Making Sense of the Lee Demotion

I've had the weekend to think it over but I still can't make sense of the decision to bring up Erik Karlsson and send down Brian Lee.

I understand the theory that Karlsson is a "Murray Guy" while Lee is a left over from the Muckler era but I really felt like Lee had earned his spot on the NHL roster the last little while. More importantly, I just don't think the 2008 first round pick is ready.

If they think that 10 games in the AHL is going to cure all that ails the underaged and undersized Karlsson, they are kidding themselves. With his appearance against the Bruins, the Senators have triggered a year in his contract and for what?

What happens when Volchenkov is ready to return? That could happen as early as tomorrow. Is Karlsson a healthy scratch? Or do they scratch one of Campoli or Picard over Karlsson?

There's no doubt Erik Karlsson is a blue chip prospect. He's going to be a terrific NHL defenceman one day. I just don't think that day is now.

The only way this move makes sense to me is if it's a precursor to another move. The Senators are out on the West Coast now and its possible Murray has a potential deal he's sitting on. Perhaps one that involves Brian Lee...

The rumours with the Hawks have gone silent since last weekend but you'd think a two way contract like Brian Lee's would make a lot of sense for Chicago. Purely speculation on my part though.

But if this really is just a simple demotion/promotion then I think its a mistake for the organization. Karlsson just doesn't look ready and by demoting Lee they are alienating a player that has taken great strides over the last season.

Just my opinion though...

Chirp of the Week

Sorry for the late post. I had some technical issues with this last week but here is the first winner of Chirp of the Week. Keep the contributions coming in folks...

Here is this week's winner. Dave has a thing or two to say about some of the fans in this city...

All of these people saying they are going to stop buying tickets and stop going to games are ridiculous. How can you refer to yourselves as fans? "Ottawa's losing, why would I want to spend money to see them play?" Because they are your team, losing sucks, but not standing by your team when they are at a low point, which they are far from, is utterly insane. When I'm walking around Toronto, wearing my Sens jersey on game day, I feel totally alone. This is to be expected, I'm on enemy soil. But to feel the same way when walking around Scotiabank Place makes me sick.

I remember being at the Pittsburgh game, Ottawa was down, half of the "fans" left during the second intermission. Another quarter had left during the 3rd and the Pittsburgh fans almost outnumbered the remaining Ottawa fans with 10 minutes left. On top of that, I had an Ottawa "fan" get mad at me for sitting on the edge of my seat when there was a scramble in front of the Penguins' net. This experience made me come to the conclusion that Ottawa fans, for the most part, are nothing more than spectators. You don't love the team, you just show up to watch, and just like with TV, if you don't like what you are watching, you switch it off.

When we have fans showing up to games expecting the team to lose, and the only noises we hear are fake cheers for the goalie, if he's been letting in softies, or perhaps boo's raining down when a defenceman gets caught flat footed, it makes me cringe. Can you not see that this is a terrible way to show support for your team? Coming to home ice only to be treated like the visiting team. Awful.

The fact of the matter is, when the Sens are doing poorly do you not think they know? The media hounds them and they are forced to watch video of all of their mistakes made in the previous game. On top of that, the coaching staff further pounds the point home; so yes the team knows when they are playing poorly. They don't need their fans reminding them as well.

I have to chuckle a little bit when the only legitimate cheers I hear are started by children. Cheers which are quickly silenced by parents who are afraid their kids are being too loud, or worse, they are silenced because no other fans want to be caught cheering for a team who's losing. But these children are doing what we should all be doing, cheering on the troops regardless of what the score on the board says. A little positive reinforcement never hurt anyone, especially when you are getting negative reinforcement from everywhere else. If anything, an arena full of loud fans cheering "Go Sens Go" would make me want to get going.

Hey they're your tickets, do what you want, if it were me I'd be at every game, cheering as loud as I can, no matter what.

Dave

Big Test in Beantown

Tonight will be a tough test for the Ottawa Senators as they visit their division rival Boston Bruins. The Bruins picked up a single point yesterday and now sit tied with the Senators with 29 points a piece.

The Senators will get a boost tonight with the return of Mike Fisher. He has missed the last two games after an apparent off ice back injury but he is back and ready to go tonight.

Ottawa will also have rookie Erik Karlsson in the line up this evening. He'll take the spot of Brian Lee who was sent down early yesterday. Sounds like Anton Volchenkov will be out of the line up once again.

With Fisher's return, call up Ryan Keller will be a scratch. Here are the lines from this morning's skate...

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

Brian Elliott gets the start in goal. Puck drop is at 7:00 PM on CBC.

** I've seen a few people mention it so I thought I should clear something up. There were no scouts from the Chicago Blackhawks present at the game on Thursday. There were 3 or 4 other teams but the Hawks were not one of them.

Karlsson Called Up, Lee Headed Down

Acording to Ian Mendes, Brian Lee has been returned to Binghamton. Meanwhile, Erik Karlsson has been recalled in a bit of a surprise move.

The status of Anton Volchenkov is still unknown.

Karlsson will apparently play against the Bruins tomorrow night.

Its a tough break for Lee as he has played quite well since being called up. His two way contract makes him the obvious choice.

The Senators skated this morning but Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza and Milke Fisher were all absent.

Back on Top

Certainly wasn't the prettiest game to watch but a very important two points for the Senators tonight against the Columbus Bluejackets. The win helps the Senators regain top spot in the Northeast division heading into their game on Saturday against the Bruins.

