FeedA Tough Camp – Tougher Than Most
August 7, 2011 in Bernard Geoffrion, Dickie Moore, Doug Harvey, Henri Richard, Jacques Plante, Jean Beliveau, Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens, Ralph Backstrom Tags: Bernie Geoffrion, Bill Hicke, Cleveland Barons, Dickie Moore, Doug Harvey, Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, Jacques Plante, Jean Beliveau, Maurice Richard, Montreal Royals, Quebec Aces, Ralph Backstrom, Tom Johnson
It’s training camp in the late 1950′s. Of course it was nearly impossible to crack a spot in a lineup like this, with Hall of Famers and Stanley Cups oozing out of the woodwork, but Bill Hicke became a regular in 1959 and Ralph Backstrom the season before. But when you have a team with the Rocket and Pocket, Beliveau, Moore, Geoffrion, Harvey, Plante, Johnson, etc, there just wasn’t much room left.
All in all, the roster was basically set before anyone even stepped on the ice at training camp, and many of these players in this photo would soon depart to the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, Montreal Royals, Quebec Aces, Cleveland Barons and others.
August 8th, 2011 at 8:19 am
Hey Dennis, a brand new season isn’t that far away.
Rookie camp is supposed to start around September 7 followed by training camp on September 15th.
Pre-season hockey begins with the Canadiens playing the Dallas Stars at home on September 20th.
As always a lot of attention will be focused on the netminders.
Robin Gusse will be doing his best to impress at rookie camp. The undrafted, 18-year-old native of Bayonne France has been invited to the Habs rookie camp on a tryout basis…
http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/2011/8/6/2348624/habs-offer-tryout-to-undrafted-goalie
Meanwhile at training camp, Slovakian goalie Peter Budaj will be taking on Alex Auld’s old job as backup to Carie Price…
http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=585671&navid=DL|MTL|home
I hope this Slovakian goalie does as well for us as the last one we had between the pipes.
August 8th, 2011 at 9:21 am
Danno, it’s edging towards us. For me, I can’t see an 18 year old in the lineup for several years, and maybe that’s the plan. But it would sure be exciting if he impresses and gets a little seasoning on the farm and then comes back. But I’m no GM or scout, simply a stick boy. Maybe he’ll be fantastic. I also feel Gauthier must have known what he was doing with Auld and Budaj. Auld was cheaper and had a decent year, but Gauthier went with spending a little more money on the new guy. I think it’s very important that Price gets a bit more rest than he did last year and hopefully Budaj can come in and give us all confidence.