Somewhere on a Barbados beach, a rich man cracked a smile
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 5-3
Ottawa Goals:
Meszaros (3) with a bit of a zinger that sneaks its way through the screen
Chris Kelly (3) sent in on a breakaway from Heatley shows some nice hands
Chris Neil (7, pp) scores a goal-scorers goal, backhanding it in high from the goal line
Daniel Alfredsson (6) showing that nasty wrist shot over the Fernandez shoulder.
Peter Schaefer (4, pp) finding himself with the puck and half a net on the powerplay
Making Sens: Emery, Neil, Fisher, Volchenkov
Lacking Sens: Schaefer, Redden had some cobwebs
It was over when: The Chris Neil gave us a 3-goal lead that just felt different this time
It was definitely over when: Our captain zinged one up high to put it out of reach.
Message in a Molson bottle: We let them back into this for a while and ended up giving a bunch of scoring chances, but we kept our cool and skated well. For the fourth straight game, Ray Emery gave us a chance to win and our skaters did the rest. These guys are finally playing as a cohesive unit and being accountable for one another. Whether it be playing with desperation or playing with talent, this team is starting to find its groove, just like Stella.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261120014
Next Game: Wednesday in Philly, starting a four-game road trip
Three storylines to wow your friends over a Timmy’s double double
A Ray-diant performance
42 saves. When we grew sluggish and allowed ourselves to be outshot 37-16 over the last two periods, it was Emery that kept this from becoming a game, if that makes sense. As was the case in the previous three games, we have a great lineup of skaters to the point that all we need is for our goalie to make the saves and give us a chance to play our game. I like Ray Emery and it will be very interesting to see how Martin Gerber performs next time he gets a shot, which will probably be at some point on this road trip.
Hammer and Neil
Mike Fisher and Chris Neil are statistically two of the top three hitters in the NHL. I didn’t make that up; it’s science. Mike Fisher, although snakebit for goals, is playing like a man possessed while flying through the neutral and offensive zones. Chris Neil is playing like an All-Star right now both in terms of what he is doing with the puck (scoring amazing goals) and what he is doing without the puck (hitting everybody in sight). Volchenkov also threw some outstanding open-ice hits, although skated out a bit too far in the neutral zone on at least two of them.
Almost looking like a team!
Disregard what I said last week about Coach Murray’s inability to bring this team together. Ken Hitchcock can deal with that mess in Columbus because we’re starting to play as one and buying into each other’s styles. Dany Heatley is backchecking, Antoine Vermette is playing in the corners, and everyone is starting to block shots. Get this, Gonzo: we blocked 27 shots tonight. Besides the fact that Minnesota would otherwise have wound up with over 70 shots, it seems like we’re all finally buying into this concept of working together. A defenceman pinches and a forward slides back to cover. It’s a thing of beauty.
Beaver droppings…
1. Blocked shots: Volchenkov with 5, Phillips and Corvo with 4, Alfredsson blocked one of our own that is going to leave a mark on the ankle.
2. Volchenkov also led the way with 6 hits, most of them being great hip checks or huge open ice cracks. This kid looks like a million bucks out there. Funny, because he’s making more than that. He’s getting rewarded with icetime from the coach and airtime from the writers at NxNE.
3. Two high sticks into Patrick Eaves’ grill in the first went uncalled. Refs kept the whistles away for the most part of this one and at least it was consistent. The penalty shot call against Fisher for allegedly putting his glove on the puck in the crease in the third was kinda bush league.
4. Vermette at 28% in the faceoff circle isn’t too hot, especially when a handful of those are on the penalty kill. Winning the draw on the PK typically leads to a clear and a good 15-20 seconds off the clock.
5. We are a fantastic five-on-five team. To make things more amicable as we try and climb the standings (we jumped over Boston but have three games in hand, so…), our powerplay is showing signs of life. You CANNOT make a run for the playoffs without good special teams. Our PK has been restored and our PP is putting the puck in the net by moving our skates and moving the puck. Hooray!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Sens Game Report - Buffalo @ Ottawa - 11.18.06
Add Buffalo to the list of teams that we want to play 82 times (with Toronto)
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-1
Ottawa Goals:
Peter Schaefer (3, pp) chipping in a rebound in front of Miller
Dany Heatley (11, pp) with that textbook tap in beside the net from Spezza that we have been missing all year.
Antoine Vermette (8) with a nifty backhander from the slot that made it through.
Chris Phillips (2) with an awesome backhanded deke on a breakaway coming out of the penalty box.
Making Sens: Heatley, Neil, Fisher, Phillips, Volchenkov, Emery
Lacking Sens: hard to pick anyone here
It was over when: Vermette giving us the two goal lead just felt right, didn’t it?
It was definitely over when: The Phillips goal was a beauty to ice it.
