–Travis Yost points out that while the Sens PK is likely to regress this coming season, their powerplay should improve.

-With the Sens development camp over I wanted to look at who didn’t warrant organisational comments (which is never a good sign, but not inherently a case of a player performing poorly).  To begin with, none of the free agent invitees (Branden Komm, Justin DaSilva, Mathieu Gagnon, Jeff Corbett, Macoy Erkamps, and Jack Berger) were referenced in any of the material I’ve seen, which indicates that they will not be seen again in the Sens organisation.  The following players were singled out as performing well by various members of the Sens management: Tobias Lindberg, Curtis Lazar, Chris Leblanc, Michael Sdao, Ryan Dzingel, Max McCormick, Buddy Robinson, Cole Schneider, Shane Prince, Chris Wideman, Cody Ceci, Marcus Hogberg, Chris Driedger, Francois Brassard, Andrew Hammond, Fredrik Claesson (named the camp’s hardest worker), Cory Conacher, Mika Zibanejad, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau.  So who wasn’t singled out for praise?  It’s an interesting list:
Mark Stone
Wacey Hamilton
Derek Grant
Darren Kramer
Troy Rutkowski
Tim Boyle
Ben Harpur
Jeff Costello
Jakub Culek
Matt Puempel
Jarrod Maidens (injury is a factor)
Robert Baillargeon
Vincent Dunn
Quentin Shore

I don’t put much stock in established players (like Stone) going unmentioned, while Puempel got a pat on the back of a different sort when Stefan Noesen was traded, but if you’re a marginal prospect like Jakub Culek this anonymity is worrisome.  There’s no condemnation inherent with the list, but I consider it interesting food for thought.

–Amelia L has thoughts for the Sens marketing department and the one that stands out to me is attempting to expand the fanbase into Northern Ontario (Atlantic Canada makes sense to me too, although Amelia only speaks about the former).

–Michael Grange wrote about Daniel Alfredsson‘s departure awhile ago, but among the deluge of such pieces it had passed me by.  Grange compares his departure to that of Brett Favre out of Green Bay and while he doesn’t delve into the minutia of Alfie‘s decision he concludes that no matter what went into the choice it has tarnished his image.  I don’t like that word (tarnish) to describe the decision, because neither Grange nor anyone else has really made an argument for why staying with an organisation throughout your career is inherently good–it’s rare, but to me that doesn’t inherently have a value attached to it.  If Grange had said it has changed Alfredsson‘s image forever I would agree wholeheartedly–his career will be bookmarked by the last minute change.

–Rory Boylen echoes a long-standing sentiment in hockey when he writes:

My belief is [plus/minus is] utterly useless, except maybe when there are major anomalies within teams.

There’s no real argument against this that I’ve ever seen.  The only use it ever has is with team outliers.  Interestingly, Boylen refutes the idea of a prevailing league bias against Corsi/Fenwich analytics (something Eric T accepted when arguing against it the other day), saying:

[They are] gaining popularity among teams and talent evaluators. Ask any scout or GM in the league about player evaluation and they’ll tell you it’s imperative to get all the information you can about a player to feel comfortable about making a decision or having a professional opinion on them. To ignore them out of hand is to intentionally block out a new perspective and method of analysis, which runs against everything talent evaluators should stand for.

-Boylen (same link) also believes there’s no chance the Sens can lose the Bobby Ryan deal:

Sure, Silfverberg could reach and exceed his offensive potential and I’d bet on him becoming a solid NHL player. Sure, Noesen’s shot could translate to NHL scoring stardom. And, sure, the first-round pick could end up being a player who sticks around the league for 20 years. That’s a lot of “coulds” that have to come together for the Senators to really look bad on this one. Ryan WILL score 30 goals again and again. About 30 players will score 30 goals in any given NHL season – the last time more than that reached the plateau was in 2008-09. And from the first season Ryan reached 30 goals (2008-09) through this season, he ranks 20th in the league in goals per game. The only player with more 30-goal seasons in that span is Alex Ovechkin with five.  And even if the other side of the deal comes together perfectly for Anaheim, Ottawa still got the immediate boost it was after to help keep its momentum going in the right direction. Can the Sens really ever “lose” a deal in which they’re getting the exact player and contribution they desired and paid for? It’s not as though they significantly depleted their impressive pipeline of futures – they could afford it from the start. I’d say the greater risk was taken by Anaheim, who acquired a whole lot of potential and controllability, but also a whole lot of uncertainty.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 15, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-The Sens re-signed Erik Condra to a two-year, 1.25 million deal, making his arbitration drama among the shortest in memory.  The deal is a good one for both sides, as Condra gets a well-deserved raise, but neither side makes a long commitment to each other.  Nichols sums him up pretty well (and Travis Yost has similar comments):

Despite these modest [offensive] numbers, his exceptional puck possession numbers and ability to drive play as a winger have earned him somewhat of a cult-like appreciation around these corners of the interwebs. Unfortunately for Condra, the fact his value is better quantifed by Corsi means he’ll probably always be undervalued at contract time.

