O'Byrne, Brisebois in, Hamrlik, Kostopoulos out

Go post this 2 blogs Under.........

The thing about it that gets me is that everyone has been complaining all along about his giveaways or his 'soft' play. We hear it over and over. So he has a game in Ottawa where twice he failed to hold the puck in at the blue line on the power play (not too good of course) and now every is talking about how he can never hold the blue line like that has been his problem all along. My point is that each time he makes a mistake we act like it is a mistake that has plagued his whole career. I can't remember too many other times that his inability to stop the puck at the blue line has been an issue. If fact I think he is more aggressive at pinching then most of our D and he has been around long enough that he knows when to do it or not. That is one area that I see Obryne needs work at is recognizing when to pinch and not always retreating. If all you do is focus on one player and wait to find his mistakes and come on here and post the hell out of them then you can make any player look like a sive. Of course there are better players then Breezer but no team is going to have 6 really solid D, just like no team is going to have 9 great offensive players. That is why some players make 5 or 7 million a season and some make 1 or 2.

Exactly ,seriously it seems to be only me and you that think this way.. If this isn't a O'byrne bashing Blog, it ahs to be a Brisbois bashing blog..F'n hate it....Look at the stats from last game and tell me who was on the ice for most of the goals ...SERIOUSLY look it up....As for Habsfan53I'm with you man stop the Brisbois bashing

Just keep blaming all of our loses on Brisebois and give the rest of the team that dropped eggs all night the free pass.

Ummmm.... first Yes we got smoekd the other day....but the whole team lost...And they didn't lose because of Brisbois....yes i don't liek him either...but hey the loss wasn't because of him..... Im sure he'll be just fine today...you know somtimes its better to keep a positive attitude , maybe our fans woudln't run players outta this city if we did keep positive attitudes,or maybe players wouldn't hessitate to come here.....

We need another D, take Dandy and make him or make Streit a full time D man or call Jamie Rivers, we dropped the ball signing Carbo old roommate, he is not good enough and that's not bashing. Lest not we forget, the playoffs are looming and OByrne is playing his 12th career NHL game, don't expect too much.

Who's having the last laugh now :)

I wish i was in Tampa, must be nice, its a blizzard over here in T.O!

D'oh! You're right, thanks for the heads-up! I've edited my tix post. Go Habs Go!

If I was Andre Roy I would go on the ice with a purse... ahha _______________________________________ CH is for Chris Higgins

Ya we need some class ....SIGN TuLUSTY ....Gainey Please ...Just for FFS

Yeah, La Presse is reporting it too. I just saw it online. François Gagnon's article says the rash developed as a reaction to the medication he was taking for his flu bug. Man, Hamrlik must be so frustrated. First he gets felled by the SuperFlu and then the drugs he took to help get rid of it make him break out. Can't cut a break!

Mario Tremblay had this condition and it hastened his retirement. The rash wouldn't disappear until he'd been without equipment on a few weeks into the summer.

I hate chaffing. Maybe he could try some baby powder?

I saw that too. They also mentioned that he is now over the flu. I hope all of this muck-a-muck isn't a sign that last year's dramas will be again visited upon the team.

I just read that story and nowhere does it say anything about Hamrlik. Also, the information I received on Hamrlik came from Pat Hickey, who is in Tampa and was at the morning skate. I'll trust his word.

To Habs.since.birth: Go to ticketmaster.com and buy tickets to a Canadiens vs Sabres game. It's a lot closer to drive and way cheaper, especially with your favorable exchange rate on your Loonies. As an added bonus, on the way back you can stop by the Casino Niagara.

I also live in T.O. I have seen games vs the Laffs in T.O and I have been to the Bell Centre a few times. There is NOTHING like seeing a game in MTL. I am going to a game this month vs Columbus, try www.vipprotours.com or call there toll free line at 1-800-567-8687. I go with them everytime, its not the cheapest, but they hook you up with tickets to the game, hotel and the last time they gave me a couple of Montreal Hats. I go with them everytime I got MTL. I am sure they have some tickets remaining for this year. Enjoy! and go to a game!

