Your votes and feedback will be taken into consideration when I ultimately choose a winner this weekend. Names have been left off the post. With all that said, here is today's finalist...
EXPECTATIONS
Disaster. If we had to choose one word to describe the 2010-2011 NHL season for the Ottawa Senators, that might be the best choice out there. I’m not here to flog last season to death... quite frankly that’s been done a thousand times over, but instead I’m here to talk about the good that can come from something as brutal as last season was.
The 2010-2011 NHL Trade Deadline came and went, and with it brought a renewed sense of optimism that fell over the city like a warm blanket. Was it the fact that we shipped out half the team, giving us a fresh new look? Was it the fact that some players like Alex Kovalev we’re shipped out for a 7th round pick (perhaps finally putting him in his place)? Could it have been the youthful enthusiasm that replaced the veteran complacency? Probably all of the above, but the one thing that sticks out in my mind was the change in expectations.
Something that has bothered me for YEARS has been the expectations around the Ottawa Senators. Every free agent signing, or new draft pick we put into our lineup, and the parade planning is on. Maybe for me it’s a bit of an inferiority complex, or maybe even some sort of post traumatic stress disorder, but ever since the years we would continually lose in the playoffs to the Leafs, or be called out as playoff chokers, this team has ALWAYS had a hard time living up to the expectations that are place on them. Now don’t get me wrong, I know that’s not the whole story here but it does illustrate what happens to a team that’s called the favourite and fails to achieve the expected results year after year after year.
Fast forward to today, there are only 4 players that remain from the team that made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, Jason Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Neil, and Chris Phillips and after a decade of Stanley Cup expectations, the reset button has finally been hit. The city took a collective sigh of relief and a deep breath. No longer do we all feel like we’re being disappointed by our team. The new set of expectations is that we are not a playoff team. The consensus seems to be that we will finish anywhere in the bottom 10-15 this year, and we can all start to appreciate them for what they are, and stop holding them up to expectations that are beyond them.
The Ottawa Senators are now a rebuilding team, full of potential, but also full of volatility. We have a plethora of young talent and several question marks, that if they pan out, we could have a much better team than we expect. We also have a legitimate goaltender for the first time in the franchise’s history (some would say 2 legitimate # 1’s). We must remember to base our expectations in reality and that not all of the prospects will pan out, and not all of the question marks will be answered positively. We must remember to enjoy the hard working, young, and improving team that we have. We also have one thing that we haven’t had in a LONG time... a fan base full of optimism.
He's free agent
Comrie is too busy inheriting The Brick corporation to play hockey...
Ah yes, I see the rating feature isn't there. Guess we'll just have to go by the comments.
Quoting ImNotJoJo:
yeah.. LOL
No to Comrie. Kinda sad that he was let go but he worked with Fisher. Fisher`s gone, so we don`t need Comrie.
Or a poll.
If any of us who comment on the site have any real insight or insider information they can go and set up their own webpage.
Good job to whomever wrote it!
Almost done July
Look at those names! All,for the most part,ended in ridiculous drama. It wasn't our expectaions plaguing the team.
One love
Looks like they were designed by Stephen Harper. Conservative colours, promoting the new fighter jets he wants!
Gonged by Stan Neckar buds
No
Ottawa is rebuilding to be better, not worse. Plus the NAC would come after him if he came back... he can keep his turtlenecks and stay in Russia building igloos.
its alright i like the old one better. i dont like the military theme
My thoughts exact.
Exactly! Couldnt have said it any better!
I'm on the fence. Not quite sure how I like it. I know when I googled "new Jets logo" before it was released, there were some nice ones. I think I'll have to wait and see what the jersey looks like before I can really decide if I'll like it or not.
Once SC chooses an individual, the topics will be more focused, better reading etc.
Stay patient everyone... and keep an open mind.
E for effort.
I was going to say who cares about the jets jersey but I decided against it. :)
There is no sell, no zing. Plus I don't really like being told how I feel: "No longer do we all feel like we’re being disappointed by our team."
His name is Tookie, and I thought he did an alright job. I'm sure he had to go back and edit all the insults to disguise himself but not bad.