–Clarke MacArthur talked about signing in Ottawa:

 I think there were six or seven teams kicking the tires and I just really thought Ottawa would be a good fit for me. I like where their team is going, they obviously have a great coaching staff there and just from playing against them and their compete level I thought it was going to be a good fit. I think it gives me a chance to play on those top couple of lines. A couple of years ago in Toronto when I had those minutes I was able to produce pretty good numbers. And, it’s a team that’s a playoff team. That was obviously my main focus — getting back on a playoff team again after getting a taste of it last year. I feel that Ottawa is team that can not only make the playoffs but also do something. I’ve heard nothing but positive things. Just to see their team with the amount of injuries they had last year and what he was able to do for that young team and the direction he kept them in line with, it’s only a positive thing for a player like me to sign there. I had some setbacks when I was younger but I always felt I could compete and play at that next level. So far I’ve done that and I feel like I’ve still got a lot to prove in the NHL. Obviously you want to thrive and strive to be more consistent. It’s something over the last couple of years I’ve tried to do and I want to carry that forward. They have a lot of depth up front and obviously with Spezza he’s a marquee centreman in the league and Kyle Turris, from what I’ve seen, is an up-and-comer with a lot of potential as well. It’s going to be an exciting time. I’ve played with Craig Anderson in the minors [in Rochester] so I’ve known him. Chris Phillips is from out in our area in Alberta. I know a couple of guys, I don’t know anyone too well, but I’m sure like all teams everyone seems to be good guys and I’m looking forward to meeting guys.

Essentially his comments boil down to he wanted top-six minutes and he wanted a team that was playoff bound.  It will be interesting to see how MacArthur does in MacLean’s system, which (at least in theory) should suit him better than Carlyle’s in Toronto.

–Randy Lee talked about development camp and Nichols has transcribed the bulk of the interview and after talking about the importance of player development and how the camp is invaluable particularly for prospects in college or Europe he talked about Fredrik Claesson:

Freddie is a very unique guy. He works his rear end off and he has fun doing it. He’s playful. He’s fun. He makes you laugh. But he does it and he never comprises on work – and he does it on the ice, he does it in the seminars, he does it in the sparring sessions, he does it in the skating sessions, he does it in the sprint mechanic sessions… everywhere you see him, he’s pushing and he’s enjoying himself and it’s contagious and it’s a great thing to be. It was good for us this year that we were down to a final group of five and we polled everybody who worked with the players this year and it was pretty well consistent with this group of five. And it was really close in terms of the voting. In years past, we’ve had great workers who stood out like the Mark Borowieckis but we had a real elite group this year. It was good and good to Freddie on winning (the hardest worker) award.

More generally:

Our two Swedish players [Marcus Hogberg and Tobias Lindberg] were incredible in terms of really absorbing the information. They amalgamated into the group really well. They really pushed themselves. We have some big bodies now and Pierre (Dorion) did a good job getting some big projects and I like that. These are great big guys that have a lot of upside. They do have some deficiencies right now, but you can tell that they’re like a raw piece of putty that you can really work with. Overall, the whole group was really receptive to everything we were doing. And it’s interesting, one of the best pulses I get on the group is talking to our drivers. We have a group of drivers that work with these guys and shuttle them all over the place and they get the pulse of what these kids are like. And they said, ‘Bar none, this is the best group of players that we have ever had.’ And especially the draft picks this year, they’re really good quality kids. Like Bryan (Murray) and Paul (MacLean) wanted – they just don’t want good players, they want good people.”

After talking about how nearly every hard working player who “gets it” will make it to the NHL one day and that Cory Conacher was “overwhelmed” by his exit interview, he discussed some other prospects:

Two guys are our high-estate players, Ryan Dzingel and Max McCormick; both guys that were later picks… Michael Sdao too, another college guy that was a seventh round pick. Dzingel was a seventh round pick and I believe Max was a sixth round pick or fifth. (They’re) later round picks but they’ve really worked hard. They’ve applied themselves to these camps. They take the information back. They stay in touch with you and work with Chris Schwarz. They work with our nutritionist and they’ve become a partner with us in their development but they do go back and play well for their teams and commit to them as well. And those guys made huge progress. You guys got to see a bit of Mike Sdao when he finished the season in Binghamton last year and a real character guy; a real guy that worked on his game. Dzingel and McCormick, people are going to like them because they’re both character kids. They work their rear ends off and Dzingel is a real high-end skill guy and Max McCormick is a real high-end character guy. (The fans) are going to like Buddy Robinson. That was a great signing by our organization. We get this guy without having to give up anything. He’s a character kid. He’s a good person. He wanted to come to our organization. He did well last year when he went to Binghamton. He got a taste of it – of what the actual jump is to make the jump is to go to the American Hockey League because guys don’t appreciate how big that step is. He embraced that challenge and he performed really well. He came into camp and worked his rear end off. He’s a great skater. He’s got great speed. There’s a few things that we’re going to work on with him because of mobility issues since he’s such a big guy. But he’s got a lot of upside and he’s willing to learn and he wants to learn and he wants to get better. Definitely, and he [Sdao] knows what his skillset is. He knows what type of player he has to be to be successful. He’s a hard-nosed guy. He’s got to be hard to play against. He’ll protect his teammates. He’s not a thug by any sense, but if the situation is there where he has to stand up for his teammates, he’ll do that. And he’s going to be a really good shutdown guy – he’ll block shots, he’ll be hard in front of the net and he’ll lay the lumber down on guys. He’s an old-school defenceman with real good character.

-I updated my profile of Matt Puempel.

–Eric T examines the kneejerk reaction to Corsi numbers from some players and journalists and he clarifies what those numbers are meant to accomplish succinctly:

The lesson isn’t “stats can help you win”; it’s “knowing more than the other guy can help you win”.

