Bleacher Report - Articles by paul mason

Marian Gaborik a Good Fit for the Montreal Canadiens

paul mason — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 15:12:48 -0400

I am a die-hard Habs fan. When people ask what the CH stands for on the Canadiens' jersey I inform them, with just the tip of my tongue in my cheek, "Centre H'Ice."

The point is, I am a huge Gainey "fanboy." I was old enough to watch Gainey win a Cup wearing the historic "C."

But there are a couple suggestions I would rely to him. What, not every (or any) NHL GM wants to hear from John Q? Qu'elle surprise.

One idea I just thought of was sparked by an article written by Nick Maxson that I found on the front page of Bleacher Report's NHL front page. In it he speculated about the talented forward's future.

Marian Gaborik, as highlighted by that article, is a UFA next summer. His days with the Wild may be numbered.

It is too early to start seriously prognosticating his fate. However, I would make a pitch to him if I was Gainey for two simple reasons almost obvious enough not to have to list them.

For those fans who don't know they are:

1) Montreal pretty much lost the Sundin sweepstakes, even prior to any kind of announcement on his part. Logically, one can see that if Sundin wanted to sign with Montreal, he would have by now.

Sorry, fellow fans of the Habs empire (which was burning while Huet left), but Sundin is too classy to string along Montreal like that. He is classy enough that he would not go back on his word like that.

He stated all along he wanted to finish his career as a Leaf. He will either play with Toronto or hang them up, in my opinion. (Of course my last prediction on Bleacher Report was that Leafs would make the playoffs. Whoops).

The Habs can use the Cap room that was reserved to sign Sundin to a couple years to assist in the fund to sign Gaborik to three or more.

2) Gaborik is definitely a worthy pick up for a team whose five-on-fiv e scoring still needs more depth for them to be a true Cup Contender. It breaks my heart to admit that, but I'm a realistic fan, even if that sometimes seems like an oxymoron.

Gaborik would gel nicely with Kovalev and Tanguay. Of course Gainey may be a little trigger-shy after the "Samsonov experiment." In Samsonov's defense, Carbonneau was a rookie coach unsure who to match Samsonov with.

A no-brainer to EA addicts, but not as easy as it might seem.

3) He's freaking Marian Gaborik. Ladies and gentlemen, I rest my case.

Senators-Canadiens: Alfredson, Heatley, Spezza Dominate

paul mason — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 14:43:04 -0500

The final score of the Montreal-Ottawa rematch was Ottawa 6, Montreal 1.

Earlier this week, the Habs beat a Heatley and Alfredsonless Senator squad 4-3. Tonight's rematch was expected by many to be an intense match.

Spezza scored 22 seconds into the first period, and his line added two more goals by the 4:45 mark of the period. Huet was pulled after the third goal was let in on the fourth shot faced. Coach Carboneau replaced Huet with rookie Carey Price, who was recalled earlier this week from Hamilton.

However the play was in Ottawa's end for the latter fifteen minutes of the opening frame. Spurred on by a power play, Montreal iced shift after shift of intense forechecking, keeping the puck in Ottawa's defensive zone, but unable to beat Emery at the intermission.

The second period was pretty evenly played, although Ottawa added two goals by the Heatly, Alfredson, and Spezza line to Montreal's one by Andrei Kostitsyn. Ottawa beat Montreal in battles for some loose pucks, but as far as offensive zone time it was pretty evenly matched. It was only when Alfredson scored in the sixth period that it seemed like all the air deflated out of the Canadiens.

The final score seemed to answer the question of who was the real favorite to win the Eastern Conference, as with the loss Montreal now slips five points behind Ottawa for the lead.

Earlier this week Montreal was a mere point behind the Senators for first place in the conference, but a 3 out of 4 game losing skid has hurt the Canadiens in the standings.

This Bleacherreport scribe contends though that Montreal is not out of the picture. The game was not as lopsided as the final score suggests. Montreal outshot Ottawa in the first period, but could not beat Emery. Montreal also hit at least four posts/crossbars during the game.

In short, after Ottawa stormed out of the gate in the opening five minutes to make their statement, Montreal proved they were able to play with the big boys in the East. Outside of Ottawa's first line, who accounted for all six goals, the rest of the Senators were evenly matched by Carboneau's squad.

Credit also has to be given to Emery, who played like he wished to erase all the season's earlier distractions and controversy and reclaim his number one goalie status.

History Made!: Eli Manning Keeps It in the Family

paul mason — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 14:24:33 -0500

History has been made. The New England Patriots did not win the Super Bowl completing their perfect season. However, two brothers have won back to back Super Bowls.

Eli Manning the, 27-year-old younger brother of Super Bowl champ Peyton Manning, has led the New York Football Giants to win Super Bowl XLII.

I would estimate 70 percent of the hype surrounding the Super Bowl was aimed at the Patriots pursuit of perfection, and Brady's personal chase of history becoming only the third quarterback with four Super Bowl rings.

But History favored the heavy underdogs. The spread fluctuated conservatively between 12.5 and 13 points in the New England Patriots favor, and most analysts I watched before the game on both Fox Sports and ESPN picked Brady and his Patriots to cover the spread.

It was a dramatic game for all the expected reasons and even possibly in spite of the hype and media blitz that always seems to precede the game.