Message in a Molson bottle: The way we get “up” for the Buffalo games this year is the way everyone got up for games against us last year. We need to show this kind of intensity and drive every night to be successful. We aren’t going to win games by phoning them in anymore and this will only make us a better team come April and May. Nice effort tonight, hard skating and hard hitting, drawing penalties and getting shots on net.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261118014
Next Game: Monday hosting Minnesota, the fourth straight game against a division leader.
Three storylines to wow your friends over a Timmy’s double double
I’d rather be Fishing
Can I say that the Fisher line looked 150,000% better this game? Not only was Chris Neil up to his usual tricks of working his ass off for 60 minutes, but Mike Fisher finally followed suit and put in a beauty of a performance. Maybe he heard Pierre McGuire say for the 20th time that he thinks Ottawa is a slow team, because Fish was flying down the wings and certainly throwing his body around, leading both teams with 9 bodychecks. It’s his effort in games like this that make us want Fish to be a Senator for life.
Saturday Night RAY
What I like about Ray Emery this year is that he is giving us a chance to win a hockey game. I’m not trying to get into any kind of goalie dispute over Gerber and Muckler and Hasek and all that jazz; I’m just enjoying the fact that it is now up to the skaters to win or lose the game, not the goalie. As a byproduct of Emery’s performance, it will make Martin Gerber hungrier to win when he gets back in there. Hear this: Martin Gerber is a great goalie and he will find his game at some point. In the meantime, there is nothing wrong with having two serviceable goalies. We will use Emery now as the hot hand and at some point, we’ll be using Gerber as the hot hand. Salaries aside, we need to be satisfied in knowing that we’ll always have a second goalie that we can turn to, both now and in the playoffs. As Ricky’s father, Ray, said about the Trailer Park Boys having to go to midnight mass at Sunnyvale, “way it goes, boys.”
Should we make everyone trade bait?
Remember how some of our trade bait this off-season included Emery, Volchenkov, Phillips, and Vermette? Besides the fact that Emery and Vermette are playing well, Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov have been playing lights out hockey over the past two weeks. Phillips looks like the leader that he needs to be and is returning to his stellar defensive play that we had become accustomed to. Anton Volchenkov is just phenomenal lately blocking shots all game and hitting anything in range. To be honest, he was disappointing last year and you had to start wondering why a $1.5M defenceman like this was still on our team. He is earning his colours once again with his all around game. Perhaps we should start a rumour that Spezza and Schaefer are up for grabs!
Beavertail toppings
1. Outshot them 41-24 and outhit them 38-27. That should win you the game. These numbers include outshooting them 32-13 over the last two periods. SNAP.
2. How about Heatley with a goal, assist, and 6 hits. Heatley’s best game of the season, by far. When we traded for him, everyone was excited about the “Canadian boy” coming home because he’d play with an edge. Last night was the player we hoped we were getting. Keep it up, Dany Boy.
3. Decent tilt between Peters and McGrattan in the first.
4. Remember when I said Dean McAmmond was a difference maker here? He didn’t do much with his 6 minutes of icetime on the fourth line. He’ll show up again at some point.
5. They blocked 22 shots, we blocked 12. Their forwards blocked 12 shots, our forwards blocked 5. I’d love it if our forwards 1 through 12 blocked shots like Buffalo’s guys. When the Sabres see their captain, Chris Drury lay out and block two shots, it pumps them up. Shot blocking can be as motivating as a good fight or a great forecheck. I’d say we should let Volchenkov lead practice for a day.
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-1
Ottawa Goals:
Peter Schaefer (3, pp) chipping in a rebound in front of Miller
Dany Heatley (11, pp) with that textbook tap in beside the net from Spezza that we have been missing all year.
Antoine Vermette (8) with a nifty backhander from the slot that made it through.
Chris Phillips (2) with an awesome backhanded deke on a breakaway coming out of the penalty box.
Making Sens: Heatley, Neil, Fisher, Phillips, Volchenkov, Emery
Lacking Sens: hard to pick anyone here
It was over when: Vermette giving us the two goal lead just felt right, didn’t it?
It was definitely over when: The Phillips goal was a beauty to ice it.
Message in a Molson bottle: The way we get “up” for the Buffalo games this year is the way everyone got up for games against us last year. We need to show this kind of intensity and drive every night to be successful. We aren’t going to win games by phoning them in anymore and this will only make us a better team come April and May. Nice effort tonight, hard skating and hard hitting, drawing penalties and getting shots on net.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261118014
Next Game: Monday hosting Minnesota, the fourth straight game against a division leader.
Three storylines to wow your friends over a Timmy’s double double
I’d rather be Fishing
Can I say that the Fisher line looked 150,000% better this game? Not only was Chris Neil up to his usual tricks of working his ass off for 60 minutes, but Mike Fisher finally followed suit and put in a beauty of a performance. Maybe he heard Pierre McGuire say for the 20th time that he thinks Ottawa is a slow team, because Fish was flying down the wings and certainly throwing his body around, leading both teams with 9 bodychecks. It’s his effort in games like this that make us want Fish to be a Senator for life.
