12/06/01 - In defence of the defence
Taking stock of some key players in the Canadiens' defence corps while hoping beyond hope that it doesn't jinx 'em!
Generally, I'm not a superstitious person. Oh sure, I have my lucky socks for those days when I need to wow someone in a meeting. Then there's the little wooden tennis racquet I still take to the court just in case the big aluminum one lets me down. And I admit that if I don't wear the correct home-or-away Habs sweater when I watch Montreal in the playoffs (keep dreaming, girl), I'm beside myself, convinced that they will lose.
When I started writing this weekly column about the Montreal Canadiens, I never thought twice about superstitions or jinxes. I wrote about Joe Juneau, Donald Audette and Jan Bulis with reckless abandon, with a sense that this year could be the turnaround year for Les Glorieux. And look what happened. The Montreal injury jinx strikes again. Or was it me?
This week, I had planned on writing about the Canadiens' underrated defence squad, the guys you rarely hear about. It's not just José Théodore, Andy Dackell and Chad Kilger who are responsible for Montreal's great penalty kill record (the Habs are 3rd best in the NHL in this category.) The no-name blueliners may be the brightest, quietest story of the season. So do I continue telling the story? Or will I be putting them in harm's way by talking about them?
Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead, I say!
Montreal hasn't had a blue chip defenceman for a while. Though Chris Chelios was an all-star in the late 1980's and Eric Desjardins picked up where he left off in the early 90's, the Canadiens haven't come close to anything like a Savard-Robinson-Lapointe trio. And we don't need punctuate that with a Doug Harvey either.
That said, this year's model IS worth crowing about, especially a couple of individuals who won't be nameless anymore.
Karl Dykhuis
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You probably can't place him. Do you even know what number he wears? It doesn't really matter, because a good solid defenceman should be invisible in this league. Karl Dykhuis was drafted 16th overall by Chicago in 1990. He was part of the Canadian junior team that took home the gold medal in 1991. He ended up in Philadelphia a couple of times, helping the 94-95 Flyers get into the playoffs for the first time in 6 years. In 96-97 he went to the Stanley Cup Finals with Philly only to lose to the powerful Red Wings.
Montreal picked him up at the end of the 98-99 season. A good thing too. Last year the Canadiens traded away their spiritual leader, Eric Weinrich, and Dykhuis stepped in to fill that gap. He's no Rob Niedermayer, nor is he a Chris Pronger. But the guy has some speed and his instincts in both ends of the rink have allowed his teammates to open up and play an offensive game that has been sorely missing on Montreal ice.
Dykhuis was recently rewarded with a 3-year contract extension. For a kid from Sept-Iles, what could be better than that? Oh, and he's number 28, by the way.
Patrice Brisebois
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On most days, it sucks to be Patrice Brisebois. Here you are, playing your heart out for a team you dreamed about forever, and the crowd is booing you. You block a million shots, your ankles are a mess from all the abuse the rubber has inflicted on them, yet they give you the nickname "Breeze-by" as if you're the easiest deak on the ice. And you don't complain. You never ask to be traded.
Patrice Brisebois won 2 junior gold medals (his second was in 1991 when a young Dykhuis was an up and comer.) He is the only member of the 1993 Stanley Cup team who still wears the tricoleur. Every year at the trade deadline, his name is mentioned, but still he stays in Montreal. Once again, a good thing.
This year, Brisebois is still blocking shots. You see him on crutches on off days. And you see him logging 24 minutes a game. The harsh Montreal crowd has toned down the boos. I think they are finally realizing that this guy is one of the big reasons why the Habs are still in contention. Brisebois makes Théodore look good and you don't even notice him. Of course there's still the odd play where he looks like he forgot to take his man, but then you think of all those blocked shots and you give the guy a break. 24 minutes a night.
Honourable mention
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Sheldon Souray is a team leader in the dressing room and a large presence on the ice. He makes the fans almost forget about Lyle Odelein. Almost.
Craig Rivet's ice time keeps increasing as his confidence grows. He's another guy you've kind of heard about, but you get him mixed up with that other defenceman whose name starts with an R….
Stephane Robidas, ya, that guy! He and Andrei Markhov may be the future of the Montreal blue line. These young guys are getting a lot of ice time already, bringing speed to the game as well as solid hockey smarts.
Montreal's defencemen certainly have their work cut out for them. Injuries and more injuries always mean new players and new line combinations. Which of course means more giveaways, more mental errors by the young forwards resulting in a lot of work in their own end. But I have a feeling if these guys can weather the injury jinx and hang in until Juneau, Bulis etc. are back on the ice, Montreal will indeed be in the playoff hunt 3 or 4 months from now. I'll cross my fingers just to be sure…