Hamrlik or Souray?

With the season close to 1/4 of the way through, I feel confident to say that Hamrlik was a better choice for a top two defenceman than was Souray. This statement has nothing to do with the fact that Souray has only played a handful of games.

I enjoyed Souray on the Habs. One of my favorite things about Souray was his mean streak and his strength for protecting himself and his teammates. There was the fight against Darrin McCarty in which Souray absolutely demolished him. McCarty left bloodier than any fight I could remember. Souray's shot was also something to dream of. However, Montreal tried too much to get Souray the puck on the point.

This years powerplay seems much more balanced. They are using Markov more effectively, who is leading the NHL in goals for a defenceman, Streit, and all the forwards. It makes it much harder for a team to defend against because they have multiple weapons.

Now lets look at Hamrlik. He is not as offensive as Souray, but he is a good quarterback with the puck. He moves the puck out of the zone and logs big time minutes. His under rated strength is his defensive ability. We all remember the Spezza around Souray goal. I don't expect to see any of those with Hamrlik. He is strong 1 on 1 and knows where to be.

So, I wish the best of luck to Sheldon, but must admit, Hammer time is a good replacement.