It may not have been pretty, but the Habs did
just enough to qualify for the playoffs for the 3rd straight season; they’ll
play Washington in the 1st round. The Bulldogs rested players down the
stretch and it showed with one of their weaker efforts of the season. With
the playoffs in mind, we take a look at how the newer Habs did in last year’s
postseason, while the Final Thought discusses the Sergei Kostitsyn situation.
This, plus the power rankings, in the Recap.
|
Power |
The PPR’s are on a cumulative basis with
some bias towards the current week. The prev. column represents the last
ranking for the player; players not on last week’s list will be slotted back
where they were when returning from injury/benching/recall (italicized numbers).
Thus, multiple players may have the same previous ranking. These power
rankings will continue into the playoffs, no new ones will be started.
Rk |
Player |
Prev. |
Comments |
1 |
Brian Gionta |
3 | Scored in every game when the team needed him most, need I say more? |
| 2 | Jaroslav Halak | 1 | Yes, he struggled, but without him, we’re probably not talking playoffs. |
3 |
Tomas Plekanec | 2 | -4 in the final 2 (and most important) games, needs to be much better. |
| 4 | Scott Gomez | 6 | An up and down week but really came to play against the Leafs. |
5 |
Andrei Markov | 5 | Still looks a little lost offensively but played quite well in his own end. |
| 6 | Josh Gorges | 8 | A deserving recipient of the Unsung Hero award, surprised it was close. |
7 |
Mike Cammalleri | 7 | Played his best game since returning on Saturday but still no production. |
| 8 | Benoit Pouliot | 10 | Reacted well to being benched, best play from him in recent weeks. |
| 9 | Dominic Moore | 11 | His line didn’t miss a beat when it got shuffled around…a couple of times. |
10 |
Andrei Kostitsyn | 9 | Consistently inconsistent, seems as if we’ve said this for years now. |
| 11 | Roman Hamrlik | 12 | If it weren’t for these being cumulative, he’d be a lot lower. |
12 |
Marc-Andre Bergeron | 16 | Some scary moments but mostly solid when moved back to defence. |
| 13 | Travis Moen | 15 | Expecting that his game to elevate now that the playoffs are here. |
14 |
Ryan O’Byrne | 13 | I think he got a bit of a raw deal being benched as long as he did. |
| 15 | Hal Gill | 17 | A couple of shaky moments but for the most part, steady as usual. |
16 |
Jaroslav Spacek | 18 | Wasn’t as good as I’d hoped considering the rest he’d had. |
| 17 | Sergei Kostitsyn | 14 | This benching is one of the few things he’s earned this season. |
| 18 | Tom Pyatt | 19 | He’s nothing more than a ‘safe’ player, could be worse for a 4th liner. |
| 19 | Maxim Lapierre | 21 | Lots of credit, this was easily his best week of the season. |
| 20 | Mathieu Darche | 20 | Looked good when he moved up but was mostly silent otherwise. |
Dropped from the rankings: Carey Price (4 –
DNP) and Ben Maxwell (22 – DNP)
|
The Dog |
Though it was not the best way to end the
season, there’s not too much cause for concern in Bulldogs land despite a 1-1-1
week including a home loss to their 1st round opponent, the Manitoba Moose.
|
Results: |
| April 6 | 1 |
2 | 3 | Tot |
PP |
SOG |
| Manitoba | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1/7 | 24 |
| Hamilton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0/8 | 35 |
Attendance: 3,079
3 Stars: 1) Shirokov – MTB 2) Rosa – MTB 3) Lacroix – HAM
| April 9 | 1 |
2 | 3 | OT | Tot |
PP |
SOG |
| Hamilton | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0/4 | 41 |
| Syracuse | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0/2 | 22 |
Attendance: 5,784
3 Stars: 1) Mayorov – SYR 2) Wyman – HAM 3) Stevenson –
HAM
| April 10 | 1 |
2 | 3 | OT | SO | Tot |
PP |
SOG |
| Hamilton | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0/2 | 18 |
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0/4 | 30 |
Attendance: 5,782
3 Stars: 1) Reimer – TOR 2) Mayer – HAM 3) Greenop – TOR
|
Stats: |
A trio of firsts highlighted the final game of
the season for the ‘Dogs – Robert Mayer and Olivier Fortier made their AHL
debuts while Chad Anderson scored his first goal of the season.
