Author: Dose

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You get the feeling that Andrei Markov would like to work for the Canadiens

In recent days, the General has been seen at the Bell Centre for the first time in a long time.

Andrei Markov, who attended Saturday’s game, was introduced on the giant Bell Centre screen. He was, of course, warmly applauded by his former fans, who have not forgotten him.

It was a beautiful moment.

Since he left, Markov hasn’t really been honored by the club in the way he deserves – on Saturday, he was there with a friend, not because of an invitation from the Habs.

But to me, it’s clear: he doesn’t want a tribute, he wants a job.

Reading an interview he gave to Responsible Gambler (to Sergey Demidov) in the last few days, it’s clear that #79 never really gave up on the idea of working for the Habs.

When asked about it, he made no secret of his enthusiasm. And to me, seeing a guy like Markov talk like that says a lot.

I’m always open to suggestions. – Andrei Markov

I don’t know what kind of position Markov could fill, but from what we understand, the former defenseman would like to work for the Habs one day. Remember that he was an assistant in the KHL in recent years.

Could the Habs find him a position? Something he could do from Russia? There seems to be no hurry if the right opportunity doesn’t present itself.

Oh, and by the way: the Ring of Honor is for guys like him. Give me a break with the retired number… no matter how good he’s been to the Canadiens over the years. After all, the Habs aren’t the Senators. #ChrisNeil

But that’s just my opinion.

Overtime

– Matvei Michkov is good.

– The Habs’ forwards aren’t challenged.

– The Mets owner did it.

– Good listening.

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Juan Soto: more money ($765 million) than the seven biggest contracts in NHL history

Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

If you have a young child, put a baseball bat in his or her hands.

After seeing Shohei Ohtani sign for $700m over 10 years a year ago, Juan Soto has already crushed that total a year later. With a 15-year, $765 million contract, the outfielder leaves the Yankees for the New York Mets.

And that’s despite the fact that he doesn’t pitch, that he’s really rotten defensively and that he won’t earn the Mets as much in advertising as Shohei Ohtani did with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But because Juan Soto is only 26 and is the league’s most “natural” hitter, he managed to get such a contract. He also has an exit option that could bring him more cash… and no deferred money is on the menu.

In short, the $440 million he turned down two years ago in Washington is long behind him now.

Obviously, this is a completely insane amount of money for the average person. But even for the millionaires of the NHL hockey world, it’s an amount hard to imagine.

And let’s put it into perspective.

In the history of the NHL, only seven players have ever received a contract worth at least $100 million. And if we add up the total amount of those seven contracts, we don’t even come close to Soto’s $765 million.

Here’s how it looks.

  • Alex Ovechkin: $124 million
  • Leon Draisaitl: $112 million
  • Shea Weber: $110 million
  • Sidney Crosby: $104.4 M
  • Nathan MacKinnon: $100.8 M
  • Connor McDavid: $100 M
  • Ilya Kovalchuk: $100M (after his $102M contract was rejected)
  • Total: $751.2 million

It’s worth noting that if Soto had signed the same contract at this time last year, he would have received an amount higher than the value of several NHL franchises. The Coyotes were worth $500 million and the Sabres $750 million.

The Blue Jackets were exactly $765 million, and clubs like Florida ($775 million) and Winnipeg ($780 million) were worth less than the $805 million Soto could earn if he exercises his opt-out in five years’ time.

Basically, if he opts out of his contract, Steve Cohen can prevent him from leaving by giving him another $40 million.

However, since it’s 2024, it’s worth noting that all NHL clubs are now worth at least $1 billion. The Blue Jackets (ranked 32nd) are currently worth, according to Sportico, $1.06 billion.

We know that in a few years, MLB will have to renegotiate its labor contract and that the owners will push for a salary cap. But believe me: the top players want nothing to do with that.

Juan Soto is proof of that.

Overtime

– Clearly.

– Logical.

– Three points in one game this season: impossible to do for a Preds player.

– Montreal tradition.

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Top-5: Matvei Michkov signs an autograph after being ejected from the match

There were seven games on Sunday in the NHL.

What happened?

