I have announcement to make!

I can OFFICIALLY say that I've fallen asleep through a Devils game now! It happened around 9:15 EST. I was lounging on the couch, wondering why the NHL schedule was subjecting me such a boring game, when POOF. I fell asleep.

So now I can officially cross off "Really fall a sleep during a Devils' game" off my list of things to do.

WHOO!

......

Habs are taking on the Flames tonight. Both teams are 2-0-0 (although, I think we can thank Crabby Khabby for the Flames' last victory). Except the Flames aren't losing their defensemen faster than Ovie can score on Vesa Toskala....

So what I want tonight:

• OFFENSE! That means you, Andrei. If Sergei is really headed back to Hammie-town then it's time for you to smarten up too.
• No getting stuck in our own zone for hours on end. That means everyone.
• No more injuries! Give Andrei a smack upside the head if he's still sleep-skating, but other than that, leave everyone else alone. That means you, Phaneuf.
• No more 40 + shots directed at the poor Habs goalie. That means everyone.
• I'm sure there was other stuff but I'll leave that to Martin to lecture about.

Oh and did we mention that the game is IN Calgary? This is important because the city is a whopping TWO HOURS behind (which is not as bad as VANCOUVER but still). This means that we have to wait until NINE to watch the game. Did nobody ever tell these people that some of us have to sleep at night? Seriously! Maybe I'll pretend it's the Devils and go to sleep. ANYWAY, until the Habs game starts, I'll be debating whether I want to watch the Caps or laugh at the Skirmish of Ontario.

In other news:

• O'Byrne will be out for 8 weeks
• Sergei has indeed reported to Hamilton (or so says Bob and the Hamilton Bulldogs anyway)
• I want a cast iron tea kettle. Buy me one, pwease?

Bleh

I'm sure the Devils fans are cheering beyond belief right now. Good for them. Really. I mean that. It's nice to hear about people cheering in happiness when their team wins. Wish I remembered what that was like. Anyway... As much as the game was painful from a Habs perspective, I was more worried about dying of boredom again than anything else. I mean, damn those Devils are boring as hell to watch (no pun intended in the least!). If Bettman wants games where people score more then he should ban the Devils from the league. Bleh. Get this, the Leafs single-handedly generated double the amount of goals scored by the Devils and Habs combined tonight.

It took a whole period for the Habs to calm down and stop getting totally beat up but by that point I think they had already reached the point of no return as it was 2-1 for the Devils on two awful goals (sorry Jaro...you did pick it up after though!). That whole first period they looked awful and while they generated some offense during the next couple of period it was neither particularly strong nor was it sustained for more than a milasecond. I'm really not sure how anyone can give Brodeur full credit for winning this game because at the end of the night, I'd give all the credit to the guys in front of him. Whatever. For a guy playing in his 1000th game, Brisebois actually didn't look that awful for most of the game. He had some nice plays actually and broke up a 2 on 1 rush at one point.

Enemy watch

• Flyers downed the Rangers. That's good.
• Boston beat the Islanders 2-1. I've got mixed feelings about this one. Best in the east beats worst in the east by a score of 2-1. Does that mean that the Bruins - who we couldn't beat at all - sucked that badly or did the Islanders - who we couldn't beat either - do that well? Either way, I'm mad.
• Sens battled back to win 4-3 in shootouts. Saw the winner in the shootouts and it looked kind of awful from Fleury's point of view. I'm mad that it's the Sens who won.
• Grabovski got a hat trick and the stupid Leafs won 8-6 over the Flames. The Flames seem to like to wrack up the score, eh? Edit: they tell me he only had 2 goals and some number of assists. And Jokinen got the hat trick. Oh that makes me feel a lot better. NOT. Whatever. Too many people scored too many goals. Kipper you suck. Gerber you suck too. BAH.
  
• Ovie got the shootout winner as the Caps downed the Hurricanes. Thank you Theodore and Backstrom for also doing some work in the shootout. And thanks Semin for the goal and three assists. Nice work for Ovie though. Oh yes, I'm biased.
• And Tampa Bay came back and won in shootouts against the Panthies. Good.

All this really doesn't cheer me up because it makes me realize that the Habs are only hanging in there because the games of other teams have gone in their favor. Yuck.

