I have been away. Off to Europe I went, passport in hand, backpack on , well ya, the back. It was fantastic, I could tell stories, but this is a hockey blog, its the wrong medium. Ok, focus, when I left Canada in January, the Habs were floating around 5 or 6 place in the Eastern Conference, things looked eerily similar to years past. The Habs looked like they might play .500 hockey and squeak into the playoffs, or once again fall into their all to typical post-Christmas swoon and be on the outside looking in. It hasn't happened, the Habs have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL for the last couple of months, and after last night's 4-0 victory over the Devils they see themselves on top of the Eastern Conference. Who'd have thunk it? Not me, nope I am forever the pessimist, its innate for a Habs fan, it protects us from the inevitable soul crushing that is watching the Habs being brilliantly mediocre year in and year out.
Right so there are 11 regular season games remaining. I am positive that my boys will make it into the playoffs, as for winning the Conference, of that, I am not as confident...see there is the pessimism again. Right now there are 4 teams that are competing for the top spot. The Habs, the Devils, the Sens, and the Pens. The Habs, who are riding a hot Carey Price, and a rejuvenated Alex Kovalev, are going to have to shore up their defense, and pray for secondary scoring outside the top line. This may sound absurd, considering the way he has played all year, but I think the play of Michael Ryder, might be key to the Hab's success during the stretch. The Devils, what can you say about the Devils? Any team that has Marty between the pipes is going to be successful. The are a bore to watch, and a bitch to play, I think they will finish at the top of the Eastern Conference pile by game 82. The Sens, oh the enigma that is the Sens. When the Sens are on, they are deadly. They have the best top line in the NHL (when Alfie is healthy), but after that the Sens are vulnerable. The soap opera that is Ray Emery, and a defense that is very suspect, might just keep the Sens from the top spot. They are however, very streaky, it would not surprise me if they finish anywhere from 1st-5th. The Pens, even when Sid was out the Pens found a way to win. Malkin solidified his status as a legitimate NHL superstar. They made a splash at the deadline by adding Hossa. When the Pens get healthy the are going to be one off the most exciting teams in the league to watch. My fear with the Pens is their goaltending and defense, both are average at best. I don't think the Pens are quite ready to win the Conference. But with the amount of skill that is on that team, like the Sens anything is possible.
There you go, my first hockey blurb in months. I haven't been this excited about my Habs in years. There seems to be something special in the air, what with the parallels that can be made to Dryden, Roy, and Price, and the fact that the last time the Habs were in first place this late in the regular season was 1993, and well every Habs fan knows what happened that year. Oh but I am a pessimist, a pessimist damn it! Go Habs!
Right so there are 11 regular season games remaining. I am positive that my boys will make it into the playoffs, as for winning the Conference, of that, I am not as confident...see there is the pessimism again. Right now there are 4 teams that are competing for the top spot. The Habs, the Devils, the Sens, and the Pens. The Habs, who are riding a hot Carey Price, and a rejuvenated Alex Kovalev, are going to have to shore up their defense, and pray for secondary scoring outside the top line. This may sound absurd, considering the way he has played all year, but I think the play of Michael Ryder, might be key to the Hab's success during the stretch. The Devils, what can you say about the Devils? Any team that has Marty between the pipes is going to be successful. The are a bore to watch, and a bitch to play, I think they will finish at the top of the Eastern Conference pile by game 82. The Sens, oh the enigma that is the Sens. When the Sens are on, they are deadly. They have the best top line in the NHL (when Alfie is healthy), but after that the Sens are vulnerable. The soap opera that is Ray Emery, and a defense that is very suspect, might just keep the Sens from the top spot. They are however, very streaky, it would not surprise me if they finish anywhere from 1st-5th. The Pens, even when Sid was out the Pens found a way to win. Malkin solidified his status as a legitimate NHL superstar. They made a splash at the deadline by adding Hossa. When the Pens get healthy the are going to be one off the most exciting teams in the league to watch. My fear with the Pens is their goaltending and defense, both are average at best. I don't think the Pens are quite ready to win the Conference. But with the amount of skill that is on that team, like the Sens anything is possible.
There you go, my first hockey blurb in months. I haven't been this excited about my Habs in years. There seems to be something special in the air, what with the parallels that can be made to Dryden, Roy, and Price, and the fact that the last time the Habs were in first place this late in the regular season was 1993, and well every Habs fan knows what happened that year. Oh but I am a pessimist, a pessimist damn it! Go Habs!
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