I watched the beginning of Ottawa’s 4-3 loss to Arizona–Ross A provides the blow-by-blow.  Having watched a ton of AHL (and ECHL) games this year it’s much more striking how structured and crisp even mediocre NHL teams are in comparison.  Patrick Wiercioch was a healthy scratch because reasons–maybe Cameron has a crush on the man-bun?  As was said today (different context but it applies), who knows with this org?

With Evansville in Alaska the shorthanded BSens signed Darian Dziurzynski (David‘s younger brother) to a PTO.  Darian was a 5th-round pick by Arizona back in 2011, but was released by the team when his ELC expired and wasn’t able to make an AHL roster this fall–he’s been plying his trade in the ECHL, having been traded by Tulsa to Greenville already (16-3-7-10; his career AHL stats 181-26-17-43).  He’s basically a warm body so I don’t think there’s a need to deep-dive on his abilities, but he’s essentially a less talented version of his older brother.

Coming off the team’s worst loss not just of the season but in franchise history, Richardson jumbled the lines, putting talented Tobias Lindberg on the fourth line (for those who haven’t figured it out, Richardson isn’t a fan of the Swede–I thought Tyler Ray had a great line comparing him to the way Mike Hoffman was treated), lining up the younger Dziurzynski with his brother, and pushing Schneider to the second line and elevating McCormick to the first and Robinson to the second–this is all extremely random.  Inexplicably the same D-combinations were kept, although in-game Richardson finally changed things up as the expected disaster unfolded (Carlisle wound up playing almost exclusively as a defensemen).  The play-by-play:
-great chance for Dzingel on the doorstep off a nice turnover by McCormick
-Paul with a nice chance at the top of the circle via Schneider
–A rush for the fourth line is ended by Lepine deciding to have a pointless fight behind the play
–Darian was hit in the face with a puck so Lindberg took his spot while repairs were going on (he missed about ten minutes of game action)
-Great chance for Puempel in close
1. Tuzzolino is deked out of the play and Paul can’t catch his check off a bad line change; Greenham is beat up high
-BSens took a penalty on the next shift with a pointless interference call via Harpur
2. Greenham is beat up high on a point shot (on the PP)
–McCormick takes a dumb holding call while on the PP
3. Off the ensuing faceoff (scrambled) neither Lindberg nor Harpur are able to block the shot from just above the hashmarks
–Lindberg turns it over leading to a 2-on-1 which is foiled by Carlisle
Second
4. Dziurzynski passes to the wrong team and Greenham is beaten by a howitzer
–Mullen with a great shot block in front
–McCormick picks up a dumb penalty in a shoving match
5. Sens give up a 2-on-1 and Lepine takes neither the shot nor the pass and Rochester bangs in the rebound off the post
–Stortini turns it over requiring a nice stop by Greenham
-O’Connor comes into the net
-Nice little play by Lindberg leading to an Ewanyk wraparound attempt
6. Tuzzolino and a flat-footed Lepine both go for hits leading to a 2-0 against with the puck wobbling through O’Connor‘s legs
7. Mullen steals the puck and makes a slap-pass to a wide open Stortini in the slot
-Nice offensive sequence by the second line, but no quality scoring chance from it
Third
-Both Tuzzolino and Harpur sat this period with Carlisle getting the lions share of their ice time
8. Dzingel steals the puck and Puempel scores from the goal line
9. Lindberg flubs his pass but it somehow it gets to Dzingel who passes on a 2-on-1 and Darian scores (for some reason Mullen was given the assist instead of the Swede)
10. Carlisle bangs in Lindberg‘s rebound on the PP
11. Lindberg makes a nice backhand saucer pass in front and Robinson makes no mistake
–Carlisle makes the save with the net empty

Don’t let the 6-5 score or the five-goal comeback fool you–Binghamton was not very good (Grady Whittenburg said on the broadcast that the blueline and goaltending hasn’t been good all season–I think the latter isn’t fair to Chris Driedger, but you can’t argue with the former).  If you’re wondering how the BSens suddenly played so much better in the third, putting aside that Rochester is an awful team and that they thought the game is over, it’s because Richardson benched a pair of terrible players (Tuzzolino and Harpur) and gave more ice time to productive players.  This is something he should be doing all the time, not just when his back is against the wall.  Chris Carlisle isn’t Bobby Orr, but compared to the dead weight on the blueline he should be a regular there instead of the fourth line.  Richardson needs to stop jerking Lindberg around, put Stortini on the fourth line (and take him off the powerplay), and so on.  Where’s the accountability?  I like Nick Paul, but he hasn’t had a point in 7-games and hasn’t scored all season–why is he permanently on the second line?  Slide him to the third to take the pressure off, or try him on the wing–something.  Stable lines would help as well, but they need to be intelligently put together (the same goes for defensive pairings).  I’m sympathetic to the plight of a team that’s dressing five ECHL-caliber defensemen, but there are smarter ways to pick and choose where and when they play.