Bring on the Devils?

Here comes Brodeur and he's seeking to equal Patrick Roy's record tonight. In in the spirit of being totally pessimistic, I'll say that he's going to get it one way or another today. Probably the easy way. The irony that he will get it here in Montreal against the same team that Patrick Roy did most of his interesting stuff with, is well... ironic. He couldn't have been shooting for that record the other night or in their next game. No. It just had to be here and it had to be TONIGHT.

Read this here at Eyes on the Prize if you want to not feel totally awful when Brodeur gets that record...not that I'm really interested in defending Roy and his record or anything....

Anyway.....

Before the Battle

It was a bright and sunny day. Spring was in the air. Birds were tweeting. And the people were twittering too. But over the town of Habsland, it felt as though the darkest day of winter had just arrived. After a long battle away in which their headcoach had fallen, the troops had returned only to be confronted with another huge challenge. Awaiting them at the gates of their town was King Martin with his army known simply as "the Devils". They had come from the evil land of New Jersey where they did evil things like implement the horridly boring "trap system" into their battles. Tonight, they had come to make the lives of the poor townsfolk of Habsland miserable.

For you see, King Martin was considered to be "special". Over his long career he had downed many poor unsuspecting armies and everyone thought he was fantastic (well, everyone in the evil land of New Jersey anyway). But two records had always alluded him. One was the record for total decimation of aforementioned unsuspecting people in which they were, well, totally decimated without putting up a fight. And the second was the all time of smashing people who did sort of put up a fight.

That second record belonged to Saint Patrick who really wasn't a saint, but saints are never saints anyway. Every child in Habsland knew that Saint Patrick was great (except for the ones who thought he was a moron for running away to the mountain region called Denver where the lost people of the Quebec Nordique had relocated). He had won many very important battles for the Habs. He had brought them their last huge triumph. He may have had a mixed legacy with the Habs but at the end of the day, he was still one of them. And now big bad King Martin was here to take that record away. He was here to take all the glory and cool stuff for himself.

The battle weary Habs could only stare at the army waiting for them in despair. Since their coach had fallen, King Bob had taken over. With him, Bob had brought with him some foreigner named Don Lever who spoke in some alien language called English. Nobody knew anything about the guy and nobody wanted to know about him either. But anyway... King Bob was nothing like Coach Carbo and the troops were still in slight disarray as they tried to adjust to the new battle plans. But could they really stave off the inevitable? Could King Bob really make his troops do what seemed like the impossible?

That question that was on the minds of the people of Habsland. Could their troops really stand up to King Martin and the Devils? Thrice already they had been beaten down by King Martin's armies this year. And that was when Protector Clemmensen of the Land Where People Have Too Many Consonants in Their Names was in charge. Now that the real king was back, could the Habs really beat him?

Hope was not exactly restored when the people of Habsland got word that their king was going to put Sir Halak the Slovak into the action tonight instead of Prince Price. Nor were they happy to hear that the aging knight Breezer was going to be flung into the fray as well instead of Squire O'Byrne. So they were saving Prince Price from total humiliation at best and total destruction at worst, and were sending in Sir Halak as sacrifice material? How could they do that? The people cried out. Sir Halak had arrived from a far flung land but he had been embraced by the people as one of their own. He was a Hab! How could they just send him off to his doom like that? The Devils would take him and sacrifice him to their gods for sure! At least he could die knowing that he had done the right thing for the people of Habsland.

As for Sir Breezer, well, at least he could die knowing that he had lived through a 1000 battles. It was high time for Sir Breezer to do the honorable thing which was to go off and die while grabbing a pile glory on the way out. Squire O'Byrne would be a suitable replacement when that time came.

The people of Habsland wrung their lands and waited.... They trusted Bob, but they didn't necessarily trust their troops to deliver them from the depths of despair. All they could do was wait... And pray to the gods of the powerplay... and the gods of defense.... and the gods of goal scoring.... and the gods of just about everything else....

(blame Number31 for this one. She started it!)

Well that sucked....

