Dickensian hockey

posted by Mike Boone at 19h20 EST on Mar 24


It was the best of times: a seemingly insurmountable 7-1 lead after 40 minutes, total domination of an Ottawa team that has kicked Canadiens butt all season.

But it was nearly the worst of times, as the Senators scored four unanswered goals and outshot Canadiens 14-2 in the third period.

When it was finally over, to the vast relief of the home team and 21,273 fans, Canadiens had clinched a playoff spot and were atop the Eastern Conference with 96 points – the most they've attained since the 1993-'94 season.

And despite the near-death experience tonight, the team has exceeded everyone's great expectations. 

"We're definitely pretty pumped and happy we clinched," said Christopher Higgins. "It was a nice win for us.

"The third period you can throw out the window."

Only if no one is walking by on the street below. The Senators staged a scary rally and were on the power play with 2:30 to go when Higgins made an heroic clearing play on the PK.

"It was getting a litttle antsy there, a little hairy," Higgins said of Ottawa's late-game power play. "But the PK came through at the right times.

"They were coming on, and we know a team like that can score goals in bunches. We had that game against the Rangers, so that was in the back of our minds. A team with that kind of firepower has the ability to come back." 

Canadiens also killed a third-period 5-on-3 disadvantage. Overall, the PK went 5-for-6 as three of Ottawa's third-period goals were scored at even-strength. 

"No excuse for letting up as much as we did," Higgins said. "Obviously we would have liked to make it a little easier on ourselves." 

Having clinched a playoff spot, Canadiens, Higgins said, can "focus on fine-tuning our game and having a lot of fun because this is a great time for playing hockey."

And a great time for watching hockey – at least for 40 minutes.

"Obviously when you're up 7-1 you think you can take two points," said Saku Koivu.  "But that probably won't be the case in the playoffs. We might have  one- or two-goal lead and the focus has to stay consistent." 

 

 

 


3P 00:45:

Higgins saves the day on the PK.

I can't watch the rest 

3P 1:58:

7-5 ... and still a PP

3P 2:30:

ANOTHER penalty? Horrible

3P 3:01:

Crowd wasn't singing three minutes ago

3P Break:

Ooof! Shots this period: 13-2. A big fat F in Lead Protection 101

3P 6:00:

PK of the season

3P 8:20:

Shots this period: 10-1. And a 5-on-3

3P 9:00:

Price coughing up rebounds. Everything is turning to crap

3P 9:07:

Yikes! Another PP

3P Break:

I can't believe this is happenning

3P 10:10:

O'Byrne harried into an icing. This is getting ugly.

3P 10:37:

Just like that.

Heatley

7-4

Timeout? 

3P 12:27:

Man that was close! Started with Koivu thrown out of faceoff circle

3P 13:11:

Huge stop by Price. He's the best penalty-killer

3P 14:30:

Not a good time for Pleks to take a penalty

3P 15:27:

This is getting weird.

3P 15:27:

Hmmmmmm.

Two dribblers 

7-3 

3P 16:56:

Yeah, whatever. Is a 5-goal lead safe in this building?

7-2 

3P 17:22:

Hey, I just noticed Carbo's tie. Psychedelic

3P 18:00:

Roll four and avoid injuries. Maybe rest Kovy down the stretch.

3P 19:40:

What can Murrray possiblly be complaining about to McGeough?

3P 20:00:

I'm going to have to slack off on blogging. Something is slowing the process way down.

Between periods:

The only Canadiens not on the scoresheet after 40 minutes: Ryan O'Byrne (who is plus-3), Josh Gorges, Steve Bégin and ... Saku Koivu ... Islanders beating Pittsburgh 4-1. First place in the Conference tonight ... Posting is really slow. Bear with me.

2P 00:00:

Best 40 minutes of the season

2P 00:45:

TOM THE BOMB!!!!

Shorthanded 

This is embarrassing.

7-1 

2P 2:25:

Cheesiest hooking call of the year

2P 3:12:

Are Canadiens this good? Or does Ottawa just suck?

2P 4:14:

The Brothers K!!!!!

