Gainey to keep going with Theo

rwp2le · Guru

Gainey to keep going with Theo

mdmrules · Member

The sad thing is man... what the hell else are they gonna do with him?

Trade him?... What would they possibly get? And it would be mortifying to see him succeed with flying colours elsewhere because I really don't think he is done with hockey just yet.

Send him to the minors?... If that doesn't kill an ex-MVP's confidence I don't know what will. And what if he gets picked off of waivers and the habs get stuck with half the salary this year? NO THANKS!

Sit him for a few more games?... Again that would do nothing for his confidence to watch Huet either win some games or just not lose as badly. either way all he would end up hearing is how great Huet is for so much less money and how much better of the Habs would be if they could trade him and get some help up front.

Basically I guess BG is in a bit of a catch 22... he can look like a hero if he plays him and he pulls some good wins off or a complete idiot if he continues to choke. It's all up to Theo.

-- Edited by mdmrules at 02:41, 2006-02-01

Thrice · Member

The fact is we're stuck with what we got. There's nothing BG can do but continue to pump confidence in his #1 goalie and pray to the Forum ghosts that Theo will wake up....

barry33 · Guru

Thrice wrote:

The fact is we're stuck with what we got. There's nothing BG can do but continue to pump confidence in his #1 goalie and pray to the Forum ghosts that Theo will wake up....

This has been going on all year..face it Bob. He is done. Shot. All year CJ and now you kept putting him back in thinking he will miraculously "snap out of it". In the meantime the whole season is going down the tubes because Gainey is stuck with a huge contract. Suck it up Bobby and ship him to Hamilton and try to salvage the season. Get a clue!!

mdmrules · Member

You do realize barry that Theo is not the only reason for the team's performances as of late. We would still be out of the playoffs Theo or not. Salvaging the season doesn't need to start with sending the guy down to the minors. It needs to start with getting a few games together where we get more than 20 shots on net. Sure he has sucked the big one but last night might be the only game where he has single handedly lost us the game. The rest if the boys have done a pretty good job of that already themselves

habnot · Member

You guys DO understand shipping him to the minors is an idiotic idea, right? Theo is still a large asset, and exposing him to waivers, either regualr or recall (when the team would be stuck for 1/2 his salry...that would fly well on this board with all the Gainey haters!), and losing him for NOTHING would be a sin, right? That's just poor asset management. You want to trade him and actually get something for him, fine...I'm all over it. But losing an asset of that magnitude for NOTHING is how teams like the Blackhawks operate...not Montreal.

And if you send him down, you still pay his entire salary, so there is ZERO point to it...You'd just further alienate the seive...as if his head isn't in a bad place already, right?

davidb · Guru

He will lose both Boston Games and the two Sabres games then what do we do

wright · Veteran Member

I disagree with your assertion that the habs would be out of the playoffs regardless of Theodore' performance. Yes as is well documented there are a number of under achivers and bad performances on this team. the reality is the Habs are 3 points out of a playoff spot and there have been at least 5 to 6 winnable games with an above average goaltending performance would have tipped the balance in the Habs favour. The ripple affect from such performances could/would have impacted on other personnel on the team.

Darcy Regher GM of Buffalo has stated the primary reasson the Sabres are were they are is because their goaltending has been so solid and the rest of the team has built on that. It is quite possible other poor performing Habs have gotten away from what made them modestly succesful in the passt because poor goaltending is impacting on the way they play.

habgirl · Guru

davidb wrote:

He will lose both Boston Games and the two Sabres games then what do we do

Theo shouldn't be playing right now in the NHL, full stop. Because he is a huge liability (how can anyone call him an asset?) due to salary right now, send him down. Yes, we expose him to waivers. However, keeping him in and further destroying his head will do NOTHING to turn him around. It will ruin him beyond any tiny chance there is to salvage him.

I'm starting to think Bob is throwing in the towel and absolutely can't stand Theo, thus is pulling a Tremblay/Roy. I know it's dumb, but what other explanation can there possibly be???

Trapper John · Member

rwp2le wrote:

I just read on the TSN website that BG is going to keep going with Theo to try and get him back to his old form. What a horrible descision, hopefully time will prove me wrong, and we will be able to win a game or two with the bum between the pipes.

