Bouillon plays while older, bigger Habs sit

  The five-foot-seven rookie has kept his job even though the return of some injured teammates has given the Canadiens nine healthy defencemen.

  "Francis Bouillon is not going to be sat down," coach Alain Vigneault said emphatically on Wednesday. "He's earned the right to be here.

  "I've waited all year to have internal competition, to make some players play on the edge, and I've got that now on defence. For sure, there are some unhappy campers, but the way I see it, I have a happy dilemma."

  The only one happier might be Bouillon, 23, a stocky battler whose path to the NHL was blocked more than once by coaches who felt him too small for the big leagues.

  For the last two games, rookie Miloslav Guren and veterans Barry Richter and Scott Lachance have watched from the press box while Bouillon played, a he's stayed even though he is the only Habs defenceman who can be sent to the minors without first clearing waivers.

  "I'm surprised," said Bouillon. "But now I know I can play in this league.

  "It was hard at the start of the year, but now I know it's just hockey and it's the same job (as at other levels), although I know I still have lots to learn."

  Lachance is seething. The nine-year veteran was playing well before he went down with back spasms in November. He's been ready to return since Saturday, but was not dressed for two games since then.

  "It's frustrating because you try to come back as soon as possible and then you're left in the stands," said Lachance. "The coach has a choice to make and you know it's going to make someone unhappy. That's me right now."

  Lachance hasn't gone running to general manager Rejean Houle to demand a trade, and he insists he'll work hard in practice and stay positive in the dressing room. But he may have a better chance of replacing mistake and penalty-prone Igor Ulanov than the surprising Bouillon these days.

  Bouillon, whose name in French means soup broth, has also been a mouthful for English-speaking broadcasters, who have trouble pronouncing his name: bwee-on.

  He's an acquired taste for Vigneault.

  Bouillon, born in New York of a now-divorced Haitian father and French-Canadian mother, was a stalwart for the Memorial Cup-champion Granby Predators in 1996, but was not drafted by NHL clubs.

  He attended the Edmonton Oilers camp the following fall and signed a minor-league contract with Hamilton, where the coaches looked at his diminutive frame and shipped him to Wheeling, W.Va., of the East Coast Hockey League.

  When former Granby coach Michel Therrien was named coach of Montreal's top farm club, he lobbied for Bouillon to be signed.

  Bouillon had 19 goals, 36 assists and 174 penalty minutes with the Fredericton Canadiens last season. He made the jump to the big club when a rash of injuries struck this season.

  He's shown excellent puck-handling skills and surprising tenacity in one-on-one battles, although he is at times overwhelmed against big forecheckers.

  "I've always had to do that on every team I've been on -- come in through the back door and then prove I belong," said Bouillon. "It wasn't easy but I kept working hard and this year, my chance came.

  "I know I have to keep working in the gym to make sure I don't lose weight and I know I have to work hard and not make any mistakes if I want to keep my job. But I've always liked pressure."

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