My initial reaction was sadness and a puzzled look on my face, never having heard of the two forwards the Canadiens acquired (okay, maybe I live under a rock sometimes).

After some quick research and more thought, I couldn’t be more thrilled.

With Gill being an unrestricted free agent, it was only a matter of time before something had to happen with him.

As my step dad predicted last week, he was traded.

It makes sense, seeing as we either would have lost him for no return or would have had to shell out the big bucks to keep him in town.

In return we pick up two young forwards who are 6’2″; one whom bleeds bleu-blanc-rouge and has Bernie “Boom-Boom” Geoffrion and Howie Morenz running through his veins, the other is a good Canadian boy.

According to the current roster on Canadiens.com, 19 of 25 players listed are over 6’0″ and 15 of them weigh in at 200 pounds or more.

For a team that’s been criticized for lacking in size all season long, those are certainly big numbers.

With only seven players over the age of 30 on the Habs roster, it’s looks like the beginning of a great future in Montreal.

Okay, here’s the part where the girly hockey fan in me shines through so close your eyes for two seconds boys.

By adding Gill to their line up, the Preds continue to bolster their roster of “sexiest NHL players.” To be fair, we still have a number of stunners on our team a la Josh Gorges, Carey Price and Max Pacioretty to name a few.

Okay, girl comments are done, you can start reading again guys.

What we gain:

As I already mentioned the biggest trade off is return on a UFA in size and youth. Geoffrion played 22 game with Nashville this season, where he earned three assists. In 20 AHL games he has two goals and seven assists. He was awarded the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, as the Top U.S. Collegiate Player in 2010

Wow..what a day…its bitter sweet, going to miss my hometown of nashville, but going to where it all started with my family…MONTREAL!!! -@BlakeGeoffrion on Twitter

Slaney has split the season between the AHL and the ECHL. He has one assist in nine AHL games, and eight goals and five assists in 23 ECHL games.

Want to thank everyone in Nashville for everything, and excited for a new start in Montreal!  #newbeginnings -@rslaney67 on Twitter

What we lose:

A veteran defenceman with a wealth of playoff experience, strong penalty-killing ability and depth.

Moving Forward

As sad as I still am to see Big Hal depart for Nashville, I am excited for the future generation of Montreal Canadiens.

They may not be having the best season this year, but neither were the Ottawa Senators last year and look at them now.

“We are also very pleased to have acquired a second-round draft selection in 2012 and two young prospects for our organization. We look forward to working together with Blake Geoffrion and Robert Slaney to continue their progression.” -Canadiens GM, Pierre Gauthier

This time, I’d like to give PG a pat on the back for a good trade.

Sporting my Habs colours, even my iPhone wears bleu, blanc, rouge. Photo by Laura Kenney (@Habbykins)

On Feb. 11 the All Habs Tweetup crew hosted a Toronto event at St. Louis Bar and Grill for a Hockey Day in Canada match up between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

During the last year I’ve been reading up on these tweetup events and the friendships that come out of meeting fellow twitter Habs fans face-to-face, and finally had the opportunity to attend one myself.

After carefully choosing which of

My fiance wearing my step dad's Canadiens sweater. I couldn't resist taking a photo for all his Sens fans friends back home.

my bleu, blanc, rouge outfits to sport to the bar (I went with a Josh Gorges t-shirt), and raiding my step dad’s closet to give my Sens fan fiance a sweater to wear, we were on our way to show our colours in enemy territory.

Not going to lie…the following words did escape my mouth en route to the bar:

“The Habs better win this game, I am going to be so embarrassed if we take over a Toronto bar and have to walk out with a loss”

Luckily for me, Les Canadiens not only won, they completely dominated the blue and white in their home arena and shut them out on a night they were celebrating their beloved ex captain Mats Sundin.

From the moment I walked into the bar, I knew it was going to be a great night.

We were welcomed with open arms by my Twitter acquaintances whom I’ve built online relationships with throughout the last year or two.

It was pretty surprising when I didn’t even have to introduce myself; as I walked in Dayes yelled “hey! Melissa”

I finally got to meet @habbykins, @Kuyaz and @cokeaddict who I’ve spent a lot of time chatting with on Twitter about the Habs, my own hockey endeavours, and not to mention cake. Mmm, cake.