So in essence what Corsi let’s you do is:

This is what Moneypuck is all about. Nobody is trying to argue that Corsi is a perfect rating system, that shot quality is irrelevant. The point is that the talents that drive Corsi contribute more strongly to winning than people realize.

It’s a very well written piece and I highly recommend it.  It may be worth a reminder that all statistics are an attempt to understand performance through numbers–hockey hasn’t been as easily reducible to numbers as baseball, but that gap is being narrowed by things like the Corsi numbers.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 13, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 3 Comments

–Chris writes an excellent article (I highly recommend reading it through) exploring the Sens penalty killing and whether or not it will be worse than this past season.  He concludes that goaltending (more than anything else) contributed to the team’s excellent numbers, which to my mind means the change in penalty killers isn’t as relevant.  However, he points out (and I agree) that it’s extremely unlikely to get the same kind of goaltending performances this upcoming season so there’s no reason to doubt a decline of some proportion in the upcoming season.

–Erik Condra filed for arbitration and Travis Yost writes about that archaic process.  The thing to remember is Bryan Murray almost always makes a deal prior to the arbitration hearing, so I don’t expect things to get that far.

–Adnan takes a look at why Clarke MacArthur‘s offensive numbers dipped his last two years with Toronto, and points out in 11-12 his line often played against top opposition, while 12-13 he was underused by Randy Carlyle.

–Mark Parisi manages to write an article about the Sens finances without referencing any of the information that has come to light over the past few weeks.  He blames the NHL system for Ottawa’s financial troubles while claiming no one can know the Sens numbers (and therefore, Mark has no idea if those troubles truly are Ottawa’s or Melnyk’s).  While Mark may have a point about the NHL’s financial system (although as he admits no one really knows how that system operates), it’s more than a little baffling that he doesn’t delve into any of the news about Melnyk’s finances (other than to say we don’t know what those financial issues are, if they exist).

–Allan Muir gave the Sens a B- for their draft this year (among the worst grades he handed out in the Eastern Conference), but provides no real explanation for it.

-The NHL announced yesterday that the Sens and Canucks will be playing in the next Heritage game.  It will be interesting to see what kind of ratings are generated–if good, it becomes a little harder for CBC to hang its hat on Ottawa being a poor television draw.

-News columnist Jeffrey Simpson apparently made an ass of himself back in 2011 when he sent a letter to Cyril Leeder demanding Bryan Murray be fired.  I have to admire his passion, but hopefully Simpson learned to leave hockey decisions to people who understand the game.

-I remain puzzled why TSN, Sportsnet, etc continue to report the total salary for a player who is signed rather than their annual salary, since the latter is all fans are interested in.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 11, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

-The Sens re-signed Mark Borowiecki to a two-year deal; the first is two-way, the second one-way.  This smoothly allows him to patrol Binghamton’s blueline in the coming season, but means he’ll have a spot on Ottawa’s blueline the next.  The signing caused a rare slip from Nichols (hopefully fixed soon) where he writes as if Borowiecki‘s deal is one-way both years.

-Ottawa also re-signed David Dziurzynski to a one-year, two-way deal, although the official announcement from the team hasn’t come out yet.

-Development camp has ended and assessments from the organisation are out.  Given praise were Tobias Lindberg, Curtis Lazar, Chris Leblanc, Michael Sdao, Ryan Dzingel, Max McCormick, Buddy Robinson, Cole Schneider, Shane Prince, Chris Wideman, Cody Ceci, and all the goaltenders.  The player who won the award for the camp was Fredrik Claesson, and for those who’ve paid attention to what’s been said about the Swedish defensemen it’s not a big surprise.  Pierre Dorion said:

He’s just all character. Where he started last year to where he finished in the playoffs, he went from being a guy that was just in the lineup to an important guy in the lineup. I think it says a lot about him.

–Gare Joyce wrote about Bobby Ryan‘s background:

DOB on Bobby Ryan’s birth certificate: March 17, 1987. St Patrick’s Day. Fitting for a kid with a name as Irish as Ryan. Except the name Ryan isn’t on it. It’s Robert Shane Stevenson. Bobby Stevenson grew up in Cherry Hill, N.J., just outside Philly. His father, Bob, was a tough guy, built like a bank vault. He owned an insurance company and, truth be told, when people looked at him–he boxed back in his day–they thought they might need some. Which brings us to the events of Oct. 29, 1997. They come hard and fast. On that night, father and son sat in their second-row seats at the CoreStates Arena, Flyers vs. Blues. Dad was rooting for the home team because he knew he’d be seeing his friend, Bob Clarke, the Flyers GM, at Clarke’s gym the next day. The son was also rooting for the Flyers, even if the Blues’ Brett Hull was his favorite player. It should have been a good time for Bobby–the Blues won–and, like so much of his life after that, it was, for as long as Bobby was at the arena. After the game, the Stevenson men came home. With his son heading to bed, Bob met up with some pals for a couple of beers. He came home around 11:30. Bobby, 10, was fast asleep. “We had a good life,” Bob says. “Homes, security. Right up until that night.”

