"A little help would be appreciated"

[M. Beaux-Eaux]

30-11-2004

The Bulldogs' owner calls for Ribeiro and Dagenais

Mathias Brunet
La Presse

The case of Mike Ribeiro in Hamilton is perhaps not yet closed.

The Bulldogs owner, Michael Andlauer, dreams of seeing Ribeiro and his pal Pierre Dagenais joining the ranks of his American League team. This 39 year old Ontario businessman intends to raise the question soon to the Canadiens management.

"It was clearly established when I bought the Bulldogs that the Canadiens were going to direct hockey operations and prioritize the development of their prospects, and they know this sport much better than me", he said on the phone in impeccable French. "But the current context is unique because of the lockout. For the Bulldogs' fans, I would love to see Ribeiro and Dagenais with our club."

Ribeiro, leading scorer for the Canadiens last year, and Dagenais, expressed a wish to play in Hamilton if the lockout persisted; however, Bob Gainey, the Canadiens GM, refused to grant them the right to continue their careers in the American League this winter.

"The Canadiens always ensured we had competitive teams these past two years. I rely on them and I respect their decisions", mentions the Bulldogs owner. "But I repeat, we are in a quite singular situation. Many American League teams count on players who would not be there had there not been a lockout. There is a gray zone currently in the league, and this zone seems grayer for the other teams. A little help would be appreciated. When I say the gray zone: Our opponents this past Friday, Saint John's, could count on an NHL calibre goalie in Jean- Sebastien Aubin. Instead of doing nothing in Pittsburgh, he decided to join the Baby Leafs."

The Bulldogs have lost 11 of their their last 12 games and they are stagnating in the basement of their division. "We scored only ten goals in our last ten games", mentions Andlauer. "Under these circumstances we would not say no to the arrival of a few offensive players. We could have a good crowd Saturday but if the club continues to lose like this, people won't come back. We are last in the standing. Look at what happened to the Expos. Fortunately, the season is still young and we can turn it around."

Michael Andlauer affirms that one does not necessarily slow down the development of young players in the organization by granting places to Ribeiro and Dagenais in Hamilton. "Pierre Dagenais also needs to develop. If an athlete does not play for a season, it's not easy for him to catch up on lost time. He's no longer the asset the team believed it had. Moreover", adds Andlauer, "People in Montréal seem to be interested more in the Bulldogs during the lockout. More reason to sign players like Ribeiro or Dagenais."

The Bulldogs owner is delighted to learn that RDS is advancing the possibility of presenting some of his team's games. "That is excellent news. Tell them to call me... "

Youngsters who struggle...

Sportsnet presented two Bulldogs games this weekend and one could see that certain young players have not progressed very quickly. Defenseman Ron Hainsey, first round choice in 2000, does not seem to have understood what he must do to make a successful career in the NHL. Hainsey has a beautiful offensive flare and excels in the area of starting the attack, but he also always plays soft in the defensive zone and is regularly beaten in the corners. Duncan Milroy, a second round choice in 2001, doesn't dare to venture into heavy traffic too much, and this prolific junior scorer has tallied only two goals in 20 games this season. Team-mates in Hamilton think that a stay in the ECHL would not do him any harm...

Andrei Kostitsyn has insane talent but he still has things to learn. It is not, however, by playing less than ten minutes a game (in a development league) that he will progress. Chris Higgins has notched only nine points in 21 games but his case is less worrisome. The young man is a veritable dynamo on skates and one cannot reproach him for lack of intensity. He'll likely rediscover his touch.

Komisarek operated on

More bad news for the Bulldogs. Defenseman Mike Komisarek received the umpteenth medical opinion concerning his wounded hip and he finally underwent an arthroscopy Saturday in Pittsburgh. The specialist, Marc Philippon, born in Trois-Rivières and now established in Pittsburgh, repaired damaged cartilage. Komisarek will be convalescing for at least another month. The Canadiens first choice in 2001 (7th over all) was injured towards the end of last season. He will continue to be paid his full NHL salary until his complete recovery. Philippon has already treated Mario Lemieux for a similar injury.

- texte français original

[NWTHabsFan]

This flame is just going to get bigger IMO. On another board one Hamilton based poster mentioned that today's Spectator was hinting that by not signing key NHL regulars is a signal that Montreal is abandoning the Bulldogs.

I, for one, have been very supportive of Habs management sticking to their guns and letting the young guys play and not being tempted to implement a short term fix and sign some hired NHL guns. The problem is that this is quite contrary to the direction that so many of the other teams have taken. It leaves Hamilton losing ground to more experienced teams. IMO, focussing on the young players and keeping Hamilton as a development team where the Habs develop their top prospects is good for both teams in the long run. The problem is, that it may seem contrary to Hamilton's goals this season.

The bigger problem seems to be with the defence. I can understand the lack of production as some of the newer younger forwards adapt, but in the games I have seen live and on TV, the problem seems to stem on D. The back 6 just doesn't handle the puck well. They don't clear the zone well. They don't start the transition game and make the good outlet passes well. That means that they end up clutching and grabbing all night behind their net, instead of feeding those young forwards. Instead, the young forwards end up having to take up defensive postures and responsibilities in their own end. These young forwards may have lots of promise, but they won't be scoring from their own end.

I never thought I would say it, but I really miss Traverse and Dykhuis on this team. Along with Beauchy being scooped off waivers, that is a lot of experience and talent taken away from the back six. With Cote being injured until recently and Komo laid up in a hospital bed, Hainsey has had to play every key role. He is enigmatic, not quite to don the cape and replace the loss of all those guys in one fell swoop. His supporting cast is just not up to par with a supercharged AHL. Instead of keeping pace or getting better, the back line has become considerably worse.

Maybe management will buckle under and sign Dags and Ribs and send two other young guns to the west coast Dogs, but unless they can suddenly skate backwards, make tape to tape outlet passes, and issue thundering checks in front of their net, the Dogs will still be facing an uphill battle.

[M. Beaux-Eaux]

The key issue for Andlauer as owner of the Dogs is that he must seek to balance the needs of the Habs as understood in his agreement with them with the very real need to provide an entertaining product for Hamilton area hockey fans.

He, and other local investors in the franchise are certainly not going to sit on their hands if the Habs contribution to the operation merely results in money being sucked from their wallets. The Habs, as regards their top minor league farm club, have their own type of caravan for a while, relocating every few years once the well of good-will and investment dries up in a given town.

[NWTHabsFan]

I guess the storied franchise of le Club de Hockey Canadiens is being supportive of the overally league stance on the lockout by not making it easy for its NHL regulars to find employment with its affiliated AHL team (Jason Ward and Dan Focht might be the exceptions, but Wardo is hardly an established NHL'er yet and Focht clearly is not an impact player by any stretch).

Other teams, like Detroit Red Wings, are playing in the grey zone a bit more by enabling their AHL Grand Rapids team the flex to sign several free agents as they see fit. If those other teams chose to bolster their lineups with NHL regulars, then it clearly leaves the Dogs at a disadvantage.

The longer the lockout drags on, the more this issue will be in the media. After all, it is a mixed blessing that the Hamilton hosts the only pro hockey in Ontario right now. It gives the huge Southern Ontario based media lots to focus on in the absence of the NHL, even if the fans haven't been beating the doors down to get out to see the games.

[blaise]

For years I have wondered when the Canadiens would finally settle upon a permanent location for their number one farm club. I'm tired of their nomadic existence. If the Flyers can operate a successful franchise right next to their arena in Philadelphia, why can't the Habs? And wouldn't they get higher attendances for the Cowdogs if they played in the Bell Centre? It seems to me that even the owners of the Bulldogs could collect more if they worked out some deal and consented to the relocation this season.

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

In the spirit of Reaganomics, this is a case for trickle down.
NHLers go to AHL.
Marginal AHLers to CPHL.
Jr's back to Jr's.
Russians to Siberia.

Settle this stupid lockout/strikle. Nobody wins!

[Skilly]

It would be nice if someone found how many NHLers (that played in the NHL lastyear ..... so no Tony Hrkac's please) are in the AHL right now and how many games they have played in the NHL. I'd be interested to know how many of them have over 160 games NHL experience (the typical number of games to lose waiver-exemption).

If it is at all possible for Ribs to be sent down, then Gainey is not doing him any favours by taking this stance. The kid needs to play, and play an intense kind of hockey.

[NWTHabsFan]

Blaise said:

For years I have wondered when the Canadiens would finally settle upon a permanent location for their number one farm club. I'm tired of their nomadic existence. If the Flyers can operate a successful franchise right next to their arena in Philadelphia, why can't the Habs? And wouldn't they get higher attendances for the Cowdogs if they played in the Bell Centre? It seems to me that even the owners of the Bulldogs could collect more if they worked out some deal and consented to the relocation this season.

What are we...the Toronto Maple Leafs? The same Leafs who quickly abandon the lovely province of Newfoundland and Labrador the minute some greedy local landlord surprisingly (*wink* *wink*) isn't able to negotiate a last minute deal with its tenant, the Toronto/Edmonton Road Runners. Suddenly, Edmonton has to scramble to find a new home and lo and behold, there is room for TO's farm team to move down to the waterfront next season (*nudge* *nudge*).

For the record, here is where the Habs' farm team has called home over the last three plus decades:

1971-1984 (13 seasons) Halifax, NS
1984-1990 (6 seasons) Sherbrooke, QC
1990-1999 (9 seasons) Fredericton, NB
1999-2002 (3 seasons) Quebec, QC
2002-present (3 seasons and counting) Hamilton, ON

With the exception of the brief stint in Quebec post-Nordique, the team has had some degree of stability in at least Halifax and Fredericton. The Habs have signed a five year agreement with Hamilton to ensure that it stays for at least a few more seasons there. Personally, hinting at a possible move now seems contrary to a desirable long-term goal of having a good long-term relationship between the MotherShip and the FarmHand.

I think this issue is one where both parties need to sit down and sort out how to balance the development of Habs' prospects and the maintainance of a competitive product on the ice in Hamilton. The Habs' crop of prospects is likely deep and strong enough to remain competitive during a "normal" AHL season, but this current season is anything but normal.

[Skilly]

NWTHabsFan said:

What are we...the Toronto Maple Leafs? The same Leafs who quickly abandon the lovely province of Newfoundland and Labrador the minute some greedy local landlord surprisingly (*wink* *wink*) isn't able to negotiate a last minute deal with its tenant, the Toronto/Edmonton Road Runners. Suddenly, Edmonton has to scramble to find a new home and lo and behold, there is room for TO's farm team to move down to the waterfront next season (*nudge* *nudge*).

For the record, here is where the Habs' farm team has called home over the last three plus decades:

1971-1984 (13 seasons) Halifax, NS
1984-1990 (6 seasons) Sherbrooke, QC
1990-1999 (9 seasons) Fredericton, NB
1999-2002 (3 seasons) Quebec, QC
2002-present (3 seasons and counting) Hamilton, ON

With the exception of the brief stint in Quebec post-Nordique, the team has had some degree of stability in at least Halifax and Fredericton. The Habs have signed a five year agreement with Hamilton to ensure that it stays for at least a few more seasons there. Personally, hinting at a possible move now seems contrary to a desirable long-term goal of having a good long-term relationship between the MotherShip and the FarmHand.

I think this issue is one where both parties need to sit down and sort out how the balance the development of Habs' prospects and the maintainance of a competitive product on the ice in Hamilton. The Habs' crop of prospects is likely deep and strong enough to remain competitive during a "normal" AHL season, but this current season is anything but normal.

The Baby Leafs moved because the City of St. John's was unwilling to pay the 1.7 million annual franchise fee anymore. The arena lost way too much money due to that fee.

The City also lost its bid for the QMJHL team today, it instead went to a local businessman who doesn't have an arena to house the team next year because the city is not willing to lease Mile One to him.

The rumour here now is that the city will be looking at another AHL team, an OHL team, or an ECHL team. The OHL team wont be possible if the businessman gets an agreement with another arena just outside the city (Quebec will have rights to the island), the ECHL team wouldn't succeed here (no one knows it exists), so the only option is an AHL team. There are only 2 types of fans here, Toronto and Montreal, so I wouldn't be surprised to see them try to lure Montreal's farm team here again (good luck). But if I was a betting man, I would think that Tampa would be the best possibility. Leave it to the city to ruin my chance of seeing Crosby next year!