–James Gordon speculates that Mark Borowiecki will be a healthy scratch against Winnipeg and that Andre Benoit and Patrick Wiercioch will play as the third pairing (although the line combinations I’ve seen posted don’t necessarily mesh with that idea; Nichols thought what he saw indicated Borowiecki would play ahead of Benoit).

–Stu Hackel lists questions for teams in the East and for Ottawa he says:

Some don’t believe that Erik Karlsson is the real thing, but there’s no doubts about that here. The defense corps as a whole, however, could be a problem. Matt Carkner and Karlsson’s partner Filip Kuba are now elsewhere, Jared Cowen will miss the season with injury and both Sergei Gonchar and Chris Phillips are well on the back nine of their careers. Can the new d-men brought in by GM Bryan Murray — local boy Marc Methot and Mike Lundin — and/or perhaps some of the Sens’ prospects capably fill the gaps? Some other areas of concern may be team toughness with the departure of Carkner and Zenon Kenopka. Also, can captain Daniel Alfredsson continue to play at a high level in what might be his final go-around?

It’s a pretty generic list, but shows Hackel has kept tabs on the team’s coverage.

–5Dimes lists Ottawa at 30-1 favourites for the Cup (tied for the 19th best odds).

-Most of the Silver Seven staff believe Ottawa will be a playoff team this year.  The boys at WTYKY also offer up a wide variety of predictions.

–Adam Proteau believes the Sens will finish 10th in the Conference saying:

The Sens were another team that overachieved in the eyes of many – and unfortunately for them, injuries to defensemen Jared Cowen and Mike Lundin have thinned out the back end in a big way, at least to start the season. They’ll still be competitive, but it may not be enough to keep pace in the increasingly tough East.

–The Hockey Central staff had to relive the embarrassment of their Ottawa prediction from last season and other than Brad May (who thinks they need more goons–you know, like Brad May the player) they all see them making the playoffs.

-Binghamton faces Toronto (22-11-3) tonight; the Marlies are lead by Ryan Hamilton (25 points)–in the absence of players at camp or lost through waivers–and backstopped by Jussi Rynnas (6-3-1 1.96 .937).

–Mike Hoffman was returned to Binghamton while Cody Ceci was sent back to junior.

–Andre Benoit and Robin Lehner were named AHL all-stars.

-Elmira plays Trenton tonight; the Titans are 15-27-5 and feature Brad Peltz (if he plays); they are lead by Nick Mazzolini (40 points) and backstopped by Scott Wedgewood (11-11-2 3.07 .898).

–Jeremy Milks advises fans temper their enthusiasm to move on from Craig Anderson to give either Robin Lehner or Ben Bishop the reigns.  I think realistic expectations are good, but there are a couple of things in Jeremy’s piece that stuck out to me as worthy of comment:

Most fans look forward to the Entry Draft more than they do the Stanley Cup finals.

Ignoring the hyperbole, it’s worth considering that 29 of 30 teams have nothing else to celebrate after the Cup finals, so the draft is the next major team event where they can hope to improve their cause.

He’s [Anderson] now a respected veteran in the league

Is he?  Three seasons as a starter he’s been great, awful, and good–that’s it.  Keep in mind Jeremy is trying to convince fans to be patient, but given that fans have no impact on who play or not and if Craig Anderson plays well than all the discussion goes away.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 18, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 4 Comments

–Chris Phillips talked about the team playing young defensemen this season:

Everybody talks about that inexperience all the time, but look at Cowen last year. These guys have been playing in the AHL and doing well all year. They’re ready, comfortable with it. I don’t think it should be any concern at all. The biggest thing is to be patient and calm out there and don’t try and over impress the people that are watching you.

-Binghamton rolled over Rochester 5-1 last night in a game I was unable to watch.  Nathan Lawson picked up the win with a 35-save effort, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Corey Cowick had three point nights, while Mika Zibanejad had his first point since returning from injury.  Cowick and Da Costa had two goals each while Jack Downing scored the other.  Here’s the box score and the highlights.

-Elmira defeated Kalamazoo 2-1 last night with Louie Caporusso picking up the only point among Binghamton signees.

–Eric Duhatschek talks about league parity and includes good comments from Detroit GM Ken Holland:

Somebody asked me the other day, ‘who are the Cup contenders?’ and my answer was, ‘the Cup contenders are the 16 teams that make the playoffs. If you make the playoffs, you’ve got a chance to win the Stanley Cup. In ’05, when the salary-cap world came into being, part of that was for economics, but part of it was for parity – to give everybody an opportunity. That’s the beauty of the league right now. It’s wide open. The disparity between the best and the worst players in the league, in relation to 10 or 20 years ago, is far less than it once was. Then you think about coaching. We call it ‘backside pressure’ now, but all it really is, is back checking. When you think back to the 1990s, how often would you see a three-on-two? How often do you see odd-man rushes now? Then you see the D-zone coverage and all the shot-blocking that goes on. Then you think about the goaltending and how that’s evolved. I think everybody is better managed. Coaches are going to seminars and sharing information. The Europeans, they used to come over and were a little awed and intimidated at first. Well now, with the world juniors and Olympics and all the games they play here, when the Europeans come over, they’re ready to go. When you start to put down the laundry list of all the things that changed, it adds up to parity. It adds up to a league that’s really close – where every night, it’s a one-goal game. Somebody’s going to make the playoffs in a photo finish and somebody’s going to miss the playoffs in a photo finish and the team that misses, if they had gotten in, they might have gone on a playoff run.