And the Stevensons did have a good life, as good a life as you can have when Dad has a wicked temper–he’d had charges from a bar fight dismissed earlier that year–and when he suspects Mom of having a substance-abuse problem. Bob was certain Melody Stevenson (née Ryan) was using drugs (she denies it). That’s why he’d rigged a tape recorder to the home phone. When he came back from the bar, Bob checked the tape. There was one call–innocent, Melody says. Didn’t matter. It set Bob off like the bell ringing. He went after Melody. Lefts and rights. Choking. What started in the bedroom spilled into the street, then to a neighbor’s house, where Bob, burning like a four-alarm fire, ripped a door off its hinges. The cops were called, and Bob was arrested. Bobby didn’t wake up. Or at least that’s what he told Melody when she picked him up at a neighbor’s house after she’d spent four days in the hospital being treated for a fractured skull and internal injuries. He still says that today. Bobby knew his parents’ marriage was troubled, even as he knew they loved each other. Says Mark Ellis, Bobby’s roller hockey coach: “It’s not that Bob didn’t care. You get the sense he cared too much.” But Bob wasn’t charged with caring too much. He was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and criminal restraint. Didn’t matter that Melody wouldn’t cooperate with prosecutors, who still figured that the physical evidence and the eyewitness accounts would net a conviction. Didn’t matter that she stayed by her husband, that she thought Bobby needed his dad.

Bob was released on $75,000 bail, which he skipped in December. He fled to El Segundo, Calif. Later, the wife he’d beaten and their only child drove across the country to be with him. Not just for a new life, but for a new identity. Bob Stevenson, insurance executive, became Shane Ryan, professional gambler. And Bobby Stevenson, young hockey star in New Jersey, became Bobby Ryan, hockey prodigy and new kid in town. Bobby played along with the charade. “My parents made it clear,” he says. “They were serious, so I only had to be told once. You’re Bobby Ryan to anybody who asks, no exceptions.” Did Bob jump bail to save his own hide? No, says anyone who knows him. This wasn’t a guy who was afraid of prison. This was a guy afraid of not being there for his kid. “My son is the only thing I ever got right,” Bob told friends at the time. And Melody says that the plan was always for Bob to turn himself in “when he thought the time was right, when Bobby got 15 or 16.” Talk to Bobby now and you get no sense of hardship or crisis during the family’s undercover days. Didn’t matter, he says, that his father was away a lot of the time, gambling in the casino at Hollywood Park. Didn’t matter that the family lived in a tiny apartment. Bobby loved looking out the window and watching the waves break on Redondo Beach. He loved being able to find a roller hockey game every day, just a couple blocks from his home. “Those were good times, because we were together,” Bobby says. “At first, I had to think when I was asked about my name or where I came from or my parents. But after a while, it was like I was an actor. I stayed in character.”

But nobody is that good an actor. Bobby Stevenson was already a force in national roller hockey circles back in Cherry Hill. Now, as Bobby Ryan, he was skating for California teams that he’d played against in tourneys. Bob could hide as Shane Ryan, but Bobby’s talent gave him away. “There were rumors, this secret that everyone knew,” Ellis says. “But no one asked. No one wanted to hurt Bobby.” The secret lasted until 2000. Maybe Bob got too comfortable. At Blockbuster one day, he used a credit card with an older, different alias. That night, U.S. marshalls broke down the door of the Ryan home. This time Bobby woke up from his deep sleep. The life of Shane Ryan was over. Bob Stevenson was cuffed and taken from the house while his 12-yearold watched. “That was the hardest time,” Bobby says. “I felt broken. I was down. I didn’t know if I wanted to keep playing hockey anymore.” With Bob extradited to New Jersey and serving time at Riverfront State Prison in Camden after pleading guilty to aggravated assault and bail jumping, Melody worked two jobs–as a rink manager during the day, taking Bobby along with her, and at an airport at night, with Bobby at the apartment doing homework (he was homeschooled by his mom). “At the arena, Bobby could get free ice time, and at the airlines, I could get him discount airfare to tournaments,” Melody says. Hockey’s not cheap, and Melody was strapped for cash, so teammates’ parents helped out with gear and tourney fees. That motivated Bobby to give ice hockey his all. “I decided that we came this far and I had to go for it,” he says.

Joyce carries the story through the OHL and then into the NHL.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

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

-Yesterday the Sens traded Pat Cannone to St. Louis for future considerations.  The Sens had waived him in January, but found no takers (likely due to his high AHL salary, 105k next season).  Beyond Cannone‘s poor season, moving him also helps clear the glut of forwards who will be filling Binghamton’s roster.

–Mike Glotov writes about Daniel Alfredsson‘s departure in Russian and granting that Google translate is iffy the gist of his theory is that Jason Spezza ultimately was the reason.  This is definitely an interesting and dramatic theory, but without more backing it can’t leave the theoretical realm.

–Randy Lee talked about Shane Prince‘s development:

The (AHL) is a challenging league. Some guys do respond and some guys don’t. I was most impressed with the way he engaged himself, the way he fought to get to lose pucks. He was harder to play against. He was all of the things we wanted to see.

Lee said Prince was one of the players who improved the most this past season.

