-Binghamton’s practice lines today: Petersson-Zibanejad-Prince, Silfverberg-Cannone-Cowick, Jessiman-Pageau-Hoffman, Dziurzynski-Grant-Schneider.

–Robin Lehner talked about the adjustment for Swedes to the AHL:

I know for the Swedish guys, it’s a totally different game. It will take some time for them to find the routes to get into the shooting lanes. This league is full of more chaos (than in Sweden or the NHL). It’s just not the same. Everyone in the NHL does their job. It’s so much more structured than down here.

He also thought there was too much pressure being put on Zibanejad and Silfverberg.  There’s no arguing with his point that the pair have to go through an adjustment period, but I don’t think it will take them that long to start to excel in the league.

–Darren Kramer has been sent down to Elmira.  The logjam at forward has seen him suit up for only one Binghamton game thus far.

–Nichols tries to tackle Don Brennan’s goaltending controversy, but can’t summon much enthusiasm for it.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 6, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-Here are highlights from Binghamton’s 4-2 loss on Saturday.

–Paul MacLean threw cold water on the minority who complained that Robin Lehner‘s fight was a sign of immaturity:

I felt that in that situation I witnessed that night, I would have done the same thing. He got run a few times and he got absolutely shish-kabobed, in my opinion they shish-kabobed him, and then they fell on him, and then they gave him the rabbit punches when he was down. I have no problem with what he did. His reaction was what I would have expected. The fact he stood up for himself and got tossed out of the game, I saw nothing wrong with that. I thought he was demanding his share of the ice, being competitive. It was a situation that I wasn’t surprised by his reaction. I thought he did the right thing.

MacLean is also most impressed by Lehner among the AHL prospects, making Don Brennan wonder if he might beat out Ben Bishop for the backup role whenever the season starts again.  I think if Lehner was the second coming of Jacques Plante the Sens still wouldn’t bury Bishop‘s one-way contract in Binghamton.

-I agree with Scott that the Sens are among the NHL teams most eager to get a deal done and the season started.  As nice as that is, I don’t see it influencing the league’s decision making.

–Scott also tries to shed some light on the reason behind Doug MacLean‘s rumour that the Sens are for sale, wherein he suggests Eugene Melnyk’s divorce is the reason (basing it on Francesco Aquilini’s proceedings as Vancouver’s owner).  There might be some sense to this, although it’s also possible MacLean simply doesn’t know what he’s talking about.

-A reader has pointed out that Elmira Jackal Dustin Gazley was signed to an AHL-contract, so I’ll be keeping an eye on him going forward.

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

CHL
Matt Puempel (OHL Kitchener) 17-12-5-17 (t-1st)
Cody Ceci (OHL Ottawa) 16-5-12-17 (1st)
Stefan Noesen (OHL Plymouth) 16-8-4-12 (5th)
Jordan Fransoo (WHL Victoria) 12-1-3-4 (t-3rd)
Jakub Culek (QMJHL Rimouski) DNP
Jarrod Maidens (OHL Owen Sound) (injured)
Francois Brassard (QMJHL Quebec) 11-4-0 2.50 .908
Chris Driedger (WHL Calgary) 8-3-2 2.53 .915

Allsvenskan (Swe)
Mikael Wikstrand (Mora) 19-8-5-13 (1st)

KHL
Nikita Filatov (Salavat) 23-5-8-13 (2nd)

NCAA
Bryce Aneloski (Nebraska-Omaha) – 8-1-4-5
Jeff Costello (Notre Dame) – 5-2-2-4
Max McCormick (Ohio) – 6-1-3-4
Ryan Dzingel (Ohio) – 6-2-1-3
Michael Sdao (Princeton) – 2-0-2-2
Tim Boyle (Union) – 2-0-0-0

USHL
Robbie Baillargeon (Indiana) – 14-2-8-10 (t-3rd)

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 5, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 3 Comments

-Binghamton fell 4-2 to Norfolk last night in a game I was unable to watch.  Each team had more than 40 shots on goal which suggests defense was not particularly strong either way; Binghamton fell behind 2-0 and 4-1, so on paper were never in the game.  Bishop took the loss, while Benoit and Wiercioch scored; Wiercioch lead the way at +2.

