Michel Therrien's a bit sensitive, no?

[fulcrum]

Hardly dude, Therrien is behaving like a jackass as well but that doesn't excuse MacLean either...at best that's a bone-headed decision by him.

I guess this bodes well for Montreal then right? Its going to ignite a huge fire under them and they come out and give it to the sens. You should be glad he did it....no?

[Loch]

Did you watch the game at all?

Yes, yes I did. The whole of it in fact.

Not sure what made you ask that, I hadn't thought the idea of a losing coach disliking a time-out with 17 seconds left was revolutionary.

If the Walrus felt he needed that time-out, as I say, it is up to him. Therrien is allowed to be pissed about it but, as I said earlier (and someonelse said too) he's probably making a big deal of it to shift focus off of his team's play.

I like the Sens to be honest, but jeez are some Sens fans starting to get tiresome.

[Axeman33]

Personally I didnt have an issue with the timeout when it was called. I am not a Sens or Habs fan for the record. I think MacLean was simply trying to relay to his guys to keep their cool and lets just get through this last little bit. The score had nothing to do with the timeout, the shinanigans that were happening all over was the reason for the timeout. I wasnt on the bench and cant say for sure, but in my opinion thats exactly what MacLean was trying to do. Therrien should have used the timeout to his favor to get his guys through the last little bit too, instead of wasting the time to yell at MacLean.

[ultrawhiteness]

Personally I didnt have an issue with the timeout when it was called. I am not a Sens or Habs fan for the record. I think MacLean was simply trying to relay to his guys to keep their cool and lets just get through this last little bit. The score had nothing to do with the timeout, the shinanigans that were happening all over was the reason for the timeout. I wasnt on the bench and cant say for sure, but in my opinion thats exactly what MacLean was trying to do. Therrien should have used the timeout to his favor to get his guys through the last little bit too, instead of wasting the time to yell at MacLean.

+1 Axeman. timeout would be a non-issue if Therrien had not decided to use it to get his guys riled up. which is fine too.

"the Walrus", guys?

[Big Ev]

Yes, yes I did. The whole of it in fact.

Not sure what made you ask that, I hadn't thought the idea of a losing coach disliking a time-out with 17 seconds left was revolutionary.

If the Walrus felt he needed that time-out, as I say, it is up to him. Therrien is allowed to be pissed about it but, as I said earlier (and someonelse said too) he's probably making a big deal of it to shift focus off of his team's play.

I like the Sens to be honest, but jeez are some Sens fans starting to get tiresome.

Maybe Sens fan gets tiresome because our team is treated like dog shit by the media, the NHL, and most fans in general. We get no respeck. We always have to play third wheel to the precious Habs and Leafs. That's fine with me.

[Loch]

"the Walrus", guys?

I think it's a good nickname for that 'stache (and it is an epic 'stache)... anyway, it's not like Craig Stadler will sue for copyright infringement.

Incidentally, I wonder if more teams will start to sync up their AHL and NHL systems the way Ottawa has... watching people slide seamlessly into the line-up all year has been impressive.

[smack]

I think it's a good nickname for that 'stache (and it is an epic 'stache)... anyway, it's not like Craig Stadler will sue for copyright infringement.

Incidentally, I wonder if more teams will start to sync up their AHL and NHL systems the way Ottawa has... watching people slide seamlessly into the line-up all year has been impressive.

I'm a Leaf fan and I was talking with my buddies this weekend and we were all saying that the Sens are a treat to watch. From the GM down, they've done an amazing job and as a hockey fan, I appreciate it. I WISH Maclean was the coach here, we're in dire need of walruses (sp?). Except for #61. . .

[ultrawhiteness]

I'm a Leaf fan and I was talking with my buddies this weekend and we were all saying that the Sens are a treat to watch. From the GM down, they've done an amazing job and as a hockey fan, I appreciate it. I WISH Maclean was the coach here, we're in dire need of walruses (sp?). Except for #61. . .

i was at the sens game last night and got a huge kick out of the fans cheering every time MacLean appeared on the jumbotron.

can't say i've ever seen that before.

(as an aside, i've been to a handful of Sens games over the last 3 seasons, not a lot, but last night was the first time i've experienced a truly electric atmosphere... it was a great experience. full credit to Bryan Murray, who i used to bash here regularly :0 )

[pbhockey4]

[clip] There's no need to stoke the fire, you've already won the game handily so what's the point in going 'nyaaa nyaa nyaa' and possibly inciting more violence?[clip]

[clip] At some point as a head coach you need to use your head and recognize that keeping your players healthy is half the battle in the playoffs and he seems to think its more important to antagonize the opposition than to do what is best for his team. [clip]