Saturday Night RAY
What I like about Ray Emery this year is that he is giving us a chance to win a hockey game. I’m not trying to get into any kind of goalie dispute over Gerber and Muckler and Hasek and all that jazz; I’m just enjoying the fact that it is now up to the skaters to win or lose the game, not the goalie. As a byproduct of Emery’s performance, it will make Martin Gerber hungrier to win when he gets back in there. Hear this: Martin Gerber is a great goalie and he will find his game at some point. In the meantime, there is nothing wrong with having two serviceable goalies. We will use Emery now as the hot hand and at some point, we’ll be using Gerber as the hot hand. Salaries aside, we need to be satisfied in knowing that we’ll always have a second goalie that we can turn to, both now and in the playoffs. As Ricky’s father, Ray, said about the Trailer Park Boys having to go to midnight mass at Sunnyvale, “way it goes, boys.”
Should we make everyone trade bait?
Remember how some of our trade bait this off-season included Emery, Volchenkov, Phillips, and Vermette? Besides the fact that Emery and Vermette are playing well, Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov have been playing lights out hockey over the past two weeks. Phillips looks like the leader that he needs to be and is returning to his stellar defensive play that we had become accustomed to. Anton Volchenkov is just phenomenal lately blocking shots all game and hitting anything in range. To be honest, he was disappointing last year and you had to start wondering why a $1.5M defenceman like this was still on our team. He is earning his colours once again with his all around game. Perhaps we should start a rumour that Spezza and Schaefer are up for grabs!
Beavertail toppings
1. Outshot them 41-24 and outhit them 38-27. That should win you the game. These numbers include outshooting them 32-13 over the last two periods. SNAP.
2. How about Heatley with a goal, assist, and 6 hits. Heatley’s best game of the season, by far. When we traded for him, everyone was excited about the “Canadian boy” coming home because he’d play with an edge. Last night was the player we hoped we were getting. Keep it up, Dany Boy.
3. Decent tilt between Peters and McGrattan in the first.
4. Remember when I said Dean McAmmond was a difference maker here? He didn’t do much with his 6 minutes of icetime on the fourth line. He’ll show up again at some point.
5. They blocked 22 shots, we blocked 12. Their forwards blocked 12 shots, our forwards blocked 5. I’d love it if our forwards 1 through 12 blocked shots like Buffalo’s guys. When the Sabres see their captain, Chris Drury lay out and block two shots, it pumps them up. Shot blocking can be as motivating as a good fight or a great forecheck. I’d say we should let Volchenkov lead practice for a day.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Sens Game Report - Ottawa @ Buffalo - 11.15.06
Now that was an effort you can hang your helmet on… Down 2-1 in the third and finally fighting back.
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-2
Ottawa Goals:
Neil (4, pp) after some great forechecking from Fisher roofing it over Biron
Spezza (9) tipping in the Meszaros shot to tie the game in the third
Schaefer (2) tipping in the Alfredsson shot to take the lead. What? Take the lead?
Phillips (1, sh, en) banking in an empty net goal killing a penalty in the last minute. Philly deserved a goal in this one.
Making Sens: Fisher, Phillips, Neil
Lacking Sens: Meszaros had trouble early, Heatley still can’t stickhandle
It was over when: The Phillips empty-netter was the first time Ottawa fans could take a breath since the start of the third period.
It was definitely over when: Emery and the defencemen collapsed the net in the dying seconds to maintain the two goal advantage.
Message in a Molson bottle: If this team can put forth the kind of effort that they showed tonight, then I can be proud to cheer for this team (for the record, I’ll cheer for them no matter what). Their intensity and drive picked up every minute of this game, leading to our best third period of the season and our first come from behind win of the year. What is necessary now is to enjoy this win tonight and take the positive message out of it, which is, “play your ass off from the start of the game until the final horn and you can beat the best team in the NHL.” Have fun tonight and get back to work tomorrow.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261115002 Disregard the blatant mistake in handing out the three stars in this boxscore. How any of these three received a star surely leads one to believe that someone wasn’t watching. I’d have it as 1) Fisher, 2) Phillips, 3) Emery. No Sabres in the top three.
Next Game: Friday in New Jersey, the second of four straight games against division leaders.
Grab a Timmy’s double double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Mike Fisher and Chris Phillips finally showed why they are wearing the ‘A’. Fisher played his most solid game of the season, leading to the Neil goal in the first, drawing a hooking penalty in the second, and blocking shots in the third. Phillips was physical and smart and was rewarded with his first goal. Great game from both, really picking up the pace and leading by example
- Ray Emery was a star tonight. A few huge saves, coupled with a solid 60 minutes, gives us the backstopping we needed. To say we needed this kind of an effort from our ‘goalkeeper’, as Muckler calls it, would be an understatement.
