GAME DAY: Ottawa Senators @ Atlanta Thrashers – 7:00PM EST, Thursday, March 18, 2010

N4L wrote:Brodure isnt going to turn this around. They caught lightning in a bottle along with Brodure. It's sink or swim with the goaltenders they have right now and it actually doesnt matter who is in net. No goaltender in The NHL would have more then a win or two if they played in Ottawa since the break.

Talking about the goaltending no matter how good or bad it was is pointless. Until Alfi, Spezza, Kovalev, Fisher, Michalek, and Foligno start to put the puck in the net, this is a pointless conversation.

Like last time they called Brodeur up, it simply couldn't hurt at this point. The team always loses confidence when a goalie struggles, or the bounces don't go their way.

Having confidence in your goalie goes a long way....the team doesn't have confidence in themselves or their goalie, so might aswell try to infuse new life in.

Brodure wont be the guy come playoff time and fact of the matter is LEclaire has been solid despite not having won a game and getting lit up against Vancouver. That game should have been over after the first. They are going to have to give Leclaire a shot because his fault or not, Elliott isnt getting it done. Brodure isnt the goaltender Elliott nor Leclaire is. It would do more harm then good.

It falls on the leadership in Ottawa and that's Alfi, Fisher, Phillips, and to a lesser extent A Train, Kovalev, and Spezza. These guys need to lead now and get it on track at the right time. Starts with the PP.

My biggest complaint is that Clouston seems to have an serous hard-on for Elliott which shows a clear lack of respect for Leclaire. You want to question confidence, well it's hard to have any when your team doesn't have any in you. Leclaire gets hung out to dry much like Elliott, or Elliott just has a bad game, and yet Elliott seems to rarely if ever get pulled, yet Leclaire gets yanked almost immediately. So inconsistent, the coaching is. CC says he pulls Leclaire to wake the team u - well pull Elliott then.

Looking elsewhere, the defence has just been awful. Last game Sutton misses a huge check (if he's not missing them he's getting Dung calls on them), Phillips turns the puck over; or they let the offence waltz right in.

And the offence cannot be excused. The guys that are paid to score are not scoring. Spezza's been playing well, so I will let him off - cause of those guys I refer to, he's been the best.

Just hard to be a Sens fan at this point. I'd rather be in the Leafs position (with the pick). At least there'd be something to look forward to instead of watching the playoffs slip away. I do think they will somehow still make it and get swept in the first round. Hope Melnyk will be happy with that.

Best-case scenario is to finish in 6th and the Sabres finish in 3rd...I still don't think that we will get swept by anyone

I have a feeling though that we will be going into the playoffs with Leclaire as our #1 goalie. In the end, you start the guy who gets paid the most, even though it may not be right...I think Clouston will try to get him rolling now.

Dash wrote:My biggest complaint is that Clouston seems to have an serous hard-on for Elliott which shows a clear lack of respect for Leclaire. You want to question confidence, well it's hard to have any when your team doesn't have any in you. Leclaire gets hung out to dry much like Elliott, or Elliott just has a bad game, and yet Elliott seems to rarely if ever get pulled, yet Leclaire gets yanked almost immediately. So inconsistent, the coaching is. CC says he pulls Leclaire to wake the team u - well pull Elliott then.

Looking elsewhere, the defence has just been awful. Last game Sutton misses a huge check (if he's not missing them he's getting Dung calls on them), Phillips turns the puck over; or they let the offence waltz right in.

And the offence cannot be excused. The guys that are paid to score are not scoring. Spezza's been playing well, so I will let him off - cause of those guys I refer to, he's been the best.

Just hard to be a Sens fan at this point. I'd rather be in the Leafs position (with the pick). At least there'd be something to look forward to instead of watching the playoffs slip away. I do think they will somehow still make it and get swept in the first round. Hope Melnyk will be happy with that.