 And Grabovski

6-1

 

Does Ottawa have any other goalies? 

2P Break:

Wise reffing. I think Neil just got a game misconduct.

2P 6:15:

TOTAL DOMINATION. And now a 5-on-3

2P 7:03:

Ladies and Gentlemen, your Harlem Globetrotters ... uhh, I mean the Pleks line

2P 8:31:

Oh yeah!

Hard, hard work by Smo line and Francis Bouillon sneaks in back door

4-1 

2P Break:

Stand by for dazzling insight: Next goal is HUGE!

2P 10:17:

Uh-oh!

Everyone backing in on Price and Vermette threads the needle

3-1 

2P 12:30:

Pleks against Spezza is working out nicely

2P Break:

Canadiens are opening this up too mmuch. Too early to go into a shell, but still ...

2P 14:00:

Max, Grabovski and Sergei

2P 14:05:

NNew chant when Kovy touches the puck: "MVP!"

2P 14:50:

Save of the Night:  Heatley, from point-blank

2P 16:10:

Hamrlik blocks a shot and leads a 3-on-1. Too bad he shot.

2P 17:49:

PP comes close. Then Heatley pounces on a Streit giveaway, but Price is sharp.

1P 19:12:

Crrowd is into  the EM-REE!" chant. But he's made two good saves

2P 19:35:

Price makes a big save and Heatley goes for knocking him down

2P 20:00:

Ray Emery

2P 20:00:

A darn near perfect 20 minutes. Can Canadiens sustain that level of intensity and adherence to game plan for two more periods?

Between periods:

Alfredsson, Spezza and Heatley: no shots, on for both even-strength goals ... Christopher Higgins, four shots and a goal ... Ryan O'Byrne: six minutes .. Blocked shhots: Canadiens seven, Ottawa one ... Brian McGrattan is ready to kill Maxim Lapierre. But in a 3-0 game, will he get aa chance to?

1P 00:00:

Bert Raymond of the Journal stopped by to sayy he could smell the Cup. I can smell a Northeast Division title.

1P 00:46:

Another Ottawa PP. They HAVE to score.

1P 1:36:

Now that's the Gerber we know. He had no idea where Streit's shot was. Feeling around, and Andrei K taps it in.

 

3-0 

1P 2:02:

Max is doing a Chris Neil on Ottawa. And they don't like it.

1P 2:43:

Shots are 12-4. Best first period in a long time.

1P 3:40:

Lapierre gives Spezza a bump.

1P 5:00:

It's 2-0, so Ryyder gets tripped and there's no call. That line is all over the Senators.

1P Break:

Shots are 10-3. Canadiens are playing textbook hockey. Otttawaa can't get started.

1P Break:

Brian McGrattan is going to jump someone. Ottawa has to change the momentum.

1P 6:34:

Wade Redden gets flattened, Canadiens pounce and Higgins steers it in.

2-0 

1P 7:00:

Good team D: Ottawa has three shots in 13 minutes, including a PP

1P 8:00:

Good PK. I was surprised to see O'Byrne, but he was fine.

1P 10:07:

Bouillon for interference. This will be a challenge

1P 11:00:

Commodore cauught Higgins with a rarely-seeen hip check. Crowd booed, but it was a good play

1P Break:

Clever O'Byrne pass foiled by an offside. Very good start for Canadiens.

1P 13:00:

Not much of a PP. But shots are 7-2

1P 14:52:

The Captain is on fire.

1P 15:40:

Pleks against Spezza. And Alfie high-sticks Pleks.

1P 16:30:

This time Smo against Mike Fisher

1P 17:00:

Speed kills: Higgins steams past Ottawa D

1P 18:20:

That's the way to start.

Andrei K. from a sharp angle, strength on tired strength against the Spezza line.

1-0 

1P 19:35:

Tonight's boo target: Alfie

1P 20:00:

Gonna be LOUD in here tonight

Starting lineups:

Smolinski, Bégin, TK, Markov and Gorges against Spezza line. There goes the strength on strength theory ... although McGuire said a defensive-minded coach probably would be reluctant to try it.