Michael Kuyaz and I meeting in person for the first time! I'm wearing a Gorges t-shirt, he's wearing Pacioretty!

I also met @thetonyjones and new follower @ange_ducharme, among others.

When Erik Cole scored five minutes into the second period to give Montreal a 1-0 lead, the entire bar (okay, our entire group…which made up 3/4 of the bar) errupted in cheers as @Kuyaz came around and gave everyone a high five.

The blue and white crowd at St. Louis would remain silent for the rest of the game as the Habs went on to rout the Leafs 5-0 just hours after Sundin claimed Toronto was the hockey capital of the world, in his pre game speech.

So much for that, eh Mats?

The Canadiens chased James Reimer out of the net after 40 minutes of play, after he allowed four goals on just 15 shots. Jonas Gustavsson replaced “Reim Time” between the pipes for the third period and was beat once on three attempts.

Carey Price made 32 saves for a perfect game, as Montreal won their fourth straight.

It was the first shutout by the Canadiens in Toronto since Jose Theodore blanked the Leafs 4-0 on Oct. 11, 2003.

The Canadiens league-leading penalty kill was tested five times, while they’re power play (which is second worst in the league) was 1-for-2.

Kuyaz and I, he added the caption. Photo by Dayes (@Cokeaddict)

Back to the Tweetup…

On each table was a piece of paper that included feedback on the event and a short quiz about Hockey Day in Canada.

Needless to say, I didn’t know a single answer on the test but wound of winning a prize, $25 St. Louis gift card, for ‘most creative answers’.

Mike managed to snap this photo as I was cheering for the Eller goal. Epic! Photo by Mike Milonow (@MikeMilonow)

When Lars Eller dangled Dion Phaneuf and undressed Reimer for the Habs fourth goal, we were pretty sure the Leafs would not be able to come back into the game in the third period.

During the second intermission our group sang happy birthday for former Montrealer Jaroslav Spacek, who was celebrating his 38th birthday.

There’s a video recording of it somewhere, you’ll have to ask @cokeaddict for it.

After filling up on nachos, wings, delicious drinks and plenty of high fives, hugs and photos the night came to an end and it was time to part ways.

A big thank you to @Kuyaz and @Cokeaddict for putting on a fabulous event. I can’t wait for the next one!

Next on my bucket list is to attend a Tweetup in Montreal.

With the AHL Outdoor Classic taking place less than 100 km from my house, in Hamilton, I jumped at the chance to watch future NHL stars duke it out, outdoors, in the middle of January.

This is Canada, eh.

Everything about the entire experience, from purchasing tickets to the final buzzer, was above my expectations.

I purchased my tickets online, where I was able to pick my seats from the section, to the aisle to the exact seat numbers I wanted. (In the end I wound up sitting two rows, in the same seat numbers, in front of fellow Tweeter @thirtyonesaves).

The ticket prices were outstanding, $80 per person, for great seats AND that deal came with tickets to the PepsiCo Outdoor NHL Alumni Game Friday night between the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs and tickets for the AHL Outdoor Classic Saturday afternoon with the Hamilton Bulldogs hosting the Toronto Marlies at Ivor Wynne Stadium.

In the days leading up to the event I was a bit apprehensive because of the strange weather we’ve been getting around here lately, but it turned out to be the most beautiful weekend possible for outdoor hockey!

A beautiful January night for an outdoor NHL Alumni game

I had never been to an NHL Alumni game before either and wasn’t sure what to except from ex NHLers, especially when some people on Twitter said they’d never waste money on that, but I was actually blown away.

Sure, it was much slower than an NHL game but damn, most of those guys can still outplay me, that’s for sure!

Cujo was absolutely brilliant for the Leafs, some fans even went as far as to say he played better in the outdoor game than he did his last few seasons in the NHL!

During the second half of the NHL Alumni Game, Kraig Nienhuis left the Leafs bench and climbed on stage, in full equipment, to rock the crowd with his rendition of Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline.

He wound up playing the tune again on Saturday for the record-setting crowd of 20, 565 fans at the AHL Outdoor Classic.

Before the game and between periods the ex NHL players signed autographs for fans waiting along the pathway to the dressing rooms.