Evansville lost their first of back-to-back games against Alaska 4-1 (yes they play them three times in a row), making only one roster change (putting the lamentable Himelson back in and pulling Dieude-Fauvel).  They were badly out shot again (46-27).  A look at the goals:
1. Humphries passes to the wrong team and while Reichard stops the initial rush to the net he’s beaten on the ensuing sequence off a rebound
2. Just after their PP expires Reichard is beat up high through a fantastic screen (Penny took a really dumb tripping call)
3. Soft call on Zay and on the PP Reichard is beat high on a weak wrist shot from the top of the circles (it’s a bad goal)
4. On the PP Fawcett scores on a backhand spinorama
5. Reichard is beat off a weak wrist shot from the point through the legs (another bad goal)

I have to wonder how tempted the coaching staff will be to put Reichard in net again given how abysmal Asmundsen has been–we shall see tonight.  On the Sens side of things Dunn was a healthy scratch.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 29, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

I caught some of Ottawa’s 5-3 win over Colorado and Ross A provides an excellent recap.  Shane Prince had a fantastic game and fans can both cheer and wonder why it took Dave Cameron this long to truly given him an opportunity.  I hope this gives Prince some rope to truly establish himself–time will tell.  Sens fans need to keep in mind that the team gave up 43-shots and without a great performance from Craig Anderson they don’t win this game.

I haven’t written about Don Brennan in years–it seems pointless as the talentless hack is easy to ignore–but he shouldn’t be let off the hook when he says things like this:

Something else to like about the Stars — they are one of the remaining teams to still have ice girls scraping the rink during TV breaks

Absolutely disgusting, although Brennan is truly bulletproof so he can write and say just about anything and The Sun (and Postmedia) will back him up.

Somewhat related, in Andrew‘s latest piece he has a list of items the latter two of which relate to Patrick Kane and specifically comments made by Nik Kypreos:

Nick Kypreos made some pretty offensive comments regarding Patrick Kane during Saturday night’s Chicago-Vancouver game. Kypreos was referring to Kane’s offensive totals this season when he said Kane “wants to shove it down peoples’ throats”. It’s a totally inappropriate phrase given the rape investigation surrounding Kane to start the season but it highlights larger issues in the hockey broadcasting community. … But it also illustrates what too many in the broadcasting community believe: that assault victims lie and the true victim is Kane in this specific case.

Does it?  I’m not a fan of Kypreos, but I can’t pretend to get inside his head andI seriously doubt the domestic abuse allegations were the reason he picked that phrase.  That said, someone (John) commenting on the post made some salient points that I have to quote in full:

I enjoy a great deal of your commentary, mostly when you stick to hockey, but even when you go on a rant there’s generally at least one or two ideas therein that give me pause to think. Unfortunately that gets overridden far too often when you go way over the line and start indulging a passion for gross generalization: TV hockey experts think all women are liars; the NHL hates women, etc.
However, the biggest issue I have is the way you’ve succumbed to a very dangerous trend in which a specific incident is used to redress (or begin to redress) a widespread injustice. Women who report sexual assaults to the police or other authorities have always faced a long and difficult road to get justice and the odds have always been against them. Is this because of a societal misogyny that skews the justice system? Or is it an inevitable result of the circumstances under which the vast majority of sexual assaults take place (i.e. no witnesses, he said-she said)? No doubt it’s a combination of both.
This is a shitty situation, nobody’s debating that; however, that situation can not be rectified simply by blithely assuming the guilt of every man accused of sexual assault.
Is Patrick Kane guilty? I don’t know, and I’d go so far as to say that there are only two people in the whole world who do.

Well said.

I watched the BSens 4-3 OT loss to Wilkes-Barre in a game where Matt O’Connor only shares the blame for the loss (the team being outshot 41-21 is the other).  The first line produced all the offence and the team continued to take too many penalties.  Here’s a blow-by-blow recap:
–Paul with a great chance all alone in front
1. O’Connor let’s in a goal from a terrible angle short side
2. Carlisle with a brutal giveaway that leads to a 2-on-1 and O’Connor is beat five-hole (not a great goal); Carlisle sat for the rest of the period
–Paul tried to pass while right in front of the net, turning it over (I took it as a sign that he lacks confidence)
–Schneider misses the net from the hashmarks
–Mullen with a good stick to deflect a pass to an open Penguin in front
-a couple of bad turnovers by Lindberg (he had a rough first period)
–Puempel with a great chance in front
–Schneider with a steal gets a breakaway
-Great chance in the slot on the PP by Puempel
3. Fantastic cross ice pass by Schneider to O’Dell on the PP
Second
–Claesson with a chance in the slot
–Fraser with a brutal giveaway resulting in a point-blank shot from in front
–O’Connor throws the puck away and the resulting chaos requires a big save
-Nice little defensive play by Lindberg taking the puck out of danger from in front the net; a good shift overall as he kept possession in the offensive zone despite being repeatedly double-teamed
4. Great re-direct by Schneider to score five-hole on the PP
–Robinson takes a dumb tripping call while the BSens are already shorthanded
-Great stop by O’Connor point-blank (Fraser out of position)
–Harpur demonstrating one of his flaws: with no pressure behind his own net he ices the puck
–Fraser lobs a grenade at Hobbs who can’t handle it and on the ensuing play Ewanyk takes a dumb penalty
Third
-Great pass by Lindberg to Dziurzynski in front
5. O’Dell knocks the puck to a wide open Dzingel in front who makes no mistake
–Lepine loses track of the man behind him requiring O’Connor to make a great save
–Mullen gets undressed and O’Connor makes another great save
–Stortini turns it over and the Pens hit the post
–Puempel moves down to the third line as McCormick takes his spot on the second
6. Weak shot goes through O’Connor short side; after the goal the lines went back to normal
–Dziurzynski gets the puck out of danger with a traffic jam in front
OT
-Great pass by Mullen to spring Dzingel
–Lindberg undresses the D but neither he nor Paul on the rebound can score
7. Fraser moves out of the way to give O’Connor the shot and he’s beaten low far side