Let’s find out together:

1: Matvei Michkov signs an autograph after being ejected from the game

Has anyone ever told you that Matvei Michkov is a good hockey player?

We saw it again last night, when André Tourigny’s team visited Philadelphia.

Michkov picked up an assist during the game and became the first rookie to total at least 25 points this season:

Michkov’s efforts weren’t enough, as the Flyers lost the game 4-2.

But here’s what caught the eye at the end of the game: after a little scrum with about twenty seconds left on the clock, Michkov was taken out of the game… And he decided to sign an autograph on his way to the locker room.

It made for a funny moment:

2: Kent Johnson is on fire

You can see why Kent Johnson was selected with the 5th pick in the 2021 draft.

The Blue Jackets player is blossoming and quickly becoming an important part of the Columbus line-up.

He demonstrated his talent by scoring two goals in 2 minutes and 27 seconds against the Jets:

Johnson’s two goals gave the Jackets a 4-1 victory.

It’s a big win because we know that the Jets have been excellent since the start of the campaign.

But things are going well in Columbus: the Blue Jackets have a 6-3-1 record in their last 10 games.

That’s not bad.

3: A shutout for the Avalanche’s new goalie

Scott Wedgewood was making his second start since the trade that sent him to Colorado.

And he took the opportunity to show his new teammates that he has what it takes to help the team.

He stopped all 25 shots he faced against the Devils’ big attack to record the shutout (4-0):

It’s got to feel good because in Colorado, even though the team is super talented on paper, there’s a big problem in front of the net.

It remains to be seen whether Wedgewood will be able to keep the momentum going… And if he does, the Avalanche will be a club to watch for a long time to come.

4: Kraken comeback

The Rangers and the Kraken had quite a duel at Madison Square Garden.

The Kraken trailed 3-1 at one point, but the Seattle outfit scored five unanswered goals to silence the New York crowd.

Three of those goals came in the second period, and the last one was scored by Oliver Bjorkstrand :

The Kraken’s fifth unanswered goal was scored by none other than Shane Wright.

Things have been going well for him lately, as he’s hit the target six times in his last eight games.

In the end, the Kraken won 7-5 against the Rangers. Another defeat for the Blue Shirts…

5: Brayden Point is too strong

For the past two games, Brayden Point has been dominant.

He took advantage of his club’s visit to Vancouver last night to finish with four points (two goals and two assists), and was the offensive catalyst in his team’s 4-2 win over the Canucks.

It’s the second game in a row that he’s scored four points. And that puts him in good company:

Brayden Point is really establishing himself as one of the best players in the league.

It’s crazy when you think about it, but Point is a 3rd-round draft pick (2014)…

Extension

– Well done.

– Oh, no.

– Oops.

– What a shot.

– 500 points for Palmieri.

– Top scorers of the night :

(Credit: QuantHockey screenshot)

– Three games tonight, including the Canadiens against the Ducks :

(Credit: Google screenshot)
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Ovechkin and Michkov out of the top-6: Russians to dominate at 4 Nations

ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA - 2022/05/05: Matvei Michkov (No.39) of Russia U20 seen in action during the Liga Stavok St. Petersburg Cup, hockey tournament match between Russia and Russia U20 at Jubilee Arena in Saint Petersburg (Final score; Russia 4:2 Russia U20) (Photo by Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The line-up for the 4 Nations Showdown is now complete. The tournament, to be held in February, will see the best players from Canada, the USA, Sweden and Finland go head-to-head to see who is the best hockey nation.

However, an important player is missing with the absence of Russia, which is currently being ostracized from world sport due to the war in Ukraine.

And for those wondering why countries like the Czech Republic and Slovakia aren’t taking part in the competition, it’s because all players must play in the NHL to be eligible, and these nations don’t have enough to form a complete team.

On the other hand, it might be interesting to create a Team Europe with players from countries not taking part in the tournament.

But back to our potatoes. Gino Hard lent himself to the exercise of making a projection of what the Russian team might have looked like if it had taken part in the 4 Nations Confrontation.

It’s an impressive team on paper.

First of all, in goal: it’s a really solid goalkeeping line. Possibly the best in the Confrontation if Russia were involved.

