GAME DAY: Montreal Canadiens @ Ottawa Senators - 7:00pm Jan. 17th, 2009

Thank God Heatley got those 2 goals last night, because he played an otherwise awful game once again.

He isnt worth 7.5 mil a year, I dont even think he is worth 7. Ill take Brad Boyes for 4 mil rather than Heatley for 7.5, seriously, I would. Not straight up in a trade or anything, but in the general glimps of things.

Heatley doesn't do anything out there, nothing.

Neely4Life wrote:Thank God Heatley got those 2 goals last night, because he played an otherwise awful game once again.

He isnt worth 7.5 mil a year, I dont even think he is worth 7. Ill take Brad Boyes for 4 mil rather than Heatley for 7.5, seriously, I would. Not straight up in a trade or anything, but in the general glimps of things.

Heatley doesn't do anything out there, nothing.

And yet the majority of the fan-base seems to think it still should be Spezza who goes.

I would move Heatley before Spezza, 100%, but the question is, can you?

Something has to change soon, and Spezza might be the only guy that can go thats worth anything.

Neely4Life wrote:I would move Heatley before Spezza, 100%, but the question is, can you?

Something has to change soon, and Spezza might be the only guy that can go thats worth anything.

I know you're just saying that its the likeliest thing to happen and I agree.
But if thats the reason you trade a guy is just because something has to change, then thats makes us retarded. If Murray trades Spezza, I have no idea what I'm going to do. I might just stop watching this Diddle team. The only reason to even watch the Sens play anymore is just to watch the Lees and the Winchesters and the Spezzas develop into more wel-rounded and complete players.

Something does have to change though, thats the point Its been like this for well over a year now and the team is going to have to move in another direction soon. What to change? I dont know, but something defently has to.

I think one of the big three has to go if only to allow ourselves more room to improve the other areas of the ice that we struggle in (namely moving the puck from the back end). However, with that said, although it would be easier to move Spezza vs Heatley (NTC), if I can find a dance partner for Heatley, I think I'd move him. The return alone would be absolutely massive, AND the cap space would be the cherry on the cake. Although not having an elite winger could potentially be hard to deal with in the short term, I think overall, our team might improve.

Yeah I think most of us on this site are of that same opinion. If Heatley can be convinced to waive, then I would actively shop him.

If the Sens were able to move Heatley we'd need a Mark Savard type player. Someone cheap that surprises everyone and produces at around the point a game pace to make this transition from not having Heatley much less painful. Not only that we'd need to make sure we won a sweepstakes for a Stud PMD as well OR we get that guy in a trade involving Heatley. That is a lot easier said than done.

Listen to us...well not me...YOU...

Last week it was trade Spezza...now we've moved onto trading Heater...

this is getting ridiculous...

you don't just trade away a perrenial 50 goal scorer...and I have finally come to terms with the same fact for Spezza...you don'y just trade away a franchise centreman for nothing...

Seriously...4 guys should remain...Alf...Spez...Heat...and Volch...

the rest...we'll see

COLLAR UP wrote:Listen to us...well not me...YOU...

Last week it was trade Spezza...now we've moved onto trading Heater...

this is getting ridiculous...

you don't just trade away a perrenial 50 goal scorer...and I have finally come to terms with the same fact for Spezza...you don'y just trade away a franchise centreman for nothing...

Seriously...4 guys should remain...Alf...Spez...Heat...and Volch...

the rest...we'll see

By no means was I saying just dump the guy and I had a couple conditions that would be required assuming he waived his NTC.

1 - We need someone substantially cheaper that can produce at around a point per game.

2 - We need to get that stud PMD in a deal involving Heatley OR win an offseason or Trade Deadline sweepstakes for one.

Then and only then would it make sense to move Heatley.

Let the records show that not all of us were on the trade Spezza wagon. Some of us vehemently defended him and his talent and his ability to change to become a better all around player.

However, when it comes to Heatley, I think the return would be so massive, that a move could simultaneously be hurtful in the short-term but great in the long term.

