Vancouver Redux In Philly

It was an eerie feeling watching the Senators lose to the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night because it was a near replica of their game against Vancouver from last week. For two periods the Senators were in the game but imploded in the third period in a span of a single minute to seal their fate.

The 5-1 score was ugly, but the Senators actually had a good effort. What really hurt them was the fact that only one line is capable of being dangerous at the moment, and that's the Jason Spezza-Alex Kovalev-Peter Regin trio.

Word is out that Mike Fisher is playing through an injury, but at some point the Senators are going to have to either sit him down for a game or two or swap him out with Chris Kelly in order to get something going for that line. If Fisher can't hit, as he has already admitted, then maybe he shouldn't be in the lineup. As unpalatable as it would be to insert Brian Lee onto the fourth line as they did already once this year, maybe Fisher sitting out a few games will add up to a big payoff down the road.

As it is, the Mike Fisher-Daniel Alfredsson-Milan Michalek line is sputtering big time with Michalek looking like he's still feeling the effects of the tendinitis in his knee, if his slowness is any indication.

The Senators have only scored five goals in their last three games, and not surprisingly, have lost two of them.

Yet they are now 1-1 on this current road trip, which may be one more win than anyone expected. If they can win at least one of their next two against either the Hurricanes or the Blues, this mini-road trip will have to be considered a success.

In light of the lopsided score, we'll skip the Senators 3 Star Selections for the fifth time this season. If we had to pick one player who stepped up tonight, it would be Jason Spezza who's become a legitimate goal-scoring threat and seems to be skating as good as he ever has in his career.

NOTES

The "Goat Cam" on hockey broadcasts is the shot right after a goal where the cameraman usually focuses on one player who, for one reason or other, contributed to a goal being scored against his own team, like a player coughing up the puck in front of his own net and the other team scores. So what do the Sportsnet people have against Alexei Kovalev? After the first Flyer goal by Daniel Briere, the goat cam went right to Kovalev even though the goal was quickly scored off a faceoff loss which Kovalev had nothing to do with. Then Darrell Powe of the Flyers scores less than five minutes later, and Kovalev was again the focus of the goat cam, but this time he wasn't even on the ice. He was sitting on the bench watching the Fisher line get scored against! He's not the second most despised hockey player by the media for nothing (of course, the other is Sean Avery - how entertaining was it to watch grown men in suits like Craig Button on the NHL Network froth at the mouth in unchecked rage talking about Avery's "sucker punch" of Ladislav Smid on Sunday night?) .....

.....Brian Elliott has made his case and is undoubtedly the Senators number one goalie right now. But to say that Pascal Leclaire is totally finished is a tad premature. Remember, it was the exact same situation last season, with Elliott taking this team to the playoffs while Leclaire struggled with injuries. Yet it was Leclaire who got a chance and ran with it once the playoffs rolled around. It's only November. Leclaire will get lots of chances to play well and try to steal the job back. Whether he does or not, that's another question.....It's incredible to think that the Detroit Red Wings are so good at either drafting or signing obscure European players that they could afford to basically give one away in Ville Leino to the Philadelphia Flyers last year. And just like the Red Wing Euro's that come through their system, Leino made his current reputation in the playoffs, where it really matters..... Looks like Sergei Bobrovsky is the real deal. Whenever he moves in the net, it sorta looks like he's on fast forward. Scary fast.....

....As predicted, there is a bit of a split in opinion in regards to NHL VP Colin Campbell over the email flap that arose today, but regardless of the tactless emails that legitimately shed doubt on Campbell's objectivity in regards to his son Gregory Campbell (who plays for the Bruins), the NHL is about 5 years too late getting new blood into that position. Campbell was so engulfed in controversy over his various decisions on suspensions before this current brouhaha, that his credibility had already been compromised to the point where people were openly mocking him - not the kind of respect that should be afforded to someone in his important position. For a guy that still thinks and talks like a coach, he would be better off behind a bench somewhere instead of being a target for every critic wanting to take a shot at the league..... The one thing many are not talking about when it comes to the Campbell controversy is that his written remarks have the ring of truth about them. Marc Savard is a kind of national hero since Matt Cooke nearly took his head off, but before that incident, Savard's rep had been through some major ups and downs over the course of his career and not everyone had a high opinion of the slick centre, or his attitude. Think Mike Ribeiro and you'll have a general idea.....

Someone who can no longer be accused of nepotism is Calgary GM Darryl Sutter, who demoted his son Brett to the AHL after the 23 year old brat got loaded and punched a cab driver in the face in Arizona recently..... Chris Campoli is quietly having a bounce back year... And Nick Foligno is not.

Senators Win Under Cloud Of Tragedy

The Ottawa Senators hard fought 2-0 win over the Boston Bruins Saturday night was, unbeknownst to many outside of the organization, played under very difficult circumstances as assistant coach Luke Richardson's daughter passed away from injuries in a suicide attempt.

Obviously, this is an almost unbelievable tragedy for the Richardson family and the Senators organization. When it comes to the death of a child, there are really no words that can be said to sum up the anguish the family must be going through.

It had already been a tough year after team doctor Don Chow severely injured himself in a motorcycle accident right near the beginning of training camp, but thankfully he looks like he will fully recover. Now the team must deal with an even more serious tragedy but with the good people in management on down to the training staff, this is a group capable of pulling together and helping the Richardson family get through the next crucial few weeks.

Somehow, after being informed of the tragedy the morning of the game, the Senators managed to gut out an impressive shutout of the Bruins and goalie Brian Elliott was spectacular at times, allowing the Sens to rebound nicely after a disappointing loss to the Canucks at home on Thursday.

Filip Kuba also returned to the lineup and found himself back on a pairing with Erik Karlsson, a combo which worked well last season.

Speaking of Karlsson, the youngster had another goal last night, giving him 11 points in 17 games, just one behind team defense leader Sergei Gonchar. Obviously, Karlsson has fully recovered from whatever struggles he had at the beginning of the season. Watching Karlsson play is to watch a future superstar. Not to gush too much, but I think we are seeing the heir apparent to Daniel Alfredsson, albeit a defenseman. Karlsson is going to be the best player on this Senators team for the next 15 years.

Next up for the Senators is the Flyers on Monday night. In a strange scheduling quirk, the semi-regular Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday format is being replaced by a Monday-Wednesday-Friday run for the next two weeks (with a Saturday tacked on in the second week). The Senators don't play at home until November 22 against the Kings.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Brian Elliott
2. Erik Karlsson
3. Sergei Gonchar

Honourable Mentions: The entire team for playing so well under the circumstances.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars Season Scorecard

3 Points 1st Star
2 Points 2nd Star
1 Point 3rd Star

Elliott – 16
Alfredsson – 9
Kovalev – 9
Spezza – 9
Michalek – 6
Leclaire – 5
Regin – 5
Karlsson - 5
Ruutu – 4
Gonchar – 4
Fisher – 3
Foligno – 2
Campoli - 1

Sens Streak Comes Crashing Down To Earth

The Senators four game winning streak came to a sudden, brutal end with the Vancouver Canucks exploding in the third period to rack up a 6-2 road win on Remembrance Day in the capital.

In short, the Senators got beaten by Roberto Luongo, who was absolutely outstanding and kept his team in the game during a giveaway filled first period. The home side should have had 2 or 3 goals by the end of the second but went in to the third down 2-1 and quickly fell apart.

This is one the Senators just need to forget about. They played well for two periods in front of a shaky but battling Pascal Leclaire who was making his first appearance in a while and if not for the goalie at the other end, the Sens would have been in command of the lead early on.

