Wrap-up

So the Leafs measured up fairly well on the weekend. Anyone going to re-assess their expectations for the buds this season yet?

As for our Sens: Another dismal performance on the PP, another one goal loss, a closed door players only meeting afterwards, and more Alfie trade rumours.

I guess it's a good time for a four game road trip.

"Go Back To Russia"

The prospects for Kaigorodov developing into Ottawa's second line centre just got even more sad and pathetic:

The Senators centre was officially suspended by the club yesterday when he balked at being sent to the club's AHL affiiliate in Binghamton and jumped on a flight back to Russia.

Kaigorodov, who has already received part of his $600,000 signing bonus from his $2-million contract, will rejoin his club Magnitogorsk after his failed experiment to play in the NHL.

Kagorodov, 23, a much-ballyhooed signing by GM John Muckler in the off-season, simply wasn't good good enough to be the club's second line centre and didn't look like he has the desire to compete.

Does this have any impact on the salary cap if his ~$1 M is effectively declined or is it a sunk cost?

Barney's original admonishment can be found here.

Saturday night's the night for commenting

... if you have no one else to ask/complain/gloat to.

Open post for game thoughts.

What to say

From TSN's backchecking:
"I've never met a classier individual in my life. I've met a lot of sports people but he's a top-notch, quality person." - Islanders coach Ted Nolan, on Alexei Yashin

Weekend Reading

In the comments of a good post on JFJ by Bitter Leaf Fan, I saw a link to the thesis "Memory, Modernity, and the City: An Interpretive Analysis of Montreal and Toronto’s Respective Moves
From Their Historic Professional Hockey Arenas " prepared by Lisa Anne Gunderson a few years ago for her Master of Arts in Sociology.

In Chapter Five this new emphasis on multiculturalism was described as one of the reasons why Montesano, among others, experienced the Maple Leaf Gardens closing ceremony as "awkward." The Toronto case examined here showed the Maple Leafs organization as a strong symbol for the traditional WASP elite class in this city, and the kind of place they built. As such, Maple Leaf Gardens symbolized the old, dated, and even ‘backwards’ aspect of Toronto. What is interesting is how the Gardens are also venerated as a traditional place of civic pride and hockey glory. Yet the power of the ideology of progress and the belief in Toronto’s new orientation to multiculturalism can be seen in the influence it has in creating and shaping newer presuppositions of Torontonian identity.

It's 140 pages or so. There will be a short quiz on Monday.

Saturday Night

A couple of interesting games for our teams tomorrow.
The Sens host Carolina who lost last night 4-0 to the Habs. Expect to see Gerber between the pipes to face his former mates.
The Leafs play the East leading Sabres. This one is a measuring stick game for the Leafs.

Thoughts? Predictions?

Rally 'round the captain

Maybe the trade rumour is just what the team needs to get into the 'us vs the world' zone that is sometimes needed.

"As long as I'm here, he's going to be the captain," said Senators coach Bryan Murray yesterday. "If the decision were to be made (that Alfredsson) won't be the captain anymore, it's not going to be made by me.
"I see what this guy does for the team. I know the role he plays and the respect he gets in the dressing room.
"He's our leader. The players respect him and Daniel Alfredsson cares about this team. He wants to have success and he does everything he can to have success."

and...

"I don't think there's one guy in the room who would listen to (the criticism)," said Senators defenceman Wade Redden. "We all know what he means to our team and what he does for us, even though he hasn't scored piles of goals. He's the key
guy for us and the leader. Everyone looks up to him."

The story is now that the Sens are the shoppers and the Kings the sellers as they aren't happy with Conroy's performance.

Eddie!

As another version of the Belfour / Long Island Bar / Water bottle tripping Auld story comes out the Leafs face their old goalie when he's on a hot streak.

From the rockin' Belfour.com press section I found this article:

Panthers coach Jacques Martin never doubted Ed Belfour would play like a standout goalie again.
Even after Belfour gave up four goals on nine shots in his season debut at Atlanta this month, Martin expressed confidence that Belfour would again resemble the future Hall of Famer he has been most of his career.
That has happened quickly. In his past two starts, Belfour stopped 60 of 64 shots in wins over Philadelphia (3-2) and the New York Rangers (4-2). Since the Atlanta debacle, he has allowed only 10 goals on 122 shots for a .918 save percentage.

UPDATE: 2 Goals on 25 shots for the Eagle. A nice win against his former buds.

It's only Nov 2

A few interesting points made by Mendes today.

Sometimes change is good

Remind me why Sundin, Koivu, Alfredsson, and Naslund deserve to the the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th longest serving captains in the NHL.

Colorado Avalanche:	Joe Sakic	1995
Toronto Maple Leafs:	Mats Sundin	1997
Montreal Canadiens:	Saku Koivu	1999
Ottawa Senators:	Daniel Alfredsson	1999
Vancouver Canucks:	Markus Naslund	2000
Edmonton Oilers:	Jason Smith	2001
Los Angeles Kings:	Mattias Norstrom	2001
Calgary Flames:	Jarome Iginla	2003
Florida Panthers:	Olli Jokinen	2003
Phoenix Coyotes:	Shane Doan	2003

Game video

From Raking Leafs:

Now you can download full-length NHL games and watch them on your time. Whether it's a memorable game or a keepsake of your first in-arena experience, NHL Video is always available on Google.
video.google.com/nhl.htm

Won't be free for long. They have Ottawa's games up to the Boston match and seem further behind on the Leafs games.

Sometimes life isn't fair

Marian Hossa had 16 shots tonight while Carolina had 18 in total. Atlanta lost 5-2.

Off the wire...

Sportsnet:

According to CFRA radio in Ottawa, the Senators Wednesday night game versus Montreal was attended by four pro scouts from Los Angeles -- one of which is rumoured to be watching captain Daniel Alfredsson.

Does this actually make sense? If you are interested in making a move for Alfredsson and you send four pro scouts to a game would only one watch him? Maybe I'm reading it wrong.

The Leaf prospect pipeline

Most Leaf fans will undoubtedly be aware of the Leafs' ill-fated strategy in years past of trading high-end prospects and draft picks in exchange for veterans of dubious quality. While attempting to "buy a championship" is, under the new CBA, next to impossible, the management of the team thought it a reasonable solution for immediate problems, one of which was placating rabid fans.
Recently, however, new winds have swept through the NHL and brought about a welcome change in philosophy regarding drafting and development of young players. While the Leafs are ranked rather low on the prospect potential scale, there are still a decent number of budding young players who will most likely be making a name for themselves in a few years time.

First on the list is goaltender Justin Pogge, Canada's golden boy during last year's undefeated march to the WJC title. The rangy Albertan won every award in sight last year: WJC Gold Medal, WJC Most Valuable Player, WHL Player of the Year, WHL Top Goaltender of the Year and CHL Goaltender of the Year.
Currently sharing duties with Jean-Francois Racine and Mikael Tellqvist on the Toronto Marlies, Pogge has put up impressive numbers (.931SV%, 2.35GAA, 1SO) despite having lost two of three games. Pogge has a shot at becoming the No. 1 goalie for the Marlies over the course of the season, and possibly cracking the Leafs roster in a year or two. Looking at his stats and achievements has me convinced that the trading of Tuukka Rask (who I'll be going to watch next week) was not a bad deal at all.
It's obvious that Aubin and Tellqvist would have been in dire straits if placed in the spotlight of the No. 1 position on the Leafs.

(This post was written by Patrick - 'a Torontonian and a Leafs fan from birth, now living in Finland'. The second entry in the search for a new BoO Leaf member.)

Frickin' PP

Looking at this stats page is frustrating.

2nd last in PP% - 6 PPG scored, 4 SHG allowed. It's ridiculous.

Spezza, Heatley, Alfredsson, Corvo, and Meszaros all played over 7 minutes on the PP last night. Those five guys got the most PP time in the Boston game too. Murray keeps putting those guys out there I guess hoping they'll figure something out. It's not working.

We don't get to play the Leafs 50 times a year - they're going to have to figure out how to score on real teams.

Let’s call it “The battle of the overpaid defenceman"

	Season	Team	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	GW	GT	Shots	Pct
McCabe	2006-2007	Maple Leafs	13	1	8	9	2	18	0	0	37	2.7
Redden	2006-2007	Senators	9	0	1	1	2	8	0	0	15	0

Has either one done anything to justify the outrageous amount of money they were given in the off season?

Would Chara have been the better option for Ottawa?
Would Chara have been the better option for Toronto?

Do Sens fans still think that Wade Reddden is an undeniable all-star…? I never have.

Discuss…

(This post was written by Five-O. The first entry in the search for a new BoO Leaf member)

Sens - Habs

Yeah, yeah, yeah. The Leafs won last night.

