Let's face it, we'd all like to forget about this hockey season. This was the hockey season no one really could have predicted. Or could they have? I for one am not sure what Bryan Murray was thinking when he signed Pascal Leclaire. Right from the get-go, this goalie from _______ was clearly a no-name brand player who seemed to have some sort of an invisible injury status symbol glued to his forehead. Every time a puck hit his face, hockey fans at Scotiabank Place seemed to hold their breath, and the back-up goalie (usually Brian Elliot remained on guard). The Senators have had their share of goalie sagas. Remember Lalime? Everybody in Ottawa loved him. But he was unpredictable. Some nights he could be very good, some days he was just horrible. And the Dominator, Dominic Hasek? Everyone cheered when that happened - here comes a Stanley Cup winning champion who has tons of experience and can help us ride to the playoffs. But it was not meant to be. How did this team explode SO FAST? We went from being on top of the hockey world to the bottom of the barrel.
Back to Leclaire. I don't mean to sound negative about this goalie. I think it's great that the Sens management gave him a chance. But clearly, if we want to be a winning team, we need to have a winning goalie. Someone who is able to withstand the pucks flying at their face and be able to reach out and grab the puck in mid-air. We need someone who is able to condition themselves well, and focus on saving the pucks rather than fumbling with them like a football. In short, we need a real goaltender with solid NHL experience who is not a no-name brand player with a poor GPA or whatever they call it. That's one of the key areas this team needs to look at. Did we find it with Craig Anderson, whom the Sens just acquired from Colorado? I am not sure. My hockey friends tell me it's a good trade. But only time will tell and at this point, the management is not really focusing on us winning games (that's the players jobs), but they are focusing on trading and acquiring players to rebuild this team into the champs that they used to be. It's too bad that this season was such a bust that they had to learn it the hard way.
Goodbye Mike Fisher. Goodbye Chris Kelly. Goodbye Jarkko Ruutu (who never wanted to play in Ottawa, anyways). I must admit, it's really sad to see Fish go. But when he married Carrie Underwood, all the signs pointed to Nashville. But this isn't about Mike Fisher, who said he wanted to spend his whole career in Ottawa. We're going to see a lot more trading happening as the weeks go on. I just hope Bryan Murray decides to spend some money on great players who can bring grit and bite to the hockey style the Sens used to own. It's about time we got some decent, YOUNG players who can help fashion this team into winners. I think they don't just have to do this for the team, but they have to do this for the fans, as well. It's great that we are giving young up and coming players from the AHL a shot, but we need to have a general backbone to this hockey team that can support the younger players. Alfredsson is getting on in his age and you can see that on the ice as well. He is also my favourite player and I think he is the class act, both on the ice and off, but we need hockey players that are at a certain age where they can afford to spend a couple years in Ottawa helping shape this team. We've gone through a whole boatload of hockey players that didn't work out! Commodore! Condra! Oyyyy!
Who will be the next to go is the number one question. They're blowing up this team and then they're going to parcel it together. Whether it will work or not is the remaining question. Only time will tell.
The Sens are what makes this town tick. When they are on a winning streak, everyone is feeling good (well, mostly everyone!) When they lose a game and Spezza makes a stupid error (sorry, Spezza, couldn't resist), then you come into work the next day and half the people are in a pissy mood. It's the way hockey goes. I can't even watch any games this season because really, it's a disaster. I just hope Mr. Murray knows what he is doing, that's all I can say. It's not the coach's fault, either. But we will see what happens with Clouston, too...
I'm not any sort of expert on hockey and its rules and I don't pretend to be, but I don't think I am the only person to say that it's time to rebuild a Stanley Cup champion.
Yeah, that's all I got.
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