I hear a lot of complaints about parity, but I think it’s good for the league.  Knowing that each season every team has a chance if it’s managed well means the fan base can always hope, grow, and look forward to each year.  Having lived during the dynasty period in the 1980s the seasons were a largely pointless exercise as the same bloody teams won year after year–it’s tedious unless your team is winning (I’ve found most fans of the dynasty era supported a team that was successful during it).

-For the poolies out there both TSN’s Scott Cullen and ESPN’s staff have posted their player point projections.  Their take on the Sens listed:
Jason Spezza 45 (ESPN) 41 (TSN)
Daniel Alfredsson 39 (ESPN) 31 (TSN)
Erik Karlsson 37 (ESPN) 35 (TSN)
Milan Michalek 33 (ESPN) 28 (TSN)
Guillaume Latendresse 25 (ESPN)
Mika Zibanejad 23 (ESPN)
Sergei Gonchar 20 (ESPN) 22 (TSN)
Colin Greening 20 (TSN)
Kyle Turris 19 (ESPN) 25 (TSN)
Patrick Wiercioch 14 (ESPN)
Jakob Silfverberg 8 (ESPN) 2o (TSN)
Chris Phillips 5 (ESPN)
Craig Anderson 20 wins (ESPN)
Ben Bishop 6 wins (ESPN)
Robin Lehner 5 wins (ESPN)

–Ryan Kennedy offers his mid-season 2013 draft rankings:
1. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Halifax
2. Seth Jones, D, Portland
3. Jonathan Drouin, LW, Halifax
4. Aleksander (Sasha) Barkov, C, Tappara
5. Elias Lindholm, C, Brynas
6. Sean Monahan, C, Ottawa
7. Robert Hagg, D, Modo
8. Rasmus Ristolainen, D, TPS
9. Hunter Shinkaruk, LW, Medicine Hat
10. Adam Erne, RW, Quebec
11.    Darnell Nurse, D, Sault Ste. Marie
12.    Curtis Lazar, C, Edmonton
13. Valery Nichushkin, LW, Chelyabinsk
14.    Anthony Mantha, LW, Val d’Or
15.    Josh Morrissey, D, Prince Albert
16.    Morgan Klimchuk, LW, Regina
17.    Jacob De La Rose, LW, Leksands
18.    Ryan Pulock, D, Brandon
19.    Frederik Gauthier, C, Rimouski
20.    Valentin Zykov, RW, Baie Comeau
21.    Zach (Zachary) Fucale, G, Halifax
22.    Nikita Zadorov, D, London
23.    Artturi Lehkonen, LW, Kalpa
24.    Max Domi, C, London
25.    Steve Santini, D, USNDTP
26.    Jason Dickinson, LW, Guelph
27.    Ian McCoshen, D, Warterloo
28.    Eric Comrie, G, Tri City
29.    Alexander Wennberg, C, Djurgardens
30.    Kerby Rychel, LW, Windsor

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 17, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

–Peter Regin is honest in his self-assessment:

There’s been talk about me playing a second-line role for the past two years, but I’ve run into some bad luck every time I’ve got the opportunity. And sometimes I haven’t produced when I’ve got the chance, so it’s not only the injuries. I feel like I have decent skill, to play on the second or third line, and be the second-hand scoring.

I like that he’s not making injuries an excuse for his lack of production (as well as acknowledging the opportunities he’s had).  He’s a good player if he can stay healthy.

-ISS has released a prospect primer leading into the shortened season (it was clearly written in the summer) and here’s what they have to say about Ottawa:

Mika Zibanejad: A terrifically talented forward with a deadly shot, Zibanejad is a hard working player who doesn’t hesitate to make teams pay for missing assignments. He has great hands, a strong powerful stride and can throw some huge hits on top of his offensive abilities.

Jakob Silfverberg: An excellent two-way winger who has taken the Swedish Elite League by storm, Silfverberg is highly competitive and highly skilled. He continues to show better and better power elements in his game and has the capacity to put up big numbers.

Mark Stone: A big powerful forward with a great shot, Stone is a beast around the net and always seems to find ways to be a goal scoring threat. On top of his shot, Stone also shows great hands and is very good at maintaining possession of the puck in tightly contested areas of the ice.

–Kevin Allen predicts the Sens will finish 6th in the east, saying:

With 84 points, C Jason Spezza played a role in more than one-third of Ottawa’s goals. But he’s still the second-most-important offensive catalyst behind Norris Trophy winner Karlsson. The Senators attack usually starts with Karlsson skating or passing the puck out of the Ottawa zone. General manager Bryan Murray has said he expects Karlsson, 22, to be a better offensive and defensive player this season. With Karlsson as the fire starter, the Senators have an intriguing offensive team. They were tied for fourth in the NHL in scoring last season. Spezza, Milan Michalek and Daniel Alfredsson (likely playing in his final season) are proven scorers, but it was the secondary scorers such as Colin Greening, Zack Smith and Chris Neil who put Ottawa over the top. Those three players combined for 44 goals. Kyle Turris could mature into a scoring center, and Swedish rookie Jakob Silfverberg could play in the top six. The Senators hope are hoping offseason addition Guillaume Latendresse, if he stays healthy, will boost their offense. Arrival Marc Methot is expected to help provide a stabilizing presence on the blue line.