The teams blueline continues to be a major problem, with Fraser the main (but not the only) issue.  Taking Stortini off the first unit powerplay has helped a lot.  The fourth line remains pretty bad and I still want Robinson on the third and Stortini on the fourth.  O’Connor did make some saves, but he continues to give up terrible goals that are due to him being either out of position or small in net–Wilkes-Barre continually shot at bad angles knowing he can be beat on them.  Otherwise the usual players played well.

Turns out Vincent Dunn was a healthy scratch in Evansville’s last game–something that doesn’t happen to actual prospects that often.  Mathieu Brisebois, on the other hand, had been recalled to the AHL.

The Berlin River Drivers, Evansville affiliate, is the worst team in the FHL (following the lead of both the ECHL and AHL teams above it), and one of the weird things isn’t so much that they’ve turned their roster over, but where their players are coming from–the Czech Republic.  Five players, all from the 2nd and 3rd division, have been brought over.  It’s a strange thing to see and I assume there’s some sort of Czech-connection with ownership.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 27, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

Binghamton is far enough into the season for me to take a snapshot of how the year is going.  Clearly the team is tumbling over a precipice–awful special teams, questionable player usage, and a lack of talent have all contributed to a 4-9-1 start (worst in their division).  Their 41 GF is 3rd in their division and tied for 7th in the conference, while their 50 GA is 5th and tied for 11th respectively.  Let’s break it down player-by-player (I’ve been tracking player mistakes that have lead to goals and they are mentioned below–I couldn’t think of a good term for it, so for now I’ll call them Bad Goals, or BG); I’m not a huge fan of using grades, but it’s a simple way to reflect how I think they’ve played (A=above and beyond expectations, B=exceeds expectations, C=meets expectations, D=below expectations, F=god awful):

Cole Schneider 14-7-2-9 SOG 42 Grade: B
The winger has strong numbers despite mostly playing with the Paul as his center (who isn’t quite ready to set the world on fire); as a player who historically picks up a lot of assists, his numbers are indicative of limited support (since Puempel‘s call-up his wingers have been Greening and McCormick).  Most of his points have been a result of individual efforts or sudden breakdowns by the other team–virtually none are from strong offensive pressure

Eric O’Dell 14-6-3-9 SOG 31 BG 3 Grade: C
His numbers are solid, but a lot of it was front loaded and courtesy of cerebral plays by Lindberg; lately he’s been guilty of poor decisions with the puck and some temperamental (selfish) play taking idiotic penalties

David Dziurzynski 14-4-5-9 SOG 21 Grade A
Is way ahead of his normal production and at 25 it’s still possible (albeit unlikely) for him to break out offensively at this level (he’s helped by the fact that Richardson plays the third line a ton); that said, the fact that he’s scoring is a bonus, as he’s been a positive contributor to the team in general, helping carry the dead weight that is Stortini most of the season

Tobias Lindberg 13-3-6-9 SOG 22 Grade A
The rookie is by far the best new addition to Binghamton’s lineup, directly generating almost all of O’Dell‘s production; he was inexplicably scratched for a game by Richardson and karma repaid the coach with the worst beat down of the season; he’s a big part of the possession advantage the first line has in comparison to the rest of the roster (see below)–able to move and carry the puck; if there’s a criticism of him it’s that he prefers to pass than shoot, but that’s a small issue

Ryan Dzingel 14-3-6-9 SOG 47 Grade B
Leads the team in shots; he’s played with Lindberg in all but one game this season, but unlike O’Dell I don’t feel like he’s dependent on him for production; almost half of Dzingel‘s points come from one game (where he notched 4), so he’s been less consistent than the Swede, but less streaky than O’Dell

Colin Greening 14-3-5-8 SOG 30 BG 1 Grade C
At about his usual AHL productivity; he had a rocky start to the season (in terms of his play), but has improved; inexplicably Richardson experimented with him on the first line and that was an absolute disaster–he seems locked into a third line role now

Max McCormick 10-4-2-6 SOG 29 Grade B
He benefited tremendously from his NHL call-up (which I didn’t think was deserved, but had the desired effect), with five points in the six games since his return; he’s moved around in the lineup, but seems to have found a home on the second line; much like his linemate Schneider a lot of his production is a result of individual efforts or sudden breakdowns–there isn’t the offensive zone pressure you see with the first line

Patrick Mullen 14-1-5-6 SOG 18 BG 2 Grade C
A solid start for the veteran given that he’s been anchored the entire season with the the disaster that is Fraser; there’s nothing remarkable or awful in his play thus far

Nick Paul 13-0-6-6 SOG 17 Grade C
He’s still waiting for his first goal and I don’t think randomly scratching him did much for his confidence (4-0-1-1 since vs 9-0-5-5 before); he’s centered the second line with Schneider most of the season, playing like the rookie he is, with flashes here and there; one significant plus is that he’s been defensively responsible

Matt Puempel 6-3-2-5 SOG 20 Grade C
He was good enough in limited duty; a bit selfish at this level, he has enough talent to produce; certainly not the best player on the BSens when recalled

Zack Stortini 12-2-2-4 SOG 19 Grade F
He can’t skate, he can’t move the puck, he takes bad penalties, and yet he plays a ton including on the PP–clearly Richardson has a soft spot for his captain and can’t resist sending him out there to fumble around; among the team leaders in selfish/pointless penalties, he has cut it down a bit of late, but his example has had no impact on his teammates; I think he could be a useful fourth liner, but he’s only played there once as Richardson insists on using him on the third; final note, because of his terrible skating he’s guilty of taking shifts that are far too long

Fredrik Claesson 14-1-3-4 SOG 12 Grade B
A good start to the season for Freddy, despite his partners (three games with Tuzzolino, eight with Harpur, and three with Carlisle whom he meshes with best); forced to handle the puck more and cover for poor defense play, it’s been a strong start and all credit to him for doing this well given the circumstances

Michael Kostka 12-0-4-4 SOG 29 BG 2 Grade C
He’s been okay thus far–not as impressive as I hoped, showing a willful, selfish side that most of the team’s vets have displayed this season–dumb penalties etc; that said, he can make a pass and carry the puck and given how scarce that is for Binghamton’s blueliners he’s a key asset; he’s spent all but one game this season carrying the load for Lepine

Buddy Robinson 6-1-2-3 SOG 10 BG 1 Grade C
Missed the start of the season due to injury and then was scratched randomly for two games because…well no one really understands it; he should be playing on the third line (at least) given his talent, but he’s been stuck on the fourth the last couple of games because Richardson wants Stortini on the third–no one can shine with Ewanyk and Hobbs as linemates

Travis Ewanyk 14-1-1-2 SOG 14 BG 1 Grade C
He should probably be in the ECHL, but on the whole he hasn’t been the disaster I was expecting–he needs to not take stupid penalties, but while he adds nothing to the roster he can (at best) not hurt the team

Danny Hobbs 14-1-1-2 SOG 23 BG 2 Grade F
The ECHL-forward has scored one less goal than he’s caused against and doesn’t really belong in the AHL (that said, I don’t think we’ll see him sent down); he’s played the entire season with Ewanyk

Guillaume Lepine 11-0-2-2 SOG 18 Grade C
Exactly what you’d expect–no hands, no real talent, but he has played pretty safe and avoided the dumb penalty plague; he’s not an AHL caliber player, but with Kostka to carry the load for him it hasn’t been awful–better than Harpur and Tuzzolino this season, but that’s faint praise

Alex Guptill 3-0-1-1 SOG 6 Grade F
He didn’t take bad penalties or make critical defensive errors, but he doesn’t do anything positive either, so the ECHL is a good place for him (sadly, he’s been worse in Evansville)

Chris Carlisle 8-1-0-1 SOG 8 Grade C
After two games in Evansville he was called up–it was a decision to bring him up because Binghamton has plenty of defensemen, but he’s stayed in the lineup (playing as a fourth line forward for three games); he hasn’t showboated in the AHL like he did in the ECHL and for the most part stayed within himself; Rutkowski would have been a better option to bring up, but it’s clear Richardson doesn’t care for him so Carlisle was the only other option with hands

Ben Harpur 9-0-1-1 SOG 8 BF 3 Grade F
He’s been as awful as predicted, turning the puck over and generally putting a strain on his defensive partners (mostly Claesson); on the positive side, as a non-physical player he hasn’t contributed much to the penalty parade; he makes bad decisions and can’t pass or carry the puck; time in Evansville might help

Mark Fraser 14-0-1-1 SOG 8 BG 5 Grade F
Unquestionably the most disappointing player on the team; while he can skate and hit, he has no hockey sense whatsoever and zero hands; by my count he’s directly caused five goals against (five!), along with leading the team in idiotic penalties; a completely useless player, unfortunately the organisation loves him so he’ll be plaguing the team for the whole season; he’s played with Mullen all season

Nick Tuzzolino 5-0-0-0 SOG 9 BG 1 Grade F
The ECHL-defensemen was awful in limited duty and Richardson praising him was ridiculous, but thankfully he’s no longer being dressed; he should be sent down to Evansville; when in action he was paired with either with Claesson or Harpur

