Game Day - Ottawa @ Carolina, 7:00PM, Tuesday, October 25, 2011

cash wrote:Daugavins-Zibanejad-Foligno
Neil-Smith-Condra
Konopka-DaCosta-Winchester


jesus christ.

THAT (!) is out regular season lineup? wtf. rebuilds suck.

The Murrays obviously know more than I do, but why the heck is Da Costa still in the NHL? To play 8 minutes in a checking line role? I really don't see how that's benefiting him. By now I had hoped he'd be getting 17-20 minutes in Bingo and perhaps forming some chemistry down there with Filatov.

If he needs to work on something, then let him do it during the course of prime minutes instead of in practice and on a 4th line that would be more about checking than scoring. Strange stuff.

cash wrote:Daugavins-Zibanejad-Foligno
Neil-Smith-Condra
Konopka-DaCosta-Winchester


jesus christ.

THAT (!) is out regular season lineup? wtf. rebuilds suck.

That's rough looking but hey, who knows, playing with that kind of team on the road can be a lot easier than playing at home. Keep things simple, dump and chase, keep a man high in the zone, off the glass and out. Doesn't need to be pretty this early in the season or on the road. They just need to get back into the hunt for a playoff spot and if they win tonight they are right there.

Anderson needs to have a big game. He was brutal last game vs Colubus as was one of the many players who were part of that mircale.

SpezDispenser wrote:

cash wrote:Daugavins-Zibanejad-Foligno
Neil-Smith-Condra
Konopka-DaCosta-Winchester


jesus christ.

THAT (!) is out regular season lineup? wtf. rebuilds suck.

The Murrays obviously know more than I do, but why the heck is Da Costa still in the NHL? To play 8 minutes in a checking line role? I really don't see how that's benefiting him. By now I had hoped he'd be getting 17-20 minutes in Bingo and perhaps forming some chemistry down there with Filatov.

If he needs to work on something, then let him do it during the course of prime minutes instead of in practice and on a 4th line that would be more about checking than scoring. Strange stuff.

Because they don't tend to play during the week a whole lot and they haven't made a choice on Zibanejad yet? So what's the point of sending him down until everything is figured out? Regin is an uknown as well at this point.

NEELY wrote:Because they don't tend to play during the week a whole lot and they haven't made a choice on Zibanejad yet? So what's the point of sending him down until everything is figured out? Regin is an uknown as well at this point.

It's been going on for a while now, I thought they'd be better off to send him to KK and let him work with him and call up Daugavins, but now that that's done, send him down and call up the next deserving player. I'd say O'Brien would be better suited to the 4th line role than Da Costa - and it costs nothing to bring them up or down.

Maybe O'Brien gets another shot on the 4th line but he isn't doing a whole lot to impress in Bingo. Hoffman could very well get the call soon as well.

Either way, they need to decide on Zibanejad first, personally I hope he stays. You look at a guy like Burmistrov as an example of what a year in the NHL can do for development. The SEL doesn't have the same kind of grind or schedule that the NHL has either.

Who knows how he might play when he knows he is staying as well.

NEELY wrote:Maybe O'Brien gets another shot on the 4th line but he isn't doing a whole lot to impress in Bingo. Hoffman could very well get the call soon as well.

Either way, they need to decide on Zibanejad first, personally I hope he stays. You look at a guy like Burmistrov as an example of what a year in the NHL can do for development. The SEL doesn't have the same kind of grind or schedule that the NHL has either.

Who knows how he might play when he knows he is staying as well.

I'm starting to think MacLean just wants to keep him and work with him. He's probably telling Murray right now: look, wait until January and you'll really like the decision to keep him here.

As for Da Costa, it doesn't matter to me personally what happens with Z-Bad, I think Da Costa will be a really good NHLer, but again, if Mac doesn't like what he sees, or wants him to work on something, the sooner he goes down and gets it straight (and bulks up a little), the sooner we can legitimately pencil him in as our 2nd line C, or better yet winger.

I think if Da Costa is going to be a reliable NHL player he is going to have to learn to play the wing. He's very much like Spezza in the way he plays the game but he doesn't have the size or strength he does to be a top 6 center.

NEELY wrote:I think if Da Costa is going to be a reliable NHL player he is going to have to learn to play the wing. He's very much like Spezza in the way he plays the game but he doesn't have the size or strength he does to be a top 6 center.

Doesn't he need more time to be physically ready ? He was playing in college not too long ago. It's amazing he's lasted this long.

Da Costa is 5'11, not that 'small'. Strength he can work on, he apparently worked on endurance over the summer.

Hoags wrote:

NEELY wrote:I think if Da Costa is going to be a reliable NHL player he is going to have to learn to play the wing. He's very much like Spezza in the way he plays the game but he doesn't have the size or strength he does to be a top 6 center.

Doesn't he need more time to be physically ready ? He was playing in college not too long ago. It's amazing he's lasted this long.

Da Costa is 5'11, not that 'small'. Strength he can work on, he apparently worked on endurance over the summer.

Coming out of college is an enormous step, usually guys are not ready for it. Takes them 2, 3, sometimes 4 years to figure it out in that aspect.

That being said, him being a center really has more to do with the way he plays the game vs his size. When you are a bigger guy you can get away with somethings or if you have speed and quickness to make up for the lack of size. Da Costa falls somewhere in the middle IMO. I just see him as more of a winger but it really depends on what Murray and MacLean think he is... obviously it's a center at this point.

Looks like Ward starting for the 'Canes tonight.

You're right, you got me. I'm not a Sens fan. I just buy their merchandise, go to games and support them during a rebuild, and get excited when they win or score, but because I don't think hey will win, I must not be a fan.

And because I also want them to get a really good player in the draft, it must be because I don't want them to get better. Because clearly getting a guy that is a franchise player is not what the team that lacks one needs.

Pittsburgh should have made moves at the deadline to try to make the playoffs instead of getting Fleury, Malkin and Staal (Crosby was luck). They are not a better team now for having those players. Clearly, since two of them ar not even playing and they are still winning. They should trade Malkin and Crosby right now.

Dash wrote:You're right, you got me. I'm not a Sens fan. I just buy their merchandise, go to games and support them during a rebuild, and get excited when they win or score, but because I don't think hey will win, I must not be a fan.

And because I also want them to get a really good player in the draft, it must be because I don't want them to get better. Because clearly getting a guy that is a franchise player is not what the team that lacks one needs.

Pittsburgh should have made moves at the deadline to try to make the playoffs instead of getting Fleury, Malkin and Staal (Crosby was luck). They are not a better team now for having those players. Clearly, since two of them ar not even playing and they are still winning. They should trade Malkin and Crosby right now.

Yes, because NYI, Columbus, Florida, Winnipeg (Atlanta), St.Louis, Pheonix, are all much, much better off and just have talent coming out of everywhere. Between those 6 teams, how many playoff rounds have they won in the last 10 years? NONE. How many playoff appearances in all...? Maybe 10. One team a year makes it basically.

Losing gaurantees nothing.

Yeah but Stamkos/Doughty > Karlsson, Tavares/Duchene > Cowen, Hall > Rudnblad, and Nugent-Hopkins > Zibanejad....

So yeah having the #1 pick is much better than not.

NEELY wrote:

Dash wrote:You're right, you got me. I'm not a Sens fan. I just buy their merchandise, go to games and support them during a rebuild, and get excited when they win or score, but because I don't think hey will win, I must not be a fan.

And because I also want them to get a really good player in the draft, it must be because I don't want them to get better. Because clearly getting a guy that is a franchise player is not what the team that lacks one needs.

Pittsburgh should have made moves at the deadline to try to make the playoffs instead of getting Fleury, Malkin and Staal (Crosby was luck). They are not a better team now for having those players. Clearly, since two of them ar not even playing and they are still winning. They should trade Malkin and Crosby right now.

Yes, because NYI, Columbus, Florida, Winnipeg (Atlanta), St.Louis, Pheonix, are all much, much better off and just have talent coming out of everywhere. Between those 6 teams, how many playoff rounds have they won in the last 10 years? NONE. How many playoff appearances in all...? Maybe 10. One team a year makes it basically.

Losing gaurantees nothing.

Pretty much. Even when it's all said and done and you do end up picking 1st overall there are no guarantees there either.

Dash wrote:Yeah but Stamkos/Doughty > Karlsson, Tavares/Duchene > Cowen, Hall > Rudnblad, and Nugent-Hopkins > Zibanejad....

So yeah having the #1 pick is much better than not.

8 games in and you're already worrying about the 1st overall pick. Newsflash: we aren't going to get it so you can forget about it now. We'll get a great player regardless in the top 10.

Well coming into the season I had figured Ottawa was (as an admitted rebuilding team) poised to finish last.

And my comment was merely pointing out the difference between 1st and.... 6th, 10th, 18th etc.

Dash wrote:I'm predicting a Carolina win.

Sens have a 7 game losing streak going in Carolina.

Just like the Flyers did coming into Ottawa Blowout?

Tonight?!?!