-Part two of Bruce Garrioch’s discussion with Pierre Dorion about scouting is up with some more interesting comments:

Scouts don’t rate every player they see but after every game they do grade the ones they are following closely. Players are given a mark from as low as one to as high as seven. All members of the scouting staff are required to give grades nightly. “It’s the most important thing because we are paid to give an opinion, we are paid to rate players and you have to say on a night-in/night-out basis, ‘This is what I think a guy will be and this is why that guy is that number,’ ” Dorion said. “That’s what we think. It does change. We could see someone (in October) that we think will be a top-three-line player, then we realize (in March) he’s a fourth-line role player. It’s a process of getting to know a player for the year.” Once the ratings are in, Dorion keeps a close eye because he is responsible for pro and amateur matters. If a rating has changed, he will circle back to the scout to ask why. He speaks to all the club’s scouts at least once weekly.

“If you polled 10 guys who were scouting any game and looked at their reports, you could have guys seeing things 10 different ways,” Dorion said. “It comes back to the fact it’s not an exact science. “Certain things can help a player become a player, but you also have to understand there are intangibles. Who knows if a guy just broke up with his girlfriend before the game, if a guy’s parents told him a week ago they were getting divorced or if his grandmother died? They play hockey for a living but they still have to live their life.” As one GM said: The best scouts are ones who can pick out the “little things that will make a difference.”

“As scouts we get attached to the players we drafted or we traded for,” he said. “You have to realize what a guy’s limits are. Sometimes we overrate our own players. Sometimes you have to understand, ‘This is what a guy is.’ “One of the things I told Bryan when I got hired is, ‘As a scout I’m going to make a mistake and we’re going to make mistakes.’ It’s my job to make sure we don’t make the same mistake twice whether it’s on a certain player or a different player.”

–Rick Emrith looks at five players in Binghamton that he projects will play in the NHL, but doesn’t offer any new insight on Robin Lehner, Mika Zibanejad, Jakob Silfverberg, Jared Cowen, or Mark Stone.

-Elmira lost 3-1 to Gwinnett last night, with Maxime Clermont taking the loss.  Downing had a goal while Peltz and New were kept off the score sheet.

–Allan Muir wraps up the CHLPA story and after going through it adds the most pertinent point:

If nothing else, the CHLPA group succeeded in exposing a gaping flaw in the  CHL’s education plan, a flaw that’s not going away even if there aren’t multiple  Derek Clarkes to harp on it.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 4, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

-Binghamton topped Norfolk 4-3 last night in a game I saw the majority of (missing the first period).  Lehner picked up the win while Petersson, Jessiman, Hoffman, and Wiercioch scored.  Despite the production no player had a multi-point night; Wiercioch lead the way at +2 while Da Costa lead in shots with six.  Binghamton erased 1-0 and 2-1 deficits and overall looked solid throughout the game.  I thought Chris Wideman played well in his AHL debut, as did Shane Prince.  As I mentioned in Binghamton’s last game I think Pageau has been better when moved away from the Silfverberg–Zibanejad tandem (they played with Grant last night).  The B-Sens play Norfolk again tonight.

-Bruce Garrioch provides insights via Pierre Dorion in how the Sens conduct their scouting as well as a list of the team’s current scouts.  One thing I found particularly interesting is that Dorion prefers to scout from the corner of the rink rather than up in the pressbox.  It’s also of interest that the Sens have a minimal scouting footprint in Europe (7 of 9 scouts are North American based).

-Elmira topped South Carolina 4-2 last night, with Cheverie picking up the win while Peltz scored and New picked up an assist (Downing was kept off the score sheet).  Peltz‘s two goals in the ECHL double his college production at Yale.  The Jackals face Gwinnett this evening.

-All debate about the Winter Classic is over as the NHL cancelled the game.  It’s not a huge surprise (Stu Hackel’s thoughts are here) as in order for the HBO production that leads into it to move forward a deal would need to be struck very soon and that’s clearly not going to happen.

–Adrian Dater looks at the recent political stances taken by NHL players, without delving into the more interesting question of whether the general attitudes have changed since players started to make bigger salaries.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 3, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 8 Comments

-Binghamton’s lineup for tonight is not yet available.  I expect Robin Lehner to get the start.

