Oops, 2 games played and I’ve already missed a game preview… I’m on fire.
The habs are now on the West coast, which means I won’t be able to watch any of their games there. When they play in Montreal, their games start around 1 AM for me, and I sometimes watch the first period. But when they’re in Calgary or Vancouver, it starts at 4 AM. I love the habs but I’m not THAT insane…
Alright, so let’s turn to our Shania to know who I won’t watch the habs playing tonight.
GAME 3
The Flames!
First, I have to say something about them. I looove their new retro jerseys. It’s freaking ugly, but it works perfectly. I think it looks amazing. I know the retro-jerseys thing is just a marketing fad that produced some great things and some really avoidable stuff. Like all fads, it will probably soon be forgotten for a little while, before the teams decide it’s time to wear retro 1990’s/2000’s jerseys to please those who grew up watching the game now. And it’s funny to think that those, those and those jerseys will inevitably be called “classic” then. (I give it less than 10 years before the Ducks pay hommage to the Disney era)
So, I like Calgary’s effort with the throwback jerseys. BUT, I think if you want to look really retro and bring back the magic from the late 1980s, you have to take the next step and also bring back the other unforgettable element of this era:
The stache
Seriously. If you really want to look vintage, you can’t really escape it. And there’s so much potential here. Just imagine.
I’d root for them.
Anyway, back to the game. The recent series of injuries opened some spots on the habs lineup, and this should give Weber and Chips an opportunity to play. I’m especially glad for Chipchura. Not only because he has a great name, but also because he was once considered a future leader of this team. It never quite worked out that way and he will hopefully have a (last?) chance to salvage his nhl career. It’s a tough sitution for him, because he won’t get many occasions to shine. Metro is supposed to be back pretty soon, and I think he’ll take his spot back. It’s up to Chips to make Martin feel like he can play a role on this fourth line, maybe on the wing, even after Metro returns.
As for Weber, I think I would have preferred to see Carle called up. We all know Weber will get his chance, and he seems destined to crack the habs lineup sometime this season, or probably next season. For Carle, time looks to be running out too, with the emergence of PK Subban, Weber, Emelin (if he ever decides to come to Montreal), and Fisher. I thought the habs would call up 2 defensemen to travel with 7 D in the West, but they chose to go with just 6 blue-liners. Interesting.
Finally, another word about another habs youngster, the enigmatic Sergei. He is apparently now about to report to Hamilton. Has he changed his mind, and finally understood that his demotion is only temporary, and that he needs to work on his off-ice attitude? Or is this move just the first step towards a trade? Who knows. Like many other habs fans, I sincerely hope he’ll stay in Hamilton for a few weeks and be recalled in Montreal. It would be a shame to lose him like that. I know I’m not really writing groundbreaking stuff here, but that’s how I feel.
Now, about tonight: no offense to Buffalo and Toronto (well, I don’t really mind offensing Toronto actually), but the Flames will be a tougher test. If the habs play the way they’ve been playing so far, I’m not sure they’ll get away with an OT win this time. It’s time to tighten up a little bit defensively (and stop allowing all those shots) and to begin building a little more offensive chemistry. So far, the habs are mostly dumping the puck and scoring ugly goals. That’s ok, because those goals are worth the same than beautiful tic-tac-toe goals, but in the long run, this is not going to be enough. Sure, there is no reason to worry so far, and the chemistry difficulties were predictable. It’s going to be interesting however to see if the team is slowly improving in this area.
As long the habs play better than last year in Calgary and don’t feel the need to go bowling tomorrow, I think I’ll be happy.
The Soft European 