I think I can explain Gainey's decision-making processes. Here's something you may find interesting:

Repetition
Published by HOPES
(Huntington's Outreach Project for Education, at Stanford University)

Following damage to the basal ganglia and the caudate nucleus, individuals with HD may become stuck on one idea or activity.

Inflexible thoughts and behavior may also make it difficult for an individual to change from one activity or idea to another or to deal with changes in routines.

These behaviors are often associated with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). True OCD, however, is uncommon in HD patients.

Another possible cause of repetitive behavior is that legitimate needs of the individual are not being met. He or she may repeat a request in hopes of being understood.

Sound familiar?

Source: http://huntingtonsdiseasejm.tripod.com/hdsymptoms/id97.html

24 Rings · Guru

Thrice wrote:

The fact is we're stuck with what we got. There's nothing BG can do but continue to pump confidence in his #1 goalie and pray to the Forum ghosts that Theo will wake up....

Well, I think you can pump confidence into a guy sitting on the bench too. This guy is a huge reason why we are losing. This guy is the WORST goalie in the league and has the stats to prove it.

habgirl · Guru

For chrissakes, how the HELL can anybody justify using Theo? Hellllloooooo Bob, here's a thought for ya:

You start Theo, only to yank him after 5. (three times Bobby boy). He got lucky in TO, which allowed some of us Habs fans to save face.

You start Huet, get solid 'tending.

Your team is not getting more than 20 shots a game. Bad tending = no playoffs Bob.

SEND THEO DOWN! If somebody claims him on the way back up, so be it. We're wasting money having him ride the pine, sit in the pressbox, storm up and down the tunnel OR lose us games. At least give the kid a chance to get his head straight in Hamilton. You're going to totally ruin him - and THAT, Bobby boy, would place the blame squarely on your shoulders. Yes, his head's not in it. It is YOUR job to do what you can to try and turn it around. Theo has proven he's not gonna do it on his own.

barry33 · Guru

mdmrules wrote:

You do realize barry that Theo is not the only reason for the team's performances as of late. We would still be out of the playoffs Theo or not. Salvaging the season doesn't need to start with sending the guy down to the minors. It needs to start with getting a few games together where we get more than 20 shots on net. Sure he has sucked the big one but last night might be the only game where he has single handedly lost us the game. The rest if the boys have done a pretty good job of that already themselves

I realize that mdm and have stated all along that the major problem on this team is lack of leadership and accountability. But as John said, when your confidence is shaky as a team to begin with and your goalie constantly puts you in a hole at the beginning, it is hard as a team to get on track.

barry33 · Guru

habgirl wrote:

For chrissakes, how the HELL can anybody justify using Theo? Hellllloooooo Bob, here's a thought for ya: You start Theo, only to yank him after 5. (three times Bobby boy). He got lucky in TO, which allowed some of us Habs fans to save face. You start Huet, get solid 'tending. Your team is not getting more than 20 shots a game. Bad tending = no playoffs Bob. SEND THEO DOWN! If somebody claims him on the way back up, so be it. We're wasting money having him ride the pine, sit in the pressbox, storm up and down the tunnel OR lose us games. At least give the kid a chance to get his head straight in Hamilton. You're going to totally ruin him - and THAT, Bobby boy, would place the blame squarely on your shoulders. Yes, his head's not in it. It is YOUR job to do what you can to try and turn it around. Theo has proven he's not gonna do it on his own.
Have to agree with "The Missus" here. He is no longer an asset. He is a liability. So WHAT if we have to pay part of his salary the rest of the season if someone is stupid enough to claim him on waivers? If someone else wants to pay the human pylon 4.5 Mill next year..fill yer boots boys.

heet_150 · Guru

habgirl wrote:

At least give the kid a chance to get his head straight in Hamilton. You're going to totally ruin him - and THAT, Bobby boy, would place the blame squarely on your shoulders. Yes, his head's not in it. It is YOUR job to do what you can to try and turn it around. Theo has proven he's not gonna do it on his own.

First of all, I think Theodore should sit for a while.

The problem with sending Theodore to Hamilton is let's suppose he plays some games, gets into a rhythm, has some really good games and becomes mentally prepared to come back to the NHL. Gainey will not be the only GM to recognize this. So, upon being recalled, Theodore has to pass re-entry waivers. Any team can pick him up for one half of his remaining contract, and based on one half of one half of his contract, which is in the neighbourhood of $1,125,000, I would imagine that for that little amount, there would be many GM's that would want to pick him up for a playoff run as a back-up. Remember, the premise so far is that Theodore has regained some or all of his abilities.

Now, let's suppose that Theodore goes to Hamilton and has the uncanny ability to suck and blow at the same time, therefore no call-up in the near future. He takes away playing time from someone who could really use the developement.

My vote is (I'm sure you are all waiting with baited breathe) to call up Danis to back up Huet until the Olympic break, and sit Theo as a healthy scratch.

Just my $0.02 worth.

hockeyman · Senior Member

It's hard to fathom how Theo's game could go south that fast. Anybody else think he has underlying problems that have not surfaced in the media.

habgirl · Guru

heet_150 wrote:

First of all, I think Theodore should sit for a while. The problem with sending Theodore to Hamilton is let's suppose he plays some games, gets into a rhythm, has some really good games and becomes mentally prepared to come back to the NHL. Gainey will not be the only GM to recognize this. So, upon being recalled, Theodore has to pass re-entry waivers. Any team can pick him up for one half of his remaining contract, and based on one half of one half of his contract, which is in the neighbourhood of $1,125,000, I would imagine that for that little amount, there would be many GM's that would want to pick him up for a playoff run as a back-up. Remember, the premise so far is that Theodore has regained some or all of his abilities. Now, let's suppose that Theodore goes to Hamilton and has the uncanny ability to suck and blow at the same time, therefore no call-up in the near future. He takes away playing time from someone who could really use the developement. My vote is (I'm sure you are all waiting with baited breathe) to call up Danis to back up Huet until the Olympic break, and sit Theo as a healthy scratch. Just my $0.02 worth.

I see your point, Heet. I think the problem, though, may be that scratching him and putting him in the position to watch the second and third stringers play while he sits in the pressbox will do nothing for his confidence. It'll ruin him further. I think he needs to play in Hamilton, get shelled a few times and start turning it around. Practicing while knowing he's not going to play won't do anything for him.

I agree that we run the very big risk of another GM grabbing him on the way up. I just don't see how we can right the good ship Theodore without playing him. Maybe he can show some leadership to the young guys in Hamilton, which isn't such a bad thing, is it? As long as we play him anywhere but in a Habs jersey. If someone snaps him up for a run at the cup, so be it. I'd actually be happy for him, (if it's out of the Eastern conference that is!) and you never know, it could be a win-win for both the team and the goalie.

At the risk of sounding overly emotional about this due to my previous posts I would really like to give him the opportunity to turn it around. If it's somewhere else, so be it. At least the Theo lovers from way back would be able to say "told you so".

Figaro · Guru

There is 0% chance of Theo being sent to Hamilton and just slightly greater chance of him being traded. He's had some success against Boston, several times, so if playing them fails to yield dividends, then, and only then, will Bob start sitting him more. If Montreal doesn't win 4 of their five games before the break, then I count the season over. Only then will we see any "dumping trades" or benching of Theo. Seriously, the only way Theo will ever snap out of it is to play 2-3 games where he actually wins. The Philly and TO games were terrible games and no indication of a team on the up and up.

brooklynhabfan · Guru

Figaro wrote:

There is 0% chance ...

It seems that this goes missing a lot. History has seen few vezina winners sent down, and I think there's little chance of that happening here.

And as far as trading him... fill in the other side of the equation and I might believe it can happen, but I'm yet to see anyone seriously do so...

heet_150 · Guru

habgirl wrote:

Maybe he can show some leadership to the young guys in Hamilton, which isn't such a bad thing, is it?

If he is capable of showing some leadership, perhaps right here, right now, would be the better spot to do it. So far this season I have seen him play terrible and blame the team, I have seen him play terrible and blame the coaching staff. I have seen him get yanked and pout, like my 4-year old. These are not qualities that I would like for him to share with the team's prospects in Hamilton.

AB Habman · Guru

All good post! It comes down to who's worse? BG for his insistance on playing him or Theo's poorplay? I think it's even! They are both killing our chances for a playoff chance!