New England went into the second half with a 7-3 lead. The Giants would not roll over though, as their stellar defense gave Eli Manning the chance to lead his team down the field trailing 14-10 in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter and complete a touchdown pass to the simultaneously overexposed and underrated Plaxico Burress.

The Giants won the Game 17-14. Super Bowl XLII ended not only with the Manning brothers winning back to back Super Bowls, but with both quarterbacks being named Super Bowl MVP.

Now that is history I can celebrate.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Playoff Bound

paul mason — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:30:18 -0500

One win does not make a season, and any serious hockey fan knows the Toronto Maple Leafs will still battle their way uphill to make it to the playoffs.

Last week a producer for the Fan590, a local Toronto sports radio network, was said to have organized a parade celebrating the Leafs victory. Presumably no parade occurred and the hype was simply sarcastic, but I do wish to go on record as saying the Leafs will make the playoffs.

The parade was facetiously reported during the height of the franchise's quagmire of a season, but the Leafs have won four of their last five hockey games and nearly managed an eleventh hour comeback in their loss to the Devils. They have fired one GM (though he had achieved the best winning percentage in recent history), because Toronto fans have waited forty years for the Stanley Cup and desperately want a shot at the playoffs.

Enter Cliff Fletcher. It’s not his hiring that has me suddenly optimistic; I thought they had a playoff team before the changes were made. But Fletcher's taking over makes it easier for me to go on record and predict an extended Leafs season.

Firstly, although Fletcher’s winning percentage was lower than Ferguson's, he led the team to the best playoff success they’ve had in the recent past.

Secondly I’m not sure Sundin will be traded before or at the deadline. If Mats reverses his stance and waives his no-trade clause, I believe Fletcher will gain more for the Leafs than prospects and draft picks. In other words, a Sundin trade will not signal surrender. If anyone can get full value for the superstar, it’s Fletcher, who was [in]famous for blockbuster deals during his first tenure in Toronto.

I am unconvinced that Mats is going anywhere. Despite speculation by some, Fletcher was brought in as much to convince the captain to waive his clause as for any other reason. I believe statements from Mats make it more likely that Fletcher will convince others to waive their clause and leave Mats in Toronto.

The tools are in place and some are clamoring for a complete rebuilding—several reporters asked about this at Fletcher's press conference. As I’ve said before and maintain now, Toronto is not a patient enough from the top down to rebuild from ground up.

The powers that be maintain the goal is to make the playoffs. This writer is not anxious to give credibility to Peddie and his ilk, but I do predict the team will make the playoffs, almost in spite of the board and its meddling.

Montreal Canadiens: Taking the Next Step

paul mason — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:13:14 -0500

Montreal seems to be solidly positioned with a playoff berth. Although by team officials' own standards the Canadiens are not yet ready to truly contend for a Cup, there has been positive progress with some of their prospects.

What one may wonder concerning the Habs is what they need and what assets they are willing to deal in order to challenge in the playoffs, not only this season but in the future as well.

There are rumors, surfacing during yesterday's Flames game on TSN, that a deal between Montreal and Calgary is in the works. Earlier it was rumored that a possible trade could happen between the clubs involving Kovalev for Tanguay.

This trade would not really benefit Montreal, posing advantage in neither the short nor the long term. Recently it was reported Kovalev was actually happy this season and he is putting up more than solid numbers points-wise. Tanguay, while a talented young player, is not as young as he once was (obviously), so it is not like the Habs could build their team around him.

If they could gain Tanguay without sacrificing Kovelev, Koivu, Streit, or the Kositsins, I say more power to them.

So what players can Montreal trade? Perhaps Halak, a talented young goaltender languishing on the depth chart behind Huet and Price. Ryder, although a young point producer, would have value to other teams and would theoretically be able to deliver a return better than the exchange that Gainey acquired for Ribiero.

Although the Canadiens have had some really productive games and lead the league in the power play, Gainey should not get too comfortable with the offense. If there is one thing the Habs need in order to contend for the Cup, it is size and goal scoring. Their goaltending is solid and their defense has just enough experience and skill to go farther in the playoffs than they did a couple of seasons ago.

Hopefully Gainey is able to add these traits before or on the deadline.

What the Toronto Maple Leafs Need

paul mason — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:29:13 -0500

Unless you live in a sports vacuum, it is hard to be ignorant in the GTA of the Leafs' recent woes. After losing four in a row, including a winless trip to California, the media and public are putting the Leafs under a microscope...again.

It seems like everyone from expert pundits Dreger and McKenzie to the average Joe has an opinion about the problems with the Leafs, as well as possible solutions. Theories have been bandied about, ranging from trading Sundin for prospects and resigning him in the 2008-09 season to firing Ferguson and Maurice.

The Leafs organization is in disarray. I have not seen such a complete lack of a game plan since the Ballard years.

MLSE, much like the late Ballard, seems more interested in bottom line profit than putting a quality product on the ice. Peddie admitted hiring Ferguson was a mistake, but hindsight is 20-20. The question now is what can be done to fix this mess in the immediate future, if anything?

I propose nothing can be done without creating a bigger mess this season. The best the team can hope for is keeping status quo. Hiring interim personnel for a short term fix will only creates future problems for the franchise.

What they do need is an exorcist to rid the franchise of the lingering spirit of Ballard. Maybe then they'll be sold to an owner, not an ownership group, who cares enough about hockey to build contenders not pretenders.