Who will contribute?

JohnM · Guru

Who will contribute?

AWOL · Veteran Member

Our #2 line clearly needs some adjustment. Ryder and Higgins need a bona fide centre to play with and maybe moving Bonk into that position is the way to go. Ribeiro may have soft hands but is simply not strong enough down low to do the job. The only other thing I can think of at this point is trading for a second line centre... Apparently Todd Marchant is available!

hockeyman · Senior Member

It's too bad we weren't aware Sergei Federov was on the block. Imagine him centreing the 2and line....Wow!!

JohnM · Guru

I'm sure BG was aware but his price tag was way to high. Isn't he making 6+ million per year?

barry33 · Guru

AWOL wrote:

Our #2 line clearly needs some adjustment. Ryder and Higgins need a bona fide centre to play with and maybe moving Bonk into that position is the way to go. Ribeiro may have soft hands but is simply not strong enough down low to do the job. The only other thing I can think of at this point is trading for a second line centre... Apparently Todd Marchant is available!

What you are forgetting is that neither Bonk nor Todd Marchand are Quebec Canadiens. Lets face it folks, the ONLY thing keeping Ribiero on the second line or in the lineup PERIOD for that matter, is the french media. I can tell you that as much grief as some of us give CJ about who is in and not in the lineup, let's not forget that he is under tremednous pressure from the French Media to play guys like Ribs and Theo and even Dagenais. In no other city does the media have as much to say in a team's lineup then they do in Montreal. And that is fact.

AWOL · Veteran Member

Anyone missing Jeff Hackett right about now?

Muller93 · Guru

barry33 wrote:

AWOL wrote: Our #2 line clearly needs some adjustment. Ryder and Higgins need a bona fide centre to play with and maybe moving Bonk into that position is the way to go. Ribeiro may have soft hands but is simply not strong enough down low to do the job. The only other thing I can think of at this point is trading for a second line centre... Apparently Todd Marchant is available! What you are forgetting is that neither Bonk nor Todd Marchand are Quebec Canadiens. Lets face it folks, the ONLY thing keeping Ribiero on the second line or in the lineup PERIOD for that matter, is the french media. I can tell you that as much grief as some of us give CJ about who is in and not in the lineup, let's not forget that he is under tremednous pressure from the French Media to play guys like Ribs and Theo and even Dagenais. In no other city does the media have as much to say in a team's lineup then they do in Montreal. And that is fact.

The rope is tightning Barry33. Gainey is slowly giving JUST enough slack to allow the French media/fans figure it all out. Then BOOM the chair gets kicked out!

Unfortunatly, I wish Ribero was better. We need him. It is hard to find a solid offensive center that teams are willing to part with. Plus I think the extra cap room will be used to shore up the defense. So every night I cheer for Ribs. I actually feel a bit bad for the guy.

Maybe he will adjust his game somehow to make up for his weak "down low" play and lack of speed. I recall a player a while back that lacked speed and stength on the puck....Gretzky. As much as I can't stand Ribs, I am a habs fan and hope he figures it out.( and NO I am not comparing him to the great one...just an observation)

-- Edited by Muller93 at 19:01, 2005-11-16

Desi · Senior Member

Ribeiro's "dive" in the playoffs in 2003 will not soon be forgotten by any true hockey fan who saw it. But as a Canadiens fan, I'm stuck in the position of having to cheer for him. I think he has the skill to play in this league and to work well with Ryder and company on the 2nd line -- especially with the new rules forbidding almost any form of contact. Ribs should be in his element in this new environment. To be fair, he's had a couple of good games so far, including one game he practically won single-handedly for us. So I'm advocating a little patience. Of course, that's easy for me to say since I don't live in Montreal and am not surrounded by the constant barrage of discussion about who should stay and who should be thrown out on his ear! But I have seen every Habs game so far this year on NHL Center Ice and really think that Ribs deserves a chance. We all know that when he's at his best, he's a real asset. If he takes another dive like that one against Boston, though -- toss him out!

AB Habman · Guru

If Ribs is as slow a skater as Gretzky then we'll be just fine! All we need now is a winger that can finish like Kurry!

plouf · Guru

Yes, I think it's blindness to think Ribeiro has played well this year, but I do think he has what it takes to put it all together. I hope he does. If he and Ryder both turn it on at the same time we should have 2 solid lines. Hey, if we're 13-3-3 with one line playing inconsistently, imagine what would happen if both were clicking at the same time.