The Bad
- Andrej Meszaros had a rough start to the game by taking a hooking penalty early from being flat-footed and then turning the puck over onto Briere’s stick, which naturally ended up in our net a second or two later. The defence came around during the game, but Meszaros has to be better given the icetime he gets.
The Ugly
- I know he is on the Team1200 every single morning and is a very smart analyst, but I was pretty sick of Pierre McGuire constantly talking about how slow the Ottawa Senators are. The guy praises us all last season and early this year, then starts calling for a blockbuster trade and says every single morning how slow the Sens are. He mentioned it again 6-8 times in this game, including on the Vanek goal. Vanek didn’t score that one because the Sabres are faster (they are, but…), we had two forwards all the way back in the zone that just didn’t know what they were doing. Schaefer made it back and then mysteriously peeled off to the side as Vanek took a rebound and popped it into the open net. Mr. McGuire, don’t say the Senators are a slow team. We’re very, very fast; we just float far too often. Perhaps I’m just sick of listening to the Sabres bandwagon…
Overtime
- Derek Roy is a diver. I’d rather have Darcy Tucker on my team than Roy, if that tells you how much I dislike Roy.
- Why can’t we score on a 5-on-3? We killed one off and that was a lot of fun, and we netted a pair of powerplay goals, but we have yet to find a group of five that guarantees a goal. If the Spezza to Heatley pass on the doorstep is gone, we need to find Fisher or Neil or whoever in the slot. We need to be scoring on 100% of the two-man advantages.
- I thought we had a frantic and solid second period, but we only had four shots.
- Volchenkov looked terrific and is turning into a nasty Russian version of Jay McKee meets Scott Stevens. Not quite that good, but he hits people like the dickens and he blocks shots like the balls. He also doesn’t look nearly as stupid out there as he and Phillips did in the first week or two of the season.
- Who is responsible for us taking a too many men penalty while on the powerplay?
- Denis Hamel on the first powerplay unit was fun, and well deserved given the sacrifices this guy takes standing in front of the net, both tonight and this past Monday against Montreal.
- Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza refuse to hit anyone. Pacifists…They combined for five giveaways, too.
- Eaves had the quietest ten minutes of the night.
- Wait, what? No shorthanded goals allowed? No powerplay goals allowed? And we scored two on the powerplay? And we scored shorthanded? Who are these guys?
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Ottawa wins 4-2
Ottawa Goals:
Neil (4, pp) after some great forechecking from Fisher roofing it over Biron
Spezza (9) tipping in the Meszaros shot to tie the game in the third
Schaefer (2) tipping in the Alfredsson shot to take the lead. What? Take the lead?
Phillips (1, sh, en) banking in an empty net goal killing a penalty in the last minute. Philly deserved a goal in this one.
Making Sens: Fisher, Phillips, Neil
Lacking Sens: Meszaros had trouble early, Heatley still can’t stickhandle
It was over when: The Phillips empty-netter was the first time Ottawa fans could take a breath since the start of the third period.
It was definitely over when: Emery and the defencemen collapsed the net in the dying seconds to maintain the two goal advantage.
Message in a Molson bottle: If this team can put forth the kind of effort that they showed tonight, then I can be proud to cheer for this team (for the record, I’ll cheer for them no matter what). Their intensity and drive picked up every minute of this game, leading to our best third period of the season and our first come from behind win of the year. What is necessary now is to enjoy this win tonight and take the positive message out of it, which is, “play your ass off from the start of the game until the final horn and you can beat the best team in the NHL.” Have fun tonight and get back to work tomorrow.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261115002 Disregard the blatant mistake in handing out the three stars in this boxscore. How any of these three received a star surely leads one to believe that someone wasn’t watching. I’d have it as 1) Fisher, 2) Phillips, 3) Emery. No Sabres in the top three.
Next Game: Friday in New Jersey, the second of four straight games against division leaders.
Grab a Timmy’s double double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Mike Fisher and Chris Phillips finally showed why they are wearing the ‘A’. Fisher played his most solid game of the season, leading to the Neil goal in the first, drawing a hooking penalty in the second, and blocking shots in the third. Phillips was physical and smart and was rewarded with his first goal. Great game from both, really picking up the pace and leading by example
- Ray Emery was a star tonight. A few huge saves, coupled with a solid 60 minutes, gives us the backstopping we needed. To say we needed this kind of an effort from our ‘goalkeeper’, as Muckler calls it, would be an understatement.
The Bad
- Andrej Meszaros had a rough start to the game by taking a hooking penalty early from being flat-footed and then turning the puck over onto Briere’s stick, which naturally ended up in our net a second or two later. The defence came around during the game, but Meszaros has to be better given the icetime he gets.
