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#75 - Hal Gill 2009-10


franck5890

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  • 1 month later...

I'm hoping Gill can turn out to be a "hidden" gem as he was for Pittsburgh. He took a tremendous amount of flak when he played with Toronto (the label "pylon" comes to mind), but two big reasons for that I believe are that the team as a whole was pretty lacking and he's one of those players like Chara that people get a natural hate-on for due to their huge physical size.

If he plays anything like he did in Pittsburgh (smart and steady hockey) then he will be an asset this year. Let's hope we put him in such a position to succeed.

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  • 2 weeks later...
But his positioning and reach make it up for it.

Agreed. He actually is very sound positionally.

The key to Hal Gill being successful with the habs will be pairing him with a mobile defensman who doesnt rush a lot. Gorges would be a perfect choice. Play Gill with someone like Obyrne & it might not be pretty.

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It's going to be very frustrating watching Gill with the size that he has and not use it at all. Please for the love of god, when a guy smokes your own goalie behind the net, don't hug him! :angry:

To be honest, I didn't think Gill reacted badly. The guy was 1/2 Gill's size, clearly Halak was partly to blame for the incident (reaching with his arm extended), and Gill doesn't need to get into the habit of taking bad penalties before the season even starts. I liked what I saw from Gill last night. He plays a good game along the wall and seems to be okay at moving the puck.

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I donno what game you guys were all watchin I think Gill's been awful in the pre season, I tried so hard to give him a chance watching the games and think positive but I cant when they signed him I was devistated especially living in Ontario and hearing every person in the entire province rip on him while on the Leafs about how useless he is. Sure hes big has good reach and is a veteran team guy but omg for over 2 million a year its painful when we have Obyrne the same type player and 10 years younger proving himself well in the preseason and with no chance of being a top 6 cause of Hal Gill.

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To be honest, I didn't think Gill reacted badly. The guy was 1/2 Gill's size, clearly Halak was partly to blame for the incident (reaching with his arm extended), and Gill doesn't need to get into the habit of taking bad penalties before the season even starts. I liked what I saw from Gill last night. He plays a good game along the wall and seems to be okay at moving the puck.

I tend to agree with all of this. While I'm all for sending a message, you have to pick your fights. I also thought Halak played it up a little to be honest. Maybe he's been taking acting classes from Bill Ranford. ;)

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I donno what game you guys were all watchin I think Gill's been awful in the pre season, I tried so hard to give him a chance watching the games and think positive but I cant when they signed him I was devistated especially living in Ontario and hearing every person in the entire province rip on him while on the Leafs about how useless he is. Sure hes big has good reach and is a veteran team guy but omg for over 2 million a year its painful when we have Obyrne the same type player and 10 years younger proving himself well in the preseason and with no chance of being a top 6 cause of Hal Gill.

The highlighted word in your post kind of says it all. It was painfully obvious that OB had lost his confidence at the end of last season and it was questionable how long ( if ever) it would take to regain it. IMO Gill was brought in just for that reason. We needed a big dependable body in front of our goaltenders and having him on the roster was insurance that we had just that. We lost some size with Komy gone and OB was a very questionable replacement at the time. If OB can show that he is ready to play the game consistently, the way management wants, then that makes Gill expendable down the road. Big D with experience shouldnt be hard to unload if we find it nessasary later on. OB can fight for a spot in the meantime, rather then having the pressure of knowing hes the guy the team will depend on, day in and day out as a regular.

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Some are pissed that we signed Gill as it now appears O.B. could fill his spot, but at the time of the signing did we really know whether Ryan would be NHL ready? I was optomistic but I don't think it's a stretch to say he was one of the biggest question marks comming into this season.

Gill definately isn't pretty, but you have a fairly good idea of what your going to get with him, and he'll be a consistent 3rd pairing guy IMO.

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But seriously was this post needed? Are you bored? :lol:

It is needed... I am pointing out someone going from player to player making stupid comments that aren't needed... Unlike your comments, I think I bring up a good point of you supporting the most struggling hab while downing players such as Cammalleri, Price, Gill, Markov...

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It is needed... I am pointing out someone going from player to player making stupid comments that aren't needed... Unlike your comments, I think I bring up a good point of you supporting the most struggling hab while downing players such as Cammalleri, Price, Gill, Markov...

Struggling Hab? I find it hard for you to make that assessment considering the season has yet to start. My comments all contain meaning and they are a way which I voice my opinion, none are direct attacks to any players but are simply what I think.

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