While Canada, and Quebec in particular, has been struggling to produce elite NHL goaltenders for some time, Russia has been developing several excellent ones.

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The attack, too, packs a punch, with a number of forwards who are very dangerous with the puck. The left wing is particularly powerful, with four players who would play on a first line with any team in the League.

The center line lacks a little depth compared to the wings, but overall, it’s a very good, well-balanced attack.

However, the Russian defense looks a little more ordinary on paper. The team lacks attack-minded defensemen and, in particular, the presence of an NHL elite line general.

Nevertheless, it’s a defensive brigade that would be solid in its zone and could facilitate the work of its excellent goaltenders.

It would be interesting to see how this team would have performed at the tournament, but as long as Russia is banned from international sporting competitions, we can only speculate.

Overtime

– Habs Weekly.

– Already 25 points for Michkov.

– New inductees.

– Another big performance from Jokic.

– Nice mark for Chris Paul.

– Double bronze for Canada.

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Cole Caufield heads for a 51-goal season

MONTREAL, CANADA- OCTOBER 14: Cole Caufield #13 smiles during the warm-up of the NHL regular season game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Bell Centre on October 14, 2024 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Matt Garies/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Canadiens may be having a rather disappointing season, but at least some of their players are putting in interesting individual performances. The first to come to mind is Cole Caufield, who already has seventeen goals and twenty-five points in twenty-seven games this year.

At this rate, and we’re already a third of the way through the season, the diminutive forward could score fifty-one goals and become the first fifty-plus-goal scorer since Stéphane Richer in the 1989-90 season.

Caufield currently ranks third among NHL scorers, just two goals behind Sam Reinhart and Leon Draisaitl, and if he continues to score at the same rate, he could possibly win the Maurice Richard Trophy.

In fact, the Habs’ forward could even benefit from Patrik Laine’s return to see his offensive production increase if the first line can take advantage of the increased attention of the opposing team’s top defensive elements on the Finnish player and his line.

After a season a little below expectations, Caufield should easily surpass his personal mark of twenty-seven goals from last campaign.

It’s really hard to understand why Team USA didn’t choose Caufield for the 4 Nations Confrontation.

The forward is currently the top scorer among all American NHL players.

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His detractors will say he’s too one-dimensional, but scoring goals as a unique talent comes in handy for winning games…

And we’re still talking about scoring goals in elite quantities from the National Line, because that’s Caufield’s job, and right now, he’s doing it better than 99% of the players.

Moreover, if the American produces at this kind of pace for several seasons, his contract could quickly become a very good deal for the Canadiens. Last season, he signed an eight-season, $62.8 million contract after a season of twenty-six goals in forty-six games.

Some wondered whether the young player had sat on his contract when his average had dropped to twenty-eight goals in a full 82-game season. However, at 7.85 million a year for a scorer of forty, maybe even fifty goals a year, it’s a good deal regardless of his defensive shortcomings.

In short, let’s hope Caufield stays in shape for the rest of the season and keeps up the momentum.

Overtime

– A nosebleed and a goal for Hughes!

– And a beautiful mark!

– What a game!

– Seattle wins a duel of rivals.

– Never easy for the Bears.

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Frank Nazar (drafted with Kirby Dach trade pick) dominates

Frank Nazar is off to a good start in the AHL, with 24 points in 20 games. His production ranks him first among rookies and fifth in the AHL.

Why am I talking about Nazar? He’s the player the Chicago Blackhawks selected with one of the two 2022 draft picks, thirteenth overall, that the Canadiens gave up for Kirby Dach.

This pick was obtained from the New York Islanders in return for defenseman Aleksandr Romanov and the Habs’ fourth-round pick, the 98th, which became defenseman Isaiah George.

The second was a third-round pick, 66th overall, with which Chicago drafted forward Gavin Hayes.

So, to sum up, the Canadiens gave away Romanov (or a 13th-round pick, depending on your point of view), a third-round pick and a fourth-round pick to acquire Dach.

It’s a high price to pay, especially since the big forward is having a difficult, not to say disastrous, season. In 27 games, he has just one goal for a meagre total of eight points and a minus-21 rating. Ouch!

For the man we were sold during the off-season as the team’s second established center, this is rather disappointing.