-For those of you interested in point projection Nichols uses Rob Vollman’s stats to project the numbers for the Sens roster.

-Elmira signed Justin Dacosta while placing Jarrett Rush on reserve.

-Speaking of Elmira, Marc Cheverie was named goaltender of the month for the ECHL.

-There’s been a running theme in CBA coverage that the NHL’s position is run by a small number of hardline owners.  Stu Hackel tries to figure out who those owners are, echoing Elliotte Friedman’s list (Boston, Anaheim, Columbus, Florida, the Islanders, Phoenix, St. Louis, Washington and Dallas) and then going through all the permutations and comments elsewhere in the media.  In many respects this is trivial speculation, but it does suggest that a small group is all that stands in the way of getting an agreement down.  A great deal of time remains for the season to resume so the posturing is just that.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 2, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

-No words on lineups for tomorrow’s games.  Norfolk is currently 5-1-0 and Sami Vatanen leads them in scoring with seven points; goaltenders Igor Bobkov and Frederik Andersen have split duties, with Bobkov carrying a perfect 3-0 record.  Elmira faces South Carolina sit last in their division with a 3-4-1 record.

-Things are slow enough this week that vague comments from Eugene Melnyk are news.  Melnyk wants the NHL season to be on, but doesn’t offer any solution to the CBA impasse.  It’s not surprising or noteworthy that Melnyk wants the negotiations at an end and the league to be playing–and what else would he say?

–Stu Hackel corrects his article from yesterday with updated information that there is no rush for the league to cancel the Winter Classic as the financial penalty is limited and not on a particular clock in that regard.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

November 1, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment

-It’s a quiet Halloween on the hockey front, with both Elmira and Binghamton idle until Friday.

–Luke Richardson talked about Binghamton’s last two games:

You know what, we played well on (Saturday). We really did. Refereeing never wins you or loses you games but we had some battles in that game. We had some calls that didn’t go our way and we had a lot of calls that were very deserving – they were lazy penalties. They were tripping penalties and neutral zone penalties and we just took too many penalties against a pretty skilled power play. Even though we scored two shorthanded goals within the game, we gave up two power play goals and basically what we do, is tired out our good players and you take other players out of the game. We played very well and we played hard right to the end and with any luck, we were all over them, we just could not put it in the net to tie it at 3-3 and then they got another goal right at the end to make it 4-2. Sunday, we didn’t have a big break but that’s just the way this league is. We played Saturday night and then Sunday afternoon in Manchester and we did not show up right from the start right to the very end. We just weren’t prepared. We weren’t ready to go. We discussed that (with the team) and we watched some video today. We pretty much watched the whole first period today and there was not a lot of good things on there, aside from maybe one good shift.

So the loss to Portland boils down to officiating and some bad luck as far as Richardson is concerned, while the team simply didn’t show up against Manchester (with a nod to travel playing a part in that).  He also talked about:

The players and the coaches work together here, and that’s the only way that you get things done. It can’t be the players thinking that the coaches are wrong or it can’t be the coaches blaming the players; that doesn’t create a great atmosphere and you don’t really accomplish anything. You don’t fix anything and if you have something going well, you cannot keep it going. I think we have a good communication here and I think that’s going to be a positive going through the season.

All for one and one for all isn’t a bad motto.

We’ll iron these out [scoring] – the power play really moved the puck around well in the first couple of weeks. This weekend was our first time where we started to see a little more pressure and we just haven’t handled it well – whether it be our entries or our battles to get it back and outnumber them to get it back move it quick to get (the opposition to) spread out. That’s our focus for the rest of the week is to really work on some offensive explosions on of the line rushing and definitely (work) on our power play. If we can (improve in these areas) and we can stay out of the box a little bit, that helps too because we use our good players on the penalty kill – like Zibanejad and Silfverberg – and those guys, they have got to be tired when they’re out there. You can’t be tired on the power play, that’s when you have to step it up a notch. It doesn’t mean the man advantage means relax and move it around until there’s an opening. It means you engage even harder and faster and you bury another team when they take a penalty. It takes aggression out of them. If we can do that and we can get on track a little bit on the power play, I think it will help our overall offence and help a little bit with the confidence in some of these players that are ‘so-called’ goal scorers. I think everybody can score goals but these guys are more talented offensively than some. If we can get them going on a regular basis, it will really help our offence as a whole.