Mick McGeough:

Boo!

1P 20:00:

I have no inkling of how this one is going to go. Key for Canadiens, I think, is pressuring the Ottawa D, which isn't great. Annd get some bodies on Martin Gerber, who isn't nearly as great as he looked in that 3-0 win. And try to control the Three-F. line.

Silent treatment:

After morning skate, CJAD's Rick Moffat tried to talk to Ray Emery about goalie fights. The Ottawa goaltender does not talk to the media ... at least not to Rick.

Happy birthday:

Doug Jarvis, 53 today

Hot potato:

Gilles Courteau, president of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, wil not annnounce his decision on l'affaire Roy until tomorrow. What a wimp! And they wonder why the Q is a joke in comparison to the OHL and the Dub.

Strategy:

On CKAC, Dany Dubé says the Canadiens have to go strength against strength and play the Tomas Plekanec line against Alfredsson, Heatley and Spezza. Pierre McGuire, talking to Melnick, concurred. They think the best way to slow down the Ottawa snipers is to keep the puck away from them, which the Pleks line can do. I'm not so sure. I'd rather try the fourth line and have them contest the neutraal zone, dump the puck and forecheck aggressively. The danger is when Alfie or Spezza  carry the puck through the neutral zone and cross the Canadiens blueline at speed. I don't know that Pleks, Kovy and Andrei K. can counter that. We'll see.

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Submitted by 9410 on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 02:40.
Im just happy were in. I hope we get home ice, if not i won't cry. I think were gonna have a great month of April, May and hopefully June.

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 02:32.
Habs Spank Sens, Clinch Playoff Berth http://wwwrealitycheckeyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/03/habs-spank-sen...

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 17:58.
Love the post Robert. And I must say that the photo of the spanked... well... um... y'know, didn't hurt either! . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

m00ks's picture
Submitted by m00ks on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 03:20.
Very good read

Submitted by wild flower on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 02:22.
Motivation for upcoming game, post game Spezza: "We'll take some positives out of it, when we play our best we should be able to beat these guys. We just can't give up seven goals to anybody."

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 17:59.
Gotta pin that one to the wall of the dressing room! . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Submitted by 9410 on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 02:44.
Spezza is a putz.

Submitted by wild flower on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 01:48.
A side note about league parity, I live in the MB where the media often tries to fill the vacuum left by the Jets departure with Flames coverage. Now, a tale of two cities, after a season of discussion about every move Keenan has made, every point Inginla has tallied and every hit Dion has levelled, the Edmonton Oilers are only five points behind the Flames. If the Oilers make the post season, their rise from the dead will be the one Canadian story to rival coverage of the Hab's assent to the top.

Submitted by wild flower on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 01:34.
Ottawa felt the full force of the Habs offence and could not deal with it. Everyone from Kostopolus to Kovalev looked like a scoring threat. Bob's free agents look like they were made for this time of year (which is what he probably knew last summer). The Hab's team speed made Ottawa's d look bad many times tonight. I think we could read Murray's mind as he watched the Russians fly around. My guess is that he was thinking, oh oh this is going to be bad for years to come. Kovalev made some of his shiftiest moves of the year and I even saw Koivu restrain himself from taking a couple sure hooking calls. As for blowing the big lead, how can any team play with urgency while holding a six goal lead?

Submitted by Bouleau noir on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 01:13.
AWSOME we made it.. what a great bunch of players.. BRAVO ! The team looked good at the begining of the season and they only got better throught the season.... but who would have thought that they would be the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the East ? Even better is how they got there... they did it while playing superlative hochey based on speed, skills and creativity.... stuff that generate amazement,... this team has panache... highest scoring team in the NHL... best Power Play in the league... WOW!!