While the expectations certainly are lower now with the fire sale and while I do think that this years draft class will certainly contribute to building a contender, I would never have wished for last season, ever.
@FBP
I think that is what makes Chirp one of the best bloggers out there, he rarely, if ever, shares much of his opinion outside of a prediction or two. And I felt that this post was far too opinionated for my likings. Make the comments be the opinions.
As for Comrie I would take him on for a year to compete for that 2C spot. He is more of a 2C-b or 3C-a but would do for a year if our prospects and Foligno/Regin are not ready for it.
Unfortunately there was not enough substance or thought provoking ideas in this one. I feel the complacency with failure was a bit too much. It's hard to make an opinion piece that really doesn't hit the passion button, but his opinion is definitely very clear and well stated.
I don't want this site turning into some closeted, smaller version of HB. I don't want any new contributor's articles to be I heard that we are going to sign Stamkos and Doughty for 5 million a year each.
I think this article is the right sort of thing a new contributor should be doing. I didn't particular like this one even though I generally agreed with the sentiment behind it, but I would much rather have this than somebody trying to be a new chirp. If you want facts, do your own research or buy a newspaper (not The Sun though, obviously they have no facts there). A blog should be based on opinion and generate conversation amongst those who read it.
Statement in article: We have a legitimate #1 goaltender for the first time in franchise history.
Fact: Ray Emery took the Ottawa Senators to the Stanley Cup Finals. He then lost his starting job because he got injured. This is not how you treat a legitimate starting goaltender, which is what he was at the time.
Fact: Dominik Hasek was 28-10-4 with a .925s% before he got hurt. Those are Vezina stats.
Revisionist history states that Ottawa never had a starter, yet both of these guys accomplished more as Senators than Craig Anderson has to this point, so indirectly castigating them to spin optimism about what is here going forward is disingenuous.
There's little value in speculating on this year, so in my mind this article lacks merit.
I chose this as one of the finalists because I don't entirely agree with it but thought it was well written and something a little different than I usually write.
Leave it up to SlickRick to make a complete ass of himself, its what he does best, its obvious, this article isnt me, I didnt even submit an "article" to SC.
I agree to a certain degree, Hasek was a bonafide starter, Emery wasnt, he was a troubled prospect with great talents, I do agree the Sens mishandled the situation with Emery.
Although Emery was not a bonafide starter he did accomplish a feat most starting goaltenders do not by making it to the finals. Leclaire arguably was a bonafide number 1 but he was a mirage made of glass.
Should be interesting to see what the media picks on this season without goaltending as an issue...
If you are looking for contributions what about having readers do research on prospects or players and present the story and we could talk about each player.
Bring some knowledge to the site that some might not know or have not taken the time to find out.
It would help the summer go by and we might learn something we did not know.
After that, I did not get much entertainment value out of it. I found it a little dry and to quote JABSmilez "I feel the complacency with failure was a bit too much" hits the nail on the head.
Looking forward to the next one
YEAH BUDDY!
Everytime you comment you get 10 thumbs down. Who makes an ass out of themselves? You are a Leafs troll and I've (and many others) called you on it many times but can't recall you ever denying it...weird.
Hey, If I worked at the ACC I'd be pretty knowledgable about the Leafs team/players... .doesn't mean I'm a fan (get it? You serve drinks at Scotiabank place, know the team well, but hate everything about the Sens). Most of us just ignore you, but I get a kick out making fun you from time to time.
Geez Louise - just hire Julie Robenhymer !
I won't "place" it until I read the other 4.
1 good season doesnt make you a legit starter, you have to put a couple of season of consistent goaltending before you can be called a legit #1.
OH NO not a thumbs down, oh shit, what am I goona do? shit shit shit....haha what a douche!
Keep smokin that joint bro, your way up in the clouds, your opinion on me is in the minority, "most of us", lol, your Barbie dolls dont count bud!
Emery has had more than one good season....
I didn't submit anything and wouldn't expect to be selected if I did so I can't really throw stones - but FWIW I didn't really get much out of this entry.
Julie is hot.
Somebody called someone else an "ass"? Welcome to the Internet pal. This place does well self-regulated and I'm sure Chirp doesn't have time to babysit and moderate comments all day.
