Game Day - Ottawa @ Toronto 7PM, Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011

Game Day - Ottawa @ Toronto 7PM, Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011



The "Blue Team" elimination watch begins tonight ...

SeawaySensFan wrote:Tonight????!

Beers. On. Ice.

ESPN Game Day Preview: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/preview?gameId=400046762

Well, the sens got schooled -- old school -- last night. Not much time to analyze the mistakes. Just look at the positives and negatives, try to do more of the former and less of the latter. Back when my kids were in kindergarten they called it "Three stars and a wish" -- three positive things and one thing to work on. I'm not going to keep to those numbers but use the same approach.

Stars:
- actually outplayed the Wings in the first, despite being down 1-0 after 20
- outplayed the Wings in the 3rd as well
- were 50-50 in faceoffs, despite having two rookies and a sophomore at center
- powerplay was 2 for 3, penalty kill was 5 for 5
- didn't fold up the tent when down 0-5
- coach actually called a timeout!

Wishes:
- Alfie is babysitting but that second line has to be better defensively; they were a combined -7 and need to be better
- Gonchar can't do what he did on the Bertuzzi goal; it's OK if the kids see you make a mistake as long as they also see you trying to make up for it
- Filatov averaged 48 seconds per shift; Michalek was 44 and Spezza 39 -- it didn't bite them this game (they were all +1 on one ES goal) but they need to keep the shifts shorter
- DaCosta and Foligno averaged 44 seconds per shift only to be outplayed by Neil with 46 -- that's our third line and those are long shifts for the top line (the line was -5)
- Anderson was hung out to dry a few times but of those 5 goals maybe 1 or 2 he could have done better

NHL Game Preview:
http://www.nhl.com/ice/preview.htm?id=2011020011

SENATORS (0-1-0) at MAPLE LEAFS (1-0-0)

TV: CBC (HD)

Season Series: It's the first of six editions of the Battle of Ontario, a series that ended with each team winning three times last season. The Senators have won their last two trips to the Air Canada Centre.

Team Scope:

Senators: You can be sure this was not how Paul MacLean had planned to start his NHL coaching career. In his first game as the boss, MacLean watched in horror as Ottawa fell behind 5-0 in Detroit on Friday night before scoring three times in a 5-3 loss that looked closer than it was.

"It looked a lot like it did when I was on the other bench from this bench," said MacLean, who was hired in Ottawa after six seasons as an assistant to Mike Babcock with the Wings. "For me, I felt comfortable being here at Joe Louis Arena, I've been here before. But we made a few mistakes."

Maple Leafs: Optimism reigns in Toronto, where the Leafs got their season off to a satisfying start by blanking the archrival Montreal Canadiens 2-0 on Thursday night. James Reimer stopped all 32 shots he faced and made goals by Matthew Lombardi and Dion Phaneuf stand up.

Not that coach Ron Wilson is ready to declare his team a powerhouse as it tries to end a playoff drought that dates to 2004. After all, the Leafs started last season by going 4-0-0, then collapsed with 11 losses in their next 12 games.

"We're still going to be a work in progress," he said.

Who's Hot: Reimer is now 21-15-5 since joining the Leafs on Jan. 1. … Newcomer Dave Steckel didn't hit the scoresheet Thursday night, but he more than did his job by going 18-7 in the faceoff circle. Steckel led the NHL in faceoff percentage last season.

Injury report: The Senators are without center Peter Regin (shoulder). Jesse Winchester (shoulder) and Matt Carkner (knee) are on IR. Center Zenon Konopka missed Friday's game with a back problem but hopes to play against the Leafs. … Toronto is still without one of its big offseason signings, center Tim Connolly, who's out with an upper-body injury. The Leafs hope he'll be back in a week or so. Forward Nazem Kadri is out with a knee injury.

Stat Pack: Reimer went 2-0-1 with a 0.98 goals-against average against the Senators in 2010-11, including a 2-0 shutout on Feb. 19. … The Leafs, among the NHL's worst penalty-killing teams during the past few seasons, held Montreal scoreless in five tries on Thursday and scored a shorthanded goal.

Puck Drop: No one is happier to be in the lineup than Lombardi, whose shorthanded goal on Thursday came in his first NHL game since he sustained a concussion last Oct. 13, when he was playing for Nashville. He couldn't even skate for 10 months and was only cleared for contact last week.

"It just goes to show that if you want it enough and you want to push yourself you can do it," said Lombardi, who played about 11 minutes on Thursday. "You've just got to believe in it."

Both teams come into the game 5 for 5 on the PK.

Ottawa is on a 2-game winning streak at the ACC.

Toronto registered 18 shots on goal against the powerful smurfs. They gave up 32 shots to the same powerful smurfs. They will need to play a lot better than they did Thursday night.

This belongs in the GDT:

shabbs wrote:Senators Extra game day preview of Sens/Leafs match up tonight:

http://www.senatorsextra.com/main/ottawa-senators-at-toronto-maple-leafs-on-oct-8-2011

The consensus seems to be we'll see Konopka in and Rundblad in. So, who's out?

If Konopka is in (not convinced -- he's had back issues and that's not the best team to come back in from a sore back) then I'd say Smith sits.

If Rundblad is in I'd like to say Gonchar sits, but he still got over 20 minutes of icetime last night, so it's probably going to be Lee.

But, hold on, that's just wrong. Lee had 6 hits and Gonchar deserves to sit just for his non-play on the Bertuzzi breakaway.

Do we need a poll?

MacLean isn't going to sit any of the 'vets'.

IDC about Gonchar's non-play, that's how he is.



He wouldn't have caught up to him anyway.

Karlsson was pretty bad. Careless and clueless. Looked very uncomfortable and clumsy and uncomposed.

I think they should dress Rundblad. My first choice to sit would be Gonchar, and I realize it messes up your handedness, but oh well. As bad as Karlsson was, he tried, and aside from saving a goal where the puck was loose in the crease, Gonchar was lazy.

If Konopka dresses, who sits? Need Smith, would be silly to scratch Zibanejad, and Da Costa doesn't deserve it.

Hoags wrote:MacLean isn't going to sit any of the 'vets'.

IDC about Gonchar's non-play, that's how he is.

He wouldn't have caught up to him anyway.

You're right, he probably wouldn't have caught him, but he should have made the effort. Who knows, what if Bertuzzi missed and nobody was there to get the rebound?

Hoags wrote:MacLean isn't going to sit any of the 'vets'.

IDC about Gonchar's non-play, that's how he is.



He wouldn't have caught up to him anyway.

In fairness there, it's basically a 3 on 1 down low from a Dung angle. That was a bad goal. If that puck rims around and out of the zone that's not even a clip.

Dash wrote:Karlsson was pretty bad. Careless and clueless. Looked very uncomfortable and clumsy and uncomposed.

I think they should dress Rundblad. My first choice to sit would be Gonchar, and I realize it messes up your handedness, but oh well. As bad as Karlsson was, he tried, and aside from saving a goal where the puck was loose in the crease, Gonchar was lazy.

If Konopka dresses, who sits? Need Smith, would be silly to scratch Zibanejad, and Da Costa doesn't deserve it.

Butler sits.

Dash wrote:
You're right, he probably wouldn't have caught him, but he should have made the effort. Who knows, what if Bertuzzi missed and nobody was there to get the rebound?

The other D-man was racing in ?

Expecting Gonchar to make the effort is like expecting zero no look passes from Spezza this year.

That's how he is they're not going to change him. He's a $5.5m PP specialist, although I think he made some good plays defensively as well.

NEELY wrote:

Dash wrote:Karlsson was pretty bad. Careless and clueless. Looked very uncomfortable and clumsy and uncomposed.

I think they should dress Rundblad. My first choice to sit would be Gonchar, and I realize it messes up your handedness, but oh well. As bad as Karlsson was, he tried, and aside from saving a goal where the puck was loose in the crease, Gonchar was lazy.

If Konopka dresses, who sits? Need Smith, would be silly to scratch Zibanejad, and Da Costa doesn't deserve it.

Butler sits.

There is a poll; Butler added.

Hoags wrote:

Dash wrote:
You're right, he probably wouldn't have caught him, but he should have made the effort. Who knows, what if Bertuzzi missed and nobody was there to get the rebound?

The other D-man was racing in ?

Expecting Gonchar to make the effort is like expecting zero no look passes from Spezza this year.

That's how he is they're not going to change him. He's a $5.5m PP specialist, although I think he made some good plays defensively as well.

You've got Karlsson, Cowen, Rundblad, Lee all watching, to say nothing of Greening, Smith, DaCosta, Zibanejad, Condra, Filatov, Butler. When you are a vet and there are that many rookies you've got to provide a good example.