Habs Report Card: My Take on the first 24 games

10-10-4. Not what I call impressive. Sure, there have been some highlights, but for the most part more disappointments. The coaching and his decisions have been exactly what I expected. Terrible with a daily head-scratcher. Martin isn't and never has been the right coach for the makeup of this team. We are too small up front and not physical enough on the back end to play his "lay-back and wait in the shell" style. Sadly, he is here, and that really sucks.

Lets start with the blueline:

Gorges: A- Let's face it, he is the real Captain of the Canadiens. True leader, he has even chipped in with some points. I have no idea why he wasn't signed long term. The league is seeing how good he is. Value is going up. Markov's salary better not be the reason we cant afford him in the future.

Subban: C+ Take away the first 6-7 games and he gets a B-. PK is playing like he is terrified to make a mistake. When he plays that way, he makes mistakes. Different coach = better stats.

Weber: C Now before everyone goes nuts, let me explain. I do not believe he is best suited to be a dman. He is a turnover machine, even worse than PK. I would make him a winger/point on PP.

Diaz: C I am not really a fan of his at all. I don't know what the strength of his game is and think that he HAS to be the odd man out when the injured guys come back.

Spacek: B- He had played a little better before he got hurt. Biggest key? He is only playing 15+ minutes. Any more, his grade will go down.

Gill: B+ Skillsy is a playoffs guy. His style when games are more wide-open is not near as effective as his shutdown playoff style. He will be an A in the playoffs again I am sure.

Emelin: B Finally, a guy who brings a physical presence to the front of Carey Price's net. He is quickly getting used to the smaller ice surface, and is becoming a steady defensive dman.

Campoli/St. Denis: Incomplete. I don't see St. Denis getting any time with the big club when the injured players come back. Campoli just shouldn't be on the ice.

Markov: (Management: F) Until he proves that he can play and stay healthy this signing will continue to stink. I love the guy, but he played 52 games in 2 years and he has missed the first 24 this year. Hardly a guy I would pay that much money for, especially on a 3 year deal. I hope he gets in the lineup, plays well, and we win. I am just not convinced he will stay healthy and I wrote that in a blog in July.

Forwards:

Plekanec: B The points are there but something is missing in his game. His intensity, usually his strong point, seems to flicker at times. He has great shifts, then horrible ones. Injury?

Pacioretty: A Despite the possibility of a suspension, Max has been a bright spot up front. Drives the net, hits, and is shooting from anywhere and everywhere. Should be a 35 goal power forward. That's a rarity in Montreal.

Cole: B+ If he finished half of the chances he had in the last 10 games, he would have close to 15 goals. After just 1 assist in his first 6 games, he has put up 7-6-13 in his last 18 games. With all of the chances he creates, he should lead us in goals, easily. Best Free Agent signing we have had in a long long time.

Desharnais: C Severely miscast as an NHL center. Too small and not fast enough. His points come from the line he plays on, and he would be better suited to play the wing with Gionta perhaps.

Cammalleri: C- This could even be lower. The points gets him the grade. Effort, and will to win should give him a D or an F especially the last 5 games or so. Allergic to hits. We need him to be much better, and he has proven that he has it in him to be a force.....a positive one.

Moen: A-  I love what he has brought to the team, but I would not be surprised if he is used in a deal. He is tough and a leader. However, his value is at an all-time high. He isn't as good as his 8 goals show. I want him here, but if someone overvalued him, I would think about it.

Kostitsyn: B Was playing very well before the injury and has recently returned. Contract year, has a ton to prove. Hope he stays in Montreal, but like Moen, could be used as trade bait for a bigger fish.

Eller: B Lars brings so much more than points. I believe that we won the Halak trade anyway (Price gets to play, has been MUCH better than Halak since, and Eller is a stud in the making), and his two-way game continues to improve. Should be the center for Cole and Pacioretty.

Gomez: D- I could give him an F or even a G but I will give him a break. I wont even mention the salary (I guess I did, sorry), but when a top 2 center doesn't score a goal in over 40 games then he is terrible. When he doesn't hit, coughs the puck up, and has 4 assists in 13 games it makes it even worse. When he plays, the other forwards get less minutes, especially Eller. Just send him to the minors already.

Nokelainen: C He is hard to grade. 4th line journeyman center who doesn't provide offence, hit or fight is not my style of player, but he does win face offs and he is responsible in his own end: two things that we needed.

Darche: D- Gets powerplay time and still only has 1 point in 24 games? BRUTAL. Its not his fault, its Jacques Martin's man-crush he has. Darche is becoming my new Tom Pyatt, but his "frenchness" will keep him in the lineup even longer. Ugh.

Blunden: C A guy that took Ryan White's spot as a 4th line winger that hit, would stand up for teammates and was responsible in his own end? Obviously Martin would send a guy like that to the AHL. He should have stayed till White came back.

Palushaj: D- When I watch him, I wonder if he just got his first pair of skates as a birthday present. He has no balance, does not provide any offense, and is often out of position. Doesn't hit either. Why is Blunden in the AHL again?

Engqvist: F Has to be running out of chances in Montreal. Looked out of place and uninterested in his 8 game stint. With the Habs so desparate for a big centerman, he had the chance given to him on a silver platter. He failed.

Goalies:

Budaj: B+ Great numbers in limited action, and from what I hear/read is a super teammate and love the fact that the Habs signed him. He knows his role and that is key.

Price: A- Starting to roll, the MVP of this team by a country mile. Will be a Vezina threat for the next 10 years. Leader on and off the ice, taking over as the dependable leader that we hoped he would be.

Habs Hit Leaders - After 21 Games (9-9-3)

A major stat when building and evaluating a team, in my opinion, is the number of hits that your team throws. Below is the "Hit Race" for both forwards and defensemen - total hits (games played)

After game on November 21, 2011 - 21 games (9-9-3)

Forwards

Cole 58 (21)
Moen 40 (21)
Darche 26 (21)
Gionta 24 (21)
Pacioretty 23 (21)
Eller 20 (19)
Kostitsyn 18 (13)
Plekanec 16 (21)
Blunden 14 (8)
Nokelainen 14 (19)
Palushaj 9 (11)
Desharnais 9 (21)
Engqvist 5 (8)
Gomez 3 (12)
Cammalleri 2 (16)

Defensemen

Emelin 43 (13)
Gorges 27 (21)
Subban 21 (21)
Gill 16 (16)
Spacek 12 (12)
Diaz 12 (21)
Weber 11 (21)
St. Denis 1 (4)
Campoli 0 (1)