After receiving much criticism for my Barnaby post I think the boys would be wise to look at my backlogged posts. 1st priority is a scorer period. If Muckler can get his hands on Jokinen, he will. Problem with Jokinen is that there are about 7 teams trying to get him right now, which drives up the cost considerably. Do I want to give up Havlat and a second for this guy? Do we want to give up Volchenkov and a first? It depends. Question 1: Can we sign him, because Havlat and a second is a lot to give up for a guy who may be with us for two months. Question 2: If we sign him, what happens to Redden and Chara. If we give this guy an extension you can all but say goodbye to one of the two stalwarts we have on the backend. Itdefinitelyy makes you think.
Number 2 priority is goaltending. Hasek will be healthy come playoff time and he will be ready to roll. It is imperative to give Emery a couple more games to prove himself. If he falters at all, an insurance goalie becomes priority number 1. Possible suitors: Roloson and Cujo. Nobody in the east will trade a goalie to Ottawa, which leaves two. Cujo does not want anything to do with Hasek and will do anything in his power not to come to Ottawa. Roloson has had an off year but a change of scenery would do him good. If Muckler decides to get a backup, I think it will be Roloson for a pick.
Finally, priority number three is characters and grit. You can never have enough. Barnaby is all character and ultra grit and would be great in Ottawa. It would be nice to have someone who can handle the media and take a bit off pressure off Alfie. Dallas Drake is another possibility but I truly believe Muckler wants Barnaby. We all know how he loves his old Buffalo boys.
"Muckler will be the most active GM this trade deadline" TSN
Friday, March 03, 2006
Sens Game Report; Washington at Ottawa; Thursday, March 02, 2006
Photo from CP and www.tsn.ca
Touchdown!
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 7-1
Ottawa goals: Fisher (19) sent in alone on a pass from Meszaros, Redden (9) on the backdoor powerplay pass, Vermette (13) shorthanded after Kelly’s shot went off the end boards, Spezza (15) on the powerplay from the goal line, Schaefer (15) in alone shorthanded, Pothier (3) from the point on the powerplay for his second in two nights, Smolinski (13) on an absolutely beautiful snap shot from the side boards.
Making Sens(e): Meszaros, Mostly everyone
Not much Sens(e): McGrattan (healthy scratch)
It was over when: Vermette scored shorthanded only 31 seconds into the second. Funny that a 2-0 lead can go either way, but that third goal to open the second period always seems to put it away.
It was definitely over when: Pothier made Ottawa locals fatter with the pizza goal.
Message in a Molson bottle: People had warned Ottawa, including myself, that their level of play wouldn’t cut it against an upstart Capitals team. Luckily, nobody warned the Capitals that the Sens can occasionally have the best team in the NHL again.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260302014
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
Eddie Vedder says, “Can’t find a better win.”
Finally, a complete effort from end to end as we quickly took down….the second worst team in the conference. No matter, let’s take the good from this win and show a little bit of glee that Ray Emery made 30 saves in what was definitely his best performance of 2006. For the time being (the next 24 games until playoffs), this situation can work. If Emery can just hold us in games long enough for us to put up 3 or 4 goals, then he’ll be loved in Ottawa. People will quickly forget the cockroaches he ate, the tattoos he gets, the hair he colours blonde, the sex offenders he paints on his masks, and the GAA of over 7.00 he has during January. His job now and until Dom gets back is to keep us in games. Leave the job of stealing games to Hasek, Emery just needs to keep us in it. He did that tonight and the offence found its stride and its special teams with a converted touchdown. 3 of 5 on the powerplay and two more shorties helped out (we lead the league with 19 now). The most encouraging news of the game was in the completeness of the effort. Emery was sharp, the defencemen didn’t give up the chances, and the forwards made scoring chances into goals. Now if we can just do this against the Carolinas and the Philadelphias…
Back to our roots
Chris Neil of old, we missed you. Neiler managed to pick up for the healthy-scratched McGrattan with a pair of bouts and really made sure that Washington couldn’t gather up any momentum from a winning fight. It didn’t help the Capitals that the first of the two fights came with the score 6-0, but I guess that’s why they are second last in the East. Chara was also back to his old tricks and absolutely crushing people with each chance he had. Even the faithful Washington broadcasters that I had the pleasure of watching were scared of him! Sorry guys, it’s da ribs. Smolinski played well and his point-after goal (if it didn’t go of Witt’s stick), just unreal. Now Brian, I’ve told you enough times now, get the puck up and good things happen. Brent Johnson didn’t even know that he had replaced Kolzig when this puck flew over his shoulder and into the top drawer of the net. And Alfredsson was at his playmaking best, working the powerplay and having a nice, fun time out there. Shocking is that Alfie was only one of two Sens to not record a single shot on net (Eaves left the game).
Whoop-de-doo, Basil, what does it all mean?
Well, Austin, this means that our heroes can now rejoice in the fact that they aren’t as bad as we were starting to think they were. Some may play this game off as a nice practice session against a terrible team. But practice makes perfect, so by this game’s result, we are back on track towards perfection, right? To use an old sports cliché, the only team that can really beat us consistently is ourselves. Boooooooo, sports cliché, booooo. But seriously, there rarely is a loss where we really played at the top of our game and got beat. The times that we lose, you can see Spezza floating up in the rafters and Chara hailing a cab for dinner at the Kanata Centrum and Muckler calling the Swiss Elite League for replacements. In other words, we lose games because we play lazy, sloppy, and stupid. The truth is, though, we aren’t a lazy or sloppy or stupid team, so when we just play our own game, we shouldn’t have a problem. Let’s take this game for what it really is – a nice step in the right direction that helped out rookie goalie get some more demons out of his head, helped out #1 center get his second goal of 2006, helped Meszaros add to his league leading +/- total, helped Mr. Muckler get an idea of what type of deals he needs to make before next Thursday, and helped the millions and gazillions of Ottawa fans around the world sleep better knowing that somewhere, deep down inside, we still have the ability to make another NHL team look completely out of place. Sigh.
Loblaws Express Lane – 10 items or less
How does Alfredsson finish +2 in a 7-1 romp, but his linemates on the Pizza Line finish -1? I guess since 5 of the 7 goals were special teams.
Our best faceoff man tonight – Antoine Vermette was 2 for 4. Ouch. We were creamed in the faceoff circle 38-19, the biggest faceoff coming on our poweplay but after an icing call – it led to Ovechkin zinger.
I wish I could make a case to put Neil back in front of the net on the powerplay, but he didn’t get a second of PP time and we went 3-for-5, so I guess that’s why Coach Murray is behind the bench and I’m in South Carolina second-guessing things.
