–Sportsnet‘s Ian Mendes tweets that David Rundblad and Bobby Butler are the healthy scratches tonight (link), with Zenon Konopka added to the lineup.

–The Ottawa Sun‘s Bruce Garrioch has a potpourri article (link) which includes comments by Paul MacLean about David Rundblad, “David’s here to play on the team, so we don’t expect him just to practise. But we need to work on his defensive game, just to make sure he’s ready.”

–The Toronto Star‘s Damien Cox looks at the current battle of Ontario (link) and has some interesting comments: “These are two hockey clubs trying to find their way out of the wilderness, and neither is doing it like Edmonton, tearing it all down and finishing 30th for a couple of years to get the best teenagers the world has to offer.  There’s been great criticism in Toronto for some of Brian Burke’s decisions that are viewed as contradictory to the youth movement he has put in place, such as trading away high first round draft picks. In Ottawa, the process is even more confusing. The Sens will dress a host of recent first round picks like 18-year-old Mika Zibanejad, Jared Cowen, Erik Karlsson, David Rundblad, Brian Lee and Nick Foligno, but also thirtysomethings Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Phillips, Sergei Gonchar, Filip Kuba, Chris Neil, Zenon Konopka and Matt Carkner, as well as both goalies, Craig Anderson and Alex Auld.  The much younger Leafs, by contrast, have two players who are 30 years old, Tim Connolly and John-Michael Liles, and that’s it.  So is Ottawa trying to win now, or at least finish much higher in the Eastern Conference? And where do the Sens and GM Bryan Murray stand in their rebuilding project compared to the Leafs? One difference is that while Burke inherited a mess and has spent 2 1/2 years trying to overhaul the roster, Murray, to a large extent, created his own mess, and has been given an opportunity to clean it up.”

I have a lot of respect for Cox and often agree with him, but as interesting as his comparison is I believe he’s erred in making it.  Toronto, under Burke, is in year four of his rebuild, so the apt comparable would be his first full year rebuilding (2009-10) when he had five players over 30.  Cox also skips over the fact that Ottawa simply couldn’t move Kuba or Gonchar when they decided to rebuild.  His other point, that the mess in Ottawa is largely Murray’s doing, is apt and given that Brian Burke’s roster is now truly his both GM’s are perfectly comparable in that sense.

–The Hockey News’ Ryan Kennedy looks at which 2011 draftees will stick in the NHL all season (link), but he isn’t definitive in all his picks.  He does think Mika Zibanejad will stay with the Senators, “A fast-riser as the 2011 draft class came together, Zibanejad entered a perfect situation in Ottawa – the Sens were rail-thin down the middle, but still had talent on the wings. That means Z-Bad gets to kick off his NHL career with fellow Swede Daniel Alfredsson by his side and there isn’t a better mentor I can think of. He’ll stick.”

-The Elmira Jackals lost their first pre-season game 5-4, with all the players sent down by Binghamton getting points (Josh Godfrey lead the way with a goal and two assists).  Goaltender Corey Milan played in relief after the starter (Larry Sterling) was shelled for four goals.

-Former Sens draft pick Philippe Seydoux (3-100/03), who was on a PTO with the Calgary organisation, was released by the Abbotsford Heat prior to the AHL season (link).

October 8, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

The first games are in the books for the organisation and both were regulation losses.  For Ottawa, they played a solid first period and an inspired third, but were awful in the second (check out the game sheet link).  My thoughts, starting with all the goals:
1. Bertuzzi goal – created by a bad line change by Jared Cowen (some have blamed Sergei Gonchar for this, but Paul MacLean fingered the rookie)
2. Lidstrom goal – terrible pass by Chris Phillips to the wrong team
3. Emmerton goal – courtesy of a turnover by Erik Karlsson
4. Hudler goal – created by a Jared Cowen turnover (this is a goal I think Craig Anderson could have stopped–he got too deep in his net)
5. White goal – Stephane Da Costa loses the draw cleanly and the puck is fired through a Phillips screen
6. Michalek goal – deflects a Jason Spezza shot
7. Michalek goal – great pass from Spezza and great move from Michalek
8. Kuba goal – shoots through a Colin Greening screen
–Bobby Butler continues to remain in MacLean’s dog house, receiving by far the least amount of ice time
–Daniel Alfredsson was -3
-MacLean did some line juggling in the third period, putting Alfredsson with Da Costa while Zibanejad joined Zack Smith and Chris Neil
-MacLean liked Da Costa, thought Zibanejad played nervous and thought Cowen was up and down; he said of the team’s overall effort that he’s “not totally displeased”
Overall Spezza, Michalek, Neil, and Condra had strong games, while Phillips and Cowen struggled.  Speaking of Phillips, he had this to say post-game (link), “We all have to be a little smarter with the puck and make better decisions. It’s a part of the game. You have some guys who are just starting out and it’s going to happen. Tonight it was everyone who was making costly mistakes.”  One final, niggling detail I’ve seen repeated in a couple of Ottawa Citizen articles: Ottawa did not ice four rookies (Zibanejad, Da Costa, Cowen, and Greening), but five (Condra), with three others who have never played a full NHL season (Smith, Butler, and Filatov).