Tonight the Sens play in Montreal. The Leafs put 51 shots on the Habs on Saturday night but needed a shootout to win it. With his 47 save performance that night, Aebischer earned a second straight start and will face Emery.

Note to David Aebischer fans: Time to update the website. Wait a second - David Aebischer fans?

The game is on Sportsnet East for us in Ottawa. Sit down, watch the game, and finish off the Halloween leftovers or go through the kid's bags for the best treats - I'm partial to those old school kisses but haven't seen any for years it seems.

Calling Leaf Nation

Since it’s Halloween I figure it’s a good time to call out the ghouls and goblins.

As you might have noticed, there is a noticeable lack of Leaf content. This isn’t normally a bad thing but it makes for a one-sided Battle of Ontario here. So, if you have a blog or even if you don’t, here’s your chance to join the awesomest sophomoric hockey Battle site in the blogosphere. The expectation is that you’d be awesome too and contribute a few posts a week.

Here’s how it’s going to happen:

Send me (don.battleofontario@gmail.com) a guest post on the Battle of Ontario – from a Leaf fan’s perspective. If it’s not really, really bad then I’ll put it on the site. If you've got a blog already and want to cross post an entry here then send me the link. After a while we’ll decide who gets the invitation for the full-time position with all the benefits membership entails based on my opinion, the Godfather, and the BoO readers.

C'est l'Halloween

Darkness falls across the land

The midnight hour is close at hand

Creatures crawl in search of blood

To terrorize y'awl's neighborhood

And whosoever shall be found

Without the soul for getting down

Must stand and face the hounds of hell

And rot inside a corpse's shell

The foulest stench is in the air

The funk of forty thousand years

And grizzly ghouls from every tomb

Are closing in to seal your doom

And though you fight to stay alive

Your body starts to shiver

For no mere mortal can resist

The evil of the thriller

Deal with it now

Some Blogger posting issues over the weekend so we won't mention Saturday's games other than this....

Don Brennan brings up an uncomfortable topic in his column today.

No matter how good the Senators have looked at times during Bryan Murray's year and a bit behind the bench, they've never been without one particularly disturbing blemish -- their record in one-goal games.
Last season, while compiling a conference-leading 52-21-9 mark, they were a weak 10-15 in games decided by a single, lamp-lighting shot.
In the playoffs, they lost 5-of-7 one-goal games, including 4-of-5 in a swan-song series with Buffalo.
The Senators are picking up right where they dropped off. After Saturday's 2-1 loss in Boston, they are now 1-4 this season in games decided by a single goal.

It's an issue that needs to remain front and center until the players understand that close games require something more than what they've offered so far. I hope the media keeps bringing this up until the team deals with it.

"Rayman, I've been watching you, brother."

Another outstanding Emery interview with ESPN's David Amber [link via Scarlett Ice]:

Q: If you had to go toe-to-toe with a goalie in the league right now, who would be a good battle for you?

A: Dan Cloutier is supposed to be pretty tough and a little crazy, so maybe that is a good matchup. But he is out in L.A., so we barely play those guys. We'll see.

Roy Mlakar, you've got the connections, go get this guy a spot on Rome.

Throw in the towel.

Four rounds in and the question is - will they just call off the rest after the pummelling the Leafs just took?

I'm not online tomorrow so behave yourselves.

I would suggest the discussion should involve the following:
- Does Kubina really make that much of a difference?
- Is 'His name is Ray' destined to become the greatest Ottawa based hip hop song since 'Check the OR'?
- Was Maurice staring down his team on the bench as they left to the dressing room after the game?
- Was seeing Darci bleed after his ride on the A-Train as good for you as it was for me?

Game thoughts?

Let's hear 'em

Are you READY TO RUM-BUUUUUUUUULLLLL!?!

Round 1: 4-1 Sens in Toronto
Round 2: 6-0 Leafs in Ottawa
Round 3: 6-2 Sens in Toronto

Round 4 tonight at 7:30 in Ottawa.

TV: A-Channel in Ottawa, TSN in Southern Ontario
Radio: Team1200 in Ottawa, AM640 in Toronto

Starting tenders:
Ottawa: Emery
Toronto: Raycroft

Question

Anyone found good video of the Kilger spear on Schubert? Or, in McCreary's view, the Kilger roughing of Schubert? TSN's report from John Lu has a far away view.

UPDATE: Some more info and insight into McCreary's thinking - obviously he didn't see what happened at the time....
The Senators also weren't impressed with Kilger, who speared Schubert in the groin after the Ottawa defenceman tripped the Leafs winger.
"I didn't really trip him on purpose, I've got to be honest. I was falling down and next thing I see, I just got a stick in my two lovely friends," said Schubert, whose account of the incident made reporters burst out in laughter.
"I don't know what made (Kilger) so upset to spear me. If I get a chance tomorrow to ask him, I'd want to know why he would do it, but it's fine with me. I'm all OK. I'm not hurt or anything, but it's just interesting for me what's sometimes going on in other guys' heads."
Kilger received a minor for roughing on the play. Schubert received two minutes for tripping and a lecture from referee Bill McCreary.
"(McCreary) was yelling at me that I should get up and stop being an actor," Schubert said. "But he apologized in the third period."

Game story

I think a sign that the emotional rivalry is picking up is that the talk today on the radio and blogs isn't entirely on the final score. Kilger's spear on Schubert and Tucker's attacking Eaves is what people are discussing.

I found this opening paragraph of the CP story to be laughable:

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Darcy Tucker has evolved from a temperamental NHLer to a cool, calm leader.

Right up there with Kim Jong-il. Tucker shows himself yet again to be a player who lives on the edges of what is acceptable in the game even though he has put up numbers and could play a style of game that would be respected . Eaves stood up for himself - we can draw comparisons to previous Senator 'skill' players - and showed some more of the character on the team.

After 3 rounds, this year's battle still lacks a storyline in my opinion. Three games with three lopsided scores. We'll see if tomorrow's match changes that.

Some reaction

Scarlett Ice:
Tucker needs to learn how to take a hit without bitching about it. Eaves and Tucker were battling along the boards for the puck and Eaves gave him a completely legal hit which caused Tucker to fall. I guess he didn't like to be embarrassed by a young'in like Eaves because he immediately reached out and challenged him while Eaves was skating away.

Hockey Country:
Martin Gerber in the third period. I was getting flashbacks of Patrick Lalime, and it sure seemed like the Leafs were too based on how often they were firing the puck from any and every angle. Gerber had a decent enough game overall but was not very reassuring at various points and has pretty much established himself as the worst puckhandling netminder in franchise history. And considering we’ve had both Lalime AND Hasek, that’s saying a lot.

Chris (as in 'Who the hell is Chris Stevenson?') Stevenson:
Senators centre Jason Spezza has been criticized this season by coach Bryan Murray, but he drew raves tonight. "He had one shift tonight that was as good as he's ever had in my two years here," said Murray.

Neate Sager:
Seriously, can the politically connected suits at Maple Leaf Sports score some sweetheart deal where they receive federal disaster relief for every second Wade Belak is out on defence? The big plug gets another penalty for putting Mike Fisher in the kind of hold that usually comes with a 2-drink minimum.

In-game thoughts

Your thoughts, fears, dreams, etc......

For those of us Out of Towners

Thanks to Sacameno at BoA and kinger at Always on the Road for pointing out the TVU Network - a P2P streaming deal that broadcasts games over teh internets.

I'll sample it for the first time tonight as they plan to show the first of the Leafs-Sens home and home. It's currently free, but looking through the discussion forum it looks like the inevitable commons tragedy is in the works as the Leafs fans are elbowing their way to the front of the buffet table:

"rawihe":

With all the complaining about Leaf games by non-Leaf and leaf fans, I propose a possible solution. Show only Leaf games that will be broadcasted on Leafs tv. This will prevent the mass chaos that was last Thursday.

There are a lot of leaf fans outside the toronto region, but there are more leaf fans that don't have leafs tv due to it being a exclusive channel. This will also bring back polls for games. the polls will exclude all leaf games, but when a leafs game is on leafs tv, that game will be shown.

"CanuckinMontreal":

seriously, I don't feel one iota of sadness for a Leaf fan in Canada that can't get a game on Leafs TV, you get 10,000 hours of coverage a week.

I do feel for the Leafs fans overseas that get no games at all, so I'd rather just the best and most entertaining games are shown, regardless of "Leafs TV"

"teflonsteve":

People on this board need to come to the realization that there are alot more leafs fans here than any other team. One look around this forum would tell you that.

"CanuckinMontreal":

I've actually seen more Canucks fans posting thank you's to kago [moderator], and all the Leaf fans spamming and whining about not being catered to because they are Leaf fans and they deserve more than any other fan for this reason or that.

Your statement right there should go in the "why do people hate leaf fans" thread. Unfounded Arrogance.

Enjoy!

Yo, yo, come on, come on

His name is Ray.