Yes, Dach is coming off a lengthy injury, and Patrik Laine’s injury forced him to play part of the season with allies who aren’t top-six material (not to mention Alex Newhook, who’s also having a tough season).

However, after three games since Laine’s return, Dach has no points on his record playing with the Finn.

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And meanwhile, Romanov is doing a fine job defensively with the Islanders, playing an average of 21:35 minutes per game on the first pair of defensemen. The kind of defenseman the Canadiens could really use right now.

Although the trade made sense from a rebuilding point of view, it’s not really Kent Hughes’ best move yet. On the other hand, if Frank Nazar becomes a star player in the NHL, it’s a trade that could also hurt us in the long run.

But that’s all hypothetical. A good start in the AHL is absolutely no guarantee of a good career on the National Line.

What’s more, I think we need to be patient with Dach. It’s not easy to recover from a double ligament tear in the knee, and we have to give him time to find his beat and hope he returns to the same level of play as before his injury.

Overtime

– Things are bad in Buffalo!

– Already thirteen goals for Gaudette.

– Steelers win over section rivals.

– Big game for Darnold!

– The Eagles are on fire!

– Duel of pirates.

– Victory for Canada.

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For the 2nd time this week, a (major) false rumor involving a captain is published.

Things aren’t going well in Detroit.

The Red Wings – who have been rebuilding for a few seasons now – are not living up to expectations.

The club is one point ahead of the Canadiens in the Atlantic Division standings and has a 10-13-4 record so far this season.

Seeing how bad things are, a Twitter account by the name of “Sash Sharnaz” posted a post today saying that according to his information, Dylan Larkin has requested a trade.

In the tweet in question, the Sash Sharnaz account says he’s spoken to Chris Johnston and that Johnston has confirmed the information… And in the message, the account says he’s going to talk about it tomorrow on his “Sharnaz Show” on TSN 1200.

The problem?

There’s no TSN show featuring the man who calls himself Sash Sharnaz on Twitter. So Chris Johnston shared that tweet, saying it’s not true.

He denied the “rumor”:

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This is… Ordinary.

It’s a pretty obvious lack of judgment, and it reminds us of one thing: on the Internet, anyone can say anything at any time.

You have to be careful…

That said, this is the second time this week we’ve seen the name of a captain of a rebuilding team in a rumor of this kind.

Larry Brooks (New York Post) tweeted this week that Brady Tkachuk was in the Rangers’ sights, and that Alexis Lafrenière could go the other way if there was a deal.

Last night, Elliotte Friedman told Sportsnet the opposite: the Sens are happy with Tkachuk and don’t want to trade him.

The rumour started by Larry Brooks was also denied:

That’s not to say that Dylan Larkin and Brady Tkachuk won’t change addresses by the end of their careers.

However, we shouldn’t expect any kind of transaction to take place tomorrow morning… Even if there have been rumors to that effect in recent days.

Overtime

– The Kings are good.

– Wow!

– Love this.

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“I think Markov deserves to have his jersey retired.

EDMONTON, AB - MARCH 12: Andrei Markov #79 of the Montreal Canadiens skates during the game against the Edmonton Oilersin Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Andrei Markov has spent his entire career in Montreal.

He played 990 games for the Canadiens and was an important player for the club from 2000 to 2010.

The defenseman was back at the Bell Centre last night, and the fans gave him a warm welcome:

Throughout his career, Markov has had his moments.

He has three seasons of 50 points or more behind the tie (including one of 64), he finished his career with a total of 572 points, he was one of the league’s good defensemen for a few years…

This prompts Éric Hoziel to believe that Markov deserves to have his jersey retired in the heights of the Bell Centre.

He spoke about it this morning on the radio, when he appeared on Greg Lanctôt’s show (Tailgate Week-end) on BPM Sports:

I think Markov deserves to have his jersey retired. – Éric Hoziel

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Éric Hoziel defends his comments by saying that Markov always behaved well on the ice, that he made everyone around him better and that he played an important role in P.K. Subban’s development.

That’s true. In fact, Markov is one of the highest-scoring defensemen in the club’s history, along with Larry Robinson and Guy Lapointe!