m00ks's picture
Submitted by m00ks on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:38.
Quite easy to forget the third for me. I take refuge in the fact that we were able to score 7 (most are pretty pretty goals I might add) against Ottawa and that we simply held down the A-S-Hole line for 40 min without Komisarek. Also comforting to see that it was a team breakdown rather than a goalie breakdown. When Price was basically alone for most of the third, he held it down as much as he could and really couldn't be faulted. 7-1 lead coming into the last 20 min? In your mind you've beaten them, you've embarrassed them, you've shut them down, it's hard to keep a strong motivation to finish the game. We got the two points and a monkey off our back. There's no sense getting greedy.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:35.
Bottom line is that we've clinched a playoff spot, something alone that would have had the season considered a success before game one. After their great start, Ottawa hasn't even played .500 hockey. There are still four teams that can catch them and knock them out of the playoffs. Heck, however unlikely it would be, even the Laffs have a chance to catch them if Ottawa goes 1-5 and Toronto runs the table. Washington, Buffalo and even Florida are better possibilities. Fact is, right now the Sens have far more to sweat about than the Habs do. They may call their third period rally a "statement", but it's the two periods previous that could still be their ultimate undoing. . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Submitted by Timo (not verified) on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 01:22.
Would it not ever be sweet is senators missed the playoffs? I even don't mind laffs in the playoffs as much as I would love to see sens not make it. Or I will settle for ottawa playing carolina in the first round and canes wiping the ice with spezza's face in 4 straight.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 01:26.
Deal! . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Submitted by Wencz on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:34.
Pretty frustrated with that 3rd period, can't imagine enjoying a 7-5 win any less than this. But I guess it can be chalked up to a lack of experience --- lots of young players plus veterans who haven't had a lot of (team) success in their careers. Good veteran teams do not respond to adversity the way we did tonight in the 3rd. Not only did they not come out with intensity but they also took STUPID penalties. And the weird thing was --- and I wonder who else felt the same --- I was worried when it was 7-2. Don't kid yourself, take away some solid saves by Price and that game is 7-7. Scary. Then again, Begin's early 3rd period shot is 1 inch lower and its 8-1. Weird game, whatever. It's probably a good lesson to learn as they go forward. I just hope that the 3rd period wasn't what the Sens needed to get them going. After all, when they are on their game they are the only (other?) legit contender from the East. I think their season was on the line tonight, and we could have burried them. Sorry about the pessism, but that last period really f'n irritated me.

Submitted by mrstewart61 on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 10:53.
I can accept your type of pessimism more than some others. ------------------------------------------------------------ My ultimate dream: Captain Saku Koivu skating around the Bell Centre holding the Stanley Cup.

gauvinator's picture
Submitted by gauvinator on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:48.
When the 3rd period began, I was hoping we'd at least try to score a couple more to keep the game interesting...didn't really plan on THEM scoring some more! Sure, we blew the 3rd but DAMN it was exciting! Besides, when a team has a large lead late in the game what usually happens? The losing team stops playing the game and starts going after the winning team's guys...especially with a rematch next week! While Ottawa was missing some toughness there would of been potential for Habs getting hurt...no need for that! It was a good leasson for us. Like Koivu said: "Obviously when you're up 7-1 you think you can take two points. But that probably won't be the case in the playoffs. We might have one- or two-goal lead and the focus has to stay consistent."

howtathor's picture
Submitted by howtathor on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:45.
Just got back from the game. As previously stated by Mike F. Boone, truly the best and the worst of times. Maybe the ghosts were just teaching us a lesson in not getting too cocky. Maybe we just came out in the third with a lot less intensity after playing amazing hockey for 40 min. In retrospect, not a bad night. A clinch of a playoff spot and a seemingly insurmountable lead in our division and first place in the conference increased by three points. It was a great night for Hell's Bels with 3 goals and an assist. Now four days to rest up before the Buffalo/TO weekend with the a rematch of a pissed Sen's club on Tues. It doesn't get any better!

