With training camp approaching the amount of stories on the Senators is expanding. Here are the most interesting ones:
-Sylvain St-Laurent of Le Droit interviewed Robin Lehner (http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/sports/senateurs-dottawa/201108/30/01-4430226-robin-lehner-ne-cache-pas-son-ambition.php?utm_categorieinterne=trafficdrivers&utm_contenuinterne=cyberpresse_ B9_sports_101983_section_POS1). There’s not much new in the article other than Lehner mentioning that Tim Murray “came to me 24 hours before my first game to tell me that my turn had come. He told me we would soon see if I had the makings of a star.” Lehner continues to believe the best thing for his development would be to stay in the NHL.
-Bobby Kelly of The Silver Seven looks at Ottawa’s rookie tournament roster (http://www.silversevensens.com/2011/8/31/2393986/senators-prospects-rookie-camping#storyjump). He provides a little information on invite Matej Machovsky as well as (I believe) erroneously suggesting the team picked Jordan Fransoo over Craig Schira to attend. Schira, like Mike Hoffman and others, were excluded both due to the numbers and the fact that he’s attended two prior camps.
-James Gordon of Senators Extra comes to the defence of Brian Lee (senatorsextra.com/main/lee-the-forgotten-man-but-he-deserves-better/), saying “While it seems like Lee has been around forever, he’s still only 24 years old. He stands at 6’3, 208 lbs. with fine speed and possible upside. His cap hit is a very manageable $875,000 for someone who could turn out to be a solid NHL defenceman. Is this the kind of player the Senators want to give up on now?” I’m not sure there’s any upside left to be explored in Lee, but he can at least play without hurting the team.
-James Mirtle of The Globe & Mail talks about the Swedish movement within the Senators (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/senators-pin-hopes-on-swedish-movement/article2147972/). Mirtle credits former scout Anders Forsberg for that as well as Bryan Murray. I’m not sure about the origins of Murray’s Swedish obsession (Mirtle credits it to his days as GM in Detroit, but there’s no similar trend when he was GM in Anaheim). The primary focus of the article is David Rundblad, with Randy Lee saying “Some people are going to be surprised at his compete level. He’s not that big a guy, but he competes.”
-Rob Brodie of the Senators website wrote about training camp (senators.nhl.com/ club/news.htm?id=587464). It includes an odd quote from Murray “We all know there are certain jobs that are just there. Nobody’s going to take the job (away). But now, with the the direction we’ve gone, we’ve got some decisions to make and these kids aren’t being held back. They feel they have a chance“–is he saying jobs are open or not? I believe the intention is to say some jobs are open, but not all jobs. Zibanejad says “I want to give the coaches a hard decision (about whether) to keep me here or send me back home. Hopefully, I can stay here in Ottawa.” Murray also comments on Filatov, “He didn’t have a great (experience) in Columbus’ organization and there were a lot of factors involved. Maybe the first factor was him playing (in the NHL) at 18 years old and the expectations that went with him going sixth overall. They’re huge and they’re out of his control. It probably wasn’t a great fit and he probably has to take some responsibility on why it didn’t work. But we’ve wiped the slate clean here. We’ve told him that we’re going to give him every opportunity to be an important player for us, to play in our six, if he can prove that he belongs there. We’re going to do the right hing and we’re not going to hand him anything. So he’s here now and he’s working out with our veteran guys, and he’s getting a good look at what it takes … to be a good pro. I’m excited to see him (at camp) and hoping for the best.”
-Jared Crozier of Senshot has a delightful interview with Shane Prince‘s sister about her brother (http://senshot.com/2011/08/31/prospect-profile-shane-prince-through-the-eyes-of-a-little-sister/). It includes a brief scouting report at the end of it, with Crozier saying in part “He is a strong skater, good playmaker and possesses an above average shot. He is not huge, but will get bigger in time. In his own end he is more than adequate, as you have to be in the 67′s system.”
–David Rundblad is blogging for a local Skelleftea newspaper (it is in Swedish): http://norran.se/bloggar/davidrundblad
–The Team 1200 (http://www.facebook.com/TEAM1200) interviewed Mark Stone yesterday (August 30th) and Erik Karlsson today (August 31st)
eyeonthesens 