Sometimes a goalie beats you and there's not much you can do about it.

Unfortunately for Ottawa, the next goalie they face is Tim Thomas in Boston on Saturday night, a guy who could write a War and Peace sized tome on the topic of Senators domination.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Peter Regin
2. Jason Spezza
3. Alex Kovalev

NOTES

What's wrong with Mike Fisher? He looks like he's nursing an injury because he was somewhat invisible Thursday night, and with Milan Michalek struggling to overcome that nagging knee problem, that line is not really competing like they should. Fisher is obviously best when he's skating over other players and causing total mayhem on the forecheck, but we haven't seen that from him in a little while now. Fish was minus 3 on the night with 1 shot on goal. Obviously, not a great night for him.....

Just saying: Toronto Brian Burke is so headstrong and stubborn that he probably won’t fire coach Ron Wilson, even if the Leafs don’t win a game from now until Christmas. This is a guy that simply doesn’t like to back down in public– even if it gets in the way of success (see the Tomas Kaberle situation). But the thought of Boston getting another top 3 overall pick thanks to the Phil Kessel trade may make Burke desperate enough to eat some crow over Wilson and do the right thing. The Leafs simply can’t give the Bruins the opportunity to rub it in their faces once again or they risk becoming a laughingstock.….

...Speaking of laughingstocks, everyone’s having a great time laughing at the Devils and Ilya Kovalchuk, especially after that botched shootout attempt against the Sabres on Wednesday night. Kovalchuk is certainly not worth the monstrous contract handed out by Lou Lamoriello, but that shouldn’t disguise the fact that he’s still one of the most dynamic players in the NHL and turned down a similar big contract from the Atlanta Thrashers because he wanted to play for a winner. He's certainly not as bad a player or a guy as some people want to make him out to be. It hasn’t turned out well for Kovy and the Devils in the very early going, but it’s not like he’s going to turn into a 15 goal scorer. In time, he’ll be back near the top of the scoring list and the Devils will once again be a good team, if not this year, then next. But it looks like John MacLean won’t be the guy to guide them. It’s the “assistant coach syndrome”, which also struck assistant-turned head coaches John Paddock, Tony Granato, and others (MacLean did spend a year coaching the Devils AHL affiliate before being named head coach but was an assistant for years with the big team and inherited most of the same players). History keeps inflicting this painful lesson on general managers who are trying to do a good thing by promoting from within. More often than not, it doesn’t really work…

...It’s nice to see Peter Schaefer back in an NHL uniform after a disastrous stint with the Boston Bruins a few seasons ago. While he didn't get to play against his old team on Thursday night, to this day, he’s still the best Ottawa Senator I've ever seen with a puck along the boards playing keep-away. Jesse Winchester is pretty good at that particular skill as well, but Schaefer was just unbelievable. Too bad he wasn’t able to translate that possession time into more offense when he was here. Once in a while though, he would score a beauty like this one…..Every time I watch Roberto Luongo play, I'm always struck by how quickly he turns and whines to the refs every time he gets slightly touched in his net. Maybe that's just his competitive side coming out, but this is also the same guy who threatened to retire if the NHL ever made the nets bigger, even though the idea was only proposed as a worst-case scenario because goalies like Luongo were fighting tooth and nail against reductions in equipment size. Just one look at Luongo's shoulder pads tells you that goalies are still allowed to wear oversized gear that makes a mockery of the game. As I've said many, many times before, you could reduce the catching gloves by half the size and still have adequate protection there. The gloves goalies wear are a complete joke and need to be addressed, even if it makes Luongo take his gear and pout all the way home.....As of press time, no Senators fans were attacked by Rick Rypien. Stay tuned for further information....

Strange but true: On my Tuesday post I wrote this in defense of the shootout:

"To me, they should have went with 5 shooters a side instead of 3 right from the get go. Right now, the shootout is over way too quickly and if one team scores right away, the other side is pretty much doomed. At least with 5 shooters, you use more of your players, lessening the complaint that the shootout goes against the team concept in hockey."

On Wednesday, Michael Farber of Sports Illustrated wrote this in defense of the shootout:

"The problem never has been the shootout. The problem is that NHL 2.0 didn't go far enough with them. Only three shooters per side? Big mistake. Often, you hardly find your rhythm as a fan because the shootout is over so quickly. The league should have instituted a five-per-side format, like a major soccer final. If nothing else, a five-round shootout would have been a partial antidote to the argument that individual competitions are determining the outcome of a team game by involving a mere one sixth of the 18 skaters."

Yes, I'm suing.

I recommend reading the whole article because Farber makes some great points about the shootout and why the NHL should be out there celebrating it, not discussing ways to make it occur less often.

Spezza, Kovalev Combo Running The Show

With a dominating 5-2 win over the Atlanta Thrashers, the Senators 4th in a row, this team is starting to look a lot like last year's streaky club - either down in the dumps or top of the mountain.

Now it's just a matter of how long this great run can continue.

The old saying is that whatever line Daniel Alfredsson is playing on is the Senators number one trio, but the Jason Spezza, Alex Kovalev and Peter Regin line has quickly become the team's best since it was put together when Spezza returned from a groin injury a handful of games ago.

Against the Thrashers, Kovalev looked at times like he did when he was tearing opponents apart as a Ranger, Penguin and Canadien in the prime of his career. You can just tell he trusts his knee again, knowing that he can outskate guys like he used to going east to west. With skilled players like Kovalev, the hands never leave, but the legs and the confidence can wane and likely that was Kovalev's problem early in the season, when it seemed everyone and their dog wanted this guy out of the picture for good.

Before this line had success, you couldn't be blamed for wondering if putting Spezza and Kovalev together would create a defensive nightmare. Yet, there's Spezza killing penalties regularly, there's Kovalev chasing pucks down and making smart defensive plays with his stick that not many people notice. Peter Regin is just feeling grateful for getting linemates like this and is skating as good as he was last season, strangely acting as the line's only north-south player and getting chances because of it. If he gets himself into position, neither Spezza or Kovalev will have any problems getting him the puck. The goals for Regin will come.

And once again, Brian Elliott quietly had a very good game, somehow not making the official 3 Stars list despite making 35 saves on 37 shots.

He'll have no problem making the Black Aces list, which is presented right here:

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Jason Spezza
2. Brian Elliott
3. Alex Kovalev

Honourable Mentions: Erik Karlsson, David Hale, Peter Regin, Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips

NOTES

Frankly, I’m a little surprised that the anti-shootout sentiment is starting to gain traction in league circles. Detroit GM Ken Holland’s idea of four minutes of 4 on 4 overtime, followed by four minutes of 3 on 3, and then the shootout, is being met with some acclaim by a lot of old school hockey people, (yet not fully embraced at the GM's meetings on Tuesday) The shootout remains one of the most popular aspects of the game among fans but a lot of the hockey elite, such as the broadcasters and the beat writers tend to complain about the shootout only slightly less than headshots, which they still remain obsessed with. Now that scoring is again on the wane in the NHL, the shootout sometimes makes all the difference to a fan when it comes getting their money's worth after shelling out hundreds of dollars for the whole family just to watch one single game. To me, they should have went with 5 shooters a side instead of 3 right from the get go. Right now, the shootout is over way too quickly and if one team scores right away, the other side is pretty much doomed. At least with 5 shooters, you use more of your players, lessening the complaint that the shootout goes against the team concept in hockey. Plus, it’s often the only time you get to see pure skill in the NHL. Most goals in regulation time are scored by shots directed from the point or garbage goals from the crease. To me, the shootout is an entertaining way to end a tie-game and the NHL should give its head a shake if it is really intent on trying to make it happen less…..


