GAME DAY: Ottawa Senators @ Toronto Maple Leafs - 7:00pm ET - Tue. Oct. 6th, 2009

Gohan wrote:thoughts:

-Kovalev looked like Dung for 55 minutes.
-Foligno seemed to spend an extended period on the bench in the middle of the game.
-If Michalek had finish, he'd have about 6 or 7 points by now.
-Spezza has the slowest acceleration in the NHL. I said the mofo should spend his entire summer working on it and I thought he did when watching the preseason, but apparently I was very very wrong.
-Alfie was good but not great.
-Ruutu had an awesome game. Very solid.
-Dono, Neil, and Fisher were exactly what they're supposed to be (minus the pricetag...)
-Phillips was strong, but had some dangerous lapses. Not many, but too much...
-Volchenkov had a big bounce back game. Very impressed.
-Carkner was good again, but seemed to be stepping out of his box---trying to do to much...
-Picard was pretty bad. Not awful, but definitely showed why he sat in the pressbox for the opener.
-Campoli was hit-and-miss.
-Karlsson looked more comfortable, but obviously has a ton of work to do. Good to see him get those kinds of minutes...
-Leclaire played a solid game, but Spez you were right that he loses his positioning a little too frequently.
-Well coached by Clouston. Pretty risky to go back to that Karlsson-Campoli combo, but he showed faith in them and they only made him lose a few hairs...

I cringe reading that. How many guys have we said that about in the past for the Sens???

You make some good points.

Gohan wrote:thoughts:

-Kovalev looked like Dung for 55 minutes.
-Foligno seemed to spend an extended period on the bench in the middle of the game.
-If Michalek had finish, he'd have about 6 or 7 points by now.
-Spezza has the slowest acceleration in the NHL. I said the mofo should spend his entire summer working on it and I thought he did when watching the preseason, but apparently I was very very wrong.
-Alfie was good but not great.
-Ruutu had an awesome game. Very solid.
-Dono, Neil, and Fisher were exactly what they're supposed to be (minus the pricetag...)
-Phillips was strong, but had some dangerous lapses. Not many, but too much...
-Volchenkov had a big bounce back game. Very impressed.
-Carkner was good again, but seemed to be stepping out of his box---trying to do to much...
-Picard was pretty bad. Not awful, but definitely showed why he sat in the pressbox for the opener.
-Campoli was hit-and-miss.
-Karlsson looked more comfortable, but obviously has a ton of work to do. Good to see him get those kinds of minutes...
-Leclaire played a solid game, but Spez you were right that he loses his positioning a little too frequently.
-Well coached by Clouston. Pretty risky to go back to that Karlsson-Campoli combo, but he showed faith in them and they only made him lose a few hairs...

Kovalev was fine IMO. He played a smart road game and control the play quite a bit.
Spezza was strong I thought, nothing special but he def helped with the win.
Love Carkner.

Everything else I agree with for the most part.

N4L wrote:

hemlock wrote:

N4L wrote:No one was saying trade A Train, at least I wasnt. I said it's possible he gets traded this season and with his play from last game it would be a fairly easy call.

I wasn't accusing anyone of suggesting it, rather the general mood was incredibly sour on Volchenkov after the first game. I'm guessing that's over, until his next bad game of course.

And for the record, yes, people were saying trade Volchenkov.

He was AWFUL last game and aftr last year it was a cuase for concern. People should be pissed with that performance last game.

Well people can be pissed, or they can relax a little and realize that it was one game (the opener, no less). Volchenkov (obviously) isn't immune to bad games, just like anyone else. I agree with what you say about the first part of the schedule being critical, but to expect 82 solid efforts from any one player, even Alfie, is somewhat unrealistic.

Why do I get the feeling that Volchenkov is assuming the role of lightning rod criticism?

...only person I forgot to mention was Kelly: he was pretty decent, but he still hasn't done enough. He's in a dogfight for his spot on this team and although he looked alright with Fisher and Kovalev, he made a few really poor plays.

N4L wrote:

hemlock wrote:

N4L wrote:No one was saying trade A Train, at least I wasnt. I said it's possible he gets traded this season and with his play from last game it would be a fairly easy call.

I wasn't accusing anyone of suggesting it, rather the general mood was incredibly sour on Volchenkov after the first game. I'm guessing that's over, until his next bad game of course.

And for the record, yes, people were saying trade Volchenkov.

He was AWFUL last game and aftr last year it was a cuase for concern. People should be pissed with that performance last game.

Seriously. I'm not sure anyone actually said he should be traded, but you and I definitely inferred that he would be on the block if that Dung continued.

I dont think people realize how big of a win that was for The Sens. Biggest win in 3 season's, not even kidding. 0-2 start would be close to disasterous for Ottawa. They might get out of the week with a 3-1 start with Atlanta and NYI coming to town. Big difference between 2-2 (or worse) and 3-1 (at best)

spader wrote:Alright all, I realize we won, so it's all just info, but how was the game? I listened to the last period on the Team, but didn't get to watch more than a few seconds on the streaming sites.

Breakdown?