|
SKATERS |
| # | Player | GP | G | A | +/- | SH | PIMS |
| 4 | Michael Vernace | 3 | 0 | 0 | +3 | 4 | 0 |
| 5 | Alex Henry | 3 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 0 | 12 |
| 6 | Chad Anderson | 2 | 1 | 2 | +3 | 3 | 0 |
| 7 | Yannick Weber | 2 | 0 | 0 | +3 | 4 | 0 |
| 8 | Maxime Lacroix | 2 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 3 | 0 |
| 10 | J.T. Wyman | 3 | 2 | 1 | E | 8 | 0 |
| 12 | Andrew Conboy | 3 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 7 | 4 |
| 14 | Olivier Fortier | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | Mike Glumac | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 3 | 0 |
| 18 | Dany Masse | 2 | 0 | 0 | +2 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Brock Trotter | 2 | 0 | 0 | E | 7 | 0 |
| 20 | Ryan Russell | 2 | 1 | 0 | E | 7 | 2 |
| 25 | Ryan White | 2 | 0 | 2 | E | 1 | 2 |
| 26 | Grant Stevenson | 3 | 1 | 0 | E | 9 | 2 |
| 28 | Aaron Palushaj | 3 | 1 | 0 | -4 | 7 | 2 |
| 32 | Frederic St. Denis | 3 | 0 | 0 | -4 | 4 | 6 |
| 42 | Hunter Bishop | 3 | 1 | 2 | +3 | 9 | 0 |
| 44 | Shawn Belle | 3 | 0 | 2 | +4 | 1 | 2 |
| 51 | David Desharnais | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 4 | 0 |
| 61 | Andre Benoit | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 7 | 2 |
| 76 | P.K. Subban | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 5 | 0 |
|
GOALIES |
| # | Player | Record | SV% | GAA |
| 30 | Cedrick Desjardins | 1-1-0 | .870 | 2.98 |
| 35 | Robert Mayer | 0-0-1 | .931 | 1.85 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
| # | Player | G/ATT |
| 12 | Andrew Conboy | 0/1 |
| 20 | Ryan Russell | 0/1 |
| 28 | Aaron Palushaj | 0/1 |
| 42 | Hunter Bishop | 0/1 |
| 44 | Shawn Belle | 0/1 |
|
SHOOTOUT |
| # | Player | SVS/ATT |
| 35 | Robert Mayer | 4/5 |
|
Leaders: |
Goals: Brock Trotter (36)
(tied for 2nd in franchise history)
Assists: David Desharnais (51) (tied for 2nd in franchise history)
Points: David Desharnais (78) (franchise record)
+/-: P.K. Subban (+46) (franchise record)
PIMS: Ryan White (173)
Shots: Mike Glumac (195)
|
Round 1: |
April 15: Manitoba vs
Hamilton
April 17: Manitoba vs
Hamilton
April 19: Hamilton vs Manitoba
April 21: Hamilton vs Manitoba
April 23: Hamilton vs Manitoba*
April 25: Manitoba vs
Hamilton*
April 27: Manitoba vs
Hamilton*
|
Inside |
One of the key elements of the
Habs’ acquisitions this past offseason was their playoff experience. With
that in mind, let’s take a look at how each of the new players did in last
year’s playoffs.
Player |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
+/- |
PIMS |
ATOI |
| Scott Gomez | NYR | 7 | 2 | 3 | -4 | 4 | 19:58 |
| Brian Gionta | NJ | 7 | 2 | 3 | E | 4 | 17:49 |
| Mike Cammalleri | CGY | 6 | 1 | 2 | +1 | 2 | 18:01 |
| Paul Mara | NYR | 7 | 1 | 1 | -2 | 8 | 14:43 |
| Hal Gill | PIT | 24 | 0 | 2 | +8 | 6 | 19:25 |
| Travis Moen | SJ | 6 | 0 | 0 | -4 | 2 | 12:53 |
Marc-Andre Bergeron and Benoit
Pouliot (MIN) as well as Jaroslav Spacek and Dominic Moore (BUF) did not
participate in last year’s playoffs.
|
Final |
What’s the one thing any team can
afford to do without heading into the postseason? Unhealthy conflict,
which is just what Sergei Kostitsyn happened to provide over the last few days
by not showing up to practice and not participating in the warmup on Saturday
night. He’s pouting yet again and quite frankly, he doesn’t have much of a
case as it’s not like he provides an essential element to this team (like
scoring, or even consistent effort…not that he’s the only one who’s like this
though). You want to get back in the lineup? Sitting around and not
going out for practice and the warmup isn’t going to help. Rather than
once again making everything about you (like his repeated refusals to go to the
AHL), try doing what’s best for the team – keep your mouth shut and let your
play do the talking…heck, maybe then it’ll actually say something positive.
Sarcasm aside, there is a role for him on this team heading into the playoffs
but unless he gets his act together, the team is better off without him.
If you have a question regarding this article or the
capsheet,
please feel free to drop me a line at
b.larose@habsworld.net.