The Ugly
- I know he is on the Team1200 every single morning and is a very smart analyst, but I was pretty sick of Pierre McGuire constantly talking about how slow the Ottawa Senators are. The guy praises us all last season and early this year, then starts calling for a blockbuster trade and says every single morning how slow the Sens are. He mentioned it again 6-8 times in this game, including on the Vanek goal. Vanek didn’t score that one because the Sabres are faster (they are, but…), we had two forwards all the way back in the zone that just didn’t know what they were doing. Schaefer made it back and then mysteriously peeled off to the side as Vanek took a rebound and popped it into the open net. Mr. McGuire, don’t say the Senators are a slow team. We’re very, very fast; we just float far too often. Perhaps I’m just sick of listening to the Sabres bandwagon…
Overtime
- Derek Roy is a diver. I’d rather have Darcy Tucker on my team than Roy, if that tells you how much I dislike Roy.
- Why can’t we score on a 5-on-3? We killed one off and that was a lot of fun, and we netted a pair of powerplay goals, but we have yet to find a group of five that guarantees a goal. If the Spezza to Heatley pass on the doorstep is gone, we need to find Fisher or Neil or whoever in the slot. We need to be scoring on 100% of the two-man advantages.
- I thought we had a frantic and solid second period, but we only had four shots.
- Volchenkov looked terrific and is turning into a nasty Russian version of Jay McKee meets Scott Stevens. Not quite that good, but he hits people like the dickens and he blocks shots like the balls. He also doesn’t look nearly as stupid out there as he and Phillips did in the first week or two of the season.
- Who is responsible for us taking a too many men penalty while on the powerplay?
- Denis Hamel on the first powerplay unit was fun, and well deserved given the sacrifices this guy takes standing in front of the net, both tonight and this past Monday against Montreal.
- Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza refuse to hit anyone. Pacifists…They combined for five giveaways, too.
- Eaves had the quietest ten minutes of the night.
- Wait, what? No shorthanded goals allowed? No powerplay goals allowed? And we scored two on the powerplay? And we scored shorthanded? Who are these guys?
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
A Million and One Questions
I know it has been a while since I posted but let's be honest for a second here. There has been nothing to write about. Wait a second, there has been one thing to write about - the fact that the Sens are an absolute horror show on ice. How to approach this???? Do I hit the panic button? No Cheeko will get mad. Do I hit the positive button? No that's not in my nature. What about a Q and A session with myself, moderated by myself? That works.
1. Is it too early to do anything drastic?
We are roughly a quarter of the way through the season. At this point in time you have a general idea of how the team is playing and what you can expect going forward. We are past the point of any trend being an anomaly. What you see is what you get.
2. If no, should Bryan Murray be fired?
Me and Mr. Cheek have had considerable debate over this one. To me, Murray isn't the problem. He seems to have turned around Spezza and Heatly but he is dealing with two very difficult situations. First is the Gerber factor. Martin Gerber has been terrible at the best of times and his confidence is shaken. He is also showing no signs of picking up the pieces. Nobody can tell me that a new coach would magically turn around our goaltending woes. Second is the dreaded Daniel Alfresson whose playoff futility has finally caught up to him. Alfy has not been the same player this year and there is no coach out there who can erase the past. Alfy's confidence is shot and he wont be getting it back with this organization regardless of the coach.
3. Has Muckler done what he could?
Mucks is not the problem in Ottawa. Outside of landing a seasoned veteran leader (no, they don't grow on tree's) and picking up a goalie last year his moves have been good. He did what he had to do this off-season and although I would have liked him to keep Chara and ditch Redden I understood why he made the move he did. The Heatly for Hossa deal is a wash and Muckler's small moves like acquiring Smoke and Shaeffer have been commendable.
4. Is it time for Alfy to get shipped out?
Yes, Yes, Yes. Alfredsson has been such a great Senator and has been loyal beyond what we could have ever expected from him. That said, he is what he is - A playoff underachiever whose confidence has completely eroded. If there is ever a chance to get a healthy return on Alfredsson now is the time to part ways.
More questions coming tomorrow.
1. Is it too early to do anything drastic?
We are roughly a quarter of the way through the season. At this point in time you have a general idea of how the team is playing and what you can expect going forward. We are past the point of any trend being an anomaly. What you see is what you get.
2. If no, should Bryan Murray be fired?
Me and Mr. Cheek have had considerable debate over this one. To me, Murray isn't the problem. He seems to have turned around Spezza and Heatly but he is dealing with two very difficult situations. First is the Gerber factor. Martin Gerber has been terrible at the best of times and his confidence is shaken. He is also showing no signs of picking up the pieces. Nobody can tell me that a new coach would magically turn around our goaltending woes. Second is the dreaded Daniel Alfresson whose playoff futility has finally caught up to him. Alfy has not been the same player this year and there is no coach out there who can erase the past. Alfy's confidence is shot and he wont be getting it back with this organization regardless of the coach.
3. Has Muckler done what he could?
Mucks is not the problem in Ottawa. Outside of landing a seasoned veteran leader (no, they don't grow on tree's) and picking up a goalie last year his moves have been good. He did what he had to do this off-season and although I would have liked him to keep Chara and ditch Redden I understood why he made the move he did. The Heatly for Hossa deal is a wash and Muckler's small moves like acquiring Smoke and Shaeffer have been commendable.