…. Here’s a thought: Maybe Nick Foligno isn’t meant to be a top six winger after all. Watching the guy play, it’s clear that his biggest strengths are consistent with those of other third and fourth liners around the league. He’s most effective when he’s going to the net and battling for the puck along the boards, not when he tries to stickhandle through defenseman like he often gets caught doing when playing with guys like Spezza. Foligno likes to stickhandle with the puck way out in front of his body, a little like Spezza, but he doesn’t have the same skills or hockey sense that Spezza does, so he often doesn’t protect it well enough and the rush goes to waste. With his size, he shouldn’t be carrying the puck any more than absolutely necessary. He should be grinding it out and getting garbage goals off rebounds, like the goal he helped to create against the Thrashers on Tuesday night. Just a thought…..Seeing the Thrashers without Ilya Kovalchuk and Slava Kozlov just seems weird after all these years. In fact, I can barely even picture Kozlov as a Red Wing anymore where he had his best years. Almost as if every year played in an Atlanta uniform erases two good years in another sweater, although Kovalchuk may be thinking it's the other way around over in New Jersey….

There’s something wrong in the hockey world when Brian Lee gets to stay with the NHL team and a guy like Zack Smith has to go back down to the minors. Sure, two different positions, but that one-way contract needlessly awarded to Lee has been nothing but a cap-eater. It’s almost as if he was a bought-out player, but instead of playing for another team or in some other league, he’s eating popcorn in one of your arena boxes every night. With David Hale and now Patrick Wiercioch in the system, ready to play (and in Hale's case, ready for full-time duty), it would be best for both the team and Lee if the young defenseman got a fresh start somewhere else. And soon. As for Smith, he hasn’t had the best start to the season, but he’s going to get his chance at a full-time spot next year when a few older free-agents depart the team. Until then, he only has to learn to compete the same on every shift and to get away from some of the penalties where he's just trying to show how tough he is by trying to explode guys. Once he learns to pick his spots, he's going to be a hell of a player.

Tough Stretch Ahead For Sens... Plus Contest Winners

With the Senators on a good run of late, and with the win over Montreal on Saturday seemingly exorcising a few demons, the chatter around the team has been somewhat quiet lately, allowing a lot of the early season controversies to die down to a barely noticeable slow burn.

You can strike the goaltending controversy from the list. Brian Elliott has been more than solid in their recent stretch and Pascal Leclaire is healthy, waiting for his opportunity. No one seems to think that will come anytime soon.

Scratch Alex Kovalev from the problem list, as he is back in form after struggling early on.

Jason Spezza is healthy and contributing. Sergei Gonchar and Erik Karlsson are running the power play with authority and Chris Phillips seems like the old Chris Phillips again.

So what's to talk about after all that?

Well, there's three big tests coming up for the Senators within a week of each other. While the improved Atlanta Thrashers on Tuesday will be a tough opponent, it's the following three games against the Vancouver Canucks, the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers that will really show just how good these Senators are.

All three teams have to be considered legitimate contenders for the Stanley Cup this year and the Senators will have to try and beat the Bruins and Flyers on the road. Not an easy task.

If the Senators can win two of their next four games, that could actually be considered a reasonable success, considering the loaded lineups they'll be facing. With any luck, the Senators may have Filip Kuba back at some point during this stretch, but that would also mean that David Hale likely gets pushed out of the lineup. Hale has been a nice addition to this team but at least management knows they have a guy who can play in the NHL and provide quality minutes if they need his services again.

With the way defenseman go down to injury in this league, he may never even make it to back to Bingo in the first place

***

The ticket contest run yesterday on Black Aces went really well, and the amount of responses I got was surprising. Thanks to everyone who participated even though I didn't have time to respond to everyone who wrote in their answer.

In case you were wondering, it was Petr Schastlivy who was the only player other than Jason Spezza and Alexei Yashin to wear number 19 during the regular season for the Ottawa Senators.

Congratulations to Matt and Andrew who both won a pair of Coca-Cola Zero Zone tickets to the Atlanta game on Tuesday, generously provided by the Ottawa Senators.

Stay tuned for further contests later this month.

Black Aces Ticket Contest - Senators vs. Thrashers Nov. 9

If you've been listening to sports radio in town, you may have heard Senators President Cyril Leeder saying recently that some of the seats with the lowest price point are going unsold at Scotiabank Place, tickets that cost as low as $15 (tax included).

So in an effort to increase fan awareness of these available seats, the Senators contacted Black Aces recently with some tickets for me to give away to a pair of lucky fans and that's just what we're going to do.

Up for grabs are two pairs of tickets in the Coca-Cola Zero Zone  for this Tuesday's (Nov.9) game against the Atlanta Thrashers.

All you have to do is email me the correct answer to this trivia question:

Who is the only Senators player in modern history to wear sweater number 19 in the regular season other than Jason Spezza and Alexei Yashin?

Enterprising fans will know where to find this info online.

The first two people to email me at jeremymilks@hotmail.com with the correct player will get a pair of tickets to the Thrashers game on Tuesday (7:30 pm puck drop) which you will be able to pick up at the "will-call" office at Scotiabank Place the night of the game. I'll let you know by email no later than Sunday night if you've won and announce the winners on Black Aces shortly after. Make sure to write your full name in your email so there's no confusion at the will-call window.

While we generally don't do promotions here at Black Aces, this was too good of an opportunity to pass up. A couple of my readers get free tickets and the Senators get more butts in the seats. I've sat in the Coca-Cola Zero Zone once or twice in the past (sections 314, 315 and 316) and it's a good, inexpensive place to see a game, plus it's in the visitors end so you get to see the Senators coming at you 2 out of 3 periods.

Watch the blog for a couple more ticket giveaways in the coming month.

***

As for tonight's game against the Habs in Montreal, I picked the Senators to pull out a close one on the Citizen's Prediction Panel, even though I just recently wrote about the Senators having lost 11 of their last 12 Saturday games going back to last season, including all 4 so far this campaign.

They must be due, right? Maybe...

Spezza, Elliott Roll Over Isles

Another big win for the Senators despite the New York Islanders looking like a team just waiting to be picked off. After all, if you can't win the easy ones, you're not going to be around to play the hard games in April.

Jason Spezza looked like he was going to have a big game against Toronto on Tuesday but the bounces just weren't going his way. Tonight against the Islanders, almost everything he touched ended up behind Dwayne Roloson in a 4-1 win.

It was a big debate to see who deserved first star between Spezza and Brian Elliott, but with 4 points, I have to go with Spezza because without him, the Senators lose this game 1-0.

But that doesn't take away anything from Elliott who was huge by stopping two quick breakaways in the third period, getting some solace for the Boston game where he also faced two breakaways in succession and stopped the first before giving up the last to Milan Lucic. He was having none of that tonight.

I've cast a lot of doubt about Elliott's real potential to be a number one goalie on this site before, but he is starting to prove me wrong little by little as the season marches on. Don't call me completely convinced just yet (he's been on these hot streaks before), but, as a friend always says to me, Elliott doesn't get enough credit in this town.

