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Is This The Largest Team, Or Have We Had Bigger?


robertc_mtl

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Size is nice, but I also look at toughness. And I have not seen anything yet from these current Habs that remotely approaches the strength, skill and toughness that guys like Rocket Richard possessed. No, he wasn't the biggest guy, even in his time, but if you put him in today's hockey, with the access to weight training, modern nutrition and everything else today's players get (as well as allow for individual skill development like in his day), he'd eat this league alive!

Geoffrion also had this element of toughness, strength and skill. And even though they didn't score a lot, Bob Gainey and Guy Carbonneau had this element as well.

Even someone as stylish as Jean Beliveau also had some of these attributes.

Are these Habs tough enough for the current NHL? Yes. But do they stack up against the Habs legendary teams of the past? No. And the kinds of players the Habs had in the past are precisely what is needed in today's NHL - the Richards, Geoffrions, Beliveaus, Gaineys and Carbonneaus would thrive today given the modern strength training and nutritional methods and because there would not be nearly as much clutching and grabbing, and organized tough tactics to try to slow them down.

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Are these Habs tough enough for the current NHL? Yes. But do they stack up against the Habs legendary teams of the past? No. And the kinds of players the Habs had in the past are precisely what is needed in today's NHL - the Richards, Geoffrions, Beliveaus, Gaineys and Carbonneaus would thrive today given the modern strength training and nutritional methods and because there would not be nearly as much clutching and grabbing, and organized tough tactics to try to slow them down.

All I really care about is whether they can stack up and hold their own in the current NHL. If so, then that's all gravy to me. Still, without seeing Laraque in the lineup and hearing Begin drop the gloves on the weekend, I'm wondering if we don't need to get a little tougher. It's not just about winning fights, either, it's about the battles for puck possession and in the corners.

I'm trying not to put a lot of stock in the PreSeason. It was a nice appetizer for the Regular Season to come but that is, when I think, the real pudding will worth tasting as far as proof is concerned.

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I thought we held our own last year until the refs decided to ease up on the goonery in the playoffs. Laraque should balance that out for us this year if it happens again. ;)

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All I really care about is whether they can stack up and hold their own in the current NHL. If so, then that's all gravy to me. Still, without seeing Laraque in the lineup and hearing Begin drop the gloves on the weekend, I'm wondering if we don't need to get a little tougher. It's not just about winning fights, either, it's about the battles for puck possession and in the corners.

I'm trying not to put a lot of stock in the PreSeason. It was a nice appetizer for the Regular Season to come but that is, when I think, the real pudding will worth tasting as far as proof is concerned.

I believe we were one of the elite possession teams last season. Not to mention that we were absolutely dominent during one on one battles, esspecially along the boards and behind the oppositions net. THe preseason is more of a showing for the youngins. Our big guns and older players arent gonna strut their stuff till the season begins. Begin, on the other hand, was and still is in jeopardy of losing his position on the team to one of the young guns. He has to show every aspect of the game that he can contribute in.

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I agree that we have had great players! Henri Richard, Jean Beliveau, Yvon Cournoyer, Claude Provost, Jacques Lemaire, Maurice Richard, Serge Savard, Jean-Guy Talbot, Hector "toe" blake, the list can go no and on, these are hard acts to follow indeed! I just thoink that todays line up compared to past line ups hold great protental, in that we do have a large number of players that fill the roles that need to be filled! The team in whole are looking very well. I am hoping for a few more names to be added to the list of all the players from the habs to make it onto the cup.

GO HABS GO!

the fever never leaves!

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Actually, I did try to go there, but I guess I didn't go quite far enough. Those guys made the most out of what they had, and they had skills to go with it. And nobody combined skill, size, toughness and speed like Rocket Richard did. His kind of player is just the kind of player that would thrive in today's NHL.

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Actually, I did try to go there, but I guess I didn't go quite far enough. Those guys made the most out of what they had, and they had skills to go with it. And nobody combined skill, size, toughness and speed like Rocket Richard did. His kind of player is just the kind of player that would thrive in today's NHL.

lol i dont think thats what he ment buddy hehe

]

more along the lines of its not the size but how u use it....

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