Who's the Habs' best Defenseman after Three Games?

Nil d · Guru

Who's the Habs' best Defenseman after Three Games?

MC Girl · Guru

I think King Kom is great!!! A tough cookie that plays his role well.

Ando · Guru

Nil'd and And-o must have been watching the same game on the same network because Komisarek is starting to really grow into a solid defenseman!

...although quite honestly all of the Canadiens defensemen seem to be playing much better as a group!

Can't wait for 'Beef' to come back either...but And-o just thinks that Sheldon Souray is just sooooooo under-rated in terms of what he brings to the Habs! And-o DIGS Sheldon's attitude erruptions when someone pokes our goalie!

barry33 · Guru

Komisarek hands down. He is on his way to becoming a premiere dman in this league. On the other side of teh coin, Markov has looked disinterested so far. But answer this. Who will be sitting when the cube comes back? Streit is already sitting.

habscsi · Member

Good question Barry who's gonna sit? Ill put my vote in for no one i think a Dman a winger(maybe perez) and a prospect will be traded. Remember Cubes salary isnt on the cap right now and were not gonna add him and just put some other higher salary d man on waivers. Also we cant keep 8 D and jettison Murry or Downey.After the Niinemaa(how the heck do you spell his name)Trade Bob pretty much backed himself into another trade when Cube is ready cause I dont think we can send anyone down without clearing waivers that make more than his cap number and we cant afford anymore against the cap with the raise Niinemaa brought over Ribs.

So it looks like to me TRADE in NOVEMBER when CUBE returns.By that time more teams will have a better idea of what they need to address and we have some good bargaining chips in Souray,Perez,Koist,Bonk,Abby,Markov,Rivet and the host of talent on the farm so im sure Bob will have his share of listeners when he starts talking trade!!

Johab · Guru

See, thats the thing, i like ALL 6 of the currently playing defensemen. But i also love the Cube. Who does he take off the roster WHEN he comes back. ( Nov Dec ??? ) A trade looks like the most obvious solution but who do you trade. Souray is my least favorite because of his 1-1 losses. That does not mean i do not like him however, i agree with And-o 100% he is 1 of the few who stick up for other players on the team, he is a GREAT leader and a team guy, him and Rivet really take care of leadership and wear the A very well. But i mean, in this league...speed is important, and we cant have souray being beat 1 on 1 all the time!! ITs a REALLY hard subject....

Caper_hab_fan · Veteran Member

I think a few of the boys on the blue played well, yeah King Kom played well, for sure, but i think from what i've seen, missed most of Buffalo, saw all Toronto and Philly, Dandy looked good to me, his speed is working well, he is jumping up into the play, and he is doing well in the corners.

Nil d · Guru

Johab wrote:

See, thats the thing, i like ALL 6 of the currently playing defensemen. But i also love the Cube. Who does he take off the roster WHEN he comes back. ( Nov Dec ??? ) A trade looks like the most obvious solution but who do you trade. Souray is my least favorite because of his 1-1 losses. That does not mean i do not like him however, i agree with And-o 100% he is 1 of the few who stick up for other players on the team, he is a GREAT leader and a team guy, him and Rivet really take care of leadership and wear the A very well. But i mean, in this league...speed is important, and we cant have souray being beat 1 on 1 all the time!! ITs a REALLY hard subject....

Perhaps Souray should be the sixth man? On the bench except for the odd shift, and 2 minutes on the point on the power play?

But I agree with the guys that his leadership on the ice is crucial. I liked the way he stepped in when Aebischer was tussled last night (and I noticed Rivet was right there too).

NEWFIEHABSFAN · Senior Member

if not mike, then rivet for sure!

Nil d · Guru

Caper_hab_fan wrote:

Dandy looked good to me, his speed is working well, he is jumping up into the play, and he is doing well in the corners.

I agree. He also seems to have stepped up a notch; actually he was playing well towards the end of last year.

I'd say they're all doing fine, Souray's defensive lapses notwithstanding. Markov has probably been the worst, but we know he's our best, generally, so I wouldn't worry too much about him.

Johab · Guru

statistically Nil d i think MArkov has been our best ( i did not check ) I dont think markov is playing all THAT bad. I guess its good news none of us can all agree on 1 guy as our best for the first 3 games. Niinimaa has been pretty good, and has quite a shot!

Nil d · Guru

Johab wrote:

Niinimaa has been pretty good, and has quite a shot!