Submitted by MathMan on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:42.
I can't complain too much... They totally dominated for two periods. They built up a six-goal lead. At that point their playoff spot was clinched, really. Then they mailed it in in the third expecting that the Sens, who play tomorrow, would do so as well, and got surprised when they didn't. That may not have been the wisest course of action for them with a game in less than 24 hours but I guess they wanted to make a statement. Yes, it was shameful, it was stupid, it was worrying... but the game was never *really* in doubt as they took a 3-goal lead in the final three minutes, and Ottawa only looked good in garbage time, when Montreal clearly let up. They, ultimately, figured out how to beat the Sens... and were reminded not to. A big two points and an important lesson. But I'll still miss the feeling in that all-too-brief moment when Montreal had a 7-1 lead against Ottawa.

frank81's picture
Submitted by frank81 on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:30.
14-5-1 in our last 20 games.

JasonM's picture
Submitted by JasonM on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:26.
Does anyone have the phone numbers of all the critics of the team that placed them 14th? I'd love to call them one by one and give them a piece of my mind. :) GO HABS GO

Submitted by mrstewart61 on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 10:55.
I remember several of them saying that Florida would fininsh ahead of us. ------------------------------------------------------------ My ultimate dream: Captain Saku Koivu skating around the Bell Centre holding the Stanley Cup.

Mattee.'s picture
Submitted by Mattee. on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:34.
I say we all post comments on the TSN, The Score, CBC, Sportsnet websites reminding the journalists they had us on the outside looking in! Just so they know we haven't forgotten.

Submitted by Timo (not verified) on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:15.
Nah... to need to waste time some loser sites. They don't deserve any more attention than their are aleady not getting.

Moey's picture
Submitted by Moey on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:20.
Bottom line is they beat the Senaturds, it doesn't have to be pretty...can we not, at this point in the season just support them, instead of picking out every mistake, and that includes you Mike, you're still the biggest blowhard I never met. (But a paid one). I still remember your words of wisdom in early fall, Carbo will be lucky to still be coaching by Thanksgiving...and you had your little tribe believing it..

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:49.
Mike Boone is the outward reflection of the pessimist in all of us, Moey. It's borne out of the agony of watching 15 years of crap Hab teams... but still wanting to believe that ultimate victory is always possible. Once bitten twice shy, as they say. He may have the "I'll believe it when I see it" attitude, but that's what comes from a lifelong fan who's unwilling to be satisfied with second-best. I was lucky enough to have a chat with Mike over a couple of brews at the HI/O Summit, and I believe that when this team leads us to the promised land, no one will be shouting their praises louder than Mike Boone. . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Mike Boone's picture
Submitted by Mike Boone on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 00:17.
Get into the games for free. Paid to be a blowhard. Leader of a little tribe. And you, Secretariat? Hard to hold pom-poms in your hooves?

Moey's picture
Submitted by Moey on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 17:25.
LOL, you're a fun bear to poke on occasion, and yes you have a dream job, need an assistant? Secretariat? No, but any comparison to Big Red I wlll take as a compliment!

Moey's picture
Submitted by Moey on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 17:25.
LOL, you're a fun bear to poke on occasion, and yes you have a dream job, need an assistant? Secretariat? No, but any comparison to Big Red I wlll take as a compliment!

Mattee.'s picture
Submitted by Mattee. on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:25.
Moey, I'm not gonna lie, most of the time i'm not sure we agree. But on that point, I am absolutely with you! I'm not analyzing the games anymore. I'm watching them and ENJOYING THEM. And it feels soooo goood! This is the best habs hockey in over a decade, turn off your computers and watch these kids grow up in front of your very eyes! PS: Going to the Sens/Habs game in Ottawa on the 1st and I'm sitting right behind the sens net. I vow to lose my voice before the third period. Emery/Gerber: I'm coming for you.

Moey's picture
Submitted by Moey on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:36.
Mattee, I'm pretty sure we've never had a run in that I can recall. Our Habs know what they're doing, I have no doubt. I also have to give some credit to my horse, I put him up as a mascot, Habs have done him proud. I want them to finish what he couldn't. GO HABS GO!!!

