Something I realized while responding to antoher post is that, while the jury is still out on this trade, it give the habs something that any team with great asperations needs: Depth at Defence.

Wihle everyone is talking about how Niinema is on the decline in his career, he gives the Canadiends another body (big body) with veteran experiance, so that we dont have to play people that deserve to be in hamilton.

Last year the Hurracanes won the cup without a superstart D-corp, and i htink that is the same kind of D the habs have now; a bunch of pretty good guys who all do the job right.

Here is what I thinkthe pairings will look like this season:

Markov - Komesarik (They played together last season and looked great together. Also, this season should be Komy's coming out party. He will be a monster on the blueline this year and Markov will take another step forward with more Russians on the team for him to socialise with)

Souray - Rivet (While Souray made some bonehead moves last eyar, having Rivet on his line gives him someone to bail him out defensively. They are a good workman line)

the last pairing the where the bottleneck is with bacially four players who could be paired:

Boullion - Striet - Niinema - Dandenault

Let me just preface this by saying that Traverse will be sent down and only called up in case of injury, and might even be passed over by JP Cote once he gets better. But the other four guys are all NHL quality D-men. and that gives us a lot of options and security if our D start getting injured (which always happens during the long season)

Streit has proved himself not only capable during the preseason, but has excelled as one of our best D. He will not give up his spot in the lineup to easily, and his offensive upseide is needed in a lineup that doesnt come by goals all that easily.

Dandenault provides veteran leadership and a winning attitude. I was never a big fan of his, but he showed his use i nthe playoffs when he step up his game.

Boullion is everyones favorite sparkplug and will definately be looking to take his spot back once his knee is healed. However, the knee is taking longer than hoped to heal, so his spot may not be guarenteed if the other guys step up while he is gone. However his physical game (despite his small frame) is what gives him another dimention over the other four.

That just leaves Niinema. He was considered a great D-man for years, btu has slowly slipped in the depth charts. So we will have to wait and see if the change of adress and the mentor of his antional captain will be enough to bring him back to top form. If not he is still another guy that will be useful to us during the long season, when our rearguards start hurting.

So in my opinion, this trade is a well thought out move that gives the Habs something they havent had in years: Defensive Depth.