II caan't saay thaat Ii've seeen anythiing to wriite hoome aboouut iin hiim, soo faar.

macneil · Guru

habscsi wrote:

Good question Barry who's gonna sit? Ill put my vote in for no one i think a Dman a winger(maybe perez) and a prospect will be traded. Remember Cubes salary isnt on the cap right now and were not gonna add him and just put some other higher salary d man on waivers. Also we cant keep 8 D and jettison Murry or Downey.After the Niinemaa(how the heck do you spell his name)Trade Bob pretty much backed himself into another trade when Cube is ready cause I dont think we can send anyone down without clearing waivers that make more than his cap number and we cant afford anymore against the cap with the raise Niinemaa brought over Ribs.

So it looks like to me TRADE in NOVEMBER when CUBE returns.By that time more teams will have a better idea of what they need to address and we have some good bargaining chips in Souray,Perez,Koist,Bonk,Abby,Markov,Rivet and the host of talent on the farm so im sure Bob will have his share of listeners when he starts talking trade!!

actually habsci we do have the cap room , now we are at 41 million , if boulion missed 10 or more games his salary for those games dont count so when he comes back we will take a 1.875 cap hit minus whatever the discount for his missed games is . when he come back assuming we have no injuries we would still be around 43 million , and can save a bit more if we drop striet to the minors .

plouf · Guru

Guys I agree Markov hasn't been at his best, but don't underestimate what he brings. Aside from 3 points in 3 games, he is our best rusher, best passer, best skater, and probably the smartest d-man on the team. And from what I hear (missed it) he played much better in game 3. Remember how awful our record has been the past 2 seasons when Markov is out?

Interesting stat: how nearly equal the playing time has been for all 6 defensemen.

I think it should be mentioned that our defense has been AVERAGE at best. Let's not get carried away. In the first game Huet was pretty much hung out to dry at times.

I actually really miss Bouillon. I seriously think he is our best defensive defenseman, strictly in terms of positioning, reading the play, and skating (too bad he can only hit in open ice). Although Markov is dynamite at shadowing players and using his stick when he's on. And obviously neither has enough of a physical presence in front of the net. (That's where Souray, Rivet and Komi come in.)

I agree with And-o about Souray: he makes some horrendous defensive errors, but since about 2/3 through last season (let's face it, he sucked most of last year) he has been an essential element of the team. It would be one thing if Downey stepped up and mashed some people, or if Komi developed a real mean streak, or if Rivet, Murray or Begin got a bit bigger, but for now Souray is our toughest player, the one who punishes garbage coming from opposing forwards. Plus he can shoot. I'm glad Souray knows he needs to play with an edge to make up for the decline we've seen in other areas of his play since the injury three years ago. I also think he and Koivu make a good complementary pair as leaders.

norskipaul · Senior Member

Nil d wrote:

Johab wrote:

Niinimaa has been pretty good, and has quite a shot!

II caan't saay thaat Ii've seeen anythiing to wriite hoome aboouut iin hiim, soo faar.

You should probably ask Power, but if you want I can give you a crash course in Finnish pronunciation...It's pretty simple, actually. Like in Niinimaa. Two of the same letter mean it's "long", one means it short. So it's something like Neenimaah. Power's probably gonna be all over me for that but what the ****.

habscsi · Member

you're right mac with boulion back we sit at 43 mil about(42.9XX) so we have 1 mil to play with but we are not gonna send someone down who has to clear waivers cause wed still be on the hook for the money(i think thats how it works i may be wrong) and that money could be valuable around deadline time. So this being said how about for now we keep em all up dump downey or murry and move Dandy to 4th line, rotating him and striet on D as injuries and games off demand, with kosi picking up the odd game as our 13th forward.Oh and nil sorry for the thread hijack but Barry asked such a good question and I love playing GM!!!! Thanks

barry33 · Guru

habscsi wrote:

you're right mac with boulion back we sit at 43 mil about(42.9XX) so we have 1 mil to play with but we are not gonna send someone down who has to clear waivers cause wed still be on the hook for the money(i think thats how it works i may be wrong) and that money could be valuable around deadline time. So this being said how about for now we keep em all up dump downey or murry and move Dandy to 4th line, rotating him and striet on D as injuries and games off demand, with kosi picking up the odd game as our 13th forward.Oh and nil sorry for the thread hijack but Barry asked such a good question and I love playing GM!!!! Thanks

BG cant be sending Streit down. He will need to clear waivers and you know that with his salary that some team will be grabbing him (can you say Toronto?)

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

We would either have to send Streit or Dandenault down.

I know we like both, but i don't see other options. Souray is too important, Niinimaa won't be sent down, and Dandenault really isn't good as a forward. I also don't see the point in carrying 8 D.

I personally think Dandenault should be the one to get sent down, unless he keeps up this level of play. He is fast, but his offensive instincts are really not all that good, and he can't finish plays. His defense is usually suspect, but this year he seems to have miraculously fixed that. I think it wn't last, but if it does, then we will probably cut Streit. I dn't think either would be picked up ff of waivers, especially Streit. A lot of good players have been safely sent down, and a relatively old second year Swiss player with little experience isn't that hot an item. Which is very fortunate for us, since I think he is a pretty good player.

macneil · Guru

habsci, we would only be on the hook for his salary on re-entry waivers and then its only half . he would be the only logical choice barring a trade .