Maybe he's right, maybe he's wrong. But for the Senators, Elliott is the guy right now and will get another big start against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday in a game the Senators would desperately love to win. With the Habs stumbling just a little as of late, the streaking Sens are in a good position to make good on that wish.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Jason Spezza (I called for him to get 3 points on the Prediction Panel, but then he ruins my good name by getting 4.)
2. Brian Elliott (best game of the year so far)
3. Peter Regin (finally)

Honourable mentions: Chris Campoli, Sergei Gonchar, Alex Kovalev, Jesse Winchester, Chris Kelly and David Hale

NOTES

Watching Jason Spezza inhaling the smelling salts before the game got me wondering. What does that stuff do anyways? According to Wikipedia it "irritates the mucous membranes of the nose and lungs, and thereby triggers an inhalation reflex that causes the muscles that control breathing to work faster." So, kinda gross. Here's a good article that ran on a Caps blog just last season with a classic line from Brooks Laich who asks the reporter right back  "You ever use smelling salts, every time you type a bad blog?"..... Spotted a girl on TSN wearing a classic white Ron Tugnutt jersey. You don't see too many of those anymore, but Tugger was extremely popular when he played here. A vintage Sens jersey I would like to own? A Dennis Vial classic black. While my dream may never come true, at least we still have videos of Rob Ray and Vial just destroying each other virtually every time they met. Wow.




Speaking of jerseys, the best decision the Isles have made in the last twenty years is to go back to their original 80's uniforms, as you can see here and here. They've come a long way since the Captain Highliner days. Changing the sweaters back was the first step. Now it's time for them to start winning....David Hale gave Spezza a pretty good "suicide pass" in the first period but luckily Spezza didn't get runover because the unlikely duo hooked up again, this time with Hale taking a pass from Spezza for his first goal of the year ...... Does Sergei Gonchar have the biggest visor in the NHL? If not, it must be close.....It was great to see former Mississauga Senator Chris Campoli coming to the defense of former Mississauga Ice Dog Jason Spezza after number 19 was cranked from behind by Matt Martin in the third period. There was no hesitation there whatsoever on Campoli's part....Got to give a stick tap to Zack Smith who went on to scrap with Martin at the end of the game, and took a few good shots because of it.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Black Aces Guest Post

Black Aces has a guest post up at Senators Extra today. You can check it out here.

Also, be sure to drop in on the Prediction Panel run by James Gordon at the Citizen every game day. I'm running an 8-4 record which isn't bad, considering I ask my newborn son before making my picks. Usually he just stares at me blankly and then goes back to chewing on something valuable of mine (Hey, if Don Cherry could ask his dog Blue which goalie he should put in for the Bruins on any given night, I figure I can get away with it as well).

Tonight I'm taking the Senators over the Islanders, but so is everyone else on the panel. Who was the big talker who picked Spezza to get 3 points tonight? That would be me. But if it happens, heyyyy...

Sens Plunge Leaf Nation Into Disarray

Redemption in Toronto.

This was the site of the most humiliating loss of their short season back on October 9th, but the Senators stepped onto the ice tonight fully prepared to compete, determined to bounce back after a deflating loss to the Bruins on Saturday.

The Leafs began riding a high after that first game against Ottawa but have now joined the New Jersey Devils in the Panic Room, and the sight of Dion Phaneuf being helped off the ice and later being taken by stretcher to the hospital to check what could be a fracture to his "lower body", probably won't help Leafs Nation have a good Wednesday.

Mike Fisher and Daniel Alfredsson led the way in the early going by skating hard and making plays, with Alfie in particular making the worries about being injured look like it was just a clever ruse to throw off the Leafs. Fisher really got the Senators going by scoring a perfect penalty shot goal, freezing Jean Sebastien Giguere so solidly in his crease that he looked like Jack Nicholson at the end of The Shining.

But game summaries are mostly boring, so we won't get too deep into this one, but the 3-2 victory tonight sets up the Senators for a home game against the Islanders on Thursday which they should win, or at least have a good chance to. If... if they can beat the Islanders, suddenly you could be looking at a team that has won 5 of their last 7 games, and can no longer be accused of being in a slump.

Actually, forget Thursday. The slump is over folks. The Sens have won 4 of 6 since their four day break between October 18th and 22nd, when everyone was burying them after they got off to a 1-4-1 start. If you remember that week, it was a long one for the guys.

Now they've bounced back and have a chance to make some real progress if Filip Kuba and Milan Michalek can get back into the lineup anytime soon.

Black Aces Senators Three Stars

1. Brian Elliott (stellar tonight, no bad goals)
2. Erik Karlsson (imagine the Sens panicked and sent him to Bingo?)
3. Sergei Gonchar (starting to show his stuff on the power-play)

Honourable Mentions: Daniel Alfredsson (it was basically a coin toss that kept him out of the top 3 stars after playing injured - and playing well), Jason Spezza, Mike Fisher and Matt Carkner.

McGrattan Rips Neil From Safe Distance In AHL

As Ken Warren of the Citizen reports, ex-Sen and current Boston Bruin (in the minors) Brian McGrattan didn't like Chris Neil attacking Bruin defenseman Dennis Seidenberg near the end of the Sens lopsided loss to them on Saturday.

“That’s typical Chris Neil. I had to protect that guy for three years when I was there. He’d do that and I’d have to fight all his battles for him the next time we’d play a team after he’d do something stupid like that. It doesn’t surprise me.”

Lots of fun, this kind of stuff. But somewhat laughable to suggest Neil has ever ducked fights in his career, with 1,518 PIM's to his name.

What Neil did to Seidenberg was somewhat out of character, but in the end, Seidenberg wasn't hurt. Neil would have no problem going against the likes of Shawn Thornton or Milan Lucic at any time (as the bloody video below will attest). Neil understands that when you lose, make sure it's ugly and you get a little something to carry away.

As for McGrattan, it's great to hear he's signed with the Bruins and he was a top-notch enforcer while he was in Ottawa, and a very likable guy, but he'll never have half the career that the much smaller Neil has had, and that says something about toughness, both mental and physical.

Sens Saturdays A Streak To Forget

Call it the Saturday Night Flu.

With their 4-0 shutout loss to the Bruins on Saturday night, the Ottawa Senators have now dropped their last 6 regular season Saturday night games going back to last season, including all 4 so far this campaign.

And that's not even the ugliest stat we can come up with in case you were wondering.

If you start digging back into their Saturday schedule going back to last year's schedule, the Senators have now lost 11 of their last 12 Saturday games.

11 of 12. Just let that sink in.

You want the details?

2010-2011

Sat. Oct. 30: Loss x-x to Bruins
Sat. Oct. 23: Loss 3-0 to Canadiens
Sat. Oct. 16: Loss 4-3 to Canadiens
Sat. Oct. 9: Loss 5-1 to Maple Leafs

2009-2010

Sat. Apr. 10: Loss 5-2 to Sabres
Sat. Apr. 3: Loss 4-1 to Islanders
Sat. Mar. 27: WIN 3-2 over Panthers
Sat. Mar. 20: Loss 5-4 to Stars
Sat. Mar. 13: Loss 5-1 to Canucks
Sat. Mar. 6: Loss 2-1 to Maple Leafs
Olympic Break: No Saturday games played between 13th of Feb. to 6th of Mar.
Sat. Feb. 13: Loss 4-1 to Red Wings
Sat. Feb. 6: Loss 5-0 to Maple Leafs

That's 11 of 12 folks. Beyond ugly.

This awful stretch has included 3 losses to the Leafs at a combined score of 12-2.

The news doesn't get any better. The next 3 Saturday games are against the Canadiens, the Bruins and the Leafs. All 3 teams have figured prominently in the current woeful streak.

What makes it even harder to take is that the majority of these games have been broadcast on Hockey Night In Canada, the kind of national stage that gives local fans the opportunity to see their beloved team show what they have to the rest of the country.

Unfortunately for Senators fans, all the rest of the country sees of this team on a regular basis is a Keystone Cops routine and the captain getting booed in his own building.

