As many of you know I have been coaching for about 16 years now at various levels. This year I am coaching a High School Boys Team , AAA, which i sthe highest level you get in our province. At any rate, it is really strange but our season has really mirrored the Habs season in alot of ways. We started out of the gate really fast, going 10-1. We were not blowing out any teams but we were finding a way to win. Decent, but not spectacular goaltending, decent defence, everytone chipping in. Although we have no superstars, we do have a few key guys who are relied on to carry the team. About 3 weeks ago our Captain goes down with a bad knee as well as my best winger and my best defenceman. We lost 5 in a row. But the last week we have turned it around and won 2 of 3. I cannot tell you what is going on in Montreal or what their problem is (let's be honest none of us can..we are not there). I can only speculate or propose possible solutions which may, or may not, help. But here is what has happened with my team and it may or may not be similar, take it for what it is worth.

1. I have a slow defence. Big and bruising but we do not move the puck well. At the first we got away with  this but the more you play the more other coaches find your weaknesses. They are now on our dmen very quickly and we cough it up alot because we do not move the puck well. Last week I moved a forward back there (similar to what Montreal has been trying to do with Streit) and it has helped alot.
   
2. When I lost my captain and my best winger it took awhile to adjust. But unlike Montreal, I have had other players "step up". You hear that term a ton in hockey but it is so true! When guys go down it should present an opportunity for others to step up and prove they can do the job. I have 2 guys in the lineup now that were on the 4th line in October. They want to prove they belong on the first line and are doing everything they can to show it. Montreal has not had that. Much has been said about guys like Perez, Begin and the like not getting enough ice time. Well now they are being given a chance to prove Julien wrong and they are not. Toronto has had guys step up. My team has had guys step up. Montreal has not. No one seems to care.
   
3. I have not really changed my team systems. I look at the talent and the type of team I had in training camp and developed a system around that. Last year I had a very fast and high scoring team and built around that.  I do make subtle changes in the penalty kill or power play, and tweak the lines a bit, but in reality, it is what it is. FOr example, many here have said we need to have the defence more involved in the play and rushing the puck. Guys, you cannot make a silk purse out of a sow's ear (ok enough about my New Years date). Rick Green is trying to get mobility back there by using Streit instead of Komisarek. I agree with that move and I have done the same thing by putting a forward back there. But in reality, you have to play the cards you are dealt. And Gainey is the dealer. You cannot make a team into something you do not have the personell to do.
   
4. At the beginning of the year I got away with a few things on the team I coached because we were flying under the radar. Now that we have played most teams at least once, there are no surpises. Same with the Habs. In October they were surprising teams with their speed. No more. The opposition now makes sure that their defence are aware of the Habs speed down the middle. What looks to some on this board as a lack of effort or lack of skating, is as much to do with the opposition adjusting to it. In October we looked really fast. We are no slower now. But the opposition has made the adjustments to make Montreal look that way. As a coach you can adjust your system a bit. I have done that. But at the end of the day you still have the same lineup to work with and you have to stick with a system that works with teh personell you have. Or make a trade or 2 to change it.
   
5. In October and November I had a very potent first line. My second line was so/so, my 3rd line was acombination of checking and scoring and my 4th line were grinders. But when I lost my captain and winger., that first line threat was gone. Teams no longer had to put their shut down line out against my first line. That gave them more flexibility, and me, Less. Montreal is in that position right now. Let's face it, our number one line is not a threat to anybody right now. Yes Kovalev can be a threat but he is only one player and is not going to do it all himself. Zednick has disappeared and is disinterested. Bulis does not have the playmaking skills or the vision to center your first line. Ribiero has stated publicly that he does not want to be on the firts line because he is being checked all the time. Koivu is a HUGE hole. HUGE. Yes, I am tired of the excuses too but it is fact. There are guys in that lineup that should be stepping up now. And they have not. Is that the coach's fault? Partly. But In the end it is up to the players to get it done and SEIZE THE DAY. In my case, all I did was tell these guys that they now had a chance to shine and be in the lineup. And they took it upon themselves to do so. I do not see the pride or the will to win in players such as Zednick, Perezhogin, Ribieoro, or Komisarek. And you cannot coach that. It is a character trait

In summary, the reason my team has turned it around with key injuries has little to do with coaching. It is team chemistry and HEART. I go in there and holler sometimes or work their butts off in practice if I am unhappy. But at the end of the day, it is the guys in the dressingroom who take pride in putting on the school jersey and stepping up and doing the job. I do not see that in Montreal. As habs fans we have alot of pride in that sweater. It is just a total shame that many of the players wearing it right now do not feel the same way.