It was funny how OLD some of those guys look now!

It wouldn't be an outdoor hockey game in Canada in January without a little snow.

The weather forecasters called for snow flurries at 9 p.m. and low and behold they were actually right, as flurries started coming down at 8:56, delighting the snow flake loving kid in me.

What I loved the most about this setting was how friendly the fans were – Habs and Leafs fans alike.

I was surrounded by Leafs fans and they chimed a few cracks at me here and there but they took the comebacks in great stride.

There were even a few people sporting Boston Bruins apparel -puke- that I was joking around with.

Normally the animosity between these fan bases is pretty high in other settings, so it was a welcoming surprise to share some good laughs with them.

Picturesque weather conditions for the first AHL Outdoor Classic in Canada

I couldn’t have asked for more picture-perfect weather for Saturday’s AHL game. The sun was shining and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.

Hamilton came out flying, scoring less than 30 seconds in the game which led to an ensuing fight (which Hamilton won).

Unfortunately, the Bulldogs went on to lose 7-2.

The crowd kept cheering until the end though, not like the boos you would typically hear ringing through the Bell Centre.

If you didn’t have a chance to watch the live feed on Sportsnet, here is the game in six minutes from the NHL Videocenter.

You can find more photos of the game on the Facebook Page for the 2012 AHL Outdoor Classic presented by Molson.

Overall, it was a great experience that I would do over in a heart beat (although, I can’t see myself paying the $200+ ticket price for the NHL Outdoor Classic).

This guy made my night!

At Friday’s game there was a Habs fan sitting in front of us with a Cammalleri jersey on. He had taped over the name bar and wrote “GM is an idiot”.

I wound up posting the picture to Twitter and it was still getting retweets more than 24 hours later.

Amazing!

During the NHL Alumni game, one of the Hamilton announcers interviewed George Laraque at the Montreal bench regarding the coach, Guy Lafleur.

After telling the reporter what a great coach Guy was behind the bench, he threw a little jab at the Quebecois media with a sly grin on his face.

“He’s great…and he can speak French”

The entire stadium roared with laughter and the play-by-play announcers had a field day!

Oh, George…you funny man, you.

Here are a few other photos I took with my iPhone…sorry for the quality.

Canadiens Alumni lining up for the national anthem

Alumni players walking to the dressing room between periods

Rocking my bleu-blanc-rouge touque and Josh Gorges t-shirt before the game

All I can say is WOW!

His book has been such an inspiration to me in more ways than I can count…and part of the reason I started going back to the gym again.

Before he was even in grade eight he was working out like crazy; his dad wouldn’t let him use weights yet, so he used rubber tubing and his own body weight. He’d do 400 push ups and 400 sit ups a night! Say what?!

I can barely do 30 push ups and I don’t think I’ve even hit 400 push ups in total in my entire life.

His descriptions of his workout regimens and his insane attitude towards making sure he was always the best are just unreal. I can’t believe his body can even put up with the amount of work he’s made it do.

If I wasn’t a girl, and worried about becoming butch looking, I’d totally try some of the intense workouts he did/does.

I think I may give the book a second read and write out the workouts he did and see if I can even half attempt any of them.

The dude is crazy!

Y’all Tebow haters out there can hate him all you want for his over exposure in the media, his unorthodox (or bad if that’s your spin) ways of playing QB, and his in-your-face religion but the man is a true work horse who has put so much dedication and passion into football that he deserves to be in the NFL just as much as the next guy, if not more.

I get it. I watched the playoffs when Tom Brady tied records and threw for more touchdowns in one half than Tebow threw completions. It was ugly (but extremely amazing for Brady).

Tebow is a saint off the field, and I think he can (in my opinion) develop into a (better) NFL QB.

*Cue the hate mail*

By the way; if you haven’t read the book yet I would totally recommend it! 

I stopped going to the gym for almost two months, always finding some excuse to keep me from going, and it only made everything worse.

I’m not one for New Year’s Resolutions so I had to find something else, meaningful, to get me motivated again.

Luckily, with my wedding coming up in 227 days, ringing in 2012 had a much bigger impact on my motivation than I thought it would.

Last Monday my gym introduced a new class – kickboxing – and for once the fitness leader is actually more in shape than I am.

