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Five questions: How to handle slackers, jersey retirements

November 24, 2009 01:37 PM | Posted by   Guy Carbonneau  

Here's how it works. You submit a question and Guy will provide the answer to five of them every week. It's that simple. That means your question may not make the final list, but there is nothing stopping you from submitting more than one!

Here are today's questions:

1. Does it benefit a team like the Canadiens to have lots of fan support on the road? What is it like to go into places like Buffalo and Florida and see thousands of Habs fans decked out in bleu, blanc et rouge? Does it help you, or does it fire up the home team? - Ian Gollert

I think it's a benefit to any team to have great support on the road, not just the Canadiens. I remember in the 1980s going to places like Winnipeg and Calgary and looking in the stands seeing thousands of fans with the Montreal jersey. As a team it gives you a little edge and confidence, specifically when you’re in a tough game on the road.

2. Why are teams so predictable in firing the puck into the opposition’s end? It's always the same, the winger fires it around the end boards and the goalie stops it or doesn't. Why don't they air out a high chip shot towards the goalie? I know the goalies are quite skilled at handling the puck nowadays, but a chip shot that will bounce before it gets to the goalie, or end boards can cause some trouble. It should at least get you a face-off in their end. Former Hab J. C. Tremblay used to have success with it. – John

It is still something that most team are trying to do, putting the puck in an area that can give a chance to your forwards to forecheck and create turnovers deep in the offensive zone. But with the speed of the game today and the way teams are pressing the puck carrier in neutral zone, it's a hard play to execute. It's something that is talked about in every team meeting, especially when you have a goaltender that can play the puck behind the net, like a Marty Turco or Martin Brodeur.

3. I realize that the Habs are probably done with jersey retirements for awhile. However, I think there is one player that really deserves the honour. Do you know why the Canadiens haven't retired Elmer Lach's No. 16? The guy was the best playmaking centre of his era, won the Hart Trophy, the inaugural Art Ross, and lifted the Stanley Cup three times. He retired as the league's all-time leader in points and assists and is still number 11 on the all-time Habs point getters. - Kris and Don

I understand that there are a lot of players who would deserve to have their jersey retired in the rafters of the Bell Centre. There's controversy every year with how teams decide who's in and who's out especially here in Montreal, where so many great players had unbelievable careers. You name one of them in Lach, but there are also players like Butch Bouchard and Guy Lapointe who are knocking at the door. I think that the Canadiens should do what the Boston Bruins are doing, which is to retire the names, not the numbers. That way you don’t end up with 30 jerseys up there.

4. Jacques Laperriere left his defensive coaching duties in Montreal and went to Boston and since then, Boston has been better than normal and Montreal went south. Is it coincidence or actual fact that we really need a better defensive coach? - Paul

Jacques Laperriere was a great assistant coach. He knew how to transfer the information to his defencemen and had a great feel for what every one of them needed to do to get better. I think a coach that played the position is a better fit but it’s not the only requirement. Like a team, coaches have to have a connection between them and need to be complementary to each other. That's what happened when I got to Montreal, Doug Jarvis and Roland Melanson were already there and I needed to find a third one that would fit that group. As time went by and more names came through my office, one name always came back to the top of the list, Kirk Muller.

5. Watching every Habs game all the way from Texas, it is obvious some players are not displaying the kind of passion that is necessary to team success. At what point do you draw the line, and pull the player out for a few games? Does a coach have to manage through player personalities while making those decisions? - Imad Maalouf

I think that character and passion are always something that coaches are looking for. You have to know your players and see how each one displays those qualities on the ice every night. After a few games without it, you would have a talk with the player to see if everything is OK with him and why he isn’t showing that same intensity every night. Only after that, if the player doesn't respond, would the coach think about pulling him out of a game.

Have a question for Guy? Comment below or send an email to: CBCHockeyOnline@cbc.ca

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