For those that missed the pregame show on the team1200, Bob McKenzie, the self-proclaimed “most knowledgeable hockey analyst on the planet,” said that not in a million years will Mucks trade Chara or Redden before the deadline if he doesn’t think he can sign them this summer. For those that haven’t followed this story, I’ll speak louder so you can hear this under your rock. Chara and Redden are unrestricted free agents this summer and with Toronto once again screwing up the market by giving Kaberle $4.25 million, we risk losing one of our defencemen to free agency as teams will likely be willing to throw $6-7 million at either one of these guys if they are still unsigned by the free agency date of July 1st. Wouldn’t it be nice to celebrate Canada Day with a Molson Canadian tall boy, a downtown Ottawa concert, and the knowledge that our blue line is intact?
Brian Pothier had over 20 minutes of ice time and had the second most powerplay time of any player on the team (behind Spezza). I like it – it will get even our #6 d-man ready for the tight games.
Don’t forget to check this site daily – www.northeasthockey.blogspot.com and post your thoughts, arguments, or praise.
Upcoming Games
Saturday at Toronto, 7:00pm
Monday at Tampa Bay, 7:30pm
Wednesday at Florida, 7:00pm
Friday at Atlanta, 7:00pm – should I go? Vote now at americanidol.com
Touchdown!The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 7-1
Ottawa goals: Fisher (19) sent in alone on a pass from Meszaros, Redden (9) on the backdoor powerplay pass, Vermette (13) shorthanded after Kelly’s shot went off the end boards, Spezza (15) on the powerplay from the goal line, Schaefer (15) in alone shorthanded, Pothier (3) from the point on the powerplay for his second in two nights, Smolinski (13) on an absolutely beautiful snap shot from the side boards.
Making Sens(e): Meszaros, Mostly everyone
Not much Sens(e): McGrattan (healthy scratch)
It was over when: Vermette scored shorthanded only 31 seconds into the second. Funny that a 2-0 lead can go either way, but that third goal to open the second period always seems to put it away.
It was definitely over when: Pothier made Ottawa locals fatter with the pizza goal.
Message in a Molson bottle: People had warned Ottawa, including myself, that their level of play wouldn’t cut it against an upstart Capitals team. Luckily, nobody warned the Capitals that the Sens can occasionally have the best team in the NHL again.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260302014
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
Eddie Vedder says, “Can’t find a better win.”
Finally, a complete effort from end to end as we quickly took down….the second worst team in the conference. No matter, let’s take the good from this win and show a little bit of glee that Ray Emery made 30 saves in what was definitely his best performance of 2006. For the time being (the next 24 games until playoffs), this situation can work. If Emery can just hold us in games long enough for us to put up 3 or 4 goals, then he’ll be loved in Ottawa. People will quickly forget the cockroaches he ate, the tattoos he gets, the hair he colours blonde, the sex offenders he paints on his masks, and the GAA of over 7.00 he has during January. His job now and until Dom gets back is to keep us in games. Leave the job of stealing games to Hasek, Emery just needs to keep us in it. He did that tonight and the offence found its stride and its special teams with a converted touchdown. 3 of 5 on the powerplay and two more shorties helped out (we lead the league with 19 now). The most encouraging news of the game was in the completeness of the effort. Emery was sharp, the defencemen didn’t give up the chances, and the forwards made scoring chances into goals. Now if we can just do this against the Carolinas and the Philadelphias…
Back to our roots
Chris Neil of old, we missed you. Neiler managed to pick up for the healthy-scratched McGrattan with a pair of bouts and really made sure that Washington couldn’t gather up any momentum from a winning fight. It didn’t help the Capitals that the first of the two fights came with the score 6-0, but I guess that’s why they are second last in the East. Chara was also back to his old tricks and absolutely crushing people with each chance he had. Even the faithful Washington broadcasters that I had the pleasure of watching were scared of him! Sorry guys, it’s da ribs. Smolinski played well and his point-after goal (if it didn’t go of Witt’s stick), just unreal. Now Brian, I’ve told you enough times now, get the puck up and good things happen. Brent Johnson didn’t even know that he had replaced Kolzig when this puck flew over his shoulder and into the top drawer of the net. And Alfredsson was at his playmaking best, working the powerplay and having a nice, fun time out there. Shocking is that Alfie was only one of two Sens to not record a single shot on net (Eaves left the game).
Whoop-de-doo, Basil, what does it all mean?
Well, Austin, this means that our heroes can now rejoice in the fact that they aren’t as bad as we were starting to think they were. Some may play this game off as a nice practice session against a terrible team. But practice makes perfect, so by this game’s result, we are back on track towards perfection, right? To use an old sports cliché, the only team that can really beat us consistently is ourselves. Boooooooo, sports cliché, booooo. But seriously, there rarely is a loss where we really played at the top of our game and got beat. The times that we lose, you can see Spezza floating up in the rafters and Chara hailing a cab for dinner at the Kanata Centrum and Muckler calling the Swiss Elite League for replacements. In other words, we lose games because we play lazy, sloppy, and stupid. The truth is, though, we aren’t a lazy or sloppy or stupid team, so when we just play our own game, we shouldn’t have a problem. Let’s take this game for what it really is – a nice step in the right direction that helped out rookie goalie get some more demons out of his head, helped out #1 center get his second goal of 2006, helped Meszaros add to his league leading +/- total, helped Mr. Muckler get an idea of what type of deals he needs to make before next Thursday, and helped the millions and gazillions of Ottawa fans around the world sleep better knowing that somewhere, deep down inside, we still have the ability to make another NHL team look completely out of place. Sigh.
Loblaws Express Lane – 10 items or less
How does Alfredsson finish +2 in a 7-1 romp, but his linemates on the Pizza Line finish -1? I guess since 5 of the 7 goals were special teams.
Our best faceoff man tonight – Antoine Vermette was 2 for 4. Ouch. We were creamed in the faceoff circle 38-19, the biggest faceoff coming on our poweplay but after an icing call – it led to Ovechkin zinger.
I wish I could make a case to put Neil back in front of the net on the powerplay, but he didn’t get a second of PP time and we went 3-for-5, so I guess that’s why Coach Murray is behind the bench and I’m in South Carolina second-guessing things.
For those that missed the pregame show on the team1200, Bob McKenzie, the self-proclaimed “most knowledgeable hockey analyst on the planet,” said that not in a million years will Mucks trade Chara or Redden before the deadline if he doesn’t think he can sign them this summer. For those that haven’t followed this story, I’ll speak louder so you can hear this under your rock. Chara and Redden are unrestricted free agents this summer and with Toronto once again screwing up the market by giving Kaberle $4.25 million, we risk losing one of our defencemen to free agency as teams will likely be willing to throw $6-7 million at either one of these guys if they are still unsigned by the free agency date of July 1st. Wouldn’t it be nice to celebrate Canada Day with a Molson Canadian tall boy, a downtown Ottawa concert, and the knowledge that our blue line is intact?
