HABS TRADE S.KOSTITSYN TO PREDATORS FOR ELLIS AND BOYD

Yesterday night in Montreal, Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier announced that he had trade S.Kostitsyn to the Predators for Ellis and Boyd. Kostitsyn has been in trouble with Montreal look back to the 08-09 season when he got involved with the Mob and then in 09-10 season he didn't want to report to the Bulldogs when told and the problems he had with Price in the locker room. So I think that this was a great trade for Montreal. In the deal, Montreal got a great goalie named Dan Ellis. He is expected to back up Carey Price next season. That is if they sign Price.Dan Boyd was also acquired by Montreal to replace Kostitsyn as a 3rd line forward. I think Montreal got the better of this trade.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS SIGN PYATT

Yesterday in Montreal, the Habs signed 23 year old Tom Pyatt to a 1 year $500,000 contract. In 40 Games with Montreal, Pyatt had two goals and two assists. He his a great young player and he will be a big part of the 3rd line.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS SIGN POULIOT TO A 1 YEAR DEAL

Yesterday in Montreal, Habs GM Pierre Gauthier announced that he had signed Pouliot to a 1 year $1.375 million dollar contract.Pouliot had 15 goals and 9 assists in 39 games with the Canadiens after being traded from the Wild and he will be a huge part of the Habs in the future.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS SELECT JOHN WESTIN 207TH OVERALL IN ROUND 7

The Canadiens last pick in the draft was John Westin (207th in round 7) from Modo junior team in Sweden. Westin had 41 points in 44 games with three different teams in the Modo junior team. He will be a great addition to the Habs offense in the future. But for now the Habs GM Pierre Gauthier is happy with what he did at the draft."To hear our scouts tell it, we are satisfied and they're the ones who knows all these players," explained Gauthier. "We were able to pick up some good offensive players and some solid young defensemen." The Habs are going to have a very Strong in the future if the Habs have more drafts like this.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS DRAFT Brendan Gallagher 147TH OVERALL IN ROUND 5

In round 5, Gauthier selected Brendan Gallagher of the Vancouver Giants (WHL). The right winger had 81 points in 72 games. Which included a team leading 41 goals. What a future this guy has ahead of him. He will be a huge help to Montreal in the future.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS SELECT Morgan Ellis 117TH OVERALL I N ROUND 4

Just 4 picks after picking Macmillan, the Canadiens selected defenceman Morgan Ellis.I’m really happy to be drafted by Montreal,” offered Ellis who made the trek to L.A. to hear his name called live. “It’s a first class organization and the fans are unbelievable which you really saw during the playoffs. I got to take a tour of the practice facility when I was there for my interview and that alone puts them in a class of their own.” Ellis had a great season with Cape Breton Screaming Eagles of the QMJHL as he had 29 points in just 60 games. He will be a big help to the Habs in the future.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS DRAFT Mark MacMillan 113 OVERALL IN ROUND 4

With the Habs trade to the Coyotes the Habs were unable to draft until round 4 but when they did the drafted a great player named Mark MacMillan. MacMillan scored 26 goals and finished ninth in league scoring with 80 points in 59 games in 2009-10 season in the BCHL.But don't expect him to play for Montreal any time soon as MacMillan is currently committed to the University of North Dakota.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS SELECT DEFENCEMAN TINORDI 27TH OVERALL IN ROUND 1

Friday in LA at the draft, Canadiens Gm Pierre Gauthier traded up five spots (traded 27th and 57th picks to Coyotes) so they can draft Defenceman Jarred Tinordi (US U18)."He's a big strong defenceman like that with a lot of character and leadership, that's something that every team would look for," Gauthier said. The Canadiens realized that they had to get bigger if they want to win the Stanley Cup so this is a great player for them.“When I saw that there was a trade and the Canadiens acquired the Coyotes pick, I had a good feeling,” admitted the 6-foot-6 defenseman who was ranked 38th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. “My advisors told me Montreal was really interested in me and that I was way up on their list. I’m just really happy and this is the biggest moment of my life.”

Expect Tinordi to play with Montreal next season.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS SIGN PLEKANEC TO A 6 YEAR CONTRACT

Yesterday night in Montreal, the Cannadiens GM Pierre Gauthier announced that he had signed forward Tomas Plekanec to a 6 year $30M contract.“I’ve always said it and I meant it. I wanted to stay in Montreal. I’m extremely happy and excited to be back here for six more years,” explained Plekanec. “I couldn’t be happier and this is an exciting time for me.” Plekanec is coming off a great season by getting 25 goals and 45 assist (70 points) in 82 games including 4 goals and 19 assist (23 points) in an added 19 playoff games. "I knew I had a bad year the previous year and I wanted to start strong, and I had a good start," Plekanec said. "I knew I had to get stronger mentally and that's what happened."