Oh brother.

Does Clouston Break Up Lines For Spezza?

With Jason Spezza a "probable" candidate to return to the lineup for Saturday's home tilt against the powerful Boston Bruins, coach Cory Clouston now has to find a line for him without blowing up the chemistry this still fragile team has going for itself after two straight wins.

Does he really go ahead and reconstruct the original first line with Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson and Milan Michalek, or does he keep Mike Fisher between those two wingers and find room elsewhere?

For a few reasons, Clouston should put Spezza, at first, on a line with Ryan Shannon and Zack Smith (unless Smith gets sent down to Bingo to save cap space right away - in that case Jesse Winchester).

It's not the kind of linemates Spezza should be with full-time going forward but in the short-term it could accomplish three things:

1. It doesn't disrupt the other lines that are working so well at the moment.
2. It will reduce Spezza's minutes at first putting less strain on his injured groin.
3. It will give the Senators an awfully good weapon on a "fourth line" and may allow Spezza to play against the Bruins weaker part of the lineup.

It will be interesting to see what Clouston does.

Senators Finally Score Some Goals

Isn't it funny how one night, one game, can make the trail of bad ones behind you seem to disappear for a while. Certainly, the Senators and Alexei Kovalev are hoping that's the case.

The Senators took a big step ahead in this early but magnified season by beating the Phoenix Coyotes 5-2, falling just a goal short of giving their fans some free pizza, but giving them some much needed hope all the same.

The Senators record now stands at 3-5-1 and they have a chance to get to .500 at home if they can beat the Panthers on Thursday and the Bruins on Saturday. With a lot of the small things starting to go right, that's a realistic scenario for a team that has gone through a confidence draining slump to start the season.

Of course the big story will be the coming out party of Alexei Kovalev, but what may be more important is the play of a few defenseman, most notably Erik Karlsson who looks like he has some of his swagger back out there on the ice. He had an important power-play goal to kick start the game and despite a few giveaways, he is starting to look like a different player than the one who many were calling to be returned to Binghamton just this past week. The call-up of the steady David Hale to play with Karlsson has given Cory Clouston a third defense pairing that actually seems to be working, allowing Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips to stay together and get some kind of chemistry going.

Chris Campoli has been very good lately, even though it looks like his role is going to be that of depth player and not an offensive one. By working well with Matt Carkner, the Senators defense seems to have settled down into something workable going forward, and that is going to be the biggest factor in this team getting better. Before your team can score goals, you need your defensemen to break the puck out of the zone with consistency. With that happening tonight against the Coyotes, you could see the chances start to come for the forwards.

Also interesting was Clouston flipping Gonchar and Karlsson on the points during a late power-play. While it may prove to be a challenge for Karlsson playing his off-side (although he is a right handed shot), it may do wonders for Gonchar to play on the wall he's been used to for close to a decade. It's an interesting development to watch.

On the strength of Kovalev's big game, Peter Regin managed two much needed points and that line, along with Nick Foligno, was plus 2 on the night, and for the first time this season, Clouston had three lines that all looked capable of scoring.

Frankly, that's somewhat of a miracle.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Alexei Kovalev
2. Daniel Alfredsson
3. Brian Elliott

Honourable Mentions: Erik Karlsson, Chris Kelly, Peter Regin, Nick Foligno, Chris Campoli, Matt Carkner and newly minted 1000 game man Sergei Gonchar.

Since we haven't done so yet this season, here's the totals so far (games that I don't write about still get the 3 star treatment unless the game was a debacle and no points deserved to get awarded - which has happened three times so far this season)

Black Aces 3 Stars Season Scorecard

1st Star - 3 points
2nd Star - 2 points
3rd Star - 1 point

Alfredsson – 7
Leclaire – 5
Ruutu – 4
Elliott – 4
Fisher – 3
Michalek – 3
Kovalev - 3
Foligno – 2
Gonchar – 2
Karlsson - 1
Regin – 1
Spezza - 1


NOTES

Call it bad luck: Number 55 Sergei Gonchar being associated with Sammy Hagar because of that song "Can't Drive 55" (which was inexplicably a big hit in '84). The Senators understandably used it as the track for his 1000th game tribute video before the opening faceoff, but will they begin to use it as his "goal song" too? We will probably find out soon enough.... Do you think Glenn Frey's "The Heat Is On" was erased from the music database at the Kanata rink? If not, maybe they should play it every time number 15 Zack Smith scores a goal this year. Just for old time's sake....

It seem like ages ago when the Coyotes used to go out onto the ice wearing this monstrosity of a jersey....... Dave Tippett has proven to be a very effective coach, especially in a rescue operation like the one in Phoenix, but the Coyotes used to be a bit more fun to watch when Wayne Gretzky was running the bench. Sure, they were terrible, but Tippett's teams are only slightly more watchable than a Ken Hitchcock led squad......Speaking of Hitchcock, could he be back in the NHL if John MacLean can't sort out the New Jersey mess before too long? Talk about an obvious fit.....

Hard to believe it's never happened before - someone mixing up Matt Carkner with Terry Carkner. At least I haven't heard it yet. Sens colour man Denis Potvin made the mix-up during tonight's game, but that's somewhat understandable. Just like Matt, Terry was a tough defenseman who was last seen playing for the Panthers at the end of an 858 NHL game career. Also like Matt, Terry was a local boy, born in Smiths Falls. Apparently, they are "third cousins"...... And finally, a Senators game against Ilya Bryzgalov gives us an excuse to resurrect this classic video of Bryz talking about Chris Pronger returning to Edmonton as a Duck after requesting a trade a few years ago. This never gets old...

Sens Struggles Will Force GM's Hand

The Ottawa Senators are running out of excuses for yet another no-show performance against the Montreal Canadiens this weekend, and with each successive letdown, Bryan Murray is now getting closer to being forced into making some kind of move to help improve this struggling club.

If you want an excuse, you could chalk up the listless loss on Saturday to the fact that it was yet another back-to-back Friday-Saturday game, and that they were coming off an exuberant high after their captain Daniel Alfredsson recorded his 1000th point with a hat-trick against the Sabres on Friday. You could say they didn't have their legs. Not too many people are buying that one anymore after seeing this team come into the majority of their games looking like they weren't prepared in the first period. Heck, you could even try to pin some blame on the hometown fans who were once again made to look meek in their own barn as the Habs faithful took over the rink with ease and managed to boo the beleaguered home captain on national television for all the country to see. We can guarantee there has never been a case where the home team captain gets booed in his own rink whenever two separate teams come to town. Never. Yet here we are.

More and more, we are seeing that the Senators can only rely on one line, the Chris Kelly, Chris Neil and Jarkko Ruutu trio to provide energy every single game, while individual players scattered across the team, namely Alfredsson and Mike Fisher, have been very good for the most part, even if their various linemates aren't producing.

The entire defense core, thrown into chaos by the significant departures of Anton Volchenkov, Andy Sutton and the injury to Filip Kuba, is still struggling as a group with various individuals taking turns having good games before regressing the next. Fortunately, it looks as though Erik Karlsson is really starting to find his game after getting off to a horrendous start. With the call-up of David Hale, the pairing of Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips is going to get a chance to stay together and improve.

Yet it's getting late fairly early around here, to paraphrase Yogi Berra. With two very winnable games on the dock for this week: Phoenix and Florida, Murray may get a slight reprieve if the Senators are able to win two in a row for the first time this season.

But essentially, Murray has only 3 real options going forward to help this club.