Now quit being such a gibbering, assinine idiot. :) jk
You wouldnt be able to tell me if mine made the cut, would you?
You clearly haven't been reading all the comments for the past 6 months if you think the only word tossed around was 'ass'. I know this is the internet but if I wanna read 'gibbering, assinine idiots' comment on blogs, I know many other sites. This shouldn't be one of them. I know regular commenters in the past who have left this site for this exact reason. I also know youngish people who vitit this site daily because they enjoy the Sens and shouldn't be exposed to what some of you are saying. If you think this is fun, then continue on I guess. I'm not trying to be a downer, but it often gets out of hand.
Today has been pretty tame on what is bound to be a strongly opinionated week where people are scrutinizing these guest posts. If you have such a problem with language or attitude here you should bring it up on a more appropriate day where people are being out of line.
And if you think this site is bad (which it certainly is not), God forbid you visit YouTube or even HockeyBuzz. You call me 'hilarious'. Hilarious would be saying that your poor spelling and grammar is damaging to the 'young' people here.
And if you think this site is bad (which it certainly is not), God forbid you visit YouTube or even HockeyBuzz. You call me 'hilarious'. Hilarious would be saying that your poor spelling and grammar is damaging to the 'young' people here.
I'm not getting into an argument with you because this is exactly what I'm talking about. If you are comparing Chrip's sites reputation with Eklund's, that's unfortunate. Guess everyone's grammar can't be as good as your grammar is. Forgive me.
I really like the idea several have already suggested where we might all participate in a poll the day after the 5th entry has been posted.
Yea that might not be a bad idea. Also important to note that the reader reaction will only be part of the decision. Also have my own things I'm looking for as well.
I'm a big fan of Scott Cullen's articles on TSN's that take a lot of statistics and attempt to draw some conclusion from them.
Someone on here who could do something similar with Ottawa and BSens and prospect stats once a week would be great.
Many comments reference a few stats here or there, but if we could get an article every now and then that starts from stats, I'd find that very interesting and I would expect it to spark some nice comments in terms of the interpretation of the stats.
Just my $0.02, but I would prefer something like that to today's article.
Really?
2002-03 OTT 3 1 85 1 0 0 0 0 2 1.42 26 24 .923 0
2003-04 OTT 3 1 126 2 0 0 0 0 5 2.38 52 47 .904 0
2005-06 OTT 39 38 2168 23 11 0 4 0 102 2.82 1045 943 .902 3
2006-07 OTT 58 56 3351 33 16 0 6 3 138 2.47 1691 1553 .918 5
2007-08 OTT 31 26 1689 12 13 0 4 3 88 3.13 800 712 .890 0
2009-10 PHI 29 29 1684 16 11 0 1 3 74 2.64 783 709 .905 3
2010-11 ANH 10 9 527 7 2 0 0 2 20 2.28 272 252 .926 0
As you can see, not much consistency there, only 2006-07 he played more than 50 games. Not a legit #1.
Konopka breaking Orr's face though? I'd put that at about 95% certainty.
Thanks Tookie for helping make my point!!!
is this Tookie slinging mud again...cmon Took, I thought you said you could take it?
Still don't see a denial...oh and I will smoke that joint in about 25 mins
PS Chirp I don't know what you expected when you let people with these track records critisize other people's work.
What did I do now Miguel, I wrote back, thats is "not taking it" to you? Trust me, I could care less about other people's comments towards me, but people cant see to take my comments when directed at them, we all know who they are, always the same folks, trying to sound smart and funny but never give any usefull substance to the blog.
Take for example my post where I just proved Jojo wrong, he posted non sense and I corrected him. Thats how its done! back it up!
Yeah thanks for your input, although there is nothing wrong with the site, its been constantly growing and people having discussions where we dont agree is much more fun than agreeing on everything.
I'd pay 29.99 a year to stay away from the most hated guy on this site that doesn't think Emery has a starters skillset. I call that money well spent.
I'm a stats guy too, would love to see more of it. Sometimes it's not always about the articles or information already being out on the internet, and more about having 1 spot that informs you of all the important ones that matter to us as fans of the Sens and their organization.
