GAME DAY: Ottawa Senators @ Montreal Canadiens - 7:00pm EST - Oct. 16, 2010

Flo The Action wrote:i refuse to panic. there's no denying we're having a bad start but we aren't much different a team from the one that surprised everyone last year.
i have noticed Alfie looks slower, kovalev is showing his usual slow beginnings self gonchar has yet to find his groove with the team but i think things will fall into places.

don't worry, it will be alright and we'll make the playoffs.

That's right, we'll be fine.

I believe our lack of offense comes from our team defense. The defensemen still have to get used to their respective partners, as it still looks like there are fundamental mistakes down low in our own zone, and the forwards share the blame for an unreliable or inconsistent break out.

Although we have mobile defensemen who can move the puck much quicker now, which will eventually lead to more offense, there is probably a learning curve for just how much offensive/defensive pressure the Sens forwards can get away with. The absence of Volchenkov and Sutton changes the roles slightly for most of the individuals on the Sens, so I think they will continue to have some ups and downs for a while.

This team was successful last year because for long stretches they were the epitome of a hardworking NHL team. Seeing us struggle when the teamwork is off only makes sense to me and also gives me optimism that they'll figure it out and really get going in a few weeks.

Flo The Action wrote:i refuse to panic. there's no denying we're having a bad start but we aren't much different a team from the one that surprised everyone last year.
i have noticed Alfie looks slower, kovalev is showing his usual slow beginnings self gonchar has yet to find his groove with the team but i think things will fall into places.

don't worry, it will be alright and we'll make the playoffs.

Honestly, it's like no one remembers 2006-2007.

I remember 06-07, but mostly April through June

When A-Train left the station Murray said that we've been blocking a lot of shots, and it would be nice to see the other teams block some of ours for a change. Well, they haven't had to block a lot to keep our shot count down. Buffalo blocked 20 shots against Ottawa, and that's the most of any other opponent we've faced to date. The next highest was 15 (Washington) and it goes down from there.

I understand that there's only been one game in which we out-blocked the opposition (the Smurfs) but we have been handily out-shot in all three division match ups (26-36 against Buffalo, 18-38 against Toronto, and 19-40 against Montreal).

I'm not sure that outshooting the jet-lagged Hurricanes or the not-so-defensively-minded Capitals is an accomplishment. The game against the Caps was our best overall effort.

Yes, the powerplay is alarming, as is the unwillingness to shoot *or* block shots. But it's the lack of effort against the Leafs and Habs that's really worrying. The Habs played the night before yet it was the Senators who wilted late in the game, with only 6 shots in the 2nd and 2 in the 3rd!

Hearing what happened at the Wild practice makes we wonder when will Clouston follow suit?

asq2 wrote:Honestly, it's like no one remembers 2006-2007.

We're tracking pretty close to the start we had that season. At the 5-game mark, we were 2-3 with one of those wins coming in a shootout. So, pretty close with our OT loss this season at 1-3-1. At the 10-game mark, we were 5-5-0. At the 20-game mark we were 8-11-1. At the mid-way point (41-games) we were 21-18-2. We finished the season with a record of 48-25-9 and we all know what happened after that.

The start this season is concerning for sure, but no reason to abandon all hope as the 06-07 season shows. We know we're better than this. The team is going to have to "find itself" and get thing going again.