One, he can stand pat and wait for the team to charge back to life. This is the easiest option considering the salary cap and the restraints it puts on Murray, but it is probably the least effective. What's clear is that the Senators just don't have a real goal-scorer. They have a few guys who may be able to get 25, but they don't have a sniper who can help them win games even when they are outplayed. Basically, if the Senators don't get a lot of shots on net, they don't score. Not doing anything to try and address this weakness will make sure the Senators are also-rans by December.

Two, Murray can make a big trade, or a couple of small ones. Not an easy task, obviously. But if you are looking for candidates to be moved, look no further than Nick Foligno. It's becoming clear that Foligno is not going to be a top six forward with any consistency and he's young enough that his name will more than likely come up in any trade talks. Foligno is a great character player, but what is he really providing for this team? Other Senators that could conceivably be moved if Murray did try and make a trade? Filip Kuba, Milan Michalek, Brian Lee, Chris Campoli and even Ruutu who is in the last year of his contract. It's hard to imagine Murray would trade a player with the upside of Peter Regin, despite his early struggles, because the Senators need more players with skill, youth and a cheap ticket, not less.

Three, Murray can make a coaching change. But that's not going to happen. Cory Clouston has done a great job since he came into a bad situation two seasons ago and the fact that Murray has went down that route twice already certainly precludes it. This is an option in name only, not in reality. Yet questions about the preparedness of this team are starting to creep up. Clouston needs to shore up that weakness before the whispers get louder.

So which option is it going to be? Stand pat, make a trade or make a coaching change?

Likely, even Bryan Murray doesn't know yet.

Sens Talk Trade, Fans Talk Kovie

The Senators had a very interesting day at the rink on Wednesday, as GM Bryan Murray openly told the press that he was talking trade, then called out trusted veteran Chris Phillips and the struggling Erik Karlsson, then sent Zack Smith down to Bingo, and watched Sergei Gonchar take a painful shot off the foot. Gonchar left the ice for close to fifteen minutes before returning, possibly saving the season in the process (okay, a little melodramatic). Then Cory Clouston threw in a well deserved bag skate for good measure.

Meanwhile the fanbase and the media were busy pointing fingers at all the usual suspects - namely Alex Kovalev, a tired bit that nevertheless gets the readers and listeners all fired up lynch mob style.

Folks, Kovalev is off to a terrible start, but he's not the lone reason the Senators are in trouble here. Neither is it a "lack of effort" on his part, or the team as a whole, as some also claim. I've never bought into that mumbo jumbo and neither should you. Guys who make it to the NHL don't have problems with work ethic. It's a dozen small factors that start accumulating and next thing you know you're at the bottom of the standings and your GM is trying to trade half the team to the Minnesota Wild.

And that was rather interesting. Murray straight up mentioned that he was talking trade with Wild GM Chuck Fletcher, but logic probably tells us Murray is more interested in jacking up the emotions on his team rather than helping the Wild with their own numerous problems.

It's worth noting that Brian Lee was born and raised in Moorhead, Minnesota, but really, that's just the flimsiest of connections and you'd have to wonder what the Wild could possibly see in the young, but diminishing prospect. Yet it's conceivable the Senators, with the right package, could convince the Wild to part with one of their 4 defenseman who make 3 million or more, most interestingly Cam Barker who has yet to live up to his potential as an offensive defenseman other than one good year with Chicago. The Wild aren't using him as a 20 minute guy, giving that time instead to Marek Zidlicky, Brent Burns and Nick Schultz. With an abundance of forwards, the Senators would certainly like to add a physical defenseman who can eat up minutes. Barker is not a bonecrusher by any means but he's fairly big and is a good overall defenseman.

To get a player like Barker or an equivalent, the Senators would have to move about 3 million of salary the other way, a tough task at any time.

Regardless, it's just speculation, but grounded in the fact that Murray didn't leave much to the imagination in his press scrum today.

What isn't speculation is that the demotion of Smith allows Murray to recall David Hale to ostensibly replace Lee on that last defense pairing. I figured this would happen in my last re-cap post, but I thought it could be Lee going the other way, not Smith. Yet it makes much more sense to send Smith and his two-way contract down instead of Lee, eliminating the risk of losing an asset to the waiver wire, even if it means Lee collects his paycheque sitting in the press box.

Still, it was a move that had to be made. Just like Kovalev, it's ridiculous to throw more blame than is needed on young Lee, but Hale is going to go in there and start throwing the body around a little and making opposing players think twice about going to the front of the net. When Lee and Erik Karlsson were guarding that area together, it became a bit of a bad joke. Sometimes, you just have to lay the lumber to someone's back and get in their face, something Lee and Karlsson are just not cut out to do. In Karlsson's case, at least he can provide offense and play on the power-play. Unfortunately for Lee, he wasn't going to get that chance anyways.

Long enough week, anyone?

***

More on Kovalev right from the Bryan Murray press scrum (thanks to 6th Sens for the text):

Q: Bryan, Alexei Kovalev is seemingly a lightning rod for criticism. How would you evaluate him thus far?

BM: Not very good. It looks like his skating isn't where it was last year. I think there are lingering effects from the surgery that he had. I'm hoping that's part of it. I'm hoping that as time goes on and he gets going, it's like Milan. I don't think Milan is quite where he will be. I don't think Alex is where he will be. We need him to be a good player for this hockey team. We need him to be a creative player. He doesn't have to be a star. He has to be creative and help the players that he's playing with, the power play, those areas to get better. He knows he is one of those people who everyone points at. I don't know whether that bothers him or not. I assume it would like it bothers anyone else.

If you look at the play of Kovalev in the context of a guy coming off major knee surgery, you start to see that perhaps there are better days ahead for the former star and maybe just a little more patience is needed from certain vocal fans who, you can just guess, are getting ready to try and embarrass the man by booing him when the Senators celebrate his inevitable 1000th point. I really hope for the reputation of the fans in this great city, that this type of ugly spectacle doesn't happen.

For further reading on Kovalev, here's a great article from Peter over at Silver Sevens, who has a lot of good points to make about the current frenzy over the struggling winger

Black Aces Vintage - Alan Thicke Edition

Yes, this really happened.

Many of you have probably seen this already but it's worth showing again for those who might have missed this double masterpiece.

First up, Dionne and the Puck-Tones, which was a musical supergroup extravaganza consisting of the Kings famous Triple Crown Line of Charlie Simmer, future Kings GM Dave Taylor,  and of course, the short but multi-talented Marcel Dionne. And boy, can he dance. They called this hot number, "Forgive My Misconduct".



This came out as a 7-inch single in 1979 with the proceeds going towards the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.

On the flip side was the even more popular "Hockey Sock Rock" with a bunch of Rangers, including current Blues Prez John Davidson (who actually plays a sax solo with a ketchup dispenser in the video), Dave Maloney (who's brother Don is now the Coyotes GM) and one of my favourite hockey players ever, Ron Duguay, who has a bit of a Peter Frampton vibe happening here. This Stones-esque group was called Phil Esposito and The Ranger Rockers.

All of this was brought to you by Alan Thicke, native of Kirkland Lake, Ontario (also home to Darren Puppa and many other NHL'ers like Hall of Famer Dick Duff). Thicke wrote and produced the two songs, and then went on to inflict the television saga known as Growing Pains on an unwary world.

Which, in a roundabout way, shows that no matter how tough a season the Senators are having so far, it will likely never get this bad.

But you never know.

Senators Spiral Further Down The Drain In Steeltown

Is it too early to hit rock bottom?

Obviously not, as the Ottawa Senators skated onto the ice in Pittsburgh for game 6 of their season looking like a team who knew they were going to lose, and they went ahead and did so in an embarrassing fashion.