I have noted the team’s offensive struggles; I think their injuries have played a significant role.

If we can really be disciplined in our positioning and stick it out, we will come ahead in a lot of these games because we will catch teams out of position. So that’s something that we’re definitely trying to work on and trying to mature our young guys faster than other teams, because if we do that, it will give us more chances to score goals and catch other teams off-guard that way. But you know what, the European guys are doing well. I talked to Zibanejad today and he is playing his off-wing a lot of nights here. We talked about the benefits of that; especially with his speed driving in on his backhand to the net and his reach – but there are some disadvantages. We have got to really have to work on his own zone, when he gets pinched off on the wall, it’s hard. When he’s that close to the wall to shoot it on your forehand, when you’re that close to getting an angle to get it up off the glass and out if you have to because he doesn’t have the extra 6’ to 8’ width on his wing to curl back and… And he talked about that today, he said, ‘I really have played my off-wing over the World Juniors and in a smaller rink but that was really the only time. I played in Europe. There was a lot more time (with the puck). It was a different game.’ It was more of a design where (the Europeans) could skate back with (the puck) and hold onto the puck. I know Silfverberg has battled that as well, so in time, they’re getting stronger and they’re getting better. They’re getting more used to their surroundings and I think they’ll just better and better. They are dangerous players, those two especially – Zibanejad and Silfverberg – they are very dangerous players. Anytime that they are on the ice, they create offensive chances and if they don’t, they create a lot of attention so that other people have a little more room out there.

Nichols (the above link) indulges in some analysis about the team’s scoring, but unfortunately suffers from the Silver Seven syndrome in that he hasn’t “watched many of the Binghamton games”–I’m glad he admits it, but I think he’s stretching in some of his assumptions.  Binghamton’s primary problem is that they are weak at center and (as Richardson mentions) not being consistent in their positioning.  Many of the wild passes I’ve seen are made because other players are not where they are supposed to be.  That lack of flow hurts their offense and tends to lead to individualistic play.

–Stu Hackel goes through the current permutations of the NHL cancelling the Winter Classic; that cancellation would dynamic Bruce Dowbiggin theory that the league did not want to give up the financial windfall attached to it.  It will be interesting to see what happens.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

October 31, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

-There’s been criticism of Ben Bishop after a rocky first start for Binghamton, but I don’t put that down to fan myopia but rather simple boredom–there’s such a small sample size of current hockey action that people have to write about something, so why not crap on a goaltender for one bad game?  It’s a little like the pointless furor over Robin Lehner‘s fight last week.

–Darryl Dobbs tries to write about how young NHL players who play a season in the AHL in a lockout scenario do better the year after.  I have two problems with this: 1) his sample size is intentionally reduced to players where that’s definitively the case, 2) players should improve year after year irrespective of the league they play in.  It’s an interesting topic, although the limited sample size is so small I’m not sure any useful conclusions can be drawn from it.

–Corey Pronman has made yet another list, this time looking at the top-50 players under 23 (you know, why not?).  I’ve already commented on the general uselessness of these kinds of lists, but I think it is worthwhile exploring the value of this one since his name gets thrown around a lot.  Pronman has been drinking the Ken Hitchcock Koolaid as he has Alex Pietrangelo higher than Erik Karlsson.  Sens who make his list: Karlsson (#7) and Cowen (#50).  Here’s a good reason to not take Pronman seriously:

I’ve talked to scouts who see [Ryan] Ellis as a top of the line prospect and a potential star. While I may not share that degree of optimism, due to his tremendous skill, shot, and hockey sense, I think he could be a top player despite is diminutive frame. The negatives for him are that he has not done much in the NHL as of yet, and of course, his size.

So the guys who actually know what they are talking about (scouts) think he could be a star, but list-maker Pronman see’s him as a bit too small and he wasn’t a star in his NHL rookie season, therefore they are wrong.  There’s no consideration for how Nashville handles its young players (slowly brought up and into the lineup) or the players eating up minutes in front of him.  He’s not offering real analysis here, he’s just saying Ellis is short, which is pretty worthless if you want to understand how players are being differentiated.