Brian Pothier had over 20 minutes of ice time and had the second most powerplay time of any player on the team (behind Spezza). I like it – it will get even our #6 d-man ready for the tight games.
Don’t forget to check this site daily – www.northeasthockey.blogspot.com and post your thoughts, arguments, or praise.
Upcoming Games
Saturday at Toronto, 7:00pm
Monday at Tampa Bay, 7:30pm
Wednesday at Florida, 7:00pm
Friday at Atlanta, 7:00pm – should I go? Vote now at americanidol.com
Thursday, March 02, 2006
St. Barnaby
Photo from tsn.ca
Matthew Barnaby, the leagues ultra super pest, has said repeatedly that he would like nothing more than to play for the Ottawa Senators. Seeing as the Hawks are selling, this seems like the perfect fit. I do understand that the Senators have more pressing needs but personally I beleive that Barnaby would be an excellent pick-up by the Senators and could play a major role in a long playoff run. If Muckler can secure a goalie I would suggest that Barnaby would follow in short order. So here it is: I GUARANTEE THAT MATT BARNABY WILL BE TRADED TO THE SENATORS before March 9, 2006. Yep, i said it, feel free to chastise if this does not happen.
Matthew Barnaby, the leagues ultra super pest, has said repeatedly that he would like nothing more than to play for the Ottawa Senators. Seeing as the Hawks are selling, this seems like the perfect fit. I do understand that the Senators have more pressing needs but personally I beleive that Barnaby would be an excellent pick-up by the Senators and could play a major role in a long playoff run. If Muckler can secure a goalie I would suggest that Barnaby would follow in short order. So here it is: I GUARANTEE THAT MATT BARNABY WILL BE TRADED TO THE SENATORS before March 9, 2006. Yep, i said it, feel free to chastise if this does not happen.
Sens Game Report - Ottawa at Pittsburgh - Wednesday, March 01, 2006
photo from CP and tsn.ca
Picking up where we left off – being bad
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-3
Ottawa goals: Schaefer (14) on a generous rebound of Fisher’s shot, Alfredsson (35) on another generous rebound from Meszy’s point shot, Pothier (2) on a slapshot from the point, Heatley (35) on a textbook 2-on-1 feed from Alfie.
Making Sens(e): Alfredsson, Heatley, Fisher
Not much Sens(e): Redden, Spezza
It was over when: Heatley scored Ottawa’s 4th – we are now 34-0 when scoring four goals. I’ve got an idea! We should try and do that every game.
It was definitely over when: Coach Murray tore the bench a new one after three unanswered goals from the Penguins made a game out of this laugher.
Message in a Molson bottle: Our performance tonight was so mediocre tonight that there is only one team in the NHL we could have beaten. Luckily, we were playing that team. Still, it is Murray that has his work cut out for him and not necessarily Muckler.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260301016
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
And down the stretch they come…
But the Sens came out of the gates much like they had just gone into the break – playing just well enough to beat the lowly Penguins. This game was sloppy and occasionally ugly. The guys didn’t play terrible, but they didn’t play great, either. And after a two week hiatus and led by our gold-medal captain, didn’t we all expect to come flying into the last 26 games with the same excellence that we had in October and November? But instead, the game kind of just happened out there. Nothing special, some powerplay goals, killed some penalties, and Emery had a few get by. If this game was a French expression, it would be “comme-ci, comme-ca.” If this game was the afterlife, it would be in purgatory. If this game was an item at Bed Bath and Beyond, it would be on a shelf in the Beyond section. If this game was one of the Baton Rouge ribs on Zdeno Chara’s plate, it would be that small burnt one at the end that you aren’t sure if you should eat or not because it might ruin the taste of the rest of them. And if this game was the first of the 26 games in the Sens homestretch, then you’d say that these guys need to step it up and play a lot better in the next 25 of them, because this performance won’t beat other teams anymore and it certainly won’t win in the playoffs. Snap.
The Usual Suspects
Jason Pezz Dispenser Spezza picked up right where he left off in early February – playing like an idiot. I’m not sure if Jason spent the Olympic break with the team in Italy or somewhere in the Ottawa Valley practicing his moves in Junior B games, but you’d think he would have learned his weaknesses by now. For some reason, his skill continues to improve but his mentality is the same as when Jacques called him a boy playing in a man’s game. Ah, forgiveness please, M. Martin. Spezza has fun out there, which is a good thing, but he can sometimes be way too careless out there, which is a bad thing. This is the time of year when everyone tightens up their game and somebody forgot to mention that to our #1 center. Alfie, can you take care of this, please? Thanks, buddy. Knock him upside the head with your one pound golden donut or whatever those things were that they handed out in Torino. Meanwhile, on the blue line, Wade Redden looked like he was still playing in Italy. Not much more to say on that one other than that it looked like Meszaros was bailing out Redden way too often than a rookie should need to be doing. Redds needs to get his game back now. Alfie, you know the drill.
A Ray of Light?
Not really. It appeared through the first 45 minutes of the game that Emery might pull off a much-needed shutout that would not only get us the win, but do absolute wonders for his psyche going into this little streak of starts he is about to get. Imagine that – a potential goaltending issue in Ottawa and Emery answers the critics with a shutout. But sure enough, as we’ve noticed by now, Rayzer doesn’t ever let just one goal get by. He must have the same mentality that Lalime had after letting one in – the flood gates open and you start to wonder if he’ll actually make a save for the rest of the night. Granted all three goals can be attributed to poor defensive work, I would just once like to see Emery make a highlight reel save or even better, let in one goal and then stop everything other puck he sees all night. Pittsburgh was a tune-up. Washington is a tougher test and a faster team. And Saturday in Toronto will be the pressure cooker that he has been waiting his whole life for. Um, yes, Mr. Muckler, I am almost finished the assignment titled, “do we need to trade for a goalie” but can I turn it in on Sunday instead? I should have all the information I will need. Thanks.
The Loblaws Express Lane – 10 items of less
Alfie was good. He looked a little tired at first, but he does what a good captain does and became one of the best players on the ice. Good chemistry with Heatley. Like it a lot.
Mike Fisher, is there anything you can’t do? I’m starting to think that he might have overtaken Alfredsson for the most dangerous wrist shot on the team (Havlat’s hurt). Fisher with the puck inside the circles will automatically lead to a scoring chance because either he’ll put it in or his shot will catch the goalie off guard and the poor positioning will lead to a juicy rebound on Schaefer’s stick.