I think the guy is weak mentally (Heatley). He easily gives up when he sees its not going too well for the team. Then Brian Elliott makes a great save and all of a sudden he scores 2 goals

It would seem to me that both Spezza and Heatley have massive egos. What Danny showed us on Saturday is the he can "light it up" when he wants. Actually I think he plays better pissed off. Some of his best play was against Buffalo in that magic year. I remember him screaming at the crowd in Buffalo when he was getting booed.

We just need him to channel that pissed off Heatley instead of the complacent and indifferent Heatley we've seen for a year.

During the Sens Skills yesterday, Heatley did have an F U aura about him. Like he wanted to be anywhere but there.

I think he doesn't like that the fans are fickle. But unfortunately, that's the price you pay to play in a hot Hockey market. God one day and Devil the next... He needs to think less about that and more about the one's that are paying his massive salary.

Number Twenty Nine wrote:It would seem to me that both Spezza and Heatley have massive egos. What Danny showed us on Saturday is the he can "light it up" when he wants. Actually I think he plays better pissed off. Some of his best play was against Buffalo in that magic year. I remember him screaming at the crowd in Buffalo when he was getting booed.

We just need him to channel that pissed off Heatley instead of the complacent and indifferent Heatley we've seen for a year.

During the Sens Skills yesterday, Heatley did have an F U aura about him. Like he wanted to be anywhere but there.

I think he doesn't like that the fans are fickle. But unfortunately, that's the price you pay to play in a hot Hockey market. God one day and Devil the next... He needs to think less about that and more about the one's that are paying his massive salary.

So basically we need to find a way to keep Heatley Pissed off? Hmmmm... :D

marakh wrote:I think the guy is weak mentally (Heatley). He easily gives up when he sees its not going too well for the team. Then Brian Elliott makes a great save and all of a sudden he scores 2 goals

And we gave this guy a letter?? That is the ultimate head scratcher

Number Twenty Nine wrote:It would seem to me that both Spezza and Heatley have massive egos. What Danny showed us on Saturday is the he can "light it up" when he wants. Actually I think he plays better pissed off. Some of his best play was against Buffalo in that magic year. I remember him screaming at the crowd in Buffalo when he was getting booed.

We just need him to channel that pissed off Heatley instead of the complacent and indifferent Heatley we've seen for a year.

During the Sens Skills yesterday, Heatley did have an F U aura about him. Like he wanted to be anywhere but there.

I think he doesn't like that the fans are fickle. But unfortunately, that's the price you pay to play in a hot Hockey market. God one day and Devil the next... He needs to think less about that and more about the one's that are paying his massive salary.

I just don't think he likes people...He's not a people person.
In that same way, I don't think he likes to showoff for people when people want him to. Imo he would rather shatter expectations (in one way or another) than live up to them. He and Spazz are two sides of the classic narcissistic personality structure.

PKC wrote:Let the records show that not all of us were on the trade Spezza wagon. Some of us vehemently defended him and his talent and his ability to change to become a better all around player.

However, when it comes to Heatley, I think the return would be so massive, that a move could simultaneously be hurtful in the short-term but great in the long term.

*Hem, hem.* Like me. 8)

I was going to chime in a week ago when everyone (else) around here finally starting realizing that Spezza is not a guy you trade under any circumstances, like I've been saying for months on end, but no one like (another) gloater, I guess. :D

Now I'll just sit back and wait for the sane view of Heatley as equally untouchable to return.

Very few of us wanted to trade Spezza, but there came a point when things were so bad and so low, that he was the logical one to go. The return would've had to be unbelievable though - and even then it was a scary thought.

I've been tearing this team down on paper and then reconstructing them for almost a calender year now and I still don't see how we can manage with the 24 million tied up in 4 forwards, but if this is the front end that I'll be seeing for the next 5 years or whatever, it could be a heck of a lot worse. 8)

That being said, there comes a time when you have to let go of a 'good' guy like Kelly and take the 3rd round pick and use that money for D. I would say that Vermette should be in there as well. In the summer we should explore heavily the markets for these guys and see what we can get. I would love to turn Vermette into a D-man (probably have to give a prospect and a high pick to get a decent one) - but I'd be just as happy keeping him, letting Kelly and Jason Smith go and revamping our D that way.

What can you say? There are only a couple of ways Murray (or whoever) can approach this - and one scenario involves trading a big salary.