In Binghamton, the Calder Cup champs lost 3-2 to Hershey, being out shot 37-29.  I did not see the game, but a few things stick out looking at the game sheet (link) and Joy Lindsay’s game blog (link):
–Patrick Wiercioch had a goal and assist and was named the game’s second star, but was on the ice for all three goals against and made a weak play on the boards that cost a goal
–Mike Hoffman was -3 and was guilty of a turnover that lead to a goal
–Pat Cannone lead the team with five shots
-Hershey scored two short-handed goals
-Binghamton had a goal called back in the third period
Joy interviewed Kurt Kleinendorst (among others) after the game (link): “I thought we got better as the game went along. We took some penalties early, they got some momentum early, the shot clock looked ugly early, but at the end of the day, I thought our killers did a great job. And it was really our power play that did us in. First two goals against our power play. We did get one back, but you can’t be a minus-1 on the power play and expect to win against most teams, let alone Hershey. It’s an early day. I have to think we’ll be just fine, but we still have some work to do.” And “I thought Cowie [Corey Cowick] did a great job. He’s one of those guys that has already kind of shown what hard work does for you. He worked hard over the summer, and his game has improved quite a bit.”

October 8, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

I wrote about my expectations for Ottawa’s and Binghamton’s rosters back in July (link and link), providing a Bingo update in August (link) .  With opening night just hours away I thought it was worthwhile to revisit my prognostication.  I made a number of predictions beginning with Ottawa:

1. Nikita Filatov will make the team
Correct
2. David Rundblad will make the team and be ahead of Jared Cowen
Correct in the first instance, incorrect in the second; although he made the team, for the moment he’s the seventh defenseman
3. Bobby Butler will play in the top six
Incorrect; this may eventually be the case, but he starts the season on the fourth line
4. Erik Karlsson will play in the top pairing
Correct
5. Zenon Konopka and Jesse Winchester will play on the fourth line
Correct
6. Chris Neil will play in the bottom six
Correct
7. Peter Regin will play center
Correct
8. I did not think Mika Zibanejad would make the lineup
Incorrect; he may only last 9 games, but he did earn the right to be part of the team to start the season.
9. Projected lineup (I hedged a bit on defence); tonight’s actual lines are in bold (my misses in italics):
Nikita Filatov-Jason Spezza-Bobby Butler
Milan Michalek-Jason Spezza-Nikita Filatov
Milan Michalek–Peter Regin-Daniel Alfredsson
Colin Greening-Mika Zibanejad-Daniel Alfredsson
Nick Foligno-Zack Smith–Erik Condra
Nick Foligno-Stephane Da Costa-Chris Neil
Colin Greening-Zenon Konopka-Chris Neil
Erik Condra-Zack Smith-Bobby Butler
Erik Karlsson-Chris Phillips
Chris Phillips-Erik Karlsson
Filip Kuba-David Rundblad or Brian Lee-Sergei Gonchar
Jared Cowen-Sergei Gonchar
Sergei Gonchar-Matt Carkner or Filip Kuba-David Rundblad
Filip Kuba-Brian Lee

With Peter Regin, Matt Carkner, and Zenon Konopka injured my predictions take quite a hit.  It appears as though when Regin and Konopka are healthy they will slot in as I’d guessed, but it remains to be seen how that shifts the other forwards around.  I got one blueline pairing spot on and I’m correct that when Rundblad plays it will be with Kuba, but the other guesses were thrown off by Jared Cowen making the team.  My overall prediction for the how the team will fair hasn’t changed since the summer.

Here are my Binghamton projected lines with the actual lineup in bold (link); my errors are highlighted in italics:
Kaspars Daugavins-Corey Locke-Mark Parrish
Mike Hoffman-Corey Locke-Mark Parrish
Mike Hoffman–Stephane Da Costa-Jim O’Brien
Jim O’Brien-Derek Grant-Kaspars Daugavins
Derek Grant-David Dziurzynski-Andre Petersson
Pat Cannone-David Dziurzynski-Andre Petersson
Pat Cannone–Louie Caporusso-Francis Lessard
Corey Cowick-Wacey Hamilton-Francis Lessard
Jared Cowen–Eric Gryba
Mark Borowiecki-Tim Conboy
Patrick Wiercioch-Mark Borowiecki
Eric Gryba-Patrick Wiercioch
Tim Conboy-Craig Schira
Bobby Raymond-Craig Schira

With Stephane Da Costa still in Ottawa I’ll give myself a pass on placing Derek Grant on the third line.  I thought Kleinendorst would stick with the veteran Daugavins over Hoffman for first line duty, but the latter had such a good training camp he’s being rewarded.  Both Cowick and Hamilton are on the roster–with the missing Da Costa I would have picked the former to slide into the lineup, but it’s impressive that the younger Hamilton has knocked Caporusso into the pressbox to start the season.

On the blueline I expected Jared Cowen to be with Binghamton, so his absence throws my projections off.  I would not have picked Conboy to be in the top-pairing and wouldn’t have envisioned a top duo featuring he and Borowiecki.  The blueline as it’s currently composed it’s going to be very reliant on both Wiercioch and Raymond to generate offence.

October 7, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

Today’s Sens news ahead of the season opener:

-Ottawa’s lineup for tonight against Detroit (link, which airs on Sportsnet), with Konpoka out due to bumps and bruises; The Team 1200 just reported that they believe Lee will play instead of Rundblad, but as it’s not definitive I’m leaving both options below:
Milan Michalek-Jason Spezza-Nikita Filatov
Colin Greening-Mika Zibanejad-Daniel Alfredsson
Nick Foligno-Stephane Da Costa-Chris Neil
Erik Condra-Zack Smith-Bobby Butler
Chris Phillips-Erik Karlsson
Jared Cowen-Sergei Gonchar
Filip Kuba-David Rundblad/Brian Lee

–The Ottawa Citizen‘s Allen Panzeri has a Q&A with Bryan Murray (link) which includes some interesting statements: “Milan Michalek looks like he has come into camp in great shape. If he can  score 25 goals or thereabout, that would be a real bonus to our team. If Nikita Filatov could get 20, we would be incredibly happy, but I don’t know if we  thought that he would be a goal scorer. I think he’s a playmaker. I think he’s a  guy that creates offence by the way he skates and handles the puck.  I don’t think at any time during his career, even when he was drafted by Columbus, that anyone thought he was going to be a high-end goal scorer.”  I don’t recall hearing Filatov described as a playmaker before and I wonder if Murray is simply trying to adjust expectations away from goals.  “There’s no question Brian Lee has to step up. He’s not going to be a point  getter, so maybe he can be a shutdown guy with (Chris Phillips) or whoever Paul decides to put him with. But he has to be strong, be forceful, be a contributing  player.”  This is pretty straightforward to me–if Lee isn’t great defensively there’s no point in having him on the roster.

-Rob Brodie writes about the anticipation for the season opener (link) which includes some interesting comments.  Chris Phillips said, “It seems like everyone’s on the same page. There’s not a lot of guys behind the scenes trying to figure out exactly what’s going on, or any confusion. It is a clear message about what they expect — a lot of skating and hard work. We’ll start from there and if we do that on a nightly basis, things are going to fall into place for us.”  The implication (that last year there were a lot of guys behind the scenes trying to figure out what was going on) is stark.  Jason Spezza added, “It’s probably the hardest camp that I’ve had in years. He’s got our skating legs under us and we’re looking forward to getting in some games and using our legs in a productive manner and not just in practice … The practices are the hard part and the games are the fun part. We’re looking forward to getting into games and reaping some of the benefits of what we’ve been doing in practice.”

–The Ottawa Citizen weighs in with their predictions for the Senators this year (link), which range from 12th-15th.

–The Silver Seven offers their predictions for the Sens (link), which range from 8th-14th.

-The Binghamton Senators roster has been set (link), with Josh Godfrey, Jack Downing, Mike Ratchuk, Mike Radja, and Corey Milan sent down to the ECHL (Joy’s link accidentally misses Max Gratchev making the team below, so I added him in).
29 — Mike McKenna
40 — Robin Lehner
2 — Eric Gryba
5 — Mark Borowiecki
6 — Craig Schira
9 — Bobby Raymond
17 — Patrick Wiercioch
38 — Tim Conboy
11 — Louie Caporusso
12 — Patrick Cannone
13 — Mark Parrish
16 — Kaspars Daugavins
19 — Jim O’Brien
20 — Andre Petersson
21 — Derek Grant
22  — David Dziurzynski
23  — Corey Cowick
27  — Mike Hoffman
36  — Wacey Hamilton
39  — Max Gratchev
44  — Francis Lessard
84  — Corey Locke

-The Binghamton opening lineup for tonight against Hershey (link), with Louie Caporusso and Max Gratchev as the scratches:
Mike Hoffman-Corey Locke-Mark Parrish
Jim O’Brien-Derek Grant-Kaspars Daugavins
Pat Cannone-David Dziurzynski-Andre Petersson
Corey Cowick-Wacey Hamilton-Francis Lessard
Mark Borowiecki-Tim Conboy
Eric Gryba-Patrick Wiercioch
Bobby Raymond-Craig Schira

-The Elmira Jackals released six players from their training camp roster (link), Alec Kirschner, Matt Moffat, Paul Arnott, Vinny Geonnetti, Clay Goodall, and Michael DiLorenzo.

–The Canadian Press included some amusing comments from Chris Nilan after Don Cherry‘s rant on Hockey Night in Canada, but this morning Sportsnet had removed them from the article so I had to go and find them elsewhere (City TV‘s site, link): “Let’s get it straight right here and now, I never said that players who were fighters were prone to alcoholism and drug abuse. I guess those who can’t play coach, or just had a show called coaches corner. pretty sad he has to say that to get ratings. Guess he see’s the writing on the wall with CBC losing market share to Bell and TSN.“

October 7, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

Today’s Sens news:

-Rob Brodie writes about Paul MacLean for the Sens website (link), where the coach (among other things) talks about his approach, “Mike [Babcock] is very prepared. He empowers his players by talking to them and finding out how he can help them or how they feel the coaching staff can help them. Communication with your players nowadays is a really important thing. It doesn’t have to be on a daily, everyday basis with every player, but I think it’s important that players know where they stand and what the expectations are for them as players. Then it’s way easier to demand it if they know it.”

–The Hockey Writers’ Andrew Sykes looks at rookies to watch this year (link) and two Senators make his top ten: David Rundblad at #10, “While his teammate and felow rookie Jared Cowen arguably had the better training camp of the two, Rundblad’s offensive ability gives him the nod at #10. The soon to be 21-year-old is coming off a season in which he was the leading scorer among defenseman in the Swedish Elite League winning the Borje Salming award as the league’s best defenseman. An offensively gifted blue-liner with good size and mobility, Rundblad will look to follow in Erik Karlsson’s footsteps as an all-star rear-guard for the Sens. He did however struggle at times in his own zone in the pre-season so whether or not he is able to adjust to the defensive side of the game will likely be the biggest factor in determining if he is able to remain in the line-up.”  Mika Zibanejad is #7, “The 6th overall pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, Zibanejad made it almost impossible for the Senators not to keep him around for at least the start of the regular season. The rangy Swedish center had an excellent training camp and was the club’s most consistently dangerous threat throughout the pre-season. The 18-year-old is an exceptionally skilled player who already has NHL size and strength; something that was noticeable in the pre-season games and should help him to have continued success in the regular season. Depending on how he is utilized through the first 10 games of the season, Zibanejad has a good shot at remaining with the club and could become a a darkhorse contender for the Calder Trophy.”

–Sports Illustrated‘s Darren Eliot looks at the Northeast division (link) and says this about the Ottawa Senators: “The Senators are in full rebuild mode. New head coach Paul MacLean will have some long nights with a young group that includes enigmatic forward Nikita  Filatov  and defensemen David Rundblad and Jared Cowen. MacLean gets his first opportunity behind an NHL bench after nearly a decade as an assistant in Detroit, where kids go to the AHL before they ever see the ice at the top level.  The Sens don’t have that luxury, so this season is all about learning for all involved.”  He picks Craig Anderson as the team’s MVP, says Jared Cowen is the kid to watch, says we should keep an eye on how Daniel Alfredsson performs coming off surgery, and ends with “The Senators know their plight. They’ve restocked draft picks and prospects.  Some are here now. Others are a few years away. Ottawa is at least that far from playoff contention again. Patience will be paramount — in the moment and in the  longer view.”

–Sport’s Illustrated also has an article with 30 questions–one for each team (link).  Ottawa’s is: “With questionable depth among their scoring forwards, can Nikita Filatov really be the steal of the offseason and will 18-year-old Mika Zibanejad not be overwhelmed? Can both provide the Senators with the weaponry to worry opponents? And can Sergei Gonchar bounce back from a terrible season and spark the Sens’ rushes and power play?”

-The Sens announced that CKOI 104,7 will be broadcasting all the Sens game in French (link). Prior to this year the station covered all the team’s home games and about half the road contests, so it’s a great step forward for fans in the area who either want to listen in French or want the occasional break from The Team 1200.

-Allen Panzeri writes down some memorable Sens quotes for Senators Extra (link).  The collection is a mixed bag, but here are my two favourites:
–“Look, if I’d known Mullen was open, I never would’ve passed it to Stevens.” – Defenceman Ken Hammond analyzes a play during a Jan. 16, 1993 game that saw his pass out of the Ottawa zone intercepted by Penguin Kevin Stevens. Stevens then passed to Joey Mullen for a goal in what would be a 6-1 Pittsburgh win.
–Do you want me to stop the ones that are going wide, too?” – Tom Barrasso

-Joy Lindsay reports that Binghamton practised special teams today (link), with the following combinations: Daugavins-Locke-Parrish with Wiercioch-Hoffman, O’Brien-Grant-Petersson with Raymond-Borowiecki; Cowick, Dziurzynski, Hamilton, Gryba, Conboy and Schira were on the PK.

–The Silver Seven‘s Bobby Kelly has a preview of the Binghamton Senators (link).  It’s mostly a look at the roster changes since they won the Calder Cup.  The most interesting comment is “Tim Murray commented that the only player in Binghamton he believed had the tools necessary to play on an NHL top-six, if he worked hard, was Mike Hoffman. It’s doubtful TM would repeat that sentiment now…”  I’m not sure what Kelly means, since Randy Lee echoed the sentiments on The Team 1200 on Tuesday, so I assume Kelly himself doesn’t believe it.

-The Elmira Jackals added two more players to their training camp (link):Tim Marks (AHL 45-4-1-5), who signed a contract, and Stephen Mallaro (NCAA 26-4-13-17) to a tryout.  Elmira also announced an affiliate agreement with the FHL’s Danbury Whalers.

October 6, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

Today’s news roundup (incidentally, I’ll be posting my Sens prediction this evening):

–The Ottawa Sun‘s Bruce Garrioch interviewed an unnamed NHL executive about the Sens (link) who had some interesting things to say.  About Ottawa’s prospects he said, “A lot of people at the draft felt he [Zibanejad] was like Gabriel Landeskog and he was NHL ready. He’s got high-end skill and he was chosen No. 6 overall for a reason.  The good news is they’ve got those kids [the prospects]. Nobody’s sure what role they’re all going to play, but they’re all prospects.”  On Craig Anderson, “Can Anderson handle it? The way I look at it, the situation is the same as it was in Colorado, he’s got absolutely nothing to lose. He seems to thrive in that scenario. There’s not a whole lot of pressure and he’s going to face some quality chances. He’s not like Carey Price, he doesn’t have to win. He’s not going to be under the microscope with expectations of winning.”

–The Ottawa Citizen‘s Wayne Scanlan wonders who will score for the Sens this year (link).  There’s not much new here, but Scanlan comments that Bryan Murray “dismisses Butler’s ineffective pre-season as a lack of opportunity and suggests  Butler will re-establish himself when the fur flies in the regular season.”

-Rod Brodie, writing for the Sens website, has an article on Nikita Filatov (link), where the winger says “The atmosphere is getting way easier, way better and I just feel more comfortable here. I also need to say the veteran group is very easygoing helping a lot … (there are) lots of jokes and it’s easy to get into the atmosphere here.”

–Sportsnet‘s Ian Mendes offers his prediction for the Senators (link).  It’s worth reading the entire piece, but some highlights: “Anderson is probably the fourth-best goalie in his own division. That’s not a knock against the Sens netminder, so much as it’s a credit to the strength of goaltending within the Northeast. Tim Thomas and Ryan Miller have combined to win the last three Vezina trophies. And Carey Price strongly deserved mention in both the Vezina and Hart conversations last year.” And “Look for the Sens to finish somewhere in the same neighborhood as they did last year — maybe 12th or 13th in the conference. But unlike a year ago, the expectations have been drastically lowered in Ottawa so missing the playoffs won’t be viewed as a disappointment by the fan base.”

–The 6th Sens Scott writes that it’s a bad idea for Mika Zibanejad to stay with the Sens the whole year (link, where he compares him to other Swedish teenagers) while The Silver Seven‘s Dave Young disagrees (link), comparing him to Jordan Staal.