I'm trying to think of a positive to take from tonight's game but so far I'm coming up with blanks. I mean... there just isn't anything good to say about the game. Except for Gorges goal. Yay for Gorges. They never win when he scores. It's too bad because he never scores. And when he does, no one cares because the Habs lose. It's sad. And it was such a nice goal too. But other than that.... The Devils completely shut down the Habs offense (which looked a little dead anyway) while the Habs defense just got out muscled and out played. I can't say "Oh, Price was awful tonight" because I wasn't expecting him to be amazing on his first full night back (I still don't believe that he's ready to come back). He did come up with some big saves though so that at least was good. I'm still trying to figure out if the Devils were just that good defensively or if the Habs offense was just that bad tonight. I'm inclined to think it's somewhere inbetween. Either way, you still had a game where the Habs had very little in the way of decent scoring chances. Yes, they had enough chances that they could have converted, but they were quite few and far between for my liking. And the Habs just don't like it when they can't set up a good shot on net. No one ever said that the goals had to be pretty, you know. Just get 'em in.

I kind of feel like we're back to where we were at the beginning of the season where the Habs went a whole crappy session. Honestly, I was wondering if we were bound for an embarrassing loss or two after the Habs lost to the Bruins. Since that game, they just haven't looked good. We should be lucky that we've got two wins out of those games.

Am I worried? Honestly? Yeah, a bit. I'm worried because this is completely an attitude thing that can be fixed but doesn't seem to want to go away. I'm worried because the second of the season is where the Habs need to be on top of their game, every single game. Because they had issues in the beginning of the season they let a lot of points go that they should have had. And I'm worried that those missed points will cost them at the end of the season.

Despite the very tough schedule coming up next month, I think that the Habs can do it. They have shown that when faced with adversity that they can pull through.... The problem isn't when they're faced with a lot of adversity, it's when they aren't. And I'm just hoping that all those points that they should have had won't cost them in the end......

I'm also seething at the stupid Maple Losers. They had a chance to cause a huge upset over Boston tonight and make my life easier but keeping the Bruins off the points tally. But NO! The Losers had to go and squander a two goal lead in the third period and ultimately lose in shootouts. Oh and who gets the shootout winner? RYDER! Of course. I'm so upset right now. First off, my team loses. Second, my two least favorite teams are playing each other while my other loathed team is also playing - and beating the very same Thrashers that we lost to. And of COURSE it's the Maple Losers who give me one ray of hope that the Bruins won't completely run away with the lead but then they go and squash my hopes.

I hope the Habs are reflecting on the last week. I hope they're thinking about how difficult they're making their lives right now. Look, enjoy the All Star Game but remember that the event ain't going to bring the Stanley Cup home - for real! It's visiting righ now and then it's going to go away for a veeerrryyy loooong tiiiime if this type of play keeps up. I hope these games are burned into their brains and they do everything in their power to make sure it never happens again.

Yes, I'm very cranky right now. Sue me. And please sue the people who came up with Rafa's new look. It's horrid.

Halfway there people!

Yup. It's the halfway mark - more or less - and I apparently have nothing better to do than to give random thoughts about the random teams in the Eastern Conference. Go me! Note i said the word "random".

Atlantic division - the closest division in the east so far because no one's taken the lead and run away with it. Yet. I'm betting on Philly finishing on top.

Philadelphia
The good news: Mike Richards has been solid for the team in the first half. Jeff Carter is taking a swat at being the top goal scorer of the year.
The bad news: Goaltending. Biron has been less than amazing after pretty much single-handedly knocking Montreal out of the playoffs last spring. Niittymaki hasn't exactly stepped up as the league's best goaltender either.
The great news if you're a Habs fan but really bad if you're a Flyers fan: It looks like Briere is about to be paid millions of dollars to play just a handful of games this season. Good news if you're looking to make a lot of money and not do a heck of a lot - and great if you're one of those people who doesn't want to see his face for a long time - but definitely bad news if you're the Flyers' GM.