Allen doesn’t delve into the Sens depleted blueline so this may be another article shelved from the summer, but it’s certainly an optimistic look at the team.

–Luke Fox see’s the Sens in a dog fight to make the playoffs, believing it’s unlikely that both Spezza and Karlsson will be in the NHL’s top-eleven in scoring.

–Scotty Bowman believes the shootout will be particularly important in the shortened season and points out that five of the top six shootout teams last season made the playoffs.

–Nichols takes a look at the available UFA blueliners and doesn’t like what he see’s (neither do I), approving of Bryan Murray’s decision to stay the course.

-Binghamton plays Rochester (19-14-3) tonight; the Americans are lead by Kevin Porter (30 points) in the absence of T. J. Brennan who is attending Buffalo’s training camp; David Leggio (18-11-1 2.90 .913) backstops the Amerks.  Binghamton defeated Rochester 2-1 in their last meeting a couple of weeks ago.  Wacey Hamilton Tweeted that he’s in the lineup tonight.

–Bobby Kelly provides his assessment of Luke Richardson through the first half of the AHL season and I highly recommend reading through the entire thing.  Here’s a sample:

Has [Richardson] implemented the style [Paul MacLean’s 200-foot posession game] he said he would? Emphatically, no. Has the team played well? Resoundingly, yes. More on that later. Predictably, we are left with a mixed bag. On one hand, the team has not been the puck possession squad fans expected. On the other hand, Richardson clearly has his team playing a certain style, and they’re winning hockey games. Most of them. Your team is on top of the league and you’ve been recognized to be a coach at the AHL All-Star Game. Meanwhile, your team spends too much time on a nightly basis hemmed in its own end chasing the puck, when fans thought the team would possess it.  The Binghamton Senators have an impressively structured means of restricting oppositional play to the perimeter, collapsing around their goaltender and clearing the puck from danger when necessary. However, as much as this is all positive, it has some severe limitations.

In essence Bobby doesn’t believe the team can sustain being badly outshot with winning.  This does make sense, but I wonder if part of their success is that they’ve gotten into the heads of their opposition.  Binghamton plays a ton of its season against a small group of teams (ten games against Wilkes-Barre alone!) and after doubling up on the B-Sens in shots but still losing I suspect shooters are squeezing their sticks a little tighter.  I’m interested to see how the roster does with a denuded blueline, but I think the calibre of the goaltending won’t slip much as I expect Robin Lehner to be returned and to play the bulk of the games going forward.

-Elmira beat Cincinnati 3-1 last night with Louie Caporusso and Dustin Gazley had two points while Darren Kramer had a single.  Elmira faces Kalamazoo (16-18-3) tonight; the Wings are lead by Eric Kattelus (32 points) and backstopped by Joel Martin (14-15-3 2.74 .914).  Brad Peltz‘s Trenton Titans are in action this afternoon against Reading, but he is not playing.

-Elmira signed defenseman Steven Kaunisto (SPHL 23-1-8-9) and he played last night.

-The ISS draft rankings for 2013 have been updated (for the previous list go here):
1 – Jones, Seth – D – Portland – WHL (+1)
2 – MacKinnon, Nathan – C – Halifax – QMJHL (-1)
3 – Drouin, Jonathan – F – Halifax – QMJHL (+1)
4 – Barkov, Aleksander – F – Tappara – FinE (-1)
5 – Monahan, Sean – C – Ottawa – OHL
6 – Lindholm, Elias – C – Brynas – SweE
7 – Nichushkin, Valery – F – Chelyabinsk Chelmet – RusS
8 – Ristolainen, Rasmus – D – TPS Turku – FinE (-2) (+2)
9 – Zadorov, Nikita – D – London – OHL (+2)
10 – Nurse, Darnell – D – S.S. Marie – OHL (-1)
11 – Lazar, Curtis – C – Edmonton – WHL (+1)
12 – Hagg, Robert – D – Modo – SweJE (+5)
13 – Dickinson, Jason – F – Guelph – OHL (+2)
14 – Shinkaruk, Hunter – F – Medicine Hat – WHL (-6)
15 – Erne, Adam- F – Quebec – QMJHL (+4)
16 –Valentin Zykov – RW – Baie-Comeau – QMJHL (NR)
17 – Pulock, Ryan – D – Brandon – WHL (-4)
18 – Burakowsky, Andre – F – Malmo – SweAl (-4)
19 – Gauthier, Frederik – C – Rimouski – QMJHL (+3)
20 – Morrissey, JT – D – Prince Albert – WHL (-2)
21 –Alexander Wennberg – C – Djurgarden – SweJr (NR)
22 –Bo Horvat – C – London – OHL (NR)
23 – Santini, Steve – D – USA U18 – NTDP (-7)
24 – Lehkonen, Artturi – F – Kuopio – FinE (-3)
25 –Ryan Hartman – RW – Plymouth – OHL (NR)
26 –J. T. Compher – C – USA Under-18 – NTDP (NR)
27 – Rychel, Kerby – F – Windsor – OHL (-4)
28 –Max Domi – C – London – OHL (NR)
29 – Thompson, Keaton – D – USA U18 – NTDP (-5)
30 – Anthony Duclair– LW – Quebec – QMJHL (NR)