The class runs twice a week, Mondays and Wednesdays, and is an hour-long combination of kickboxing and mixed martial arts techniques to improve cardiovascular endurance while strengthening and toning the entire body.

I’ve gone to all three classes so far and I am loving every minute of it!

After the first class I made the mistake of telling the trainer, Geoff, that I play hockey and I paid for it in the second class.

“Get those knees up, you call yourself a hockey player?! Come on!”

Amazing.

I also want to start running and spinning again, as I was in the summer. I’ve never been much of a runner my whole life but was thrilled when I was able to run 1.5 miles in less than 13 minutes on just my second attempt back in August.

I haven’t done much cardiovascular training, aside from hockey once a week, since September and I’d like to get back up to 3-4 times a week.

My new gym schedule is going to look something like this:

Monday is kickboxing, Tuesday is back and shoulders, Wednesday is legs, Thursday is kickboxing, Friday is arms, Saturday is a rest day, Sunday is hockey. 

Everyday there is a cardio portion and a core workout.

For my leg routine today I began with a 25 minute bike ride on levels 6-8, whatever that means  on the machine I was using, and kept my RPM above 85 for the duration.

Resistance training began with four sets of 12 squats, while holding a 50 lbs bar.

Circuit one was walking lunges (4 sets of 24) with 15 lbs dumbbells in each hand followed by hamstring leg curls (4 sets of 12 per leg) where I lifted 20 lbs the first two sets and 15 lbs the last two sets.

Circuit two was box step ups (4 sets of 12) while wearing ankle weights, lateral squats while holding a 50 lbs bar (4 sets of 12) and back extensions (4 sets of 12).

To end the workout I did a short core circuit where I performed Russian twists, while crisscrossing my legs like scissors, with an 8 lbs ball (4 sets of 10 per side) followed by stability ball roll-outs (4 sets of 12).

Needless to say, I was sweating tons and breathing hard by the time I was done this almost two-hour workout.

Protein and veggie filled post workout meal

After the gym I had a delicious dinner of three steak strips, a small strip of ribs, mushrooms, potatoes, onions, green beans, peppers, and half a sweet potato.

Before bed I’ll have a vegan protein shake with almond milk.

Mm…protein.

Tomorrow is kickboxing, where we do combinations with a partner for 45 minutes followed by a kick-ass core workout for 10 minutes before we do a cool down stretch.

I am going to own that wedding dress on Sept. 2!

Gigi Marvin, Erika Lawler and Whitney Naslund pose during an autograph session at the International Ice Skating Centre. CWHL Images

The Blades played host to the Stars this weekend, where they handed the visiting team a pair of losses.

On Saturday, Montreal took a 2-0 lead into the second period with goals from Caroline Ouellette and Sarah Vaillancourt, but went on to lose 3-2 in a shootout.

Kacey Bellamy (shorthanded) and Whitney Naslund scored for Boston in the second period.

In the shootout Ouellette and Meghan Agosta, the league’s top two scorers, were stopped by Mandy Mackrell while Kelli Stack and Bellamy both beat Catherine Herron for the win.

On Sunday, Bellamy netted two, including the game winner, as Boston defeated Montreal 6-2 despite the Stars going 2-for-5 on the power play and outshooting the Blades 36-27.

Jenny Lavigne allowed four goals on 13 shots and was replaced by Herron in the second period.

Erika Lawler, Kate Buesser, Alyssa Wohlfeiler and Naslund also scored for the Blades while Caitlin Cahow and Stack had two and three assists, respectively.

Boston is on an eight-game winning streak.

Brampton Jumps to Third Place

With back-to-back wins over the Burlington Barracudas (1-14-0), the Brampton Hockey Club (6-5-2) has moved into third place, pushing the Toronto Furies (5-6-4) into fourth.

Vicki Bendus scored a hat trick and Jayna Hefford added two of her own as Brampton broke a four-game losing skid to start the New Year with an 8-1 routing of the Barracudas.

Lori Dupuis, Cherie Piper and Kerri Palmer also scored for Brampton.

Burlington goaltender, Christina Kessler, suffered a lower body injury during a scramble in front of the net in the first period and was replaced by Mandy Cronin.