a very good site for tickets is stubhub.com, i would try here before any others

Hey Michelle In the past, I've bid on tickets on Ebay.ca also my son and I have been to more games in Buffalo (VS the Habs) cause those ticks were usually easier to get than at the Bell center. But if you want that rock the roof experience, the Bell center's the place to be (provided the Habs win, when they lose, it's eerily quiet there) another site that has habs ticket sellers is Kijiji.ca (just click the Montreal city and go to tickets) hope this helps....unfortunately you'll be paying about 5X the face value on most of these sites but the Bell center's a hot commodity good luck tony

Hi Michelle! That's a really cool thing to do for your dad, and I wish you the best of luck! All the games are sold out, with the exception of 200 seats per game that the Canadiens organisation puts aside to give fans a chance to buy tickets throughout the season. The tickets for March and April games go on sale THIS Friday (the 15th) at 10am (you're just in time!). Here's the link for info: http://canadiens.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NHLPage&id=18077 They will go FAST, I suggest trying online and on the phone simultaneously if you can. Make an account with admission.com before trying. This'll be your best bet for tickets at face value. If this doesn't work, there are always scalpers out before each game, but you will pay at least double face value. You should also look online, kijiji.ca, craigslist, and Ebay usually list tickets for sale. If you're on Facebook, there's tickets for sale on there too. Here's a link to the Bell Centre seating chart for help with sections/sightlines: http://www.bellcentre.ca/eng/seating/index.cfm Good luck!

hi Michelle, I've been to a few habs games this year and one place I typically look is on craiglist. I'm not promoting this site, but it's worked for me in the past and it's certainly one way for you to see what's available and what sort of prices they're fetching. http://montreal.craigslist.ca/search/sss?query=habs good luck!

Hi Michelle.. very nice of you to do that for your dad. I wish I could help you out but I've never been to the Bell Centre. Been to the old Forum a lot for Habs and junior Habs games but that is little help to you today. Hope you get the info you need from all your knowledgeable friends on this site.... i'm sure you will! Regards

oh,i forgot to add, if you wanna reply to my own email instead of on here, please contact me at braea76@hotmail.com thanks again, guys!

agreed

Blame Mark Streit. Dandenault and Begin are rotating along with Tommy K from here on in unless/until we make a move would be my guess. Streit will not sit and unless one of the kids falters that is and should be the reality. Otherwise we sit Ryder and have one of those guys in....I don't think that is the way to go regardless of how many times we have gone there.

Yep, I'm a Brisebois fan. He does what is asked of him, hasn't complained all year, and is doing it for less than an equivalent defenceman would make. He takes the brunt of Habs fans critcism year after year, whether warranted or not, with much more grace than most people would. As a 4th, 5th or 6th defenceman in his last season on a rebuilding team, I have no issues with him. He makes horrific mistakes occasionally, as do all defencemen. Of late, even Komisarek (who really played terrible last game...looking for a bounce-back from him tonight) and Markov have been slipping a little in their defensive coverage. But as for why Carbonneau keeps playing him, I would say that it is part of Gainey and Carbonneau's long-term plan for the defence corps. Who are the alternatives? Streit if FAR more effective as a forward, and makes a lot of gaffes of his own when he's playing D. Dandenault was simply brutal last season on D. O'Byrne and Valentenko are probably the best prospects in Hamilton. However, young defencemen often require patience as they adjust to the nuances of the pro game, the increased speed and strength of the players. Valentenko is in his first pro season in North America, while O'Byrne is in his 2nd pro season out of US college. By playing Brisebois and letting O'Byrne & Valentenko get more minutes under their belts outside of the spotlight that comes with playing with the Habs, the Canadiens are investing in their long-term future. The alternative would be to watch those guys' growing pains on the Habs defence. While I suspect that many of the posters here would say that they are all for that, I have little doubt that that sentiment would go flying right out the window after 5-10 games of mistakes costing us goals while we are fighting for a playoff spot. Appreciate Patrice Brisebois for what he brings to the team instead of always focussing so much on what he does not bring. Much like Vladimir Malakhov before him, Brisebois has been an average defenceman with above-average offensive skills who was asked to fill the role of a #1 defenceman and all the pressure that goes with that in one of the largest hockey markets in the world. That he was not that #1 defenceman (or #4 defenceman, as the case is today), is not his fault. He does what is asked and plays as well as he can in that role. I have never felt that Brisebois' defensive failures stemmed from a lack of effort, but more just the limitations he has as a player.