The Teacher's picture
Submitted by The Teacher on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:16.
In recognition of the Habs securing a playoff berth, I have decided to add a new feature to H/IO called "The Teacher's Report Card" The Habs- A The entire team played well tonight for the first 40 minutes. At this point the score was 7-1 and I figured it would end something like 8-4. Some of you may think this too high, but keep this is mind; They clinched a playoff berth and in the process of doing so, moved SEVEN points up on Ottawa and 3 points up on Pittsburgh. The most glaring thing during the first two periods is that they were doing ALL the little things right. That is what we need to ensure success in the playoffs Offence- A+ The highlight of the first two periods was an amazing offencive display keyed by Andrei Kostitsyn, Saku Koivu, Chris Higgins and Andrei Markov. These players we outstanding for the first 40 minutes. Higgins brought his work effort and was rewarded, he was a Dynamo all game long. AKostitsyn was doing great until he got rattled and then shied away from any possible hit afterwards. Defence- B Ayiyiyiyi, after foing everything right for the first 40 minutes, they decided to start their 4 days hiatus about 20 minutes too early. I knew we would get a few goals scored on us when for the first 5 minutes of the third period we were chasing them everywhere. Feet were NOT moving. Goaltending- B- Price made the saves he had to when he had to. He was victimized by some funny plays as well as a big miscue of his own. Reffing- F - They suck. Wow, we did not come out skating but we were victimized by at LEAST two phantom calls as well as having a lot of penalties let go that were committed on us. An absolute disgrace to see some of these calls. Kudos to Higgins and Lapierre. LAPIERRE GETS THE FIRST STAR OF THE GAME FOR HAVING THE BEST PERFORMANCE OF HIS NHL CAREER. AN ABSOLUTE STAR TONIGHT.

Submitted by HabsFreak (not verified) on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:21.
What about the coaching?

The Teacher's picture
Submitted by The Teacher on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:33.
There's always a critic ;) Coaching- A- Carbo did what he needed to do, got his PK in order and did not let the players panic. They were short a defenceman in the third who is pretty important. He called a timeout a goal after I thought he should but he at least called it. He is getting better and line matching. I don't know if you noticed but the lines sometimes hovered near the benches so that Murray would have no idea who he was putting on.

Submitted by krisdiggler on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:09.
anybody else notice the two teenagers making out behind Brian Murray during the timeout...classic

CH1909-2009's picture
Submitted by CH1909-2009 on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:26.
Hard not to. Hilarious. And meanwhile he was all atwitch with anxiety. GO HABS GO

Sbah Reverof's picture
Submitted by Sbah Reverof on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:01.
Agree with VanHab and kostadis; we beat Ottawa, end of story. Not the prettiest of wins, but whatever it takes to get to 1st, and the playoffs, is fine with me. The hardest thing about a huge lead so early in the game is, well, having a huge lead so early in the game. It almost begs a comeback, and i expected nothing less from one of the top teams in the league. When it counted and mattered most, Habs fought back and kept the W. Sure they fell asleep, but they were up 7-1. Hell, even I was starting to nod off. What I didn't like about the game was that neither team was playing hard at the same time, except for a few minutes at the end of the third; other than that, it was pretty lopsided, for each team.

ebk's picture
Submitted by ebk on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:00.
Their biggest game of the year and the Habs blew the Senators off of the ice. The Kovalev line dominated the Spezza line for the first two periods, lets hope Carbo keeps that match up for the next game. Yes, the 3rd period sucked but .... Playoff spot locked up, Northeastern division crown is 6 points for being clinched and the #1 seed 10 points!

Submitted by Lafrich on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:10.
10 points for the #1 seed, eh? So you're saying all we need to do is go 5-0? HAHAHA. Just busting your chops... Go Habs Go!!!

ebk's picture
Submitted by ebk on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:20.
actually what it means if they go 3-2 and Pittsburgh and New Jersey lose two of their last 6, the clinch the #1 seed.

Rugger's picture
Submitted by Rugger on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:12.
What it means is that is in the Habs hands, other teams need help to catch us.

Diriangen's picture
Submitted by Diriangen on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:56.
There it is guys and girls! Check out the big "X" besides Montreal on the Eastern Conference standings (yahoo sports). http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/standings;_ylt=AjTSwi1Z4GGLD3BrZKILUBJ7vLYF Go Habs!

