I'm on the outside. I'm Looking in.

  At the onset of the season the mood was positive in Montreal.  The team was playing well.  Chris Kreider was brought in to give the team a scoring boost and it worked.  Drake Batherson was shipped out in exchange for Mike Matheson and he has also paid dividends recording 15 points in 16 games thus far.  With the team boasting great puck control, faceoffs and the league's best penalty kill it seemed logical to add one more piece that would send this team over the top.  Sometimes things don't work out the way we plan.

  Anze Kopitar was brought in and the expectations were high.  He took his rightful place on the top line and the team has struggled since.  Plagued by the same kind of inconsistancy that has afflicted the entire team, Kopitar has managed only 15 points in 24 games and is a minus 6.  The team has gone from competing for top spot in the East to sitting on the outside of the last wildcard spot.  Kopitar played on the second line last night in the Habs 4-3 loss to the Panthers.  He recorded one point and finished +/-0.  The hope is that Trocheck can handle the pressure as #1 center and Kopitar can excel on the second line.

  Goaltending has been a struggle.  Montembeault has not been able to replicate his success from last season and Marc-Andre Fleury isn't living up to the huge contract he signed this past summer.  While the offense has been consistent, the team can't seem to keep the puck out of it's own net.  Winable games have been lost and the team's place in ths standings today is a reflection of it's unreliable goaltending.

  The team has aged and not like a fine wine.  Time is running out on this club to compete and if they can't even make the playoffs then the window isn't closing, it's slammed shut.  Tonight we play Tampa Bay and they have a way of beating me down especially hard.  Take a good look at the roster in Montreal.  If things don't start going very well very soon, you can expect a lot of changes.

Happy New Year's gentlemen.  Good luck in 2024.