Smolinski showed some spark at times throughout the night. It sometimes looks like Smoke turns the passion switch on and off throughout the game whereas a guy like Fish has it turned on and then broke the switch off. Smoke is a third liner now and should be in a position to dominate the opponent’s third lines. Should.
Havlat is practicing with the team with no contact and might be ready in a month. Hooray, yippee. This might be better than any trade deadline acquisition. Unless Havlat is the trade deadline victim.
I concur with Redden when he says that Phillips will be the best defencemen leading into the playoffs. Over the past few years, Phillips has been by far our most consistent spring season d-man.
We were outshot 14-7 in the third period. And we’re supposed to be the best third period team in the NHL.
Upcoming Games
Tonight hosting Washington, 7:30pm
Saturday at Toronto, 7:00pm
Next Monday at Tampa Bay, 7:30pm Be there.
Picking up where we left off – being bad
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-3
Ottawa goals: Schaefer (14) on a generous rebound of Fisher’s shot, Alfredsson (35) on another generous rebound from Meszy’s point shot, Pothier (2) on a slapshot from the point, Heatley (35) on a textbook 2-on-1 feed from Alfie.
Making Sens(e): Alfredsson, Heatley, Fisher
Not much Sens(e): Redden, Spezza
It was over when: Heatley scored Ottawa’s 4th – we are now 34-0 when scoring four goals. I’ve got an idea! We should try and do that every game.
It was definitely over when: Coach Murray tore the bench a new one after three unanswered goals from the Penguins made a game out of this laugher.
Message in a Molson bottle: Our performance tonight was so mediocre tonight that there is only one team in the NHL we could have beaten. Luckily, we were playing that team. Still, it is Murray that has his work cut out for him and not necessarily Muckler.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260301016
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
And down the stretch they come…
But the Sens came out of the gates much like they had just gone into the break – playing just well enough to beat the lowly Penguins. This game was sloppy and occasionally ugly. The guys didn’t play terrible, but they didn’t play great, either. And after a two week hiatus and led by our gold-medal captain, didn’t we all expect to come flying into the last 26 games with the same excellence that we had in October and November? But instead, the game kind of just happened out there. Nothing special, some powerplay goals, killed some penalties, and Emery had a few get by. If this game was a French expression, it would be “comme-ci, comme-ca.” If this game was the afterlife, it would be in purgatory. If this game was an item at Bed Bath and Beyond, it would be on a shelf in the Beyond section. If this game was one of the Baton Rouge ribs on Zdeno Chara’s plate, it would be that small burnt one at the end that you aren’t sure if you should eat or not because it might ruin the taste of the rest of them. And if this game was the first of the 26 games in the Sens homestretch, then you’d say that these guys need to step it up and play a lot better in the next 25 of them, because this performance won’t beat other teams anymore and it certainly won’t win in the playoffs. Snap.
The Usual Suspects
Jason Pezz Dispenser Spezza picked up right where he left off in early February – playing like an idiot. I’m not sure if Jason spent the Olympic break with the team in Italy or somewhere in the Ottawa Valley practicing his moves in Junior B games, but you’d think he would have learned his weaknesses by now. For some reason, his skill continues to improve but his mentality is the same as when Jacques called him a boy playing in a man’s game. Ah, forgiveness please, M. Martin. Spezza has fun out there, which is a good thing, but he can sometimes be way too careless out there, which is a bad thing. This is the time of year when everyone tightens up their game and somebody forgot to mention that to our #1 center. Alfie, can you take care of this, please? Thanks, buddy. Knock him upside the head with your one pound golden donut or whatever those things were that they handed out in Torino. Meanwhile, on the blue line, Wade Redden looked like he was still playing in Italy. Not much more to say on that one other than that it looked like Meszaros was bailing out Redden way too often than a rookie should need to be doing. Redds needs to get his game back now. Alfie, you know the drill.
A Ray of Light?
Not really. It appeared through the first 45 minutes of the game that Emery might pull off a much-needed shutout that would not only get us the win, but do absolute wonders for his psyche going into this little streak of starts he is about to get. Imagine that – a potential goaltending issue in Ottawa and Emery answers the critics with a shutout. But sure enough, as we’ve noticed by now, Rayzer doesn’t ever let just one goal get by. He must have the same mentality that Lalime had after letting one in – the flood gates open and you start to wonder if he’ll actually make a save for the rest of the night. Granted all three goals can be attributed to poor defensive work, I would just once like to see Emery make a highlight reel save or even better, let in one goal and then stop everything other puck he sees all night. Pittsburgh was a tune-up. Washington is a tougher test and a faster team. And Saturday in Toronto will be the pressure cooker that he has been waiting his whole life for. Um, yes, Mr. Muckler, I am almost finished the assignment titled, “do we need to trade for a goalie” but can I turn it in on Sunday instead? I should have all the information I will need. Thanks.
The Loblaws Express Lane – 10 items of less
Alfie was good. He looked a little tired at first, but he does what a good captain does and became one of the best players on the ice. Good chemistry with Heatley. Like it a lot.
Mike Fisher, is there anything you can’t do? I’m starting to think that he might have overtaken Alfredsson for the most dangerous wrist shot on the team (Havlat’s hurt). Fisher with the puck inside the circles will automatically lead to a scoring chance because either he’ll put it in or his shot will catch the goalie off guard and the poor positioning will lead to a juicy rebound on Schaefer’s stick.
Smolinski showed some spark at times throughout the night. It sometimes looks like Smoke turns the passion switch on and off throughout the game whereas a guy like Fish has it turned on and then broke the switch off. Smoke is a third liner now and should be in a position to dominate the opponent’s third lines. Should.
Havlat is practicing with the team with no contact and might be ready in a month. Hooray, yippee. This might be better than any trade deadline acquisition. Unless Havlat is the trade deadline victim.
I concur with Redden when he says that Phillips will be the best defencemen leading into the playoffs. Over the past few years, Phillips has been by far our most consistent spring season d-man.
We were outshot 14-7 in the third period. And we’re supposed to be the best third period team in the NHL.
Upcoming Games
Tonight hosting Washington, 7:30pm
Saturday at Toronto, 7:00pm
Next Monday at Tampa Bay, 7:30pm Be there.
Monday, February 13, 2006
Sens Game Report - Philly at Ottawa - February 11, 2006
Photo: tsn.ca and CP
At least we can rest on a high note
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 3-2
Ottawa goals: Vermette (12th) hammering it in on a wraparound, Varada (5th) on a wrist shot that Esche would like to have back, Heatley (34th) on a rebound after Eaves hit the post.
Making Sens(e): Vermette, Eaves
Not much Sens(e): Neil, Spezza
It was over when: Heatley put us up by three only 19 seconds into the second as one of those momentum stealers.
It was definitely over when: Hasek stood on his head throughout the third and kept the lead.