Falling out of the top thirty were Jacob De La Rose (20), Ryan Kujawinski (25), Madison Bowey (26), Hudson Fasching (27), Justin Bailey (28), Theodore Shea (29), and Samuel Morin (30).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 16, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-As expected Bryan  Murray has no immediate plans to make a deal for a blueliner; prices are high and he wants to see how the younger players perform before making that call.  It’s worth going through what Ottawa’s NHL depth chart looks like on the blueline in the absence of Jared Cowen (for depth players listed their age and the number of NHL games played):
Erik Karlsson
Sergei Gonchar
Marc Methot
Chris Phillips
Mike Lundin
Andre Benoit (29, 8GP)
Patrick Wiercioch (22, 8GP)
Mark Borowiecki (23, 2GP)
Eric Gryba (24, 0GP)
Tyler Eckford (27, 7GP)
There’s nothing after Eckford in the organisation and it’s an open question as to what any of the depth players can offer.  All can probably handle limited minutes on a bottom pairing, although to what degree remains an open question.

-Also as expected, it turns out Robin Lehner‘s understanding of the CBA was off target and he does have one more year left on his ELC.

-Not long ago both Luke Fox and The 6th Sens criticised the idea of expanding the playoff format and I want to add some perspective to the issue.  No reasons were given by my fellow bloggers, but Fox spends an enormous amount of time complaining that:

There is, of course, a giant downside to allowing all but 33.3 per cent of your teams into the playoffs: the weak will be rewarded.

This is a puzzling line of thought regarding the NHL from Fox.  The venerated Original Six era (42-43 to 66-67), rewarded .666 of its teams with playoff births and this ratio continued until 79-80 when 16 of 21 teams (or .761) made the playoffs (the venerated Gretzky era)–this lasted all the way to expansion in 91-92.  It wasn’t until the 93-94 season (with the addition of the Florida Panthers) that the NHL had less than two-thirds of its teams make the playoffs.  The complaint from Fox about having to add another round to the playoffs isn’t very strong, as the league has thrived going from two rounds in the Original Six to four in the modern day.  There’s nothing sacred about the current ratio or any ratio from what I can tell.  I haven’t seen any tangible evidence that it’s better to have more teams miss the playoffs.  The dislike seems to be tied to a meritocracy argument, but it doesn’t fit the history of the league which (one assumes) matters more than a sense of fairness.  It’s my belief that the NHL should echo its venerated past and start letting more teams into the fray.

-Elmira faces Cincinnati (22-12-4) tonight; the Cyclones are lead by Michael Pelech (31 points) and backstopped by Brian Foster (13-5-3 2.55 .908).

-Here the latest prospect update (for players with more than 10 games played I’ve indicated where they are in scoring; for blueliners they are compared to other defensemen on the team):

CHL
Cody Ceci (OHL Ottawa/Owen Sound) 44-11-30-41 (1st)
Matt Puempel (OHL Kitchener) 26-21-7-28 (1st) (injured)
Stefan Noesen (OHL Plymouth) 26-17-9-26 (7th) (suspended)
Jordan Fransoo (WHL Victoria) 36-3-8-11 (2nd)
Jakub Culek (QMJHL Cape Breton) 9-4-3-7 (10th)
Jarrod Maidens (OHL Owen Sound) (injured)
Chris Driedger (WHL Calgary) 24-8-3 2.19 .924
Francois Brassard (QMJHL Quebec) 19-13-3 2.77 .905

Allsvenskan (Swe)
Mikael Wikstrand (Mora) 29-9-9-18 (1st) WJC 6-0-4-4 (1st)

KHL
Nikita Filatov (Salavat) 38-8-11-19 (t-2nd)

NCAA
Ryan Dzingel (Ohio) – 22-9-8-17 (1st)
Jeff Costello (Notre Dame) – 16-6-9-15 (4th) (injured)
Bryce Aneloski (Nebraska-Omaha) – 23-4-11-15 (2nd)
Max McCormick (Ohio) – 22-7-5-12 (3rd)
Michael Sdao (Princeton) – 18-5-4-9 (1st)
Tim Boyle (Union) – 10-0-2-2 (t-6th)

USHL
Robbie Baillargeon (Indiana/Omaha) – 33-12-14-26 (1st)

One thing to note is that Francois Brassard, who got off to a great start, has slipped down to his rookie numbers from last year.

–Central Scouting has released their mid-season draft rankings update (here’s the previous ranking). CS divides between goalies and skaters, North American and European, and in this list each individual league (which makes it far too bifurcated for me to copy it here).

–Michael Grange wonders if Chris Campoli‘s prominent role in the CBA negotiations has cost him a job in the NHL.  While it’s possible, I think it’s much more likely that Campoli‘s mediocre play over the last three seasons is why he’s without a contract.

