With the trade deadline over, the Montreal Canadiens came out without their No. 1 goalie and no help on offense.
A mere couple days after being on his horse while his jersey was retired, Bob Gainey looks as though he’ll be under the bus come tomorrow.
Cristobal Huet was traded to the Washington Capitals for a 2009 second-round draft pick while Pittsburgh traded their third and second line players for the highly-touted Marian Hossa.
The problem with this is that it leaves the Canadiens in the fate of two young goalies with no playoff experience in the NHL.
It’s not that everyone wanted to trade away Chris Higgins and our future players for Hossa, but the fact that teams loaded up with players that could indeed help their franchise move towards the goal of a Stanley Cup glory.
Sergei Fedorov, Brad Richards, and many more who fetched very little in return makes many fans wonder if we threw too much into the well of Hossa since we come up empty.
The main pill to swallow is the reason to trade the goalie that has been up and down but mostly positive in the middle of a tight playoff race.
This then comes back to last year’s problem with Mike Ribeiro and Sheldon Souray, where Montreal chose to hold onto Souray while Ribeiro turned himself into an All-Star in a Dallas Stars uniform.
Now with the giving away of Huet, they have received almost zero in return for the three All-Star players which makes you think about how much Gainey’s abilities are to find talent inside the NHL.
Of course Gainey may look like a genius as Carey Price or Jaroslav Halak surprises everyone and leads this team not only to the playoffs, but also to the Stanley cup finals.
Yeah it’s a pipe dream, but you have to wonder what exactly was Gainey thinking today?
Gainey has a lot more questions to answer then he did the day before.
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7 months ago
Excellent topic title. Gainey deserves to be raked over the coals by the rabid Montreal press for unceremoniously dumping Huet to a Eastern Conference team -no less-, and getting virtually nothing in return before the 2009 entry draft. What WAS he thinking ? That Price can carry the team as a young 20 year old in his first year in the big league ? Or was he preparing the table for Hossa by clearing up some salary cap space ? It seems that Don Waddell asked too much in return for Hossa, and that Gainey underestimated Hossa's increased market value once Mats Sundin closed the door on moving out of Toronto, and made the remaining star players a scarce commodity. In hindsight, last year's non-moves at the same period look like a stroke of genius compared to this year's failed negotiating attempt by Gainey. We can only hope that the remaining players will pick up the pace and prove that they were worth keeping. Time will tell.
7 months ago
i think this had everything to do with chemistry. gainey obviously knows more about what's going on in the locker room than we do, and i think he really dis'd huet. gainey is probably one of the brightest minds in the NHL, the Canadiens are way ahead of their game plan, and it is a big vote of confidence for price. but, i can't help feeling that sending huet to the caps for a 2nd rounder either has future considerations written all over it, or was meant to send a message.
7 months ago
Great analysis. You have to wonder about this Huet deal.. cuz as I've heard, the second-rounder isn't even Washington's. It came from Anaheim, is what I understand. This is a very bold move... and if the Habs get bounced in the first round because of goaltending, then Gainey will have a lot to answer for.
7 months ago
If you think trading 2 roster players, a top prospect (currently on the roster) and a pic for a rental player who has a poor playoff record and who will whore himself to the highest bidder on July 1st ...I'm sure glad its Bob at the helm and not you. Give your head a shake and think about the very near future when these players will blossom ...on Montreal - not Atlanta.
GO HABS GO!!!
from 7 months ago
Remember that Alexei Kovalev was just a rental player and now he's a main peice in our winning season. You never know what may have happened. I wasn't so much caught up on trading for Hossa but others were going cheaper and would have just as big of an impact.
I also don't get how he proves everyone wrong as we are on pace for the playoffs yet he trades our starting goalie.
7 months ago
Seriously! I am very disappointed with Gainey. It's just like last year when he opted to keep Souray! We all know what happened! No playoffs. I am a big Price fan but the way the Habs have been playing with Huet as their #1 guy....you don't have to be a GM to recognize you don't mess with a good thing! When players have confidence in one another and are playing great as a team you don't break that up. Pricey has all the ability in the world and there is no doubt in my mind that he will have a great career as the Habs #1 goalie but I just don't think that time is right now! I really thought the team... the way it was...was Stanley Cup bound. I really hope Gainey has some kind of crystal ball that made him make this deal because as a Habs fan I am getting frustrated. I want a cup or at the very least a great playoff run!
7 months ago
Gainey makes many gross errors, Ribiero, Souray, Samsonov and letting the team miss the playoffs after being close to first place in 06-07. But the team is good, there is plenty of salary cap room and the team drafts well enough to make up for the mistakes. So, let him have Carey Price and Anaheim's second round pick in 2009 and go watch the Habs win another game.
7 months ago
I am a Habs fan, I was upset with the trade of Huet. I feel Price is too inexperienced. He had to be sent back to the AHL just recently. I wondered what Gainey was thinking. Then I remembered Dallas Stars. So I'll keep my mouth shut and let him make the decisions. After all that is his job.
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