Senators News: March 25th; Binghamton 4, Adirondack 5

-Last night’s win pulled a whole pile of players off the schnide and provide a respite from the pushing of the collective panic button.  The Sens remaining games are against Winnipeg, Philadelphia, the Islanders, Carolina, Boston, and New Jersey.  They should be able to collect six points throughout the stretch which would mean Buffalo needs nine points in their remaining six games to overtake them (Ottawa owns the tie-breaker) and ten points for Washington in their remaining seven games to overtake them (the Caps own the tie-breaker).  The odds of both teams leapfrogging the Sens to knock them out of the race are slim (Sports Club Stats has them at 91%).

Daniel Alfredsson talked about last night’s win “We respect that team a lot and I think it brings that little bit extra out of you. We were hounding pucks, we were backchecking a lot and it paid off.”

-Binghamton nearly came back from a four-goal deficit, but ultimately lost to Adirondack.  I watched the third period of this game (Matt Puempel made his debut for Binghamton).  Lehner was pulled after allowing 4 goals on 28 shots (from what I read it was less about his performance and more about trying to spark the team), and if Mike McKenna could have made a save in the third period there might have been a different result (he took the loss).  Parrish, Petersson, Dziurzynski and Hoffman scored the goals.  Eric Gryba and Dan Henningson both finished -3 while Mark Borowiecki was a team-high +2.  Here’s the box score.

Corey Cowick scored twice in Elmira’s 7-1 win last night (Brian Stewart dressed as the back-up).  Bobby Raymond had no points in Florida’s 4-2 win.

Senators News: March 24th

Ben Bishop will start tonight against Pittsburgh, which makes sense as I don’t think Paul MacLean wants to throw Craig Anderson to the wolves.

-Sens fans are starting to panic now that Ottawa has only won one of their last six.  I think everyone needs to take a deep breath and relax.  Whether the Sens make the playoffs or not doesn’t detract from how much better they’ve been this year given the expectations.  It’s worth keeping in mind that if they do make the playoffs they aren’t going to get past the first round, so how valuable is that experience really going to be for the roster?  That being said, it’s worth looking at the primary problem for the team: a lack of secondary scoring.  A number of players who are expected to produce are in the midst of deep funks:
Daniel Alfredsson (3 points in his last 12 games)
Kyle Turris (3 point s in his last 11 games)
Nick Foligno (3 points in his last 11 games)
Matt Gilroy (1 point in his 11 games as a Senator)
Sergei Gonchar (1 point in his last 13 games)
Bobby Butler (0 points in his last 10 games played)

Paul MacLean talked about last night’s loss, “Glad we don’t have to play them again. They certainly bring the worst out in us. We weren’t as prepared to play the game, play with enough discipline … It falls on the coaching staff to make sure the players are prepared to play.”

Kurt Kleinendorst talked about last night’s win, “We didn’t give up. I really like the way we’re playing. I told the guys that. It’s really fun for me to stand behind the bench and watch them play because we’ve worked awfully hard and haven’t had great results up to this point, but we’re working hard now and we are getting good results. I’m happy for our guys because individually you’re starting to see their growth and development.

-Sens prospect Chris Wideman‘s NCAA career is over (Miami lost 4-3 in OT) so he may be on his way to Binghamton sooner than later

Ottawa 1, Montreal 5; Binghamton 4, Rochester 3 (OT)

Tonight’s game was over early in the first period, as a rusty Anderson wasn’t ready and neither were the Sens.  Ottawa showed some fight after the game was 4-0, but it was too little, too late (with a little help from the video review boys in Toronto).  I think I mentioned it in the last game against Montreal, but is there any team that dives more than the Habs?  Regardless, the Sens took a number of pointless penalties throughout the game, so the officiating wasn’t a deciding factor.  Here’s the box score.

First Period
Anderson flubs the first shot he faces to give the Habs an early 1-0 lead.  Condra had a fantastic chance short-handed, but couldn’t beat Price one-on-one.  The Habs scored just after their powerplay expired, with Cole overpowering Karlsson to bang home a rebound, and afterward  Paul MacLean pulled AndersonBishop promptly made two big saves after Turris was late covering for a pinching Gonchar, but Gonchar took a penalty on the play and the Habs scored immediately off the faceoff with Cole left unchecked to bang in a rebound. Nokelainen made it 4-0 on a 2-on-1, beating Bishop short side.  The Sens finally answered at the end of the period as Spezza scored when left all alone in the front.  Neil took a pointless penalty in a scrum at the end of the period to give the Habs a powerplay to start the second.
Second Period
Anderson returned to the net to start the period.  Klinkhammer saves a goal short-handed, breaking up a cross-crease pass.  Alfredsson had a good goal waived off (it was called a high-stick)–if memory serves, the Sens have not had a video review goal ruled in their favour this year.  The Sens were dominating the period, but Konopka took a pointless penalty to put the Habs back on the power play.  The Sens continued to have most of the pressure after the kill, but couldn’t beat Price.
Third Period
A slow start to the period turned into a Montreal powerplay when an Alfredsson turnover lead to scoring opportunities for ColeEller scored on the man advantage after Anderson over committed on a pass-attempt.  Anderson subsequently stopped Nokelainen on a breakaway.  Of all the fights tonight the one I liked best was Neil coming to the defence of Karlsson after he was charged by Blunden–protect your best players.

A look at the goals:
1. Montreal, Cole
Anderson misplays the shot which beats him high through his glove
2. Montreal, Cole
Anderson gives up a rebound and Karlsson can’t control Cole in front who bangs home the loose puck
3. Montreal, Cole (pp)
Cole is left all alone and bangs home another rebound
4. Montreal, Nokelainen
Beats Bishop low short side on a 2-on-1
5. Spezza (Michalek, Phillips)
Michalek centers the puck and Spezza is left all alone and beats Price high
6. Montreal, Eller (pp)
Anderson over commits on a pass-attempt and can’t recover

Top-performers: there aren’t any top-performers in a game like tonight’s, but Chris Phillips and Filip Kuba were strong defensively.

Players Who Struggled:
Craig Anderson and Ben Bishop – collectively three bad goals allowed just won’t get it done
Matt Gilroy – still waiting for him to make an impact
Kyle Turris – he wasn’t terrible tonight, but he has to start producing

-Binghamton blew a 2-0 lead, but were able to come back to take the game into overtime and win it.  Robin Lehner made 25-saves for the win while David Dziurzynski, Mike Hoffman, Dan Henningson, and Eric Grbya (with the OT winner) scored for Binghamton.  Gryba finished a team-high +2 on the night, while Mark Parrish and Craig Schira were a team-worst -2.  Here’s the box score and Joy Lindsay‘s game summary.

-Elmira won 3-1 tonight, with Brian Stewart picking up the win and Corey Cowick adding a goal.  Bobby Raymond had no points in Florida’s win.

Senators News: March 23rd

Craig Anderson will start tonight, his first start since February 22nd.  Jason Spezza also returns to the lineup, with Bobby Butler expected to come out.

-Paul MacLean talked about tonight’s match-up, “We know it’s going to be a difficult game because every time we play them it’s a difficult game. The neutral zone is a big focus. They do a real good job there. It’s going to be up to us to make sure we don’t turn it into an obstacle for ourselves. We’re going to have to generate more scoring opportunities on Carey Price. He’s been a big factor in every game we’ve played them. We’re going to have to make sure that we try to be more relentless attacking their net.”

Eugene Melnyk‘s unfortunate tendency to speak on the record produced something dumb once again, “At the end of the day, I’ve got little ones, a nine and 13-year-old, and I’ll be damned if some guy is going to pour a beer on them or whatever, or curse.”  Swearing?  He wants to eliminate swearing in the arena?  Good luck with that.

Joy Lindsay Tweets that Robin Lehner is expected to start tonight.  Matt Puempel should debut in Sunday’s game.

The Hockey Writers list Ottawa’s top-ten prospects:
1. Mika Zibanejad (they expect him to play full-time with Ottawa next season)
2. Robin Lehner
3. Jakob Silfverberg (they think he will challenge for a roster spot)
4. Mark Stone
5. Stephane Da Costa (they compare him to Adam Oates)
6. Matt Puempel (they imply he will be in the AHL next year, but he’s too young to do that)
7. Stefan Noesen (they see him as a third-line winger)
8. Shane Prince (they aren’t sure if he’ll return to the OHL or play in the AHL next fall)
9. Patrick Wiercioch
10. Andre Petersson (they consider him a one-dimensional player along the lines of Linus Omark)

Lists like these are always good at generating debate, but there are always curious elements in them–the one that stands out for me is how little (if ever) organisational comments are considered when deciding on what’s going to happen to a player.  To pick one example, Bryan Murray has remarked that he thinks Andre Petersson is Jason Spezza‘s winger of the future (link)–I’ve seen that echoed nowhere in the prospect assessments that I’ve read.  If that’s how the GM feels it should reflect itself in how he’s viewed.

John-Eric Iannicello believes Jared Cowen is the top rookie in the Northeast division, although he doesn’t provide any clear reasons why.

Senators News: March 22nd; Binghamton 3, Bridgeport 0

Daniel Alfredsson talked about the team’s recent struggles, “We worked so hard to get here, and sometimes it’s easy to overanalyze things. (Tuesday) was a step in the right direction, but we can still push ourselves a little more in terms of creating more ourselves instead of waiting for things to happen. It seems like we’re a little bit tentative at times and not creating as much offence. If we skate more and we’re more aggressive, a lot of things will fall in place. If it’s power play or 5-on-5, it all falls under the same criteria. We’ve done a lot of good things to get where we are, and we’ve put ourselves in a great position, now it’s just full gas from here on in and don’t leave anything behind, because this is the best time of year to play.”

Robin Lehner made 41 saves for the shutout last night, with Pat Cannone scoring twice (including into an empty net) and Andre Petersson adding the other on a penalty shot (he also lead the team at +2).  I watched some of this game last night and the team sruggled with the cycle and getting out of their own zone.  Here’s the box score.

Kurt Kleinendorst talked about last night’s win, “The key was Robin, obviously. It was everybody (being) determined, but it’s amazing how we as a group mirror our goaltender. Without a doubt, that was his best effort of the year. He’s had some good nights, but tonight he was just a whole notch above everything that he’s been. I feel really good for him, because it just shows his growth. He was making difficult saves look like he was in control of every puck. That’s really what we expect. That’s what we saw last year, but we probably haven’t seen as much of that this year as we would like. Since there’s nothing we can do about the past, we’ll just focus on what lies ahead, and if that’s what he brings, then to me, it’s progress.”

Robin Lehner did an interview with Hockeysverige and it’s worth reading in its entirety.  On the Binghamton side of things, “More or less the whole team that we won with last year disappeared. There are only three or four guys left, the rest have either had a chance in Ottawa or other clubs. We had a young team and suffered many injuries, it has been tough.”  He talked about Andre Petersson‘s controversial interview (link and link), “They took only the negative stuff about the city and wrote nothing about the positive, he had to say. I have wonderful memories of this town, how the city came together when we won the championship last year and how we were met by the people.  That article does not describe at all what I think about the city.”  He’s a big fan of Erik Karlsson and welcomes the competition brought on by Ben Bishop.

Corey Cowick has been reassigned to Elmira (in this most recent stint with Binghamton he went 6-1-1-2 +2).

-Florida won last night with Bobby Raymond held off the scoresheet.

Capgeek has unconfirmed numbers for Cole Schneider‘s contract (o.925).

Senators News: March 21st

Erik Condra talked about his shootout attempt, “Guys watch the shootouts before the game. (Hedberg) looks good if you score five-hole. If you don’t, it doesn’t look so good.”

Daniel Alfredsson talked about the game and identified the primary problem, “I thought we did step up our play from the last few games. We skated a lot better (Tuesday) against a tight-checking team. I thought maybe we could have had a few more calls with us, but that’s the way it goes.”

Sports Illustrated‘s power rankings are out with Ottawa 15th.

Joy Lindsay reports that Robin Lehner is expected to start tonight behind the following lineup: Derek Grant-Pat Cannone-André Petersson, David Dziurzynski-Wacey Hamilton-Jack Downing, Mike Hoffman-Louie Caporusso-Mark Parrish, Cole Schneider-Stéphane Da Costa-Mike Bartlett; Mark Borowiecki-Craig Schira, Dan Henningson-Tim Conboy, Patrick Wiercioch-Eric Gryba.

Jerry Crasnick writes a lengthy article about Donald Fehr, so for those interested in learning about the head of the NHLPA check it out.

Senators News: March 20th

Zenon Konopka will play tonight instead of Bobby Butler.

The Hockey News power rankings are out with Ottawa 16th.

Bobbykelly writes a overly positive article about Ottawa’s track record with college free agents under Murray.  Briefly, Jesse Winchester wasn’t signed to be a fourth liner, Bobby Butler has been a big disappointment this year, Stephane Da Costa isn’t ready for prime time, and Pat Cannone has been average.  They are all useful players in their way, but aren’t on the same scale of Murray’s Anaheim signings (Chris Kunitz etc), largely because the entire NHL now looks to the NCAA as a place to augment their organisations.

Adrian Dater thinks 3-point games have lead to boring hockey down the stretch.  It’s an interesting point, but I think it’s only possible because officials allow more interference as the season winds down.  I also prefer exciting races down the stretch as opposed to playoff positions set earlier in the season.

Joy Lindsay Tweets that Cole Schneider will make his debute tomorrow while Matt Puempel may play this weekend.

Kurt Kleinendorst talked about Binghamton’s latest loss, “We got outmuscled. We weren’t as determined as we needed to be, and they started to take the game over. But don’t forget, it’s not easy playing three-in-three. It was only their second in two, and that’s probably what the difference was in the third period. Robin played well. I thought he gave us a chance to win, which is all we can ask of our goaltender. We spotted him a two-goal lead. It wasn’t enough. Our first periods are generally pretty darn strong. I think the prep work is right. I think we’re capable. It’s just that we don’t maintain it for 60 minutes, and that’s just the way it’s been all year long.”  I believe a lot of the problems Binghamton has late in games is because of their weak blueline–the reliable players wear down and mistakes happen.

ZekeA, one of the best Binghamton posters, is writing up the year that was for the B-Sens in analyzing the performance of the individual players.  Here’s his view of the team’s forwards (for the blueliners go here):
Pat Cannone: at times he plays OK other times not that good. I think he deserves another yr, but at 25 will he improve all that much?
Mark Parrish: Solid pro he tries, has missed 25 games due to injury this yr. I doubt that Ottawa resigns him.
Jack Downing: Up from Elmira Jack has improved of late. Gives a pretty good effort. I say resign him to another AHL contract.
Andre Petersson: dam good skill set very good shot. + he works at times he does too much with the puck. Tougher than I thought Andre would be at 172 Lbs. He gets knocked on his ass all season long Andre keeps getting up & gets back in the play. Andre needs a summer in the Gym he has to get bigger & stronger.
Derek Grant: Derek has missed 26 games due to a shoulder injury. Derek had 14 games last yr + 7 in Calder Cup playoffs. Good size fair to good skill set, some say they should move him to center. Long pro season starting to take a toll on him, happens with 1st yr pros.
David Dziurzynski: I am a bit biased on “DD” as he is my dark horse prospect. DD is improving his all around game. He is checking much better DD is hitting not bone crunching but finishing his checks. DD is getting in front of the net. He is polishing his game now. I hope Ottawa calls him up for the playoffs as a black ace.
Corey Cowick: Corey is hot then cold sadly more nites cold than hot. Only way he is effective on the ice is if he busts his rear. Corey could use more speed and skill.
Stephane Da Costa: I expected a lot more from Stephane when he came down from Ottawa. Good skill set he could use a bit more speed & strenght. Last nite against the Pens he was invisible. I guess he is worth a contract next season.
Mike Hoffman: Mike has a very good skill set, he could use an extra step of speed to help him to get open, also Mike needs to get stronger. Can be dynamic at times other times he is like Jason up top giving the puck away.
Mike Bartlett: Mike gives you what he has honest hockey player. Mike is not a scorer never has been. He tries.
Wacey Hamilton: has struggled all yr as some 1st yr pros do. JOB [Jim O’Brien] also struggled his 1st yr in Binghamton. Wacey has shown just a bit of improvement of late. Not real skilled at this level Ottawa signed Wacey to replace Cody Bass. Wacey needs to get bigger and stronger and faster. For the game he plays he will have to get bigger and stronger at the AHL level. Lets see how he does next yr.
Francis Lessard: the enforcer his job is to protect the young skilled prospects. Francis does that just by being on the bench. Sadly he is the end of era in this game. I remember the 6 team NHL. The NAHL down here old East Coast Hockey League, bucket of blood where you had a goon an enforcer + 2 guys who liked to fight. Now that was real hockey, not what they play today. + I have always said a good fight never hurt a hockey game. Francis will not be resigned Darren Kramer will take his spot next yr.
Corey Locke: What can you say about Corey Locke when he is on a shear joy to watch. He is just so skilled so smooth. Corey can do magic on the ice. Will he be resigned I doubt it. Would I like him back sure all down here would.

Senators News: March 19th; Binghamton 2, Wilkes-Barre 3

Paul MacLean points out the obvious problem with the powerplay, “We’ve got to shoot the puck and we’ve got to get it back. We seem to be stationary as opposed to moving the puck.

ESPN and TSN‘s power rankings are out with Ottawa 13th and 11th (Scott Burnside adds, “the Sens represent an interesting study as they have virtually locked up an unexpected playoff berth and have the ability to make life uncomfortable for whomever they face in the first round“).

-Binghamton blew a two goal lead to lose to Wilkes-Barre yesterday.  Robin Lehner made 33 saves in the loss, while Mark Parrish and Wacey Hamilton scored the goals.  Here’s the box score and Joy Lindsay‘s game summary.

Jonatan Lindqvist writes a lengthy article about Jakob Silfverberg‘s road to success and the one thing it points out that helped separate him from other players was his desire to train.

Joy also reports that Sens prospect Matt Puempel will join Binghamton when Peterborough’s season is over in the OHL.

-Elmira won 3-2 last night, with Brian Stewart picking up the win.  Florida also won, but Bobby Raymond went pointless.

-Prospect updates (their position in team scoring is noted in brackets, defence compared to defence); I’ve also indicated if the player’s scoring position has change (with a + for up, – for down, and = for unchanged).  All leagues have finished their regular seasons, so what follows are their final statistics for the year:
CHL
Mark Stone (RW, Brandon, WHL) 66-41-82-123 (1st)
Shane Prince (C/LW, Ottawa 67s, OHL) 57-43-47-90 (2nd)
Stefan Noesen (C/RW, Plymouth, OHL) 63-38-44-82 (1st)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau (RW, Chicoutimi, QMJHL) 46-32-33-65 (3rd) (injured)
Jakub Culek (C/LW, Rimouski, QMJHL) 55-13-27-40 (5th)
Darren Kramer (C/LW, Spokane, WHL) 71-21-19-40 (7th)
Matt Puempel (LW, Peterborough, OHL) 30-17-16-33 (6th)
Jordan Fransoo (D, Victoria, WHL) 71-3-18-21 (2nd)
SEL
Jakob Silfverberg (C/RW, Brynas) 49-24-30-54 (1st)
Mika Zibanejad (C/RW, Djurgarden) 26-5-8-13 (14th)
Fredrik Claesson (D, Djurgarden) 47-1-6-7 (t-5th)
Allsvenskan
Marcus Sorensen (RW, Boras) 29-8-9-17 (9th)
NCAA
Ryan Dzingel (C, CCHA-Ohio State) 33-7-17-24 (t-1st)
Max McCormick (LW, CCHA-Ohio State) 27-10-12-22 (t-3rd)
Chris Wideman (D, CCHA-Miami) 40-4-19-23 (1st)
Michael Sdao (D, ECAC-Princeton) 30-10-10-20 (1st)
Bryce Aneloski (D, WCHA-Nebraska-Omaha) 38-6-14-20 (1st)
Ben Blood (D, WCHA-North Dakota) 40-3-17-20 (1st)
Jeff Costello (LW, CCHA-Notre Dame) 28-5-7-12 (9th)
Brad Peltz (LW, ECAC-Yale) 9-1-0-1 (20th)

In a forthcoming article I’ll take a look at each players regular season and assess where they are as prospects.

Senators News: March 18th

Daniel Alfredsson talked about the loss to the Leafs last night, “Toronto plays a different style than they did (under Ron Wilson). We probably could have done a better job getting more shots and more traffic in front. Overall, I thought we played a good game until we started taking some penalties.Erik Karlsson stated the obvious about the team’s powerplay, “We’ve got to try and tune it a little bit and talk about what we can do differently. Right now our power play isn’t working.”  Paul MacLean added the final comment about game, “Every time we play them, it’s a back to back for us. I think that’s a factor, that’s all. Not a huge factor, but it makes you curious.”

Robin Lehner gets the start this afternoon against Wilkes-Barre and Eric Gryba is expected to return to the lineup.

Nichols writes that the Sens are one of 25 teams in pursuit of college FA Danny DeKeyser (the rumour itself is via The Team 1200‘s Shawn Simpson).  Nichols quotes his coach (former NHL coach Andy Murray), “He’s a really smart player. He’s a great leader, has a great stick,  plays with some physical bite and makes good decisions with the puck. My  feeling is, from my experience in the league, that he’s certainly  capable of being an NHLer. When that happens, I’m not sure, but he’s  capable.

Brian Costello writes about how the 2011 draft would re-drafted today, which is a lot of fun but completely pointless.  To re-visit a draft you really need to wait five years, so by the end of this season the 2007 draft can be fully re-assessed.

Ottawa 1, Toronto 3; Binghamton 3, Rochester 4 (OT)

Playing their third game in four nights, tonight’s game was about as entertaining as watching paint dry.  Much like the Habs in the previous two games, the Leafs sat back all night (fronting their net) and the Sens had no answer for that.  Ben Bishop looked human, unable to keep his punchless team in the game in the third period.  The CBC broadcast was endlessly fond of shots of Randy Carlyle, which made for riveting television.  Here’s the box score.

First Period
The Sens dominated most of the play to start the period, establishing a good cycle.  Rob Klinkhammer had the best chance to score on a breakaway.  Ottawa continued its trend of ineffectiveness on the powerplay.  The weirdest part of the period was Sergei Gonchar fighting.
Second Period
The flow of play evened out and the Leafs broke the ice when Karlsson scored on his own net (the puck getting caught in Bishop‘s pads and went in).  The game entered goofy land when Neil and Grabovski were thrown out after a fight–the latter didn’t have his tie-down on, but I have no idea why Neil got the boot.  The Sens controlled play afterward, but struggled to get pucks to the net.
Third Period
The refs stepped in to help the Leafs with a terrible hooking call on Jim O’Brien (Kessel was holding O’Brien‘s stick) and the Leafs immediately scored on the 4-on-3.  The officials were clearly aware it was a terrible call because they made an immediate make-up call, with the Sens eventually getting a 5-on-3.  Barely able to generate a shot (although Spezza did kick the puck in), the Leafs salted the game away with their own 5-on-3 goal.  Greening was able to break the shutout before the game ended with a nice tip in front of Reimer.

Here’s a look at the goals:
1. Toronto, Connolly
Karlsson’s pass from behind the net hits the back of Bishop’s pads and goes in
2. Toronto, Kessel (pp)
Beats Bishop 5-hole through a screen
3. Toronto, Phaneuf (pp)
Beats Bishop with a one-timer on the short side
4. Greening (Kuba, O’Brien)

Top-performers: no one really stood out for the Sens tonight, who were clearly tired and out of sync.

Players Who Struggled:
Ben Bishop – you can make arguments for him on all three goals, but if he stops at least one of the two powerplay goals it’s a different game
Bobby Butler – he wasn’t terrible, but he was dressed to help provide offence and that didn’t happen

-Binghamton lost in overtime tonight, with Mike McKenna making 41-saves in the loss.  Andre Petersson, Pat Cannone, and Wacey Hamilton scored.  Mark Borowiecki was a team worst -2, while Petersson, Conboy, and Henningson were +1.  Here’s the box score and Joy Lindsay‘s game summary.

-Elmira beat Florida 3-1, with Bobby Raymond going pointless and Brian Stewart dressing as the backup.