Plekanec is the only player that has continued to be the only free agent on Montreal that they have signed over the past 3 or 4 years as you can look back to the free agents in the past that have not returned such as Michael Ryder, Sheldon Souray and Mark Streit to Alex Tanguay, Robert Lang,Saku Koivu, Alex Kovalev and the list goes on and on. But with this long term deal I think Plekanec will be in Montreal For a long time.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

CANADIENS SCHEDULE FOR THE 2010-2011 SEASON

October 2010
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Thu, 7 Oct 2010	Canadiens	Maple Leafs	7:00 PM
Sat, 9 Oct 2010	Canadiens	Penguins	7:00 PM
Wed, 13 Oct 2010	Lightning	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Fri, 15 Oct 2010	Canadiens	Sabres	7:30 PM
Sat, 16 Oct 2010	Senators	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Thu, 21 Oct 2010	Devils	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 23 Oct 2010	Canadiens	Senators	7:00 PM
Mon, 25 Oct 2010	Coyotes	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Wed, 27 Oct 2010	Islanders	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Fri, 29 Oct 2010	Canadiens	Islanders	7:00 PM
Sat, 30 Oct 2010	Panthers	Canadiens	7:00 PM
November 2010
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Tue, 2 Nov 2010	Canadiens	Blue Jackets	7:00 PM
Fri, 5 Nov 2010	Canadiens	Sabres	7:30 PM
Sat, 6 Nov 2010	Senators	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 9 Nov 2010	Canucks	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 11 Nov 2010	Canadiens	Bruins	7:00 PM
Sat, 13 Nov 2010	Hurricanes	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 16 Nov 2010	Flyers	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 18 Nov 2010	Predators	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 20 Nov 2010	Maple Leafs	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Mon, 22 Nov 2010	Canadiens	Flyers	7:00 PM
Wed, 24 Nov 2010	Kings	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Fri, 26 Nov 2010	Canadiens	Thrashers	7:30 PM
Sat, 27 Nov 2010	Sabres	Canadiens	7:00 PM
December 2010
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Wed, 1 Dec 2010	Oilers	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Thu, 2 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Devils	7:00 PM
Sat, 4 Dec 2010	Sharks	Canadiens	2:00 PM
Tue, 7 Dec 2010	Senators	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Fri, 10 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Red Wings	7:00 PM
Sat, 11 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Maple Leafs	7:00 PM
Wed, 15 Dec 2010	Flyers	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 16 Dec 2010	Bruins	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sun, 19 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Avalanche	8:00 PM
Tue, 21 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Stars	9:00 PM
Thu, 23 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Hurricanes	7:00 PM
Sun, 26 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Islanders	7:00 PM
Tue, 28 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Capitals	7:00 PM
Thu, 30 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Lightning	7:30 PM
Fri, 31 Dec 2010	Canadiens	Panthers	5:00 PM
January 2011
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Sun, 2 Jan 2011	Thrashers	Canadiens	1:00 PM
Thu, 6 Jan 2011	Penguins	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 8 Jan 2011	Bruins	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 11 Jan 2011	Canadiens	Rangers	7:00 PM
Wed, 12 Jan 2011	Penguins	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 15 Jan 2011	Rangers	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Mon, 17 Jan 2011	Flames	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Tue, 18 Jan 2011	Canadiens	Sabres	7:00 PM
Fri, 21 Jan 2011	Canadiens	Senators	7:30 PM
Sat, 22 Jan 2011	Ducks	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 25 Jan 2011	Canadiens	Flyers	7:00 PM
February 2011
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Tue, 1 Feb 2011	Canadiens	Capitals	7:00 PM
Wed, 2 Feb 2011	Panthers	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 5 Feb 2011	Rangers	Canadiens	2:00 PM
Sun, 6 Feb 2011	Devils	Canadiens	3:00 PM
Wed, 9 Feb 2011	Canadiens	Bruins	7:00 PM
Thu, 10 Feb 2011	Islanders	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 12 Feb 2011	Maple Leafs	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 15 Feb 2011	Sabres	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 17 Feb 2011	Canadiens	Oilers	9:00 PM
Sun, 20 Feb 2011	Canadiens	Flames	TBD ( OUTDOOR GAME)
Tue, 22 Feb 2011	Canadiens	Canucks	10:00 PM
Thu, 24 Feb 2011	Maple Leafs	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Sat, 26 Feb 2011	Hurricanes	Canadiens	7:00 PM
March 2011
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Tue, 1 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Thrashers	7:00 PM
Thu, 3 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Panthers	7:30 PM
Sat, 5 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Lightning	7:30 PM
Tue, 8 Mar 2011	Bruins	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 10 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Blues	8:00 PM (HALAK on St.Louis)
Sat, 12 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Penguins	2:00 PM
Tue, 15 Mar 2011	Capitals	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 17 Mar 2011	Lightning	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Fri, 18 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Rangers	7:00 PM
Sun, 20 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Wild	6:00 PM
Tue, 22 Mar 2011	Sabres	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 24 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Bruins	7:00 PM
Sat, 26 Mar 2011	Capitals	Canadiens	7:00 PM
Tue, 29 Mar 2011	Thrashers	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Wed, 30 Mar 2011	Canadiens	Hurricanes	7:00 PM
April 2011
Date	Visitor	Home	Time (ET)	TV Network/Results
Sat, 2 Apr 2011	Canadiens	Devils	7:00 PM
Tue, 5 Apr 2011	Blackhawks	Canadiens	7:30 PM
Thu, 7 Apr 2011	Canadiens	Senators	7:30 PM
Sat, 9 Apr 2011	Canadiens	Maple Leafs	7:00 PM