Elliott 100% earned the right to be considered the starter and number 1 in Ottawa until about tonight. There is no way they go back with Elliott after tonight and he deserved a chance to pull himself and The Sens out of this little spiral, he didnt. I have no issues with how Clouston handled the goaltending sitatution, that much was done the way it should have been for the most part.

Now, if Elliott gets thrown into the nets on Sat afternoon, I think there is an issue, a huge one. I said before this game if The Sens lose, you have to go with LEclaire next game, doesnt matter how or why, you have to. It's a no brainer and the truth of the matter is Leclaire has been solid his last two outings.

Spezza hasnt been playing all that well, he hasnt been AWFUL, but he has to do more. Remember, this is a guy that is the center piece of this team and he needs to prove that. People were all over his Wang when he was on that tear saying "this is the real Spezza" and a lot of others were saying "show me for more then 10 games a season"... well, he hasnt disapointed in that aspect, he is showing why he is not elite and probably never will be. Spezza being left off the hook in all of this when he is the highest paid player on the team is basically turning a blind eye to the issue, he's part of that problem.

Alfi has to do more but maybe his age is catching up to him. Only so long you can carry an entire team and organization on your back.

Big Ev wrote:Best-case scenario is to finish in 6th and the Sabres finish in 3rd...I still don't think that we will get swept by anyone

I have a feeling though that we will be going into the playoffs with Leclaire as our #1 goalie. In the end, you start the guy who gets paid the most, even though it may not be right...I think Clouston will try to get him rolling now.

Washington and Pitts would wipe the floor with The Sens. It wouldnt even be funny. They actually might collectivly beat The Sens by 10-15 goals in 4 quick and embarassing games.

You're right about Buffalo, that is absolutely the best case scenario, NJ is the other team you hope to hit.

I have no faith in Washington to sweep anybody. They will choke, they are the San Jose Sharks of the East. I think if we played Washington, we could take them to at least 6 games.

How are they The SJ of The East? They have literally gotten better every single year, standings wise and playoff wise. Washington is going to sweep Ottawa, Philly, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta based on things right now. Where you come up with these things, I actually dont know.

The fact you think this team can take the 1st overall team in The NHL to 6 games after losing to Toronto (two times) Car, NYR, Atlanta, and barly beating Edm shows just how either A. blinded by The Sens you are. B. down right handicapped or C. trying to keep such a postive attitude you have gone a little mental.

We have already beat Washington twice this season, and we have already beat other great teams like Chicago, Vancouver, Pittsburgh, and New Jersey. If the team is hot going into the playoffs, anything can happen.

I'm not saying we would beat them, but I guarantee you that they would not be swept, and I can guarantee you that Washington will not sweep anybody in the playoffs. This season they have more points, but if you watch them they are very much the same team as last year. They get down early in games but then get saved by the PP and come back to win the game. Or, they go up 3-0 or something and then give up the lead to only win in OT or at the very end of the game. That doesn't work in the playoffs.

If Washington played Ottawa, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta in the first round, I think they would beat them BUT, I legitimately believe that Philly could push them to 7 and beat them. They have the offense, the defense, and their only question mark is their goaltending. Their defense is much better than Washington's and they can score with them...plus they have a Dungload of playoff experience.

I can't believe how lazy this team has become. Nobody's skating anymore. Puck support and forechecking is ridiculously bad.
The defense looks like Dung again. the gap on the ice between the forwards and the defense is completely uncharacteristic of Clouston hockey. DOn't know if he changed his style or not but either the forwards don't back check fast enough or the D is getting scared of goin up. It has become Hartsburg hockey. Getting pwned big time on the neutral zone.
We pretty much need an all star performance from the goalies for the next 5 games, a lucky/fluke goal here and there, or a miracle on the PP.
Otherwise we're likely done.

N4L wrote:How are they The SJ of The East? They have literally gotten better every single year, standings wise and playoff wise. Washington is going to sweep Ottawa, Philly, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta based on things right now. Where you come up with these things, I actually dont know.

