What a week, huh Habs fans? Lars Eller was traded on Friday night at the NHL Draft, the Habs inked Andrew Shaw to a six-year deal, and, well, you know what else.
First and foremost, let’s remember that hockey is a business. We may not always agree with the decisions that the general manager makes, but every GM is doing his best to make his team better, to ultimately become his vision of a Stanley Cup contender. Isn’t it just terribly sad that Marc Bergevin’s idea of improvement was so far off what the majority of fans believed?
P.K. Subban was a franchise player. I will not get into comparisons between Subban and Shea Weber because Weber is also an amazing talent — I am not disputing that. I won’t get into the billion reasons as to why Subban is such an outstanding human being, because those are things that are well-known and appreciated by Habs fans. I certainly won’t get into the comments brought forth after the trade regarding P.K.’s personality and the ‘rifts’ it caused in the locker room. What I want to discuss is the complete and utter disappointment I currently feel towards this organization.
Like I already said, this is a business. It is vital that a team does what it can to recruit and develop the best of the best. In this department, there are exactly two individuals that I have faith in: Trevor Timmins and Stephane Waite. Timmins continually pulls magic out of thin air, and I do honestly believe that he has chosen some exceptional talent over the years. Waite is basically a god among men when it comes to goalie development and has helped to turn Carey Price into the best goaltender in the league. Unfortunately, that is precisely where my faith in our development and coaching staff dies.
This last season had me asking the following question nearly every game: Who is really in charge here? Why do we, as fans, have to sit back and watch the likes of Alex Galchenyuk stunted because the coaching staff doesn’t believe in his abilities? Why do we have to wait and wait for even a sliver of an update on our star goaltender’s well-being while he was injured? Why do we have to listen to political responses from the General Manager, only to then have a franchise player traded away as if he did nothing for this team or for the city of Montreal?
I love the Montreal Canadiens. I will always love the Montreal Canadiens. This frustration and anger will pass, but until the right people are put in charge, I fear that nothing will change. The decisions made by the coaching staff are often questionable. The fact that the GM and owner so readily believe in everything the coaching and development staff have advised is worrisome. This little ‘system’ that the Candiens keep playing is not only hurting their chances at bringing the Cup back to Montreal, it’s hurting their fans.
I’ll be watching opening night, but in the back of my mind, I’ll know that one of the best athletes that this organization has ever had will be smiling in gold instead of the bleu-blanc-rouge. And that absolutely breaks my heart.