Rugger's picture
Submitted by Rugger on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:58.
That's beautiful!

Submitted by yehaken on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:02.
Yes it truly is. Now to reaquaint myself with my wife for the next two weeks :o)

Submitted by yehaken on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:48.
Halak, please.

Submitted by HabsFreak (not verified) on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:03.
Some fellow fans are just like that Uncle you never admit to knowing.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:07.
You mean the one that has too many eggnogs at Christmas dinner? . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Mattee.'s picture
Submitted by Mattee. on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:53.
um, I think Price stays. For a while.

Submitted by yehaken on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:01.
Once again, with feeling: Love Price, he's the future. Until he's Marty Brodeur (who played 5/8 games until he was 2 years deep) or Patrick Roy (who played 5/8 games until he was 3 years deep), gotta pace the kid. Let him in slowly. Halak should play Friday or Saturday against the bad teams, so Price can come back and hopefully play better than he did tonight next week. Cause folks, Halak may have given up a bad goal against St. Louis, but Jebus gave up 3 baddies tonight. Good thing les boys gave him 7 goals to work with. Must admit, that 7th felt good!

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:06.
Say what you want, but with that pathetic 2-shot performance by the team in front of him in the 3rd, and the big saves that he made, Carey saved their butts tonight. . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

VancouverHab's picture
Submitted by VancouverHab on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:46.
Oh come on! Let off the emotion & look at the cold reality. We beat the Senators 7-5 in a crucial game for both teams, and beat them fair & square. The only justification (strategically speaking) of a six-goal lead is allow a cushion for any let-down. So they give up a twenty-goal lead: as long as they win, they are the better team at the end of the day. A Six-goal lead goes one of two ways: it demoralises the opposition or it gets their back up and makes them play to kill. If the Habs blow the lead, then, sure, that is a horror. But they didn't. They won the bloody game. Carbo taking a strip off the players? Ha! If he indeed does, he'll be laughing up his sleeve, because he has the experience to know how glorious this looks on Les Boys.

Submitted by dicktracy on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:45.
march the 24th, playoffs clinched, 7 points up on the second place team in our division, but not happy we lost the third period. Like i tell my leafs buddy...if we ever get even close to the cup, we will win it.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 23:10.
Some Hab fans would eat their young if given the chance! :) . . . ______________________________________ "All bow down before the Komisaurus Rex!"

Mattee.'s picture
Submitted by Mattee. on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:39.
mmm always looking for something to complain about. We played a good game tonight. I don't care what happened in the third. We got two points and they got none! I live in Ottawa and I hate the sens. If sens fans want to talk about the third period, they can chew on their moral fiber all they want! We got the W and we're standing on top of the mountain! WOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO! GO HABS GO!

Submitted by kostadis on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:41.
I don't understand the gnashing of teeth. The best line in hockey was told by their coach to go all out and try and score. And the best line in hockey went all out and scored. I mean these guys were THE class act in the NHL for the last couple of years. Price saved our asses a couple of times. Our players should learn how not to cross check or high stick in the offensive zone. And Komisarek was missed. The way I look at it with 7 minutes to play a 5-3 against the 23rd best team in the NHL on the pk , the best line failed to score for 53 seconds, and then failed to score on a pp for about 1 minute! And then with 30 seconds left 6 players on the ice, they once again failed to score. So no, I don't think this is a moral victory for Ottawa. Our guys let them back into the game, but with the game on the line, shut them down thoroughly. Get a grip folks.