For a detailed recap of the game, read this article on the CWHL website.

On Sunday, Bendus and Piper had two goals apiece as Brampton beat Burlington 5-3.

Gillian Apps also scored for Brampton, while Sarah Dagg, Sommer West and Samantha Shirley scored for the Barracudas.

In Saturday’s game, Burlington took an early lead on the power play but it would be their only lead of the night.

Jaclyn Hawkins tied the game in the second period, then Erika Lawler added a 5-on-3 power-play goal before Caitlin Cahow sealed the period giving Boston a 3-1 lead.

Shannon Sisk gave the Blades a 4-2 lead with 1:29 left in the game and Whitney Naslund scored 12 seconds later for the 5-2 win.

On Sunday, Hawkins scored Boston’s first goal of the game again, at 4:48 of the opening period as the Blades took a 2-1 lead into the second.

The Barracudas came out strong in the second period, scoring two goals on Mandy Mackrell to take a 3-2 lead into the final frame.

In the third period, Jessica Koizumi scored her second of the game to tie it, before Marvin netted the game-winning goal.

By the way, if you’re looking for an inside look at life in the CWHL and life on the road for the Boston Blades, Jaclyn Hawkins writes an excellent blog on WomensHockeyLife.com (an amazing portal of blogs and information for all you women’s hockey needs nationally and over seas).

Here’s her post about the road trip to Burlington, with a must-watch video.

Toronto Has Better Weekend in Montreal

The first place Montreal Stars (12-2-0) scored a goal per period on Saturday as they went on to shutout the Toronto Furies (5-6-4) 3-0 at Arena Etienne-Desmarteau.

CWHL scoring leader Meghan Agosta scored a goal and an assist while fourth ranked scorer Vanessa Davidson added two helpers.

Sarah Vaillancourt and Catherine Ward, ranked third and fifth in scoring respectively, also scored for the Stars.

On Sunday, the Furies were on the winning side of a 3-1 score, handing Montreal just their second loss of the season.

Sami Jo Small made 47 saves en route to her second win between the pipes.

After a scoreless first period, Martine Garland scored her first of the season, short-handed and unassisted, to give Toronto a 1-0 lead.

Brooke Beazer added what would be the game-winning goal at 14:22 of the second period. Tessa Bonhomme also scored for the Furies.

Agosta netted the lone goal for the Montreal Stars.

Montreal also hosted a fundraiser, including a silent auction, door prizes, chuck-a-puck competitions and presentations by their Olympians, with proceeds going back to support the club.

The Montreal Gazette wrote a great preview of the Toronto vs Montreal game, check it out.

Heading into the break, the last place Burlington Barracudas (1-8-0) got their first win of the season against the Toronto Furies (4-5-4) in overtime.

With a new head coach, the Barracudas are looking to improve their stats and move up the ranks in the second half of the season.

“This team is good enough to win,” says Burlington coach Robin Bird. “This team can win. They just have to stay positive when they’re down, no matter what happens.”

The Barracudas will have a tough challenge in their first opponent of the New Year, the surging Boston Blades (8-2-0), at home at Appleby Arena on Jan. 7 and 8.

In their inaugural season last year, the Blades only mustered 10 wins in 26 games mostly due to a small roster, including several part-time players which resulted in a very short bench at most games.

“This season, we have added both quantity and quality,” says Boston general manager Paul Hendrickson. “Our new players include USA national team players Molly Schaus, Kelli Stack, Gigi Marvin, and Meghan Duggan (joining this month) as well as several talented non-national team players. As a result, we have had a full bench for every game, as well as a significant influx of highly talented players.”

The second place Blades carry a four-game winning streak into the New Year, chasing the first place Montreal Stars (11-1-0) who are currently on a hot eight-game winning streak.

Boston handed Montreal their only loss of the season, 4-2, back on Nov. 19.

“We have a lot of new players, so we are still settling in to standard line combinations, power play and penalty kill units,” says Hendrickson. “We hope to reach our peak performance level as we approach the playoffs and the Clarkson Cup.”

The defending Clarkson Cup champion Montreal Stars are hosting the Furies at Desmarteau Rink, also on Jan. 7 and 8, where Toronto will be looking for a fresh start with new coaches behind the bench.

