Montreal Canadiens [EHM '07]

[Armadillo]

Hello, and welcome to my Montreal Canadiens GM experience. I will be using the game Eastside Hockey Manager 2007. If you're unfamiliar with EHM, it is a game that allows you to manage any team with a very high level of detail. I chose the Canadiens randomly. Rosters are a little bit out of date, I believe they are current as of December 1st, so some fairly significant trades [Kaberle for Spacek, Cammalleri for Bourque] have not happened. Oh well, let's get started.

[Armadillo]

Canadiens hire Armadillo as new GM

GM Pierre Gauthier has been fired by the Canadiens front office. When asked about the firing, Habs chairman Geoff Molson had this to say:

Quote:

"We need to restore this franchise to it's former glory. It was plain that Gauthier wasn't going to get that. Seriously, who's dumb enough to take on the Gomez contract?"

Stepping in will be relatively unknown GM Danny Armadillo. Molson also made a statement regarding the hiring of Armadillo.

Quote:

"Armadillo has all the qualities we look for in a GM. Intelligence, charisma, a cool name, and fantastic hockey knowledge. We are very confident moving forward with this hiring."

Armadillo was unavailable for comment at this time, but is expected to arrive in Montreal soon.

[Armadillo]

New GM speaks to media

After arriving in Montreal and meeting the players and coaching staff, Danny Armadillo sat down with the press to answer a few questions about the upcoming season.

"Where do you see the team finishing in the standings this year?" asked one reporter.

"I strongly believe we have the pieces here to build a contender, so anything less than playoffs will be a huge disappointment." replied Armadillo.

"What type of moves can we expect to see you make during the season?" asked another reporter.

"Ideally, I'd like to add some size to the team, as we are currently one of the smallest teams in the league. Another thing I would like to address is the cap situation, as we currently have only $900,000 of space to work with."

"Final question Danny, will Brian Gionta remain captain?"

"Right now, I'd like to get to know each player better. Captaincy will be addressed after training camp."

This interview has told us a few things, but the biggest story coming out of this is the possibility that Brian Gionta may not be captaining the Habs at the beginning of the season. Stay tuned for more.

[Armadillo]

Habs and Jackets swap big contracts

In his first move as Canadiens GM, Danny Armadillo made a big splash, completing the following deal:

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To Montreal Candiens:
R.J. Umberger
Marc Methot

To Columbus Blue Jackets:
Scott Gomez
Yannick Weber
Rights to Darren Dietz
MTL 2012 4th round pick

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An interesting deal for sure, as the Canadiens manage to deal Scott Gomez and his enormous contract, while the Jackets remove two hefty contracts from the books.

While Gomez has fallen on hard times recently, playing with talented scorers Rick Nash and Jeff Carter could revitalize his game. The Jackets also get a cheap, young puck-moving defenseman in Weber, who will help out the power play and transition game. They also gained a solid prospect and a good pick.

Coming to the Canadiens is big, power forward centre R.J. Umberger, who will likely fill in the role of second line centre. The other piece coming is Marc Methot. Another big, hard-hitter, Methot brings a fantastic shutdown game and could be anchoring either the second or third defensive pairing.

With this trade, Armadillo has fulfilled his promise of bringing size and cap space to the Habs. Whether or not another big trade is coming before training camp has yet to be seen, but we'll keep you updated.

[Armadillo]

Nevermind this

[Armadillo]

Habs add another hard-hitter

The Canadiens announced another trade today, this one taking place with the Phoenix Coyotes.

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To Montreal Canadiens:
Raffi Torres

To Phoenix Coyotes:
MTL 2012 5th round pick

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Coming to Montreal is gritty winger Raffi Torres. Torres gained notoriety last year as part of the Vancouver Canucks on their long playoff run. His bone-jarring hits and timely goals showed why he's a valuable third liner, which is exactly where he'll be playing in Montreal.

[Armadillo]

Canadiens reveal pre-seson schedule

vs. Chicago Blackhawks
@ Boston Bruins
@ New York Rangers

Young players from the farm will likely be mixed in with the veterans to give them a chance to impress.

[Armadillo]

Pre-season Results

Montreal 11-0 Chicago [not even kidding...]
Montreal 4-1 Boston
Montreal 1-2 New York Rangers

*Erik Cole is out 10 days

*Andrei Kostitsyn is out 2 weeks

*David Desharnais is out 3 weeks

Alexander Avstin and Brian Willsie will stay on the big club while they heal up.