–Matt Puempel talks about this past season and looking forward:

I just try to work hard every day and improve each year. That’s all you can do is control what you can control. That’s where I’ve kind of left it. Obviously size is one thing and speed comes with that and having skill take care of itself and lead where I can. Like I said, I just control what I can control and work hard to make the best of it. I liked it [Kitchener], it was a blast there. Unbelievable coaching, the organization, everything there was fun — I think that was part of it — the product on the ice was pretty good. Obviously we wanted to go further, we lost to a pretty good London team in the second round. Some people said whoever won that series was going to go on. Then to go over to Binghamton and play in the playoffs was a learning experience and I think I grew as a player and person there. I enjoyed that too. You’re playing against certain guys [in the AHL] that have played the majority of their careers in the NHL and different guys that have been called up. It’s kind of cool to see where you stand and to see where you can put your name at. It’s a good measuring stick and I thought I did well there and I thought the coaches put me in good situations, playing with good linemates and everything like that and, like I said, all you can do is learn and take in so much from pros that you’re playing with and around everyday. The way they handle themselves is something cool to see and something I had a lot of fun learning. Obviously having to change leagues, it’s an adjustment, it comes with patience. You want to score every game but in reality that’s not the case and you just do different things though to make you’re not invisible and not one-dimensional out there. That’s something I’ve tried to work on over the past couple of years. It’s always nice to score and it was good to help the team out in the playoffs there. It’s [development camp] been really long days some days, you have to be strong mentally and that’s a big part of the game — we’ve learned about that this week. It’s dwindling down here, tomorrow we head out, but obviously any time you’re involved in the organization and with the guys here and learning so much and taking in so much. It’s a short time but they pack the days and it’s real good to break up the summer too. They do a good job of mixing things up and making things different. This year was different from the past two years and was a good change. It’s been really good, the fan support is amazing obviously and it’s good to just be around the guys you don’t see all summer and just kind of hang out with them. Everyone’s goal is to play here — since I was one year old I think. There’s a huge development point, I think, from the standpoint of making the next level. Ottawa is going to help you and guide you in any situation you want and put you in good situations, whether it’s in Binghamton or here, you just have to improve every day and be a pro and see where you end up. Hard work is going to get you the furthest.

–Andrew Hammond discussed the same thing (link above):

 It’s been really good [development camp]. It’s nice getting to be able to put faces to names now and get to know a lot of people in the organization and obviously all of the activities they have us doing this week is really good for your development. It has been a really positive experience so far. It’s a little bit different [from Chicago’s camp]. This camp focuses more on skill development whereas that one was more scrimmages and stuff like that. I think this camp’s emphasis is more on developing the players rather than trying to gauge where everyone is at. I think I’ve gotten better as the week has gone on and I think that’s the goal of the camp. Absolutely (it did [NCAA]) — I think it gave me a lot more experience in the last four seasons. I’ve been able to get some key game experience and obviously a lot of shots in those games. As a goalie you’re only going to get better by playing and, fortunately, I was able to do that at Bowling Green. It was good [joining Binghamton at season’s end], you don’t really know what it’s like until you’re there — you hear things, but nothing really beats doing it yourself. It was good to kind of get my feet wet and see what the organization is like and, you know what, it was just good to get over there and meet some of the guys and start my path as a Senator. You learn a lot of things, it’s not just on the ice, it’s off the ice. How to handle yourself and the things you need to focus on as far as nutrition and fitness and things like that. Coming here I’ve kind of learned about the whole package of what it’s like to be a pro hockey player. It’s an unbelievable resource to have [Rick Walmsley]. He’s already brought up a couple things that have probably been bad habits over the years and already this week I’ve seen tremendous improvement in those things so being able to  work one-on-one with him has been a great aspect of this week. I’m really fortunate to have him here. I’m just going to go into camp and be as prepared as I can for it. Just leave everything on the ice and obviously just try and have the best showing I can. I just try to make everything look easy. It’s not always technically perfect but for the most part I try and keep everything pretty sound. You’ll see me making a little bit of a desperation save if I have to so, at the end of the day it’s just about stopping the puck. Whatever it takes.

And Jarrod Maidens:

 I’m out playing, getting on the ice, no contact but I can skate and stickhandle and feel the puck. It’s just nice to be working out and doing this stuff again. I know I’m definitely not where I want to be yet because it has been so long but I’m happy with how I feel so far getting out there and I feel I’m slowly making progress each time I get out there. I think my goal right now is the season coming. Just recover now and do what I can to be healthy and ready to go again. It’s definitely nice [working with Mark Reeds]. You’re more comfortable when you kind of know the guys — players and the coaches as well. With Mark, talking with him, I know he’s a smart guy. I just ask him questions and listen to what he has to say. I think it’s definitely a little bit easier this time in two ways — at least I’m on the ice and participating and I know guys now, so I kind of know what to expect and feel more comfortable that way. I love coming here, it’s great, you learn a lot and it’s a fun time. Right now I’m just working on getting back — I’m still part of the Owen Sound Attack and we’ll see where things go when I get back and start working hard again.

–Nichols writes a lengthy piece about the Sens roster changes over the past few days and there’s a lot of food for thought.  Most interesting is his analysis of what Ottawa gave up to get Bobby Ryan:

