10 Teams Habs Fans Should Follow at WHC

The 2012 IIHF World Hockey Championships open this Friday with 16 countries set to battle it out for the title and valuable points  for the 2014 Olympic tournament seedings.  While a country like Kazhakstan enters with the expectation of getting blown out in most of their games, the following 10 teams should hold some intrigue for Montreal Canadiens fans to watch as the tournament gets going.

10) Belarus

Over the last few seasons, Belarus was somewhat of an adopted club for many Hab fans, as Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn as well as Mikhail Grabovski spent time in the Canadiens' system and represent three of the very few NHL'ers the country has.  It is likely that there will be fewer allegiances for the nation this time around, since all three have moved on to other NHL clubs, and the Kostitsyn brothers remain in the NHL playoffs with the Nashville Predators.  Thus, the challenge will be a big one for Toronto's Grabovski with no other current North American pros on the team.  Belarus is currently 11th in the IIHF standings, with the top 9 teams getting automatic Olympic invites.  They will need a deep run to make up the 115 points that separate them from Norway.

9) Switzerland

The Swiss could have been a favourite of Canadiens fans, but both Raphael Diaz and Yannick Weber had to pull out of the event as they continue to nurse injuries.  By watching Switzerland, however, Hab fans will still be able to get reacquainted with long-time National Team captain and former Montreal swingman Mark Streit, who will be supported by Anaheim Ducks defenseman Luca Sbisa and young New York Islanders forward Nino Niederreiter (who Canadiens fans will remember from his preseason altercation with Mike Cammalleri).  Another name some Hab fans might remember is Goran Bezina, a 6'4", 220 lbs offensive blueliner who played 3 games for the Phoenix Coyotes back in 2003-04.  At various points over the past few seasons, there were some reports that the Canadiens might attempt to ink the 32-year old d-man, though as he has remained in Switzerland, the odds of a return to North America for him have become increasingly small.

8) France

We covered why France is an interesting story yesterday, with the main reason being starting goaltender Cristobal Huet.  Huet last played for the Canadiens during the 2007-08 season, and left the NHL after winning the Stanley Cup (albeit as a playoff back-up) with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010, becoming the first player from France to achieve the accomplishment.

7) Slovakia

I'm sure most Canadiens fans can never watch Zdeno Chara lose enough for it to get old, so the Worlds may be a great opportunity to see Chara and an undermanned Slovak club get their rear ends handed to them.  But if spite isn't enough for you, two forwards have names that should ring a bell.  First is Marcel Hossa, younger brother of Marian, who began his NHL career in Montreal as a highly touted goal scorer.  Little Hossa lacked the consistency of his older brother, however, and never found a home in the NHL, moving from Montreal to the New York Rangers and finally a brief stint with the Phoenix Coyotes, before crossing over to the KHL where he has had a fine career as an offensive star.  Next is Juraj Mikus, who never played a game for Montreal, but was selected by the team in the fourth round in 2005.  Despite putting up decent numbers for the QMJHL's Chicoutimi Sagueneens, the Canadiens elected not to sign the 6'1", 205 lbs forward, so he returned to Slovakia.  He gave North America one last shot, spending the 2009-10 season with the AHL's Manchester Monarchs, but could not earn a call-up, and headed for the KHL.  He spent the latter half of this season with Saku Koivu's former club, TPS Turku, in Finland, where he scored 10 points in just 17 games.  Mikus is still only 25, so it isn't impossible that a strong Worlds encourages an NHL team to give him a look.  In the "what are they doing now" column, Slovakia's roster includes some former NHL'ers such as Miroslav Satan and Branko Radivojevic.

6) Finland

Unfortunately, neither Saku Koivu nor Teemu Selanne will take part in this event for Team Finland, but many eyes will be on the Finns since they enter as both defending champions and the IIHF's top seed.  Saku's younger brother Mikko Koivu will wear his country's colours, joined by the likes of Kari Lehtinen, Valtteri Filppula, Jussi Jokinen, and top prospect Mikael Granlund.  While Lehtinen will be the club's starter, a player of interest for Canadiens fans is goaltender Karri Ramo.  The Habs had acquired his rights from the Tampa Bay Lightning for AHL goaltender Cedric Desjardins, but he opted to remain in Europe, where he gets an opportunity to start.  He was included in the deal that sent Mike Cammalleri to Calgary this year, so he is no longer Canadiens property.  Still, if he sees any action, it will be interesting to see how he fares against international competition.  Hab forward Petteri Nokelainen was with the club for some exhibition games, but was cut from the final roster in favour of some players currently playing in Europe, though many have NHL experience (Niko Kapanen, Jarkko Immonen, Jesse Joensuu...).