–Stu Hackel wonders if the Rangers and Habs can really shelve the perfectly healthy Wade Redden and Scott Gomez simply to ensure they can be bought out in the summer.  It’s an interesting question, but if the NHLPA can truly grieve the issue it’s not receiving much play in the coverage.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 15, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

-The Sens are experimenting with Jakob Silfverberg on the top line, but Paul MacLean isn’t committing to anything:

We think if you give somebody an opportunity, they’ll show you if they can handle it, or not. That’s what we’re going to do. (Silfverberg) has been an elite player … and playing in a small rink (in Binghamton) has helped him a lot. We’re just giving him the opportunity to show us he can do it. If he can’t do it, we can always go back to what we did. We can always play Alfie (Daniel Alfredsson) there. We can always put Colin Greening back. We can always go back to what we had before, that we felt worked for us. But we’re trying to give him an opportunity to show he can play. We did that today, but I’ve got a funny feeling we might be changing that by (Monday). Or by Wednesday … before we get to Saturday. It might end up the way it is right now on Saturday, but I can pretty much guarantee you that the next few days, it’s not always going to be the same. We’re here to try and find out who they can play with.

MacLean dismissed the notion that either Cody Ceci or Stefan Noesen would make the team, while implying Andre Benoit was a lock and that either Patrick Wiercioch or Mark Borowiecki would get the other spot.

–Jeremy Milks expects the Sens to reach the second round of the playoffs:

They have a Norris Trophy defenseman in Erik Karlsson. A Jack Adams finalist for the coach of the year in Paul Maclean. They have goaltending depth the rest of Eastern Conference would envy. They are strong down the middle with Jason Spezza and Kyle Turris, overloaded on the wings and their best prospects are either fighting their way onto the team or leading their AHL affiliate to a possible championship season in Binghamton. Sure, the defense is depleted on the bottom pairing but they have plenty of cap space or tradeable prospects to address that as soon as they need to.

This is as optimistic an appraisal as I can imagine.  Before I play devil’s advocate in response to this, I’m curious who Jeremy thinks the Sens can get to fill in that bottom pairing (and who they would have to give up for that player).  I think his premise is off in terms of the need in the short term, as what Ottawa requires is a top-four blueliner to allow Chris Phillips to play the same protected minutes he enjoyed last season (we all recall the results of the last time the Big Rig was in the top-four [-35]).

The devil’s advocate way of looking at Jeremy’s expectations: that goaltending the league “envies” includes a starter who was awful the previous season and two untested rookies; Turris has one decent half-season to his name; the “overloaded wings” have only two established players (Michalek and Alfredsson), one of whom is 40 years old and the other is an injury waiting to happen; the blueline is composed of a rock star (Karlsson), a 38-year old declining Gonchar, a 34-year old declining Phillips, a Blue Jacket coming off an awful season (Methot), and a Wild cast-off who can’t stay healthy (Lundin).  Does that summary sound like a second round team?

I have no problem with Jeremy’s optimism, but mine is tempered.  The team enjoyed a surprising year last season, but there’s no guarantee that in the midst of a rebuild they will enjoy the same success again, especially with the injury to Jared Cowen.

-There’s simply no escaping the five-point formula as Roy MacGregor joins in the arbitrary numeration.  Roy wonders about Alfredsson, the goaltending, Karlsson, the blueliners, and Paul MacLean, which is on par with what we’ve seen before.

-As Nichols posted yesterday Andre Petersson is done for the year as he needs surgery to repair a torn labrum (the same procedure Jared Cowen just went through).  It’s an unfortunate turn of events for the talented Swede who had a rocky start to the season.

-In other Binghamton news, Wacey Hamilton is expected to play either Wednesday or on the weekend after missing the entire season thus far.

–Bobby Kelly and Mark Parisi talk Binghamton Senators and before I tackle what they discussed I have a correction for Bobby: Tyler Eckford was not with the B-Sens last season (also, Andre Petersson hasn’t established himself because he’s been injured since December).  On their basic points: I disagree with Mark that Stephane Da Costa has played better than Mike Hoffman–Da Costa has the better ceiling, but Hoffman has been more consistent and is better defensively.  I also think Mark is off-base thinking Mika Zibanejad should have been included in training camp–he needs to get himself right before he even thinks about the NHL.  I’m with Bobby in believing Binghamton will suffer most for losing some of its blueline, but the flip side of that coin is that it will be a true test for fringe players like Chris Wideman and Ben Blood.  I don’t know what Mark is seeing out of Jean-Gabriel Pageau as a darkhorse to produce more–the B-Sens are only losing one forward and I wonder if the return of Wacey Hamilton will knock Pageau into the pressbox or down to Elmira.  Mark wonders why Mark Stone hasn’t been getting more minutes and the easiest answer to that is who has playing ahead of him on rightwing: Jakob Silfverberg.

–Scott Gomez has been shutdown by Montreal in the same fashion that the Rangers have told Wade Redden to stay home.  While this has upset some (one?), it’s a no-brainer for the Habs.  Trading for Gomez was a bad idea and he (like Redden) clearly has nothing left in the tank.

-Elmira signed Kelly Miller who played with Trenton last year and was with the Danbury Whalers in the FHL this season.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 14, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 11 Comments

-Binghamton’s training camp-altered lineup defeated Norfolk 4-2 last night in a game I was unable to watch.  Nathan Lawson picked up the win, Mika Zibanejad returned to action (no points), and Daniel New picked up his first AHL point; Eric Gryba scored twice (including an empty-netter) while Mark Stone and Corey Cowick had the other goals.  Here’s the box score.