Message in a Molson bottle: The 10-4 and 8-0 games are gone now – we need to continue to find ways to win these tight games with solid goaltending, stingy defence, and well-timed goals. We took a solid lead and held it – playoff style hockey.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260211014
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
How to win a tight game
A “solid” win requires standup performances from most areas of your game. Some of those may be great goaltending, shutdown defence, opportunistic offence, an effective penalty kill, and a dominating powerplay. Well, our powerplay is still an issue (no goals in our last 24 man advantages), we got the other four in the Philly game. Hasek was great, the defence crashed in front of Dom, and our offence scored when we needed to. It could have been a bigger win had it not been for Nittymaki’s great play (he replaced Esche late in the first period as a shakeup move), or the three posts we hit. We also won more faceoffs and landed more bodychecks. This matchup is a likely Conference Final matchup and this win goes a long way in showing that we can beat the league’s elite. These are going to be the types of games we’ll need to win if we want to win this thing.
Not everything was working
The win is nice, but it didn’t exactly bring all that October confidence back. Spezza is still not the same #1 center, Alfredsson hasn’t been Alfie-like, and our powerplay continues to be shut out. It is still a cause for concern that our most consistent lines include such cats as Eaves, Vermette, Schubert, and Kelly. It is a nice feeling that these guys can get us through scoring slumps, but we’d all feel a lot more comfortable is the powerplay unit was knocking them down early and often. It is quite clear that this team is best when the Pizza line is intact and clicking. Otherwise, we’ll lean on these 3rd and 4th lines and Hasek to pull out the wins.
Sens Report Card (part deux)
The second half:
Here is what each of our players has done since 2006 began:
Zdeno Chara: The big guy. Big Z has dominated a couple of games and has stuck out on a few nights, as well. I don’t think his inconsistency is a cause for concern going forward as this guy gets better by playing. He will continue to log tons of ice time and, in my opinion, is someone we need to re-sign before the other 29 teams have a crack at him. Chara is best when he’s hitting bodies and crashing his own net. He is at his worst when he hangs back and doesn’t get his nose dirty. So, his area for improvement is to build the consistency to play like a 6’9” Slovak for the entire 28 minutes he’s on the ice.
Wade Redden: the master of the outlet pass has been consistently good lately, but he hasn’t been consistently great. But some might argue that is partly why Redden is so valuable to this team. Redden isn’t a spotlight type guy like Chara is, partly because he isn’t a tall tree and partly because we are just accustomed to Redds doing his job properly. I guess I had a problem with Redden as captain because he isn’t a take-over-the-game type of player and it just didn’t look like his game had risen to a new level. No matter, Redden will be a rock in the playoffs as he continues to build experience in high-pressure games, such as his upcoming stint in Italy. An area for improvement for the guy, in my opinion, is a sense of urgency. While I understand that his style of game is one of calamity and poise, there have been too many occasions late in the game where we need a leader to step up and start a game-tying attack – and he hasn’t done that. I’d like to see him get an assist on a late goal to tie it up sometime.
Chris Phillips: Well, what can I say about this guy other than that he is once again getting better as the season goes on. The first half of the year, he was almost expendable as he had a terrible time adjusting to the new rules and keeping up with the wingers coming down the side against him. Now, he has been our most consistent defenceman over the past month. He has also proven himself in the past as a solid playoff performer and there is no reason to doubt that this year will be any different. Phillips’ area for improvement is to continue to be physical – he is best when he is hitting his forecheckers in the corner and he gets beaten when he is standing around trying to poke at the puck from three feet away. Get the uniform dirty (not really a hockey phrase) and clean out your area.
Anton Volchenkov: When the A-Train broke into the league with decent play and bone-crushing open ice hits, we all we thrilled that he donned our colours. But as I’ve seen him play this year alongside Redden, I really see Volchenkov at his max – a 3rd or 4th defencemen. Whereas Redden and Chara are bona fide number ones and Meszaros and Phillips are great number twos, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with Anton having to fill one of those roles. That’s just me. I like him out there with Redden because he is prone to mistakes but is still too good to just give up on. His play in 2006 has mirrored that of the entire defensive corps – up and down. His biggest area for improvement is to increase his presence out there. He’ll never be the hero and he’ll rarely be the scapegoat (that’s good, though), but someone like the A-Train that can change momentum with a well-timed hit needs to become more noticeable out there for his strong play. If teams begin to see that our fourth defencemen is better than the number one or number two, then that is a major advantage to us.
Andrej Meszaros: There aren’t enough good things to say about this kid right now. He makes it okay to think of life on the Sens without Redden if we lose him to free agency this summer. Meszzy has been incredibly solid for his age and experience has really shown that speed and skill is important for defencemen, as well, in this new NHL. I would have to say that one area for improvement for the kid might be to master the Redden outlet pass. Meszaros is never going to be the hitter that Phillips, Chara, and Volchenkov should be, and his style mirrors Redden in a lot of ways. What better skill to learn from #6 than the ability to get the puck out of the zone and onto your forwards tape in mere seconds after a dump-in. If we can have two guys that can make that pass on our team, we’re better than most.
Brian Pothier: Hmmm. As I’ve said earlier, we often get upset with Pothier because of unfair expectations. Compare him to any other 6th defencemen in the league and we should be thrilled that we have him on our team. He makes the occasional mistake and I think he is pretty weak at keeping the puck in the zone on powerplays, but he has still done a solid job out there considering the role he plays. He will never be anything more on this team than a 5th or 6th guy out there, and that should be fine with everyone. An area for improvement for Pothier is his stickwork – nothing fancy, but he is definitely the most awkward of all our defencemen when it comes to handling passes and clearing the zone. It hasn’t burned us yet, but one of these days a puck will hop over his stick on a powerplay pass to the point and our opponent will walk around him and score shorthanded. Let’s try and not let that happen.
Christoph Schubert: Can we really call him a defenceman anymore? I’m starting to believe that he is better at forward, anyway! One thing that has helped him on the blueline is the confidence he has gained from his ice time as a forward. He is noticeably better now than he was at the start of the season and is a good filler on the third pairing. An area for improvement for him on defence is just like the area for improvement for him as a forward – continue to learn the system and buy into it and touch up your game.
Dominik Hasek: Our MVP. Throughout the sometimes awful play this past month and a half, Dominator has kept up in games and given us a chance to win – that is why we signed him. I think we all cringe when he lies on the ice a little longer after a play is over and don’t breathe until he gets back up, but so far this year, the 41-year old has always gotten back up. Hasek will need to continue to be our MVP over the next few months and I really don’t mind him speaking his mind about the team’s performance and what it needs to do to win. This guy has won everything there is out there and it helps to have that experience in our room. An area for improvement, apart from his command of the English language, is his stickwork behind the net. For the most part, he has been patient and effective moving pucks out, but there are too many occasions when Phillips is coming back to play the puck and Dom fires it right past him along the boards. It isn’t a trust factor, it is just Dom being Dom and we will continue to let him get away with that kind of stuff.
