Montreal Canadiens Links
- Max Pacioretty played NHL 15 against Morgan Rielly at the EA Sports event in Toronto. (Virtual) Dion Phaneuf turned over the puck early-on, which (virtual) Pacioretty then intercepted and fired past (virtual) Jonathan Bernier. Both the real and virtual Pacioretty then led the Habs to a 4-2 victory. Honestly, the only part of this that doesn’t capture a real game perfectly was that Bernier was almost pulled in favour of Reimer, which we know will never happen with Carlyle. [National Post]
- Don’t miss these photos of Patches in a motion capture suit, plus a fake scuffle between him and Rielly. [EOTP]
- Also, we already linked you to the Pacioretty interview on Friday, but watch a longer interview of Pacioretty by Sportsnet. In the video, he repeats that he would like to wear the “C”, but also that the Canadiens are “all just happy for each other as a team”. On what he has learned from departed captains Koivu and Gionta, he says
“[Koivu] gave me some really nice talks that will stick with me throughout my career. He was definitely more vocal [than Gionta]. He made a point to take me in and work with me on stuff. He liked to have fun as well; he joked around. Gio’s more of a serious person.”
- Quick updates on some returning QMJHL players, including Habs prospects Daniel Audette and Jeremy Gregoire. [The Chronicle Herald]
- Just in time for the weekend – 24CH: Special Extended Cut Edition is now available on YouTube, and it includes never before seen player commentary and reactions. Only the first two episodes are up for now, but EOTP will alert you when the set is complete. [Canadiens]
Around the NHL
- Yesterday we linked you to NHL.com’s Top Ranked Fantasy Right Wingers, now check out the list for left wingers.Taylor Hall tops the list, Max Pacioretty follows at number 7, and Alex Galchenyuk shows up at number 33. [NHL]
- Despite the excellent publicity buzz from EA, people are not happy about missing features in NHL ’15. [Kotaku]
- C David Krejci signed a six-year contract extension with the Boston Bruins that begins with the 2015-16 season. His cap hit will be $5.25 million in 2015-16, rising to $7.25 million in the following years. Krejci led the NHL in playoff scoring during the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs, but the Bruins’ continuous success carries its own price – Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli is working against a tight cap space left by paying out performance bonuses to payers like departed forward Jarome Iginla. [NHL]
- A NHL team built out of good players on genuinely bad contracts. Note to CBC Sports – notice how none of them are Max Pacioretty. [SB Nation]
- Stats analysis of Joe Pavelski of the San Jose Sharks, who last season posted a career best 79 points while maintaining a ridiculous 18.2% shooting percentage. Despite the inevitable regression next season, Pavelski deserves a chance at the top line just as much as his more hyped teammates. [Blades of Teal]
- Sportsnet acquired rights to the Canadian Hockey League broadcasts at the same time as its NHL deal. To drum up interest, the network is considering introducing a new tournament format similar to the elimination style one used in NCAA March Madness. [Yahoo]