-Elmira lost 4-3 in OT to Evansville; Louie Caporusso picked up a goal.  Brad Peltz did not dress for Trenton in their 3-1 loss; I’m not sure if he was a healthy scratch or was injured after his fight with Tyler Randell the night.

-Some fans were surprised that Mark Stone was not included in the Sens training camp, but as Paul MacLean succinctly put’s it:

The evaluations I made in the games I went to were Hoffman and Silfverberg were better.

Stone has spent the bulk of the AHL season playing on the checking line and while he’s been good he’s definitely not been as good as the two forwards picked ahead of him.

-For those who remember Robin Lehner‘s comments that stirred up a debate about his ELC status, he had this to say:

It’s not my job to look at numbers and contracts and stuff there’s other people who gets paid for that. Wherever I am, I really like this organization. They’ve been treating me well. I came here as a pretty young boy and they’ve been helping me mature and they’ve been a little bit like family and they’ve helped me get into the man I am now. Wherever I am, you get paid to do your job, and I love to do it.

That was said in the context of the goaltending question in Ottawa, but I’d take the first part of that and apply it to what Lehner said about his contract: those details are going to be the meat for his agent and the organisation, not him.

-The addiction to five-point lists continues with Allen Panzeri, who goes through the usual goaltending nonsense before wondering if Jason Spezza can repeat last year’s performance, if Kyle Turris a legit second-line center, if the blueline can hold up, and wondering what the team will get out of Guillaume Latendresse.

-The Sens schedule is up.

–The Silver Seven re-visit their predictions for the 2011-12 season (welcome to the club)–gotta love Dave Young and Adnan picking Sergei Gonchar as the surprise player–don’t go out on a limb boys!

–Ken Hitchcock offers some insight on what he expects from a shortened season:

When we start up here, there’s going to be some guys who have played in either Russia or Europe who have played 40 games and they’re going to have a big advantage, game conditioning-wise, over a guy who’s played zero. You’ve got to get quality over quantity and accept that, for the first month. If [a player] was a  20-minute player and he can give you 15 good ones, you’ve got to get 15 good ones out of him.

Via the same Stu Hackel link the other emphasis various coaches make is on the health of their roster–injury problems are magnified in a shortened season.

–Allan Muir warns that:

Part of the payoff of the last lockout was a commitment to calling the rules  more stringently, and it worked for a couple of years. Last season,  season-and-a-half, though? It doesn’t take a seasoned observer to recognize that  standards had been relaxed.

This laxity has been obvious and contributed to the success of teams like Phoenix and LA (among others).  One wonders how far it will go before the NHL makes yet another crackdown on obstruction.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 13, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

–Jakob Silfverberg, Mike Hoffman, Patrick Wiercioch, Mark Borowiecki, Andre Benoit, and Robin Lehner have been called up to Ottawa to participate in training camp.  Ben Blood, Daniel New, Jack Downing, and Marc Cheverie have been brought up from Elmira to fill out Binghamton’s roster.

-Binghamton lost 3-2 to Adirondack in what was a pretty lifeless game for the B-Sens until they started the comeback (they were down 2-0 through the mid-point of the game).  Ben Bishop took the loss (the shootout was brutal for both sides), while Patrick Wiercioch and Mark Borowiecki provided the goals.  Here’s the box score and the highlights.

-The B-Sens play Norfolk (14-17-3) tonight; the Admirals are lead by Peter Holland (31 points) and backstopped by an even rotation of Frederik Andersen (7-9-1 2.45 .924) and Igor Bobkov (7-10-0 3.41 .896).

-Elmira won 3-2 in OT last night with Ben Blood notching the winner with his first professional point; Dustin Gazley had two points and Daniel New and Louie Caporusso picked up singles among B-Sen signees; Marc Cheverie earned the win.  Elmira faces Evansville again tonight.  Brad Peltz had no points in Trenton’s 3-1 loss.

–The 6th Sens offer 48 thoughts about the Sens which I recommend you read in full, but I do have a few thoughts: I disagree with their dislike of an expanded playoff format (hopefully they have a more rational reason for disliking the expansion than Luke Fox did); I agree wholeheartedly that the only scenario in which Sergei Gonchar gets traded is if the wheels come off and the Sens are tanking; kuddos for the Mattias Karlsson reference; I don’t think the Sens should expect any favours from the schedule-makers; I agree that missing the playoffs this season wouldn’t be a terrible thing (particularly with such a strong draft forthcoming).

-Apparently the number five is a significant one for those writing about the Sens as Bruce Garrioch has his own five-point list: 1. Can Paul MacLean continue to be effective?  2. Can Erik Karlsson have another Norris-worthy season?  3. Will age catch up to Daniel Alfredsson?  4. Will the time off hurt Craig Anderson?  5. Will the roster changes pan out?

It’s a reasonable group of questions which can only be answered once the season is over, but I’ll take a stab at prognostication: 1. Paul MacLean will remain a good coach irrespective of the team’s record, 2. Erik Karlsson can have another Norris-like season, but I’m not sure he’ll approach the same stratospheric statistics, 3. Age is catching up to Alfredsson, but I think he’ll continue to be effective, 4. Anderson has struggled with consistency irrespective of time off, so he might struggle, but I’m not sure that would be the cause, 5. It will be a mixed bag–some changes will be good, some won’t pan out.