Alex Wideman 4-0-0-0 SOG 0 BG 1 Grade F
I have no idea why he wasn’t immediately sent to the ECHL; he has good speed, but he doesn’t bring anything else and he accomplished nothing in limited playing time (how does a forward have no shots in four games?)  Even at the ECHL-level it’s not clear he has the hands to produce and if he’s not offensively productive he’s not adding anything; inexplicably he spent two of his games on the third line

Chris Driedger 4-4-0 2.89 .905 BG 4 Grade B
By far the better of the two goaltenders in Binghamton; while he has allowed some bad goals this year, he’s also played very well and confirmed that his play at the end of last season was no fluke

Matt O’Connor 0-5-1 4.14 .859 BG 9 Grade F
He’s been absolutely awful; 9 of the goals he’s allowed have been soft which is a ridiculous number; for a big man he’s small in his net and his confidence is clearly shaken; I think starting a few games in the ECHL would be good for him, but I don’t think the organisation will let that happen; it’s normal to preach patience with goaltenders and I think his problems are a mix of confidence and technique, both fixable, so we can still hope to see him play well

Some Notes on the Team’s Performance:
-Binghamton has lost every single game the Dzingel-O’Dell-Lindberg line has been split up (0-4-0), scoring just one goal in two of those games (overall outscored 20-10, so yes kids, they help defensively too)
-Since Matt Puempel was recalled the BSens are 1-6-1, although that includes the period above when the first line was split up
–O’Connor has allowed four or more goals in his last four starts
-Despite an over abundance of “defensive defensemen” Fraser, Claesson, Harpur, Tuzzolino, and Lepine) the BSens PK has been awful (30th in the league at just 73%); despite these struggles, none of the players who take stupid penalties have been scratched

Coaching
What impact has Luke Richardson had on this team?  All I see are negatives: splitting his dynamic top line was not only disastrous, but he stuck with it long after that was apparent; He sat Lindberg for no reason whatsoever (it even raised the eyebrows of Pierre Dorion); his team takes a ridiculous number of penalties, but despite talking about cutting down on them he’s done nothing to punish players for continuing to do so; his special teams are terrible–the PP percentage is higher than it deserves and there’s no reason for Stortini to be trotted out there to fumble around on the ice; the PK is inexcusable; he doesn’t understand the talent he has: Alex Wideman isn’t an AHL player, but he inserted him into the lineup; Tuzzolino isn’t an AHL player, but not only played but was praised while in the lineup; even though he’s stuck with Fraser there’s no reason to play him top minutes; Robinson has both been scratched and played on the fourth line when he’s far better than other players who haven’t missed a game.  Need more be said?  He even offered up a turkey of an excuse for the team’s awful record by complaining about callups and suspensions rather than errors (particularly his own–the buck should stop with him).  You have a guy who doesn’t force his players to be responsible and doesn’t understand how to use his players–the jury is in and it’s time for Richardson to go (although I don’t believe that will happen).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 20, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 5 Comments

It’s very Bryan Murray to be chasing an older defensemen (Trevor Daley) [reactions to which you can imagine], but Chicago’s asking price makes no sense for the organisation (a pick and either Shane Prince or Matt Puempel)–a defensemen has to go back the other way.  I don’t doubt the Sens would peddle a 2nd round pick as that’s what they do almost every year, but as for the asset?  Between the two I think the org is more likely to give up on Prince, but as I said, they have to move a defensemen if they are going to add one (I’d put the odds on Patrick Wiercioch going).

Speaking of Murray, he continues to play the role of grumpy old man when it comes to Mikael Wikstrand as he recently rejected the Swede when he reached out to him (essentially it’s play in Binghamton or sit–so the same story).  This sort of lackadaisical approach, which seems based on his “tough love” approach with Samuel Pahlsson in Anaheim, is pretty lazy–the situations aren’t the same at all–and it’s hard not to think that at season’s end Wikstrand (no longer bound to a contract) will simply disappear into the SHL or KHL and the Sens will lose a useful asset for nothing.

One thing I’ve wondered about with the recall of Scott Greenham is whether he can actually play or not.  He’s still within the 21-day IR Evansville put him on (from November 2nd), although I don’t believe that period has to be respected at the AHL level.  Given Binghamton’s schedule it may not matter, as Driedger can easily play both the Friday and Sunday games.

Some Evansville roster moves: the disappointing Matt Hussey has been waived–I’m not sure why they signed a player who didn’t play last year, but he’s gone after eight games of selfish and unproductive play.  With Scott Greenham recalled the team has brought in former Sens draft pick Francois Brassard on emergency recall–he’s been playing in Peoria in the SPHL (1-0-0 2.00 .905).  Evansville also received Mathieu Brisebois (AHL 9-1-1-2) on loan from Norfolk, via a trade by the Rangers of the useless Samuel Noreau to Chicago.  Brisebois has a good ECHL track record and should help shoulder the offensive load that’s largely been Troy Rutkowski‘s to carry.  Brassard has been the backup in Peoria and assuredly will play behind Asmundsen until Bengtsberg gets healthy. [A subsequent correction–Brassard had visa problems of all things, so instead Peoria starting goaltender Dustin Carlson was called up.]

On the coaching side there’s been a development as well, as assistant coach Johan Lundskog has had to leave the team indefinitely for personal reasons, returning to Sweden.  This comes on the heels of owner Ron Geary battling for a new arena deal, but the two are unrelated.

I was asked this week what the Federal Hockey League was (Evansville’s affiliate).  While I’d discussed it briefly back in August, I didn’t go into it figuring there was no interest whatsoever.  For clarifications sake, the FHL (just like the SPHL) is the tier below the ECHL.  The FHL operates primarily in the northeastern/midwestern United States and this is its sixth season in operation.  The SPHL is the same tier, but operates in the south, is older, larger, and has a slightly better pool of players.  These leagues are how ECHL teams fill holes in their lineups–there are no “hidden gems” here, but they’re an important part of the hockey ecosystem.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 18, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

Trevor Shackles asks the obvious question of whether or not Bryan Murray should remain GM of the Sens.  I think he’s far kinder to Murray than I would be at this stage, with it becoming clear Murray is unable to identify talent–either externally or internally.  I think Trevor and I are essentially on the same page, but just to make my point, here are some decisions by Murray over his tenure:
-signed Luke Richardson as a FA (yes kids, as a player)
-signed Randy Robitaille to provide scoring depth (he was back in Europe the following season)
-hired John Paddock (fired that year and has regressed to a WHL coach)
-traded a 6th (Ben Smith) for Martin Lapointe (he retired when the season ended)
-signed Jesse Winchester (advertised as an offensive talent–here are his numbers as a Senator: 233 games, 11 goals, 41 assists)
-re-signed Shean Donovan
-signed Jason Smith (he retired mid-contract)
–re-signed Luke Richardson who retired after two games
-hired Craig Hartsburg (fired during the season with no subsequent head coaching jobs above the WHL)
-traded Dean McAmmond and a 1st round pick (Kyle Palmieri) for Mike Comrie and Chris Campoli–the former was awful and the latter was booed out of town two seasons later)
-traded for Pascal Leclaire
-signed Alexei Kovalev as a FA
-signed Matt Carkner to a two-year, one-way deal
-signed Bobby Butler as a scorer
-traded a 2nd round pick (Kent Simpson) for Andy Sutton
-give up the chance to draft Vladimir Tarasenko to acquire David Rundblad
-re-signed Jesse Winchester
-re-signed Bobby Butler
-traded a 3rd round pick (T. J. Tynan) for Nikita Filatov
-brought back Alex Auld
-signed Mike Lundin
-gave Jim O’Brien a one-way deal (two years!)
-traded a 6th round pick (Pontus Sjalin) for Matt Kassian (!)
-traded Ben Bishop for Cory Conacher and the pick that became Tobias Lindberg
-brought back Joe Corvo (!)
-signed David Legwand (for two years)
-etc, etc, etc

He also waived Mike Hoffman through the league, was going to trade Patrick Wiercioch for a 3rd round pick, and on and on (Francis Lessard played NHL games under his watch).  It’s clear that if it weren’t for the scouts and Tim Murray in particular the team would be starving for talent and loaded up with broken down, ineffective veterans.  Obviously there have been successes, but the above (going back to an era without an internal budget) illustrates an inability to properly assess talent.

The Sens prospect update is a little funny in that Tim Boyle is included despite the organisation cutting ties with him over the summer (amusingly, he couldn’t maintain a roster spot in the ECHL and is plugging away in the SPHL).  The main takeaways from the report: all the prospects in the QMJHL are doing well (Tomas Chabot, Francis Perron, Filip Chlapik), the non-goaltending Swedes are not (Filip Ahl, Christian Jaros, Andreas Englund), and the collegiate players are a mixed bag (Colin White and Christian Wolanin are the standouts).  Marcus Hogberg has a poor save percentage (.896), but is winning a lot (7-2-1).  The org must be high on Englund–no points, but leading the team in hits….

Evansville lost the re-match to Wheeling 4-2 on Sunday; former AHLer Matt Hussey was either scratched or injured (I couldn’t determine which, but the former wouldn’t surprise me as one assist in eight games and a minus eight is no return on the investment).  A look at the goals (Bengtsberg had to leave the game early in the second due to injury; Asmundsen came in and earned the loss):
1. Moon takes a dumb penalty and on the PP Torquato bangs in a rebound
2. Just a minute after Asmundsen got into the net he’s beaten on a nice three-way passing play as Rutkowski lost his check leaving Krause wide open
3. Dunn scores from the dot as he was left wide open
4. Just 21-seconds later Strandberg floats a puck from just inside the blueline through a crowd in front
5. Asmundsen is beaten on a wrister through a screen five-hole
6. Lazy backcheck by Moon leaves Burton wide open who makes a nice pass for Brace‘s second goal of the game

A pretty consistent theme for Evansville where their veterans are guilty of selfish play–most of those players are the fault of the Evansville braintrust, but Leveille is the Sens fault.  Other book keeping: veteran Lukin has been out due to injury, as has rookie Zay (the former in practice the latter in game play).  Scott Greenham‘s injury is described as day-to-day, but we’re at the two week mark at this point (the BSens have recalled him, but there’s been no indication if he can play yet or not).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 16, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

Ross A offers a recap of Ottawa’s 2-1 shootout loss to the Rangers, a game without Jared Cowen but featuring Zack Smith going full Binghamton Senator by taking a bunch of pointless, selfish penalties.  I enjoyed what I saw of the game and it will be interesting to see what Cameron does with the lineup going forward (I like Lazar on the fourth line).

Binghamton blew yet another two-goal lead in the third as they lost 4-3 in regulation to Springfield.  Shift lengths for some of the vets are getting absurd–over a minute at times for the third line (Stortini-Dziurzynski-Greening), which wouldn’t fly with most coaches.  My summary:
1. McCormick is alone in front and cleans up the rebound
2. Stortini is too slow to be timely on the backcheck and then all the Sens lose track of the puck and Mullen gets walked around and Driedger beat with a soft backhand
-Stortini line gives up another 2-on-1 their next shift but Driedger makes a great save
-Carlisle loses the puck at the blueline but Driedger stops the breakaway (Carlisle did help deflect away the rebound)
-Kostka makes the exact same turnover but is able to keep up enough with Lessio enough to knock the puck off his stick
3. Kostka took a dumb tripping penalty, but McCormick and Dziurzynski broke out on a 2-on-0 and the former scored while the latter crashed into the boards and had to leave the game for awhile
-Fantastic point-blank stop on the PK by Driedger
-An example of why Fraser drives me nuts: with no pressure he bangs the puck off the boards to the wrong team
-McCormick with a great chance for the hat-trick off a nice pass from Greening
-McCormick had another A-grade chance on the PP but couldn’t quite hit the hot pass from O’Dell
-Dumb penalty by Dziurzynski as after a couple of big slashes he gets called for a hook; penalty killed, but Kostka proceeds to take a lazy hold right after it–fortunately Springfield took a penalty immediately afterwards
4. Schneider puts in Greening‘s rebound
5. Fraser took a somewhat acceptable tripping call (in this case via a scoring chance) and Springfield scores immediately as a spinorama confused Driedger who thought it was going to be a pass
6. McCormick took a penalty while the goal was being scored which kept Springfield on the PP and they scored off a great cross-ice pass for a one-timer
-O’Dell drew a hooking call, but four BSens could not take the puck off of one Springfield forward while on the PP eventually taking a penalty
7. On a broken play on the PK Driedger is beat by a shot between two Binghamton defenders
-Driedger made a great windmill stop with his stick off a rebound

Despite letting in one iffy goal, Driedger was excellent.  The first line wasn’t its usual dominant self (Dzingel was the best of the three of them), but while McCormick played a good game his line didn’t dominate either.  I thought Robinson was wasted on the fourth line and would have liked him swapped with Stortini.  Binghamton’s special teams continue to be absolutely atrocious and it’s well past time to put the PK struggles on the shoulders of the coach–it’s not getting any better and there’s no shortage of “defensive specialists” on the team’s blueline.  Jeff seems to want to put the blame for defensive miscues on Mullen (wanting him benched, which is incredible), but while he wears the goat horns for the first goal against, he’s hardly responsible for the loss.  Why Jeff continues to shill for Mark Fraser is beyond me (he’s avoided mentioning most of Fraser‘s mistakes this season), but it does echo the organisation’s opinion.

The IceMen beat Wheeling 2-1 in OT last night, with Bengtsberg getting his sixth straight start.  The goals:

1. Wideman finishes off a nice passing play on a 3-on-2
2. A point shot is deflected in
3. Shorthanded towards the end of OT, Leveille splits the defense and goes 5-hole to end it

I haven’t been impressed with Alex Guptill‘s first two games in the ECHL, although he’s talented enough to keep playing.  Leveille, despite the goal, continues to play selfishly.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 15, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

I’d like to congratulate myself on predicting Patrick Wiercioch would be scratched prior to either Jared Cowen or Mark Borowiecki, but he was back for the game against the Rangers today and Dave Cameron finally acknowledged the obvious by scratching the useless Cowen.  The Sens comical 7-5 loss versus Nashville is neatly described by Michaela Schreiter, while the 3-2 win over Vancouver is covered by Ross A.

Nichols explores the idea of trading for Matt Duchene as rumours abound; I saw some pretty humorous Tweets about this potentiality, but here’s Nichols conclusion about the idea:

Adding a speedy playmaking center like Duchene could help transition the offence by improving their ability to carry the puck with speed through the neutral zone and boasting Turris/Zibanejad/Duchene down the middle certainly would certainly be impressive. On the other hand, whatever success Ottawa can have this year will be predicated on their ability to fix their shittacular blue line. Obviously a Duchene trade and improving the blue line does not have to be mutually exclusive, but without knowing what the opportunity cost would be to acquire him and without having some side deals in place to improve the blue line, adding Duchene alone is not going to be enough to turn this team’s fortunes around.

I agree fully with that final thought.

The aforementioned Michaela‘s five thoughts includes one on Dave Cameron:

if we looked at where this team is now (under Cameron) and where they were at this time last year (under Paul MacLean), there is not much of a difference. As of November 13, 2014 the Sens had a record of 8-4-4. Right now, the Sens’ record is 8-5-3. Both teams suffered from a lack of identity and allowed a very high number of shots against per game. This may be an indication that the problems on this team are not necessarily due to coaching. Maybe there needs to be a change in the roster before we have another coaching change. My fear is that firing Cameron will become a knee-jerk reaction if the team’s struggles worsen. Fortunately, I suspect we’ll see a trade before it comes to that. I think Dave Cameron is the right coach for this team, and I would like to see what he can do with the right roster in front of him. Management needs to look at the changes to be made on the team, before they look elsewhere.

I don’t quite follow her logic here–what is it about Cameron that makes her think he’s the right man for the job?  Besides that conclusion I agree with everything above.

The BSens did some more house keeping as the disappointing Alex Guptill was sent down to Evansville.  Was he the least useful forward on the roster?  I think it’s debatable, but he’s useless enough that it doesn’t really matter (although he may help the IceMen).

Binghamton faced Leigh Valley on Wednesday, breaking their goalie rotation by starting Chris Driedger consecutively and keeping the exact same lineup that won their previous game.  As I said in recapping that game Binghamton was badly outplayed and lucky to win and that assessment rang true in the result here (a 6-3 loss).  A look at the goals:
1. Schneider tips in Claesson‘s point shot
2. Greening gets the wrap around as Stolarz over commits to a shot
3. No one has Brent in front who scores from the slot (the O’Dell line was on–no one rotated to the middle when the aforementioned went to chase the puck)
4. Mark Fraser takes an idiotic boarding penalty (it was called a crosscheck) and off a broken play Driedger is beaten cleanly from the top of the circle
5. Kostka makes an ill-advised aggressive play at his own blueline leading to a 3-on-1
6. No one covers the front of the net (Dziurzynski-line was on with Harpur/Claesson) and a wide open Cousins makes no mistake
7. McCormick beats Stolarz from the top of the circle through a screen via his own defensemen
8. Mullen loses a puck battle and O’Dell doesn’t have his check in front who beats Driedger with 2-seconds left of the second
9. O’Dell turns it over in the offensive zone and Leigh Valley scores on the empty net

Jeff Ulmer‘s recap is oddly picky over who is and isn’t singled out and I completely disagree with him on Tobias Lindberg‘s defensive acumen (which is quite good).  I’ve read Jeff for a long time and while I love his work, he has a soft spot for tough guys and little patience with skilled players–I’m quite the opposite, but the facts don’t change regardless of personal preference and if you read through defensive mistakes on Binghamton’s goals this year you’re going to see goat horns on the former far more often than not.  It’s been nice to see all the games this year so I’m less dependent on others view of who is or isn’t playing well.

On Friday Richardson put together the best possible lineup given the players available, with Harpur and Tuzzolino scratched and Buddy Robinson back in (the only other tweak I’d make is calling up Troy Rutkowski and sitting Fraser–for reasons I go into below); Matt O’Connor got the start.  The goals:
1. Fantastic pass from Robinson gives Hobbs an empty net and he doesn’t miss
2. Robinson can’t keep up with Peca who skates his way into the slot where he beats O’Connor through a crowd
3. Great little flip pass by Dzingel to Lindberg who outraces the defense and dekes the goaltender
4. McCormick fights Mormina after a dangerous hit on Nick Paul (looked like a hit to the head) and on the ensuing PK Robinson cashes in on a 2-on-1 with Claesson
5. Paul breaks his opponent’s stick (looked accidental) and on the ensuing PP and Vermin simply beats O’Connor with a shot
6. Fraser inexplicably tackles Vermin (who didn’t have the puck) and on the PP McGinn cashes in on a rebound
7. In OT Tambellini is left wide open in front by Mullen (who was caught watching the puck) and ends the game

One of the major themes of this season is Mark Fraser taking awful penalties (passim), but Richardson has chosen to do absolutely nothing about it–the guy isn’t going to learn until he sits if he doesn’t keep himself in check.  As for the game itself, O’Connor had his best start of the season, although there’s an odour to the Vermin goal.

Bengtsberg continues to play as Scott Greenham recovers from injury; Guptill knocked Sims out of the lineup and the horrific blueline duo of Himelson–Humphries was finally broken up (both still in the lineup, but with different partners).  The goals:
1. A lazy Guptill loses the puck, ignores his check, and watches as his check scores from the slot
Guptill took an elbow to the head from Cederholm in the 2nd, but he continued playing
2. Coming out of the box after the powerplay Sorensen beats Bengtsberg with a wrap around after an initial breakaway save
3. Fawcett cashes in on the centering play created by Dunn (who inexplicably didn’t get an assist)
4. On the PP Rumble scores with a knuckleball in off a rebound
5. Himelson turns it over and on the ensuing possession Fox is left all alone in front and makes no mistake
6. Leveille turns it over leading to an empty net goal

The problem for Evansville remains the same: a weak blueline and a lack of offensive talent.  Guptill should help, but with Noreau awful (and currently in the AHL) and Dieude-Fauvel hurt, there’s no help coming for the defensecorps.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 14, 2015
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 4 Comments