Nick Foligno scored on the power play late in the third period to give the Senators a one goal lead they would not relinquish.

Jesse Winchester had a two point night and was solid at both ends of the ice. Had a few big hits (6 in total) and was strong on the puck. A solid night from role players like Ruutu, Winchester, Foligno and Cheechoo had a lot to do with tonight's win.

Ottawa welcomed Alex Kovalev back to the line up tonight and I thought he was one of the best players on the ice. His puck control was phenomenal and actually led to Jason Spezza's second goal of the season.

Brian Elliott was obviously the first star of this game in my books. He had 32 saves and bailed out the Sens on multiple occasions. He certainly looks capable of carrying the mail for the next few weeks.

Rick Nash had a decent game for the Jackets but was there any doubt he'd be named Pierre's Monster of the game? As soon as I saw the look on Pierre's face as he stood beside Nash on the bench, I knew Mr. McGuire had made his choice.

Until tomorrow...

Game Day vs. Jackets

It's a quick turn around for the Senators as they are back in action tonight to take on the Columbus Bluejackets at SBP.

Ottawa dropped a tight checking affair with the Devils last night night and will look to get back to their winning ways tonight against the Jackets. I already did my rant about the officiating last night but its good to hear Bryan Murray is concerned about it as well.

Word is he spoke with Kerry Fraser after the game last night.


A few lineup notes heading into this one...

-Alex Kovalev will return to the Sens line up tonight. He has missed the last few games due to personal reasons but should be ready to face the Jackets tonight.

-Mike Fisher will miss the game. He hurt himself in practice the other day and will miss his second straight game. The injury is being called upper body and is believed to be an issue with his back.

-Anton Volchenkov is improving but will likely have to wait til the weekend to make his return.

-Chris Neil, Shean Donovan and Pascal Leclaire are all dealing injuries that are considered long term. Neil went down with a knee injury last night and is expected to miss the next little while. Ian Mendes says the injury will keep Neil out 10-14 days.

The only change from the line up in New Jersey will be Chris Neil coming out and Alex Kovalev going in.

Brian Elliott will start.

Brutal Officiating

Not much to say about this one.

Shorthanded line up and a pretty good road effort. I though Elliott had a really strong game but the Senators just couldn't get much going against a stingy Devils team.

The officiating continues to be an absolute disgrace. Can you tell me how in the world Ottawa went another full 60 minutes without an opponent reaching a hand or a stick out? Not one damn penalty???

Give me a break. Ruutu had his face carved right in front of the Devils net late in the third and no call. If neither ref was looking there, where in the hell were they looking? That should have been a game changing double minor.

More injury troubles in this one. Chris Neil looked like the most serious after he was caught knee on knee by Andrew Peters. Regin, Picard and Carkner all left with injuries during the game but all returned.

Hopefully Ottawa can get some guys back tomorrow...

LIVE BLOG TONIGHT

Seemed to work pretty well for the Senators the last time we had one so lets try it again.

Live Bloggin tonight's game over theScore.com. Hope to see you guys over there! The game can be seen on TSN2.

Also, Jared Cowen will dress for the WHL in tonight's Subway Super Series game against Team Russia. Game time is 10:00 PM on Sportsnet. Cowen will wear an "A" for the Western All Stars. Should be interesting to see the top prospect in action.

Senators Recall Ryan Keller- Fisher Out

(UPDATE 11:15 AM)- The word is Ryan Keller will take the place of Mike Fisher in the line up this evening.

The Ottawa Senators announced today that they have recalled forward Ryan Keller from Binghamton.

TONIGHT'S LINE UP

Michalek-Spezza-Shannon
Foligno-Regin-Alfredsson
Ruutu-Kelly-Neil
Cheechoo-Winchester-Keller

Leclaire Out a Month- Needs Surgery

Sounds like the worst case scenario for Pascal Leclaire and the Ottawa Senators.

Leclaire suffered a fractured cheek bone last night and will be out at least 4 week as a result. As I mentioned earlier, Mike Brodeur has been recalled in the meantime.

Just brutal luck for Leclaire.

Brodeur Recalled and a Fisher Rant

Quick update on the status of Pascal Leclaire.

There is no word on how severe the injury is but according to Brent Wallace, Mike Brodeur has been recalled on an emergency basis to replace Pascal. Should know more about how severe the injury is after this morning's skate.

Alfredsson is not skating this morning but Volchenkov is out there with his teammates.

MIKE FISHER

Even as recently as a month ago I would have laughed at the suggestion. Mike Fisher on Team Canada? A longshot at best...

But here we sit, the quarter mark of the NHL schedule and Mike Fisher is beginning to force Steve Yzerman and the Team Canada brass stand up and take notice. If going with the hot hand is gonna mean anything when the selections are made in late December you'd have to think Fisher is going to at least get a look.

The team is going to be extremely deep at centre with guys like Crosby, Getzlaf, Richards, Thornton, Toews and Stamkos already pushing for spots but where Fisher would be very useful is as a fourth line, two-way guy. Someone who can play the wing if need be but can also take a draw and kill penalties too.

I'm a big fan of Shane Doan but it's hard not to at least consider Fisher over the Team Canada veteran.

Fisher had a great World Championships and can do the same job a guy like Doan can. Difference is Doan has had a rather ordinary start to the season (6 goals/16 points) while Fisher is a point a game guy.

Fish is absolutely a long shot to make the team but as long as he keeps putting up points and scoring huge goals for the Senators, Team Canada has to consider him.

HUGE CHARACTER WIN!

Ottawa battled back with two third period goals and took a huge two points against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Mike Fisher played hero again for the Senators, on a night where he looked like the Sens just didn't have it through two periods.

They came out flying in the third and just put everything on net. The results speak for themselves.

The one minus from this one is obviously the fluke injury to Pascal Leclaire. He was hit by a puck on the bench in the second period and had to leave. No update on his status yet.

Just a MASSIVE WIN for the Senators though. Their fourth win in five on the homestand.

GO SENS GO!!

Until tomorrow....

LIVE BLOG TONIGHT!

Huge test tonight against the Washington Capitals.

I'll be live blogging the game over at theScore.com.

Hope to see some of you over there!

Sens Get Set for Caps

Nothing new on those Hawks rumours yet today.

I didn't see it myself but somebody emailed me late last night and said that the trade was very briefly listed on ESPN as being a done deal but was pulled shortly after. Still have to classify this whole story as nothing more than a rumour for now.

I'll keep digging around today...

Meanwhile, the Senators get set for a tough test tonight in the Washington Capitals.

Anton Volchenkov was back on the ice with the team this morning but is not expected to play tonight. Alex Kovalev was absent from practice this morning. His status is still not known although according to Ian Mendes, Clouston said he was doubtful for tonight.

The good news is Pascal Leclaire was back on the ice with his teammates this morning. The injury he suffered on Saturday night is obviously not all that serious. According to James Gordon of the Ottawa Citizen, Clouston will talk to Leclaire again before deciding on his starter for tonight. (ELLIOTT WILL START TONIGHT)

Here are the lines from this morning's game day skate...

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

I'll be live blogging this game for theScore.com tonight. Stop by later today for the link!

Senators and Hawks Talking

The rumours with the Chicago Blackhawks are back on the front burner this weekend.

The Hawks have some serious cap issues right now and the Senators might be willing to take a player of their hands. Word is the Senators have interest in defenceman Cam Barker.

Ottawa would apparently send Ryan Shannon and Alex Picard to the Windy City in return. I would think draft picks would have to be involved as well.

I spoke to one contact this evening who actually suggested that this was a done deal but that the league had taken issue with it. There's talk the Hawks would could potentially put one or both Ottawa players on waivers if the deal was to go through.

This is just a rumour for now but definitely something to keep an eye on here. I'll update again if I hear anything more.

Big Win

A little more dramatic than it should of been but a huge two points.

Let's hope Leclaire is ok.

Other than that a huge win over the Sabres.

Until tomorrow...
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Donovan out 6-8 Weeks

Devastating blow for Shean Donovan and the Ottawa Senators. The results of the MRI are in and showed MCL damage as well as possible ACL damage.

As first reported by Brent Wallace, Donovan will miss at least 6-8 weeks. After that time he'll test out the knee and see if there is any further damage. The good news, if there is any, is that surgery is not required.

Donovan has done a great job on the Senators fourth line this season and has given the team a boost of energy every time hes been in the line up.

Meanwhile, life goes on for the Senators as they face a huge test tonight in the NorthEast leading Buffalo Sabres. Ottawa will also be without Alex Kovalev tonight who has returned to Russia for personal reasons.

The Sabres played last night in Buffalo so hopefully Ottawa can jump on them early on.

With Donovan and Kovalev out, Peter Regin and Ryan Shannon will both get a chance to jump back in the line up.

The lines will look something like this...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Foligno-Fisher-Shannon

Ruutu-Kelly-Neil

Cheechoo-Regin-Winchester

Puck drop is 7:00 PM.

Update From Practice

(UPDATE 3:37 PM)- Here is a clip of "The Shift". Kovalev, Fisher and Foligno dominate the Penguins and hold the puck for a full 1:17 prior to the Carkner goal. Unreal.

http://www.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?id=51997

The Senators are back on the ice the morning after a spirited victory over the defending champs. Ottawa now gets set to take on the division leading Sabres tomorrow night.

Ottawa was down a few bodies at practice today. Alex Kovalev has left and is on his way to Russia to attend the funeral of his wife's mother. Once again, Alfredsson is not practicing. Its pretty clear Alfie is fighting some type of injury the last little while but it isn't serious enough to keep him out of the line up.

Shean Donovan was also absent at practice. There's no word on his condition yet but he did leave the game last night with a knee injury. His status is still unknown. Not sure if its the real Ian Mendes on Twitter but if it is he posted the following...

Cory Clouston on Shean Donovan injury - "It looks pretty serious. We're not sure what extent - whether it's long term or real long term."

Donovan will have an MRI today at which point they'll know more about his status.

Other than that its a pretty quiet day on the Senators front. A couple of you have asked but it doesnt appear as though theres anything new on the Hawks front. Chicago really isn't in any hurry to make a deal and can wait till the deadline if they choose to.

Bob McKenzie seems to think that Brent Sopel is one of the prime candidates to be moved if Chicago is forced to do something.

Huuuuuuge Win

I don't think many people thought this game would go this way.

Ottawa dominated this game start to finish. A well deserved two points.

Look forward to reading your comments...

Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Game Day vs. Penguins

(UPDATE 6:02 PM)- Thanks folks. Word is Kovalev will play tonight and leave after the game.


(UPDATE 2:35 PM)- Alex Kovalev will miss the next couple of games. He has returned to Russia after the death of his wife's mother. All the best to Alex and his family during this difficult time.

Shannon will take his place in the line up.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=298978

The Senators continue their 5 game homestand with a visit from the defending champs tonight at Scotiabank Place. Tonight is the second and final visit from Crosby and the Penguins.

The Penguins have won their last two outings but continue to battle all kindsof injuries. It was beginning to look like it would be Mark Eaton and 5 AHL call ups on the Pens blueline for tonight but they are apparently expecting Gonchar to return to their line up in time to face the Sens.

Meanwhile, no lineup changes to report for the Senators. That means Pascal Leclaire gets the nod in goal with Ryan Shannon and Peter Regin as the healthy scratches.

Here are the lines, courtesy of the Senators official Twitter Feed...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Winchester-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Tonight is the beginning of a rough stretch for the Senators on home ice. They face three Eastern Conference powers in the Penguins, Sabres and Capitals and could use some fan support. Word is there are still tickets left for this one so get yours HERE.

Awhile back I mentioned that there may have been a team that was showing interest in Chris Kelly. After doing some digging, word is that team may have been the New Jersey Devils. They lost Madden in the off season and were looking to replace that void in the line up.

The Devils have since signed veteran Rob Niedermayer and also have Dean McAmmond in the organization so I'm assuming their interest in Kelly has dwindled.

Quick Wednesday Update

The Ottawa Senators were back on the ice today, the morning after a narrow victory over the rival Maple Leafs. The win gives the Sens 21 points on the season, one point back of the 8th place Lightning.

Daniel Alfredsson, Anton Volchenkov and Chris Neil were all absent from practice this morning. Ottawa was hoping to have Volchenkov back on the ice with the team today but have decided to wait at least one more day. They still hope A-Train will be good to go this Saturday. (CORRECTION-Clouston just said he doesn't expect Volchenkov back until mid next week)

Other than that the lines remain unchanged.

Michalek-Spezza-Shannon

Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Regin-Winchester

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

As so many of you have pointed out, Clouston needs to consider a shuffle of that top line. They have shown no chemistry together over the past few games and need to be broken up.

It seems to make sense that they would put Alfredsson back on that second line with Fisher and put Cheechoo with Spezza and Michalek on the top line. Those three had some chemistry at times and should probably be reunited.

Hopefully we see a shakeup before the Senators take the ice tomorrow to host the 4th place Penguins.

On the trade front, expect the rumours to pick up with the Chicago Blackhawks again in the next little while. They're about to re-sign three key players (Toews, Kane, Keith) and will be facing some serious cap issues. The names of Patrick Sharp, Cam Barker and Brent Seabrook are already being thrown around.

I forgot to post this the other day but here is the PROSPECT UPDATE courtesy of the Senators Twitter feed.

Leclaire Steals One

It wasn't a pretty performance from the Senators. They sat back and let the Leafs come at them for nearly the entire third period but were still able to pick up the two points. The reason for that was pretty simple; Pascal Leclaire.

Sure the two that did get by him weren't the greatest but he was good when he had to be. I hesitate to compare Pascal to a guy like Brodeur but thats just what this was. Like Marty so often does, he let in a couple that he would like to have back but when he needed to be there he was.

Leclaire made several key stops in the third period and is the reason Ottawa came away with the win against the rival Leafs.

Alex Kovalev was very good for the Senators tonight and showed some good chemistry with Mike Fisher, who scored twice for Ottawa. Maybe Clouston does know what hes doing with these lines afterall.

Thanks to all of you who came out to the Live Blog tonight. There were a few Leaf fans in there but we definitely had them outnumbered!

Anyway, thats all for tonight...

Until tomorrow...

LIVE BLOG TONIGHT!

It may not be the Battle of Ontario of years gone by but tonight is a big one for both these teams. Ottawa is looking to get back on track after some ugly losses as of late and a visit from the lowly Leafs may be just what the doctor ordered.

I'll be live blogging the game over at theScore.com. They are expecting a huge turnout for this one so hopefully I see a lot of you over there.

Its bad enough so many of them will be out at Scotiabank Place tonight, lets not let Leaf fans outnumber us in the Live Blog.

See you over there!

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

Battle Of Ontario (Winchester IN, Regin OUT)

The rivalry may not have the same intensity as years gone past but there is still a little something extra on the line when the Senators and Leafs get together.

Judging by the poll posted a couple weeks back the hatred is still there for the provincial rivals so a win tonight would be big for a fan base that has been on edge as of late. I would hate to see the comment section around here should the Senators lose to the lowly Leafs.

Puck drop is at 7:30 PM at Scotiabank Place. (Sportsnet). Sounds like there are still some tickets left for this one so go out and grab 'em. Get your tickets here.

It looks like Jesse Winchester will come back into the line up tonight in the place of Peter Regin. Regin had a strong start to the season but has faded a little bit as of late. Watching a game from the press box might be good for him.

The lines will look something like this...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Winchester-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan Scratches: Shannon, Regin

Pascal Leclaire will be back in net for the Sens.

Talking with a couple of different people this morning it seems as though there may be a little desperation on Murray's part to shore up his back end a little. Murray did mention the other day that he may be looking to add a forward but a defenceman seems to be the priority at this point.

The Senators should get some help on that front with the return of Volchenkov but would still like to add an all around blueliner who can take a shift on the power play. Obviously their options are pretty limited right now but Murray is looking.

GAME NOTES

Sens Prepare for Leafs (Chirp of the Week Feature)

(UPDATE 4:17 PM)- Looks like we can put the Forsberg to Ottawa rumours to rest for another season. Bob McKenzie just Twittered that Foppa will not make a return to the NHL this season. Ohhhhh well...

The Senators were back on the ice this morning as they prepare to take on their provincial rivals tomorrow night. No changes to the Senators lines at this morning's skate meaning Ryan Shannon and Jesse Winchester will likely be the scratches tomorrow night.

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Regin-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Elliott had a strong game against the Rangers but I would expect the Senators to go back to their #1 goalie tomorrow. Leclaire has had problems with soft goals this year but he has also made some big time saves. Missing most of last season has clearly caused some issues with his timing but I expect that to get better with time.

The Senators are hoping to have Volchenkov back late this week but it doesn't look like it will be in time for tomorrow's visit from the Leafs. Clouston said this morning that he hopes A-Train will be able to play by the weekend.

CHIRP OF THE WEEK FEATURE

I've noticed some quality rants in the comment section these days and its given me an idea for a new feature here on the site. From now on, each Sunday we will have the "Chirp of the Week". This will give one reader the chance to have their article posted here on the website.

Not sure what kind of feedback this idea will get but obviously not all submissions can be posted. I'll pick one each week and post it at some point on Sunday. Sunday's are usually pretty slow around here so this would be a good way to fill some open space.

Submissions should be 300-500 words in length and should have your name or website handle somewhere on there. You can send your rants to sensrumours@hotmail.com. The weekly winner will be posted this coming Sunday.

Looking forward to reading them...

Elliott to Start

According to Brent Wallace at TSN, Brian Elliott will get the call this afternoon when the Senators host the New York Rangers.

Ryan Shannon returns to the press box. Shean Donovan takes his spot in the line up.

Puck drop is at 2. The game can be seen on CBC.
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Post Game Wrap up and Rumours

Always one to focus on the good in this hockey team, I'm often considered to be a bit of a positivist. Well as I sat down to write the post game wrap up last night I drew a complete blank.

I honestly could not find one thing good about last night's effort in Philadelphia. It felt as though we were back in the Craig Hartsburg era as this team just sat back and took everything the Flyers had to give. Maybe this team forgot how to play on the road after so many games at home the last little while but that effort last night was down right awful.

I sat there looking at the TV for two and a half hours and honestly could not pick out anything good in the Senators game.

This defence group is not good enough to sit back like they did last night. Here's hoping they make the necessary adjustments to the game plan in time for Saturday, when they open up a 5 game home stand against the Rangers.

That and Pascal Leclaire has to be better. For the first part of the game Ottawa was able to sit back but a couple of weak ones on Leclaire really took the air out of the team.

Alright, enough of that. On to a couple rumours that have been sent my way in the last 24 hours.

-Obviously there's the report from Eklund that Ottawa is looking at Brent Seabrook in Chicago. Thats all well and good but the asking price is going to extremely high if Ottawa is serious about acquiring Seabrook.

-There is also some talk about 4th liner Chris Kelly. There's at least one team that has shown interest in Kelly to this point but Murray wanted to give him a chance to find his game early in the year. Kelly has been ok up to this point but is certainly expendable with Winchester and Donovan both waiting in the wings.

-Murray has said he would like to add a forward but would need to clear one or two out first. Murray has apparently put a call in about Frolov in Los Angeles but nothing more than a telephone call to report on that front.

-Ottawa continues to keep an eye on the Peter Forsberg situation but is definitely considered a long shot to add the veteran if he does decide to return to the NHL.

Visiting an Old Friend

The Ottawa Senators pay a visit to a familiar face tonight when they take on Ray Emery and the Flyers in Philadelphia. Tonight's tilt marks the first time Ottawa has played Rayzor since he suited up for the Senators a couple seasons ago.

Emery was a fan favourite for the majority of his tenure here in Ottawa but the wheels really came off towards the end. Emery had run ins with the teammates, management and even the law while in Ottawa and eventually ended up leaving for the KHL.

Emery has found a home in Philadelphia. He's the number one goalie for a contending team and seems to be finding his game once again. I for one am happy for Ray. There was speculation that if this game was in Ottawa, Ray would receive a rough ride but I really don't think fans in Ottawa hold a grudge.

Meanwhile, the Senators likely face their toughest test of the season tonight in the Flyers. Philly has won four straight and is 6-2-1 on home ice this season.

The Senators are expected to ice the same line up as Tuesday against the Oilers, meaning the lines will look something like this...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Cheechoo-Fisher-Kovalev

Foligno-Regin-Shannon

Ruutu-Kelly-Neil

Phillips-Kuba

Campoli-Lee

Picard-Carkner

Pascal Leclaire will get the start in net.

Tonight's game can be seen on...sigh...TSN. Puck drop is 7:00 PM.

A Day of Remembrance

The Ottawa Senators skated today before heading out to Philly to face Ray Emery and the Flyers tomorrow night.

Alfredsson took the day with what will certainly be called bumps and bruises. Volchenkov skated before the team but will again be out of the line up on Thursday night.

Here are the lines from this mornings practice...

Michalek-Spezza-Winchester

Kovalev-Fisher-Cheechoo

Foligno-Regin-Shannon

Ruutu-Kelly-Neil-Donovan.

A quick aside on this day of remembrance.

Its on a days like this that the game that we love is really put into perspective.

Remembrance Day is a day we honour those that have fought for the freedom that we so often take for granted.

I would personally like to thank all those men and women that have served and continue to serve our country, and especially those who gave the ultimate sacrafice for the blessed lives that we live today.

If you see a veteran today, take the time to say thank you. This beautiful country that we live in would not be what it is today if not for the sacrifices made by so many brave men and women.

Two Points is Two Points

The Senators were able to escape with an important two points tonight in what was a terribly sloppy game against the Oilers.

Ottawa took the lead in the third period only to see Brule score on a weak goal to tie things up at 3-3 late in the third. The Senators were sloppy throughout the final frame but were in a position to win the game after a hard work goal by Chris Neil. It was definitely a goal Leclaire would like to have back

Leclaire did bounce back nicely in the shootout though and made a couple of saves to help get the win.

There were plenty of negatives in this game and I'm sure some of you will point them out in the comments section but all that matters is Ottawa was able to pick up the two points. Ottawa took less penalties in this one but didn't draw a single power play. I don't know what the Senators did to anger the officials in this league but its becoming pretty damn obvious they don't like us.

Great to see Jonathan Cheechoo finally bag his first of the season. Cheechoo finished off a play from Alex Kovalev and got his first in a Senators uniform. After that goal, Cheechoo seemed a little more relaxed and actually had some pretty good chemistry going with Alex Kovalev.

Anyway, congrats to Jonathan Cheechoo on his first goal as a Senator.

Ottawa will have to be a lot better Thursday in Philly.

Until tomorrow....

GO SENS GO!

Game Day vs. Oilers

(UPDATE 5:24 PM)- As promised, here's the link to tonight's live blog over at theScore.com. Hope to see lots of you over there. Should be a few Oilers fans in attendance so we wanna make sure we have them out numbered.

GO SENS GO!

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

Ottawa Senators fans will get their first look at what could have been tonight when the Edmonton Oilers visit the Senators at Scotiabank Place tonight.

The off season blockbuster that very nearly sent Dany Heatley to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Dustin Penner, Andrew Cogliano and Ladislav Smid was vetoed by Dany Heatley and his no trade clause.

Even to this day, there are those in the Senators organization who cry foul over the veto as they insist Heatley had given the Senators permission to work out a deal with the Oilers. When faced with the reality of play in Edmonton, Heatley balked and instead decided to wait out a deal to Sunny California.

We'll never know how that trade would have worked out for Ottawa but the start that Dustin Penner is having in Edmonton (21 pts in 17 games) really makes you wonder what could have been. (For the record, I think Michalek was the best player in either deal so we did ok in the long run)

Meanwhile, the Ottawa Senators are flat out desperate for a win. Coming off an ugly loss against the Devils, the Senators want to get back to their winning ways against an Oiler team that has struggled on the road this season.

Ryan Shannon is expected to draw back into the line up meaning that Shean Donovan and Jesse Winchester will be tonight's healthy scratches.

Here is a look at the expected line up courtesy of the Senators Twitter feed.

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Foligno-Fisher-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Regin-Shannon

Ruutu-Kelly-Neil

Pascal Leclaire is expected to get the start for the Sens.

I'll be live blogging the game again for theScore.com. We had a season high turnout for the game last night so here's hoping for more of the same tonight. I'll post the link later this afternoon.

Hope to see some of you over there...

Roy Mlakar on OTR

Former Senators President and well respected hockey man Roy Mlakar was just on Off the Record with Michael Landsberg.

Not sure if anyone caught it but there was one question particular that caught my attention...Here is the exchange that took place.

Landsberg: Who do you think the Senators fans hate the most? Alexei Yashin or Dany Heatley?

Mlakar: Alexei Yashin

Landsberg: Really? Still?

Mlakar: He walked out on a contract...

Landsberg: And Dany Heatley...?

Mlakar: I think some day we'll find out the real truth on that.

I know this has all been beaten to death but it very interesting to hear that answer from Mlakar.

Other topics included Roger's House, the Blue Jays President position, the siutation in Phoenix and the disgraceful Gladiator performance before Game 1 against the Pens a couple years back. Interview is definitely worth a watch...

Prospect Update

The Senators Twitter feed has posted the prospect update for this week. Here is the link.

http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/PDFs/Prospect_Update-091109.pdf

Jared Cowen had a big week for the Spokane Chiefs, registering 4 points in 3 games and a +7. Patrick Wiercioch also continued his strong start to the season. Hes got 9 points in 10 games with the University of Denver.

A couple of people had been asking if the Senators might take a look at Michael Nylander off the waiver wire but Bob McKenzie is reporting that he has cleared today. Not sure Nylander really would have fit in Ottawa anyways.

A Sunday Rant

Ottawa has been on the wrong end of a some ugly loses this year and obviously there are a number of factors at play. Undisciplined play, inconsistent officiating, underachieving stars and suspect third period goaltending just to name a few.

Some of these elements are out of the Senators hands but the underachieving stars is something that can be fixed. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Cory Clouston and the up tempo, high pressure system he's brought to Ottawa but when it comes to line combos I've been left scratching my head at times.

I really think Alex Kovalev has to be given a chance to skate a regular shift with Jason Spezza. The two think the game the same way and have a creativity that needs to be complemented properly.

I've read this suggested in the comment section here as well as on other sites and I really think there's something to it. Here are the line combinations I'd like to see Clouston try...

Michalek-Spezza-Kovalev

Cheechoo-Fisher-Alfredsson

Foligno-Regin-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan

Like any line combinations these won't work all the time. With that first line there are obviously going to some high risk/high reward type plays but I think putting Kovalev with Spezza is the best way to get a slumping Kovalev going.

I know the Cheechoo haters will say he hasn't earned top 6 minutes and thats fine. Reality is Cheechoo is/was a very good goal scorer in this league and didn't completely lose those abilities. He's never going to get back to the level he was at a few seasons ago but with his work ethic, he can still be a 20 goal scorer in this league.

Lastly, Shean Donovan need to be in the line up on a regular basis. He's been one of the Senators most consistent forwards the last year or so and has earned a spot on that fourth line.

There may be a reason these lines don't work but I just don't see it.

Just seems like its worth a shot at this point.

Until tomorrow...

Tough Loss

The Senators had the Devils on the ropes but a string of bad penalties led to three straight power play goals from New Jersey and a tough 3-2 loss.

The Senators jumped out to a two goal lead on goals by Michalek and Lee but just couldn't hold the Devils off. Couple of the goals are ones that Pascal Leclaire would love to have back, especially the tying goal from Clarkson.

Not much else to say. I just figured I would throw up this post so all the angry fans would have a place to vent. If the Live Blog is any indication the fans have some things to say after that loss.

Back at it Tuesday against the Oilers...

Enjoy the rest of the weekend folks.

Tonight's Live Blog

As I mentioned earlier, I'll be live blogging tonight's Devils/Senators game over at theScore.com. Had a pretty good turnout for the last Senators game I did over there so it should be a good time tonight too.

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

A quick note on the Forsberg rumour mentioned in the Ottawa Sun this morning. This actually came up with a contact I spoke to earlier this week. He suggested to me that the Eugene Melnyk has already given Murray the go ahead to pursue Forbserg, should the Senators GM decide thats something he wants to do.

The reality is, Forsberg has not yet decided if he will return to the NHL and is apparently considering an offer to play in the KHL. Seems to me the NHL is the more likely choice for Forsberg but he certainly seems to have options.

If Foppa does decide to make a return to the NHL, expect the Avalanche and the Flyers to be the front runners. Both teams have started the season strong and are teams that Forsberg has suited up for in the past.

With that said, Bruce Garrioch is bang on. The Ottawa Senators will definitely have interest in Forsberg should he decide to make yet another come back to the NHL.

Hope to see some of you at the live blog tonight

Sens Host Devils

The Ottawa Senators will look for their second straight win tonight when they host the New Jersey Devils.

Ottawa is coming off an OT victory over the Lightning on Thursday night at SBP.

The Devils played last night so fatigue could be a factor.

Jesse Winchester will make his regular season debut, taking the place of Ryan Shannon up front. Shean Donovan is also a scratch.

Brodeur and Leclaire will start tonight's tilt.

Ill be live blogging the game over at theScore.com tonight if anyone wants to drop by. Ill post the link later this afternoon
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Good to Have Spezza Back

Sorry for the short post last night folks. Didnt have a chance to get to a computer until now.

Last night really had the feel of a game that just wasn't meant to be.

The Senators had all kinds of chances to grab momentum in this game and just couldnt seem to pull away when they needed to. Having two goals called back in the third really looked like it would do the Senators in but they were able to pull through and grab that much needed extra point.

Jason Spezza showed just how important he is to this team. The power play looked much better last night and a lot of that had to do with #19. Spezza assisted on both regulation goals and scored the winner in OT. Here's hoping thats only a sign of things to come from Jason.

I know we keep hearing that Spezza and Kovalev wont work because they both play a "puck-possesion" game but they really seem to have something out there. Might be worth trying them out together on a more regular basis.

All the talk after the game was about the huge hit by Chris Neil...

What really confused me were the comments by Zenon Konopka. The former 67 said he thinks the league should look at the hit that knocked Hedman out of the game saying that the "timing" was similar to the OHL hit. Not really sure what he meant by that but if thats not a clean hit then I don't know what is.

Konopka is a guy who plays the game the game on the edge and should know a good hit when he sees one. Sure it sucks that it was your teammate but the Bolts tough guy has to know that was just a good ol' fashion hockey hit. Plain and simple...

The Senators are off today but continue their homestand tomorrow against the Devils. New Jersey has been playing good hockey this year and should be a pretty good challenge for the Senators. Jersey is 7-0-0 on the road this season.

Clutch OT Win

Huge win tonight. Two goals called back in the third didn't look good for the Sens. Really looked like one of those games...

Great time for Spezza to get his first.

Chris Neil's hit on Hedman was absolutely epic.

Big two points...

More tomorrow...
Sent on the TELUS Mobility network with BlackBerry

Game Day vs. Lightning

(UPDATE 4:35 PM)- The Ottawa Senators Twitter feed has posted the game notes for tonight against Tampa. Not sure if any of you have seen these before but its basically 26 pages of everything you want to know about these two teams.

http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/PDFs/091105_Ott-vs-TB.pdf

Finally there's an actual hockey game to talk about! This early season schedule has been down right bizarre. It's something the Senators will be paying for with a busier month of November followed by an absolutely insane December.

The Ottawa Senators will host the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at Scotiabank Place in what is the third match up between the expansion cousins this season. Ottawa came out on top in the first game in Ottawa but took it on the chin down in Tampa Bay.

Ottawa will be looking for a much better outing tonight when they host Stamkos and the Bolts.

The Sens have been off since Saturday and should be well rested while Tampa Bay has already played twice this week including an ugly loss in Philly and an OT victory over the Leafs on Tuesday.

The Senators are expected to have Jason Spezza back in the line up after a two game absense. He tested his back injury yesterday at practice and will be good to go tonight.

The lines are as follows according to Brent Wallace from TSN...

Michalek-Spezza-Alfredsson

Kovalev-Fisher-Shannon

Foligno-Regin-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Cheechoo

Shean Donovan and Jesse Winchester will both sit the game out. Pascal Leclaire will start for Ottawa.

Rumour: Volchenkov Extension in the Works

First off a quick update from Senators practice this morning. Brent Wallace is reporting that Jason Spezza is on the ice but still is not expected to play tomorrow against Tampa. Mike Fisher was not on the ice with the team today.

Jesse Winchester is expected to return to the club this weekend.

Speaking with a couple different people the last couple of days and the indication I'm getting is that the Ottawa Senators are currently working on an extension for hard-nosed defenceman Anton Volchenkov.

Word is the two sides have been speaking off and on all year and that progress has been made. Obviously there's no timeline on this but I would think its the kind of thing that gets done sometime before the year is out.

The Volchenkov camp is looking for a deal with a significant amount of term. One source suggested to me that they may be hoping for something in the neighbourhood of 7 years. That's a massive commitment to make to a guy who plays the game the way Volchenkov does. Injuries are always going to a factor when it comes to Anton so locking in for 7 years could be dangerous.

Bryan Murray and the Senators are apparently willing to offer something in the 5 year range. Speculation is that the dollar amount will be somewhere between $4-4.5 mil depending on how long the deal is.

Up until his recent elbow injury, Volchenkov was off to a very solid start. He has been blocking a ton of shots and seems to be hitting a little more than he did in the past couple of seasons.

I think we can all agree that we'd like to see A-Train kept in the fold. Murray has already mentioned that he hopes the Volchenkov camp is more interested in term than a significant salary raise.

If I had to guess...

5 years/ $21.5 mil

Eugene Files Grievance

Bruce Garrioch is reporting that Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk has filed a grievance with the league over this summer's debacle involving Dany Heatley.

Melnyk insists that the Heatley camp had given the Senators permission to speak with the Edmonton Oilers and that the deal should have been approved. Melnyk is hoping to get back the $4 million dollar bonus he was forced to pay Heatley this summer.

Garrioch indicates that the process could take awhile to sort out (as long as 2 years) but that Melnyk is willing to go to battle over the issue.

This news shouldn't come as a surprise as there were rumblings during the summer that the Senators organization could potentially have grounds for a grievance.

The rest of the article can be found at the link below...

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Ottawa/2009/11/02/11611386-sun.html

Injury Update From the Sun

It's a good news bad news scenario for the Ottawa Senators on the injury front.

The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Jason Spezza will likely sit out Thursday's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Clouston has classified Spezza as "doubtful" for the game against the Lightning.

The good news is Anton Volchenkov. Sounds like the injury isn't as severe as they first thought and he will miss somewhere between 10 days and two weeks. There was some concern he could be out as long as a month so this is a pleasant surprise.

Here is the link to the article from the Sun...

http://www.ottawasun.com/sports/hockey/2009/11/02/11606516.html

And here is the prospect update from the Senators Twitter feed...

http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/Prospects_updates/Prospect_Update-091102.pdf

Slow Monday

(UPDATE 1:04 PM)- The Ottawa Senators Twitter feed has posted this week's prospect update. Here is the link...

http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/Prospects_updates/Prospect_Update-091102.pdf

The Senators continue their bizarre early season schedule with another four day break between games. Ottawa is off until this coming Thursday when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at Scotiabank Place.

The layoff seemingly comes at a good time for a team that's battling a few injuries as well as a flu bug thats been making its way through the locker room the past few weeks.

Jason Spezza has missed the last two games and his absence has been felt by the club. Not only have his offensive contributions been missed but also his faceoff ability. The team has been awful on faceoffs the last two games including two lost draws that led to goals against the Thrashers this past Saturday.

You would have to think this is something Clouston will focus on during the extended break this week.

There was no sign of Spezza at practice this morning. Hes expected to take a couple days off the rest up his back. Ottawa needs to have Jason at 100% with a tough stretch coming up on the schedule.

Here are the lines from today's practice...

Kovalev-Fisher-Alfredsson

Michalek-Regin-Cheechoo

Foligno-Shannon-Neil

Ruutu-Kelly-Donovan.

Rumour mill is pretty quiet these days despite the Senators losing four of their last five. The injury to Volchenkov hurts but it seems as though Murray thinks Ottawa has the personnel to survive the loss.

The Senators could obviously use another guy on the back end that can log big minutes and play a decent offensive game but I really get the sense that will be something the club addresses later in the season, perhaps closer to the trade deadline.