The match up features a handful of 2010 Canadian Olympic gold medalists including tournament MVP and CWHL first pick Meghan Agosta who leads the league in scoring with 21 goals and 14 assists in 12 games.

After Agosta, the Stars boast another five players who top off the six leading scorers in the league; Caroline Ouellette (17 goals, 17 assists), Sarah Vaillancourt (7 goals, 18 assists), Vanessa Davidson (10 goals, 8 assists), Noemie Marin (7 goals, 11 assists), and Catherine Ward (1 goal, 17 assists).

Both the Brampton Hockey Club (4-5-2) and the newly added Alberta Hockey Club (3-4-0) have the weekend off as their game was postponed until February.

Gigi Marvin would be the lone scorer in the one-on-one battle securing a win for the Bladies.

The Furies opened the scoring with a power-play goal by Kori Cheverie at 6:40 of the first period that would be protected until the second period.

On back-to-back power plays, the Blades added two of their own from Kelli Stack and Caitlin Cahow to take a 2-1 lead.

Just over six minutes later, Meagan Aarts netted one for the Furies tying the game back up.

The Blades were 2-for-5 on the power play and allowed one goal during five penalty kills.

 Double Up

Not wanting a repeat of the previous night, the Blades came out early on Sunday with Saturday’s hero Marvin potting a power-play goal less than four minutes into the game.

Alyssa Wohlfeiler doubled the score for the Bladies late in the first period.

The Furies finally got on the board with a quick goal by Frances McPhail just over a minute into the second period, cutting Boston’s lead in half.

Brittany Simpson gave Boston the go-ahead goal and Marvin netted her second of the game just 30 seconds later; Boston wasn’t going to let Toronto slip away with a point this time around.

Cheverie scored with eight seconds remaining in the period but Boston held a 4-2 lead going into the last frame.

Less than a minute into the third period Kate Buesser scored for the Blades followed by a goal from Micaela Long less than 30 seconds later.

Cheverie netted her second of the game, on the power play, near the end of the third period but it wouldn’t be enough.

For every two goals Boston scored, Toronto could only answer with one which resulted in a 6-3 win for the Blades.

Back and Forth Game

Meghan Agosta scored a hat trick, including the over time game-winning goal, as the Montreal Stars defeatd the Brampton Hockey Club 5-4 at Canlan Ice Sports in Scarborough, Sunday.

At 3:02 of the extra period, Brampton took a penalty for too many men and just over a minute later Agosta, who is second in league scoring, netted the winner as the Stars swept the weekend series.

CWHL scoring leader, Caroline Ouellette scored Montreal’s other two goals and also added an assist.

Jayna Hefford put Brampton on the board early in the second period to cut Montreal’s lead in half and added her second of the game at 15:19 of the third to tie the game at three.

Vicki Bendus gave Brampton their first lead of the game at 17:39 of the third period before Agosta scored her second to tie the contest and push over time.

Ashley Riggs and Courtney Birchard each had two assists in the loss.

Newly acquired goaltender Kendra Fisher got the start for Brampton and stopped 26 of the 31 shots she faced while Jenny Lavigne made 28 saves for the Stars.

Sarah Lynch got the Barracudas on the board first with a power-play goal at 4:07 in the first period but Montreal would net seven goals before the Cudas could make the score sheet again.

Caroline Ouellette (11 goals, 15 assists), who leads the league in scoring, had a goal and three assists while Meghan Agosta (10 goals, 12 assists), second in scoring, had four assists.

Out of the top 10 scoring leaders in the CWHL, seven of them play for the Stars.

Also scoring for Montreal were Rebecca Martindale and Sarah Vaillancourt, who had a goal and an assist.

Sommer West scored twice for Burlington in the third period.

Goal Scoring Parade Continues

Sunday’s rematch was much the same for both teams as Montreal’s snipers rounded off the score sheet again.

Sabrina Horbec scored two goals and an assist, while Ouellete, Vaillancourt, Marin and Davidson each had a goal and two assists in the Stars 7-2 win.

Emmanuelle Blais and Agosta each had two assists.

Montreal was 4-for-12 on the power play while Burlington scored one power-play goal on four chances.

Annina Rajahuhta and Shannon Moulson scored for the Barracudas.