-Here’s the weekly prospect update:

CHL
Cody Ceci (OHL Ottawa) 14-5-10-15
Matt Puempel (OHL Kitchener) 14-10-4-14
Stefan Noesen (OHL Plymouth) 14-7-3-10
Jordan Fransoo (WHL Victoria) 10-0-3-3
Jakub Culek (QMJHL Rimouski) DNP
Jarrod Maidens (OHL Owen Sound) (injured)
Francois Brassard (QMJHL Quebec) 10-3-0 2.42 .907
Chris Driedger (WHL Calgary) 6-3-2 2.72 .909

Allsvenskan (Swe)
Mikael Wikstrand (Mora) 14-7-3-10

KHL
Nikita Filatov (Salavat) 21-5-6-11

NCAA
Bryce Aneloski (Nebraska-Omaha) – 6-1-4-5
Max McCormick (Ohio) – 6-1-3-4
Ryan Dzingel (Ohio) – 6-2-1-3
Michael Sdao (Princeton) – 2-0-2-2
Jeff Costello (Notre Dame) – 3-1-0-1
Tim Boyle (Union) – 1-0-0-0

USHL
Robbie Baillargeon (Indiana) – 13-2-6-8

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

October 30, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 3 Comments

-I watched Binghamton’s 4-0 loss to Manchester, a no-hitting game the team deserved to lose.  Ben Bishop took the loss and was not particularly good–the third goal in particular was awful.  The Sens had minimal offensive changes, although there were enough in the second period that they might have clawed their way back into the game.  The Pageau experiment as the top center did not last long with Cannone taking over his spot; the lines in general went into the blender as the game progressed (I thought Pageau was better off that line).  Binghamton wasn’t able to sustain offensive pressure throughout the game and most of their chances came off the rush or rare Manchester breakdowns.  I thought Dziurzynski was the best player overall for the B-Sens, while Cole Schneider had the most offensive opportunities.  It seems Binghamton is missing too many key pieces in its lineup and that they need a playmaker (like Da Costa or Stone) to compliment their shooters (like Silfverberg and Zibanejad).

-There have been a host of amusing Tweets from various Binghamton Senators in the face of hurricane Sandy, but Robin Lehner has my favourite:

Haha can’t find any flashlights or lanterns in bingo… Lighting up some candles if the power goes!:) Anyone wanna sell a generator to lehner?:)

-And that folks, is it for hockey news today, other than talk of the NHL cancelling the Winter Classic soon.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

October 29, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 1 Comment

-I was not able to watch Binghamton’s game last night which featured a number of oddities: both of the B-Sens goals were scored short-handed (Silfverberg and Cowick); Binghamton outshot Portland 40-31 despite being shorthanded nine times; Jessiman received an ever-embarrassing diving penalty; both Borowiecki and Cowick got into fights; Weircioch lead the team in shots with seven.  Highlights of the game have not yet been posted.

-Binghamton plays Manchester this afternoon, but I haven’t seen a lineup yet [Bishop gets the start; no other changes from last night].  The Monarchs pummelled Worcester 5-1 yesterday and are 4-1-0 (first in the Atlantic Division).  Brandon Kozun leads Manchester in scoring (6 points) while goaltender Martin Jones has started every game thus far.

-Elmira defeated Cincinnati 3-2 in overtime last night; New scored; Peltz (now off reserve) and Downing were both kept off the score sheet.  Here’s the recap.

-It blows my mind that Elmira’s website is better than Binghamton’s–I guess the ECHL has to try harder.

–Dave Naylor believes the OHL’s new rule suspending players who exceed more than 10 fights in a year is the reason behind the league’s 32.1% drop from last year’s fighting rate.  I think it’s a factor, but the OHL has other rules that reduce fighting and because of the lockout the league doesn’t have as much space for one-dimensional enforcers.  That cocktail of elements makes it difficult to discern the precise impact of the change–I think next season will be a better indication.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)

October 28, 2012
Categories: Binghamton Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment