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Gainey Attempts to Revitalize Canadiens |
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You asked for it and Bob Gainey responded.
I'm going to make this short and to the point.
Mathieu Schneider returns to the Montreal Canadiens for a second round pick in this upcoming draft, as well as a 3rd rounder in 2010. The Canadiens receive a conditional pick, which will only be as good as a 3rd rounder.
So Gainey didn't lose a single player, nor prospect. Some may argue the price was high, but for this buyer it was certainly affordable.
Schneider brings experience, toughness, a shot that can score from the point...etc...
We know he's not the saviour, and that isn't his purpose. He fills a void that has existed since the first day of the season.
Is he excited? Of course he is. Pierre McGuire put it best yesterday on the Team990, in his usual slot on Melnick in the Afternoon: "Going from hockey purgatory to the Mecca of hockey in an afternoon is a blessing for a player in the twilight of his career." Obviously no professional athlete who's had a 20-year career wants to be forgotten in a city where hockey is far from popular.
Ryan O'Byrne will be a solid NHL defenseman one day, one with the size and physicality that this team will certainly benefit from moving forward. He had tough days in Montreal this season, and by all accounts made a strong rebound in Hamilton, and with the Canadiens thereafter. He's a casualty of the cap as Schneider bolsters the blueline.
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It didn't end there.
Sergei Kostitsyn is a 21-year old kid who's made some mistakes in his sophomore season. He thought he had arrived in the NHL with an impressive rookie campaign, but his attitude has not been one of a player starving for the ice-time he so desperately needs in order to be effective. The hope is that Sergei receives this message and comes back with an improved work ethic, much like Maxim Lapierre has this season, after being bounced from Montreal to Hamilton at the beginning of last season.
Gregory Stewart will play like a player who's starving for a job. That's the type of player the Canadiens need right now.
And then the mother of all occurrences:
Bob Gainey had a discussion with Kovalev, and he's decided it would be best for the struggling winger to sit out the next two games and think about how he can get his game back up to a respectable level. He won't accompany the team to Washington and Pittsburgh. Gainey wouldn't admit that Kovalev is on the market, but certainly didn't endorse the idea that he'll have a future with the Canadiens. "Tired and emotionless," is the evaluation from the GM in reference to Kovalev's performance of late.
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So you've been asking: What is Bob going to do?
The situation the Canadiens were in required immediate attention. So for those who will cry about Mathieu Schneider firing slapshots for the Canadiens instead of Jay Bouwmeester you'll have to realize that timing, as well as a team's long-term plans, essentially dictate whether they can acquire a certain player or not.
Bob Gainey now has the next two weeks to watch his team and evaluate them based on this shock-treatment strategy. He will undoubtedly add to this team if he has the opportunity to without sacrificing his core, unless the deal is too good to turn down.
He has the option to pull a one-for-one deal, but we all know the challenge is to find the right fit for a player who's underachieving but could be effective elsewhere.
We'll discuss the long-term plans in depth, but first we'll see if the short-term ones have their desired effect, starting tomorrow night in Washington.
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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