HABS SIGN DARCHE TO A 1 YEAR CONTRACT

This morning in Montreal Canadiens Gm Pierre Gauthier signed Mathieu Darche to a one-year contract worth $550,000. Darche played 29 regular season games with the Habs in the 09-10 season and he had 5 goals and 5 assist. He also played 11 playoff games with the Habs and had 1 assist. But don't let the stats fool you. Darche is a great player who can help the Habs get out of slumps. He will be a big help to the Habs this upcoming season.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

MEET THE PROSPECTS

With the Habs opening trade of the off-season (acquiring Eller and Schultz) the Habs GM Pierre Gauthier was surrounded by the media wanting some answers about these players. “I think Lars Eller is almost ready to contribute for us as early as this year,” revealed Gauthier. “He’s been developing nicely, we watched him excel at the AHL level and with his experience now in the NHL. He’s a big centerman with a good shot who really competes.Our evaluation of this young player is still the same.This is a player who has always been projected to be a second line center.” A big center is what the Habs were looking for last summer but failed to acquire one. Just like I said before, the Habs will be looking for some size and that`s what they got and I think Eller will be a key asset to this team going into next season.

Now it`s time to talk about Schultz (who is undrafted and has only played in the AHL). So the big question is who is Ian Schultz ?“When you get young guys who can last a long time with your franchise and build themselves as part of the community and the team, you have to really look at those players,” described Habs general manager Pierre Gauthier. “That’s what we’re hoping to get from Schultz down the road.” What he means by that is that Ian Schultz will be apart of the Habs future and not the Habs of the 10-11 season.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

OUT OF THE BLUE AND INTO THE NEW

With the Canadiens trading away there star goalie there has been a lot of questioned being asked about why they traded Halak when the Blues called to make an offer for Carey Price and not Halak. But the Habs decided (and I agree) to trade Halak instead because Carey Price is the future of this historic Franchise. "They never talked to us about the possibility of a new deal or staying in Montreal," Halak said. "But it never happened. That's why the news I got today was a little bit surprising for me. It was still early and also that's why I was surprised -- it came early. But I'm really excited about the new start." This may be a surprise for Halak but Halak wants more than his last pay ($800,000) and he would probably ask for 2 0r 3 Million and the Habs can't afford that.

"I guess that was the best way to do it, to deal one goalie and leave one goalie in Montreal. I was the one who got dealt," Halak said. "I'm very excited that I'm in St. Louis, and I'm looking forward to the new start and fresh start for me." The Blues are expected to sign Halak by the end of the week.

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

HABS TRADE JAROSLAV HALAK TO THE BLUES

Today in Montreal, Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier announced that he had traded Jaroslav Halak to the St.Louis Blues for Lars Eller and Ian Schultz.Eller was a first round draft pic, 13th overall by the St. Louis Blues in 2007 and he played 7 NHL games with the Blues in the 2009-2010 season and had 2 goals. As for Schultz, he played with the Calgary Hitman, and he got 55 points in 70 games.

