Get To Know a Penguin: Maxime Talbot

by J.P. on Apr 29, 2009 1:00 PM EDT

[Ed. note: As part of the build-up to the second round playoff series between the Capitals and Penguins, Japers' Rink will be looking at some of the important but lesser-known players on the Penguins and how they might impact the series.]

Maxime Talbot

#25 / Center / Pittsburgh Penguins

Height: 5-11

Weight: 190

Born: Feb 11, 1984

Birthplace: Lemoyne, Que., CAN

Drafted: 234th overall, 2002

Acquired: Via Draft

Strengths	Is an outstanding penalty-killer. Plays with tremendous passion and displays sound leadership ability. Also plays bigger than he is.
Weaknesses	Is undersized and injury-prone. Struggles when asked to shut down big NHL forwards. Doesn't light up the scoreboard at the highest level.
Potential	Versatile, gritty two-way forward.

Regular Season	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	SHG	GWG	SOG	PCT
2006-07	75	13	11	24	-2	53	4	4	88	14.8
2007-08	63	12	14	26	8	53	2	1	80	15.0
2008-09	75	12	10	22	-9	63	2	1	102	11.8

Playoffs	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	GWG	SOG	PCT
2006-07	5	0	1	1	-2	7	0	5	0.0
2007-08	17	3	6	9	4	36	1	16	18.8
2008-09	6	1	0	1	0	5	0	7	14.3

Why you should know who he is - Talbot is a superstar whose Game 6 tussle with the Flyers' Daniel Carcillo inspired the the Penguins to dig themselves out of a 3-0 hole to go on to win the game (or not). Regardless, he's an energy guy capable of rallying the troops should they require it. He hits, blocks shots and does all of the little things that it takes to win games this time of year. Plus, he's damn sexy.

How the Caps can stop him - Much like Brandon Dubinsky or Blair Betts last series, it's a matter of matching Talbot's energy and effort levels. When Talbot scores, it's usually the result of outworking everyone on the ice, so a lazy backcheck or a half-hearted battle along the boards could be disastrous with Talbot on the ice. Smart breakout passes will be key, and for the love of Red Jesus... don't drop the mittens with him if there's no reason to.

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Comments

Talbot’s the perfect guy for you to profile first….In many ways he’s the heart of the Penguins.

He’s not going to score every game, but he’s going to do all he can to win the game.

by Hooks Orpik on Apr 29, 2009 1:04 PM EDT reply actions

So next year the Lightning are going to offer him a 7 year 30+ million dollar contract?

by Rob Parker on Apr 29, 2009 9:17 PM EDT up reply actions

He’s one of the key cogs on the Pens for sure. Hopefully, we can get some bodies on him and keep him tied up. He’s one of their top 5 guys who makes me nervous, for sure.

I'm so sick and tired of the refs explaining the calls like this is the NFL.

by Whiter Mage on Apr 29, 2009 1:29 PM EDT reply actions

Talbot is what a hockey player should be. He, Ryan Callahan, Matt Bradley, are all cut from the same cloth. Anything they have they will leave on the ice every shift. This guy works hard, plays hard, and gives it all.

The problem for Talbot is this:

Matt Bradley: 6’ 3" 210
Max Talbot: 5’ 11" 190, and honestly, I think the 5’ 11" is very generous.

He struggles with opposing top-line players because in Pittsburgh he is expected to be on the checking line. He gives the effort, sure, but there are times when the opponent is bigger and and just go through him. Still, he is a quality player and one who can really be effective if given the right assigment. He also has a hard, accurate shot, something that many players of this type don’t have, meaning he will score more frequently than Matt Bradley.

Before the Ranger series started I said the Caps really need to be watching out for Callahan. In this series, after watching out for the obvious threats up front (Malkin, Crosby), this guy needs to be watched too…

Let's go Caps!

by MikeL-Pivonka on Apr 29, 2009 1:30 PM EDT reply actions

Wow, Brads is skinny. 210 for 6’3". Good Christ.

by DrinkingPartner on Apr 29, 2009 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions

I don’t think 210 is that thin for 6’3’’. Rule of thumb I’ve read is six pounds for every inch, so if you think of him as a 5’11’’ player, that’s 186; if you think of him as a 6’5’’ player that’s 222, the same size as Steckel.

On the other hand, the Caps website has him listed at 201, and that would be thin. But then, I also don’t think he’s 6’3’’ and you can’t put too much stock in height and weight listings unless they come from a scouting combine or something.

by David Getz on Apr 29, 2009 2:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Well, when you’ve got a 6’1-2" Ovechkin at 235, Brads can be considered skinny :-).

by DrinkingPartner on Apr 29, 2009 2:02 PM EDT up reply actions

Fair enough. Also worth noting that he’s 30 and guys usually fill out a little more by that age.