Just curious mcgoo, what makes you think that McLean's intention was to solely rub the 6-1 win in Therrien's face? A coach's job in situations like the one last night is to protect his players. Montreal was turning it into an absolute goon-fest at the end there, and I'm sure all of their players were frustrated as hell (and rightly so, they were getting their asses handed to them). But like MacLean said in his interview, he called the timeout to regroup, protect his players, and told them to not do anything stupid. You think Kyle Turris (as well as other Sens players) was running on high emotions after the penalties that Bourque took with 18 seconds left in the game? Maybe someone wanted to take a stupid penalty and get revenge on a Canadiens player? I don't know about you, but I'd get my team together and tell them to cut the shit, no matter what Montreal was trying to do. Montreal had every right to be frustrated, and it's not like the Sens were perfect angels themselves, but regardless of whether it upsets the opposing coach or not, a good coach calls a timeout when MacLean did to gather his players and prevent them from doing anything stupid in the final seconds of the game. It astounds me that Therrien couldn't see that he would do the same thing if he were on the other end of things...unfortunately for him, he comes off as a whiny bitch in his press conferences, trying to make this about him vs. MacLean. MacLean doesn't give a flying f*** about what Therrien thinks, and it just goes to show that MacLean is in Therrien's head. As the head coach of an NHL team, you've got to have a more level head Therrien's right now. Sure, emotions are flying high, but as coach you can pass those emotions down to your players, and I'd hate to see the Canadiens stink it up next game because Therrien's worried about everything the Sens/MacLean were doing wrong, and not about his own team. How about some accountability for what happened in the 3rd period? Or at least acknowledge it was a shitshow and move on. The playoffs are too short to create stupid made up coaching battles, and to me the little quips that Therrien is throwing at MacLean show that the Sens are mentally winning this series (as well as actually winning as of right now).

I started this thread because I had heard so many good things about Therrien all year long, but I think the way he has handled himself this playoffs is disgusting. Focus on the hockey and your own team and try to win some games without disgracing your franchise and its fans. I guess there's a reason why people call Canadiens fans drama queens...I know it's hard to be objective in the playoffs, but damn, any sensible fan would understand that A) MacLean had every right to call that timeout, and any good coach would've done the same in that situation and B) Therrien had every right to be upset, but his bitching and whining about it does nothing but harm to his team's and his reputation. I personally hope Montreal doesn't fold like a flan in a cupboard the rest of the series because there has been some really good hockey...and who knows, maybe Montreal uses the now infamous "timeout" as motivation to win the next game and even the series. But it's stupid to me that Therrien has turned this into "that mean MacLean guy took my toys and won't give them back" instead of ignoring the distractions and media drama and getting his team ready for business. If you watch the interviews closely enough, it looks like Therrien is going to cry because he's so personally offended by MacLean's timeout...if I were a Habs fan, I would be pretty embarrassed by that alone, much less my team's play last night.

For the record, I'm an Avs fan and thus have little to cheer about right now (except the #1 overall!). I liked the Sens coming into this series, and I like them even more now that I've seen what Therrien acts like when the pressure's on.

[fulcrum]

Just curious mcgoo, what makes you think that McLean's intention was to solely rub the 6-1 win in Therrien's face? A coach's job in situations like the one last night is to protect his players. Montreal was turning it into an absolute goon-fest at the end there, and I'm sure all of their players were frustrated as hell (and rightly so, they were getting their asses handed to them). But like MacLean said in his interview, he called the timeout to regroup, protect his players, and told them to not do anything stupid. You think Kyle Turris (as well as other Sens players) was running on high emotions after the penalties that Bourque took with 18 seconds left in the game? Maybe someone wanted to take a stupid penalty and get revenge on a Canadiens player? I don't know about you, but I'd get my team together and tell them to cut the shit, no matter what Montreal was trying to do. Montreal had every right to be frustrated, and it's not like the Sens were perfect angels themselves, but regardless of whether it upsets the opposing coach or not, a good coach calls a timeout when MacLean did to gather his players and prevent them from doing anything stupid in the final seconds of the game. It astounds me that Therrien couldn't see that he would do the same thing if he were on the other end of things...unfortunately for him, he comes off as a whiny bitch in his press conferences, trying to make this about him vs. MacLean. MacLean doesn't give a flying f*** about what Therrien thinks, and it just goes to show that MacLean is in Therrien's head. As the head coach of an NHL team, you've got to have a more level head Therrien's right now. Sure, emotions are flying high, but as coach you can pass those emotions down to your players, and I'd hate to see the Canadiens stink it up next game because Therrien's worried about everything the Sens/MacLean were doing wrong, and not about his own team. How about some accountability for what happened in the 3rd period? Or at least acknowledge it was a shitshow and move on. The playoffs are too short to create stupid made up coaching battles, and to me the little quips that Therrien is throwing at MacLean show that the Sens are mentally winning this series (as well as actually winning as of right now).