Pittsburgh
Good but definitely not wonderful news: Well, umm... they still have a chance to turn around their season?
The really bad bit: A very disappointing start to the season following their Stanley Cup finals run. They have struggled time and time again to find their rhythm - in particular, less than stellar performances from Sidney Crosby, Miroslav Satan and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (who did sit out a number of games due to injuries) and at times Evgeni Malkin. The top players haven't been producing and it's hurting the rest of the team. They're missing players like Ryan Malone and Hossa more than they care to admit.
Intriguing bit: Do you think Hossa predicted the Pens implosion? Everyone was pegging the Pens at having a fairly easy run to the playoffs in the offseason, but Hossa ditched them and said he wanted to play with a team that had a chance at winning the cup (read: Pens don't have a chance). At the time of his signing, it looked like Hossa was just being opportunistic. But now....? Well, I'm not saying the Wings are going to win it but I highly doubt it's going to be the Pens either...

New Jersey
Good news: They can survive without star goaltender Martin Brodeur, thank you very much. Yay for them!
The intriguing bit: What will happen to backup goalie Scott Clemmensen when Brodeur gets back? Will they go back to using Brodeur who hasn't played almost all season and will most likely take a while to get his rhythm back or will they continue to use Clemmensen? Also, the Devils have been quite an offensive type team without Brodeur. Will they ditch all this once he comes back?

NY Islanders
The good: I'm not sure what's good about the Islanders. They're sitting at the bottom of the league right now.
Really good if you're the Islanders: At this rate they'll be getting John Tavares. Poor Tavares.
The bad: Well, they're bottom of the league? Oh wait... maybe that's good. See above.

NY Rangers
Good: uh... I'm sure there's some good here. I don't watch the Rangers so I'm totally out of the loop on these guys but sitting near the top of the league during the first half of the season is pretty good.
Bad: The reason why they were sitting at the top was because they got off to a good start and played a lot more games than the rest of the people in the league. Where they will end up at the end of the season remains to be seen. Also, goalie Henrik Lundqvist hasn't exactly been top of the league a lot of the time.

Northeast - despite having Toronto (and now Ottawa) in it, this division is still the best in the east, in my very biased opinion. In my unbiased opinion, I still think this division is very good thanks to two teams. I mean, c'mon, how are we supposed to have the best division when two and a half teams play terribly?

Boston
Good: Sitting at the top of the league. Well, second now that San Jose won. But still. They barely squeaked into the playoffs last year and now they're top. Goalies Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez been key to this abrupt turn around as have players like Milan Lucic, Philip Kessel and Somethingrather Wheeler. And I guess Ryder has been too.
Will this translate into playoff success? (finally?): It should be interesting to see how the Bruins handle themselves in the playoffs which is a totally different beast. I'm personally hoping for some imploding but I think this team has what it takes to go all the way...where they will then lose in 6 games to Detroit or maybe even San Jose (I wish!).

Montreal (in my totally biased assessment)
The good: They're still fairly high up in the rankings. Rookies that have been called up have been good. Especially the earlier stint that D'Agostini has had here. Also, players like Lapierre and Kostopoulous have really stepped things up. Price has had stellar performances and has stolen the game for the Habs on more than one occasion.
The bad: INJURIES. And especially inconsistency that has kept the team from gaining valuable points. I won't get into whether Carbonnneau has done his job properly or not but as an entire team they have had issues this half of the season. Yes, expectations were high coming in here. Too high. But there were some games that a team should win but ends up losing because they can't play a full game of hockey. And this team has gone and lost those games. Also less than stellar performances on the powerplay and from players like Kovalev have hurt the team at times.
The bright spot: They can climb out of this right now and dominate the rest of their season. Will they catch Boston? Probably not. But they can close the gap if they focus on playing 60 full minutes of hockey.

Buffalo
Again not one of the teams I follow regularly but it seems that they've struggled quite a bit so far. Consistency from the players has been an issue at times. Oh and a complete lack of effort from Maxim Afinogenov has been a real downer.

Ottawa
The bad: Well, let's see... 11 straight years of making the playoffs could be going down the drain this year. The Sens are going through a major crisis right now and the over emphasis on the top line of Heatley/Alfredsson/Spezza has finally come crashing down on the team. Oh and goaltending has been another issue this year, though instead of it being the antics of the goalies, it's been the performance of the goalies that has been a problem.
The good: Maybe now Ottawa will do something about not relying 24/7 on "the big three" and get themselves some other good players. Or maybe they'll just grab Toskala when he either goes on the trade market or goes free agent when Toronto dumps him.