There's no need to pile on any more here as there will be a lot of ink spilled and hair torn out all week long while the Senators wait an eternity to play again on Friday against the Sabres.

Clearly, there is a major problem here but there isn't much GM Bryan Murray can do to solve it right now. He can try and make a big trade but not many other teams are in panic mode just yet and still feel they have a chance with their current rosters.

It wouldn't be surprising to see a quick move by Murray to send Brian Lee down to Binghamton, even if it means there's a chance he gets plucked on waivers by somebody (not likely), and bring up David Hale who should have been on the roster from day one. I would be shocked if this doesn't happen, as Cory Clouston wouldn't even put Lee on the ice for most of the game after a meltdown shift in the second period. Hale would at least provide a bit more muscle back there, something this team is dying without.

As for the forwards, maybe Zack Smith bounces someone else to reserve squad but that won't make much of a difference.

They look beaten and it's only been six games.

I will warn people not to get too carried away this week in the ongoing Alex Kovalev bashing sweepstakes. This is not a defense of his play (he's been brutal, but much better against the Penguins), but it's foolish to think that benching Kovalev is going to make all of this team's problems go away. You could sit him and it won't make a lick of difference. Endlessly ripping the guy is not going to give the Senators the natural goal scorer they lack, it won't give them the speed they lack and it won't give them the toughness on defense that they don't have.

It's not just Kovalev, a fading superstar coming off major knee surgery. This team is just not in the right mindset to win games.

For the second time this season, we'll take a pass on awarding the Senators 3 Stars tonight.

The good news? Robin Lehner has now played parts of two games and has not given up a single goal. It's a small consolation for Senators fans, but a nice story all the same.

Senators Limp Past 5 Game Mark

After another tough loss, this time to the Montreal Canadiens, the Senators find themselves at the first signpost of the season, the five game mark, and one undeniable feeling is quickly becoming clear. This Senators team is not nearly good enough to really compete for a top spot in the East.

And it's not the goalies, like many thought it would be. Both Pascal Leclaire and Brian Elliott have been solid early in the season.

Instead, it comes down to three simple but fatal flaws.

One, they don't have enough speed among their forwards. Two, they don't have a natural goal scorer. And three, the defense is soft and unimposing.

Any one of those flaws would make it hard on a team to win consistently, but put all three together and you're looking at a long year here.

Just try and pick the fastest skater among the forwards right now. It's probably Ryan Shannon. After him, who do you have? Mike Fisher? Chris Kelly? It's a toss-up between them and a few others, none of whom will be mentioned in the other team's game plan for their speed.

As for goal scoring, Mike Fisher led the team last year with 25. And that was a career year for him. Milan Michalek now has three goals this season (after getting two tonight), but the most he's ever had is 26. Daniel Alfredsson and Alex Kovalev's best goal scoring days are gone. Jason Spezza is a playmaker. No one is likely to get 30 or more goals this year for the Senators and that has got to scare their already jittery fans.

As for the defense, it's looking more and more like letting both Anton Volchenkov and Andy Sutton go without replacing at least a smidgen of their grit is going to be a costly mistake on the part of Bryan Murray (signing David Hale doesn't really count because even though he was much better than Brian Lee in camp, he got sent down because of Lee's ill-advised one-way deal).  They have too much of the same type of player back there, even when the perpetually injured Filip Kuba returns. You could take both Lee and Chris Campoli out of the lineup and not miss them for a second. They're cheap, god love them, but they're just warm bodies filling a uniform and a salary cap chart. They're not difference makers.

Five games is a small sample, but you don't have to see too many more games before you realize this team is not going to succeed as it is currently constructed. Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips are an excellent defense pairing but they are being forced to carry the entire load so far simply because the other pairings haven't proven to be effective.

Spezza's line needs some speed on it, but there's no one to plug in there. As it stands now, there are no answers within the club. They may get on a nice hot streak here and there, but they won't be able to compete with the faster teams in the East. It's just not going to happen.

The Senators have some really good parts but they need some kind of move to bring in a few guys who are going to address the flaws they have right now.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

Ottawa 3 Montreal 4

1. Brian Elliott
2. Milan Michalek
3. Jason Spezza

Honourable Mentions: Daniel Alfredsson, Sergei Gonchar, Jesse Winchester

NOTES

Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun is about as divisive a sports columnist that you can find in this town. You see a lot of negative reaction to him on blogs lately, but I find his stuff to be good for a laugh now and then and he's one of the few who actually takes the time to present the players as actual personalities and not just numbers on a roster. Half the time he's just taking the piss. Some got upset after Brennan recently nicknamed Pascal Leclaire "Porcelain Pascal" but actually, it's fairly apt for obvious reasons. I've heard more degrading nicknames. But this exchange in the usually mundane Digital Faceoff section with guest Mitch Melnick about Leclaire perplexed me :

MELNICK: I see the word Porcelain and I think ... monkey.

BRENNAN: I don’t think we should even touch that one.


MELNICK: Why not? I thought you liked “tough.”


BRENNAN: I just don’t think we should touch the monkey ... comparison.

I don't want to speculate on what Brennan meant by this remark (I have a good idea), but you have to wonder how this made it past the editing stage. But remember, this is the same "newspaper" that ran a front page on the day of the contentious gun registry vote with a picture of a double-barrel shotgun pointing out at the viewer with the headline "Unload It". Real classy. And these guys wanted a "must-carry" TV license from the CRTC?...... Can we now confirm that Milan Michalek has definitely lost a skating step after off-season surgery? It was tough to see him give the puck up to Brian Gionta at the blue-line in the first period, but it was even harder to watch him trying to catch up. This guy doesn't have the speed anymore, but at least he still has the hands. He got that goal back by the end of the period by quickly reacting to an Alfie slapshot that kerranged off the post right to him and he scored another nice one in the second........... Coach Clouston was rocking the salmon coloured shirt tonight. Yikes. But as a fellow Kiss fan, he gets a pass..... Best Kiss LP? Without a doubt, Destroyer released in 1976, but what's the second best Kiss album? For me, it has to be the one that I grew up with in the 80's when they were a little past their prime, the first one without makeup - 1983's Lick It Up. Don't believe me? Check out the video below. This video actually scared me as a little kid. The only thing scary about this now is Gene Simmons fighting apocalyptic hobos with some kind of meat in one hand and Paul Stanley rapping. Double Yikes.



.......Is the league's new "blindside hit to the head" rule the new version of the much hated "toe in the crease rule"? Remember that fiasco from the late 90's, where nearly every goal was subject to review to see if even an inch of someones skate blade was in the crease? That was the height of the "dead puck era" in the NHL, but now it seems we're entering the "no hit era" and the proof is starting to build early into this season. Every big hit is now subject to intense scrutiny. Was the initial point of contact the head? Was it a lateral hit? Was there intent to hit the head? Was the arm up or straight to his side? Did anyone's feelings get hurt? It's gotten completely ridiculous. Nick Foligno gets fined for a perfectly good shoulder to shoulder hit (I still don't see initial contact with the head - it was incidental), and now the Penguins Kris Letang gets a game-misconduct the other night for what should be a perfectly legal hit on the Islanders Blake Comeau. If this kind of hit is now going to be penalized, then claims that the new headshot rule is going to take big hits out of the game - an argument constantly discredited by proponents of the new standard - now has to be taken very seriously.

Sens Win... Fisher Line Dominates...Media's Most Hated... and other notes

At times it felt like the Senators had to climb a mountain to beat the Carolina Hurricanes tonight, but thanks to Mike Fisher and a little lady luck, they ended their short but miserable losing streak, winning a close affair 3-2.

Even more interesting was the line switching that Cory Clouston pulled off once the Senators got off to another slow start. And he even took a big risk by breaking up his best line to do it. But it paid off big time.

Some were calling the Fisher-Winchester-Foligno trio the "fourth line" going into the game, but Clouston didn't take long to yank Winchester and insert Chris Neil on that wing, breaking up the best line the Senators have had so far this season (Winchester dropped down to play with Chris Kelly and Jarkko Ruutu - and even they didn't miss a beat). The new Fisher line then went on to almost single-handedly win the game for the Senators.

Fisher just took over the game in the second period and Clouston kept throwing his line out on to the ice. The first goal Fisher scored was the kind of garbage goal (it flopped over the head of Cam Ward and looped into the net) that the Senators needed to get going.

With a little of the scoring burden off their shoulders, the "first line" of Spezza-Alfredsson-Michalek began to look better and Michalek finished off a highlight reel passing play spearheaded by Alfie. If it wasn't for the incredible play of Ward, the Senators would have racked five goals by the end of the night.

If Clouston keeps the lines the way they finished in this game, the Senators may have finally found the right combinations to roll four units. Going into tonight, the Spezza line looked terrible and Fisher was missing in action.

Even the second unit power-play scored, with Kovalev looking more at home on the right side half-boards. The first unit was still way too hesitant to shoot but you have to think they are going to get it right fairly soon.

The defensive pairing of Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips was rock solid except for a two minute stretch in the third where they got scored on twice. They looked very comfortable together and it would be a shame for Clouston to break them up. But that leaves the rest of the defense units looking shaky, with Erik Karlsson still struggling with his confidence.

And we haven't even mentioned the goaltending catastrophe that struck the Senators early in the game when Pascal Leclaire went down with an innocuous looking leg injury. The city as a whole must have groaned at the sight of Leclaire limping off the ice but Brian Elliott came in and did a good job for the most part.

It won't do any good to speculate on what's going to happen in nets going forward, but Leclaire just seems doomed here in Ottawa. There's no other way to put it.

Regardless, the Senators have a chance to go into Montreal and steal one on Saturday, as the Habs will be on the second night of a back-to-back after playing the Sabres on the road on Friday.

It's not been pretty to watch, but this Senators season is lurching forward and getting more interesting every game.

Black Aces Senators 3 Stars

1. Mike Fisher
2. Nick Foligno
3. Milan Michalek

Honourable Mentions: Brian Elliott, Chris Neil, Chris Kelly, Sergei Gonchar


Notes


Clouston needs to stop these game-day goalie announcements (not that he may even have a choice if Leclaire is really hurt). He’s needlessly freaking people out daily by making sure it's always the first thing sportswriters want to know. Nothing produces a media frenzy like a good mystery. Who’s gonna start tonight? Only Clouston has the answers and he’s lording it above everyone. It’s needless, as was his rip job on Leclaire after the Washington game. In Ottawa, it often helps to dampen speculation, not inflame it. It’s like riding a wild horse when having to deal with the local media and fanbase. You need to tame it to get anywhere. In a market like Carolina, you got a donkey that you sometimes need to prod to get some interest. Two different animals, two different approaches. Ripping players publicly might work in Carolina where the only pressure on the team comes from players and management but not in Ottawa where even infant babies know that Ottawa’s goaltending is a nightmare from which they cannot wake..…

It was quite fun listening to the outright disdain TSN colour-man Pierre McGuire had for Alexei Kovalev throughout tonight's game, something he shares in common with many NHL journalists. It got me wondering if there was another current player out there who has taken more abuse from journalists than Kovalev. There are, but not many. If I had to make a top 5 list of the most despised hockey players by the media, it would look something like this:

1. Sean Avery - I'm convinced a lot of media guys would actually like to fight him if they were allowed to. Even Eric Duhatschek.

2. Alex Kovalev - Russians already face an unfair bias (still)  in NHL circles but Kovalev gets called a slacker more often than Spicoli from Ridgemont High.

3. Olli Jokinen - Some TV guys blow into a howling rage just at the sight of his bald dome.

4. Patrick Kaleta - He's the new brat but already inspires a gagging reflex among most scribes.

5. Mikhail Grabovski - Okay, even I would swing at this guy. He's the new Petr Klima.

 
Here we go again department: Get ready to endure another season of obsessive focus on borderline hits and endless cries for an end to “senseless violence” in hockey. All. Season. Long.

Some people are aghast that Niklas Hjamlarsson only got two games for a “hit from behind” on Sabre Jason Pominville and have been in an apoplexy ever since, backing Sabre’s goalie Ryan Miller’s rant on the need for a “culture change” in the NHL. There definitely does need to be a culture change when it comes to deliberate blindside hits to the head (fait accompli thanks to a recent rule change), but why is everyone so up in arms over the Hjamlarsson hit?

He hit Pominville on the shoulder (okay, on the back of the shoulder) in an attempt to knock him off the puck (which was headed to Pominville but never got there). Those checks happen every game in hockey but because Pominville was poorly positioned away from the boards, his head hits the glass and the whole hockey world begins wringing its hands anew. If you watch the replay, Pominville even looks up and see’s Hjamlarsson coming from his side. Watch it again. Pominville made the mistake of thinking he wasn’t going to get hit. Evidently he forgot he was in a hockey game and not in the NBA. Hjamlarsson got a game misconduct. But I'm not convinced he needed to be suspended on a borderline hockey play. A game misconduct was punishment enough. It’s not like they pass those out like candy. It actually means something, even if they don’t lose salary because of it.

What James Wisniewski did was much worse and cheapened the league much more than an unintentional injury did. Maybe it’s time for the handwringers to just accept that hockey players are going to occasionally get hurt playing a game they are more than generously compensated and fully insured for and that there’s no sense getting so bent out of shape because there will likely be another incident tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day.

The same sort of bleeding heart crisis occurred after Calgary Flames enforcer Raitis Ivanans was hurt in a fight last week. Bob McKenzie went on TSN and wondered why it needed to happen at all. As insignificant as that may seem, that McKenzie editorial really signaled the “new normal”, in that there is going to be a serious push to eliminate fighting in the years to come.

After all, once you start penalizing intentional hits to the head, there is no logic that would allow fighting to remain a part of the game for much longer. Once you start defining a clear line about hits to the head, you have to face the question of fighting in the NHL, because that’s what fighting is all about – deliberate hits to the head, blindside or not. I’m sure opponents of fighting are emboldened by recent NHL rule changes because it allows them to address the issue from the backdoor instead of calling for an immediate end to fighting, which usually falls on deaf ears. Once you establish a benchmark against hits to the head, logic dictates that fighting will be up next for a major re-evaluation and eventual ban. It’s inevitable. For some that will be a victory, and certainly the NHL will be a much safer place if that happens. But it won’t be the same NHL we’ve all known up till now.

People will call me a cave-man on this issue, and I was called that a few times last year when I opposed a distinct rule to deliberate hits to the head. The eventual rule change was something I could live with because it stressed the illegality of the “blindside, lateral” nature of the hits that no one likes to see, myself included. If that rule change eliminates the type of over-the-top hits that have endangered the careers of Marc Savard and others, then it has been a success. What I am worried about are the unintended consequences that the rule change could set in motion. It’s too soon to really see the impact but already people are up in arms over what has up to now been a normal hockey play. The Hjamlarsson hit wasn’t even an intentional hit to the head and already there is talk of the need for a “culture change”.

Next up on the agenda: using Nerf pucks. The “Culture Change” industry rolls on….