I started this thread because I had heard so many good things about Therrien all year long, but I think the way he has handled himself this playoffs is disgusting. Focus on the hockey and your own team and try to win some games without disgracing your franchise and its fans. I guess there's a reason why people call Canadiens fans drama queens...I know it's hard to be objective in the playoffs, but damn, any sensible fan would understand that A) MacLean had every right to call that timeout, and any good coach would've done the same in that situation and B) Therrien had every right to be upset, but his bitching and whining about it does nothing but harm to his team's and his reputation. I personally hope Montreal doesn't fold like a flan in a cupboard the rest of the series because there has been some really good hockey...and who knows, maybe Montreal uses the now infamous "timeout" as motivation to win the next game and even the series. But it's stupid to me that Therrien has turned this into "that mean MacLean guy took my toys and won't give them back" instead of ignoring the distractions and media drama and getting his team ready for business. If you watch the interviews closely enough, it looks like Therrien is going to cry because he's so personally offended by MacLean's timeout...if I were a Habs fan, I would be pretty embarrassed by that alone, much less my team's play last night.

For the record, I'm an Avs fan and thus have little to cheer about right now (except the #1 overall!). I liked the Sens coming into this series, and I like them even more now that I've seen what Therrien acts like when the pressure's on.

Well said. +1

[mister_mcgoo]

pbhockey4 , I'm not gonna reply to that wall of text because most of it is irrelevant but let me address the core of your question.

Just curious mcgoo, what makes you think that McLean's intention was to solely rub the 6-1 win in Therrien's face?

Because he didn't call the timeout to regroup or protect his players. He called the timeout on a PP and he was clearly visible on the bench drawing up the play he wanted them to execute with the draw deep in the Habs zone. Why would he be doing that unless he was trying to rub their noses in it and score another goal?

Don't get me wrong, I'm usually for playing hard til the last whistle and keeping the skate on the jugular so to speak but the smart call in this situation is to tell your centerman to win the draw back to the d-man and then skate it back into your zone and let time expire. And that has nothing to do with respect or classiness (though it definitely takes the bigger man to walk away) or anything else that Therrien is whining about, it is solely about doing what is best for your team and your players in that situation...why risk anyone getting hurt? What if the Sens scored again and there was another brawl and Karlsson gets knocked out of the playoffs? Obviously the Paulrus can do as he pleases, I just thought it was a poor decision

[wendelclark17]

pbhockey4 , I'm not gonna reply to that wall of text because most of it is irrelevant but let me address the core of your question.



Because he didn't call the timeout to regroup or protect his players. He called the timeout on a PP and he was clearly visible on the bench drawing up the play he wanted them to execute with the draw deep in the Habs zone. Why would he be doing that unless he was trying to rub their noses in it and score another goal?

I disagree McGoo, I actually believe MacLean called it to talk to his players about not getting into it. Look at this clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...WTojY0LA#t=71s and go to the very end (2 secs left) and you can see where all the Sens (other than the centreman) are standing right before the draw. No where close to any Habs so that they couldnt be engaged, I honestly do think he called his players over and told them not to go anywhere near the Habs players and that was it. He was not drawing up a play to score.

[HyperScythe]

From a completely outside perspective...

It is completely ridiculous to be offended by something as simple as this. It just goes to show exactly where the focus is.

It isn't even like this is stretching the rules, this is well within them. So I don't understand how this has anything to do with 'class'.

The short answer is, that it doesn't. It is just ingrained into this sport for whatever reasons. But there comes a time, where a sport should grow up and put on it's big boy pants.

27 other NHL coaches wouldn't like this? So what. Just because there is a majority, doesn't mean it is correct.

This is such a baby issue.

If you can't handle playing the full game until the last second, whether you are down by 1 goal or down by 9 goals...

Then you don't deserve to in the playoffs playing for the Stanley Cup. You have already lost

[mister_mcgoo]

I disagree McGoo, I actually believe MacLean called it to talk to his players about not getting into it. Look at this clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...WTojY0LA#t=71s and go to the very end (2 secs left) and you can see where all the Sens (other than the centreman) are standing right before the draw. No where close to any Habs so that they couldnt be engaged, I honestly do think he called his players over and told them not to go anywhere near the Habs players and that was it. He was not drawing up a play to score.

at this point we'll never know, but I was watching the whole thing carefully, he spent a lot of time with his whiteboard sketching out a play for them, what needs to be drawn up in that situation? All you say is 'you take the draw, the rest of you back at the blueline' you don't even need to take a timeout for that.

[fulcrum]

I disagree McGoo, I actually believe MacLean called it to talk to his players about not getting into it. Look at this clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...WTojY0LA#t=71s and go to the very end (2 secs left) and you can see where all the Sens (other than the centreman) are standing right before the draw. No where close to any Habs so that they couldnt be engaged, I honestly do think he called his players over and told them not to go anywhere near the Habs players and that was it. He was not drawing up a play to score.

I was well on my way to saying the same thing....I think he wanted the game done....he likely tried to tell the players that during the whistle but the refs wouldn't let him. The only other option was to call the timeout. And at the end of the day, getting what he wanted said to his players, is far more important than worrying about what he was going to look like to the media or to the Montreal Canadiens.

If they take it that way, thats their right....