Toronto.
The good: Luke Schenn. The kid has been the closest thing to a god send for the Leafs. And winning six games in a row. And surprisingly Grabovski seems to be liking life in Toronto. Funny how all of Montreal's ex players do better when they join the Habs' major rivals...Must have something to do with a mutual dislike of the Habbies (don't tell me that Ryder and Grabovski left with smiles and hugs while promising to send a postcard every week).
What they think is good: Ron Wilson and Brian Burke. Never underestimate the power of the Leafs' management problems. Ever.
The bad: The fact that they are the Toronto Maple Leafs and they're run by a corporation that couldn't give a hoot over whether they actually win or not. Oh you mean with the actual team? Well, take a look for yourself. I'm placing bets on them missing another playoff run.

Southeast - and arguably the weakest division which is why the Caps have a runaway lead.

Washington
The good: They've solved their goalie issues and Ovechkin seems to have snapped out of his slump (can't blame him entirely if his grandfather's health was bad. Family first, yes?).
The bad: Earlier injuries and bad goaltending from their goalies have stalled the team. Semin's previous scoring outburst seems to have stalled.

Carolina
Bad: lack of depth has hurt the team who keeps getting injuries.
Good news is: Um... I guess Cam Ward has been doing some stuff lately. When he's there he's been good when he's not, well.... hehe... byebye Hurricanes!

Florida
Intriguing bit: Someone tell me how Anderson has a good save percentage and the team is still sitting in 18th place? The team obviously needs to learn how to score more goals. And no, the Panthers getting five goals against the Habs doesn't count because the Habs got five goals on Anderson as well.

Tampa Bay
The bad: The owners, the management, the coaches, and the team. And hyping up Stamkos as something way more than he is. That is unfair to anyone but especially to an 18 year kid. I feel extremely bad for Stamkos.
The good: Um... I'm not seeing one other than maybe they'll get themselves another top player.
Can someone tell me...How Mike Smith has two shutouts?!

Atlanta
Don't follow these guys at all but obviously something's very wrong here. Kovalchuk keeps threatening to break out at any time but someone should tell him that now would be a good time to do it.

You need adversity? Take this!

But first, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family of Don Sanderson.

Don Sanderson died today, three week after suffering a concussion when his head - without a helmet on - struck the ice following a fight. Sanderson, a York University undergrad, was just 21 years old and played for the OHL Whitby Dunlops team. I was just talking today about NHL players and how you never know when your career can suddenly end. I was referring mainly to concussions that while they were potentially life altering and definitely career ending were certainly not life ending. I never thought that I would come home to read about someone actually losing his life after suffering a concussion during a game. This is very sad and tragic accident that could and maybe even should have been avoided or prevented. My thoughts and those around the hockey world are definitely with Don Sanderons' family in this difficult time.

Pre-Game Rant

Simply put, we all know that the Habs perform better when they play good teams. It's just something weird in their brains that they feel like they can only put a solid effort out against good teams - okay, okay, so they look like they may have changed that now. We're getting off topic now. Moving on. Even though the Devils are ranked behind the Habbies, they're still a very good team who only needs three points to catch up to them. The Habs lack of a finish last time these two teams met doomed them and it was the Devils who took away the win.

Tonight I want to see the Habs working really hard. We need this win. And I think it can be pulled off provided everyone puts in a solid effort. Everyone includes you guys on the top line! I really don't like the fact that this time is filled with Hammies but said Hammies have been doing well so it's just a matter of them not freezing up tonight. We also need a solid effort from Halak which I know he is capable of giving provided he gets enough help up front. The Habs have already proven that they can put up a wonderful effort in front of Halak (against the Flyers and the Flames).

The lineup for tonight seems to be thus:

A. Kostitsyn - Plekanec - Kovalev
S. Kostitsyn - Lang - D'Agostini
Latendresse - Lapierre - Kostopoulos
Begin - Chipchura - Pacioretty

Markov - Komisarek
Hamrlik - Gorges
Boullion - Brisebois

Halak
With Denis acting as the back up back up goalie

So no Weber tonight. Let's hope Brisebois is up to not getting knocked around tonight...

Post Game. That was pathetic.