Some league leaders

RK	Player	Team	Hits
1	TRENT HUNTER	NYI	34
2	CHRIS NEIL	OTT	33
3	STEVE BEGIN	MTL	30

RK	Player	Team	Missed Shots
1	MATS SUNDIN	TOR	21
2	JONATHAN CHEECHOO	SJS	19
3	MICHAEL CAMMALLERI	LAK	18

RK	Player	Team	Giveaways
1	ALES HEMSKY	EDM	17
2	BRYAN MCCABE	TOR	16
3	IAN WHITE	TOR	16

Are you READY TO RUM-BUUUUUUUUULLLLL!?!

Round 1: 4-1 Sens in Toronto
Round 2: 6-0 Leafs in Ottawa

Round 3 tonight at 7:30 in Toronto.
TV: A-Channel in Ottawa, TSN in Southern Ontario
Radio: Team1200 in Ottawa, AM640 in Toronto

Starting tenders:
Ottawa: Gerber
Toronto: Raycroft



Update: I know the Sens had trouble stopping the Leafs last time but don't you think this is a little overconfident:

The team (Leafs) did nothing in set line combos in Tuesday's skate, but did some 3-on-0 line rushes and took shots on the goalies.

Tucker contract con't

Another article in the TO papers today about his contract. It included this:

Though Sosa will not get into specifics on what he thinks Tucker is worth after a career-high 28 goals last season and seven thus far in 2006-07, it's likely he noted that left winger Brenden Morrow of the Dallas Stars signed for six years at $24.6 million last month.
Morrow, the team's new captain, has nine points to Tucker's 10 thus far.

Ya think Hornby, the writer of the column, is getting paid by Sosa?

The day before the storm...

A few paragraphs from the Toronto Sun...

Faced with the prospect of a home-and-home series against their cross-province rival this week, the Leafs were hoping the sleeping giant wouldn't wake up.
No such luck.
Now, with the Senators regaining confidence after their lopsided victory, the Leafs realize the task ahead will be even more daunting.

Ottawa native Brendan Bell had the following to say:

"I went to a lot of games over the years, including the Leafs and Sens," he said. "I wasn't really a Leafs or Sens fans, I was a hockey fan. Actually, I don't know if I should be saying this but I was a real Wade Redden fan."

He needs some fans these days. We expect a little more out of the 6.5 million dollar man than 0 pts and a -3.

No word on Ottawa's starter. Hard not to put Emery in net when he's leading the league in SV%. I imagine Murray will give each a start.

He's leading the team in goals - contract up?

Fidlin's column on Tucker ended with this:

He's made no secret that he wants to stay and, given his value to the team, the rumours of a five-year, $15-million US contract request don't sound out of line at all.

The organization has almost become sane with the Domi and Belfour moves - as if they'd regress and do something assine like that!

Related: Thanks to The Mad Hockey Blogger for this post today. It was marginally from behind but Tucker obviously embellished it by diving into the boards.

In case you need a release

Open post to discuss the Sens win and Leaf loss.

More on Monday - the Battle resumes on Tuesday.

You wanted cowbell

What a difference a year makes! 1/10th into the season and the Leafs and Senators are moving in opposite directions. The Sens bloggers are doing an excellent job of kicking the Senators while they are down so I will talk up the Leafs (surprise, surprise).
First, let's give credit where credit is due - John Ferguson was very smart is trading Tukka Rask to the Bruins for Andrew Raycroft. I am on record that the Leafs missed the playoffs last year because Ed Belfour did not provide NHL calibre goaltending. Further, whether the Leafs make the playoffs this year will be determined by the same criteria. So far Andrew Raycroft is providing more than the Leafs could hope for (and I am not just saying that because I have him in the pool).
The second smart move (but by this point necessary) was to replace Pat Quinn with Paul Maurice. The Leafs are playing with more intensity that they have displayed in years. This team cannot win on talent alone and they seem determined to never be outworked (leaving a game against Colorado aside).
Ferguson's moves on defense cannot be judged due to injury to Pavel Kubina but Hal Gill has not been as bad as advertised. But any defense that has Wade Belak on it is a cause for concern. Further power play needs a second unit which Ian White may be capable of but no one else seems to be (until Kubina gets back). Bryan McCabe and Tomas Kaberle have to do a lot more offensively though.
As for the forwards it seems the city of Toronto has finally realized what they have in Mats Sundin. It has taken almost a decade for him to get out from the shadow of Doug Gilmour and paring him with Kyle Wellwood (and the extra minutes) have helped his play. However the coaching staff is still searching for a third. Darcy Tucker is excellent with them on the power play but they seem disinclined to load up even strength. Alexei Ponikarovsky has already flamed out in this role as his foot speed and finishing are not up to the task. For the game in Columbus last night Alex Steen was tried for no other purpose, it seems, than to get him back to playing to last years level after a disappointing start. As my brother says he is all Swede and no Finnish right now.
I have been pleasantly surprised with the play of Michael Peca. He won't provide enough in the way of offense but he is valuable as a shut down centre. Matt Stajan has his good games and bad games and it is unclear which direction Jeff O'Neill is going in. The Leafs must be happy with the play of Bates Battaglia and Chad Kilger though.
So all in all the Leafs have surpassed expectations and if they can keep playing this hard the should be able to get a low seed into the playoffs.

Weekend Agenda

The Leafs play Columbus tonight and then host the Rangers tomorrow. Notes for tonight's game:

"Andrew Raycroft starts, Ben Ondrus is in the lineup, Wade Belak plays defence and [Jay] Harrison is out," the Maple Leafs head coach said Friday morning after spending a few minutes using words like "very probable" in his scrum after the game-day skate.The changes for Friday night's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets were not surprising, except for Raycroft. The Leafs play back-to-back games on the road and at home, and there was some thought that Maurice would play backup goaltender Jean-Sebastien Aubin against the Blue Jackets and come back with Raycroft on Saturday night at the Air Canada Centre against the New York Rangers.

The Sens meanwhile are putting the dynamite to the 'big line' for tomorrow's game at home against the Devils:

Murray used Spezza on a line with Mike Fisher and Chris Neil on Friday in practice.
...
Heatley skated on a line with Chris Kelly and Antoine Vermette. Daniel Alfredsson was on the right wing with Patrick Eaves and Dean McAmmond.

A Quiet Girl suggested that after last Saturday's game:

They're too dependent on each other: Heatley, known for being a great playmaker before Spezza, is just a sniper leech and Spezza's lost all ability to shoot and looks for Heatley everywhere. Indulge me in this analogy: it's like an intense relationship, and when things are good, they're almost better people, but the more they're together, the more they forget who they are outside of the relationship. They're losing themselves.

Emery is back in net.

One step closer to nirvana

I'll second Mirtle's post singing the praises of hockey-recap.com

From Gary:

Hockey-Recap produces a 1-page report (for free) on a daily basis which includes the previous day's statistics, leaders and other important elements such as standings, transactions, injuries and quite a bit more. There are also pages for all players which include game by game extended stats for 2006-2007 and will soon have career stats.
You can subscribe to the site and receive a copy of the report in your email each morning or you can simply visit the site. There will be enhancements to the site every week.

Go there and evolve.

Power Play Declined

Can we decline a penalty like in football?

1 goal scored in 34 chances. 3 shorties allowed. What the?

The Ex Sens Files

Sigh. Breaking up sure is tough:

Martin Havlat: 6 GP, 7-6-13, +8

Marian Hossa (gothiminthepool!): 6 GP, 5-3-8, even

Zdeno Chara: 5 GP, 0-5-5, -2 (logged 29:55 in tonight's Flames-Bruins tilt)

Like the crush of an ex-girlfriend, the longer the scoring drought continues, the fonder the heart seems to grow...

Rules of Engagement

It's a Battle here but there are some rules of engagement - well, just one so far.

1. In comments, don't refer directly to another commenter. You can stereotypically disparage the fans of one team directly of course but not a specific person.

Example of a good comment: Leafs Suck.
Example of a bad comment: Jim sucks.
Example of a bad comment: You suck.

Carry on.

Need more cowbell*

Alright. This blog is quickly become the greatest hockey blog in the history of hockey blogs that exclusively cover a NHL rivalry consistenting of two teams based in Ontario. Agreed?

However, I think there may be a way to improve upon it - hold on, don't scroll down or click away - I'm serious here. I know what you're thinking. Talking about improving the current site is like talking about chocolate becoming browner. Give me a second.

Here's the problem - I have found myself actually trying to be 'balanced' in some posts. This is a very serious situation. 'Balance' might develop into something like sympathy for the 40 year old train wreck that is the Leafs.

It is therefore incumbent upon me to call out the three 'Leaf' supporters on this blog. Either buck up and post for your team or, or, or I'm going to develop a split personality and post as Idiot Leaf Fan.

Either that or we bring in another Leaf contributor.

*Cowbell

The pot said what?

Steve Simmons today:

It strikes me that Maple Leafs nonsense is at an all-time high. What with blogs, internet sites, radio hysteria, chat groups and 24/7 focus on everything that is and isn't Leafs, much gets overblown.

Or maybe you were reading your back columns.

Note: I should say that he does deserve significant credit for continuing to be all over the Frost/Jefferson/NHLPA disgrace. Maybe he should have been a crime beat writer instead.

Dreary, dismal

Those words are from TSN. Sundin called it sluggish. Submit your own adjectives to help describe the Leaf's performance last night.

Obviously, Colorado determined that they could win yesterday with their backup goalie and will put the former Vezina winner against Joe Corvo and the Senators.

Discuss.

Don't Sweat the Weak Start

I've convinced myself the diminished expectations mean the plan is unfolding as it should [cue NFL films music]:

The Senators stumbled out the gate to start the 2002-2003 season...

....Heading into a November 9th game against the Boston Bruins, the Senators were an uninspiring 5-5-1. Fans and media started to panic. The familiar "maybe it's time to make a deal" cry flooded the airwaves and papers. It wasn't that the Senators were playing terrible hockey. They just seemed unable to put together quality back-to-back performances.

The game against the Bruins was the lowest point of the season. The 7-1 loss wasn't what bothered fans but the uninspired play. The Senators played selfish, apathetic hockey. It was one of their worst performances in recent memory.

The Senators were determined not to let the loss get the better of them. After the blowout, the team went on a 10-game unbeaten streak and by the end of December they were at the top of the Eastern Conference, battling with Dallas for the lead in the overall league standings.

-Chris Robinson, "The Ottawa Senators - Great Stories From The NHL's First Dynasty"

So let them lie in the weeds for another month or so, then watch them pounce. I'd much rather see the team battle through this haze and come out stronger for it than float through 82 games with minimal adversity. This time round, though, Redden will pick up the open man...

Something to ponder

The Leafs are last in the league in this statistical category. Question - why is the west having all the fun? Again.

Go Jose!

Update on the Avalanche roadie through our beautiful province (once you get out of the GTA anyway):

Avalanche coach Joel Quenneville didn't meet with the media after practice Tuesday to discuss his possible goaltending rotation on the trip, but it's likely that Peter Budaj will play one of the games in Ontario, most likely the meeting with the Senators on Thursday.

Obviously Quenneville realizes that the Thursday game is a throwaway as they have no chance against the explosive Senators. With Joe Corvo scheduled to return the Senators are an instoppable force.

UPDATE: The Sens are going with their backup too. Er....

Sched watch

The Avs make an Ontario swing playing in Toronto tomorrow night and here in Ottawa on Thursday. They've only got one win so far this season and the pressure is on Theodore to match up against the opposing goaltender - something he hasn't done this year - and for the team to score more.

They failed to sellout their building on Monday night for the first time in 11 years. From the Denver Post:
The official attendance of 17,681 for the Avalanche's 5-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks was only 326 short of capacity in the Pepsi Center, but it ended the longest recorded sellout streak in National Hockey League history at 487 games.
The streak began in the Avalanche's eighth regular-season home game, just after the franchise was moved from Quebec to Denver, when a crowd of 16,061 watched Colorado tie the Dallas Stars 1-1 in McNichols Sports Arena on Nov. 9, 1995.

Almost forgot

Congrats Mats on your 500th goal.
Don't forget Leaf fans, Sundin's career best goals, assists, and PIMs all came in Quebec. It's sad to think of what he could have accomplished had he not gone to Toronto. What a waste.

For those not in the Ottawa area

Here's today's Sun:

What do you think?

Steve Simmons:
That tick, tick, tick you're hearing is the sound of the Ottawa Senators. And it's about to blow up, real good ...

Chris Stevenson:
“I heard some of the veteran players aren’t happy playing for Murray,” said one reporter.
....
It’s like in Montreal there has to be a coach on the verge of being fired and since it sure isn’t Guy Carbonneau right now (he got a wonderful ovation from the Bell Centre crowd as he was introduced for his first regular season home game), Murray is the next best choice.

And in Stevenson's column:
The 32-year-old Gerber was John Muckler's big free-agent signing in the off-season and the general manager isn't going to make that kind of investment without giving the player a chance to prove he is worthy of it.
Now, in general terms, that might make the relationship between a coach and a GM a little frosty since the coach is interested in putting the guy in net who is going to give him the best chance to win that night.

Can't say I've ever been impressed with Murray but to think Muckler is going to go twitchy finger on the trigger is ridiculous - not going to happen. The team has a long time to work out of its funk and only if they are sitting out of playoffs come Christmas could I see a major change happening.
I think Muckler is going to allow this line-up to develop more as they seem to be searching for a style of play. Expect lots of changes to the lines until they find some type of team chemistry.

Bizarro NHL

Okay, wake me up already...

Total Goals For
Rank	Team
1	TOR
...	...
29	OTT

Sending a message?

Just caught the tail end of the Habs-Sens match (we got the Leaf propaganda show out here on the west coast).

Vermette-McAmmond-Fisher in the shootout?

...and they get the job done, of course.

Goatchenkov looked drunk for what it's worth. Ottawa viewers, did he look this bad all night long?

Hear the one about the drunk Leaf fans...

It starts like this:

As 20-year-old Jeff Nolan left his ice-level seat at Scotiabank Place, he said he encountered four men in Maple Leafs jerseys, celebrating the visiting team's 6-0 win.

And the punch line:

Mr. Nolan was admitted to hospital at 11 p.m., but had to wait nearly 36 painful hours for surgery. A metal plate was permanently inserted into his chin to close the gap created in his jaw, and his mouth will be wired shut for six weeks

Story here.

Weekend Agenda

Saturday's games should be good. Ottawa-Montreal has turned into a decent rivalry lately. The Flames go into Stinktown and will face the offensive juggernaut that is the Toronto Maple Leafs.

I assume Gerber will be back in net unless Murray wants to create a crisis. Might be a battle of Swiss tenders as Aebischer has played well.

No predictions allowed.

UPDATE: Emery starting.

What's worse?

Losing a 1-0 game where you bang a couple off the post and otherwise get stymied by the Vezina trophy winner and one of the best defences in the league or cough up a 6-3 lead in third period and lose in the shootout?

Silver linings.

PS: Note to Peter Schaefer....
You've read that you're pretty good with the puck along the boards, have you? Well, when you get creamed on the boards in the offensive zone, don't stand around looking for a call, slowly go back into your end, and then try again to show your mastery of board work when you could have got the puck out. It ended up resulting in the only goal of the game.

PPS: Note to Denis Hamel and Volchenkov
Denis - you got creamed by Phaneuf! Holy shit! Anton - remember when you used to be in proper position to hit guys like that? We used to call you the A-Train.

PPPS: Note to Almonte....
Retire already. You're terrible.

PPPPS: Note to Tanguay....
Did you play last night? I saw a guy wearing number 40 but it couldn't have been you. 0 shots. 0 hits. 9 min of ice time.

Looking for a linemate for Iginla maybe?

Chris Stevenson's dispatch from the morning skate:

It’s not a panic situation, but it was interesting to see five - five! - coaches on the ice for the Calgary Flames this morning at their skate at Scotiabank Place.

Games today

Open post for discussion on today's matchups.

I'm going to the Sens-Flames tilt tonight and expect to see both teams come out flying considering the pressure that's on both of them so early this season. Sens 3-2 in OT

The Leafs start Aubin tonight. I think the Devils will take this one at home 4-0 giving Cox et al. something to write about in the papers.

Early struggles

Gerber's not the only goaltender struggling right now. As we host the Flames tomorrow we might face the number 24th ranked (SV%) goalie in the league.

Rank	Goalie	Team	GP	SV%
23	CAM WARD	CAR	3	.887
24	MIIKKA KIPRUSOFF	CGY	3	.886
25	RICK DIPIETRO	NYI	3	.879
26	MARTIN GERBER	OTT	3	.878

Looks like Gerber isn't getting the chance to improve his numbers though. Emery is getting his first start.

Meanwhile, the Leafs play the Devils....

Rank	Goalie	Team	GP	SV%
4	ANDREW RAYCROFT	TOR	4	.953
5	DWAYNE ROLOSON	EDM	2	.950
6	MARTIN BRODEUR	NJD	2	.950

Note: For your information, if Gerber had a .950 SV% it would mean 6 fewer goals in those 3 games.

Hell About to Freeze Over

Damian Cox actually writes a favorable article about the Leafs.

Quick thought after the Buffalo loss

First, go Habs!

Second, the Sens looked great in the 2nd half of this game. Would it kill Murray to just leave Alfie with Spezza and Heatley? I couldn't understand why he kept going away from them in the playoffs last year and I still don't get the logic - it's not like they don't have talent on the 2nd and 3rd lines.

