Habs to deal Kovalev?

It's surprising to hear but it's almost the only scenario that can be seen happening in Montreal. Though there haven't been any recent trade talks involving Kovalev's name, Gm Bob Gainey's decision to tell Kovalev to stay home during the Canadiens' current road trip is hardly a vote of confidence to the enigmatic Russian. Arguably one of the most skilled players, if not the most skilled, in the league, Kovalev has been known as a lazy player. Often called a dog, Kovalev has shown flashes of greatness and flashes of selfishness. Such duality no more apparent then when Montreal played Boston in the playoffs when he simply quit on a play after being tapped by a stick, attempting to draw a penalty. Montreal ended up losing that game giving Boston a 3-1 lead in the series. Kovalev then lead the way for the Habs to make a comeback. But what now for Montreal's most skilled player? Told to stay home, his recent play has been abysmal. It's hard to think he'll be welcomed back into the dressing room when the GM pretty much says the teams better without it's best player. An upcoming UFA, Kovalev will likely be looking for a new team come July 1st whether the Habs deal him or keep him at the deadline. Montreal is currently in a tailspin and dealing Kovalev, if they can find a buyer, might gain good prospect or a draft pick or two. Considering Mathieu Schneider yielded a couple of picks, Kovalev just might get Montreal a decent package coming back from a team secured in the playoffs looking to sure up their offense.

And Another Bites The Dust

At what point does management look at a team and wonder how much responsibility his coach has for his team’s struggles. Coach Craig Hartsburg of the Ottawa Senators was fired Sunday following the Senators 7-4 loss to the Washington Capitals and is to be repalced by Cory Clouston of the Senators' AHL affiliate. With timing similar to that of John Paddock’s firing last year, the question now comes down to: What now? The Senators have gone through two coaches in two seasons, both only lasting a few games after the All-Star Break. At some point the blame has to shift from the man behind the bench to the man overseeing the whole team as a whole. But the question then becomes: what is Bryan Murray to do? The problem the Senators now face is that they appear to be coach killers. Craig Hartsburg was brought in to bring accountability and discipline, something the team lacked last year. But even his ways have shown that there’s more to this teams problems than even he can solve. The team desperately needs a puck moving defenseman and a list of underachieving players has hampered this team’s ability to perform even close to par. So now the fact that the team is lacking pieces falls to Brian Murray.
Now many fans have been placing the blame of losing Zdeno Chara on Murray but let’s clear the air on that. Brian Murray had nothing to do with the Hossa, DeVries trade for Dany Heatley and he had nothing to do with the signing of Redden over Chara. I’ve also heard a lot of fans criticizing Murray’s signing of Heatley, Spezza and Alfredsson to such high dollar values for such a long period. I’m inclined to disagree with this due to the fact that prior to last season, many fans would applaud such signings. Heatley was signed to 7.5 Million dollars and is under contract for the next 4 seasons. The same goes for Spezza at 7 million and Alfredsson for 4.4 Million. Each of these players are the driving force for Ottawa’s offence and certainly merit the salary. Heatley was coming off two back-to-back 50 goal seasons and Spezza and Alfredsson have both had 85+ Point seasons. It’s hard to argue the signings of the teams big guns but the signing of Mike Fisher to what is effectively a 4.2Million dollar contract is simply too much for a 20 Goal Scorer is simply too much. Arguably, Fisher brings a lot of grit and physical presence to a team in the playoffs but his low scoring production is not with 4.2Million Dollars. Antoine Vermette is also making around 2.7Million to bring the same production as Fisher. His physical play may not be as determined or as effective as Fisher’s but, once again, his production hardly merits such a high salary. Between Vermette and Chris Kelly, there’s nearly 5 Million dollars in Cap space for about 35 Goals and excellent penalty killing. The issue is that Dean McAmmond is making 0.885Million Dollars a year and is just as reliable defensively.
After two coaching changes in as many years, the next one out might be Bryan Murray. Though some of his signings have been good, others have committed the team to contracts that are simply too great for players who do not produce enough and have handcuffed the team financially. This team is looking for answers and unfortunately, may not have the means to do so financially. I would look to lose some of the bigger contracts at the deadline. A Mike Fisher just might attract a playoff bound team looking for some extra grit and a physical force to bring into the post season. A few draft picks or maybe a prospect or two may not be enough to turn this team around, but it just might be the start to get the ball rolling and a shake-up to the team.