Oh man.. where do I begin with this one? I had hope tonight but I guess I was putting too much hope into a team that is barely holding together at this point. In all fairness, the Hammies didn't even get to practice with the rest of them until what.. this morning? Yeah, you're really going to get stuff working in a few hours. Yes, it's sarcastic hour again. And the Devils are obviously coping without Brodeur just fine, thank you very much. I'm too tired to do something that looks like a proper write up so I'll just list random notes.

• On the outcome: Habs fall 4-1 in Newark. Isn't that also the name of a city in England?
  
• What happened to my plea for the rest of the team pulling their weight? I really didn't like what I saw out there tonight. I'm probably exaggerating slightly here but to me it seemed like the only guys I saw really making an effort were the usual Lapierre/Latendresse/Kostopoulos line and the fourth line of Begin/Chipchura/Pacioretty.
  
• Proof that only a few people were working: In fact it was the Hammies who scored. Pacioretty got his first goal in the NHL on his first game and it was the Habbies who screwed up and allowed those Devils' goals. Markov is usually very good but that lame attempt at clearing the puck lead directly to the third or whatever number it was- goal by the Devils. We can thank Josh Gorges for the fact that it wasn't 5-1 when he saved the puck from being pushed in by Denis.
  
• Why the Devils scored so much: There were just too many two on one/three on one/god knows what else rushes towards the net by the Devils. It was getting to the point where I was freaking out every single time they came near the net.
• On goaltending: Clemmensen was being Clemmensen and did well. I can't say spectacular because he wasn't given the opportunity to be spectacular. I don't understand was Halak was pulled for the third period when it was only 3-1. Yes, he should have stopped a couple of those goals but then again there shouldn't have been any odd man rushes by the Devils. I have no idea why Carbo put in Denis. He was clearly floundering a lot more than Halak was. Also, how wonderful can you expect the guy to be when he doesn't get to play that much?! Of course he's going to be rusty. And yes, Carbo, I know, should have been better but honestly....How were those lame passes up front, the lack of any real attempt at a shot on goal and all the odd man rushes, Halak's fault? Halak takes the blame for the soft goals but everyone else takes their share of the blame for the lack of effort up front. And Marc Denis is clearly in the AHL for a reason. I want Price back *sniffles* GET BETTER SOON CAREY! Your team obviously can't handle your absense (you realize that we're like the Devils were supposed to be without Brodeur tonight?? The irony of the situation is killing me).
  
• I have run out of things to say about the powerplay. You know... after seeing the Bruins run over the Pens, I couldn't help but notice how they just pepper the net with the puck when they have the powerplay. They don't waste time passing it around and trying to get that one good shot like a certain other team I could name right now. Sure, that type of play can be dangerous and it can lead to an attempt at a short handed goal but more often than not it leads to an inevitable goal. In theory the more shots you take the higher your chances are of scoring. We all know how theories work but in this case the Bruins are proving it right. I find it very ironic that the whole idea of the penalty expiring for one side once the other side scores was brought in because the Habs supposedly had too good of a powerplay in the '50s. The irony kills so much right now.......Oh wait, I'm already dead from the previous incredibly ironic incident. Right... *dies again anyway*
  
• So now what? We freaking regroup and smash the Panthers and restore our winning ways. They can regroup from this. They can come out with the guys they've got now and beat almost anyone out there.
  
  Wow, there I go being the incredible optimist now. Something is clearly very wrong.
  

SLOVAKIA BEATS THE USA

I only caught the end and I nearly fell off my chair in shock when I saw the score. I can't believe this at all. I was pegging the US to run over Slovakia and even give the Swedes a run for their money in the semis. Well that really makes things interesting now. It will be Canada vs Czech Republic or Russia (I'm still going with Russia) and Sweden vs Slovakia in the semis. Wow...

Looking forward to the semis. As long as I survive tonight *g*

Canda gets Russia tomorrow

Russia 5 Czech Republic 1. I saw some of it and it was boring as the Habs power play. Russia did not dominate the game at all until the end. There was a lot of hitting in the game and lame attempts at goals. Particularly from Russia earlier on. It really looked early on like it would be pretty close. The Russian goalie is quite frankly awful and you have to give full credit to the Czechs poor offense for the fact that it wasn't closer earlier. But then of course the Russians turned it up and it was byebye. Canada's going to have to do some work in trying to shut down the offense of the Russians. I think once they get to the net whoever, things shouldn't be too bad. If the Russian goalie plays like he did tonight against the Canadians then Russia could very well be doomed. But we shall see.