Off to watch the shootout in Toronto.

WASP line?

Not exactly politically correct, 2/3 of the line (at least) are not Anglo-Saxon and who knows how many of them are Protestant but what else can you do with Wellwood, Sundin and Ponikarovsky?
The good news for people who like line nicknames is that Paul Maurice is more likely to stick to a line combination than Pat Quinn would be.

Turkey Shoot

Can't think of anything to write about a Turkey Shoot but love the phrase.

Here's the weekend's offerings for our two beloved teams...

The Sens face Buffalo on Saturday on home ice.
The Leafs host Montreal on Saturday and Bertuzzi and the Panthers on Monday.

Discuss. (Can you tell I'm anxious to move on from last night's game?)

Right on cue

You knew it would be Brennan or Garrioch that would write something like this:

Think maybe John Muckler should have went after Andrew Raycroft instead of Gerber in the offseason? He would have been able to keep Zdeno Chara had he done so.

Let's do the math. Gerber - Raycroft = 1.7 million. Chara - 1.7 million = 5.8 million. I don't get it. Did we sign somebody for 5.8 million to replace Chara?

On the back end Corvo is at 2.6 and Preissing is 0.9 and they are replacing Chara and Pothier. McAmmond was signed for 0.75. The rest of the cap room when to resign guys and we are at 41 million.

The conclusion which we already knew - Brennan is an idiot.

Leafs 6 Sens 0 (WTF??)

By The Meatriarchy

OK everyone be honest. If you had come late to the game last night and were told that it was 6-0 and the goalie had been pulled you would have figured the Sens were at it again right? Just like last year?

What a difference 24 hours makes.

But despite the almost universal writing off of the Leafs by the Toronto media in the aftermath of the season opener the Leafs played almost the same game as they had the first night and the result was much different.

The key difference? Gerber.

He stoned the Leafs in game one turning aside 34 shots and looking incredible. Last night he looked ordinary and the result was far different.

Yesterday in the aftermath of the first game I could only find two people in the Toronto media who were willing to point out this salient fact: get over 30 shots a game in this league and you will score. They were radio colour man Jim Ralph and Leafs coach Paul Maurice. Maurice to his credit was adamant that the Leafs played reasonably well in the first game and after last night's game he made it clear to the media scrum that he felt that they didn't play a great deal different last night.

But if you had listened to the radio or read the papers yesterday you would have thought it was the last game of the season not the first.

Now we are only 2 games into a long season and one victory doesn't mean a hell of a lot in the long run but the glee with which the reporters and columnists dissected the loss in the home opener was in full mode yesterday.

Howard Berger commiserated with Fan590 afternoon drive host Bob McCowan (who opened the show on Wednesday complaining about how much he hated hockey) about having to follow "the wreckage" that is the Leafs around for a whole season.

Berger however wasn't ready to write the Leafs off completely saying he preferred to wait because the season was still young. How long is he prepared to give them? 5 games! That's right 5 whole games will be the barometer of an 80 game season under a new coach with a completely different system.

Meanwhile over at the Globe Dave Shoalts weighed in with a gloating column entitled "Leafs faults on full display" Maybe today we could have one with "Toronto Sports Media Faults on display"?

Raycroft who stopped 33 shots in game one was excoriated all yesterday for having what the experts claimed was a "bad game" and by extension John Ferguson was a complete fool for signing him. Would any of these experts have listened if you told them that Raycroft would have shutout in the books before Gerber??

Sens fans it is obvious after two games that Havlat and Chara will be missed sorely. Giving up over 30 shots in two games to a team that isn't supposed to make the playoffs (lots of prognosticators have the Leafs finishing dead last in their division) is not a good omen for a team with Cup aspirations.

And face it this team did not look as dangerous in the past two games as they did all last season. Even in the first game which they won I didn't think they looked that great.

Did Alfredsson play last night? I didn't notice him at all. And after the midway point of the game Spezza, Heatley and Redden seemed invisible as well. And Mezaros had an awful night going -3 overall.

I think the most improved player over the past two nights was Tucker. In game one he was barely evident but last night he was at his edgy abrasive best.

O'Neil as well looked a bit better also. I like the idea of a Tucker-Stajan-O'Neil line if this guy can get his game back on track.

Candiens are in town on Saturday. Let's keep the momentum going!!

We need to know.

Is he or isn't he? At least 4 seats in the Ottawa area will be lost instantly if it turns out he is - bad enough his son wears the blue and white.

Game 2

My prediction was the closest - I rule.

Tonight we'll see the Sens win again but it won't be as close. 6-1.

Three quick points:

- Let's hope the rink is more electric than the ACC last night. The prolonged event before the game must have killed the buzz. From Pension Plan Puppets:

Where was the crowd enthusiasm? I bet the decible level at the ACC never rose above 80 db's all night. (Ed.'t Note: It was almost embarrassing. The platinums were, predictably, empty in the first five minutes before and after each intermission. This will drive me insane during the three games that I will watch from the purples.)

- I couldn't believe the power play unit I saw on the ice for the Leafs in the third. They are down by 2 goals and need one badly and who does Maurice ice? Battaglia, O'Neill, Pohl, White, and Wozniewski! Wow.

- I could have gotten tickets to tonights game but, alas, my daughter's birthday is today. She owes me big time.

I Forgot How Much I Missed Wade Belak

You know, before the game began, I was about to compose a post that pre-emptively assigned goat horns to Gerber. The last thing I wanted to sit through this season was a goaltending controversy and yet all signs were pointing in that general direction.

I'm always happy to be proven completely wrong of course, and luckily I thought better of it. Gerber was the difference in this game.

Tomorrow the Leafs get another crack at it. Preissing and Corvo will likely both be out of the lineup which means even more time for the scrambly Phillips / Volchenkov pairing. If these are the "horses" that are going to take up Chara minutes, they're going to need to get things settled down back there.

Are you READY TO RUM-BUUUUUUUUULLLLL!?!

Open post for tonight's game.

My prediction is Ottawa 5, Toronto 1 with Raycroft getting booed by the end of the game.

40 YEARS!

Wow. Thanks to Duff in the comments below for reminding us that this season marks the 40th anniversary of the last time Lord Stanley's Cup was won by Toronto.

Let's come up with some slogans for this year's Leafs worthy of this milestone.

Off the top of my head:
40 years of celebration!
1967-2007 A work in progress.

Reality hits Hogtown

Over on the Leaf website there is a poll:

Now, the motto for MapleLeafs.com is "A passion that unites us all". I have to say the poll results don't really show 'passion'. Maybe 'A work in progress' is a more fitting motto for LeafNation.

Either that or: 'When Sundin leaves we are really, really screwed!' or 'We were 27th in even strength goals last year - here's to matching that this year!'

Re: Ottawa Sports Fans

I thought I'd comment on this Ian Mendes post that raised some hackles a few weeks ago. The tone kinda reminded me of the attitude of some of the folks who used to come to Ottawa U. from Toronto and bitch about what an insignificant backwater the city was. e.g. : "OC Transpo sucks - in Toronto we have a REAL subway". "Ottawa is so small, in Toronto we have REALLY big buildings". "Ottawa's criminals are so lame, in Toronto we have REAL drive-by shootings and machete hackings".

Is Ottawa Canada's Worst Sports Town?

Disclaimer: I am not writing this from Toronto.

I live and work in Ottawa. I do my grocery shopping at Farm Boy, I listen to Lowell Green on the radio, I get frustrated that there is no exit for Bank St. off the Queensway and just like you, I'm wondering when the O-Train will arrive in Barrhaven.

Okay, now that I've firmly established myself as a true resident of Ottawa, I would like to pose a question to you.

Do we live in the worst sports city in the country?

Couple of obvious points have already been brought up in the comments there - the fact that it's a government town, the arena's in the middle of a cornfield, etc. I think the most substantative point Mendes brings up is the precarious nature of the "walkup" crowd versus a healthy season ticket base. I'll throw the following observations out for discussion:

-Pointing to the failure of the Riders/Renegades and Lynx franchises simply won't do. The CFL teams were notoriously badly managed, while the Lynx were the last of several triple A teams to bail out of Canadian cities. The Expos left Montreal, the Grizzlies left Vancouver. These strike me as Canadian issues, not an Ottawa-specific issue. Is it possible that Canadians just aren't culturally attuned to spending weekday evenings in the summertime watching minor league baseball? Lynx Stadium/Jetform Park was a swell venue and had great accessibility and freeway visibility but I just don't see it as enough to compete with hockey playoff overlap on one end and pre-season / football overlap on the other.

-The residual Habs / Leafs fans. Anecdotally, I know of many season ticket holders who renew simply for the novelty of local NHL hockey and the chance to see the team they've followed since childhold. The Senators are a secondary consideration, and as such (during the regular season in particular) you can get the feeling you're watching two visiting teams play an exhibition game. It takes time to rear the next generation of fans - the kids you see hopping around on the big screen are the die-hard homers of the future. There'll always be the 416 crowd in town for Leafs games, but as the older ticket holders die off and get replenished with a "re-educated" fan-base, I think you might see a change in attitude.

-I feel uncomfortable even bringing this up, but when you observe bejerseyed inter-fanbase couples in attendance, you'll often note that the patriarch is wearing blue and white, while the wife wears black/red/gold. I don't think this is a statement on the relative femininity of the Ottawa sports fanbase (as if that would be a bad thing!) but a sign of its irreconcilable loyalties.

-My scope for comparison is extremely limited, but do fans in the lower bowl leave the game with five minutes to go in other cities? If not, then Ottawa fans deserve every ounce of scorn heaped on them. This is just an unconscionably lame habit.

-Please for the love of God stop complaining about the traffic. Yes, it is murder to drain a parking lot of 16,000+ vehicles in the span of an hour (that's the directional equivalent of 8 freeway lanes, which do not exist), but for what it's worth I think the Ottawa traffic and transit system is quite superb (relatively speaking) and should be no excuse poor sports attendance (any more than bad weather should be).

UPDATE: Mendes' response. He notes the Edmonton Trappers received an attractive offer to leave and didn't suffer from poor attendance. This might be useful in making the case that Edmonton is Canada's best sports town, not that Ottawa's the worst.

Sens 5 Leafs 3 Exhibition

By The Meatriarchy

Despite the outcome I quite enjoyed this game (well I saw the last two periods a power outage in my neck of the woods had me eating dinner with the family at a local restaurant that didn't have the game on). But that might be because it was an exhibition game - you can watch one of those with a little less emotional attachment than a game that actually means something.

The post game scrum around Mikael Tellqvist was telling, the reporters and the now embattled Leaf backup seemed resigned to the fact that he has probably played his last game in a Leaf uniform. Mikael expressed a hope that a decision would be made soon as it is hard on both him and his fiancee not knowing what is happening.

For what its worth he played a decent game and made some fantastic saves. I think he has played his best hockey as a Leaf during this camp. However it might have come too little too late. Not all the goals were his fault but a few clearly were. Telly's problem is that sometimes he throws himself into a save so hard that he keeps sliding and ends up way out of position. That happened on at least one occasion last night.

On the plus side several Leafs had good games in cluding Alexander Suglobov and Matt Stajan. Bates Battaglia and Brad Brown continue to make Paul Maurice's final cuts challenging. Brown however might have an inside track considering how decimated the Leaf's defense core.

Outside the top four White and Wozniewski both seem to be strong contenders with Brown and Jay Harrison also in the mix. Of course the return of Colaiacovo could complicate matters. However after missing most of training camp I expect him to have a conditioning stint in the minors.

Battaglia might have a tougher time cracking a mostly set forward group made even more difficult by the play of Suglobov. Last night he scored a seeing eye goal and generated plenty of excitement but he was trying to be a little too fancy sometimes with the puck. However watching him play last night a thought occurred: could he be the replacement for Alexander Mogilny that the Leafs have been looking for? Granted he could never touch Mogilny in his prime but the Mogilny that played for the Leafs was not the Mogilny who played for Buffalo or even Vancouver. But Suglobov is creative enough and has a goal scorers touch to warrant consideration on Matt's right side. He is 2 inches and 20 pounds bigger than Kyle Wellwood and he is a natural winger. Wellwood is much better at center and was getting creamed along the boards in the games that he played on the wing. Small wonder that he is out with an injury already. He is not suited to the wing, he should be playing center.

Speaking of Sundin the Captain had 5 shots last night but generally looked like he didn't break a sweat. Ditto some of the other veterans like McCabe. And where was Jeff O'Neal. It was the third period before I realized that he was even playing. Did he show up late?

Hal Gill should take some fighting lessons. Rule number one: A taller guy cannot wrestle a shorter strong guy to the ground - the leverage isn't there. Also a taller guy is at a disadvantage in a fight if he allows the shorter person to stay in range. Gill should learn to hold a guy at arms length and then hit him. Chris Neil seemed to be holding back in this one. He could have landed an uppercut at any time and dropped Gill. But he probably didn't want Hal to fall on him.

Mike Fisher was by far the best player on the ice for either team and was well deserving of the first star.

Next up a home and home against our former Norris Division rivals the Detroit Red Wings. The real show begins after that and games like this will be a lot less enjoyable if the outcome is a loss.

The Bubble Boys

By The Meatriarchy

Michael Traikos has a round up of the 14 players who are on the bubble to make the Leafs or be sent to the Marlies (or elsewhere).

Nothing he says is really surprising ( White is good but small, Wozniewski big and slow) but one thing that did strike me is this little fact:

Mikael Tellqvist is 27 years old. I completely forgot that. I have always thought of this guy as a kid but at 27 isn't it time to pull the plug on this experiment? If he hasn't proven he can play at this level by this age is there any proof that he can?

Well, I guess the fact that Aubin is 29 and has yet to find a permanent home in the NHL is as good an example as any.

Expect to see Telly in net tonight against the Sens. This right now is the most important game of his career (although those two stinkers in MTL last year were the most important in my book).
If he is merely average look for him to be on the trading block or waivers. And I don't think he will fetch much on the open market. Maybe a fourth rounder or the ever popular "player to be named later".

Domi and Stronach

Excellent - details are coming out on the Domi divorce.

The article is up on the Globe and Mail and some other news sites but strangely in not seen on TSN.ca though Sportsnet is giving it a prominent location on it's site. I wonder why.

I love the following quote from the article:
Leanne Domi believes the relationship began when her husband started working on Ms. Stronach's political campaign, though, “Tie had little to no interest in politics, and in fact, had not the slightest idea about political ideology,” she says in the document filed in court.

A perfect match! Belinda doesn't the slightest idea about political ideology either. How cute.

Maybe the best lines though come from the Globe comments:

- careful big guy belinda will cross the floor and start cheering for the montreal canadians.

- I don't believe this article! Tie Domi has never been a star! A dwarf planet, perhaps.

- This gives new meaning to 'Tie one on'!

- Gotta hand it to Tie. Even off skates he punches well above his weight, so to speak.

- I wouldn't unpack my suitcase if I was Tie.

Ouch.

UPDATE: Tie Domi, Steel Baron
"Tie assured me that Belinda was nothing more than an important 'business contact' and said I should be nice to her since she held the key to an important and lucrative deal ... involving the supply of steel to Magna ... and he stood to make monumental commissions from this deal."

A Sens Blog I could grow to like

by The Meatriarchy

Just discovered this blog called "Scarlett Ice" written by a 19 year old Sens fan who appears to live in the Burlington/Hamilton area (which makes us neighbours).

It has a crisp layout. Great photos (vidcaps??) and commentary from the female perspective :

It might be sacrilege to be posting about the poster-boy for MLSE [well, that title might belong to Andrew Raycroft now] on a Sens blog, but I have to admit...I've got nothing against Sundin. You have to understand, I grew up in Leafs Nation and Sundin and his luscious blonde hair was a very integral part of my hockey development. He has since shaved said luscious blonde hair and it has never been the same.

Actually I think he shaved it because he has been going bald for sometime.

Regardless I urge you all to check out Sherry's work. Keep it up Sherry.

Sens 3 Leafs 2 (exhibition)

By The Meatriarchy

If I were the fans in Halifax I would want a refund. Supposedly the Toronto Maple Leafs were in town to play the Senators but it looked an awful lot like the Toronto Marlies. Trouble is they probably paid an NHL price to see AHL players.

No Leafs regulars played on defense and up front only Steen, Stajan, O'Neil, and Ponikarovsky were from the big club. No Sundin, no Peca, no Tucker, no Wellwood not even Nik Antropov.

At least the Sens provided Heatly, Redden and Spezza. But this was a mis-match from the get go. The Marlies who were playing their third game in three nights were lucky that it wasn't a blow out and it was only ill-advised penalties that kept them from possibly winning the game.

BTW someone should tell Dany Heatley that he isn't Bobby Clarke and Brendan Bell isn't Valeri Kharlamov. That tomahawk to Bell's foot was ridiculous and uncalled for.

Leafs 4 Canadiens 3 (exhibition)

By The Meatriarchy

The Leafs barely made the league requirement for 8 regulars last night with Peca, Stajan, Steen Wellwood, Kilger, Antropov, Gill, Jeff O'Neil and Raycroft being all locks to play for the Leafs this year. The rest of the crew was basically the Toronto Marlies especially on defense where only Gill is guaranteed a spot on the roster.

And with Colaiacovo and Kronwall injured it gave guys like White, Bell and Harrison a chance to show there stuff against a Canadiens team that iced Ryder, Bonk, Samsanov, Koivu, Johnson, Higgins, Kovalev, Huet, Souray, and Rivet.

Yet with all that offensive firepower the rookie D held up rather well bolstered by some sparkling work by Raycroft (although at times he looked like he was fighting the puck to me).

Penalty trouble certainly cost the Leafs as two of the Hab's three goals were scored on the powerplay. At the same time the Habs were 2-11 with the man advantage so the Leafs weren't all bad.

The standout for the night was Alexander Suglobov who had a goal and an assist and generally looked faster than anyone else on the ice.

I have always been skeptical of a forward who at 25 still hasn't cracked an NHL line up Defensemen and Goalies take a while to develop but if you can score at the big league level you don't languish in the minors. And this is only exhibition so we don't know how this guy will play when the going gets tough.

Paul Maurice did have an interesting comment after the game however saying that Suglobov had come from the New Jersey system and spent the latter half of last year un-learning the trap. He figures that Suglobov is still adjusting to a more offensive style of play.

If that is true and this guy can play on a 2nd or 3rd line at this level the trade that sent Klee to Jersey might turn out to be a steal

Everybody in the pool...

Quick PSA: Occasional BoO commenter and Bound By Gravity blogger Andrew Anderson has set up another installation of the Canadian Bloggers Hockey League (CBHL). If you're not in a league yet this season you should consider joining. No money, just bragging rights for first place and eternal shame and disgrace for last (I believe David Johnson of Hockey Analysis schooled us all pretty good last year).

See the post here for details.

Leafs 5 Canadians 1 (exhibition)

by The Meatriarchy

I only caught the first period but this game had a more regular season feel to it than most exhibition games.

I am not sure that it was the play (which did seem faster) but the coverage. Leafs TV is airing all the exhibition games and have been showcasing their new format and line up (Jody Vance is now hosting) .

The script and overall structure is presented exactly as a regular season game and you tend to forget that this is a meaningless contest and the result will probably have no bearing on the overall outcome of the regular season.

Regardless, what I have seen from the past three games is that the latest NHL rule change is going to have what I believe is a major effect on goal scoring (and goalies) this year. And that is the relaxation of the curve rule. The new rule which allows a 3/4 inch curve as opposed to 1/2 inch has been reported in the media but hasn't been focused on the way other rules like the red-line and tighter refereeing were in the run-up to last season.

But this one could really blow the game open. Last night Mats Sundin unleashed a shot from the mid-boards that took off like a rocket and moved at a very steep trajectory finding the underside of the crossbar as the Canadiens goalie was going down. Last year that shot would not have risen so high so quickly.

In the first game against Buffalo a Sabres player (I can't remember who) skated from behind the net and popped one over Raycroft's shoulder. Raycroft had hugged the post perfectly and had taken away the lower part of the net as all goalies do nowadays. And last year the Buffalo forward would have been way too close to make that shot. But I am betting he had a new curve and thus that shot was now an option.

So after a year of having to adjust to smaller equipment and a new style of play goalies will now be forced to deal with wicked rising shots from strange angles.

Not that this is a bad thing. The original curve rule was instituted at a time when goalies didn't wear masks and players didn't wear helmets.

Goaltending has evolved to a science nowadays and quite frankly I find it boring. Gone are the days of dramatic saves and acrobatic goaltending. Goalies now play the percentages and try to make sure they cover the area of the net that the puck is most likely to come towards. And that area has largely been the lower half of the net. So you often see goalies going down even before the shot is taken. They are that sure that the puck isn't going to be going high.

Makes for solid goaltending but also pretty boring play.

How often have you been watching a game where some announcer will yell "what a save!" and the goalie didn't appear to move? ( for me Pat Roy was a classic example) Maybe this year we will see a change in that.

What this will mean however is that some goalies will really suffer for it. But at least it is better than making the nets bigger.

They Call Him The Keg?

I can't find a detailed game log on the web, so I'll rely on Don Brennan's notes for the second-line center candidate:

"It looked like his first NHL game," Bryan Murray said in defence of Kaigorodov, who played 15:32, was a minus-1, had no shots on goal and was 6-11 in the faceoff circles

Even his linemates are faking groin injuries to avoid playing with him.

The Save

Although it was only exhibition did Mikael Tellqvist revive his career last night? Particularly that one glove save on a two on one break?

Certainly he did not look like the Tellqvist of the past four years. But then again it was only pre-season.

Now the pressure is squarely on Aubin who must equal that performance in Montreal.

by The Meatriarchy

Tonight's tilt

First exhibition game in the BoO.

Any predictions? Do you think the Leafs will come in fired up to show the Sens that they are an NHL calibre squad this year?

This is Peca's first game as a Leaf and Ottawa native Brendan Bell is playing Raycroft is in the net. For the good guys, Gerber gets his first game action and we see debuts from Alexei Kaigorodov, and Tom Preissing and Josh Hennessy who came over in the Havlat/Smolinski dump.

New Lines

Observed by Chris Stevenson:

Eaves/Spezza/Heatley (shifted to right wing?)
Shaefer/Kaigorodov/Alfredsson
Vermette/Fisher/Neil
McAmmond/Kelly/McGratton

Redden/Corvo
Phillips/Meszaros
Volchenkov/Preissing

I'm tempted to pick Spezza for the Art Ross - he had more points per game than Ovechkin - but it's too easy to discount the early season tear the Sens top scorers went on in October/November. Heatley/Spezza/Alfie scored 40% of their total output in the first quarter of the season, when lockout-dazed defensive pairings were still adjusting to the New NHL^TM (this was all prior to the Pizza Line formation if I recall correctly). During the broadcast tonight, Dean Brown noted some chirping through the glass between Spezza and Crosby - what an incredible three-way rivalry this could shape up to be.

With regards to Kaigorodov (pron: Kegger-Road-Off?), I'm not sure this dispatch from The Universal Cynic will comfort Sens watchers:


Alexei Kaigorodov: I tried to keep an open mind regarding the White Knight -- but it was difficult, given that I've been reading the HFBoard's insistence that the 23-year-old was some sort of Russian deity for nearly a year. And after yesterday, I can tell you that every concern I've read about him is true: The haphephobia, the sketchy faceoffs etc. He also wanted nothing to do with the boards, seemingly creating a barrier between himself and any edge -- it was like bumper bowling on ice. But probably the biggest irritation involved his insistence to casually reach with his stick, as opposed to skating for the puck. These Gumby-like attempts were completely ineffective, but I do understand why he doesn't make the effort to move his legs: The White Knight has all the pickup of a three-cylinder Geo Metro.

Yikes. Petr Schastlivy redux? Next thing you're going to tell me Mark Gandler's his agent.

If the Sens could get one thing done this year...

...number two on my list would be revenge.

Warning: searching Youtube for highlights of Sens-Leafs games is like watching the cursed video tape from The Ring. Sooner or later the ghost of Cory Cross will crawl out of the monitor and destroy your soul.

Mogilny/Roberts: Game 6 - 2002 (I was there - Ricard Persson, it's all YOUR fault)
Roberts: Game 2 OT - 2002
Sundin: Game 1 OT - 2001
Cross: Game 3 OT - 2001

I will continue to predict a Sens-Canucks final until it actually happens* (let's call it the Alfredsson-Naslund "Swede Redemption" special). If I can't have that, a first round dumping of the Leafs will be more than enough to satiate me.

*alternate universe ass-covering prediction: Penguins-Coyotes

Good Lord...

Domi announces retirement; Joins TSN

Don Romani unavailable for comment.

Preseason for columnists

But the Blue and White scribes are already in top form:

Simmons: Mats is becoming a mystery
Strachan: Does Mats even want to be captain?

A lesson for JFJ

Tom Benjamin of Canucks Corner makes a great point:

As long as Wang is prepared to spend more than what he is allowed to spend under this CBA - almost certainly the case - the Islanders are in good shape with this contract:
- If DiPietro does turn out to be an elite goalie, the Isles have a great deal.
- If DiPietro turns out to be an average goalie who is overpaid at $4.5 million, it is not a millstone for the hockey operation. It is only Wang's money at stake and he apparently is prepared to risk it. If the worst happens, Charles Wang has the most expensive goalie in the AHL. His contract will always clear waivers. The Islanders will always be able to create cap space by demoting him.

The Leafs are also a team that is willing to spend more than the cap. Why shouldn't they be looking at this method?

They could have offered Chara and Redden 12 year deals for $5 mil a year. When the players aren't worth it anymore, demote them to the farm and face no cap hit.

Budget $70 million for salary like a few years ago. That means you can have $25 million or so on the farm. So, next year, offer some UFA like Doan, Smyth, Datsyuk some contracts that will pay them into their mid 40s decent money for reductions over the start of the contract.

They just have to be willing to collect that money on a farm team.

UPDATE: Comment from Tom B in the comments of his post ...

The Islanders don't have to require him to actually report and they probably wouldn't want him to actually report. Andreychuk was demoted to the AHL last season and was paid his NHL salary to stay home.

Seems like a good way to get around the cap.

UPDATE2: Let's take the Anson Carter case:

The Leafs would love to get someone that could score an even strength goal but could only really afford him at $750,000 because they are still paying Domi and Belfour. Carter is 32 and wanted a 3 year, $3mil a year deal but nobody would bite. Say he's going to collect $12 million over the course of the rest of his career.

The Leafs could offer him a 16 year deal at $750,000 a year totalling $12 million with the understanding that once he can't make the team he gets demoted but never reports to the minors.

UPDATE3: I guess JFJ has to pick a different guy.

Personal Goals

Raycroft has his goals and expectations set just about right for his career with the Leafs:

"You look at the guys who have done well here -- not even won Cups, but done well -- they're always going to get a free meal at a restaurant. It's a tremendous opportunity for me."

A Leafs fan's perspective

Since our regular Blue and White contributors haven't got hockey on the brain yet, I'm putting up this guest post from regular commentor Five-O:

With the fourth PGA major now out of the way (Jesus Woods wins again), the Jays all but eliminated from the post season and my three weeks “drinking”… err, “annual” leave completely used up, I think it’s officially time to start analyzing the upcoming NHL season and more importantly, the BoO…

Actually, I’m somewhat optimistic that this year we will be provided with more of a battle and not the “rape and pillage of lower Ontario” that we witnessed last year. Or so I’m told… You see, as a Leafs fan I was born with selective memory so the only thing I really remember from last year was the Leafs 10 game unbeaten streak near the end of the season, which included a solid 5-1 trouncing of the Sens. Man we kicked your asses that game! It’s just too bad the playoffs were cancelled and no one won the Stanley cup last year… again! I mean seriously, it’s been like what, 40 years or something since anybody has won it?

Anywho, I’m sure the trash talking will escalate heavily over the next month or two so let’s just ease into this and take a look at the summer transactions from each of our respective teams.

Ottawa:

Chara/Pothier out, Corvo/Preissing in: Will Ottawa be the same without the NHL’s tallest and most imposing player? All statistics and circus freak jokes aside, Ottawa loses the only guy in the NHL since Zarley Zalapski who’s nickname is “Z’ and they pick up two defenceman named Joe and Tom… an obvious downgrade.

Smolinski out, McAmmond in: Personally, I think this is a slight upgrade. “Smoke” seemed to be a good guy to have in the locker room but really, does anyone ever remember him scoring a critical goal during his time here? Ottawa has never had a problem scoring goals (in the reg season at least) and the departure of Smolinski shouldn’t have any impact on their ability to do so this year (See Havlat out below). McAmmond should provide some decent leadership and defensive play.

Hasek out, Gerber in: It would be hard for any goalie let alone Gerber to match the level of play that Hasek provided early last season. The tandem of Gerber and a more experienced Emery should provide some solid goaltending but the verdict is still out… will Ottawa ever get the type of top notch goaltending required to put an offensively elite team over the top.

Havlat out, Eaves in?: Ottawa’s second line took a huge hit. As much as I’d love to kick this guy in the crotch with my skate, there’s no way I can deny how disgustingly talented this guy is… Short of trading for Datsyuk or Kovalchuk, there’s no way you replace the offensive punch that this guy brought to the team. Vermette, Eaves and Fisher definitely need to step it up a notch this year.

Toronto:

Berg/Khavanov,/Klee out, Kubina/Gill in: Toronto’s squad is instantly better with the departure of Berg and the addition of Kubina and Gill, but who will take over from Berg as the official Leaf Nation goat? Until we win a cup we must always have one. Macoun, Murphy, Cross, Berg. I think a defensive pattern is starting to emerge here… I’m gonna put my money on Gill.

Allison/Lindros out, Peca in: Yes, Toronto will obviously miss the PP points that Allison can put up but more importantly, he’ll truly be missed for the speed that he brought to the forecheck and the craftiness he displayed during shootouts…ugh! I’m not expecting Peca to put up big numbers this year (45-50 would be nice) but he should bring some stability to the penalty kill and overall defence of the team. At least Lindros won’t have his final, career ending concussion in a Leafs uni.

Belfour out, Raycroft in: I’m cautiously optimistic about this one, however, Toronto never seems to have a problem getting the most out of their goalies (last year being the exception) so I don’t anticipate this year being any different. The verdict on Raycroft is still out after his poor performance last year, but if he’s healthy he should put up solid numbers. Aubin seems to be capable of moving into the starting role in the event that Raycroft pulls a Jim Carey.

Quinn out, Maurice in: Although I’ll never say anything bad about a guy who brought this team into the playoffs for seven of eight years, got them to the final four twice, and brought gold back to Canada, this move was absolutely necessary. Quinn was always able to get average players to play above their abilities and he was great with the veteran’s, but he never, EVER matched lines and didn’t seem interested in giving any of the rookies any playing time. Hey, that’s probably what I would’ve done too if I were the GM/coach with an unlimited budget…

I’m looking forward to that season opening home and home… should be a beauty!
BoO regular season prediction:

Sens 5
Leafs 3

You guys always stomp us in the fake season and I don’t see anything changing this year. I’m just hoping we can make it into the playoffs so we can continue to build on the 4-0 record against the Sens in the real season.

Predictions

From Mirtle...

The Hockey News:
Eastern Conference
2. Ottawa
10. Toronto

McKeen's:
Eastern Conference
3. Ottawa
10. Toronto

Click on the links to see the entire predictions.

Pet Peeve

Chris Kelly and the Sens agreed to a contract. We don't know for how much yet. Why? Why?

Terms not disclosed. Why? Why?

Update: Neil signed. "Financial details were not released." Sigh.

Update2: 1.1 mil a year over 3 years for Neil.

This puts the Sens at about 38.9 (via David Johnson's excellent site) if Kelly got 750,000. They've got only Schaefer left in arbitration this week. The roster will still be missing one player after that. Speculation has Russian rookie Kaigorodov filling that space but I wouldn't mind seeing a veteran centre.

Still here - really

If you don't read the BoA site you would have missed their post on Peca's arrival in StinkTown:

As David Johnson notes in his Leafs Off-Season Report, the Leafs' biggest problem last season, besides their goaltending, was that "they struggled to score goals at even strength". True: they were 27th in the NHL in ES scoring last season.
So anyway, there were 293 forwards who played more than 60 games in the NHL last season. Try to guess what these 11 fellows have in common:
Adam Hall, Curtis Brown, Blair Betts, Mark Rycroft, Donald Brashear, Serge Payer, Mike Ricci, Brian Savage, Kirk Maltby, Jed Ortmeyer, Ryan Johnson
Give up?
They were the only 11 of those 293 who scored at Even Strength at a worse rate than Peca's 0.92Pts/60min.

I guess we too can keep calling it a battle...

Let's hope both sides come to fight this year.

Announced today - CP via TSN:

The 2006-07 NHL season kicks off with the Battle of Ontario in Toronto and the Stanley Cup banner-raising in Carolina.
The Ottawa Senators visit the Maple Leafs in one of three games Oct. 4

I can hardly wait!

One More Forward To Go...

Is it fair to assume the Sens will have around $2-3 M to spend on a UFA?

Which one of these guys do you go after? If Mucks doesn't bring back Peter Bondra I may just have to go Burning Monk on the Scotiabank plaza (kidding - I'm kidding).

P.S.> Soccer sucks.

P.P.S.> Farewell to the little groin booter. I'll never forget seeing him and Hossa busting moves on the dance floor at O'Connor's. They looked like Euro Butabi brothers - both sporting pinkish-orange Gap shirts and shaven heads.

Nice trade

Who is Tom Preissing?

In his second NHL season he led the Sharks in points from the blueline and was fourth on the team on icetime per game.

He sures up the Sens blueline which now again must be considered the best in the East.

Not a bad return for a guy that didn't want to be here (Havlat wanted to be the star on some team - and be paid like it) and a fading centre who was a $2 million drag on the pay structure. Vermette will do far more than Smolinski ever did in the third line centre role.

Sens payroll?

Some have speculated that the Sens have a team cap of $40 million. Chara, in a conversation with Bruce Garrioch, was told otherwise:

SUN: When you spoke to Melnyk did he say he couldn't go any further?
CHARA: "He told me the cap is going to be $44 million and they were going to go to the maximum.

Fair value

Redden signs for two years at $6.5 per.

Seems fair considering McCabe's deal.

Open post

Will we have the first Canadian winner of the Cup in over a decade?

Will Edmonton burn to the ground?

Who will win the Conn Smythe trophy?