in english has to mean Tony Marinaro or Eliot Price unless he considers Mitch Melnick a blowhard, which i don't.
M. Boone,
"a motley collection of pundits, unemployed hockey coaches, former NHL goons and sports radio blowhards."
AKA.......
"The Allo Police Media - a collection of bitter ex-coaches, players and wannabees whose collective lack of success accounts for their present positions in Sports' equivalent of a Jerry Springer Show"
My friend Mitch is not a blowhard.
I am pretty sure Price isnt either ....Marinaro on the other hand, he said on radio "good riddance...." sigh
I can't listen to the morning show. Price and Casavant are the two best play-by-play men in Montreal. As hosts for a show they just come across as buffoons. It's unfortunate because Price was a fabric of my soundscape on a daily basis for so many years. I used to respect Marinaro until the infamous Markov/Price incident. I felt that he reported an incident that should have been kept within the privacy of the dressing room and was a result of hearsay from someone who had an axe to grind with the organization. Whether that person is still employed or not we can only speculate. Nonetheless the Marinaro story was a shameless bit of self promotion designed only to get his name on every sports ticker in North America.
People beware!
Sometime the devil you know is much better than the devil you don't!
"The three stars as selected by Red Fisher of the Montreal Star: 1st star: Henri Richard 2nd Star: Doug Harvey 3rd Star: Jacques Plante Final score Detroit Red Wings 5 Montreal Canadiens 3"
A different take on Gainey's departure: http://www.habsradio.com/2010/02/08/episode-18-bye-bye-bob/
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