Mickey's picture
Submitted by Mickey on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:36.
PK Subban scored the OT winner to put his team up 3-1 in their OHL playoff series. Got the puck at the point, winger win down to block the shot, PK danced around him walked in and absolutly sniped the top corner, high gloove

Submitted by HabsFreak (not verified) on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:30.
There will be a lot of questions and comments about the 3rd. But the game was over after the 2nd. Habs took their foot off the pedal and a good team who had been thoroughly embarassed caught some momentum off a couple of lucky bounces. I think maybe the refs were feeling sorry for the Sens with penalty after penalty. It's was a game of momentum and we won 2 of the 3 periods. I'll take that anytime! First place by 7 and the conference lead. Remember that when you post who you blame for the 3rd.

likehoy's picture
Submitted by likehoy on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:29.
reffing was overall poor all night...but i guess it evened itself out since ottawa got some bad calls in the second and we got some bad calls in the 3rd... i would have pulled price after the 4th one...not to insult price but to tell the team...is this how you're going to play to make your goalie look bad?? get better!! i don't think it's a big concern cause all blow-out games end with one team giving up by the end...turns out we're the team that gave up this time :P. Playoffs will be different...rarely any blowouts...but what's important in the playoffs is momentum. If we're up 5-2 and we win 5-4...the opposing team has the momentum heading into the next game. We've got to get better at cutting off the momentum before it starts.

P St. Pierre's picture
Submitted by P St. Pierre on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:27.
The officiating was brutal. Five straight minors in the third with none going the other way. That really wears out your team when you spend half of the third in the penalty box. Still, that meltdown should have never occurred. Hopefully the team takes a little responsibility because it wasn't all the refs' fault. Good to get the 2 points, no matter how ugly.

Submitted by SUMO on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:27.
Moral Victory to Ottawa. This game shouldn't have been so close.

Submitted by HabsFreak (not verified) on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:43.
43-24-10. 1st place in Conference. From a team we all conceded only had a good shot of even making the playoffs this year. And your complaining about 1 bad period after leading 7-1 over the defending Conference Champions? WOW - your life must really suck! DOES ANYONE THINK THAT OTTAWA FEELS LIKE THEY LOST A CLOSE ONE??? hahahaha They were embarassed as you can get. They have ZERO momentum. The next one is going to be as tough as this one heading into it no matter the outcome. Habs showed any doubters they are the real deal...not a Kovy show.

Submitted by SUMO on Tue, 03/25/2008 - 02:32.
Actually my life is pretty good. My point being at 7-1 heading into the 3rd we were dominating. We let them back in. at 7-5 they had a 2-man advantage. Fortunately they did not capitalize. Now lets, say they did happen to capitalize, the tune in here would be alot different. I'm happy with the Habs are in. Spare me your sarcasm, it is not appreciate.

Rugger's picture
Submitted by Rugger on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:25.
It doesn't matter cause we are IN the show!

NLhabsfan's picture
Submitted by NLhabsfan on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:25.
The Habs sat back a bit and it cost them...Some lousy calls from the refs.

Submitted by Jim Halpert on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:23.
you know, this was a good game. our boys learned that we can take it to the sens and dominate them, they also learned that if they don't play a full 60 minutes, two dominant periods may not count in the end. all in all they will probably think twice about letting up, no matter how big their lead is. i hate the refs and i hate the sens. we beat them both. good night.

showey47's picture
Submitted by showey47 on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:23.
carbo should be tearing these guys a new one after the ridiculous effort in the third bad officiating or not. The horrid penalty calls only resulted in one goal

tony d's picture
Submitted by tony d on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:22.
guess the Habs heard some fat lady singing a little early in the 3rd...hmmmmm another lesson learned... 6 goal lead is still no reason to lessen the grip on your opponent... anyho, I hope this doesn't shake the confidence they showed in the 1st 2.. Go Habs Go

tony d's picture
Submitted by tony d on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:23.
guess the Habs heard some fat lady singing a little early in the 3rd...hmmmmm another lesson learned... 6 goal lead is still no reason to lessen the grip on your opponent... anyho, I hope this doesn't shake the confidence they showed in the 1st 2.. Go Habs Go

Y's picture
Submitted by Y on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:19.
Who were those imposters out there in the 3rd?

RH's picture
Submitted by RH on Mon, 03/24/2008 - 22:18.
HORRIBLE officiating. Mcgeough and his sidekick should get some big fines for that debacle of a third period. Habs forgot that they were playing the Ottawa Senators, not the freakin' low scoring Rangers, or Bruins. They were lucky to score 7 and squeak out the win.

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