Habtastic · Guru

I wonder if it would be better to carry 2 extra D instead of 2 extra forwards. There is much more speed and forechecking in the NHL these days and more and more D are getting hurt, putting a premium on having depth. Also, it is much easier for a Dman to play as forward for a game or two than a forward replacing a dman.
What I see happening is one of the D being traded, but us getting a 6th or 7th guy as part of the return, possibly one with a two-way contract. We will then have our bases covered.

Habtastic

barry33 · Guru

macneil wrote:

habsci, we would only be on the hook for his salary on re-entry waivers and then its only half . he would be the only logical choice barring a trade .

Either way, I will bet a paycheck that neither Dandenuealt nor Streit will make it to Hamilton without being claimed on waivers. Neither has a huge contract and are both servicable dmen and BG knows that. I feel that the Nimmina trade was a set up for BG to trade a dman. He really has no choice.

Fatherhab · Senior Member

barry33 wrote:

Komisarek hands down. He is on his way to becoming a premiere dman in this league. On the other side of teh coin, Markov has looked disinterested so far. But answer this. Who will be sitting when the cube comes back? Streit is already sitting.

A Frustrated Cube

Well folks, hate to spoil this discussion, but right now the Cube as the article below says, is really not sure when he will be returning. He is now comtemplating acupuncture to speed up the healing. He thought he might return in November, but it is delayed.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20061013/CPSPORTS01/610130772/1006/CPSPORTS01

barry33 · Guru

Fatherhab wrote:

barry33 wrote:

Komisarek hands down. He is on his way to becoming a premiere dman in this league. On the other side of teh coin, Markov has looked disinterested so far. But answer this. Who will be sitting when the cube comes back? Streit is already sitting.

A Frustrated Cube

Well folks, hate to spoil this discussion, but right now the Cube as the article below says, is really not sure when he will be returning. He is now comtemplating acupuncture to speed up the healing. He thought he might return in November, but it is delayed.

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20061013/CPSPORTS01/610130772/1006/CPSPORTS01

That better explains the Nimmina move perhaps..that sucks. I am not saying that the Cube is the best dman in the league, but like Souray he brings so much more to the team as a whole. He is a presence out there.

heet_150 · Guru

plouf wrote:

Guys I agree Markov hasn't been at his best, but don't underestimate what he brings. Aside from 3 points in 3 games, he is our best rusher, best passer, best skater, and probably the smartest d-man on the team. And from what I hear (missed it) he played much better in game 3. Remember how awful our record has been the past 2 seasons when Markov is out?

Interesting stat: how nearly equal the playing time has been for all 6 defensemen.

Personally, I think the other defensemen have raised their level of play, therefore, Markov isn't head and shoulders better. Someone mentioned Souray's 1-1 abilities, or lack thereof. In the Philly game, he was forced into defending quite a few odd man rushes, and did quite well. Still, I can never forget Chara deking Souray out of his jock-strap last year.

Diehardhabsfan · Veteran Member

Trade Niinimaa

Muller93 · Guru

barry33 wrote:

That better explains the Nimmina move perhaps..that sucks. I am not saying that the Cube is the best dman in the league, but like Souray he brings so much more to the team as a whole. He is a presence out there.

Ouch. If you start to consider acupuncture...you know you are in trouble. Acupuncture does NOT work. it's all placebo.

plouf · Guru

Placebo or not, it's obviously got something going for it. I can think of one person I know who tried it, and it worked for him.

My father in law was a heavy smoker for 30+ years, wanted to quit, tried all the recommended techniques, couldn't succeed, then tried acupuncture and says he lost interest in cigarettes. Lost interest! Boggles the mind...

adam13 · Member

KOMOCOP IS THE BEST DEFENSEMAN ON THE HABS SO FAR....

Just don't expect him to score lol!

Power · Veteran Member

norskipaul wrote:

Nil d wrote:

II caan't saay thaat Ii've seeen anythiing to wriite hoome aboouut iin hiim, soo faar.
You should probably ask Power, but if you want I can give you a crash course in Finnish pronunciation...It's pretty simple, actually. Like in Niinimaa. Two of the same letter mean it's "long", one means it short. So it's something like Neenimaah. Power's probably gonna be all over me for that but what the ****.

Pretty good, I`ll say! Can`t explain it better,only you don`t pronounce that letter h.

Although I`ll see MY first Habs-game this season tonight on tv(praise canal+!), I`ll say Souray