5) Denmark

Montreal's Lars Eller should feature in a starring role for the Danes, though he will get help from NHL'ers Jannik Hansen, Frans Nielsen, and Philip Larsen.  It will be a tough role for Eller who has struggled with his offensive consistency, but certainly it is a good experience for the soon-to-be 23-year old all the same.  Denmark currently ranks 12th in the IIHF standings, and while climbing into the top 9 for an Olympic berth won't be easy, if they can maintain a top 12 spot, they will get to host one of the final qualification events, giving them an edge in that tournament which will take place next winter.  Denmark is only 5 points ahead of 13th place Latvia, but also only 15 points back of Belarus, so this is an important tournament for them.  Lars's younger brother, Mads Eller, played for Denmark at this year's World Junior Championships despite being only 16, but is still too young and inexperienced to make the Men's team for this event.  He most recently had 3 assists in 6 games at the World Under 18s.

4) Czech Republic

The Czechs have a dynamic offense, led by a one-two center punch of the Canadiens' Tomas Plekanec and Boston's David Krejci.  They will be flanked by the likes of Ales Hemsky, Milan Michalek, Michal Frolik, and Tomas Vincour.  After Montreal was eliminated from the playoffs last year, Plekanec joined the Czechs and had a sensational tournament, scoring 6 goals and adding 4 assists in just 8 games.  Banking on that success, the Czechs named Plekanec their team captain for this year's Worlds.  One other interesting story on the Czech roster is 40-year old Petr Nedved.  Yes, that Petr Nedved.  Nedved - who had obtained Canadian citizenship - won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 1994 Olympic Games.  The veteran of just under 1,000 NHL games left North America following the 2006-07 season and has since played in the Czech Elite League where he has been a dominant offensive player.  Aside from the 1995 World Cup of Hockey, this event will be the first time he has played for his homeland, though based on his five goals in six European Hockey Tour tune-up games, it may very well not be his last.

3) United States

The American entry into this tournament is lacking in starpower, but contains enough depth that they are sure to battle hard against any opposition.  The team will count on Montreal's Max Pacioretty to carry over his goal-scoring prowess from a great NHL campaign, playing on the top line with Paul Stastny and Bobby Ryan.  While that line may be impressive, there is a steep drop-off to the second line duo of Jim Slater and Kyle Okposo, though they were rather dominant in an exhibition game win over Sweden this morning (Sweden played without most of its NHL contingent).  The team should be solid on the back-end, with Cam Fowler, Jack Johnson, Alex Goligoski, and Justin Faulk anchoring a top 4 in front of Detroit netminder Jimmy Howard.  The U.S. sits sixth in IIHF rankings, 150 back of fifth place Canada and 55 ahead of 7th place Switzerland, so the event is unlikely to change their Olympic ranking either way barring some inspired performances.

2) Russia

Montreal's Alexei Emelin figures into his National Team's top 4 on the blueline, currently paired with former NHL'er Dmitri Kalinin, who now plays for St. Petersburg in the KHL.  Emelin, who just celebrated his 26th birthday, is coming off his rookie campaign in North America where he quickly became a fan favourite thanks to his thundering body checks.  With only one NHL season under his belt, he is no stranger to the large ice surfaces, and he has played for Russia in this very tournament three times before.  Another top d-man for the team will be Konstantin Korneev (Korneyev in Russian).  At 5'11", 181 lbs, he doesn't have Emelin's size, but he is solid defensively and has a more developed offensive game, making him a true two-way d-man.  Korneev was a 9th round pick by the Canadiens in 2002, but remained in Russia ever since rather than attempting a transition to North America.  This will be his sixth straight season taking part in the World Championship for his country, but though he is still only 27, the odds of seeing him in blue-blanc-rouge someday seem very minimal.  Offensively, Russia boasts superstars Evgeni Malkin and Pavel Datsyuk, but the team is largely composed of KHL veterans.  One such player is former Canadiens Alexander Perezhogin, who as a first round pick in 2001 was once seen as an up-and-coming star, but left North America after the 2006-07 season and currently plays for the KHL's Avangard Omsk.  He had a bit of a difficult year, with 27 points in 53 games being a career low for him in Russia.

1) Canada

Looking at the rosters, there should be little doubt that Canada enters the event as the favourites, solid at every position.  Certainly Canada is always a point of focus for Hab fans, but even moreso when there is a Canadien on the squad, which we have this year in P.K. Subban.  Subban started the first exhibition game on a top pairing with Chicago's Duncan Keith, but suffered a minor lower body injury early on, and did not return, also set to sit out today's tune-up.  The team won't confirm whether or not Subban will be available for Friday's WHC opener, but it seems he shouldn't miss too much time if any.  Canada has a deep and dangerous offense, and should get solid goaltending from Cam Ward.  To give you an idea, here is a projected line-up:

Alex Burrows - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry
Jamie Benn - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins - Jordan Eberle
Jeff Skinner - John Tavares - Patrick Sharp
Evander Kane - Ryan O'Reilly - Teddy Purcell
Andrew Ladd

Duncan Keith - P.K. Subban
Marc Methot - Dion Phaneuf
Jay Bouwmeester - Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Luke Schenn

UPDATE: Unfortunately, it was announced this afternoon that Subban's injury will keep him out two weeks, and as such he is returning to Montreal and will miss the World Championships.  Unfortunate for him as undoubtedly he was looking forward to again representing his country, but at least it isn't anything too serious that will derail his summer training.

Your Canadiens for December 29, 2011

The Canadiens will not make any changes to their line-up for tonight's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, which means the following roster:

Max Pacioretty - Lars Eller - Erik Cole

Travis Moen - Tomas Plekanec - Andrei Kostitsyn

Mike Cammalleri - David Desharnais - Louis Leblanc

Mathieu Darche - Petteri Nokelainen - Michael Blunden

Josh Gorges - P.K. Subban

Tomas Kaberle - Alexei Emelin

Hal Gill - Raphael Diaz

Carey Price

- Starting in goal for Tampa will be former Canadien Mathieu Garon. Garon last played for the Habs during the 2003-04 season. Only two players who were on the team that year remain in Montreal, being Andrei Markov, and Tomas Plekanec who played his first two NHL games that season.

- Also playing for Tampa Bay, in his third game of the season, will be J.T. Wyman. A defensive forward (who actually started out his hockey career as a defenseman), Wyman spent 4 seasons with the Hamilton Bulldogs, playing 3 games for the Canadiens in 2009-10.

- Today was an optional skate for the Habs, but all players were on the ice except for Michael Cammalleri and Travis Moen. A Tweet from J-F Chaumont prior to practice indicated that Carey Price and Mathieu Darche were catching up with Lightning forward Tom Pyatt, while Max Pacioretty chatted with Martin St. Louis. The connection with Pyatt may be obvious to you, seeing as he played in Montreal last year, but the St. Louis - Pacioretty friendship is a little more obscure. This past July, Pacioretty's first "game" following the infamous hit by Zdeno Chara was a charity match in Connecticut in which Pacioretty skating on a line with St. Louis.

- World Junior Championships updates from yesterday:

Jarred Tinordi played a strong game for the United States, earning his team's player of the game honours, despite the Americans dropping a 4-1 result in an upset to Finland.

Michael Bournival improved on his first performance for Team Canada, playing the third/fourth line center role well in Canada's 5-0 victory over the Czech Republic. And this improvement despite the fact that a bad cold almost meant Bournival had to sit the game out. Bournival's assist in the game means 4 of 5 Canadiens prospects in the tournament now have at least a point.

Brendan Gallagher, on the other hand, didn't have as strong a night as in the opener, missing two great scoring chances (one shot directly into the Czech goalie, and the other a whiffed one-timer) and taking two penalties.

Nathan Beaulieu continues to receive limited ice time in the #7 defenseman role, serving mainly as a powerplay specialist. With the man advantage, Beaulieu's shots frequently missed the net, plus for a second consecutive game, he took a third period penalty. Beaulieu has played well enough to deserve more ice time, but he'll need to step it up further to earn his coach's trust.

Daniel Pribyl was officially named to the Czech Republic's roster yesterday afternoon, recovering from the leg laceration that made him questionable for the tourney. He made his debut in a limited role against Canada last night.

- The Hamilton Bulldogs were also in action last night but were shut down by former Canadiens goaltender David Aebischer. Despite outshooting the St. John's IceCaps in each period (and 40-26 on the night), the 'Dogs fell by a 3-1 score. Andreas Engqvist had Hamilton's lone tally, his 8th in just 16 games. He had only 10 in 71 games last season.

- The last few weeks have seen many trade rumours about Canadiens prospect defenseman Morgan Ellis jumping to another CHL team, but it seems all have reached a stalemate for the time being. This would have nothing to do with his NHL rights (he would remain a Hab), but the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, the team he captains, sit 14th of 17 teams in the QMJHL. Ellis is expected to turn pro next season as he makes the leap to the AHL (or at least the ECHL) but could prove a hot rental for the remainder of this year for a Memorial Cup contending team. He picked up 1 assist in a 5-4 shootout win last night, giving him 25 points in 33 games. A lot of the discussion has involved him joining a team of another Hab prospect, possibly to play with Nathan Beaulieu on the stacked Saint John Sea Dogs, or solidifying the defense of Michael Bournival's Shawinigan Cataractes. The current QMJHL trade window closes January 7th, so a move should be completed between now and then.

Your Canadiens for December 27, 2011

Welcome back, Habs fans. Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas or happy holiday weekend, and after a 4-day break, your Montreal Canadiens are back on the ice this evening. Let's hope that the team begins to play up to its potential and rattles off a win streak, or the opposite occurs and we see the kind of re-tooling I discussed yesterday. The only thing we don't want is a middle ground scenario, especially if it encourages Pierre Gauthier and Geoff Molson to trade picks or prospects to try to grab on to the 8th playoff spot.

- We saw Randy Cunneyworth roll out new lines at practice yesterday. They were as follows:

Max Pacioretty - Lars Eller - Erik Cole

Travis Moen - Tomas Plekanec - Andrei Kostitsyn

Mike Cammalleri - David Desharnais - Louis Leblanc

Mathieu Darche - Petteri Nokelainen - Mike Blunden

Josh Gorges - P.K. Subban

Hal Gill - Raphael Diaz

Alexei Emelin - Tomas Kaberle

Yannick Weber - Chris Campoli

Lots to look at here. Most notable is the slotting of Lars Eller and P.K. Subban on to top lines following their one game sat as healthy scratches. Many have complained that Eller's potential is being wasted by playing him with third line wingers, pointing to this as a cause of his limited production (despite evident displays of top notch skill). He's now being given a chance with the large and talented wingers that David Desharnais has been blessed with this season (though he has played to a level worthy of their talents). It will be an interesting experiment to see if Desharnais can continue to produce without their size and if Eller can unblock offensively by playing with them. As for Subban, he will go right back to where he was before his scratch and I'm sure Randy Cunneyworth will be watching closely to see if any of the lessons he may have sent his way have been understood.

On D, Alexei Emelin seems to finally have a spot made for him on the left side. As much as Tomas Kaberle looks good on the powerplay, he hasn't earned any trust at 5-on-5. Could he really be that much worse playing the right side? At least you strengthen the left by slotting in a guy who has played like a Top 4 blueliner on the team on that side of the ice.

- Other than the lines, the big news out of practice was that the Canadiens now have an ad for Subway (Sandwiches) on their practice jerseys. This was met with outrage by many, including Dave Stubbs of Hockey Inside/Out / The Gazette. There have been many indications this season that the Molson family is about the cash in a big way and this is the latest move to increase their profits. Habs fans will be less angered if it is positioned as extra money going to pay for Jacques Martin's dismissal and/or perhaps sending Scott Gomez to Hamilton! And at least it's just a practice jersey right now.

- The 2011-12 World Junior Hockey Championship kicked off yesterday. If you don't follow the tournament, as a hockey fan, you are missing out. These under-20 kids play with hearts on their sleeves, representing their country and trying to be noticed on a big stage to vault their hockey careers forward. It is some of the best hockey you can watch all year. Here's how the Habs fared on opening day:

Brendan Gallagher had the game-winning goal and added an assist in Team Canada's 8-1 steamrolling of Finland. Gallagher spent most of the game on a top line with team captain Jaden Schwartz and future Winnipeg Jets star Mark Scheifele.

Nathan Beaulieu played only limited minutes 5-on-5, but was a fixture on Canada's top powerplay unit where he looked far smoother than any other blueliner. He finished the game with 1 assist. He isn't a flash player like a Subban, but he makes smart, efficient plays well and has a booming and accurate point shot.

Michael Bournival was the weakest of the three Canadian Canadiens (heh), generating some chances but also fighting the puck at times. He was the only member of Team Canada to finish a negative, of course a -1. He got looks on many different lines throughout the night after starting as the fourth line center.