4. Is it time for Alfy to get shipped out?
Yes, Yes, Yes. Alfredsson has been such a great Senator and has been loyal beyond what we could have ever expected from him. That said, he is what he is - A playoff underachiever whose confidence has completely eroded. If there is ever a chance to get a healthy return on Alfredsson now is the time to part ways.
More questions coming tomorrow.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Sens Game Report - Montreal @ Ottawa - 11.13.06
It’s official – we’re very bad. Let me ask you this, fellow Ottawa fan: what is the identity of this team? With Jacques, we were a defensive team that had great neutral zone speed on turnovers. Lindy Ruff's Sabres are fast. MacT's Oilers have heart, Hartley's Thrashers are all offence. What is our identity? Maybe we should try and define ourselves as something, besides being a graet paper team, of course.
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Montreal wins 6-3
Ottawa Goals:
- Hamel (3) tipping in a Meszaros shot
- Eaves (3, pp) on a nice individual effort when the team was down
- Vermette (7, pp) standing in front and banging in a rebound
Making Sens: the Vermette/Kelly/Eaves line was okay
Lacking Sens: Schaefer was particularly bad, and the rest weren’t far behind. The top line wasn’t strong, either. Gerber’s performance leaves us wanting Lalime back.
It was over when: Two powerplay goals scored 31 seconds apart to open the third period was the end of it.
It was definitely over when: The Mike Johnson shot from inside the blue line after we had cut the lead to one that made its way past the Swiss Miss was the backbreaker. Again.
Message in a Molson bottle: See the recap of every other game for the same sports clichés: not playing the entire 60 minutes, not helping each other out, getting lazy in all ends of the ice and all aspects of the game. This group of underachievers can’t possibly be allowed to carry on like this for much longer
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261113014
Next Game: at Buffalo on Wednesday.
Grab a Timmy’s double double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Powerplay netted a couple.
- Volchenkov, who is third in the NHL in blocked shots, had five more tonight.
The Bad
- Martin Gerber refuses to make a timely save, which is amazingly frustrating to watch. He even had some amazing saves in this game early, but as the team was coming back from a 4-1 deficit to make it 4-3, he lets in a Lalime-esque shot from inside the blue line from perennial non-scorer, Mike Johnson. He is currently in the middle of the worst stretch of goaltending that we’ve seen since, um, I don’t know. Maybe Craig Billington’s 11-41-4 record 12 years ago. The guy is a basketcase and we’ve gotta start wondering who is going to help him out of it.
The Ugly
- This team completely folds when the going gets tough. There is absolutely no adversity. Yes, they scored a pair when they needed goals, but then the goalie folded and it was back to our losing ways. I don’t know what we work on in practice, but it lasts about 10-15 minutes in each game before we start floating and playing as individuals.
- Peter Schaefer was ridiculous tonight. I’ve never seen a player in this league skate away from so many loose pucks ever. Fisher and Neil have no chance to do anything out there because it is as if they’re shorthanded! Whether it is his comfort with the new contract or if we overvalued Schaefer’s interpretation of forechecking, he was more harm than help tonight. What the frig was he doing skating away from Perezhogin on the Bonk goal when all he had to do was stick check the guy? A laugh.
Overtime
- Spezza continues to dominate in the faceoff circle. He also showed some jump in the game. I know the comparisons are already being drawn, but Scotty Bowman took a similar player (all offence, questionable team-first commitment…) and made him into one of the best two-way players. Steve Yzerman won a few Cups as a result. I think with the right tutelage, we might see the same in Spezza at some point. Its easy to forget that he has years and years ahead of him to develop into a leader of this team.
- Alfredsson worked hard but his stickhandling was noticeably poor tonight.
- In all seriousness, how much longer can we possibly keep going like this? Ken Hitchcock is supposed to be on the short list for Columbus, so perhaps we need to move quick…I’m just saying…
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Montreal wins 6-3
Ottawa Goals:
- Hamel (3) tipping in a Meszaros shot
- Eaves (3, pp) on a nice individual effort when the team was down
- Vermette (7, pp) standing in front and banging in a rebound
Making Sens: the Vermette/Kelly/Eaves line was okay
Lacking Sens: Schaefer was particularly bad, and the rest weren’t far behind. The top line wasn’t strong, either. Gerber’s performance leaves us wanting Lalime back.
It was over when: Two powerplay goals scored 31 seconds apart to open the third period was the end of it.
It was definitely over when: The Mike Johnson shot from inside the blue line after we had cut the lead to one that made its way past the Swiss Miss was the backbreaker. Again.
Message in a Molson bottle: See the recap of every other game for the same sports clichés: not playing the entire 60 minutes, not helping each other out, getting lazy in all ends of the ice and all aspects of the game. This group of underachievers can’t possibly be allowed to carry on like this for much longer
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261113014
Next Game: at Buffalo on Wednesday.