There’s no question that the return for the Ducks is a healthy one, but each of the individual pieces comes with warts. I will miss Silfverberg [but] nevertheless Silverberg will turn 23 in October, making him just three years younger than Bobby Ryan. We tend to overlook the actual age of players like Cory Conacher and Silfverberg, ignoring that the likelihood of them taking their games to another level is probably smaller than it would be for say, a 19 year old prospect like Zibanejad. In their 22 year old NHL seasons Bobby Ryan was about twice as productive as Silf on a per game basis [67-31-26-57 in 08-09, his first full season in the NHL]. Jakob‘s skating was never a strength. Stefan Noesen projects as a power forward with some offensive skill, but as a player whose ceiling second line winger, he may wind up just being a third line player. Losing a first round pick is never palatable, mostly because as a fan, the draft is an event itself and you never want to see your favorite organization sitting on the sidelines. But, from many accounts, the 2014 NHL Draft is shaping up to be a weak class, so if you’re Ottawa brass, it makes sense that if you’re going to roll the dice, you do it by moving a 2014 first. Speaking of risk, the Senators are inheriting plenty of it, despite getting the best player in the deal. They parlayed a plethora of controllable years on their assets for two seasons worth of Ryan (it’s not like the guy has been VERY public about wanting to be a Philadelphia Flyer in the past year). Due to the finite number of roster spots available, obviously not all of Ottawa’s prospects within its vaunted system can play for the Senators, but these prospects and draft picks are the currency of the NHL. And perhaps Ottawa could have used these prospects as part of a larger package to bring in a better player or a comparable player who has a longer term on his contract. Using this rationale, rumours that Ottawa had interest in Jets winger Evander Kane make sense. Instead Ottawa gets a player deemed expendable by a middle of the pack Anaheim Ducks team that has for whatever reason, has opted not to use a 26-year old four-time 30-goal scorer as a building block for its franchise. Yesterday, Wayne Scanlan appeared on our podcast and dispelled those concerns because he felt that more than anything, it was a financial decision on the part of the Ducks. Considering the exorbitant contract extensions that Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf received, there’s some truth here. But, Ryan has been a player who’s been rumoured in trade negotiations for years. Is it a red flag? Maybe, maybe not. These things are often overblown, see Turris.

This is a shortened version of Nichols distillation of the trade, but on the whole it’s difficult to argue with his points.  I never saw Silfverberg as more than a second line player capable of potting 20-goals, while Noesen‘s trend is looking more and more along the lines of a third-liner.  I’d be careful predicting the depth of a draft, as pre-season estimates often change, but it’s true that the Sens are getting the best player in the deal (granted, perhaps only for two seasons).  Is that enough?  I think it depends on what expectations are for where Ryan will take the team.  Does the organisation see him helping them to a Cup this season or next?  It seems hard to imagine, however the team does need a healthy star forward and right now none of their prospects can fill that need.  In that sense, especially with Alfredsson leaving, they had to add someone like Ryan into their lineup.

–Varada also thinks the moves make the Sens a better team, but he focuses more on the numbers (possession in particular).

-Nichols (same link above) also adds a comment to the effect that Pat Cannone‘s numbers suffered due to the number of top prospects crowding Binghamton’s lineup, but that’s simply not the case.  A quick review: Cannone finished the season with 25 points, which was 12th on the team in scoring; 9 of those points (36%) came over a ten-game period in November-December when he was playing with Silfverberg.  In the 42 games he played after the Sens top prospects left he produced a meagre 14 points (so stretching that pace over a full season he would have had…25 points).  He’s not a terrible player, but his season was poor by any standard.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 9, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 3 Comments

-The strange off-season continues for the Sens as they signed former Sen Joe Corvo (40-6-11-17) to a one-year, 900k contract.  Murray said the following about the deal:

Joe brings us a veteran defenceman that has a history of scoring points in the National Hockey League. He is now one of seven defenceman that we have in the organization and we need depth — or we needed depth — and we certainly have that provided now in Joe. He has been here, he has an understanding of what it takes to play in this market now and, again, the most important thing with Joe is he’s a veteran guy that can play on the power play, he can shoot the puck well, address some of the needs that are needed in the league today where you need to get points from your back end and he’s one of those people that can provide it.

Corvo does fill a need for Ottawa (a right-handed, offensively minded blueliner), but that’s not what comes to mind for Ottawa fans.  Let’s recall that Corvo forced his way out of Ottawa in 2008 and (admittedly like many of us) didn’t think much of the (largely unchanged) media here:

The media (in Ottawa) at times can be completely ridiculous, the way they can take some of the stories that are nothing and make something out of them.

Murray wasn’t very charitable about him when he traded Corvo:

I don’t know whether it was the pressure or never having a life away from the building, but he felt that Joe would enjoy going to an American team. He wanted to play where there was less scrutiny. He just couldn’t handle the pressure here.

Corvo also mentioned that his family didn’t like it in Ottawa (same link).  And lest we forget, Joe has other things in his past that won’t endear him to fans:

In a November 2003 story published in the New Hampshire Union Leader, it was reported that Corvo was a member of the Monarchs when the assault incident on a woman happened during an informal team night out in Boston in the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2002. While at the Trio Restaurant that day, prosecutors said Corvo grabbed a 34-year-old woman’s buttocks. Staff members at the restaurant told Corvo to leave and he did. But Corvo returned, allegedly punched the woman and then kicked her when she fell to the ground. The woman was later treated at Massachusetts General Hospital for bruises and swelling on her face. Nearly a year later in 2003 as a rookie defenseman with the Los Angeles Kings, Corvo pleaded guilty to a felony count of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon — his foot — and one misdemeanor count of simple assault and battery. Corvo was given a suspended sentence by a Boston Municipal Court Judge. He was placed on probation for three years and ordered to complete a batterer’s program and to perform community service in Boston.

That’s a long time ago, but it does speak to character.  It’s hard to view the new partnership as anything other than a train wreck, but as the team’s fifth defenseman perhaps he’ll stay under the radar enough that all will be forgotten.

–Travis Yost tries to figure out how Erik Karlsson and Bobby Ryan will connect through an examination of Ryan‘s possession numbers via the defensemen he’s played with in Anaheim.  It’s safe to assume one will help the other, but I’ll focus on this:

although I’m sure that it also has a bit to do with playing alongside Corey Perry and Teemu Selanne

You can’t divorce his linemates from the players on the blueline when it comes to performance.  Virtually everything I’ve seen discussing Ryan includes how well he’ll do alongside Jason Spezza, but I really wonder if Spezza will remain healthy.  He has back problems that will never go away so his career is about managing them.  Regardless, Ryan will do well if his superstar partners are healthy.

