Newcomers Dazzle as Habs beat Pens 4-3 | Subban + 16 others sent to Hamilton
stevenhindle | Sep 22, 2009 | Comments 4
Top Summer Acquisitions Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri Dazzle Habs Faithful
It was an entertaining night at Bell Center last night as the Habs took on the reigning Stanley Cup champions.
It was entertaining for many reasons; Price played the entire game, Crosby and Malkin played together for the first time since they hoisted the Cup, Gomez, Gio and Cammy showed chemistry Montreal has not seen in years, Markov was a pillar of strength and most of all, Jacques Martin demostrated poise and patience in shuffling his lineup in an effort to overcome a 2-1 defecit.
The 3 stars on the night were Gionta, Gomez and Cammalleri and for good reason. Gionta, who has been an absolute menace since he donned the CH, potted another 2 goals and added an assist while Gomez and Cammalleri helped the Habs overcome the Penguins. The performance of Montreal’s top 3 off-season acquisitions is certainly a delight to Habs fans, but also to Jacques Martin and Bob Gainey.
When Max Pacioretty was not able to participate in the 3rd period of play because of an upper-body injury, Martin decided to pair the 3 new Habs together in turn shifting the games momentum and giving the Canadiens the upper hand of a dynamic scoring line.
And dynamic they were.
Gomez and Gionta demonstrated a taste of their former chemistry from Jersey when they tied the game up on a brilliant give-and-go shorthanded marker only minutes into the 3rd period. The early shorthander gave Montreal the momentum as the efforts of the first line seeped over to the hard-working duo of Max Lapierre and Guillaume Latendresse. Along with Andrei Kostitsyn, the Canadiens native sons corraled a wild puck to give Montreal its 3rd goal of the game and a lead. Again, Martin turned to his top paid trio and was not disappointed as the sparkplug trio of Gomez, Gionta and Cammalleri which combined for a ‘highlight of the night’ game winning goal.
Although it was nice to see the Canadiens newcomers put up such a strong performance, it was perhaps more interesting to see Andrei Markov and Carey Price turn in strong performances. Markov contributed with 26+ minutes of ice time, a + 4 and 2 assists while Carey turned away 28 of the Penguins 31 shots, getting beaten only by Gonchar, Malkin and Guerin.
Montreal has 2 more pre-season games to go and with such little time left in September to fill out the Canadiens opening night roster for their October 1st season opener in Toronto, Jacques Martin and staff pared down their roster by sending cutting 17 players, including fan-favorite and top Habs prospect, P.K. Subban(who was also notably on last night’s Habs-Pens ticket stub).
Here is a list of the players that Montreal sent to Hamilton today;
Robert Mayer
Cedric Desjardins
Chad Anderson
Andre Benoit
Michael Busto
P.K. Subban
Frederick St-Denis
Ryan White
David Desharnais
Andrew Conboy
Brock Trotter
Dany Masse
Mike Glumac
Mathieu Darche
That leaves Ben Maxwell, Tom Pyatt and Matt Carle among the outsiders who still have a shot while players like Yannick Weber, Ryan O’Byrne, Sergei Kostitsyn, Kyle Chipchura, Matt D’Agostini and Max Pacioretty fight it out with the 3 Hamilton bound prospects for the final spots on the team.
It should be an interesting fight!
With games versus the Bruins and Sabres left before the real season kicks in, expect Martin to start icing stronger lineups and to start focusing on what his pairings will be.
stevenhindle@hotmail.com
Filed Under: Eastern Conference • Montreal Canadiens • NHL Teams
As a Habs fan, I was really cautious about accepting what Gainey did in pretty much re-vamping the entire team. I said from the beginning that this venture is a massive chemistry experiment- and for the sake of Gainey and for Montreal, I hope it works out. Sounds like everything went to plan so far, let's see if this continues.
I couldn't agree more Sabs. The ball is still very much in the air and from my view of things in Montreal, I still firmly believe that they are another top 6 forward away from crossing into contender territory. They will be a strong team, but not among the elite. Unless Carey Price decides to take them there.
Things will be tentative for the first few months, but if things don't turn out favorably quickly, expect the new ownership to forcibly suggest that Gainey make some moves to improve the roster. I beleive that Plekanec, the 2 Kost bros and Jaro Halak are prime trade bait at the moment and could bring a very good return. There is also the outside shot of someone like a Ryan O'Byrne, Matt D'Agostini or Kyle Chipchura also getting offered up. The Habs have some leverage in player, prospects and picks, so until things go wrong, no moves will be made. But, the moment things go sour…I think the point of this past summer has made it clear to a few Canadiens, if you do not perform in the first half of the season, you will be gone.
Personally, I'm a new habs fan (i started really following them during the 2008 playoffs) and I'm having a hard time getting used to a team without many of the names that I got accustomed to, like Koivu and Komisarek.
Your not the only one getting used to all the new names! I think half of the fans are just outright confused with all of the new jerseys skating around out there. Should be fun to watch how all the new faces react once the real season gets going!