-Joy Lindsay has posted Binghamton’s lines and combinations at practice (link): Hoffman-Locke-Parrish, Grant-O’Brien-Daugavins, Cannone-Dziurzynski-Petersson, Cowick-Hamilton-Lessard, Gratchev-Caporusso-Downing/Radja; Borowiecki-Conboy, Gryba-Wiercioch, Raymond-Schira, Godfrey-Ratchuk.

October 5, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

Lot’s of Sens news today:

–Sportsnet‘s Ian Mendes interviewed Daniel Alfredsson about the upcoming season (link) and he made an interesting comment, “It all depends on how I feel, but I’m going to play like this is my last year and we’ll see how it goes. I think I approach it that way — that it could be the last one because you never know. I’m just going to give it everything I have and have no regrets looking back after.  If at the end of the year, if I’m feeling good and the team is going in the right direction, I wouldn’t say that I wouldn’t play the following season.”

–The Ottawa Sun‘s Don Brennan has a wide-ranging article (link):
*Colin Greening talked about his training camp, “I was lucky enough to get in five pre-season games and I felt like Boston was probably one of my better ones … I was able to finally get the monkey off my back and get a point. The only thing I told myself is, I’ll just play wherever they put me. I think that I can compliment a lot of people. Whether I’m on a fourth line, or just penalty killing, or whatever, I think that it’s important to try and compliment the guys on my line.”
*Bryan Murray commented on Bobby Butler‘s lacklustre camp, “Bobby Butler is supposed to be a goal scorer and he hasn’t scored. Whether he’s been provided the same amount of ice time and opportunity, I’m not sure. But Bobby will end up being fine. He’s a competitive guy that shoots the puck well. When he gets a chance when we drop the puck, I believe he’ll be one of the guys that after a few games you’ll say, ‘you know what, he didn’t do it in pre-season but he is a good pro.”
*Paul MacLean talked about his approach to the roster and David Rundblad, “Somebody has to (sit). I’m not sure how we’re going to do it. You go on the road in the NHL, it’s a hard league to learn in. Sometimes having two young defencemen out there might become a bit of a hazard. We’re going to study it and we’ll make the decision we think is best for the team to win, no matter who ends up sitting in the press box.  I thought he [Rundblad] played well defensively, he did a lot of good things with the puck to elude checks and make exit passes. But it’s a good two weeks for him. Time is what makes you a National Hockey League player. Expectations for him are to remain the same, knowing that at the same time young players tend to go up and down… we have to make sure we continue to impress upon him the need to be here every day, and to do it right every day. So far he has.”

-Both Brennan and The Ottawa Citizen‘s Allen Panzeri have articles that look at Nikita Filatov (link and link), with Brennan selectively using quotes to make the situation look iffy.  Brennan quotes Paul MacLean saying “We felt that if Nikita is going to play on our team, it’s going to be in the Top 6. He has the skill level to be a Top 6 forward in this league, so we’re giving him that opportunity. I don’t think he’s played his way out of that opportunity at this point”, while Panzeri has “I think Nikita’s come in and worked real hard and been good with the puck, and he’s been diligent without the puck.” Brennan quotes Bryan Murray talked about his training camp, “He didn’t finish, which kind of surprised me a little bit. I thought he’d score a couple of goals on the chances he had, but he made some very creative plays. I thought he was very aware on the ice. Again, it comes down to will he compete every night at the NHL level, so that he’s allowed to continue to show his ability with the puck. But he’s very much an NHL skater, very much has the hands and head to play in the league. It’s just a matter of watching him as we go forward here, and can he contribute. He has to get offensive points to be a contributor here”, while Panzeri has “I liked his camp. I think he’s a real high-end, skilled kid.  He didn’t finish, which surprised me a little bit, because I thought he’d score  a couple of goals with the chances he had. But he made some creative plays. I thought he was very aware on the ice.”

-From Brennan Filatov himself takes his performance in pre-season with a grain of salt, “It’s not a huge problem. Still lots of time before the first game. I have to kind of get more into it, shoot more in practice. There are lots of guys who didn’t score in pre-season, and they are way bigger players than me. I don’t really think it’s a huge problem. I think I work pretty hard out there. A couple of times I helped partners to score, and it’s more about that.”  Whatever anyone thinks of his camp, being slotted with Spezza is a reward for Filatov, although I have to think at some point he’ll be switched to his preferred side (the left) given how weak the team is on the side.

-The Binghamton Senators lost 4-3 in overtime to Hershey.  The team was badly out shot, but Mike McKenna kept them in the game.  Derek Grant, Andre Petersson, and Jim O’Brien scored in the team’s last pre-season game.  For more notes check out Joy Lindsay’s blog (link).