–Harrison Mooney thinks the Sens are better off with the way Daniel Alfredsson handled his departure:

he took all the blame, and now you don’t have to feel bad about your organization going in a different direction.

I agree he did the organisation a favour by putting all the blame on himself and allowing them to move forward.  It would have been very easy for Alfredsson to start blaming the organisation for various things, but ultimately he made everything about him.

–Elliotte Friedman believes Alfredsson left because he felt insulted with the negotiations for his contract–saying that after all the home town discounts the Sens should have simply let him pick his price.  It’s an interesting theory and I think it played a role in his decision, but ultimately I think Friedman’s focus is too narrow–it’s simply one factor among others.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 8, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-My development camp material is a bit late, but nevertheless here’s a start. The roster has only one notable absence (Mikael Wikstrand), who is presumably out with the same injury that made him miss the World Championship in May.  Amelia L (same link) talked about how the Sens camp has evolved over the years and we already have the official schedule posted by the team.  There are five goaltenders, eleven defensemen, and twenty-four forwards attending the camp.  This is one more goalie, one less defenseman, and four more forwards than last season.  For seventeen players this is their first development camp (this includes all seven new draftees, six invitees, and four signed free agents).

-The history of invitees to Sens camp is mixed; Daniel New wound up getting an ECHL deal after he finished college, but most players (like Matt O’Connor or Cameron Darcy) are simply there to fill out the lineup.  This year among the non-draft eligible players the Sens invited include Bentley (NCAA) goaltender Branden Komm (2009 eligible), mammoth Ohio (NCAA) defenseman Justin DaSilva (2008 eligible), and Princeton forward Jack Berger (2009 eligible; teammate of Michael Sdao)–none of these players were ranked by Central Scouting in their draft year, so a little background:

Jack Berger served as Princeton’s captain and was a finalist for the ECAC’s Hockey Student Athlete of the Year Award the past two years.  His previous season he was named to ECAC’s All-Academic Team.  The big right-winger is a USHL Des Moines grad whose offensive totals slipped considerably in his third collegiate season. The 6’6 Justin DaSilva was recognized as an Ohio State Scholar-Athlete (11/12).  The big man is a BCHL grad who only has 7 points in 64 NCAA games. Branden Komm was an Atlantic Hockey All-Academic and was named to the All-Atlantic Hockey third team (11/12) and was an Atlantic Hockey All-Academic (10/11).  His numbers were down in his third collegiate season; prior to the NCAA he played for Northfield Mount Hermon high school.

-NCAA free agent signee Buddy Robinson talked about development camp as well as his experience in Binghamton:

It was good (in Bingo), when I got there I had a week to learn the system and Luke (Richardson) and (Steve) Stirling did a great job, I mean, they just taught me everything. I had a week of practices with the team and the guys were really good to me. It went as smooth as you can get pretty much. Of course it’s a jump to the next level but all the coaches and players made it real smooth for me. I find it’s a much more controlled game, everyone is where they’re supposed to be. If you get out of position one time another team is going to make you pay for it. I feel like I had to work on that part of my game, just being in position more and making everything crisp out there and being ready. I feel good [at development camp] — it’s a lot different. My first camp last year was in Vancouver and I was pretty nervous but I got a few games under my belt and I know most of the guys here so it has been really fun. I’m really comfortable here. Like I said, everyone has made me feel really welcome. It’s been great so far. There [Vancouver] it seemed to me to be more business just because I didn’t know anyone, I came in, didn’t really know anybody and just focused on hockey. Here you focus and everyone works hard but you’re with your friends so it just makes you want to push it even further. I just want to have a great development camp, I’ll have my exit interview here in a few days and then we’ll go to training camp and see what happens. I’m going to work as hard as I can. And you never know — if I come into training camp well prepared and see what happens. Hopefully I can get a few games in here or there. Everyone looks on the paper, they see how big I am before they even see me so everyone is expecting a big, physical game. That’s what I try to do. I want to get in the corners and try to set up plays for guys who shoot the puck in the slot.

-WHL free agent signee Troy Rutkowski talked about his development camp and his season:

It has been good, it’s been a tough experience. I feel like I just finished my season yesterday so to get back out there is good and it’s been fun. It was nice to get that championship that third time in the Western League. The Memorial Cup was a good experience, but it would have been get to get that one at the end there. [Coaches] Mike Johnson and Travis Green did a job in developing not just me but players. I think when I came into the league I was more offensive — I was pretty strictly offensively minded — and over the years that kind of changed into a two-way game. I tried to become more of a two-way d-man. There have been a few great captains there [Portland] and to follow up in that was an honour. It’s [development camp] been good, it’s really friendly here and it’s nice being in a Canadian city. Everything has been good. I knew Wacey Hamilton a little bit, Darren Kramer and I have crossed paths through the years. It’s been good, it’s been fun and everyone has been really nice. I’m just trying to put out my best performance every time I hit the ice and so far I think I’ve done that. Like I said it has been fun.

–Dave Young offers his thoughts on day five of the development camp and apparently while Wacey Hamilton doesn’t do much in actual game action, he looked good at camp.  The other comment that stood out was that he was impressed with Jarrod Maidens, which is a good reminder that prior to his concussion he was considered a potential first-round pick.