–Varada seems to think Ottawa would get decent assets for Sergei Gonchar, Peter Regin, and Guillaume Latendresse…if “decent” means 6th and 7th round picks, he’s on to something.

–TSN‘s pre-season power rankings have Ottawa 13th:

The forward lines could get a boost from the addition of winger Guillaume Latendresse and rookie RW Jakob Silfverberg and the bulls-eye will fall squarely on D Erik Karlsson, who exploded for 78 points last season. Ottawa’s blueline depth could be an issue, particularly with Jared Cowen out for the year, so that’s a situation worth monitoring.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 12, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

-Binghamton faces Adirondack (14-17-2) tonight; the Phantoms are lead by Brayden Schenn (33 points) and backstopped by Scott Munroe (9-8-0 2.59 .918).  The B-Sens beat Adirondack 7-4 in their last meeting over a month ago.

-Elmira plays Evansville (14-21-3) tonight; the IceMen are lead by Josh Beaulieu (32 points) and backstopped by Paul Karpowich (5-7-1 3.30 .896).  Brad Peltz and Trenton are playing South Carolina.

–Stefan G:Son (someday someone will explain the colon in his name) points out that Robin Lehner thinks he’s in the last year of his ELC and would want a one-way deal to follow it:

It would take a lot for me to sign a two-way deal again

I don’t think that sentiment should surprise anyone and as much as I admire Stefan (and Nichols) for trying to break down the arcane technicalities regarding Lehner‘s ELC status, that decision will really be up to lawyers such that Lehner will have no impute on it.  If he is about to become an RFA there’s no question the team will give him a one-way deal.

-There’s been a lot of ink spilt over trying to create a goaltending controversy in Ottawa, but as fun a topic as it is I just don’t see it.  As dull as it sounds the season will open Anderson/Bishop as long as the former can avoid using an ice pick late at night.

–Pierre LeBrun offers a breakdown of the Senators in offering up five-points (the format echoing Mark Parisi from a few days ago):

1. The GM Doesn’t Stand Pat

Interesting that Murray felt the need to slightly change a roster that played so well last season. But the veteran hockey man knows his team well and saw deficiencies. The addition of Latendresse, in particular, fills a need for more size up front.

2. The Senational Mr. Karlsson

The exciting puck-mover is electrifying to watch, and his evolution last season was a big reason for Ottawa’s surprise performance. Karlsson did lose his regular defensive partner in Kuba, so we will have to watch how he adjusts on that front. But given his natural talent, I can’t imagine a drop-off.

3. Sens in Europe

Ottawa had eight skaters playing overseas during the lockout, and that’s no small factor. The difference between those who have played real games the past few months and those just working out in scrimmages on this side of the ocean could be noticeable in some cases. Ottawa gets a bit of an edge here early in the season by having so many players who already have their game rhythm down pat.

4. Alfie, Alfie, Alfie

The Sens need to be wary of the compacted, 48-game schedule and make sure they don’t wear him down.

5. The Coach with the Right Answers

He was nominated for the Jack Adams Award and was instrumental in blending the youth and veteran elements on his club in a season that surpassed all expectations. The Senators are blessed behind the bench.

This is all pretty general, but I agree with LeBrun’s points–there may be a slight edge for the Sens because of how much competitive hockey the roster has played and no one can argue with the job Paul MacLean or Erik Karlsson did last season.  The key question would be the blueline overall, but LeBrun doesn’t delve into it.

–David Shoalts also provides an overview which does include the worries on the blueline.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 11, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 3 Comments

-Despite being outshot by a two to one margin (32-16), Binghamton defeated Wilkes-Barre 3-1 last night.  Robin Lehner picked up the win while Stephane Da Costa, Eric Gryba, and Mike Hoffman (into an empty net) provided the offence. Mark Borowiecki crashed into the boards in the third (courtesy of Riley Holzapfel) and injured his leg (he did stay in the game).  I also saw an illustration of why Corey Cowick is not yet ready for prime time when it comes to fighting.  Here’s the box score and the highlights.

–Tim Murray had a lot to say and behind obvious things like Cody Ceci is in tough to make the NHL roster (which is a nice way to say he won’t), he offered this in Mika Zibanejad:

He’s on the ice everyday. He’s been monitored everyday. When you’re working out in the gym and then when you’re skating on the ice that can all go very well, and than it’s how you feel after. Since Tueday he’s had no issues, and felt very good after. Luke feels he’s getting in better shape….we feel he could play this weekend. Well there are a lot of factors [in why we’ve been cautious with his bringing him back]. One, he’s a high pick and he’s a young guy. Two is, in Binghamton we’re winning every night. So you don’t have to do in quotations ‘stupid things’, and we didn’t have to. So I just said to Luke here, we just have to shut him down, and I talked to Randy Lee about, let’s just shut him down, let’s just get him right. Fortunately we were in a position, where we didn’t have to rush him, we were still winning. I think when you you’re winning great things happen, byproduct of winning are many things, but in one of them you don’t have to rush a guy back, you can take your time, you can sure that you don’t make a mistake with them. Glen down there has done a great job with him, he came up to Ottawa and worked with our people up here a little bit and did a great job with him. I think now actually he’s been out so long that he felt he could play before we allowed him to play, so I think that’s a good situation.

The organisation has been cautious with virtually all their players this season and I think that’s been to the benefit of the individuals and the team.  Tim then talked about making a trade for a blueliner:

I was on the phone a lot yesterday at home, and Bryan here in the office. Certainly agents are calling us for the lesser guys, you know “my guy’s ready, he’s available he’s in great shape” that’s the message you get from them all. And some of those guys wouldn’t be your first choice, but that’s not to say they wouldn’t be useful defenceman. I think that the phones with the other GM’s are heating up, so Bryan is certainly…we’re gonna find out what’s available, what the price is , and then that’s the decision you have to make. Would I be surprised if we traded for one defenseman? No. Obviously you guys can see it, everybody in the league can see it, when you look at our depth chart that’s where we’re a litlte bit short right now because of injuries. But in saying that you do have to give your kids a chance at some point too, to find out if they’re ready. You know, we’ve seen these kids for three years, none of them are first year players; Benoit‘s a veteran, I would call Patrick a veteran in the AHL, I’d call Gryba a veteran in the AHL, I’d call Borowiecki a veteran in the AHL. They’re inexperienced NHL players, but everybody was at one time. So, we’ll work the phones and if can get better than them then we will, but I think we’re pretty confident that one or two out of this group of four will do a tremendous job for us.

This intention to try things out with Binghamton blueliners before making a move is exactly what I expected.  Finally he talked about goaltending:

It’s a position that takes time. You can draft four or five goalies over a four, five, or six year period and come out with nothing. And that is no disrepct to your scouting staff, it’s attrition. We’ve seen lots of goalies picked very high that didn’t turn out, and we’ve seen goalies picked in the mid-rounds that now are players. Robin‘s in his third year, he’s had a tremendous year, we know he’s a #1 goalie in the league…eventually, and we’re quite confident him. And you trade a second for Bishop, and what he’s done. They’re probably the biggest twosome or tandem in hockey as far as that goes, they’ve both played great down there. Everybody saw what Anderson did here last year, he got us to the playoffs, he was great against the Rangers. So we’re quite confident in our goaltending. And uh, the two guys we drafted last year are farther along the line but now we have depth here, we got guys coming, and I think that’s the kind of progression you want. If Paul tells us that Lehner should be his guy, then we’ll listen. But the way the other two guys can play the game…we’re confident in those two guys in the net too, so if it’s Bishop and Anderson or Anderson and Bishop, that’s what it was last year or for part of last year and we were a playoff team. Anderson played great so if he comes in here and gets going right off the bat…and the other two guys have been playing. I don’t know if I’m answering your question, but I”m confident in all three guys. I mean if you told me Robin Lehner was our starter tomorrow, I’d be happy with that. If you told me Bishop and Anderson would be the two guys, I’m happy with that. I think they’re all quite capable of being top ten or so goalies in the league…and um, the contract may come into play.

That “eventually” and reference to Bishop‘s contract is yet another sign that Lehner will be back in Binghamton when camp is done.

-Here the latest prospect update (for players with more than 10 games played I’ve indicated where they are in scoring; for blueliners they are compared to other defensemen on the team):

CHL
Cody Ceci (OHL Ottawa/Owen Sound) 43-11-30-41 (1st)
Matt Puempel (OHL Kitchener) 26-21-7-28 (1st) (injured)
Stefan Noesen (OHL Plymouth) 26-17-9-26 (6th) (suspended)
Jordan Fransoo (WHL Victoria) 34-3-7-10 (2nd)
Jakub Culek (QMJHL Cape Breton) 8-4-3-7 (10th) (injured)
Jarrod Maidens (OHL Owen Sound) (injured)
Chris Driedger (WHL Calgary) 23-7-32.17 .924
Francois Brassard (QMJHL Quebec) 19-11-32.62 .909

Allsvenskan (Swe)
Mikael Wikstrand (Mora) 29-9-9-18 (1st) WJC 6-0-4-4 (1st)

KHL
Nikita Filatov (Salavat) 38-8-11-19 (t-2nd)

NCAA
Ryan Dzingel (Ohio) – 20-9-8-17 (1st)
Jeff Costello (Notre Dame) – 16-6-9-15 (2nd)
Bryce Aneloski (Nebraska-Omaha) – 22-4-11-15 (t-1st)
Max McCormick (Ohio) – 20-6-4-10 (3rd)
Michael Sdao (Princeton) – 16-5-4-9 (1st)
Tim Boyle (Union) – 10-0-2-2 (t-6th)

USHL
Robbie Baillargeon (Indiana/Omaha) – 31-10-13-23 (1st)

–D. J. Powers looks at the NCAA in December, but other than a passing reference to Ryan Dzingel doesn’t offer anything up on the Sens side of things.

-The Maple Leafs did the NHL a favour by firing Brian Burke in the aftermath of their deal, taking the focus away from the lockout and shifting it to the big blue team.  There have been innumerable theories and comments about the move, most of which boil down to accepting the many reasons he deserved to be fired but questioning the timing (from my reading it seems to have hinged on the change in ownership).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

January 10, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment