Senators Get Set to Host Thrashers

(UPDATE 3:07 PM)- A quick rant here about the intermission coverage on CBC. Kelly Hrudey did a feature on three plays where Alfredsson didnt "finish his check". Two of the three plays Alfredsson either came away with the puck or forced a turnover and the other was a PK situation.

Maybe Hrudey should take a look at what actually happened on the play. You dont have to run a guy to win the puck. Alfredsson proved that..

Hrudey and Milbury should be embarassed after that little performance. They are both respected analysts and should know better. Had to get that off my chest. Enjoy the rest of the game folks!

Coming off a disappointing performance in Tampa Bay, the Senators get set to host the Atlanta Thrashers in a Halloween Matinee at SBP.

Puck drop is at 2:00 PM.

Jason Spezza will not play for Ottawa. His back has been bugging him all season and the Senators are hoping a little time off (Ottawa doesn't play till Thursday) will help Jason get back to 100%.

Pascal Leclaire will return to the Senators net this afternoon.

Enjoy the game everyone...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Late Afternoon Update

Sorry for the late post today folks. Been a pretty hectic day.

First off, thanks to everyone who came out for the live blog last night. Wasn't the best result obviously but it was fun talkin puck with you guys and gals during the game.

As I'm sure you've all heard, Alex Kovalev and Jason Spezza were both absent at practice this morning. Spezza is doubtful for the game tomorrow but Kovalev is expected to dress tomorrow when the Senators host the Thrashers for a 2:00 PM start.

Spezza's injury is a little concerning considering Jason has had back problems throughout his career. Here's hoping a little time off helps Jason get back to 100%

By the sounds of things Pascal Leclaire is feeling better and is hopeful that he will be good to go tomorrow. I talked to a couple different people today and its sounds like there's some concern about a bit of a flu bug going around the Senators locker room lately.

Pascal Leclaire, Erik Karlsson and Peter Regin have all been absent at times and word is a couple other guys aren't feeling 100%. Seems like battling the flu is just going to be a reality teams have to deal with this season.

As many of you have pointed out, Brian Lee struggled last night in his season debut. With Volchenkov expected to miss at least three weeks, Murray may have to look around and see if there are any stopgap solutions out there to help this team for the next month or so.

With the standings expected to be so tight this season, Ottawa cant afford to slip with Volchenkov out of the line up.

Lousy Effort in Tampa

Not much to say after that one...

Ottawa dropped a stinker in Tampa, falling 5-2 to the Lightning in the second game of a back to back in Florida.

Ottawa was better in the third period but it was too little too late. Hopefully they can take some positives into the game against Atlanta and more importantly get Spezza and Leclaire back in the line up.

Feel free to leave your comments about the game here

Until tomorrow....

Live Blog Tonight!

For anyone that's intrested, I will be live blogging tonight's Senators/Lightning game for theScore.com.

Feel free to stop by...

Hope to see some of you over there!

http://liveblogs.thescore.com/Event/NHL_-_Senators_vs_Lightning

Back at it in Tampa-Volchenkov Out, Lee In

(UPDATE 11:32 AM)- Brian Elliott will get the start in goal against the Lightning.

The Senators may have picked up the W last night but word is they were extremely unhappy with the officiating, to the point where they considered filing an official complaint with the league. Had Ottawa lost the game in Florida you can bet we would be hearing a lot more about this today.

Ottawa carried the play when the game was 5 on 5 and it seems bizarre to me that the calls would be as lopsided as they were.

So far through 10 games, Ottawa has had 36 power play chances (27th in the league) and been shorthanded 46 times (14th in the league).

I don't know if its just me but it seems like everytime we take on one of the struggling markets in their barn we get the short end of the stick when it comes to penalty calls. While I dont have the stats to back it up it just always seems like we are constantly killing penalties when we go to places like Florida and Tampa Bay.

I hope I'm wrong and we see a little more level playing field tonight against the Lightning.

Anton Volchenkov hurt his elbow late in the game last night against Florida and will not play. Brian Lee has been called up from Binghamton and will play his first game of the season tonight.

There are no details on the injury to Volchenkov but Tim Murray was on the Team 1200 and gave the impression that it's not day to day and he will be out for an extended period of time. He will be assessed when they return to Ottawa.

Senators Edge Panthers

(UPDATE 11:16 PM)- Just caught a bit of the Clouston post game media scrum and he said that it was an elbow injury that Volchenkov suffered late in the game tonight. Much prefer that to a shoulder injury but we will know more about his status tomorrow.

The Ottawa Senators started their mini road trip with a solid 4-3 victory over a struggling Panthers team in Florida.

The return of Filip Kuba paid immediate dividends for the Senators after his point shot was tipped in on the Senators only power play of the game. Kuba's presence also seemed to help the game of Chris Campoli who had his best outing of the season. Kuba and Campoli each registered two assists.

I would assume Kuba would have had more of an impact on this game if not for a huge imbalance in the penalty calls. The Panthers had seven power plays to the Ottawa Senators one. Normally thats a recipe for disaster on the road but the Senators were able to cling to a one goal victory.

Daniel Alfredsson was solid all night and continued his strong start to the season. His line was the Senators best on the night and kept the Panthers hemmed in their zone for long stretches in the third period.

Pasca Leclaire left after the first period and was relieved by Brian Elliott. Early reports are that Leclaire is still struggling with a bit of the flu. Should know more on his status tomorrow.

More in game line juggling saw Cheechoo again bumped off the Spezza line in favour of Nick Foligno. Cheechoo took a couple penalties early in the game but seemed to get better as the night wore on.

Senators are back in action tomorrow when they pay the Tampa Bay Lightning a visit.

Game Day in Florida

The Ottawa Senators play their first road game in 11 days when they visit the Florida Panthers tonight on TSN2. The Senators last road tilt came two Saturdays ago, when the Senators beat the division rival Habs in Montreal.

The Senators will get a boost tonight with the return of Filip Kuba. Kuba has been out of the line up since the season opener and should help settle a struggling power play. Ottawa has lacked a point presence with the man advantage and Kuba certainly gives them that.

Kuba is expected to be paired with Chris Campoli, taking the spot of the demoted Erik Karlsson.

Clouston has also mentioned he will try using Daniel Alfredsson on the point on the power play at times this evening. I'm personally a big fan of this move. Alfie has always excelled as a PP quarterback and gives the Senators a much needed shot threat from the back end. It should help open up the play down low a little bit.

Ryan Shannon is expected to come out of the line up meaning Shean Donovan will play.

Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo

Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson

Foligno-Regin-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Phillips-Volchenkov

Kuba-Campoli

Picard-Carkner

The Panthers come into the game having dropped three straight including a 5-1 loss to the Flyers in their last outing. They have struggled as of late and will be without two key forwards in David Booth and Radek Dvorak.

Only the Nashville Predators have scored less goals than the Panthers.

Pascal Leclaire will start for the Senators while the Panthers will counter with Tomas Vokoun.

Quick Rumour Update (Karlsson to Bingo)

(UPDATE 12:09 PM)- The Ottawa Sentors have announced that rookie defenceman Erik Karlsson has been assigned to the AHL team in Binghamton this afternoon.


I spent yesterday evening and this morning doing some digging to see if there was anything to the Senators apparent interest in Hawks defenceman Brian Campbell.

The consensus among those that I spoke with is that there is just no way the Senators could fit that contract in at this point. Murray is obviously a fan of Campbell's but certainly not to the point where he could fit in that albatross of a contract.

The Senators would have to send all sorts of contract the other way in a deal involving Campbell and that really doesn't make sense for the Hawks. Chicago would need to take on an expiring contract in order to have the room they need to sign some of their young stars this off season.

The name that is still being mentioned in the Senators rumour mill is Alex Picard. He has had a decent start to the season and seems to have slightly increased his potential trade value. Picard has looked good at times this season and seems to have a decent chemistry going with defence partner Matt Carkner.

With Brian Lee still playing in the AHL, the Senators have a couple extra bodies on the back end (Depending on what happens with Karlsson).

Once again, the Columbus Blue Jackets have been mentioned as a team that has shown a little bit of interest.

Meanwhile, the Senators are expected to make a decision on rookie Erik Karlsson either today or tomorrow. Murray has said on a number of occasions that he would like to keep Erik around for the remainder of the season but we will find out for certain in the next 24 hours.

Don Brennan has suggested that the Senators may be leaning towards sending Karlsson back to Sweden for the remainder of the season.

Karlsson has played in all 9 games the Senators have played this season.

Prospect Updates

A little while back I posted a poll to see what features fans would like to see added to the site and the majority of you picked Prospect Update.

I'm working on getting in touch with some people that can give us in depth reports on some of our prospects but in the meantime, the Senators Twitter feed has been posting a weekly update on all of the Senators prospects. I have posted the link below and will try and pass it along each Monday.

This year's first round pick Jared Cowen has had a solid start with the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL. Cowen has put up 3 goals and 4 assists in the team's 8 games and by all accounts has been force on the Chief's blue line.

Patrick Wiercioch has had a solid start to his season at the University of Denver, racking up four points in six games.

While the reports on the players aren't detailed, its a pretty handy way to keep track of Senators prospects during the season.

http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/PDFs/Prospect_Update-091025.pdf

Come Back Kuba

(UPDATE 11:49 AM)- Erik Karlsson and Peter Regin both missed practice this morning. TSN's Brent Wallace says they are both sick. There was some speculation this could be a demotion coming for Karlsson but that does not appear to be the case.

Filip Kuba is on the ice with the team this morning.



We are just nine games into the 2009 season and already we've seen a little bit of everything from our Ottawa Senators. We've seen them win the close ones. We've seen impressive victories, heartbreaking losses and amazing comebacks. All this in just a small nine game sample.

So its understandable that so many have been asking; which team is the real Ottawa Senators? Is it the team that ran over the Tampa Bay Lightning or is it the group that let a two goal lead slip away late in the third against the division rival Bruins.

At this point I think its safe to say they are somewhere in between. If the Senators can continue to beat the teams they are supposed to beat and at least stay competitive against the stronger teams in the East, they seem poised for a return to playoff hockey.

What is impressive however is that the team has got off to this 5-2-2 start without their best all around defenceman in the line up. Filip Kuba's absence has hurt this line up more than most realize and having him back should be a huge boost for this hockey team.

The hope is that Kuba will make the trip to Florida and return either against the Panthers or the Lightning.

The Senators have been awful on the power play so far this season and that largely has to do with the lack of a consistent PP quarter back. A guy who can run things from the back end and distribute the puck to the team's talented forwards.

Kuba was that guy for Ottawa last season. He put 40 points from the back end and his absence through the last 8 games has left a huge hole on the back end. Having Kuba back in the line up should jump start that PP and stabilize the Senators defence as a whole.

The Senators power play is currently ranked 29th in the NHL clicking just 11.4% of the time. Ottawa has as many shorthanded goals as PP goals (4) so far this season.

Picard has struggled the last couple games and would likely be the odd man out when Kuba is ready to return.

Until Kuba returns and our defence and more importantly power play get settled, I dont think we truly know what this Senators team is capable of.

Ottawa returns to action Wednesday against the Florida Panthers.

Elliott to Start vs. Bruins

Back up Brian Elliott will make his second start of the season tonight when the Senators host the Boston Bruins at Scotiabank Place.

Pascal Leclaire has been battling a little bit of a flu the past couple days and was not on the ice for the morning skate. That being said, Clouston did say Elliott would start one of the two games this week so I guess this makes sense. Elliott's only other start this season came in a win over the Thrashers.

There will be no other line up changes for the Senators although Jonathan Cheechoo will return to his spot on the right side with Michalek and Spezza. Cheechoo struggled at times last game but I was surprised to see him benched in the third. Here's hoping he can get one tonight and get going.

Filip Kuba practiced with the team this morning and the Senators are hopeful he will get back in the line up sometime next week.

Coming off a sloppy performance against the Predators this is a real statement game for the Sens. The Bruins are battling injuries right now but are still the defending North East champions.

It's time for the Senators to slay the dragon that has been Tim Thomas the last couple seasons.

GO SENS GO!

Roster Notes

Just a quick post as the Senators get set to host the Bruins tomorrow at SBP.

A few guys missed practice today including Pascal Leclaire, Jason Spezza, Milan Michalek, Filip Kuba and Jesse Winchester.

Spezza is expected to play tomorrow but the status of Michalek is unknown. He suffered an upper body injury and will wait till tomorrow to decide if he can go. If I had to guess I would say he plays. If he cant, expect Donovan to draw back in.

Still no word on Kuba but obviously he won't play tomorrow. He has been skating on his own but there still is no timetable on his return. Nobody seems to really know what the problem is with Kuba at this point. Clouston is hopeful that Kuba will be able to practice with the team in the near future.

Meanwhile, according to Bruce Garrioch and the Ottawa Sun, Jesse Winchester will head to Bingo for a two week conditioning stint. Good move that should help Winchester get back up to game speed before jumping in the line up.

Whacky Night at SBP

Just on my way back from what had to be on of the weirdest games played at SBP in a long time.

Heroic goal by Phillips at the end but its too bad they couldn't grab that extra point.

Lots to talk about tomorrow though...

GO SENS GO
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Game Day, Finally!

In a year with a condensed schedule its quite strange that the Senators would have a full four days off between games this early but thats exactly what happened. Ottawa returns to action tonight when they host the Predators at Scotiabank Place.

The Predators are coming off a loss last night to the Bruins so Ottawa should be able to pounce on a tired team early on.

Clearly Cory Clouston is not a reader of SensChirp as he will pull Shean Donovan from the line up tonight to make room for Peter Regin.

Donovan has played well in his role and will certainly get another chance in the near future.

There were whispers that Jason Spezza would be out of the line up tonight but Brent Wallace has confirmed that Spezza is fine and will play this evening.

Pascal Leclaire will get the start vs. the Predators.

Who Should Come Out?

It looks as though rookie Peter Regin will be ready to go tomorrow when the Senators host the Nashville Predators. Regin has played well early this season and deserves a spot in the line up even with the Senators playing well in his absence.

Question is, who comes out of the line up?

At this point it looks as though either Shean Donovan or Ryan Shannon will be scratched. If Shannon does stay in the line up he will likely be shifted to the wing, likely on the fourth line.

With Jesse Winchester almost ready to go and Filip Kuba getting closer, there are a few decisions to be made in the coming days. According to TSN's Brent Wallace, the Sens aren't sure when Kuba will be ready.

At this point I'd like to see Regin draw back in on the third line between Foligno and Neil and Donovan to keep his spot on the fourth line. For the time being Shannon and Winchester should stay out of the line up until someone plays their way out.

The benefit to having so much depth up front is the Senators are able to dress the players that deserved to be dressed. Once Kuba is ready to go the Senators will have 23 healthy bodies on the roster.

Decisions will have to be made at that point...

Brent Wallace said that Spezza left practice this morning with "bumps and bruises" and is probable for the game tomorrow.

Carkner Signs Two Year Deal

(UPDATE 1:11 PM)- The Ottawa Sun has the terms of the deal. 2 years/$1.4 million.

Hard work and dedication has been rewarded.

Matt Carkner has been one of the better stories early this season and according to TSN's Ice Chips he was given a two year extension today. The big news for Carkner is that its a one way contract

Matt Carkner was scheduled to be a UFA at season's end.

Notes From Practice

(UPDATE 12:19 PM)- Bryan Murray just spoke briefly about Volchenkov on Hockeycentral and said that they have not started negotiations as of yet but are hoping to do so shortly. He also mentioned that they are hoping Volchenkov is looking for term rather than a huge salary raise.

Just a couple of quick notes from Senators practice today courtesy of the Ottawa Senators Twitter Feed.

The line combinations looked like this...

Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson
Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo
Foligno-Regin-Neil-
Winchester/Ruutu-Kelly-Shannon/Donovan

Couple of interesting thing to note there. Jesse Winchester, who has been out the past few weeks, did skate with the team this morning and looks like he could be ready to return. Also, it looks like Regin will draw back into the line up in the spot of Ryan Shannon.

With the forward ranks finally starting to get healthy you can expect trade speculation to pick up again.

Also, Filip Kuba was once again absent from practice. Its pretty clear that the injury to Kuba is worse than originally thought and a return to action this Thursday is a long shot.

Locking Up A-Train a Priority

The season is young but its becoming pretty obvious that Anton Volchenkov is poised to have the best season of his career.

The 27 year old native of Moscow, Russia has been an absolute force on the Senators back end through the first seven games and is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

The A-Train brings a rare blend of shot blocking ability combined with the ability to execute devastating open ice hits. Volchenkov has already claimed a handful of victims including Viktor Stalberg, John Tavares, Zach Bogosian and Victor Hedman.

On Saturday, Volchenkov along with Mike Fisher and Matt Carkner combined for what had to be the most impressive penalty kill in Senators history. The trio killed off a 5 on 3 for nearly a full two minutes and blocked at least ten shots in the sequence. (By the way if anyone can put a video of this up on YouTube, I would love to see it again)

Its a skill set that will likely see Volchenkov cash in big time when he signs his next contract. Volchenkov is currently in his 7th season and is often considered one of the better bargains in the NHL. Volchenkov is in the final year of a deal with a cap hit of just $2.5 million a season.

Locking up Volchenkov has to be a priority for Senators GM Bryan Murray. Murray has said in the past that he expects to get something done with Volchenkov and doesn't forsee any problems in retaining the shutdown defenceman.

The Senators will also have to make decisions on Alex Picard, Brian Lee, Chris Campoli and Matt Carkner this off season. The first three will be restricted free agents while Carkner is a UFA.

There are already whispers that Murray is working on an extension for Volchenkov but those talks are very much in the early stages. Volchenkov is expected to bring down anywhere from $4-5 million on a long term deal.

Either way, locking up Volchenkov has to be a priority for the Senators this season and the sooner they get it done the better. Volchenkov appears to be well on the way to a career season and if hes allowed to hit the open market he will certainly demand top dollar.

With blue chip prospects like Erik Karlsson, Jared Cowen and Patrick Wiercioch coming down the pipe the Senators back end appears set for years to come. Having a heart and soul veteran like Volchenkov is a must.

Players like Volchenkov don't come along very often...

500th Post at SensChirp

Let me start this post by congratulating former Ottawa Senator Brian McGrattan on recording the Gordie Howe hat trick last night. Grats has been through a lot over the past couple years and really it couldn't happen to a nicer guy!

Tonight, the Ottawa Senators head into Montreal to take on the Canadiens in what will be the much anticipated return of Alex Kovalev. I'll actually be live blogging tonight's game for The Score. Stop by at the link below to participate!

http://liveblogs.thescore.com/Event/NHL_-_Senators_vs_Canadiens2


When this website started over a year ago, I never thought I would be sitting here writing out my 500th post. On May 20, 2008, when I sat down to write the first entry on this website I remember thinking to myself, "Is anyone even going to read this stuff?"

Now here we are 499 posts later and people continue to come back. The readers here at SensChirp have been incredibly loyal and are the reason this site still exists. On multiple occasions I've thought about shutting it down but the positive feedback from you guys has kept it going.

500 posts...

Thanks to anyone who has stopped by to read one of those 500 posts along the way. In particular I'd like to thank all the regulars who continue to come back and post in the comment thread and have made this one of the better places on the Internet to talk Senators hockey.

So heres to 500 posts made and to the 500 more to come!

Thanks everyone

Pure Domination- Senators 7 Lightning 1

It may have been the 6th game of the regular season but I feel comfortable in saying that was the best I have seen this team play in a long long time.

Milan Michalek officially welcomed himself to the Nation's Capital with a three goal performance, two shorthanded and one on the power play. The former Shark has four on the season.

Its games like that one that show you why some people have praised Bryan Murray for the job he did in the Heatley deal. Michalek is hands down the more complete player and he showed it tonight. He has absolutely lethal speed and finishes better than people give him credit for.

Tonight was one of those games where there isn't much point in trying to mention who stood out because just about everyone did against the Lightning. The Senators dominated the Tampa Bay Lightning from start to finish.

The power play was probably the only weakness tonight but even they got on the score sheet in the third on Michalek's hat trick completing goal.

All in all an amazing effort tonight from the Senators. Safe to say we won't be hearing from the nay-sayers for a couple days.

Oh and one more thing...

How nice was it to see Matt Carkner beat on Downie's head like a drum?


GO SENS GO!

Game Day vs. Lightning

The Senators will look to return to their winning ways tonight when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at Scotiabank Place. The Senators had their three game win streak halted at the hands of the defending champions on Monday night and will look to get back in the win column tonight starting at 7:30 PM on TSN.

Looks like the Senators will have the same lines as Monday with Peter Regin again missing the game with an upper body injury. According to Brent Wallace's Twitter, Ryan Shannon will be in the line up while rookie Peter Regin will again sit out.

Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo
Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson
Foligno-Shannon-Neil
Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Filip Kuba remains out of the Senators line up and there is still no update on his status. Some have suggested to me that he hopes to be back for the weekend but obviously nobody has been able to confirm that as of yet. (Clouston said this morning he hopes to have Kuba back for Thursday's game)

The hope is that Peter Regin and Jesse Winchester will both be ready come this Saturday.


Pascal Leclaire will start in goal.

Morning Update

The Ottawa Senators were back on the ice this morning in preparation for their game at Scotiabank Place against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Here are a few notes from this morning's skate...

The lines seemed to be pretty much unchanged but with the additions of Regin and Winchester up front. The Spezza line will remain the same after a strong performance on Monday against the Penguins.

Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson
Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo
Foligno-Shannon/Regin-Neil
Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan/Winchester

Injured players Peter Regin and Jesse Winchester were both on the ice with the team this morning and appear as though they are getting close to a return.

According to the Senators Twitter page, Filip Kuba was once again not on the ice with the team. Latest I've heard on Kuba is that they are hoping to have him back in the line up by Saturday's game in Montreal. I'm hoping to have more details on Kuba before the day is out.

Win Streak Snapped

It certainly wasn't the Senators best effort but last night's 4-1 loss at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins certainly could have easily gone the other way had it not been for a couple of bad bounces. The Penguins scored two weird ones and the second Tyler Kennedy goal was one Leclaire would love to have back.

The Senators got a strong performance from the newly formed Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo combination but they didn't have much in the way of support as the Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson trio seemed to have an off night.

The PP struggled all night and is definitely an area Clouston will want to work on before Thursday's game against the Lightning.

The defence has obviously looked a little unstable at times but the return of Filip Kuba should help fix that. Matt Carkner played another strong game and has been far and away the most pleasant surprise for the Senators thus far. I thought Chris Campoli really struggled last night and has had a slow start to the season.

When Kuba is ready to return I think Campoli may be the odd man out. I've liked the play of Alex Picard thus far (with the exception of a few shifts last night) and think hes earned his spot in the top 6.

Whats most troubling about last night's loss is again the reaction of the fans. I'm not sure if its the same people commenting in here and they are flip flopping after each win or loss or if its just a case of certain fans waiting for the team to fail.

It seems after each loss the comment section is flooded with the "I told you so" type comments. Seems to me we need to work on not getting so down on this group after each loss. Gotta pace ourselves here Sens fans.

Back at it Thursday against Tampa...

Senators Go for Four

The Ottawa Senators will be looking for their fourth straight victory tonight when they host the defending champs at Scotiabank Place. The Senators are coming off victories over the Leafs, Islanders and Thrashers but face their toughest test of the season tonight in the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Ryan Shannon will return to the line up tonight. Kuba and Winchester are still on the shelf and are now joined by Peter Regin. Here is a look at the forward combinations.

Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson
Michalek-Spezza-Cheechoo
Foligo-Shannon-Neil
Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Pascal Leclaire starts in goal.

I realize many of you come here for rumour updates but there hasn't been much going on in that regard as of late. With Alex Picard and Chris Kelly both playing well to start the season the Senators are a little more reluctant to make a deal than they were a few weeks ago.

There was a team that placed a call about Kelly but Murray wanted to give the veteran a chance to get his game going. He has played well on the fourth line thus far. Picard has been strong as well.

Thats all for now folks. Enjoy the game and the rest of your long weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

WWW

Hey Readers,

Sorry about the lack of posts lately. Been pretty busy with work lately and haven't had time to chime in with a weekend post.

All that matters is the Senators have now won three straight and sit atop the Northeast division and second in the Eastern Conference. Ottawa is off until this coming Monday when they host the conference leading and defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

I'd be very interested to hear your comments on Saturday's victory over the Thrashers even though none of us had the privilege of watching the game (Thank you CBC...)

More coming later today...

Carkner Steals the Show

On a night where Mike Fisher scored the overtime winner it was an unlikely hero that won over the fans at Scotiabank Place. Matt Carkner picked up a goal, his first in the NHL, and added an assist on the Regin goal on his way to a first star performance.

While some of the big guns struggle to find their games early on in the season the Senators again found a way to win a game that appeared to be getting away from them.

Strong goaltending from Pascal Leclaire kept the Senators in this one and a wicked release from Mike Fisher sent the fans home happy. Next up for the Senators is another home date with the undefeated Atlanta Thrashers.

I know its early and we keep hearing these lines need time to gel but I'm just not sure we have the right mix up front right now.

Playing Michalek on that top line seems like a bit of a waste. Hes the kind of guy that's going to get his chances regardless of who he plays with and his speed game really doesn't seem to compliment Jason Spezza all that well.

When Ryan Shannon is ready to step back in the line up here is something I would like to see the Senators try up front.

Foligno-Spezza-Alfredsson
Cheechoo-Regin-Kovalev
Michalek-Fisher-Shannon
Ruutu/Donovan-Kelly-Neil


I know the Cheechoo-Regin-Neil line was unreal last night but we are wasting Cheechoo a little bit right now. Give Kovalev a guy who can finish on his line so he can keep playing his puck possession game. Put a playmaker like Regin with them and should help both players.


The third line would have amazing speed and should compliment each other a little better than the Fisher-Kovalev combination has.


Either that or throw Kovalev up on the left side with Spezza and Alfredsson.


Just an idea...

Senators Open Big Homestand Against Isles

I know, I know. Its only the third game of the season and the Senators first at Scotiabank Place but tonight's game against the Islanders marks the beginning of a key early season stretch for a team that expects to challenge for a playoff spot this season.

The visit from John Tavares and the New York Islanders begins an early season home stand where the Senators will play 6 of their next 7 at The Bank. Ottawa plays their next four at home (NYI, ATL, PIT, TB) and then goes to Montreal next Saturday before returning home for two more against the Predators and Bruins.

If the Senators can win four or five of their next seven they would set themselves up for a very solid month and get their season off on the right foot. If they falter during this early season home stand, they could find themselves playing catch up right out of the gate.

People have talked about giving this team some time to gel and thats fine. With so many newcomers in the line up this season the Senators will need some time to develop on ice chemistry. With that said, Ottawa needs to pick up some wins here on home ice if they want to stay competitive in what will most certainly be a tight Eastern Conference.

After a brief swing down south to play the Panthers and Lightning, the Senators again return home for a spell and in total will play 15 of their next 19 games at Scotiabank Place.

A win tonight against the Islanders would be the right way to kick off an important stretch in the Senators schedule.

A few line up notes heading into this one. Filip Kuba and Ryan Shannon will both be out again for Ottawa. Jesse Winchester is back on the ice for Ottawa but will not play tonight. Jason Spezza missed practice yesterday but will suit up tonight.

Pascal Leclaire starts in goal.

Zubov Expects to be Released

The Ottawa Senators have been trying to find a team to take a chance on Ilya Zubov but have yet to find any takers.

Now the word out of Binghamton according to Michael Sharp is that Zubov expects the Senators will release him in the very near future so that he can pursue playing options in the KHL.

The Russian prospect has fallen out of favour with Senators management and scouts and both sides seem to agree its best just to cut ties.

Best of luck to Ilya in Russia

In Praise of Shean Donovan

Its not often that a guy takes just 8 shifts for a total of 5:49 and stands out in a hockey game but thats just what happened last night with Shean Donovan.

Donovan scored one of the Senators two goals last night and was noticeable every time he touched the ice. Skating primarily on the fourth line, Donovan was strong along the boards and showed good speed in open ice.

His second period goal seemed to give the Senators a lift and was a major factor in last night's victory.

The name of Donovan has come up in trade rumours in the past and because Donovan has been the odd man out at times, hes often talked about as a guy that could be moved. With a couple young guys pushing for roster spots this season a few veteran guys have been hearing foot steps.

Granted it was just one game and less than 6 minutes in that one game, but last night Shean Donovan showed exactly why he should be kept around. Donovan is the ideal teammate and is well liked in the Senators locker room. On a team that is tight to the cap, his $625,000 annual salary is very affordable.

When everyone's healthy the Senators will likely have to move one of the extra bodies out. Last night against the hated Leafs, Donovan showed why he should stay here in Ottawa.

Couple of quick notes from today's practice courtesy of TSN's Brent Wallace. Filip Kuba, Ryan Shannon and Jason Spezza all did not skate. The injured Jesse Winchester did skate with the team for the first time in almost two weeks.

Spezza will be fine to suit up for the home opener but Kuba and Shannon won't dress. Pascal Leclaire will start.

Gutsy Road Win

The Ottawa Senators came to battle tonight and it showed. Cory Clouston's team fought right to the final horn and were rewarded with a 2-1 victory over the rival Maple Leafs. This was pretty much a picture perfect road game from the Senators.

Ottawa got goals from Donovan and Alfredsson but the offence was not the story in this one. A very impressive effort by the Senators defensively led to the W, especially considering Kuba was out of the line up.

Phillips and Volchenkov were awesome for the Senators and were double shifted late in the game. I'll admit I have thought at times it might make sense to separate these two but their effort tonight was very very impressive.

Leclaire was sharp when he had to be and made a couple big saves for this team late. Also liked the game of the Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev line and thought Matt Carkner did a great job, particularly in the third period.

Good to get the first win out of the way as they get set to return home for the Scotiabank opener on Thursday.

GO SENS GO!

Game Day vs. Leafs

(UPDATE 12:46 PM)- The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Filip Kuba will be a game time decision for this one with a lower body injury. If he can't go Alex Picard will suit up in his spot.


You hate to call it a must win this early in the season but after seeing the reaction of fans after an opening night loss, Id hate to think how people would react to a loss to the hated Leafs.

The Leafs come into this one a hungry bunch after dropping their first two games so we should see some desperation from both teams tonight. Both teams are being coy about their starting goalies but I would expect it will be Leclaire for the Senators and Gustavsson for the Leafs.

The Senators will be without Ryan Shannon, who suffered some a possible concussion in the opener. Winchester remains out of the line up but is apparently ahead of schedule on his return. Shean Donovan will play in his first game of the season.

Clouston will put Fisher back to the centre ice position with the absence of Shannon. Every line but the first will see a little bit of shuffling heading into the game with the Leafs.

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson
Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev
Cheechoo-Regin-Neil
Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Ottawa will need to have the power play going tonight in Toronto. The big bad Leafs defence is slow and should take a bunch of penalties tonight. Ottawa is going to need to make them pay with the PP.

Tonight's game is on TSN which means we get our first dose of Pierre McGuire this season. Can't wait....

PREDICTION: Ottawa 4 Toronto 2

Life Goes On

Alright so it wasn't the start we were all hoping for. The Senators laid a bit of an egg on Broadway Saturday night and dropped the season opener 5-2.

I gotta say I'm a little surprised by some of the reaction in here after the game. Its obviously hard to tell if these are actual Senators fans or not but the panic following a loss in the first game of the season was a tad excessive.

The negativity out there after the opening night loss was sickening. We have seen the worst of Senators fans and media and it only took one freakin' game. Its not my place to judge other fans and media for the way they root and cover for this team but here's hoping we can get a win on Tuesday so we dont have to read anymore "I told you they weren't gonna be good" rants.

Sure they lost the first one but the good news is theres 81 more to come. There were signs of the team we hoped to see throughout the game but clearly this is a roster that is going to need some time to gel. With so many changes up front, its going to take time for these guys to get used to each other.

The Senators are back in action tomorrow when they visit the new look Leafs at the ACC.

The trade talk could cool off a little bit for the time being. Ryan Shannon, who was one of Ottawa's better players on Saturday, is a little banged up and could possibly miss Tuesday's game against the Leafs.

Murray will continue to try and move the disgruntled Ilya Zubov but other than that he may stand pat for a little bit. I've been told a team has called about centre Chris Kelly but Bryan Murray would like to give him a chance to get it going early in the season before pulling the trigger.

GAME DAY!

Finally...........

After a long and painful summer the puck drops for real tonight. The Senators will kick of the 2009/2010 season at Madison Square Garden in New York tonight at about 7:08 PM. The Rangers lost last night in Pittsburgh so they will be hungry for their first win in their home opener tonight.

Newly appointed alternate captain Mike Fisher is expected to play tonight despite missing practice last week. It has been suggested to me that it may be his ankle thats bothering him but theres no confirmation on that.

I'm actually heading out for the game tonight so I won't be able to participate but its been brought to my attention that the guys over at Sens Army have organized one big in-game blog for tonight's game. Not sure exactly how it will work but if you go to their site around game time I'm sure you'll find it.

Lastly, an interesting note about the Christoph Schubert waiver claim from yesterday. The Thrashers may have ended up with him but they were not the team that originally showed the interest. Apparently it was the Calgary Flames that were looking for defensive help leading to Schubert going on reentry. Word is the Rangers also made a claim.

Its here folks. Its finally here. After the seemingly endless summer of Heatley speculation that bogged this team down during the off season, hockey starts for real tonight. Experts and prognosticators don't give this team much of a chance this year and that's just fine by me. This Senators team is going to surprise a few people this year and it all starts tonight!

Enjoy the game everyone.....

One More Sleep... (Schubert to Atlanta)

(UPDATE 12:28 PM)- So much for it being a Western Conference team. Sounds like the Atlanta Thrashers have grabbed Christoph Schubert off re-entry. All the best to Christoph in Atlanta.



(UPDATE 11:54 AM)- According to Brent Wallace and James Gordon, the Ottawa Senators have officially given the "A" to Mike Fisher.


The Ottawa Senators drop the puck on the 2009/2010 season tomorrow night at MSG after what has been the longest summer in franchise history.

Clouston was expected to announce the alternate captain for the coming season yesterday but the announcement never came. Its expected that Mike Fisher will join Captain Daniel Alfredsson and Chris Phillips in the leadership group.

Speaking of Fisher, he missed practice yesterday with what the Senators are calling a few bumps and bruises. From what I've been told, Fisher will be good to suit up for the opener against New York. He did skate this morning.

The season may start tomorrow but that doesn't mean Bryan Murray is not looking at options on the trade front. In addition to shopping Alex Picard, word is he may be looking to move out a forward as well. GM's have been calling the past couple of days with Kelly, Donovan and Ruutu the names that come up most often.

Ottawa is also looking for a new home for the unhappy Ilya Zubov.

Christoph Schubert was placed on re-entry waivers yesterday and he is expected to be picked up at some point today. Word is the Predators may be the team interested in his services.

Here were the lines at practice this morning according to the Senators Twitter...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson
Fisher-Regin-Kovalev
Foligno-Shannon-Cheechoo
Ruutu-Kelly-Neil
Donovan

Phillips-Volchenkov
Kuba-Karlsson
Campoli-Carkner
Picard

Leclaire
Elliott

Schubert on Re-Entry

(UPDATE 11:50 PM)- Bob McKenzie is now saying he would be shocked if someone didn't pick up Schubert on re-entry by noon tomorrow. I'm still being told its a a Western Conference team that is showing an interest in Schubert.

Quick update here as I expect to have more later.

According to Brent Wallace the Senators have placed Christoph Schubert on re-entry waivers. You would think there must be a team interested for Murray to make this move. Word is a Western Conferece team has interest in Schubert.