I saw this move coming from last January when Gainey nearly traded Halak to the Flyers. This to most people was not a surprise but to others it was. I have already heard people saying this that and the other about this trade. But the truth is this trade is not all that bad. The Habs are looking towards the future and the future will hold a very strong Canadiens team that will not need to rely on a goaltender to win them games. What they will rely on is team work and that alone will give them success.

The Canadiens will most likely sign Carey Price by July 1st.

Montreal Acquires	Date	St. Louis Acquires
D Lars Eller F Ian Schultz	June 17	G Jaroslav Halak

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

THE BLACKHAWKS WIN THE STANLEY CUP !!!!!!

Last night in Philadelphia, it was finally the night when the Stanley Cup would be brought back to Chicago for the first time since 1961 with Patrick Kane's Overtime goal that won it for them. As the puck slipped through the pads of Leighton and no one new if it was in or not except fro Kane."I was just hoping to God it was just an actual goal," said captain Jonathan Toews, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP. "They came back hard in the third and we just stuck with it." With the Cup win this was also Hossa's first time lifting the Stanley Cup in his career after 2 back to back cup final losses."I'm so happy I finally did it," Hossa said. "We couldn't just put our heads down. We had to work, and we knew we could do it."

"There's so many great things about winning a Stanley Cup. This is it," Toews said. "This is the best feeling you can ever get. I just can't believe it's happened." So the great story of the Flyers had come to an end. But they can look back on this year and say: " This was a historical cup run." But we now they will just be thinking of how close they were to a Stanley Cup."It's no consolation," Hartnell said. "The storybook ending ended the wrong way for us. It hurts." Some bad news for the Maple Leafs is with the Hawks Cup win the Leafs now have the longest Stanley Cup drought in NHL history (1967). It's offical the Stanley Cup Champs are the Blackhawks!!

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

Scoring Summary

1st Period
16:49	CHI	PPG - Dustin Byfuglien (11) Wrist Shot - Assists: J. Toews (22) & P. Kane (17)
19:33	PHI	PPG - Scott Hartnell (7) Backhand - Assists: D. Briere (17) & C. Pronger (14)
2nd Period
08:00	PHI	Danny Briere (12) Snap Shot - Assists: V. Leino (13) & L. Krajicek (3)
09:58	CHI	Patrick Sharp (11) Wrist Shot - Assists: D. Bolland (8) & D. Keith (15)
17:43	CHI	Andrew Ladd (3) Tip-In - Assists: N. Hjalmarsson (7) & P. Kane (18)
3rd Period
16:01	PHI	Scott Hartnell (8) Tip-In - Assists: V. Leino (14) & D. Briere (18)
OT Period
04:06	CHI	Patrick Kane (10) Wrist Shot - Assists: B. Campbell (4)

HABS DEVELOPMENT CAMP

With the Canadiens being out of the playoffs, it gave some future Canadiens stars a chance to shine like Louis Leblanc who was the Habs first pick in the draft in 2009. Leblanc decided to is leave Harvard University after just 1 year. He wasn't expected to leave for another year. So I think that we will see LeBlanc in a Habs jersey next season. "I want to be a hockey player and I have to develop to get there. I'm planning to take the best road to play for the Canadiens one day," said Leblanc. "You just need to look at a guy like Dominic Moore who did his four years at Harvard and was an important player for the Canadiens this year."

In other camp news, Steve Quailer is going to get his first crack at Habs camp. He was unable to attend last year due to Injury. “I was hurt in a preseason game this year and I didn’t play at all during the 2009-10 season,” admitted the 20-year-old forward. “This is the first time I’ve gone through a tough practice since my injury. Of course I was working out and came out and skated around a little, but nothing this intense, that’s for sure."Going down in the preseason is probably the worst thing that could happen. Missing 40-straight games isn’t exactly an ideal season,” explained Quailer with a laugh before adding. “I had to stay at school the whole time… I don’t love school; I love hockey.”

Written By Andrew Di Pardo

For More Camp News visit:

Canadiens de Montréal ( http://canadiens.nhl.com/ )

DEVELOPMENT CAMP ROSTER

Hunter Bishop

Michael Cichy

Gabriel Dumont

Olivier Fortier

Tanner House

Patrick Johnson

Danny Kristo

Louis Leblanc

Philippe Lefebvre

Dany Massé

Joonas Natinnen

Steven Quailer

Defencemen:

Mac Bennett

Marc-Antoine Desnoyers

Myles Harvey

Scott Kishel

Brendon Nash

Joe Stejskal

Goaltenders:

Thomas Baumle

J. Christophe Blanchard

Riley Gill

Petteri Similla