Leclaire was great when he had to be and made key stops in the final minutes. The boys stepped in to protect him frequently, but someone should have gone after Stajan early.

The D is still working things out, but it could have been worse (considering Kuba wasn't in).

Karlsson and Campoli saw a scary amount of ice time together which kept
me cringing all game. Campoli just doesn't win a lot of physical battles. Clouston wants to give Karlsson a tonne of ice
time and I'm guessing he wouldn't do that against a more talented team. In the end he was right this time.

Phillips was steady for the most part.

Volchenkov was a true monster. I actually didn't mind watching McGuires montage this time.

Carkner was strong again. Picard was invisible to me except for the bad penalty leading to the Leaf's goal.


Foligno looked better than last game and had some net drive, he almost scored with a nice dangle on the pp. He still seems a step slow to me. Kovalev wasn't skating at all tonight. Fisher is a beast but will just about never score an important goal as a center.

Top line played a solid two way game. Alfie scores on a penalty shot while being showered with boos. Spezza had some great takeaways and Michalek is still looking good to me, minus the scoring (which is a big minus).

The Neil and Regin & Cheechoo line didn't do well together. Cheechoo's injuries ensure he falls every time he gets excited, unless he's up against the boards where he controls the puck well.


Ruutu was fun to watch. At one point his screw up led to Komisarek hitting the post, so Ruutu skates to the other end and gets either his elbow or mitts and stick up high in Komi's face.

Kelly I really didn't notice.

Donovan was the best player on that line, tenacious, smart and plenty of net presence.

Good road win. Not the most exciting game but I did like the effort the Sens put together tonight.

N4L wrote:

Gohan wrote:thoughts:

-Kovalev looked like Dung for 55 minutes.
-Foligno seemed to spend an extended period on the bench in the middle of the game.
-If Michalek had finish, he'd have about 6 or 7 points by now.
-Spezza has the slowest acceleration in the NHL. I said the mofo should spend his entire summer working on it and I thought he did when watching the preseason, but apparently I was very very wrong.
-Alfie was good but not great.
-Ruutu had an awesome game. Very solid.
-Dono, Neil, and Fisher were exactly what they're supposed to be (minus the pricetag...)
-Phillips was strong, but had some dangerous lapses. Not many, but too much...
-Volchenkov had a big bounce back game. Very impressed.
-Carkner was good again, but seemed to be stepping out of his box---trying to do to much...
-Picard was pretty bad. Not awful, but definitely showed why he sat in the pressbox for the opener.
-Campoli was hit-and-miss.
-Karlsson looked more comfortable, but obviously has a ton of work to do. Good to see him get those kinds of minutes...
-Leclaire played a solid game, but Spez you were right that he loses his positioning a little too frequently.
-Well coached by Clouston. Pretty risky to go back to that Karlsson-Campoli combo, but he showed faith in them and they only made him lose a few hairs...

Kovalev was fine IMO. He played a smart road game and control the play quite a bit.
Spezza was strong I thought, nothing special but he def helped with the win.
Love Carkner.

Everything else I agree with for the most part.

Dude. I so don't agree with you on Kovalev. He was dreadful for the first 40 minutes. Then mediocre for the next 15, followed by good for 5... More than anything, I just don't see where he fits here. Putting him with Spezza seems like the only option to me. I don't see anyone else who can read things well enough to play with him. Regin is just too young and Shannon is much more suited to play with the grinders with skill---speaking of which, did anyone see that dangle Foligno made in the 2nd That was Diddling righteous man. He had like a quarter inch to maneuvre in!!

As for Spezza, yeah he played a good game. I liked a lot of what I saw (especially opening the game with a body on the forecheck!) but the fact remains: his acceleration is just pathetic. His lumbering stride is precisely what will keep him from ever touching the Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin class of offensive star.

And I'm loving Carkner too, but he has to keep it simple. I like that he was trying some things, but there was one play (notably) where Toronto almost tied it up because Carkner avoided the body along the boards in his end and just let his guy keep swinging around the net. He had him angled, but just let him go...little mistakes are what seperate the pros from everyone else. If he wants to be in the show, that type of Dung has to stop.

N4L wrote:I dont think people realize how big of a win that was for The Sens. Biggest win in 3 season's, not even kidding. 0-2 start would be close to disasterous for Ottawa. They might get out of the week with a 3-1 start with Atlanta and NYI coming to town. Big difference between 2-2 (or worse) and 3-1 (at best)

Agreed.

..although NYI took PIT to the limit and ATL stomp on TBL's heart...

No such thing as an easy game.

