Habs Have a Choice To Make, Picks or Playoffs?

Dwindling Playoff Hopes Beg the Question, What Direction is this Team Headed in?

With the Montreal Canadiens set to skate in their 51^st game of the regular season tonight at the Bell Centre versus the St.Louis Blues, there are some very serious decisions on the table, waiting to be made.

The Canadiens have 50 points through 50 games and sit slightly outside of the playoff mix at the moment. Nothing too surprising for most of the pundits who pegged the Habs off-season remake as a ‘shot in the dark’ or as “Gainey’s last shot”, but the truth of the matter is that no matter how perfect the Habs season could have gone, the process of re-making, ahem, rebuilding, a franchise is one that takes a lot of time, patience and above all, research.

Andrei Markov

Now, that brings us to the Habs current situation.

The Habs are just as close to the playoffs as they are to being in contention for the June Draft Lottery.

Realistically, that statement hits a lot of Habs fans “squa’ in tha’ noots”, as Eric Cartman likes to say.

A tough pill to swallow, but a realistic one.

Do the Habs have enough in the tank to make a playoff push?

It’s a tough call, but the roster, when healthy that is, could be said to be a qualified playoff capable team, yet, with all of the injuries and mixing of matching of the teams lines, it has not been an easy year for Montreal and the fact remains that they have yet to truly find any legitimate chemistry.

The flashes of brilliance, the occasional winning streaks and the astoundingly successful power play are put small windows onto what is actually capable with this Montreal club.

The Canadiens aren’t winning an NHL or franchise record 25^th Cup this year, but that does not mean there’s no hope. That just means that the Habs are going to have to decide on a direction.

No, not a new direction, not another twist to the mangled corps of what was once a beautiful bombshell blonde of a team, but a decisive direction. One that will bring this team back to an elite level of compete that will see this organization return to a spot atop the NHL.

And that may be the most difficult decision of all.

That may be why we have seen the Canadiens pass on waiving players like Georges Laraque(despite his NMC, something could have been arranged…had the enforcer even been approached), refute trade talks and balk at free pickups such as the recently waived, Petr Sykora.

So, what are they waiting for?

Good question.

We all know that Bob Gainey is likely the most patient General Manager in the NHL, and that is a good thing, but how do we really know where this team is heading?

The Habs have 32 games remaining on the schedule and an ever narrowing window of opportunity to make the post-season. Considering the franchises current state, the Habs are in no place to be trading draft picks or picking up large salaries, but does that mean they can’t be proactive about their immediate future.

The Habs sit in 24^th overall in the NHL.

Do they go for it, and attempt to make a run for the playoffs?

Of course they will.

But should they really be thinking about finding a way to better their chances of landing a top 5 pick?

Absolutely.

The Canadiens sit on the cusp of a very difficult time during their 2009-2010 campaign.

They can mix and mingle at the deadline if they are still involved in the chase, but in my humble opinion, if the Canadiens cannot manage to keep pace with some of the other healthier and deeper clubs involved in the playoff race, I won’t fault them for looking towards the 2010-2011 season and what they might be able to accomplish this summer at the Draft and through free agency.

There are many directions that the team and management can take, but what will be best for the team is still apparently one thing no one within the organization seems to have a clear answer to.

The run into the Olympics may offer a clearer picture of what is happening with the Montreal Canadiens, but for now, we will all have to grip the edges of our seats real tight and watch, night after night and game after game, as the Habs continue to drag their fans on the roller coaster ride that this season has become in the great city of Montreal.

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Go Habs!!!!!