I think I may just have to see how Slovakia holds up against Sweden tomorrow.

boooooooriiiiiiiiiiing.....

I'm not sure whether it was a really good game between two good teams (c'mon, the Devils *have* been doing better recently) or a really boring game between two teams who missed out on so many chances to score it wasn't even funny. The only two really good shots that that got made tonight were the rebound off of Clemmensen (rebound? Okay, so he kind of dropped it by accident. Minor detail) that D'Agostini took and scored and the one in which the Devils finally scored on a practically empty net to win the game in OT. Other than that the game was mostly filled with the teams taking turns peppering the goalies with shots that went nowhere before moving to the other end of the net and doing the same thing at the other end. Okay, so Clemmensen and Price had to come up with some really good saves. And I'm sure there were some interesting moments. I missed them trying to stay awake - no, that was not a sarcastic remark for once. I really am tired and ready to fall asleep. Even the crowd was mostly quiet during the third period as were the Habs who registered something like 4 shots on goal. The only real noise during the end of the period was when Markov got hit in the face with the puck - I think it was the puck. No penalty was called on it, so I guess it was the puck. He had to leave the game. Hopefully it's nothing serious. No Markov for a while = really bad. The Devils played like the Rangers should have played the other night. They were fully awake and were taking full advantage of lots of not so good passing and stupid power-play playing by the Habbies. They made their lives difficult however, when they couldn't take full advantage of the half empty nets. Not my problem. I thought the Habs didn't look as sharp tonight as they did the other night, but it was sort of hard to tell considering the Rangers were dead and made their lives easy. Oh well...I'm off to sleep while I will be dreaming of every other team in the League losing to the Habs.... Hey, I'm allowed to dream!

And there goes another goalie....

I'm interested in seeing how the New Jersey Devils and the Vancouver Canucks end up at the end of the season. Both teams have relied heavily on their goalies to get them where are they are now. With Brodeur out until the spring almost and Luongo now out for anywhere between 3 and 6 weeks, both teams will now have to come up with a way to find sucess without their star players. New Jersey's problem is a little more worrisome in that they have had the luxury of having Brodeur for a long time and they haven't really - from what I understand - seen the need to find a good solid backup goalie. After losing Brodeur NJ went 1 for 6 before winning their last four in a row. I've yet to determine whether it is because they've finally got a rhythm down or if it's because they were playing the Islanders, Florida and Tampa Bay. They did have a shootout win against Washington so I suppose they has to count for something. It's too early to see how Vancouver will handle the loss of Luongo, but a win over Detroit is a good start. Maybe there is hope for us poor Habs tomorrow? Eh, maybe not.... Anyway, we definitely should not rely one hundred percent on Price because you never know when he's going to be out.... And also, it would be nice to give Halak some ice time too.

Totally forgot to mention that Josh Gorges actually scored a goal last night. The poor guy had yet to score a goal and there was all this talk about his stick being cursed (I sincerely hope that no one was taking it that whole curse thing seriously) and all that jazz but yeah, he scored. We should be celebrating that instead of beating up on O'Byrne. Yup!

More Champions League stuff this week. Real Madrid badly needed a win that would put them closer to top ranked Juventus. A loss would have put them below Bate Borisov and possibly out of contention for the Cup, which really isn't that acceptable. Despite some moments of bad passing that basically handed Bate the ball, I thought they did a good job of putting the pressure on in the first half. Drenthe was great in getting the ball into the other side. If he had just gotten the ball to the other players a little more and if they had then actually hit the ball at the net then there probably would have been more scoring. As it was, Real Madrid sort of fell asleep in the second but they hung on to their earlier first half goal by.... Raul Gonzalez (who's shot was set up by - all together now: Drenthe), I think, and won 1-0. It was snowing in Minsk. I've never actually seen a football match played when there's snow. It was funny. Yeah, I'm easily amused. Liverpool and Chelsea tomorrow. Bwahaha...

Oh. Lugano lost to Zug 5-3. How you lose to a team ranked at the bottom is beyond me.... Well, okay, maybe not... but still... ick...