The guy who has always stood out as skinny to me is Schultz – listed at 6’6’’, 221, and I doubt he weighs that.

by David Getz on Apr 29, 2009 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions

I think it’s funny how Other sport stars tower over Ovie, He’s larger than life on the ice, but outside he’s almost normal compared to a Chris Cooley or LeBron James.

by snowburnt on Apr 29, 2009 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions

This is best illustrated by his post-game interview last night http://capitals.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?catid=418&id=40960. He’s just an emotional boy who (luckily for us) plays in our team. Down to earth.

by fnralch on Apr 29, 2009 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions

That’s true. I think you’d be hard-pressed to call LeBron or Cooley “normal guys” away from their respective sports. I doubt very much that Cooley/LeBron is anywhere near as personable as Ovechkin. I could be wrong, though.

by DrinkingPartner on Apr 29, 2009 2:55 PM EDT up reply actions

check out cooley’s blog sometime: http://chriscooley47.blogspot.com/

by Natty Bumppo on Apr 29, 2009 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Isn’t that mostly his brother? I’ve heard he’s the blog-one.

by DrinkingPartner on Apr 29, 2009 3:08 PM EDT up reply actions

Cooley definitely is very personable, he’s a huge bear, but he’s a personable guy.

by snowburnt on Apr 29, 2009 3:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Just thinking about it, is Cooley even an approprite subject for comparison? He’s not the dominant player/personality in his sport.

by DrinkingPartner on Apr 29, 2009 3:24 PM EDT up reply actions

I mentioned Cooley and LeBron because Alex hangs out with Cooley and he just had the photo op with LeBron, so I’d have someone to compare with…That said Cooley is a very prolific TE, a stat leader in the league and a face for the Redskins in many circles.

Definitely deserved to be in the Probowl this year.

It’s harder to have a single face for football just because there’s so many more players: 2016 counting practice squad people, then there’s a few Free agents that never seem to go away.

You only have 690 in the NHL, 360 in the NBA, it’s a lot easier to have a single person stand out.

by snowburnt on Apr 29, 2009 4:45 PM EDT up reply actions

He’s 6’3"? He looks like he should be 5"8"

by snowburnt on Apr 29, 2009 2:39 PM EDT up reply actions

As an added bonus, Talbot was part of one of the worst TV ads ever.

by HateOffSeason on Apr 29, 2009 2:12 PM EDT reply actions

not sure where that link went…technology challenged here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOrvdvczpEA

by HateOffSeason on Apr 29, 2009 2:12 PM EDT up reply actions

Much like Blair Betts last series, it’s a matter of matching Talbot’s energy and effort levels.

Or getting your team’s 4th liner to hit him late after he’s dumped the puck in.

We've got a goalie who's playing pretty good right now, while you've got one who can't get onto the ice without falling on his ass.

by Bald Pollack on Apr 29, 2009 2:15 PM EDT reply actions

Not looking to start an argument, but if Brash knocks Talbot like that, Talbot won’t go down, and Brash won’t get suspended or a penalty. Maxime’s better at looking around and defending himself. Stop jumping on Brash because the guy he hit (on a routine hockey play) got hurt. The league already did that.

I'm so sick and tired of the refs explaining the calls like this is the NFL.

by Whiter Mage on Apr 29, 2009 6:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Stop jumping on Brash because the guy he hit (on a routine hockey play) got hurt. The league already did that.

I was joking. My humor can be martini dry sometimes.

We've got a goalie who's playing pretty good right now, while you've got one who can't get onto the ice without falling on his ass.

by Bald Pollack on Apr 29, 2009 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Maxine would go down just like Betts would go down if his orbital bone broke. If you are joking I’m sorry but it sounds like you are challenging Betts’ toughness and/or hockey sense. You can’t be a great checker and PK guy if you don’t have both.

by Rob Parker on Apr 29, 2009 9:20 PM EDT up reply actions

I’m still kind of thinking it was the ice impact that broke the orbital bone. If Brashear’s hit did indeed break the orbital bone, than yeah, totally, Talbot falls. But I think Talbot’s a far tougher player than Betts, and I think he wouldn’t put himself in that situation. And PK can mean a lot about knowing where guys are, and where the puck is, and where to put your stick, but not so much about where is the hit coming from.

I'm so sick and tired of the refs explaining the calls like this is the NFL.

by Whiter Mage on Apr 29, 2009 10:28 PM EDT up reply actions

If Betts broke his face on the ice he already went down. If you meant “get injured” by “go down” then maybe, but I’d bet most of the time Betts doesn’t even get hurt that bad by that hit. Dirty hits happen pretty regularly and NHL players get hurt an amazingly low percentage of the time. Getting hurt by a hit is largely endogenous, i.e. has nothing intrinsic to do with the player. PK involves smarts (including where the opponents are and where you could get hit from) but also involves toughness (blocking shots and winning loose pucks when you are outnumbered), Betts has both. Don’t blame anything about that hit or the result on him.

by Rob Parker on Apr 29, 2009 10:50 PM EDT up reply actions

Sorry, exogenous.

by Rob Parker on Apr 29, 2009 10:51 PM EDT up reply actions

I did mean “get injured” by “go down”.

My mistake for not being clear. I’m not saying he’s not tough – I’m saying it’s a different type of toughness. Most of what we’ve discussed on this point is in the other thread, though, so I’ll leave it at that.

I'm so sick and tired of the refs explaining the calls like this is the NFL.

by Whiter Mage on Apr 29, 2009 11:14 PM EDT up reply actions