-TSN has their list of top-50 players posted (link), but no Senator makes the list.

-ESPN’s Scott Burnside’s power rankings are posted (link), with Ottawa nestled in the basement just ahead of Edmonton; “Ottawa has a great young blue line in the making, but there are way too many holes and question marks for the Senators to be anything but a lottery team this season.”

-I have no interest in debating who has been the best among Senators players over the last 20 years, but there’s a lot of material and debate out there.  The organisation’s celebration has struck me as odd ever since it was announced since 20 years is such a short period of time.  Typically teams’ celebrate recent eras that involved championships, but given that this year is a rebuild I understand the team’s desire to give fans something to focus on beyond the product on the ice.

-I’ll be posting my prediction for the Sens and the Eastern Conference later today or tomorrow.

October 4, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

Today’s Sens news:

–The Ottawa Sun‘s Bruce Garrioch talked to Craig Anderson about the upcoming season (link), with the goaltender remaining optimistic heading into it, “When you’re not expected to do anything, you play loose. When you’re expected to finish at the top of your division, there are expectations there. When things don’t go your way, and you’re supposed to be a top-ranked team, you could slide sideways and go downhill. When you’re on the bottom, working your way up, it’s just a constant grind. You play loose. You’ve got nothing to lose.”  Ken Warren (in The Ottawa Citizen, link) has an article with a similar theme, but there’s nothing new there.  I cite it because I disagree with Warren that the Sens have never had a goalie who could win games by themselves before–Dominik Hasek could when healthy.

-Allen Panzeri writes for Senators Extra about the upcoming season (link), looking at the Senators difficulty in scoring goals.  Paul MacLean said “Goals are at a premium for every team in the league, and we’re no different than any other team. We have to find ways to create offence and scoring chances for ourselves. We’ve done that (in the pre-season), not in every game, obviously, because we played way too much in our own end in the Newfoundland game and the game in Boston. We can’t continue to do that and have success. You don’t create much offence playing in your own end. Being efficient defensively and being able to come out of our own end with some speed is still a priority. When you do those things, you create scoring chances and you create offence, and that’s what we need to do.”

–Sportsnet‘s Ian Mendes has tweeted the Sens lineup in practice (link): Michalek-Spezza-Filatov, Greening-Zibanejad-Alfredsson, Foligno-Smith-Neil, Condra-Konopka-Butler; Phillips-Lee, Kuba-Karlsson, Cowen-Gonchar, Rundblad.  [A quick update via Mendes’ Twitter feed: Matt Carkner will miss at least a month due to knee surgery.]

–Pro Hockey Talk‘s James O’Brien has his Ottawa preview posted (link).  He doesn’t like their scoring depth or their blueline, but likes Craig Anderson and Paul MacLean.  He see’s Bobby Butler as a potential breakout candidate (I guess he doesn’t put much stock into training camps).  He rounds out his thoughts with “The Senators are a lousy team, although Spezza and Alfredsson could very well produce bounce-back years (while Gonchar could at least be functional). Anderson is a solid goalie who might hit some serious slumps behind a talent-poor squad, but should be given the leeway to stumble here and there. Ottawa could flirt (at least briefly) with playoff contention, but it would be in their best interest to lay low in the cellar and re-stock the cupboard with young talent. Right now this franchise is in a really tough spot, so making the postseason just to get bounced dismissively from the first round wouldn’t do them much good.”

–Puck Daddy’s Ryan Lambert makes predictions for the upcoming season (link), below which he has a blurb about each team including this about Ottawa: “The Sens say they aren’t concerned about their offensive output. Their D and goaltending is going to be so bad that it won’t matter even a little.”  He’s the first person I’ve read who doesn’t like the Sens goaltending.

-The Binghamton Senators play their final pre-season game against Hershey tonight at 7:00 (link).  The game is being broadcast in the US on BIG 107.5 (WBBI-FM).

-Speaking of Binghamton, John Henkelman of Hockey Futures has their preview of their upcoming season posted (link).  Unfortunately, other than naming the players he doesn’t delve into any analysis I can dig into.

-Joy Lindsay reports (link) that Brian Stewart, Jake Reeds, Mike Devin, and Donnie Harris have been sent to Elmira’s camp, while Binghamton has been joined by invites Mike Radja, Mike Ratchuk, and goaltender Corey Milan (NCAA 2.98 .867).  She provides the following forward lines ahead of the game: Daugavins-Grant-Petersson, Parrish-Downing-Radja, Hoffman-Caporusso-Gratchev, Dziurzynski-Cannone-O’Brien, Hamilton-Cowick-Lessard.  I assume that Hamilton will actually centre the fourth line.