Ray Emery: Yikes. The 8-goal shellacking that kicked off the new year has basically been the story line for Emery in the past six weeks. His positioning has been terrible, his reflexes are slow, and his confidence must be at an all-time low. To make matters worse, he actually gets negative press OFF the ice for his cute blonde hair, his love and respect for a convicted rapist, and his diet of roaches. It is very scary to think that Rayzer is one injury away from being our #1 goalie for a Cup run and Emery needs to do his best in the last portion of the season to calm our fears in this respect. His area for improvement could be one of a number of things, but I think focus is the most important. He needs to focus in practice at getting his body in the right place, he needs to focus on rebounds that are sitting in the crease or rolling behind him, and he needs to focus after he gives up a goal to get back in his groove before another one gets by him.
Games this week
None – Olympic schedule starts the 15th.
At least we can rest on a high note
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 3-2
Ottawa goals: Vermette (12th) hammering it in on a wraparound, Varada (5th) on a wrist shot that Esche would like to have back, Heatley (34th) on a rebound after Eaves hit the post.
Making Sens(e): Vermette, Eaves
Not much Sens(e): Neil, Spezza
It was over when: Heatley put us up by three only 19 seconds into the second as one of those momentum stealers.
It was definitely over when: Hasek stood on his head throughout the third and kept the lead.
Message in a Molson bottle: The 10-4 and 8-0 games are gone now – we need to continue to find ways to win these tight games with solid goaltending, stingy defence, and well-timed goals. We took a solid lead and held it – playoff style hockey.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260211014
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
How to win a tight game
A “solid” win requires standup performances from most areas of your game. Some of those may be great goaltending, shutdown defence, opportunistic offence, an effective penalty kill, and a dominating powerplay. Well, our powerplay is still an issue (no goals in our last 24 man advantages), we got the other four in the Philly game. Hasek was great, the defence crashed in front of Dom, and our offence scored when we needed to. It could have been a bigger win had it not been for Nittymaki’s great play (he replaced Esche late in the first period as a shakeup move), or the three posts we hit. We also won more faceoffs and landed more bodychecks. This matchup is a likely Conference Final matchup and this win goes a long way in showing that we can beat the league’s elite. These are going to be the types of games we’ll need to win if we want to win this thing.
Not everything was working
The win is nice, but it didn’t exactly bring all that October confidence back. Spezza is still not the same #1 center, Alfredsson hasn’t been Alfie-like, and our powerplay continues to be shut out. It is still a cause for concern that our most consistent lines include such cats as Eaves, Vermette, Schubert, and Kelly. It is a nice feeling that these guys can get us through scoring slumps, but we’d all feel a lot more comfortable is the powerplay unit was knocking them down early and often. It is quite clear that this team is best when the Pizza line is intact and clicking. Otherwise, we’ll lean on these 3rd and 4th lines and Hasek to pull out the wins.
Sens Report Card (part deux)
The second half:
Here is what each of our players has done since 2006 began:
Zdeno Chara: The big guy. Big Z has dominated a couple of games and has stuck out on a few nights, as well. I don’t think his inconsistency is a cause for concern going forward as this guy gets better by playing. He will continue to log tons of ice time and, in my opinion, is someone we need to re-sign before the other 29 teams have a crack at him. Chara is best when he’s hitting bodies and crashing his own net. He is at his worst when he hangs back and doesn’t get his nose dirty. So, his area for improvement is to build the consistency to play like a 6’9” Slovak for the entire 28 minutes he’s on the ice.
Wade Redden: the master of the outlet pass has been consistently good lately, but he hasn’t been consistently great. But some might argue that is partly why Redden is so valuable to this team. Redden isn’t a spotlight type guy like Chara is, partly because he isn’t a tall tree and partly because we are just accustomed to Redds doing his job properly. I guess I had a problem with Redden as captain because he isn’t a take-over-the-game type of player and it just didn’t look like his game had risen to a new level. No matter, Redden will be a rock in the playoffs as he continues to build experience in high-pressure games, such as his upcoming stint in Italy. An area for improvement for the guy, in my opinion, is a sense of urgency. While I understand that his style of game is one of calamity and poise, there have been too many occasions late in the game where we need a leader to step up and start a game-tying attack – and he hasn’t done that. I’d like to see him get an assist on a late goal to tie it up sometime.
Chris Phillips: Well, what can I say about this guy other than that he is once again getting better as the season goes on. The first half of the year, he was almost expendable as he had a terrible time adjusting to the new rules and keeping up with the wingers coming down the side against him. Now, he has been our most consistent defenceman over the past month. He has also proven himself in the past as a solid playoff performer and there is no reason to doubt that this year will be any different. Phillips’ area for improvement is to continue to be physical – he is best when he is hitting his forecheckers in the corner and he gets beaten when he is standing around trying to poke at the puck from three feet away. Get the uniform dirty (not really a hockey phrase) and clean out your area.
Anton Volchenkov: When the A-Train broke into the league with decent play and bone-crushing open ice hits, we all we thrilled that he donned our colours. But as I’ve seen him play this year alongside Redden, I really see Volchenkov at his max – a 3rd or 4th defencemen. Whereas Redden and Chara are bona fide number ones and Meszaros and Phillips are great number twos, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with Anton having to fill one of those roles. That’s just me. I like him out there with Redden because he is prone to mistakes but is still too good to just give up on. His play in 2006 has mirrored that of the entire defensive corps – up and down. His biggest area for improvement is to increase his presence out there. He’ll never be the hero and he’ll rarely be the scapegoat (that’s good, though), but someone like the A-Train that can change momentum with a well-timed hit needs to become more noticeable out there for his strong play. If teams begin to see that our fourth defencemen is better than the number one or number two, then that is a major advantage to us.
Andrej Meszaros: There aren’t enough good things to say about this kid right now. He makes it okay to think of life on the Sens without Redden if we lose him to free agency this summer. Meszzy has been incredibly solid for his age and experience has really shown that speed and skill is important for defencemen, as well, in this new NHL. I would have to say that one area for improvement for the kid might be to master the Redden outlet pass. Meszaros is never going to be the hitter that Phillips, Chara, and Volchenkov should be, and his style mirrors Redden in a lot of ways. What better skill to learn from #6 than the ability to get the puck out of the zone and onto your forwards tape in mere seconds after a dump-in. If we can have two guys that can make that pass on our team, we’re better than most.
Brian Pothier: Hmmm. As I’ve said earlier, we often get upset with Pothier because of unfair expectations. Compare him to any other 6th defencemen in the league and we should be thrilled that we have him on our team. He makes the occasional mistake and I think he is pretty weak at keeping the puck in the zone on powerplays, but he has still done a solid job out there considering the role he plays. He will never be anything more on this team than a 5th or 6th guy out there, and that should be fine with everyone. An area for improvement for Pothier is his stickwork – nothing fancy, but he is definitely the most awkward of all our defencemen when it comes to handling passes and clearing the zone. It hasn’t burned us yet, but one of these days a puck will hop over his stick on a powerplay pass to the point and our opponent will walk around him and score shorthanded. Let’s try and not let that happen.
Christoph Schubert: Can we really call him a defenceman anymore? I’m starting to believe that he is better at forward, anyway! One thing that has helped him on the blueline is the confidence he has gained from his ice time as a forward. He is noticeably better now than he was at the start of the season and is a good filler on the third pairing. An area for improvement for him on defence is just like the area for improvement for him as a forward – continue to learn the system and buy into it and touch up your game.
Dominik Hasek: Our MVP. Throughout the sometimes awful play this past month and a half, Dominator has kept up in games and given us a chance to win – that is why we signed him. I think we all cringe when he lies on the ice a little longer after a play is over and don’t breathe until he gets back up, but so far this year, the 41-year old has always gotten back up. Hasek will need to continue to be our MVP over the next few months and I really don’t mind him speaking his mind about the team’s performance and what it needs to do to win. This guy has won everything there is out there and it helps to have that experience in our room. An area for improvement, apart from his command of the English language, is his stickwork behind the net. For the most part, he has been patient and effective moving pucks out, but there are too many occasions when Phillips is coming back to play the puck and Dom fires it right past him along the boards. It isn’t a trust factor, it is just Dom being Dom and we will continue to let him get away with that kind of stuff.
Ray Emery: Yikes. The 8-goal shellacking that kicked off the new year has basically been the story line for Emery in the past six weeks. His positioning has been terrible, his reflexes are slow, and his confidence must be at an all-time low. To make matters worse, he actually gets negative press OFF the ice for his cute blonde hair, his love and respect for a convicted rapist, and his diet of roaches. It is very scary to think that Rayzer is one injury away from being our #1 goalie for a Cup run and Emery needs to do his best in the last portion of the season to calm our fears in this respect. His area for improvement could be one of a number of things, but I think focus is the most important. He needs to focus in practice at getting his body in the right place, he needs to focus on rebounds that are sitting in the crease or rolling behind him, and he needs to focus after he gives up a goal to get back in his groove before another one gets by him.
Games this week
None – Olympic schedule starts the 15th.
Friday, February 10, 2006
Sens Game Report - Atlanta at Ottawa - February 9, 2006
Photo: tsn.ca and CP
Well, there’s always next season
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Atlanta wins 2-1
Ottawa goals: Meszaros (5) on a slapshot from the point
Making Sens(e): Varada, defencemen
Not much Sens(e): Neil, Alfredsson, Heatley, Spezza, same as the night before
It was over when: Atlanta scored its second powerplay goal halfway through the third.
It was definitely over when: Varada was turned into a poster on the halfboards and we didn’t capitalize on the ensuing two-minute powerplay (which should have been five).
Message in a Molson bottle: Ring , ring. Hi, I’d like to speak to a role model or a leader please? Oh, sorry, I must have the wrong number.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=260209014
Grab a Timmy’s double-double and listen to what really happened:
Different night, different score, same team
Before you say another word, please don’t write this game off as “a step in the right direction” or “a moral victory” or “a good effort that came up short.” We are not, I repeat, not the Toronto Maple Leafs. We don’t lose games that are moral victories and forward progress. If we don’t expect to win 82 games a year, then tell me now so I can start cheering for a different team that DOES expect to win every game. Sure, tonight, we had some chances to score and Lehtonen played a solid game, but who cares? Did we make up ground in the standings with our ‘solid effort’? Did we snap out of our scoring slump with this ‘moral victory’? No, we didn’t. And if any of those players are satisfied with their performance tonight, I beg John Muckler to trade them into oblivion immediately. I don’t usually read the player’s quotes before writing these insightful journals, but something shocked me tonight in TSN’s write-up: Dominik Hasek, the hardest working athlete in sports, seemed satisfied with the effort and the defensive play tonight. If this isn’t the final red flag, then I don’t know what we’re waiting for. This is the same goalie that complains about offensive production during close games while he backstops the most offensive team in the NHL. But unless that quote was taken out of context, it sounded like he thought we at least ‘took a step closer to regaining our success’. Unbelievable.
the Loblaws Express Lane – 10 items or less:
- Powerplay continues to struggle. Maybe we just aren’t that good. As of this moment, we have played sub-.500 hockey since 2006 began. Columbus has a better record than us in 2006. At this rate, we don’t make it out of the first round.
- Where is everybody? How come nobody seems really mad about our play lately? Alfie gave is miniature Swedish-rant the other night, but it didn’t translate on the ice. No player is bringing their game to another level right now, Coach Murray doesn’t seem to mind, and John Muckler has disappeared. Could he be replacing Loblaws shopping carts out of guilt? How come it is only the fans that seem concerned about this team right now?
- Bon Jovi was awesome.
- During the final two minutes and trailing by one, we showed far less enthusiasm and desire than the team that was beating us. Sure, they set up five men on their own blue line, but we’re supposed to be the Ottawa Senators, for God’s sake! Why could we not even gain the Thrashers zone in the final minute of the game?
- Pothier on the point on the powerplay seems odd to me. He is our #6 guy and his defence is less than great. I understand keeping Phillips off the PP since he is defensively-driven, but we have to be able to not have our sixth d-man keeping pucks in during crucial moments of the game.
Sens Report Card
Instead of continuing on with my negativity and glass-half-empty analogies, I thought it would be useful to go over each of our players’ performance since the turn of the new year. Remember, our first game of 2006 was a tidy little 8-3 loss in Atlanta after we had peeled off four straight to end 2005. These comments are strictly my opinions and I welcome all disagreements or differing points of view. Please write your thoughts on a piece of paper and mail them to: the town dump.
Here is what each of our players has done since 2006 began:
Pizza Line:
Daniel Alfredsson: Our beloved captain has mixed moments of brilliance with moments of mediocrity. We know how important he is to our lineup based on how the team fared during his absence (is there any irony that Chara loves ribs and broke Alfie’s ribs?). Since the turn of the new year, Alfredsson has been inconsistent and hasn’t shown that ‘rise to the occasion’ leadership that we saw in October and November. His biggest area for improvement right now is to begin trusting his linemates again regaining his composure while stickhandling – too many turnovers and not even rise-from-your-seat dipsy doodles.
Dany Heatley: He couldn’t have started his career in Ottawa any better, but lately, he has looked more lost than he has looked found. Skating without Spezza was a nightmare for the fans to watch – he actually looked aimless out there. He is at his best when his top line is together and clicking and that hasn’t been a regular feat in the past 6 weeks. His biggest area for improvement will be to get back to finding the open slot and firing those one-timers into the net. Spezza will set him up, he just needs to get into that opening and wire it home.
Jason Spezza: I’m not sure if I’m the appropriate agent to discuss this guy right now. He sat out 14 games (give or take one) with this mysterious chest injury and his rehab must have involved sending him into a time machine that put him back in 2001 – he is playing like the Jason Spezza that Jacques kept benching for lack of defensive play and failed dipsy-doodles. Spezz Dispenser looks like a freaking Junior B star out there lately, trying to save the world by himself, one inside out move at a time. His biggest area for improvement right now is to regain that confidence from October when he was going to compete for the Hart and the Richard trophies. He fancied himself a #1 centre but is playing like the pond hockey idiot that nobody wants on their team.
Fishing Line:
Mike Fisher: What is there not to love about Mike Fisher. He is the best role model we have right now. You’ll never have to question his work ethic or his desire to win on the ice. If we dressed 20 Mike Fisher’s each night, we’d never lose. He is seen as one of the most underrated players in the NHL and we like that just fine. His game has risen to a new level in 2006, but sadly there isn’t many people for him to play with at that level. Areas for improvement are to get his shots on net more. He puts amazing moves on defenders using speed, strength, and stickhandling. I hate to see it wasted when he misses the net on a wrister.
Peter Shaefer: Shaefs has established himself as one of the best board players in the conference. The problem is he spends the entire shift behind the net or along the glass, just stickhandling his way in and out of whatever comes in front of him. He has begun to follow Fisher’s lead and his effort has risen dramatically. Areas for improvement right now are to work more on getting the puck in front of the net as opposed to waiting out that perfect feather pass. Waiting too long leaves him behind the net and an odd-man rush going the other way.
Chris Neil: the poor man’s Tie Domi. In the past month, Neil has neither won a fight nor has he played a great game, either on the scoresheet or in the effort department. I like the guy a lot because he was the sandpaper when we were made of silk, but his role on the team right now is completely unknown. His stickhandling is atrocious and he has made up for it by taking ridiculous penalties, like the four minors he took in the Atlanta game. Areas for improvement for Neiler are to simply get back to the basics – work hard in the corners and get your red-headed arse in front of the net and park it there. Dirty goals are still goals.
The Others:
Bryan Smolinski: What is your deal? One night you fill the roll of top line center without missing a beat and the next night, you look like a marginal ECHL second-liner. Smolinski’s problem appears to be a lack of motivation. He is a great dressing room guy and is always in a good mood. But he hasn’t turned that attitude into leadership or drive. He doesn’t take over any games and he doesn’t seem to kill for the win. Don’t get me wrong, he has won us a couple of games when we needed a big goal. What everyone needs to figure out is our level of expectation for this guy – is he a second-line center for us, or third-line checker? Areas for improvement for Smoke are to get the puck up high more often and improve his passing. He shoots the puck down low way too often for easy pad saves and seems to score often when he roofs it. Also, his passing on the powerplay is a guaranteed 20-second runoff as our defencemen chase down the puck he just coughed up.
Chris Kelly: He’s shown us where the NHL is headed – teams are going to need their 4th line guys to play like 2nd line studs on some nights. The world of salary cap hockey has made it possible for Kelly to have a chance here and like a good boy should, he has earned every second of it. He is a young Shaun Van Allen with more skill, speed, heart, toughness, scoring touch, hands, and a lot of other things. (just comparing 4th line centers here). Areas for improvement are to crash the net more often. Eaves does it to perfection, but I’ve seen Kelly on the outside edges of the circles too often and he just isn’t the type of guy that can score from out there. Get down low and make it an ugly one.
Patrick Eaves: Thank you, Brandon Bochenski and your shoulder. Eaves was destined for a year in Bingo, but Bocho’s injury combined with Hamel’s errant mouth landed #44 with the big boys, and he hasn’t disappointed to date. He works hard and is smart as hell out there. For a kid, he understands the game as well as anyone in his age group. I wonder if he is still the odd man out if Havlat makes it back this season? Areas for improvement are to get that wicked-awesome wrister down a little. We all know he is going high near side, but he lifts too may of them too high. Getting that puck down would make him a 20-goal scorer this year (he has 11 now).
Vaclav Varada: I just have to say this – I’m a Vaclav Varada fan. For my money, I don’t know if it gets any better than we this guy lines up the opponent’s superstar for a monster hit. This might be why he is known as a super-pest and rarely draws penalties despite being attacked on a nightly basis. What is so strange about Varada is that he never seems to care about what is going on out there – he just skates around and hits people and occasionally feeds a setup pass to Eaves or something. I like him and want him around. Areas for improvement are to develop a stronger chemistry with Eaves and Kelly. I want to see these three eating dinner together or something – anything to show that they get along and have jelled into a great energy line for us.
Antoine Vermette: Now I’ll be the first to say I was a little hard on the kid earlier in the season and as recently as a month ago. But lately, he has shown signs of improvement in both his skating ability and his scoring ability. The kid has a great shot, a ton of speed, and his confidence is finally start to grow with his increased ice time. Doug Weight would not have brought out team any closer to winning the Cup – especially if it would have cost Vermette and more to get him. Areas for improvement: keep skating hard and get in positions to get high-percentage shots on net. His dipsy-doodles are all out just inside the blueline – he can’t shoot from up there.
Brian McGrattan: I actually love what this guy can do out there. He strikes so much fear into the opponents so that when he actually does have the puck, everyone backs off because they either don’t expect any offence or they are worried he might knock them out. Either way, McGrattan has shown that he can do a little more than just find the Brashear’s of the league and throw down. Areas for improvement are to continue to smarten up – not just about the appropriate fighting times and techniques, but also about pinching in and forechecking, etc. He has earned a spot on a salary cap team. That’s impressive.
Christoph Schubert: This kid has never EVER played forward before in his life, but to stay in the NHL, he had to learn quickly. On some recent nights, he has been our top highlight out there. His bodychecks, dare I say, are the hardest dished out by our team. He forechecks well and backchecks like a champ. With the effort and desire he leaves out there, I’d imagine Coach Murray will find a way to keep him around the lineup. Areas for improvement are to learn his position. It is tough when he goes back and forth between forward and defencemen, but he must continue to learn his own role out there.
Defencemen, goalies, and off-ice personnel to come soon.
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