Jarred Tinordi, an assistant captain with Team USA, scored a lucky goal in the first period with a shot that was going well wide but bounced in off a Danish player's skate. Still, it was a well timed pinch in the offensive zone by the big man. Tinordi played on the team's top pairing with Adam Clendenning. He took a delay of game penalty for clearing the puck over the boards from the defensive zone in the first period which was costly, as the Danes scored on the ensuing powerplay.

Daniel Pribyl is an interesting story that I don't fully understand yet. Despite a report last week that he would be named an assistant captain for the Czech Republic, according to the IIHF website, he is not a part of the final Czech team. I've yet to see any report explaining this, but the Czechs do only have 12 forwards on their final roster (most teams carry 13). I would guess Pribyl may have been injured in a pre-tournament game or practice, but we will perhaps know more when the Czechs open their tournament tomorrow.

- The Hamilton Bulldogs got back into action yesterday follow their Christmas break. They played the first period as though they were still working off their Christmas dinner, falling behind 3-0 to the Toronto Marlies in the first six minutes. But they came storming back with 6 unanswered goals to earn the win. Robert Mayer was perfect after coming in to relieve Nathan Lawson after the third goal, while Olivier Fortier passes the offense with two goals. Also scoring were Aaron Palushaj, Ian Schultz, Phil DeSimone, and Andreas Engqvist with an empty netter. Joonas Nattinen and Gabriel Dumont each collected two assists.

Your Canadiens for December 21, 2011

Updates on the morning of the third game of the Randy Cunneyworth era, as the Habs prepare to take on the Chicago Blackhawks at 7:30 PM EST this evening.

- With the Canadiens playing in a back-to-back situation, travelling to Winnipeg for tomorrow night, Peter Budaj will get the start in goal tonight. The Habs have dropped 3 games in a row, so tonight is an important game and playing Budaj is a bit of a risky move on Cunneyworth's part. However, for some time now, Carey Price has been one of the few players who "brings it" on a nightly basis. Starting Budaj is a challenge to the skaters; Carey's not there, now it's your turn to go out there and win it.

- Otherwise, the team will make no line-up changes, meaning Alexei Emelin and Yannick Weber will again be healthy scratches. I'm no fan of sitting Emelin and really think it makes little sense given the make up of this club. He's being held back because he's an LD, but a spot needs to be made for him at some point. With the top pair of P.K. Subban and Josh Gorges struggling, now would seem as good a time as any to split them and shift Gorges back to the right side.

- Team Canada continues its preparation for the World Junior Championships (which begin on boxing day) with their second pre-tournament game tomorrow night. Canada will take on Switzerland at 9:00 PM EST, live on TSN2. In the team's first game Monday night, Michael Bournival and Brendan Gallagher made strong impressions with great games. The pair is on the "fourth line" with no consistent third linemate since there are only 11 healthy forwards with the group at the moment. They still got plenty of ice time as coach Don Hay rolled four units, and Gallagher rewarded him by tapping home a Bournival rebound for a goal late in the third period. Nathan Beaulieu, meanwhile, had an up-and-down game, generating a few chances offensively while on the point of the team's top powerplay unit but not producing.

- Team USA is also holding their pre-tournament camp, dropping their first exhibition match to Team Russia last night. Jarred Tinordi was a healthy scratch for the game as the club opted to evaluate other defenders instead. Most still consider Tinordi a lock for the squad, though the Americans still have to make their final cuts by Christmas.

Hockey Canada Announces Final Roster for World Juniors

The final round of cuts from Hockey Canada's selectition camp for the upcoming World Junior Championships were released this morning. And the results are...

CONGRATULATIONS to Habs prospects Brendan Gallagher, Nathan Beaulieu, and Michael Bournival on all making Team Canada! It's sure to be a fun holiday tournament for Canadiens' fans as three top prospects get to represent their country on home soil!

The final round of cuts were as follows:

GOALTENDERS

Louis Domingue
Tyler Bunz

DEFENSEMEN

Cody Ceci

Alex Petrovic
Ryan Murphy
Joe Morrow

FORWARDS

Brett Bulmer

Phil Di Giuseppe

Tyler Toffoli
Christian Thomas
Ty Rattie
Brad Ross

Philip Danault

This leaves the following players who've earned the right to play for their country over Christmas:

FINAL ROSTER (lines just for illustration; nothing final)

Jayden Schwartz - Mark Scheifele - Devante Smith-Pelley

Jonathan Huberdeau - Ryan Strome - Mark Stone
Quinton Howden - Boone Jenner - Brett Connolly

Freddie Hamilton - Michael Bournival - Brendan Gallagher
Tanner Pearson

Brandon Gormley - Dougie Hamilton

Ryan Murray - Mark Pysyk

Nathan Beaulieu - Jamie Oleksiak
Scott Harrington

Mark Visentin

Scott Wedgewood


Photo, courtesy of TSN, of Michael Bournival being told he made the team.


Photo, courtesy of TSN, of Brendan Gallagher being told he made the team.

Big Night for Habs and their Juniors

Montreal - Habs fans will be forgiven for thinking, in last night's third period, that they were watching a tape of many prior third periods this season. We've seen the horror story before: the Canadiens build a lead (in this case, 3-1), then sit back, and some sloppy defensive zone coverage lets the other team right back in. Last night, Jacques Martin was quick to point out P.K. Subban on the New York Islanders' first goal, and Raphael Diaz on their third as the culprits of bad giveaways that almost cost the Canadiens a point or two.

But at the end of the day, we will look back on this night and see two points in the bank. It wasn't always pretty - and who'd have thought that Mathieu Darche, Petteri Nokelainen, and Hal Gill could ever all score in the same game (#PlayersWithMoreGoalsThanScottGomez) - but with the amount of points the team has lost this year that they likely should have earned, I'll take it. Sad but true, the win puts the Habs at two games over .500 for the first time this season!

There were definitely things to build on. Erik Cole remained, as he has been since about game 7 of the season, the Canadiens' most dangerous forward. He is definitely staking claim for his signing to be Pierre Gauthier's best move as GM. His 11th goal of the season tied him with Max Pacioretty for the team lead and has him on pace for 29, just short of his career high of 30. But what was perhaps more impressive was a play in the third period where Cole, being his usual self, drove hard to the net with the puck, but had his legs taken out by defenseman Travis Hamonic, resulting in his crashing hard into the goal post. Cole stayed on the ice for a few seconds, as Habs fans around the world held their breath, but he got up, skated around, and stayed on the bench. Moments later, he was back on the ice, and repeated the play almost immediately. He took the puck and drove in hard, again against Hamonic, generating a chance. This time it was Hamonic knocking the net off its moorings, but it didn't stop Cole from chopping a buck past Al Montoya after the whistle had gone. Hamonic challenged Cole, and the likable American didn't back down, engaging in some jousting. If Brian Gionta is ever dealt away from Montreal, I'd say Cole is as strong a candidate as any to take over as captain.

Also good last night was Lars Eller, assisting on Nokelainen's game winner. He showed more glimpses of his incredibly soft hands that make him, in my mind, the best stickhandler on the team. However, he suffers from a chronic lack of finish. I'm not sure what it's going to take for him to unblock (better linemates?), but it is certain that his stat line doesn't come close to reflecting his incredibly high skill level.

Tomas Kaberle is a general on the blueline on the powerplay. He patrols the center of the ice efficiently, and is extremely proficient and holding the puck in along the line. The team's powerplay has improved tenfold with his addition, even if there are still a few kinks to work out. His even strength play, however, does leave something to be desired. After being on the ice for the tying goal, he was glued to the bench for the final 8 or so minutes of regulation.

Chris Campoli looked solid in his debut. He won't wow anyone with his defensive zone play, but he's more intense in his own zone than Kaberle, and supported the attack well on a couple of occasions. With Diaz having a bit of an off night, it will be interesting to see how Jacques Martin manages his d-men and if he re-inserts Alexei Emelin for tomorrow's game against the tough Philadelphia Flyers.

There was some concern as Travis Moen, he of a therapy day missing practice on Monday, took a shot off the foot and left the game. Moen has been playing some great hockey for the team, and though he is considered day-to-day for now, if he is to miss some time, his loss will be felt. Especially since even with Moen, the team only has 11 healthy forwards on the roster. A call-up from Hamilton would be necessary to replace him.

Still missing in action were Tomas Plekanec and Mike Cammalleri. Cammalleri has always been a streaky scorer, so fans can continue to hope that it begins to click in the near future. Plekanec, however, is a bit of a concern, as it isn't his skill level or shot that earned him a fat contract. It has been his intensity, jump, two-way play, and creativity on the ice that have endeared him to Habs fans, and even if he does lead the team in points, all of these traits have been lacking this season. He has been unable to create offense or help the game of his linemates, and given that he was generally always a guy to bring his 110% on a nightly basis, it is quite inexplicable.

But, a win is a win. The Canadiens are in striking distance of climbing back into a playoff spot, and hopefully they can extend their longest winning streak in a month (2 games) against some tougher competition in the days ahead.

Alberta - Yesterday was the third on-ice day at Hockey Canada's World Junior Championships selection camp. Habs' prospect Brendan Gallagher was made a healthy scratch for the final exhibition game, indicated that he has made the final roster. Congratulation Brendan!

Playing for their spots last night, however, were Nathan Beaulieu and Michael Bournival, both in hot competition for spots as an offensive D and two-way center respectively. For the most part, Bournival had been relatively unnoticeable, while Beaulieu had looked good on the powerplay but had largely failed to produce.

Last night changed everything, with strong performances from both future Canadiens. Beaulieu assisted on Canada's first goal against the CIS Alberta All-Star team (on the powerplay) before adding a powerplay marker of his own to tie the game at two. He generated chances all night and was quite solid in his own end. He definitely did all he could to leave a good enough impression to make the squad. At this point, I'd be more surprised if he did not make it than if he did.

Bournival, meanwhile, skating on a line with Brett Connolly and Brett Bulmer, had perhaps some of his team's best shifts throughout the game, with a number of strong cycling shifts down low in the offensive zone, very fitting for a guy looking to lock down a possible fourth line role. But with Philip Danault, one of Bournival's possible competitors for the spot, potting two goals in the second period, the Shawinigan Cataractes captain needed to step it up further. And that he did, roofing a wrist shot top shelf for a goal of his own.

Beaulieu and Bournival performed as well as could have been hoped for, but must now play the waiting game due to the deep talent pool in camp. They'll find out their Christmas fate over the next couple of hours as Canada makes its final cuts.

Your Canadiens for December 13, 2011

Updates from a reasonably busy morning in the hockey world:

- Travis Moen was back at practice this morning after taking a therapy day yesterday. He will play tonight.

- As I mentioned yesterday, Scott Gomez suffered some form of setback in his training. He was not on the ice this morning, and nor was Brian Gionta, still considered out indefinitely, at least a week.

- Chris Campoli practiced alongside Raphael Diaz on the second powerplay unit this morning. He will return to the line-up on a pairing with Tomas Kaberle, meaning Alexei Emelin will be a healthy scratch. Thus, this marks Campoli's regular season Bell Centre debut, since he was injured in the season opener in Toronto. I look forward to seeing what he'll bring to the table, as I thought he looked quite solid in his 1 preseason game and first half in Toronto.

It should be noted that despite being dressed on Saturday, Weber received no powerplay time. The Canadiens really only used 3 d-men on the PP: Tomas Kaberle, P.K. Subban, and Diaz.

Now about Emelin being a scratch... I'm sure anyone that reads this site is well aware of my take on the issue. I think this roster move is beyond excusable on the part of Jacques Martin. Yes, Emelin is young, and he does take risks that lead to occasional errors. Admittedly, he is far worse on the right side (where he would play when paired with Kaberle) than he is on the left. But there is no doubt that he brings a crucial set of tools that the Canadiens do not have anywhere else in their roster. His size, toughness, and physicality are important on a team full of small puck-movers. Emelin won't develop and continue to improve by sitting in the stands. He can be an important part of Montreal's future, and MUST play. Let's hope this is just part of a rotation to give Campoli some action, and that we'll see Emelin dressed again on Thursday.

- Speaking of the powerplay, the top unit at practice was:

Mike Cammalleri - Tomas Plekanec - Andrei Kostitsyn

Tomas Kaberle - P.K. Subban

While Kostitsyn brings some size, it's interesting that neither of the team's powerforwards (Max Pacioretty and Erik Cole) are on the top unit. They flank David Desharnais on the 2nd unit, just as they do at even strength.

- Updates from Team Canada World Junior Championships Selection Camp: None of Nathan Beaulieu, Brendan Gallagher, or Michael Bournival collected points in yesterday's 2-0 Team Red win. Few players have done much to separate themselves from the pack so far, as both sides have failed to generate offense. Bournival was solid, but mostly unnoticeable, while Gallagher was noticed for bad reasons, taking two offensive zone penalties and being on the receiving end of two large hits. Beaulieu had a few good shifts on the powerplay, patrolling the blueline well, but failed to produce.

Still, as expected, all three survived the first wave of cuts, which included Mark McNeill, Zack Phillips, Matthew Dumba, Jerome Gauthier-Leduc, Michael Ferland, Max Reinhart, and Brenden Kichton. With 31 skaters remaining in camp for 13 forward and 7 defensemen spots, the pressure remains on both Beaulieu and Bournival to impress tonight. Gallagher's spot is seemingly the safest of the three, likely penciled into a third or fourth line role.

A good article on Gallagher published last night can be found here:

http://www.mindentimes.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3402122#.TudxNxRusPg.facebook

- Another good prospect article today is this feature from the AHL about community work done by the injured Brendon Nash and Hunter Bishop:

http://theahl.com/bishop-nash-scoring-points-off-the-ice-p174893

Your Canadiens for December 12, 2011

A few updates as the Canadiens hit the ice a day before taking on the New York Islanders at the Bell Centre.

- With an afternoon game on Saturday and a day off yesterday, today was newest Hab Tomas Kaberle's first practice with his new 'mates after picking up 2 assists in his Canadiens debut against the New Jersey Devils. Kaberle remained on a pair with Alexei Emelin, despite the young Russian's obvious struggles when playing the right side. This seems like a blatant mistake to me. Josh Gorges is perfectly comfortable on the right, and even if it would mean breaking up his pairing with P.K. Subban, any of Hal Gill, Tomas Kaberle, or even Emelin himself could fill that slot.

- Brian Gionta (out at least a week) and Travis Moen (therapy day) were absent from practice today. Chris Campoli is with the team again in a cleared-for-contact jersey. However, Jacques Martin clarified that it is uncertain whether or not he'll be in the line-up tomorrow. He was not on a regular pairing in practice.

The lines remained unchanged from Saturday's game, with Mathieu Darche filling in for the day on the Lars Eller line (with Louis Leblanc) in Moen's absence.

- Scott Gomez was on the ice with his teammates in a non-contact jersey. However, he left the ice early, and after practice, Martin stated that he had suffered a bit of a setback and remains out indefinitely. I'm sure Canadiens fans won't be too terribly heartbroken at that news.

- In an interview through a translator, Alexei Emelin was informed of his Boom! nickname. He said he was aware of the #EmelinBoom movement and enjoyed it. He was said to seem personable and in a generally good mood.

- Yesterday was the first on-ice day at Team Canada's World Junior Championship selection camp. In last night's scrimmage, Michael Bournival and Brendan Gallagher's Team White posted a 3-2 victory, though both were held off the scoresheet. Bournival did little to distinguish himself and will have to be better tonight. Gallagher played a pretty strong game, including hitting the post on a quality scoring chance (Gallagher hitting the post? Where have we seen that before?). Nathan Beaulieu picked up an assist for Team Red in a losing cause. Game 2 goes tonight, after which some cuts are to be expected. You can watch the scrimmage live as of 9:00 PM EST here:

http://hockeycanada.fasthockey.com/login.php

(sign-up is required, but it's free)

- At the WJC camp, a number of player interviews were conducted. We learned a few interesting details, like that Brendan Gallagher has Justin Bieber on his iPod, and would invite Martin St. Louis, Carrie Underwood, and Barack Obama to dinner. Perhaps worse is that he indicated his favourite karaoke song would be, "some ABBA." He lists Underwood as his top celebrity crush. Wonder what Mike Fisher has to say about that.

- The Hamilton Bulldogs went 2-1 in their 3 weekend games, finally getting players back from both Montreal and injury and starting to look like a real team. Yesterday's 2-1 victory included goals from Alexander Avtsin and Michael Blunden.

- There is an NHL trade freeze in effect during the holidays every year, and it begins December 19th. Expect possibly some minor activity this week leading up to that day, as GMs won't be able to make any trades between the 19th and the 27th.

- Former Habs defenseman Chris Chelios is being inducted into the USA Hockey Hall of Fame tonight in Chicago.

- I sent a Tweet to Hamilton Bulldogs defenseman and Habs prospect Brendon Nash to see how he was recovering from September shoulder surgery. Nash hasn't played a game this season, unfortunate timing for him given the spots that were most certainly available on Montreal's back end. Nash was courteous enough to respond with the following:

Thanks Brendon! Best of luck in continuing your recovery, and hope to see you back on the ice soon!

- Speaking of Twitter, Canadiens prospects and fellow Michigan defenseman Mac Bennett and Greg Pateryn joined the social network not long ago. You can give them a follow at @Mac_Bennett and @Greg_Pateryn respectively.

To see updates from all members of the Habs' family on Twitter, follow my list here:

https://twitter.com/#!/DailyCanadiens/habs-players