-On the weird side of things, Jared Cowen is apparently an RFA.  It’s an unnecessarily complicated matter, but here’s Travis Yost with the gist of it along with his thoughts on the repercussions:

According to CapGeek, it was Jared Cowen‘s 2010-2011 season that did not slide. Long-term perspective, it seems to me a good thing to have Jared Cowen‘s entry-level contract expiring one year sooner than anticipated, mostly because it comes on the heels of (a) an injury-plagued season that curtailed his production; and (b) upon return, and a proximate result of returning at less than 100%, his play suffered.

It’s clear that Cowen was qualified in time, but the matter slid under the radar enough that most bloggers (myself and Travis included) were unaware of the fact.

–Corey Pronman weighs in with his organisational rankings (you can read his methodology and my thoughts on it here; Corey was dead last in accurately picking the draft this year, but that doesn’t inherently reflect on his ability to judge talent).  Ottawa winds up 18th in his list.  He writes:

The Senators lost Mika Zibanejad and Patrick Wiercioch to graduation, along with Jakob Silfverberg and Stefan Noesen to trade, but Ottawa still has good depth and a number of players to like. They have quality prospects at all positions, including an elite goalie prospect in Robin Lehner. Defenseman Mikael Wikstrand was a great riser this year, but first round pick Cody Ceci was up and down.

There isn’t much to sink ones teeth into here, so I put it down as interesting food for thought.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 7, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-One by one players rumoured to be going to the Sens are being signed elsewhere (Daniel Briere to Montreal, Patrik Elias with New Jersey, etc), but other rumours continue, as David Clarkson spent a day in Ottawa and Bruce Garrioch is floating Pierre-Marc Bouchard as a possibility (it makes no sense to me).  I don’t see Clarkson coming here, as I think his visit is about drumming up his value (a view Nichols shares).

-I still have no doubts whatsoever that Daniel Alfredsson will re-sign here.

-Three of the Sens draft picks this year are getting invited to the WJC camps: Curtis Lazar (Cdn), Marcus Hogberg (Swe), and Quentin Shore (USA).

–Paul MacLean (on the heels of the three-year extension he signed this morning) named Shane Prince, Matt Puempel, Michael Sdao, Curtis Lazar, and Cole Schneider as the players who have impressed so far at the development camp.

–Tobias Lindberg talked about his surprise in being drafted:

I didn’t expect to be drafted this high, or at all, because I hadn’t heard so much from different teams. You meet people here who spoke to 20 teams. I had only spoke to two, so I was pretty insecure but when they picked me I was so happy.

Ottawa was not one of those two teams who spoke to him.  The Sens have made surprise picks out of Sweden before, although the most recent examples (Marcus Sorensen and Emil Sandin) have not turned out well.

–Scott tries to figure out why Ottawa’s budget is as tight as it is and I agree with his supposition that it’s non-team related expenses that are the problem.  The positive side of the team numbers (as best as Scott can figure) is that it shouldn’t be a problem for Melnyk to get a partner or sell the team–the thing is, assuming everything that’s being said is true, Eugene needs the hockey team to prop up his other businesses, so I imagine his only course of action right now is finding a partner.

-I’ve begun updating my prospect profiles, thus far doing Jeff Costello and Michael Sdao.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 4, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

-The Sens have re-signed UFA goaltender Nathan Lawson to a one-year, two-way contract.  Lawson will be Binghamton’s starting goaltender next season, allowing free agent signee Andrew Hammond to ease into his pro career as a backup.  It likely means an end to Marc Cheverie‘s time with the organisation, while leaving prospects Chris Driedger and Francois Brassard to stay in junior for another year.

–Michael Sdao spoke about the year that was and the first day of camp:

It was good. It was good to get in there and get some experience and finish up school at the same time. Now I’m a hockey player, I’m not a student anymore so it’s been good. It’s [the AHL] been great — every time you play against better players you become better too. It was definitely a good experience in Binghamton and it’ll be good heading into camp this year. I’m a physical defenceman, I move the puck and just try to keep it simple. I play a hard game, try to keep guys honest and just be a hard player to play against. It [today’s testing] went well. All of my numbers improved from last year so it’s definitely moving in the right direction. I think [the numbers improved because of] working with Chris Schwarz and just working hard, being in the gym and getting the work done.

As a seventh round pick very little has been written about Sdao, but he was considered the best fighter in the 2009 draft and was a reasonably productive player in the NCAA.

-Grit-loving Jeremy Milks likes the Sens first-round pick.

–Travis Yost has been writing about the financial woes of Eugene Melnyk.  I’ve been dismissive of these claims in terms of them affecting the Sens ability to re-sign Daniel Alfredsson (the captain isn’t going anywhere) and because they echo the sentiments of a guy like Doug MacLean.  At the time (November) when MacLean was floating the rumours, The 6th Sens‘ Scott (same link) believed the problems were due to his divorce.  Travis, however, makes a stronger case that Melnyk’s problems are via his non-hockey related business.  It’s important to emphasize that–the team is doing fine.  What will this mean for hockey operations?  Other than a lack of big free agent signings (which make no sense for the team anyway), I’d say nothing in the short term.  The NHL has extensive experience handling financially troubled franchises and Ottawa is a strong market.  What’s interesting to me about all of this is virtually nothing has been said by local reporters or in the larger sphere of hockey reporting (perhaps because of things like this).

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

July 3, 2013
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments