Montreal's ravaged defense: Gill, Spacek game-time decisions, Markov remains out
by Hooks Orpik on May 10, 2010 11:54 AM EDT
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PrintIt's no secret that the Stanley Cup playoffs have taken their toll. Incredibly, the Montreal Canadiens could be without four of their top six defensemen tonight as they look to avoid elimination against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
-Andrei Markov has been out since Game 1, when he was hit by Matt Cooke and reportedly tore ligaments in his knee. As players often to during playoffs, Markov has attempted to skate the past two days, but has been ruled out tonight for Game 6. Try as he may, it appears he just can't stabalize it enough.
-Jaroslav Spacek has only played one playoff game this season (last series against Washington) with what's being called an "illness". Rumors are swirling this could be some sort of inner-ear problem that is affecting his balance, and has ended the career of players like goalie Jim Carey and defenseman Kevin Lowe. Spacek says he is progressing, took the morning skate today and coach Jacques Martin said he will be a game time decision.
-Paul Mara has missed the entire playoffs after having shoulder surgery. He's skated the past two days, but reports say he is still a way's away from returning to the lineup and isn't a possibility for Game 6 tonight.
-Hal Gill is the biggest question. Gill got stepped on by Chris Kunitz and then his pain really started: he had to stay over-night in Pittsburgh on Saturday and couldn't travel with his team. With the team jet already back in Montreal, the team decided to send Gill on commericial flights back. Bad move. Gill got diverted to Philadelphia, endured some problems and got caught up for a while.
He didn't participate in full practice today and his usual spot with partner Josh Gorges was taken by rooking P.K. Subban. Martin has said Gill is officially a game-time decision, and will take pre-game warmups before a decsion is made to whether or not he's capable of playing.
That aside, Montreal's defense is in fine shape.
Sarcasm aside, we'll see what this means for the Penguins. Obviously no Gill would mean more room for Sidney Crosby to operate and thin out an already defensive corps for Evgeni Malkin to see even lesser defenders. Even though all signs are pointing to no Gill, something inside tells me the big guy will be in the lineup. Call it a feeling, but he's planning on taking warmups and after that point it's tough to imagine a competitor sitting unless his leg physically doesn't allow him to be able to play.
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Gill will play. Is a cut on his leg going to slow him down?
And I don’t ask that because he is tough, I just feel that it’s physically impossible for Hal Gill to be any slower.
by Link_Gaetz on May 10, 2010 12:01 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Over in Toronto
We called him Treebeard. He’s an Ent.
"Defense! Defense! Common! Do you call that blowing!?"
I don’t think he’ll go. Why would you say that he’s going to be out when you can say he’s a “game time decision” and keep the Pens guessing? If he was out for the morning skate, maybe, but he wasn’t so I don’t think he’ll go.
I've told [a 9 months pregnant] Nathalie that she can't have the baby on a game night. I'm not missing a playoff game. -Mario Lemieux in 1993
1 team down, 3 to go.
My thoughts exactly.
Sid’s gonna score if Gill isn’t around.
"Defense! Defense! Common! Do you call that blowing!?"
I’m not sure. Gill has been stuck to Sid like velcro, but even after he left last game, Sid still had a shadow. It wasn’t 8 bajillion feet tall, but it was still a pretty effective shadow. I think the Habs have enough depth and commitment to their system, defensively, to withstand the loss of Gill (if, indeed, he is out). Other things may lead to their downfall, but I don’t think the loss of Gill automatically means a breakthrough for Sid.
Leafs fan living large in the Pitt and pretending like the drought is over. Go Pens!
no hak gill means no problem...
at least for the pens
They could lose all of their starting defensemen and it wouldn’t matter. It’s the scheme, not the personnel.
Agreed (normally) except. . .
That it’s Gill we’re talking about. Being a 6 foot 7 bear rug draped over the shoulders of Sid makes a huge difference when it’s gonna be PK Subban in his place. He’s not as smart or as positionally sound as Gill, not to mention the massive size difference.
Scheme is important, but it takes skill to stick with Crosby and be positionally good enough to be able to neutralize him.
Gorges is doing a fine job of that, but losing Gill would be a huge loss. And that also would mean O’Byrne/Hamrlik would get the most of the Malkin assignment.
Lose too many pieces and the puzzle falls apart.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
by Hooks Orpik on May 10, 2010 12:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Sorry did anyone happen to read the puck stops here on Kuklas today? He claims that Malkin is the most overrated player in the league, and clearly does not deserve to be mentioned with the top players in the league. Just thought I’d get the rest of Pens nation as furious as I am.
http://www.kuklaskorner.com/index.php/psh/comments/malkin_has_not_been_a_difference_maker/
Saw it. That guy isn’t even worth a response. Don’t know how he is able to have a blog on Kuklas Korner.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
by Hooks Orpik on May 10, 2010 12:45 PM EDT up reply actions
I saw that too. And all I could think was, “Great, another person who thinks stats (Corsi) are the be-all end-all to a player’s worth.”
Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.
He tried to make a case last season that Malkin was below average defensively and cited his high number of giveaways (which he does have). But then he would not even consider that Malkin is always amongst the league leaders in takeaways, just whatever best makes the case he wants to make.
Hack.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
Thank you, I completely agree with you guys. I’m not a member of Kuklas, thats why I figured I’d bring it here to hear your guys responses. Frank I completely agree with you on corsi numbers. They are usefull number at times, but you cant use that as a principal credential for evaluating a player. Which that guys seems to do over and over.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 1:20 PM EDT up reply actions
A LOT of Pen’s fans tend to do the opposite and mention his Takeaways to say how defensively strong he is will conveniently forgetting to mention he is near the top in giveaways too.
Although I found the article to be lacking, I tend to agree with the premise. I too feel that Geno is over-rated and belongs in the class with Kovalchuk, Hossa, Heatley. All great players to be sure, but not in the Best in the league conversation.
Put on your dancin' shoes.
Geno has had a rough year, no doubt. From what I’ve seen from him over his young career,without a doubt up there with the best of them. After the playoffs last year I would have told you the he was the best player in the world.
Putting a Conn Smythe winner in a category with Kovalchuk, Hossa, Heatley is an insult to Geno. Thats ridiculous.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions
If you have watched Geno throughout his career I dont know how you can say hes overrated. After all hes done for the Pens. He carried them while Sid was out 2 years ago. Last year he lead the league in pts….conn smythe… I thought should have had at least 1 MVP out of those 2 years. Hes not a perfect player, but there is no doubt at all hes in the Top 3 of the league or Top 4 cuz I’d put Nik Backstrom right up there as well.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 1:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Everyone named above, except Geno, gets the other teams #1 defensive pair against them...
just saying. :)
The world is a dangerous place to live - not because of the people who are evil but because of the people who don't do anything about it. - Albert Einstein
everyone there also has better line mates if you want to be that way….whatever…nobody was saying this last year, geno will prove you all wrong again.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 1:51 PM EDT up reply actions
Good point. Kunitz/Guerin might not be much but it sure beats Fedotenko.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
so then an even trade off?
If you want to be in the argument for #3 in the game (after Sid and AO), which at this point is a REALLY tough argument for anyone to make about Geno, you need to produce more consistently than Geno has this year. Superstars do not take entire years off as being considered in the top 5 or 10, regardless of what they did the prior year.
Playing Devil’s Advocate = is Geno only going to be as good as he was this year? Still arguably the best #2 center in the game, but hardly a top 10 player in the NHL. For $8.7 million per season, we need to hope he plays like 2009, not 2010.
The world is a dangerous place to live - not because of the people who are evil but because of the people who don't do anything about it. - Albert Einstein
Geno did not have a great year. I wouldnt say he took an entire year off though, thats pretty ridiculous. He missed some games from injuries which he hasnt done since he collided with Leclair his rookie year. His P/PG would come out to 94 points over 82 games. That was playing with Fedontenko all year. To say hes not nearly a top 10 player in the NHL is pretty ridiculous. I was pretty tough on Geno as well this year, but at no point would I have put him outside the top 10.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 3:08 PM EDT up reply actions
2009-2010 top 10 IMHO
Sid, AO, H. Sedin, Stamkos, Backstrom, Thornton, Marleau, Heatley, Semin, Kovalchuk. Arguments for Richards (DAL), St. Louis, Datsyuk (in limited time) and Kane accepted, and that is without mentioning goalies.
I noted that I was playing devil’s advocate. If Geno plays every year for the rest of his career like he did this year, he is hardly top 10. And I also said taking time off from being considered in top 5 or 10. No one can make a good argument that Geno was a Top 10 player, let alone a Top 5 player in the NHL this year. I did not say that he took the whole year completely off. Even in bad years, Jagr and Lemieux were never considered outside the top 5. If you want to be in the conversation for league best, you are in it every year, not just in a year when the best player on your team gets hurt and you have to step up.
Make sense of what you read before automatically discounting because it is dissenting from your opinion.
The world is a dangerous place to live - not because of the people who are evil but because of the people who don't do anything about it. - Albert Einstein
It’s not that ridiculous if the stats back it up. Although I think he is better than the guys I mentioned he is still in that class. Not one GM in the league would pick Geno over Crosby or Ocho. And, I’d bet Datsuyk and Zetterberg would go before him too. Listen, I love the guy. I am certainly glad he is playing for us and not against us. But, one awesome playoff run (following a dismal one and followed by a lackluster one so far) and a partial season of otherworldly play while Crosby was out does not make him one of the greatest in the world. He has shown flashes of brilliance, even for an extended period of time, but that play is not consistent. More often than not we get the Geno that is just great, not the greatest.
Put on your dancin' shoes.
“I’d bet Datsuyk and Zetterberg would go before him too”- I dont know about that.
… My main point was to call a player overrated solely based on a corsi number is uninformed and ridiculous.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 3:11 PM EDT up reply actions
If we are only using the regular season as the case study, then maybe I would agree to an extent. I have a hard time believing a 100 point player, in a time when 100 points is not something that happens as much as it use to, is really overrated. When Crosby went down with the high ankle sprain, and Malkin stepped up, he was THE Best Player in the league during that time. If I am starting a Franchise right now, it goes Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin of the players (not including goalies) I’d want to start my team. Opinion obviously, but I am not sure how many GMs would disagree.
"Let the Rabbits wear glasses"
TSN reports Gill out. But I don’t think we can take anything for granted. Montreal has had very good defensive coaching over the years. Also they can score taking advantage of opportunities. The Pens have to play a pressure game, but also apply the defensive detail that they used in the last game. The objective is to win, not to play fancy hockey. It doesn’t matter who scores.
Where’s your link?
As of 12:36 TSN says Gill skated this morning and wants to play tonight.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
If Gill’s leg is still attached to his body, hes going to play.
by genomachine-O on May 10, 2010 2:28 PM EDT up reply actions
I would have to agree. They say it’s a bad cut, but I think the only way he doesn’t play isn’t pain related but rather if it limits his performance to the point where he can barely skate.
Which as Link so humorously pointed out he barely can skate anyways.
"Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war and there ain't no turnin' back. I mean, s---, it's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight."
What’s the over/under for how many times the Bell Centre crowd collectively yells awwww or boooo wanting a penalty.
10 times a period. 4.5 periods to be played tonight. I’ll say 45.
9 wins to go!
Let's go Pens!
by PensAreYourDaddy on May 10, 2010 4:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh boy, your calling for a 5th period win? As long as it’s us i don’t care how long it goes i suppose.
With as close as this series has been, I am really surprised we haven’t seen an OT game yet.
9 wins to go!
Let's go Pens!
by PensAreYourDaddy on May 10, 2010 5:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Gill would be a bad loss.
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by bestbostonsports on May 10, 2010 3:18 PM EDT reply actions
IF The Habs fans were allowed to referee, there would be at least 50 penalties for them every game. (i.e. automatic when any Habs player falls) . Perhaps Frank should consider a post, on how many times are they going to boo, for a call. May or may not include Don Cherry (MR. old time hockey) who is now pulling video clips and calling for penalties for every little play.
I predict that in the event of a loss Montreal will be up in flames by the end of tonight.
Follow the Penguins on SBN @ Pensburgh.com and twitter.
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