Who's to blame for Ryders misfortunes ?!

So we all know that Micheal Ryder is out of town for sure by Feb 26th. He’s had a less than stellar year with a mere 8 goals and 18 points. What happened to the guy who scored 25, 30 and another 30 goals the past 3 years ?

It’s easy to blame the guy for his lack lustre year but lets keep in mind all the factors bearing in his downward spiral.

He has not been consistant but neither has coach Carbonneau. I understand the coach wanting more effort from Ryder but he has been on the first line, the third line and benched 7 times !

The real problem, is the “first” line. Ryder hasn’t been doing well but Higgins isn’t the shadow of the player this teams organization had drafted. He is struggling too. Why is that ?

Saku “Captain Hook” Koivu … thats right. Our beloved captain, who has once again gotten a hooking penalty in our offensive zone, as usual, in last nights game againt the Senators could have cost the Habs the game.

The only thing Saku is close to leading right now is the teams penalty minutes with 78, second to Kostopoulos.

This team has leadership and Koivu’s days should be numbered. Im glad he was a huge contributor in and around the city of montreal through charitable donations, hospitals, etc but this isnt Unicef … it’s the Montreal Canadiens. It’s still a job and if you cant get the job done, goodbye. Let Higgins and Komisarek take the reigns. Especially Komy, he leads by example, is passionate and hates losing. You can tell just by watching him during interviews.

Now Gainey is a smart man, he knows it isnt uniquely Ryders fault however, he does see interest in him and as you’ve seen in the last 2 years, people pay ridiculous prices come deadline time. Bob knows Ryder could be a great fit somewhere else but not here, he just isnt the player we need. He is a one dimensional player.

Ryders greatest weapon in his arsenal is his shot and for some reason even I’ve noticed that starting with last season he’s been trying to do more. Fancier plays, fancier passes, dekes … this isnt his style. He gets the puck, he picks a spot, he shoots and scores … thats all he has to do. When he does this, he excels.

So Bob will play the waiting game, as he usually does and then wait for the highest bidder. The situation is lousy for Micheal but hockey is a business and Gainey knows this all too well.

Kovalev for Jozef Balej
Rivet for Gorges + 1st round pick (Pacioretty) !

If anyone can pull a steal, it’s Bob.

On another note … I doubt that Gainey will trade Huet by fear of spoiling his playoff chances and hurting the teams chemistry but allow me to dream here for a minute, within the realm of the possible of course, but what a great time it would be to trade Huey.

Tampa is in dire need of a tender and have manifested tremendous interest in him. He would be a starter for the Lightning for at least 2 to 3 years and receive a good 4 million in my opinion. Feaster has Karri Romo as his goaltending prospect and knowing that Huet is 32 and gets fatigued easily enough it would give Romo opportunities to play and develop. Perfect situation for everyone.

We have Price so, all we really need to acquire is a veteran goaltender for the playoffs because we dont want to put all the pressure on the kid and stunt his development. we aren’t gonna win the cup this year anyway, so why not. But Gainey isn’t a gambler, so surely, this wont happen. It is a little like throwing the towel on your season and the words Gainey and quit just never quite seem to mesh well.

Bob, get us Tampas 1st round draft pick for Huet and a shot at getting Steve Stamkos. If anything, keep that 1st round pick and offer LA your 1st round pick plus a defensive prospect ( Valentenko maybe ? or even Halak) just to make sure we have the 1st pick overall. LA doesnt need another center with Kopitar and O’Sullivan already.
You get Stamkos and you get that 1st line center we’ve been dying for in Montreal for a decade.

What do you guys think ?

Thanks for reading