Gohan wrote:

N4L wrote:

Gohan wrote:thoughts:

-Kovalev looked like Dung for 55 minutes.
-Foligno seemed to spend an extended period on the bench in the middle of the game.
-If Michalek had finish, he'd have about 6 or 7 points by now.
-Spezza has the slowest acceleration in the NHL. I said the mofo should spend his entire summer working on it and I thought he did when watching the preseason, but apparently I was very very wrong.
-Alfie was good but not great.
-Ruutu had an awesome game. Very solid.
-Dono, Neil, and Fisher were exactly what they're supposed to be (minus the pricetag...)
-Phillips was strong, but had some dangerous lapses. Not many, but too much...
-Volchenkov had a big bounce back game. Very impressed.
-Carkner was good again, but seemed to be stepping out of his box---trying to do to much...
-Picard was pretty bad. Not awful, but definitely showed why he sat in the pressbox for the opener.
-Campoli was hit-and-miss.
-Karlsson looked more comfortable, but obviously has a ton of work to do. Good to see him get those kinds of minutes...
-Leclaire played a solid game, but Spez you were right that he loses his positioning a little too frequently.
-Well coached by Clouston. Pretty risky to go back to that Karlsson-Campoli combo, but he showed faith in them and they only made him lose a few hairs...

Kovalev was fine IMO. He played a smart road game and control the play quite a bit.
Spezza was strong I thought, nothing special but he def helped with the win.
Love Carkner.

Everything else I agree with for the most part.

Dude. I so don't agree with you on Kovalev. He was dreadful for the first 40 minutes. Then mediocre for the next 15, followed by good for 5... More than anything, I just don't see where he fits here. Putting him with Spezza seems like the only option to me. I don't see anyone else who can read things well enough to play with him. Regin is just too young and Shannon is much more suited to play with the grinders with skill---speaking of which, did anyone see that dangle Foligno made in the 2nd That was Diddling righteous man. He had like a quarter inch to maneuvre in!!

As for Spezza, yeah he played a good game. I liked a lot of what I saw (especially opening the game with a body on the forecheck!) but the fact remains: his acceleration is just pathetic. His lumbering stride is precisely what will keep him from ever touching the Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin class of offensive star.

And I'm loving Carkner too, but he has to keep it simple. I like that he was trying some things, but there was one play (notably) where Toronto almost tied it up because Carkner avoided the body along the boards in his end and just let his guy keep swinging around the net. He had him angled, but just let him go...little mistakes are what seperate the pros from everyone else. If he wants to be in the show, that type of Dung has to stop.

I liked what I saw from Kovalev. Thought he played a smart game and when he is on the ice the other team worries.

Carkner of Lee was an easy choice looking at things now.

Gohan wrote:No such thing as an easy game.

Nope, but there are games you should win.

Man, I would never want to trade Anton Volchenkov. The only time I would consider it is if it was a lose him for nothing situation, which I certainly hope it does not come to.

But what you really have to consider is, how much are you willing to (over)pay for a one-dimensional player? I love what he brings to the team, and he is easily one of the best defensive players in the game. His hits are punishing, his blocked shots are crucial, but we cannot afford to pay him $3M+ based alone on that, can we?

Dash wrote:Man, I would never want to trade Anton Volchenkov. The only time I would consider it is if it was a lose him for nothing situation, which I certainly hope it does not come to.

But what you really have to consider is, how much are you willing to (over)pay for a one-dimensional player? I love what he brings to the team, and he is easily one of the best defensive players in the game. His hits are punishing, his blocked shots are crucial, but we cannot afford to pay him $3M+ based alone on that, can we?

It's crucial imo, to explore what Anton is looking for. We cannot afford to overspend on guys like him though, especially longer term with the obvious youth movement going on. If he doesn't want to remain a Sen for a reasonable sum, then I think Murray has to explore his options. I don't want to lose him as he's my favorite Sen (after Alfie of course), but the reality is that we may not be able to keep him. I think he'd fetch a tidy return come deadline day.

beerandsens wrote:[The Neil and Regin & Cheechoo line didn't do well together. Cheechoo's injuries ensure he falls every time he gets excited, unless he's up against the boards where he controls the puck well.


Ruutu was fun to watch. At one point his screw up led to Komisarek hitting the post, so Ruutu skates to the other end and gets either his elbow or mitts and stick up high in Komi's face.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Cheech: I don't agree with your take, necessarily. Yeah, he struggles with his stride, but I thought he was an effective presence on both ends of the ice; haven't checked the stats, but I'm pretty sure he had a couple of shots and he had a good game Imo.

Also, that was Carkner's Diddle up. Not Ruutu...McGuire's just an idiot. Literally, in the 2-3 minutes following that play call, McGuire Diddled up at least 5 calls. For instance, he said we hadn't seen Karlsson since a mistake he made, but Karlsson was literally just on the ice. Then he asked why it wasn't an icing call when the dumpp in was from a foot inside the red line. Just little things, but he's still an idiot. Anyone see him on the draft special? "I WANNA MAKE A TRADE" --- what is this guy? 5 years old?

Dash wrote:Man, I would never want to trade Anton Volchenkov. The only time I would consider it is if it was a lose him for nothing situation, which I certainly hope it does not come to.

But what you really have to consider is, how much are you willing to (over)pay for a one-dimensional player? I love what he brings to the team, and he is easily one of the best defensive players in the game. His hits are punishing, his blocked shots are crucial, but we cannot afford to pay him $3M+ based alone on that, can we?

It's a good question... I say yes if it translates to more wins, but I'm not sure it does. Do you guys think the hit Volchenkov layed on Stalberg was a game changer and a key to us winning the game?

Yup, totally!

Ya, it kind of was