Are the Sens done making moves?

NEELY wrote:

hemlock wrote:

NEELY wrote:

hemlock wrote:

NEELY wrote:If the Sens can make the playoffs and avoid the Pens... could be a solid run. They are not far off from going after the Bruins in the division and really making some noise. They are a good team.

One big time winger and the Sens will be ultra tough to play against.

This seems incredibly optimistic to me. Buffalo will be better (and were in the latter part of last season) so it's dismissive to assume that the division is a two-horse race.

Tough to play against and winning enough to make the playoffs aren't mutually exclusive. Despite the fact that NJ will probably be worse, Carolina and TB will be better almost assuredly than they were last year.

The Sens are in tough to make the playoffs even if they overachieve like they did last year. Let's not kid ourselves here.

Oh yah... Leino is for sure a #1 center. Their defense is "meh". Might be a little grittier but that's about it. Don't see how TB is going to be better... their defense is awful and they have no idea how Lindback is going to perform.

Carolina... marginally better IMO but that's a team that can grow a little. Staal isn't a huge upgrade over Sutter.

Everyone keeps saying "this team will be better, that team will be better" year after year... it's always the same thing. Philly is already worse, NJ is already worse, Tampa did nothing but add big contracts with little value attached to them, Montreal, Toronto, and NYI won't be much better.

The East sucks.

They've got Leino, Ennis, Gerbe, Ott, and Hodgson. I don't know how but that group is going to have to cover the whopping loss of Derek Roy. He of a big 44 point season last year. Not a huge loss. Ott alone should almost cover that point production as well as be a good faceoff man and agitator. Add in Hodgson for a full year, and they should be fine.

Other than that, just how did Buffalo get worse? They added a solid depth guy in Pardy to an already decent defence. They've got a Vezina calibre goaltender who will keep them in games. Facts are facts: After a slower start to last season, they came on hard in the latter stages of the season, very nearly overtaking the Sens (surely you can remember that). After a season of several changes, they won't have to spend as much time gelling as a team this season and should come out of the gate hard.

It's amazing to me how you can continually sell other teams short while continuing to be oblivious to the Senators shortcomings and question marks. This is a bad defensive hockey club. Period. Full Stop. How much better we may have gotten with Methot will be offset somewhat by regressions in the play of Phillips and particularly Gonchar ("2 solid vets" in your words). Can we really expect another Norris year from Karlsson? I think he'll be spectacular, but he won't lap everyone like he did this past season imo. Will Spezza remain healthy? How about 9MM, or Latendresse? Will Alfie retire? If so, how do we fill the gap of him and Foligno leaving? Oh that's right....our untested prospects.

The saving grace is Anderson between the pipes who should be primed to perform well after some good numbers in his first year in Ottawa. Of course, everyone in Colorado said that after his first year there didn't they? He's no slam dunk. And neither are either of our raw goaltending prospects (Bishop may be NHL ready, but starter ready? Who knows).

Your reasons for saying a team like TB isn't better because Lindback is unproven, and Carolina isn't better because Staal isn't much of an upgrade over Sutter, etc etc all apply to the Senators, but you don't seem to want to acknowledge that. We have just as many (if not more) question marks than ANY of those teams.

There are a zillion question marks for this team. Murray (rightfully so) didn't make a knee reaction and overpay on a FA or two in the false belief that this team is a contender. They aren't. This current course they are on is the best course of action in my opinion. Leave some holes so that there is some quality ice time you can divide up amongst the youth. Give those younger players some insulated, quality minutes to break them in and they'll be better for it in a couple of years when things really start coming together.

Could be the weakest center ice in the NHL not that Gerbe or Ott are centers. Pretty sure Roy was putting up very solid #'s outside of last season for most of his career there. Who's going to take that #1 spot? Lieno (worst signing by a mile last season)? Hodgson? The kid that didn't register a point in his first 13 games in Buffalo and already asked to be moved despite proving nothing? Ott's a solid player but pretty sure when you have almost a PPG guy like Ribeiro playing beside you that can have an effect on your point totals... as well as Jamie Benn. Who's going to get the puck to Ott? Leino? Right.

I continue to sell other teams short? You mean like last year when I said that the Sabres, Leafs, Canes, Habs, Lightning, were not better teams than the Sens. I don't sell teams short, I call it like it is.

Reason I said TB isn't better is because they aren't. Is Lindback a better goaltender than Garon? No clue, might be, might not be. Is their defence better? Nope, just way more expensive and Ohlund was better than anyone they brought in. Their offense? Just another year older and they got rid of a solid player in Downie as well without really replacing him. Stamkos could score 60 again though.

Carolina? They aren't much better. If that same logic applies to the Sens then who came in and replaced Turris? Oh yah, they still have Turris and the expectation and the smart prediction is he has a season that's better than 29 points.

What are the big question marks? Does the team stay healthy? Yah, like every other team in every other sport. I'll give you that one. What else? Does Methot mesh with Karlsson? Guess we'll find out but they both skate well and Methot doesn't make many mistakes. Do the rookies come in and actually produce? Like every other team in the NHL guess we'll find out. Goaltending? Just one of the deepest in the NHL now and Bishop doesn't need to be the starter, he just needs to be a lot better than Auld which he is.

Teams with a #1 center, a #1 D, and a #1 goalie make the playoffs most of the time. Tampa... no #1 D and as of right now no proven #1 goalie. Toronto? They don't have a #1 anywhere. Carolina... they might get in becuase they have the horses on the back end to do it in large part because of the group. NJ, no chance. NYI, don't make me laugh. Florida... yah we'll see how they do with Theodore and Clemensson again behind a D group that got weaker and the fact teams might actually show up to play them this year. Philly? Probably the biggest question mark in the East, they lost Jagr, Pronger, and Carle and replaced them with no one.

The teams that are locks are Pitts, Boston, and NYR, that's it. The Sens are one of the better teams in the East because they are deep everywhere and have guys that can step in and do the job in short spurts.

I still can't believe you think Buffalo got better... they got bigger and tougher for sure but unless Scott learns how to skate at a atom level he won't be in the lineup very often.

Michallica wrote:It's my bday today, can we nail down what player I should wish for when blowing out my candles? Can only pick one.

Bobby Ryan
Alex Semin
Rick Nash
Keith Yandle
Dan Boyle
Shea Weber
???????????

hemlock wrote:

Michallica wrote:It's my bday today, can we nail down what player I should wish for when blowing out my candles? Can only pick one.

Bobby Ryan
Alex Semin
Rick Nash
Keith Yandle
Dan Boyle
Shea Weber
???????????

Happy Birthday!

Boyle seems the most likely, and the most willing to come to Ottawa.

Hoags wrote:http://www.hockeysfuture.com/prospects/mike_lundin/

SpezDispenser wrote:

Vandelay wrote:I just don't see where all the confusion is coming from. Not much has changed since the rebuild began and the Murray's have shown they have no intention to deviate from their plan. Getting both Stone and Silf a game in the playoffs was a perfect example of that.

These 2 signings are more evidence of that. Cowen will be playing with Karlsson. Does anyone not see Cowen as a #2 defenseman? So, let's give him the opportunity to develop into this role. Now is the time to do it. We added a gritty stay at home guy that can actually handle some minutes (better than Carks as much as I love the guy) and got a guy with more offensive upside than Lee which is what they originally tried to do with the Gilroy trade.

I sincerely doubt Cowen plays with Karlsson yet. I think they brought in Methot to stabilize his pairing even more and I recall them mentioning that they liked Cowen with Gonchar. I agree though, we're on the right track. Would still like either a weapon up front or a weapon on the back, but it's more likely up front.

Riprock wrote:Granted, but he's also been injured, and lots of players go years in the NHL without so much as a peep and suddenly have one, or two or more breakout seasons. Then they go and get overpaid as a UFA by some desperate team and then they crash down to reality.

If Ottawa utilizes him for what he is good at, puts him in a position to succeed, he can have a breakout year.

But anyways, my point was, Sens picked up two defenceman - Methot and Lundin. Of the two, Lundin is the one with the highest offensive upside. Thus, he is more dynamic, in that he is more of a 2-way player. Methot will be nothing more than a Phillips type, maybe not as much offence.

SpezDispenser wrote:

Amnesia021 wrote:Lee had 52 points in 123 games for the b-sens

More than I thought to be honest. Still, Lundin had 45 in 82, so a fairly significant difference.

Riprock wrote:So the Sens have been busy signing depth guys (Ekford and Benoit), but are still waiting to ink their RFAs. Is there still a contract limit concern?

Riprock wrote:Well they need to replace the players they lost in Bing either to FA or to NHL promotions, as well as improve their roster.

Riprock wrote:The reality that they signed players says otherwise.