Grab a Timmy’s double double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Powerplay netted a couple.
- Volchenkov, who is third in the NHL in blocked shots, had five more tonight.
The Bad
- Martin Gerber refuses to make a timely save, which is amazingly frustrating to watch. He even had some amazing saves in this game early, but as the team was coming back from a 4-1 deficit to make it 4-3, he lets in a Lalime-esque shot from inside the blue line from perennial non-scorer, Mike Johnson. He is currently in the middle of the worst stretch of goaltending that we’ve seen since, um, I don’t know. Maybe Craig Billington’s 11-41-4 record 12 years ago. The guy is a basketcase and we’ve gotta start wondering who is going to help him out of it.
The Ugly
- This team completely folds when the going gets tough. There is absolutely no adversity. Yes, they scored a pair when they needed goals, but then the goalie folded and it was back to our losing ways. I don’t know what we work on in practice, but it lasts about 10-15 minutes in each game before we start floating and playing as individuals.
- Peter Schaefer was ridiculous tonight. I’ve never seen a player in this league skate away from so many loose pucks ever. Fisher and Neil have no chance to do anything out there because it is as if they’re shorthanded! Whether it is his comfort with the new contract or if we overvalued Schaefer’s interpretation of forechecking, he was more harm than help tonight. What the frig was he doing skating away from Perezhogin on the Bonk goal when all he had to do was stick check the guy? A laugh.
Overtime
- Spezza continues to dominate in the faceoff circle. He also showed some jump in the game. I know the comparisons are already being drawn, but Scotty Bowman took a similar player (all offence, questionable team-first commitment…) and made him into one of the best two-way players. Steve Yzerman won a few Cups as a result. I think with the right tutelage, we might see the same in Spezza at some point. Its easy to forget that he has years and years ahead of him to develop into a leader of this team.
- Alfredsson worked hard but his stickhandling was noticeably poor tonight.
- In all seriousness, how much longer can we possibly keep going like this? Ken Hitchcock is supposed to be on the short list for Columbus, so perhaps we need to move quick…I’m just saying…
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Sens Game Report - Ottawa @ Atlanta - 11.8.06
So THIS is what it is like being a Cubs fan...
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Atlanta wins 5-4, with Ottawa blowing a two-goal lead for the third straight game (Monday was a three goal lead...)
Ottawa Goals:
- Spezza (6) tipping a Corvo shot
- Alfredsson (4, pp) showing that his wrist shot is still incredible
- Kelly (2) banging in a rebound on an excellent forechecking shift
- Vermette (6, sh) using his speed shorthanded to get one past Hedberg on the near side
Makins Sens: Alfredsson, Spezza, Redden, Kelly, Vermette
Lacking Sens: Heatley, Schaefer, Fisher, Meszaros, oh yeah, Gerber
It was over when: Kozlov's second goal late in the second period made it 4-3 Ottawa and as has been the case lately, it was just inevitable that we'd lose.
It was definitely over when: Kovalchuk sent the somewhat interested crowd into a frenzy with the tying goal early in the third period. Kozlolv's hat trick game winning goal was really just a formality because we were done.
Message in a Molson Bottle: We stink when we're ahead and we stink when we're behind. The sad part is that you can actually pick out the moment in the game when the team self-destructs. When Atlanta brought the score to 4-3, I actually would have felt confident making bets that we'd lose by on because this team has lost its ability to compete in the third period. This is no longer a matter of not getting the bounces or waiting for someone to break out. By the looks of what happened in the second half of this game, the Senators almost look like they're in some kind of freefall.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261108028
Next Game: Friday in Pittsburgh. We used to beat up on them last year.
Grab a Timmy's doube double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Alfredsson is the hardest working guy on our team. He has his vision back, skates to the puck instead of skating away from it, and his shot is still there. If this team is planning on making some personnel moves, they cannot include him. It does concern me, however, that not everyone on the team seems to feed off his play like they used to.
- Kim, my girlfriend, had a really tasty coffee in the third period at the game. Yum.
The Bad
- Where to put Martin Gerber? I mean, he was downright ugly last night. He looked a bit shaken up after taking a shot up high in the chest or neck, but it seemed any shot taken in the third period had a chance to get by. His rebound control was awful meaning an innocent wrist shot taken as a dump in ended up being a scoring chance on the second shot. It is now okay to question whether or not this is the right guy for us.
The Ugly
- I'll tell you what is ugly - this losing streak. At no point during the stretch of five games has this team appeared ready to break out of it! That's the worst part. We come out and score early and at the start of the second period, we saym "uh oh, we're not that good in the second period." Then at the start of the third period, we say, "uh oh, we're not that good in the third period lately." Well I'm no coach, but I've heard from reliable sources that you should be a decent team in the second and third periods to win games. Jus ta thought. Whether the players aren't buying into a system to control a lead or they are in the worst psychological funk known to professional sports, this team needs help. I am not saying we need to trade for Conroy or we need to hire Ken Hitchcock, I'm just saying that this team needs a shakeup because I can't imagine how this group of players with the current mentality in that dressing room is going to find at least one win in the next 72 hours in Pittsburgh and Boston.
Overtime
- 30 takeaways by Atlanta. That's not goign to be good for business
- How about the portly fellow in the Thrashers leather jacket that I had to sit beside last night? This spherical-like gentleman's jacket smelled so awful that I'd rather stick my nose inside of a used hockey glove for a while to get away from it. Since the Thrashers aren't that old of a team, you just know that this jacket has probably seen and done some strange things that jackets aren't supposed to do. But hey, this is Georgia, people. Draw your own conclusions.
- Fisher/Neil/Schaefer line was irrelevant because they spend their entire shift on the boards and in the corner. They will go an entire 45 second shift and not have one scoring chance because not one of them heads to the front of the net. Even getting the puck back to the point doesn't do any good because the ensuing shot from the defenceman doesn't go through any traffic.
The Balance in the Bank:
Final Score: Atlanta wins 5-4, with Ottawa blowing a two-goal lead for the third straight game (Monday was a three goal lead...)
Ottawa Goals:
- Spezza (6) tipping a Corvo shot
- Alfredsson (4, pp) showing that his wrist shot is still incredible
- Kelly (2) banging in a rebound on an excellent forechecking shift
- Vermette (6, sh) using his speed shorthanded to get one past Hedberg on the near side
Makins Sens: Alfredsson, Spezza, Redden, Kelly, Vermette
Lacking Sens: Heatley, Schaefer, Fisher, Meszaros, oh yeah, Gerber
It was over when: Kozlov's second goal late in the second period made it 4-3 Ottawa and as has been the case lately, it was just inevitable that we'd lose.
It was definitely over when: Kovalchuk sent the somewhat interested crowd into a frenzy with the tying goal early in the third period. Kozlolv's hat trick game winning goal was really just a formality because we were done.
Message in a Molson Bottle: We stink when we're ahead and we stink when we're behind. The sad part is that you can actually pick out the moment in the game when the team self-destructs. When Atlanta brought the score to 4-3, I actually would have felt confident making bets that we'd lose by on because this team has lost its ability to compete in the third period. This is no longer a matter of not getting the bounces or waiting for someone to break out. By the looks of what happened in the second half of this game, the Senators almost look like they're in some kind of freefall.
Courtesy Boxscore: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=261108028
Next Game: Friday in Pittsburgh. We used to beat up on them last year.
Grab a Timmy's doube double and listen to what really happened:
The Good
- Alfredsson is the hardest working guy on our team. He has his vision back, skates to the puck instead of skating away from it, and his shot is still there. If this team is planning on making some personnel moves, they cannot include him. It does concern me, however, that not everyone on the team seems to feed off his play like they used to.
- Kim, my girlfriend, had a really tasty coffee in the third period at the game. Yum.
The Bad
- Where to put Martin Gerber? I mean, he was downright ugly last night. He looked a bit shaken up after taking a shot up high in the chest or neck, but it seemed any shot taken in the third period had a chance to get by. His rebound control was awful meaning an innocent wrist shot taken as a dump in ended up being a scoring chance on the second shot. It is now okay to question whether or not this is the right guy for us.
The Ugly
- I'll tell you what is ugly - this losing streak. At no point during the stretch of five games has this team appeared ready to break out of it! That's the worst part. We come out and score early and at the start of the second period, we saym "uh oh, we're not that good in the second period." Then at the start of the third period, we say, "uh oh, we're not that good in the third period lately." Well I'm no coach, but I've heard from reliable sources that you should be a decent team in the second and third periods to win games. Jus ta thought. Whether the players aren't buying into a system to control a lead or they are in the worst psychological funk known to professional sports, this team needs help. I am not saying we need to trade for Conroy or we need to hire Ken Hitchcock, I'm just saying that this team needs a shakeup because I can't imagine how this group of players with the current mentality in that dressing room is going to find at least one win in the next 72 hours in Pittsburgh and Boston.
Overtime
- 30 takeaways by Atlanta. That's not goign to be good for business
- How about the portly fellow in the Thrashers leather jacket that I had to sit beside last night? This spherical-like gentleman's jacket smelled so awful that I'd rather stick my nose inside of a used hockey glove for a while to get away from it. Since the Thrashers aren't that old of a team, you just know that this jacket has probably seen and done some strange things that jackets aren't supposed to do. But hey, this is Georgia, people. Draw your own conclusions.
- Fisher/Neil/Schaefer line was irrelevant because they spend their entire shift on the boards and in the corner. They will go an entire 45 second shift and not have one scoring chance because not one of them heads to the front of the net. Even getting the puck back to the point doesn't do any good because the ensuing shot from the defenceman doesn't go through any traffic.
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