But, on the other hand…

Andrei Markov has never won a Stanley Cup, he’s never won a single individual trophy, he’s not in the Hockey Hall of Fame… And he doesn’t have the résumé of a legend in the Canadiens organization.

I’ve got nothing against the defenseman, but it would be funny to see his jersey installed next to the other Habs legends :

(Credit: Capture d’écran Le Blog Hockey)

Andrei Markov has had a fine career in the NHL.

In fact, it’s fair to say he’s had a great NHL career.

But to say he deserves his place among the Habs all-time greats is pushing it a bit in my opinion.

Especially when you look at his career achievements. He would have needed more.

Overtime

– Coming up.

– The best special units in the National League :

– Voilà.

– Good.

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Martin St-Louis doesn’t use Emil Heineman enough

MONTREAL, QC - OCTOBER 09: Look on Montreal Canadiens left wing Emil Heineman (51) during warm-up before the Toronto Maple Leafs versus the Montreal Canadiens game on October 09, 2024, at Bell Centre in Montreal, QC (Photo by David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Watching the Canadiens’ games lately, something struck me.

Emil Heineman is really effective on the ice.

He’s able to put his skills to good use, and even though he plays a supporting role in the Habs line-up, he’s important.

When a guy hits, uses his body to create things in forecheck and is able to put pressure on because of his skating, he becomes useful to an NHL team.

Emil Heineman does all that… And what’s more, he can find the back of the net because he has a quality shot.

At the time of writing, the 23-year-old ranks 4th for most goals (6) scored by a rookie so far this season.

Heineman is on a 19-goal pace this season, which is far from bad:

(Credit: NHL.com screenshot)

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Clearly, we can see why he was selected in the 2nd round by the Panthers in the 2020 draft.

We knew he had interesting potential when we saw him score seven goals in eleven games upon his arrival in Laval, but we’re still talking about a nice surprise this season with the Canadiens.

That said, Heineman deserves – in my opinion – a chance in the team’s top-6 if certain players (like Newhook) continue to disappoint.

Heineman was Martin St-Louis’ least-used player yesterday against the Capitals, as he was against the Islanders and Preds earlier this week :

(Credit: ESPN screenshot)

Will Emil Heineman save the Canadiens’ season with a top-6 finish?

No one has said so.

On the other hand, if the Canadiens go for it on merit… Heineman should play even more. He’s got some interesting assets for a player of his size (especially his shot) and even though he doesn’t have much experience, we’ve seen that he can help the club.

The Canadiens need to take advantage of his shooting ability:

In closing…

Among rookies, Lane Hutson is currently the 2nd leading scorer (17 assists).

Matvei Michkov (22 points) is alone on his island at the top of the list…

Overtime

– Well…

– Things are going well for the Lions.

– The defender celebrates his 35th birthday.

– Where’s Soto going to sign?

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Morning practice: a day of treatments for Josh Anderson

In the wake of their frustrating 4-2 loss to the National Hockey League’s top team, the Washington Capitals, the Canadiens de Montréal held a practice this morning.

Martin St-Louis’ team took to the ice at the Bell Centre at 10 a.m. for a full practice.

It’s a rare event to see the team practice the day after a game.

What caught the eye at the Habs’ morning practice was the absence of forward Josh Anderson.

Indeed, the Habs’ number 17 had a day of treatment today.

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It’s a well-deserved day of rest for Anderson, who’s been playing some great hockey lately and even since the start of the season, despite not showing up on the scoresheet.

Once again last night, he played a good game, with a very physical and involved presence at every turn.

He’s clearly found his role this season, and is playing good hockey to make himself useful to the team’s success, even if he’s not collecting points at the rate he should to justify his contract.

Although he only has 10 points, including four goals in 27 games, Anderson makes himself useful by being involved and, above all, by being very physical.

In fact, he leads the Canadiens in checking with 69. That’s an average of 2.56 checks per game.

In short, Anderson is playing big hockey, and it’s only natural that his body needs a practice break this morning.

Let’s hope all is well in his case, and that he’ll be back tomorrow against the Anaheim Ducks.

Overtime

– Here’s the final top-5 of the Formula 1 season.