Again, Im an NHL fan first (I mentioned this like a million times, I guess your too high to have noticed it), do I like Ottawa, yes, do I like other Canadian teams, yes, with the exception of Montreal and now of course Vancouver for all that diving!
No problem, its what I do! Another one bites the dust!
Took you did nothing wrong, all I am saying is SlickRick gave his opinion, and you started with ass, douche, and joint smoking... those in glass houses...
As for the article, well written, with, for the most part an accurate account of our last season.
And I have to agree, we have never really enjoyed, or benefited,from a legit #1 goalie, they have all let us down at some point, Emery being the closest, by getting us to the finals, but then falling apart the next year.
Well were to begin, your actually making sense here, oh wait, no your not, I wont even comment on the Cup winning thing as its only fools banter.
But Konopka is a middleweight, check out his fights at http://www.hockeyfights.com/players/1692/fightcard/reg2011.
Most of which are draw and losses to other middleweights with the occasional borderline heavyweight.
Not saying he wont fight Orr, but I have a feeling he will have his hands full with other middleweights.
As much as people like to throw him under the bus, you've got to include Patrick Lalime in there too.
1.77 GAA & 0.926 SVP in 41 career playoff games with the Sens. One Conference Final taken to game 7. Even in the 3 Toronto series he was 2.10 GAA & 0.910 SVP. He may have let in a few bad goals, but when Sens forwards are scoring 1.78 goals per game ... how can Patty be the fall guy.
Hasek was the best but that injury ruined the Sens chance at a Cup run.
Lalime had good years in Ottawa will always be remembered for that game 7 fiasco.
Emery - boy in a men's body.
Anderson - IF he can play like he did his first year in Colorado he can carry a team on his shoulders. Except it will be a lot of weight this year with a lot of inexperienced players on the team.
Sens need a goalie who can steal wins. Much like some goalies the Sens play against... Miller, Price, Lundquist, THOMAS.
Apparently SensTV gave Mark Borowiecki a video camera during the Sens prospects camp... below is some of the video should some of you wish to see it.
http://video.senators.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=880&id=121266
http://eyeonthesens.wordpress.com/2011/06/26/reviewing-ottawas-2011-draft/
Interesting... they seem REALLY high on Shane Prince. It'll be interesting to watch him next year and see if he was the real deal from the Toffoli, Martindale, Prince line or the benefactor.
Yeah that's true.
I'm checking out some 67's games this year.. doing Plymouth (Noeson), Peterborough (Puempel) and then another toss in...
Nice that you can see some of these prospects so close..
Alright I'll be good. The long offseason is getting me.
Forgiverness prease.
Just my two cents.
I don't usually check out many 67's games, but this is definitely the year to start. I don't know that we've ever had more than one first rounder in the OHL at one time.
I went to a couple last year -- and quite a few during the NHL lockout. It's pretty good hockey. These young guys play with everything they have. Lots of kids there though..
I'm not into arm chair coaching (lines) or GMing ("what if" rosters) given that I care for the real game rather than video games. I crave analysis, strategy review, personel dynamics and spotting the game within the game in addition to simply.enjoying the flow of the game itself.
This blogger just doesn't fulfill my interests....
In short, for me this one was a "zzzzzzzz". Sorry
Dunno why I never go to their games; they have a great team and I always enjoy the world juniors and the occasional memorial cup. Its also not as far to go as a Sens game: a Sens game (by bus) is a 5-6 hour commitment.
No. I'm actually Ray Emery.
First off, I was at game 6 against the Pens two years ago. There was plenty of optimism in the fan base, not to mention we've been to the Finals within the last 5 years.
There is no way this team has more optimism surrounding it than either of those.
Secondly, sentences like this: "We have a plethora of young talent and several question marks, that if they pan out, we could have a much better team than we expect." are honestly just tough to read.
If the new contributor is not going to bring new knowledge, shouldn't eloquence be a prerequisite? This whole post is nothing but unfounded speculation and rampant hyperbole.
You're a bigger ass than I am.
Oddly enough, I agree with both of you! (And thanks for the best laugh I've had all week Tookie...)