Sens opening night roster for the 2009/10 season

Saw on Sportsnet this morning that Kovalev will play on the 2nd line with Regin and Fisher for the opening night game... that would suggest a line-up like this:

Forwards:
=========
Michalek - Spezza - Alfie
Fisher - Regin - Kovalev
Foligno - Shannon - Cheechoo
Ruutu - Kelly - Neil
Donovan

Defense:
========
Phillips - Volchie
Kuba - Karlsson
Campoli - Picard
Carkner

Goal:
=====
Leclaire
Elliott

Injured: Winchester

Total: 23-man roster

GO SENS GO!!!

That's probably the best line combos to start with. I know there were a few on here that hoped Cheechoo could find some of his former glory along side Spezza but it's probably best he start on the third line with Foligno and Shannon. If he plays to expectations he's a dangerous 3rd liner, if he exceeds expectations then there's room to change things on the 2nd line and he'll likely see a fair share of PP time anyway.

I like the lineup. The question then becomes who goes once Winchester is healthy? Will they maintain a 23 man roster 'till at least the deadline?

Cap'n Clutch wrote:That's probably the best line combos to start with. I know there were a few on here that hoped Cheechoo could find some of his former glory along side Spezza but it's probably best he start on the third line with Foligno and Shannon. If he plays to expectations he's a dangerous 3rd liner, if he exceeds expectations then there's room to change things on the 2nd line and he'll likely see a fair share of PP time anyway.

I like the lineup. The question then becomes who goes once Winchester is healthy? Will they maintain a 23 man roster 'till at least the deadline?

The Bryan Murray will trade him for Erik Cole.

Sorry, lack of sleep. Seriously, though, did they not try Kovalev with Fisher and Regin already? Did they show any semblance of chemistry (beyond the obvious chemistry between Regin and Fisher-on-wing? I am honestly stumped. Kovalev is destined to play on the second line because Spezza and Kovalev together just sounds like a bad recipe (whoever is on the other wing will hardly ever touch the puck and, while our shooting percentage might be really good, the total of shots taken might take a nosedive.

Why not, instead, keep the Fisher-Regin-Foligno line intact as our third line? Cheechoo has been most productive when paired up with a playmaking center (Kovalev is a playmaker, but maybe Cheechoo needs a center). Cheechoo-Spezza-Alfredsson followed by Michalek-Shannon-Kovalev (Shannon has played center, right?) and then Fisher-Regin-Foligno.

Wow guys think about it- we're in a good place if we're debating about how interchangeable our top 9 players are. This is a good start, but I don't think Cheechoo will have much of a chance to prove himself on a 3rd line. If he stays here for the year, look for him to struggle to meet last year's numbers...

Perhaps we're thinking too highly of Cheechoo? I mean maybe he's not a first line winger anymore. We can't plunk him on the first line and expect him to produce. Maybe, just maybe, he doesn't deserve to play on the first or second line.

Also I fully expect Cheechoo to get 2nd unit PP time at a minimum. Maybe he works his way back to a top 6 forward but nothing in the last couple seasons suggests to me that he should be handed the spot IMO.

With all the hype surrounding his fitness coming into camp and all that, I fully expected Cheechoo to be in the Top 6. Perhaps this is more about other players bumping him out as opposed to him playing himself out of the Top 6? Maybe he's taking a bit longer to get into the groove and players like Regin and Fish squeezed him out. They must have seen something with the Fisher-Regin-Kovalev line to keep them together. We'll see how it all plays out. At any rate, nice problem to have! HA HA!

Definitely a nice problem to have. Also, if the "3rd line" is clicking then they'll get more minutes and probably some PP time so I'm not too concerned personally.

Cap'n Clutch wrote:I like the lineup. The question then becomes who goes once Winchester is healthy? Will they maintain a 23 man roster 'till at least the deadline?

Winchester figures to be back in about 2 weeks. So we'll have an answer soon enough.

Well at least some of you realize now that cheechoo is useless and was an absolute cap hit throw in when it comes to the heatley trade that san jose won by a country mile. Z. Smith can do twice the job cheechoo can at fraction of the cost.

cloverleaf wrote:Well at least some of you realize now that cheechoo is useless and was an absolute cap hit throw in when it comes to the heatley trade that san jose won by a country mile. Z. Smith can do twice the job cheechoo can at fraction of the cost.

While you are entitled to an opinion, yours is wrong. Getting rid of an unhappy, declining, one dimensional player with 5 more years at a 7.5M cap hit is a victory any way you slice it.

Everyone talks about Heatley a former 50 goal scorer as if he's guaranteed to reach that level again.

3 years ago 50G 105P
2 years ago 41G 82P
Last year 39G 72P

If that trend continues BIG ANCHOR of a contract to have.

RobbyJ wrote:

cloverleaf wrote:Well at least some of you realize now that cheechoo is useless and was an absolute cap hit throw in when it comes to the heatley trade that san jose won by a country mile. Z. Smith can do twice the job cheechoo can at fraction of the cost.

While you are entitled to an opinion, yours is wrong. Getting rid of an unhappy, declining, one dimensional player with 5 more years at a 7.5M cap hit is a victory any way you slice it.

Everyone talks about Heatley a former 50 goal scorer as if he's guaranteed to reach that level again.

3 years ago 50G 105P
2 years ago 41G 82P
Last year 39G 72P

If that trend continues BIG ANCHOR of a contract to have.

I wholeheartedly agree. Getting rid of Heatley was the best thing thats happened to the Sens since the Cup run and the best personnel move since getting rid of Muckler.

I love how Dreger likes to say that Heatley has put up 50 goals in two of the last three years...Its like last year never even happened.

That being said, I don't think what Cloverleaf said was in any way "wrong". As it stands right now, Zach Smith probably could do what Cheechoo does, at a fraction of the cost and twice the speed.

I disagree, there is no way SJ won that trade by "a country mile".

cloverleaf wrote:Well at least some of you realize now that cheechoo is useless and was an absolute cap hit throw in when it comes to the heatley trade that san jose won by a country mile. Z. Smith can do twice the job cheechoo can at fraction of the cost.

Possibly, but I can't say that the Sharks won this trade. They got their former 50 goal man who's still young, but he carries a massive cap hit of 7.5 million. That's gonna end up handcuffing them at some point, just as it did to us. Michalek at 4.3 is absolutely perfect in today's NHL - perfect. He's fast, he PKs, he's a big boy, he's young - the full package at almost half of Heatley's cap hit - and signed for just as long. As far as Cheechoo goes, I think you might be surprised once he finds his rhythm. Is he what he used to be? Probably not, but he can still notch 20 goals IMO - especially on the PP and with Clouston as his coach. And the good news there is that his contract ends after next season, so we're not saddled with 5 more years of this guy. If need be, we can even buy him out in the summer for a 1 million dollar cap hit for 2 years, not exactly the end of the world - and throw in a 2nd rounder and it's gravy - especially remembering that we got Wiercioch and Lehner from 2nd round picks in the last two drafts.

Cheechoo is not going to thrive in a third line role with no power play time. I don't know if he has truly seen such a drop in his skills that he is inneffective but if you think he is destined to struggle, putting him on the third line is a self fulfilling prophecy. He will not score playing 12 minutes a game 5 on 5, he just won't.

His hands are still there, it is his skating in the post lockout NHL that is being exposed.