-The Elmira Jackals (link) have signed Joey Ryan (2-48/06 LA, ECHL 53-5-13-18) and given Artem Demkov (Belarus 43-15-21-36) a tryout contract.  Demkov played in the QMJHL a couple of years ago.

–Mika Zibanejad‘s older brother Monir Kalgoum has signed with Botkyrka Hockey, a Division 2 team (three levels below the SEL, link).

October 3, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

Here’s today’s Sens news:

–The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch writes about Jason Spezza being given an “A” this season (link), an expected move given all the talk about his leadership at the end of last season.  Alfredsson said “He’s one of the best players in the league. He’s been around a long time, he’s played at the world juniors, was part of the Olympics (in 2006) and the world championships, so he’s got a lot of experience. He’s a good team guy. He helps the young guys a lot and makes my life a lot easier as well.”

-Garrioch also writes about the current roster (link), where Mika Zibanejad shows a very realistic view of his current status, “We’ll see what happens when every team has their best team. You’ve got to be able to take your game to the next level.”  Garrioch says that Da Costa is with the team depending on Peter Regin‘s health, with the same caveat for Rundblad in regards to Carkner and Phillips injuries, but this reads like speculation on his part.

–The Ottawa Citizen‘s Allen Panzeri also writes about Zibanejad (link), which includes an interesting comment from Alfredsson, “When you’re a high pick, that usually means you have a lot of skill. But for  a guy who doesn’t have a lot of experience playing against men, he’s doing  really well. He’s smart, with the puck and without the puck, and I think that’s why he  has surprised a lot of people. He just has to play the same way. It’s a different intensity level once the regular season starts, but I’m  sure he’s just going to follow everybody else. I thought the game in Boston (a 2-1 Ottawa win) was high intensity. It was  one of the better exhibition games I’ve played in, and he handled himself really  well in that one. So I don’t think it will be a tough adjustment for him going forward. He’ll  do well.”

–The Ottawa Citizen‘s Wayne Scanlan writes about what to expect of the team heading into this season (link).  It’s an interesting article and I agree with him when he says, “But with a team this inexperienced, there will be more than a few rope-a-dope  nights during which the Senators strive to just hang in there behind the heroics  of Anderson. Outshot 40-20, the Senators probably had no business winning the game 2-1,  but Anderson stole it, as he will have to time and again for the Senators to  stay afloat in the Eastern Conference.”  Scanlan ends his article with 12 questions for this season, which in brief are: 1. Who will score?  2. Can Anderson handle the load?  3. Will the older blueliners rebound?  4-5. Will the young players rise to the occasion?  6. Is this Alfredsson‘s last year?  7. Will Spezza emerge as a complete player?  8. Will the middle-tier players (Regin, Foligno, Lee) emerge?  9. Can Zibanejad have an impact?  10. Will the Filatov gamble pay off?  11. Will fans be patient?  12. What constitutes a successful season?  These are all excellent, pertinent questions and the reasons behind why so many prognosticators are picking the Sens to be at the bottom of the conference–too many things have to go their way for that to change.

-The Binghamton Senators lost 4-3 to Hamilton last night.  Corey Cowick, Jim O’Brien, and Kyle Reeds scored the goals for Binghamton.  The B-Sens were down 3-1, fought back to tie, and then Mark Parrish took a dumb penalty that lost them the game in regulation.  The most recent cuts from Ottawa are joining Binghamton today.

-I’ve been listening to the sports media debate the suspensions that have been handed out this pre-season and have to wonder if there’s an actual point to it.  There are clearly some players and journalists who don’t like what’s happened, but I don’t believe it extends very far into the fan base.  The Hockey News‘ Ryan Kennedy looks at the issue from the standpoint of current players (link) and includes a good quote from Ryan Miller, “It’s a small group of guys making it difficult for the rest of us. We’re trying to get that culture out where it’s OK to be a little rat on the ice and not have to be accountable for it. No one has to fight now if they don’t want to and I think some guys hide behind that. So they go out and try to hurt guys and play a game I don’t think our fans want to see.”  I believe the changes are a reflection of what fans want (along with potential fear about lawsuits like the ones the NFL face).  Those who oppose the policy would be better off avoiding hysterics (eg there won’t be any hitting).  Kneejerk reactions to change are common, but it’s odd to me to see them coming without much support from fans.  Regardless, I expect to see the debate continue for months more.

October 2, 2011
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment