Even though you insulted our board.... here's what I found online...

Posted on Saturday, September 16th, 2006 at 1:48 pm. Canadiens 2006 Training Camp

The look on Mike Johnson’s face said it all.

Hockey’s back in Montreal.

In what city other than Montreal do hundreds and hundreds of people show up at 10 am on Saturday to watch hockey players practice? Not many and certainly not in Phoenix.

Tomas Plekanec and Mike Johnson skated out a few minutes earlier than the rest of the team to hear an ovation from the fans above. Mike Johnson had a grin on his face like he couldn’t believe it.

The place was packed with people of all ages to watch the Canadiens scrimmage and then display their shootout skills one after the other.

Notables

• Saku Koivu - Koivu did not look out of place at all. In fact he might have been the best guy out there. The play was fast and fairly rough and he didn’t flinch whatsoever. This is great news as earlier in the week it was a more grim outlook. I’d say Koivu will definitely be starting the season.
  
• Guillaume Latendresse - Sorry but Gui looked out of place and too slow with the big boys. Garth Murray also nailed him and sent him to the locker room wincing. He seemed to gain some confidence after a lucky rebound goal but looked really immature pumping his fist like it was a game 7 overtime winner. His maturity and confidence are definitely not there and there’s no way he’ll be a Canadien any time soon.
  
• Mikhail Grabovski - There were a lot of eyes on Grabovski and while he looked to have great hands and speed he is surprisingly small. Smaller than Mike Ribeiro. Skinny and short by NHL standards. It’ll take some time for him to learn the North American game and hopefully put on some size.
  

  Kyle Chipchura was not that noticeable but both Kostitsyn brothers were.

  
  

  Some of the grinders stood out. Garth Murray and Aaron Downey were giving it 100% the whole time. They seem to know that to keep their jobs they’ll have to play that way at all times and they were. Murray in particular.

  
  

  O’Byrne and Jancevski were noticeable as big physical defensemen but were definitely not up to speed with the NHL game. There was nothing to suggest that Cote won’t be the last Defenseman pencilled in the lineup come game time.

  
  

  Regulars were regular. Michael Ryder is sporting a visor and looked a little strange but ripped a snapshot top shelf during the shootout. Kovalev, Higgins, Souray, Komisarek and Rivet all looked sharp. Sergei Samsonov however ,might take some time to gel with linemates Riberio and Kovalev which is expected.

  
  

  The atmosphere was great and the Canadiens look to be strong heading into the pre-season games.

-- Edited by MC Girl at 18:47, 2006-09-16

Koivu's eyesight passes first test

Only a few problems in scrimmage. But Habs captain says the real challenge will come during exhibition games   PAT HICKEY The Gazette
Saturday, September 16, 2006
CREDIT: JOHN MAHONEY, THE GAZETTE Captain K all smiles: Canadiens centre Saku Koivu shares a laugh with defencemen Craig Rivet (right) and Mathieu Dandenault after Koivu scored during a shootout after a scrimmage yesterday.

Any questions about Saku Koivu's eyesight were answered midway through the opening half of a scrimmage yesterday as the Canadiens opened their training camp at Sportsplexe 4-Glaces in Pierrefonds.

Koivu had the puck near the right faceoff circle and he looked to his left - the side where he experiences a blind spot - and spotted linemate Chris Higgins. The captain fired a pass which Higgins turned into a goal against David Aebischer.

"He looked great," Higgins said when asked for an appraisal of Koivu's play. "He showed lots of speed and I think he was the best overall player on the ice."

Koivu, who is coming back after suffering a serious injury to his left eye during the playoffs in April, described his performance as "the first step," but it was a giant one. He admitted to being nervous before he stepped on the ice, but he was pleased with his performance.

"There were only a few times when I had trouble and I lost (sight of) the puck at my feet," said Koivu, whose peripheral

vision is limited as a result of the injury. "I have three more days here and the next step is to play some exhibition games and see how I react when guys on the other team are trying to hit me."

The peripheral vision is only one part of the problems that began when Carolina's Justin Williams caught Koivu with a high stick in Game 3 of the Canadiens-Carolina series. He is also bothered by a cataract in the left eye, but he has been wearing a contact lens to correct the condition.

"My vision is a lot clearer with the lens," Koivu said. "It feels uncomfortable, but I've only had it for three days now and I'm sure that I'll get used to it."

Koivu has always worn a visor, but Williams's stick went under the protective shield. Koivu is wearing a larger visor and will experiment next week with a

European model that covers more of the face and also curves inward at the bottom.

"I'll try the one I have now and the new one and I'll wear the one that feels more comfortable," Koivu said.

The captain isn't the only one experimenting with visors. Linemate Michael Ryder was sporting one for the first time yesterday and said Koivu's injury factored into his decision to wear one.

"It's something I had been thinking about and Saku's injury made me think a little harder," Ryder said. "I haven't decided whether I'll wear it in the regular season, but I'll give it a try and see how it goes."

Ryder also is coming off an injury. He was bothered most of last season by a pinched nerve in his neck.

"There was no pain in my neck; it was all in my left arm," Ryder said. "I had no strength in the arm."

Ryder devoted two months to rest and therapy in his native Newfoundland, with the occasional trip to Montreal to visit with Canadiens trainer Graham Rynbend.

While Ryder said he was currently working on building the strength in his left arm, he otherwise arrived at camp in good shape. He lost 12 pounds over the summer, the result of "eating better" and reported at a trim 192 pounds.

Yesterday's opening scrimmage ended in a 3-3 tie, followed by a shootout that saw every player take a crack at a penalty shot before rookie defenceman Jon Gleed scored on the final shot to give Koivu's white team the edge, 11-10.

Higgins, Jonathan Ferland and Aaron Downey scored for the Whites, while Mike Ribeiro, Alex Kovalev and Mike Johnson countered for the Reds.

© The Gazette (Montreal) 2006

-- Edited by MC Girl at 20:51, 2006-09-16

Anyone else see the highlights from yesterday, as in the FLAGRANT elbow thrown by Murray on Latendresse?  Guy left the ice bleeding and woozy.  Also, Grabovski got rubbed out (didn't look intentional, well, the hit was, not the forcing him into the glass partition) into where the glass starts at the blue line, and he left a mess as well.

I fail to see where Carbo is establishing any doubt amongst the veterans or competition by coming in with the same lines he had last year? Sticks the 3 rookies on a 5th line. Makes zero sense to me but hopefully it works.

plouf wrote:

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Great to hear about Koivu, and since I think we don't have enough of the Begin-Downey-Murray types, I'm glad to hear that Downey and Murray both looked sharp. I'd like to see both there (assuming we keep 13 forwards) and the only young guys that seem like they can compete at forward are Kostitsyn and Chipchura at this point. But they're both still young - they'd be the youngest in the lineup, so there's no rush right now.

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I still do not agree with stating your lines on the eve of training camp. It sends the message to the kids that they do not stand a chance of making the team so why try? And it tells the veterans that their spot is assured so go ahead and coast. It baffles me.