Wrote This After 2nd Period - Still relevant or not?

Key Lime · Guru

Wrote This After 2nd Period - Still relevant or not?

Andy · Veteran Member

Pleks played one pre season game with them. He joined them after Riberio got traded. So technically it was not an entire preseason.

Key Lime · Guru

Andy wrote:

Pleks played one pre season game with them. He joined them after Riberio got traded. So technically it was not an entire preseason.

You are correct Andy, I have tunnel vision. I always think of Kovy first and judge whether he's surrounded by players who can bring out the best in him.

hockeyman · Senior Member

The 4th liner wearing #84 has to prove he can handle th 4th line firstly. That he has not done. Not even close. The pace is too fast for him. People have to stop listening to the media. If they did Perez would be playing in Hamilton and #84 would be on the 1st line?????? Kosty should be wearing the CH.

plouf · Guru

Bang on hockeyman!

As I pointed out in another post, Gui has to prove he has what it takes for the 4th line. I know he's not a 4th line player in the long term, but he needs to show he's willing to be a team player and go all out in every situation.

Perezhogin, on the other hand, has impressed me with his willingness to backcheck. He's done what's asked of him. And the same goes, obviously, with Pleks and especially Higgins.

Key Lime · Guru

How about the Kovy line? The main point to this blog...

AB Habman · Guru

Key Lime wrote:

How about the Kovy line? The main point to this blog...

Carb can't be scared to test the waters if the twins are not clicking. I have a feeling you'll see them split up in the next few games. Enough is enough!

barry33 · Guru

Ya..with solid offensive stalwarts as Begin and Murray or Downey as his linemates Lats should really be excelling!

plouf · Guru

As wright put it so well elsewhere, Higgins, Perez, Pleks, etc...all have been buried on the 4th line at one time or another. All have worked their way to better situations.

Latendresse is a YOUNG guy Barry. I think Guy was glad to give the guy a shot, given his great camp. But he isn't about to hand a very young rookie a 2nd line role and demote a proven 10-year veteran who is clearly adjusting to a new team just based on a few exhibition games. Latendresse needs to work on his skating, consistency of effort and shift length, for one thing, and you don't need to be on the #2 line to work on that stuff. His shifts are as long as Kovalev's right now!

plouf · Guru

Sounds like Gui has a good attitude about it, anyway.
Don't get me wrong, I WANT this guy on the 2nd line by the end of the year. But I'm waiting to see him GRAB the opportunity.

[from NHL.com]

Carbonneau plans to start "Baby Huey" on a diet of rice cereal, then step him up to bananas and mashed peas in order to have him washing down corn beef and cabbage with strong ales by season's end. In other words, low expectations early to help the young man get off to a solid start.

"Everybody at the start of training camp expected Guillaume to be in the lineup this year," Carbonneau said. "I have to put the best 22-23 players on the ice and he was really good in the preseason games. He's a big kid who has a lot of things to learn. He's still growing and you can see he has a really good upside. This early in the season, I don't want to overwhelm him. I want to take my time with him and make sure he learns the right way. He's going to be a force.

"He has great hands but after three years of juniors he has those tendencies to make soft passes and soft plays. When he wants to be a power forward, he can be really strong on the puck. I just think he has great upside and is going to get better."

"Guy just wants me to work hard and improve the areas that are not my strengths," Latendresse said. "He wants me to get to spots where I'm open. Later on, if there's a player injured or something, I might move up to another line but right now I want to get adapted to the NHL game. I'm getting good ice time now, so I'm happy with the way things are going."

barry33 · Guru

plouf wrote:

As wright put it so well elsewhere, Higgins, Perez, Pleks, etc...all have been buried on the 4th line at one time or another. All have worked their way to better situations.

Latendresse is a YOUNG guy Barry. I think Guy was glad to give the guy a shot, given his great camp. But he isn't about to hand a very young rookie a 2nd line role and demote a proven 10-year veteran who is clearly adjusting to a new team just based on a few exhibition games. Latendresse needs to work on his skating, consistency of effort and shift length, for one thing, and you don't need to be on the #2 line to work on that stuff. His shifts are as long as Kovalev's right now!

My point is Plouf, why keep him at all then? If you want him working on his skating etc then send him back to Junior. Dont stick him out there for 2 shifts a period with deadweight like Downey or Murray.

plouf · Guru

I'm kind of neither here nor there on that one Barry.
You might be right on that, but hard to say.

I think it was worth a try to see how bad he wanted it. And there's still hope he'll pick up his game. His skating is a problem, but wouldn't be prohibitive if he showed less tentativeness.

But I'd be leaning toward sending him back right now if I was Carbs. As much as I'd LOVE to see him on the second line, I sincerely don't see him ready at the moment. Things might change if the Habs start losing.