NHL montreal Canadiens

Since it's been, oh, I don't know, five minutes, since we had a debate on what's a clean hit and what's a dirty hit, Chicago Blackhawks forward Andrew Ladd decided to give us something else to talk about on Friday night when he laid out Montreal's Matt D'agostini early in the second period.

Video after the jump.

When I first started thinking about this post Wednesday morning, I intended to focus it on the goaltending "controversy" unfolding in Montreal. After all, Carey Price, the No. 5 overall pick in 2005 and next in line for the throne that is the Montreal Canadiens' goaltending position, was getting ready to start his fifth straight game on the bench behind Jaroslav Halak, a ninth-round pick in the 2003 draft.

I decided, however, to go in a different direction and instead focus on Price himself, and whether or not it's time to panic and cast doubt as to whether or not he's really the goaltender of the future in Montreal.

Since Gretz was at Wednesday's Penguins vs. Canadiens game for FanHouse, consider this your abbreviated version of Newsmakers in the NHL, our weekday recap of the previous night's action across the league.

PITTSBURGH -- I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I'm probably the only hockey fan in the world that had never seen a player record a hat trick in person, whether it be as a fan in the stands, or sitting in the press box. Thanks to Sidney Crosby's three goal effort on Wednesday, I can now cross that off the list.

Each and every Saturday this season I'll be taking a look at the random happenings and absurdities that occur in the world of hockey. This is the first edition. Feel free to suggest stories, complain or otherwise babble at me via electronic mail.

One of the stories to watch this season is the youth movement that is currently taking over the NHL. I'm not talking about Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin. At 22 and 24 respectively, those guys are old news. The kids I'm talking about are a bit younger and dare I say, better.

Georges Laraque recently appeared in an online commercial for an alcohol-infused energy drink, violating NHL policy. On Tuesday, he apologized for breaking the league rule. He has not stopped apologizing since. He really needs to stop.

The phoniness of our major professional sports leagues is boundless.

Laraque is one of the league's top fighters and a popular player for the storied Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens play in a hockey palace currently called the Bell Centre, formerly known as the Molson Centre. Back then, you couldn't go anywhere in the rink without a beer logo in sight.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our Weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the storylines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Red Wings 5, Kings 2: Four Stanley Cups, six Norris Trophies, a Conn Smythe Trophy, 10 All-Star games, and now ... 1,000 career points. With his assist on Henrik Zetterberg's goal at the 3:24 mark of the third period (his second assist of the game), Nicklas Lidstrom recorded the 1,000th point of his remarkable career, joining fellow rearguards Paul Coffey, Ray Bourque, Al MacInnis, Phil Housley, Brian Leetch, Larry Murphy, and Denis Potvin as the only defensemen to reach such a mark. As for the rest of the Wings, they pulled out a 5-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings, and did so in shorthanded fashion, playing without the services of not only injured forward Johan Franzen, but also Pavel Datsyuk.

---

---

Remember Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final when Pittsburgh managed to skate with six men on the ice for about 20 seconds, while none of the on-ice officials noticed it? Well, we had a replay of it on Thursday night in the Montreal vs. Colorado game. Only Montreal played with seven players.

With the Canadiens trailing, 3-2, and desperately trying to tie the score in their home opener, goaltender Carey Price went to the bench in favor of the extra attacker, which coincided with defenseman Hal Gill coming out of the penalty box. Instead of going to the bench, Gill remained on the ice and joined the play. The result? A 7-on-5 power play to close out the game.

Video, of course, after the jump.

Every Tuesday, FanHouse discusses the top NHL prospects found in college hockey.

As the college hockey season gets underway, freshmen are often just trying to get some game experience and adjust to the speed of the college game, which is much different than the high school, prep school, or junior team they came from.

For North Dakota forward Mike Cichy (NHL rights: Montreal), you couldn't have scripted a better start to his college career.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our Weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the storylines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Canucks 7, Canadiens 1: After three straight losses to start the season, the Vancouver Canucks took out some of their frustrations on Montreal Wednesday night by dominating the Canadiens, 7-1. The Sedin twins combined for two goals and five assists in the win, while Roberto Luongo, fresh off a start where he gave up four goals on just 12 shots against Columbus, stopped 27 of 28 shots in the win.

Carey Price started in goal for the Canadiens and was lifted after giving up all seven Vancouver goals. Jaroslav Halak came on in relief and stopped all three shots he faced.

---

---

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our Weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the storylines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Flyers 6, Capitals 5: After a scoreless first period in Philadelphia, the final 40 minutes of regulation -- and the overtime period -- of the Capitals-Flyers game turned into a defense optional contest.

The two teams pumped in 11 goals during Philadelphia's 6-5 overtime win, including a second period hat trick from Flyers center Mike Richards, giving him five goals in his first three games of the season. Such a number would have given him the early season lead in goals scored, had it not been for Alex Ovechkin continuing his white-hot start by adding a pair of his own, also giving him five on the young season.

---

---