The fact you think this team can take the 1st overall team in The NHL to 6 games after losing to Toronto (two times) Car, NYR, Atlanta, and barly beating Edm shows just how either A. blinded by The Sens you are. B. down right handicapped or C. trying to keep such a postive attitude you have gone a little mental.

No question Washington is a solid team, but questions in net and a patchy defensive game, doesn't scream dominate playoff team.

Playoffs are a whole new type hockey (stating the obvious) and upsets are pretty common, so expecting Washington to dominate like they have in the regular season can be just as "blinded, handicapped or mental" as projecting Ottawa to potentially beat Washington in 6.

If the best regular season team always dominated in the playoffs San Jose would have atleast a Cup finals berth by now.

Big Ev wrote:We have already beat Washington twice this season, and we have already beat other great teams like Chicago, Vancouver, Pittsburgh, and New Jersey. If the team is hot going into the playoffs, anything can happen.

I'm not saying we would beat them, but I guarantee you that they would not be swept, and I can guarantee you that Washington will not sweep anybody in the playoffs. This season they have more points, but if you watch them they are very much the same team as last year. They get down early in games but then get saved by the PP and come back to win the game. Or, they go up 3-0 or something and then give up the lead to only win in OT or at the very end of the game. That doesn't work in the playoffs.

If Washington played Ottawa, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta in the first round, I think they would beat them BUT, I legitimately believe that Philly could push them to 7 and beat them. They have the offense, the defense, and their only question mark is their goaltending. Their defense is much better than Washington's and they can score with them...plus they have a Dungload of playoff experience.

The same team that lost to the cup champs in 7 games? You make absolutley no sense. Washington is the best team in The NHL. The only team in The East that can or will beat them is Pitts and last year it was almost a dead heat.

So what if Ottawa beat them twice this year? Have you actually been watching the games or just hoping they are a figment of your imagination (we all are). Ottawa would be demolished by Washington, hell, Ottawa takes 5 penalties a night on average, maybe more. Washington would embarass Ottawa and in all honestly, it would be better not making the playoffs then playing Washington, at least that would improve The Sens next year in some aspect.

No clue what Caps team you're watching, but the one everyone else is, is a better team then last year and wins on most nights.

M_Christopher wrote:

N4L wrote:How are they The SJ of The East? They have literally gotten better every single year, standings wise and playoff wise. Washington is going to sweep Ottawa, Philly, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta based on things right now. Where you come up with these things, I actually dont know.

The fact you think this team can take the 1st overall team in The NHL to 6 games after losing to Toronto (two times) Car, NYR, Atlanta, and barly beating Edm shows just how either A. blinded by The Sens you are. B. down right handicapped or C. trying to keep such a postive attitude you have gone a little mental.

No question Washington is a solid team, but questions in net and a patchy defensive game, doesn't scream dominate playoff team.

Playoffs are a whole new type hockey (stating the obvious) and upsets are pretty common, so expecting Washington to dominate like they have in the regular season can be just as "blinded, handicapped or mental" as projecting Ottawa to potentially beat Washington in 6.

If the best regular season team always dominated in the playoffs San Jose would have atleast a Cup finals berth by now.

Who in The East has good goaltending aside from Buffalo and NYR? Washington is going to hit Boston, Ottawa, Philly, Atlanta, or NYR. No shot they lose to those teams and I would be surprised if any of those teams actually won a game against them.

Washington's goaltending isnt anything special but even in the playoffs they will be able to run and run for the first two rounds.

marakh wrote:I can't believe how lazy this team has become. Nobody's skating anymore. Puck support and forechecking is ridiculously bad.
The defense looks like Dung again. the gap on the ice between the forwards and the defense is completely uncharacteristic of Clouston hockey. DOn't know if he changed his style or not but either the forwards don't back check fast enough or the D is getting scared of goin up. It has become Hartsburg hockey. Getting pwned big time on the neutral zone.
We pretty much need an all star performance from the goalies for the next 5 games, a lucky/fluke goal here and there, or a miracle on the PP.
Otherwise we're likely done.

No team in The NHL is as fragile as The Sens, it's been that way for a long time. They either ride a hot steak or are brutal losing to eveyr tea that comes knocking.

It's not the coach, it never has been in Ottawa. It's the players. If this year turns into a disaster it might be time to look at dealing a Mike Fisher and get some defensive help that can step in right away.

N4L wrote:

M_Christopher wrote:

N4L wrote:How are they The SJ of The East? They have literally gotten better every single year, standings wise and playoff wise. Washington is going to sweep Ottawa, Philly, NYR, Boston, or Atlanta based on things right now. Where you come up with these things, I actually dont know.

The fact you think this team can take the 1st overall team in The NHL to 6 games after losing to Toronto (two times) Car, NYR, Atlanta, and barly beating Edm shows just how either A. blinded by The Sens you are. B. down right handicapped or C. trying to keep such a postive attitude you have gone a little mental.

No question Washington is a solid team, but questions in net and a patchy defensive game, doesn't scream dominate playoff team.

Playoffs are a whole new type hockey (stating the obvious) and upsets are pretty common, so expecting Washington to dominate like they have in the regular season can be just as "blinded, handicapped or mental" as projecting Ottawa to potentially beat Washington in 6.

If the best regular season team always dominated in the playoffs San Jose would have atleast a Cup finals berth by now.

Who in The East has good goaltending aside from Buffalo and NYR? Washington is going to hit Boston, Ottawa, Philly, Atlanta, or NYR. No shot they lose to those teams and I would be surprised if any of those teams actually won a game against them.

Washington's goaltending isnt anything special but even in the playoffs they will be able to run and run for the first two rounds.

Boston has solid goaltending, both Rask and Thomas have been pretty good, they aren;t getting the offensive support but when games get tighter, Thomas has the talent to steal games. Fluery is nothing to look past, Halak has been amazing, despite Montreal's injury problems.

Next to Ottawa, and Philly, Washington has the biggest question marks in net, but unlike Philly and Ottawa (hard to notice now), Washington doesn't have the high quality shutdown defensemen.

Dash wrote:My biggest complaint is that Clouston seems to have an serous hard-on for Elliott which shows a clear lack of respect for Leclaire. You want to question confidence, well it's hard to have any when your team doesn't have any in you. Leclaire gets hung out to dry much like Elliott, or Elliott just has a bad game, and yet Elliott seems to rarely if ever get pulled, yet Leclaire gets yanked almost immediately. So inconsistent, the coaching is. CC says he pulls Leclaire to wake the team u - well pull Elliott then.

Looking elsewhere, the defence has just been awful. Last game Sutton misses a huge check (if he's not missing them he's getting Dung calls on them), Phillips turns the puck over; or they let the offence waltz right in.

And the offence cannot be excused. The guys that are paid to score are not scoring. Spezza's been playing well, so I will let him off - cause of those guys I refer to, he's been the best.

Just hard to be a Sens fan at this point. I'd rather be in the Leafs position (with the pick). At least there'd be something to look forward to instead of watching the playoffs slip away. I do think they will somehow still make it and get swept in the first round. Hope Melnyk will be happy with that.

Agree 100%, serious double standard.

Replacing Volchenkov would be a good start. No way we can keep him for more than 3 MIllion a year. Ottawa's D is awful with him making 2.5. Imagine when he'll make 4.
I can't believe how 2 weeks of vacation has taken this team's chemistry away. It's really unbelievable.
And WTF with nobody wanting to shoot? I nearly threw my glass on the screen when Shannon didn't the shoot that puck. STOP THINKING goddammit.

Keep on overrating Washington like everybody else does. It happened last year and it will happen again. If the Rangers had ANYBODY who could score last season, the Caps would have been ousted in the 1st round.

You really think there is NO chance that Philly or Ottawa or even the Habs can push the Caps to the limit? There's a reason why the games are played.

Washington is no more than the Phoenix Suns of the NHL. Best offensive team in the regular season, but they ultimately lose when the games are tighter and actually matter.