In the last third of the 2010/2011 campaign, Jason Spezza became a leader for this Ottawa Senators team. With veterans either injured or dealt, Spezza readily assumed a leadership role and appeared to take his game to another level. I think we can expect more of the same from the 28 year old this season.
The numbers Spezza puts up will have a lot to do with the production and health of his wingers. With Michalek, Filatov, Alfredsson and Butler expected to all see time on the power play and the club's top two lines, there is a whole lot of unknown among the top six.
Much like the projections for Karlsson, Gonchar and Filatov, Spezza's offensive numbers will have a lot to do with the Sens' production on the power play. I'm counting on the Sens to be a much more efficient with the man advantage and Spezza will be at the centre of that improvement.
Without legitimate wingers, it's hard to see how Spezza can come close the the production we have seen from him in years past. It's at the other end of the ice that I think we'll really see improvement next year. Spezza will continue to develop the defensive side of his game and should see a regular shift on the PK.
As Spezza continues to develop into a more complete hockey player, I think we'll also see him shooting the puck a lot more than we have in previous seasons. His goal totals should increase.
Assuming he stays healthy, Spezza will lead the Sens in scoring next season.
2011/2012 PROJECTION- 75 GP 35 G 48 A- 83 PTS
The biggest improvement will be on the powerplay, I really believe that this powerplay of ours will be lethal.
So I'm hoping he can dress for at least 75 games. With what the Sens have at centre.. they had better hope it's at least that.
Heard James Duthie on the Team 1200 this morning. Doesn't have much positive thoughts on the Sens. Good... lack of respect. I hope they do make some noise and surprise a lot of teams... No respect will come and bite you in the ass.
Not saying they make the playoffs... a lot of IFS have to occur... but be a competitive team and a hard team to play against.. and that will suit me just fine.
Personally, I've never bought into the Spezza hype, his best yr's were when Heatley was filling the net for him. He can be a great playmaker but he can also cost you a goal just as easily. Has he matured, has he learned to play a defensive style when required, is the rest of the team ready to follow him? That I'm not so sure, I hope so but I'll believe it when I see & so far he hasn't shown it consistently. I think he will be lucky to get 70 points.
I really can't believe how many people have counted us out without seeing Filatov or any one else in camp. I guess I can say the same thing about our blind optimism. But given how this team finished down the stretch last season with a brand new benchboss and better talent, I think this team will finish better than most are expecting. I really think come February we will be in a 9 or 10 spot in the east.
Thats exactly what you DONT want. With a great draft class coming in 2012, do you really want to be stuck in 9th or 10th. That wont help the Sens moving forward.
They will, as usual, assess the team performance at that point and if close enough to the playoffs then keep pushing but if not close then we should do everything in our power to drop as low as possible to pick up a talent unseen since Ovie and Crosby.
Basically we have the same players on there with the addition of Filatov, I dont think Filatov will make our PP "lethal".
For our PP to be "lethal" it would have to be 3x better than last season, we dont have the scorers to be even 2x better let alone 3x.
Alfie shouldnt be on the PK but Spezza will be, he is our best player and made alot of things happen last year while on the PK.
But I am weary of injuries and of the workload Spezza will carry, his back will eventually flare up.
WANT and THINK are two different things. Everybody on this site WANTS a top 5 pick next year to net a top line RW. I (and others) have not seen enough evidence to think that will happen yet. I also KNOW that the team will not tank because losing on purpose will hurt the prospects we already have.
Gonchar on the left point was a big problem last season. You've got to expect Karlsson to improve as well + the Rundblad factor. I also believe that this will be an offense 1st type of system based on the coaches that were hired.
Guys will most certainly do better than last season but you have to expect the same from opponents, were not the only team in the league that gets better...
Our system has not even been implemented yet, you would think learning a new system will take some adjusting. Some players will thrive and some will falter.
Im not saying lose on purpose, but there are ways a GM and coach can make it hard to win. Like inserting young prospects for game time, trading away old vets, etc..
My Spezza prediction 68GP 26G 38A 64Pts
I think our success (if we have any) will come from the blueline and our blueline offensively should be lethal. Now on the defensive end, we might have to worry some, but powerplays have very little to do with defense.
We really have no idea how the system will be, but you've got to imagine it will be structured a lot like Detroit's. if Detroit can make a 'star' out of Eaves then you've gotta believe that we can have success with our players.
It really all boils down to 'we don't know' but we all expect better things out of this team. a harder work effort every night in an offensive system compared to last season should result in more goals, more wins and less losses.
Since when has Eaves become a star in the NHL, LOL.
Detroits success has come from players like Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Franzen, Holmstrom, Lidstrom, etc...
Not Eaves...
We will be a little better but so will most teams, I dont see us moving up 6-7 spots in the standings, the teams ahead of us also got better and evens out.
You cant possible say with all the unknowns in Ottawa, lack of scoring and soft defence that we are making the playoffs, there is no valid argument that you can think of that ranks us any higher than 10th in the East.
my sarcasm must of not translated over very well. 'star'
where did I say that we would make the playoffs? I said we would be a 9-10 team in February. I believe we will make the playoffs, but I'm not going to bet the farm on it. I'm a fan.
What browser are you using?
wait... didn't we do that last year? and didn't our win % increase significantly?
really, when Heatley was filling the net FOR HIM???? Am I the only one who sees how much Heatley stock has crumbled since he last played with Spezza? I think it was Spezza who was making him look good and not the other way around...ask Joe Thorton or Patrick Marleau, who did not want to play wtih Heatley anymore.
Trading Elliott for Anderson made our win % go up.
TRAIN
CHEECHOO
TRAIN
THE SENS ARE GONNA WIN THIS GAME
really, when Heatley was filling the net FOR HIM???? Am I the only one who sees how much Heatley stock has crumbled since he last played with Spezza? I think it was Spezza who was making him look good and not the other way around...ask Joe Thorton or Patrick Marleau, who did not want to play wtih Heatley anymore.
Couldn't agree more. Heatley is a floater who can only finish when the puck was put on a tee for him. That's it. Heart of a Lion (the cowardly lion, that is).
Hate to admit this, but I really lost plenty of confidence in Foligno and Regin last year.
But eager to see Rundblad, Cowen, and a revitilised Gonchar this year
Hate to break it to you, but Anderson isn't going anywhere until Lehner is ready to take on starting duty. Anderson would have to have a pretty bad year for us to finish worse than we did last year.
A lot of other teams look to have improved (that IS the GM's job in the offseason) but it comes at the expense of other areas. All the Fleishmann's and Versteeg's in the world aren't going to hide the fact that the starter in Florida is Jose Theodore. Don't forget Mike Smith in Phoenix, and the Varlamov trade could turn into Kessel 2.0.
Its impossible to deny that there are a handful of teams with as many glaring holes as we have. If we try to win every game, I can't see us finishing bottom 3... Yakupov will be gone by then. Go Filip Forsberg Go!!
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for optimism but fans are also allowed to think their team sucks.
It's not what you think of the team that is the most important thing, it's how you support them.
Calling people leaf fans or not fans of the team just because they don't hold a certain point of view of the team comes from the Garrioch school of lazy writing (as does that).
I don't think we will make the playoffs. I think we'll finish in the bottom five of the East and possibly have another lottery pick in 2012. What I do know is that like Miguel I'm looking forward to seeing a team with grit and heart give their all game in and game out.
If I'm wrong then I'm wrong and I'll be happy about it.
agreed Apostle and well stated
If you are refering to me calling Snookie a Leaf fan, it's not because he has us outside the playoffs, it's because every 3rd comment on this blog is him shitting on the players, fans, and posters on here. It's called a troll. I also don't bet that the Sens will make the playoffs this year....BUT THEY COULD. Colorado was supposed to finish last 2 years ago and they played their way in to the playoffs when they were not supposed to. That's why you play the games. I also look forward to watching a hungry team with grit and no Kovalev or Heatley.
*says jokingly as Troll gets ready to pounce
No i'm not referring specifically to you. Having said that even if he had taken a dump in your mother's mouth calling him a leaf fan is a bit harsh. It's just the knee jerk reaction of saying he doesn't agree with what I think he must be a leaf fan. It's the lack of imagination that pisses me off I think.
I do think Tookie is, at times, unnecessarily negative and he's definitely not a glass half full type. Annoyingly he's more prepared to try and prove his point of view than many on here.
I would rather we had a proper conversation about what he does and doesn't think than cop out and go into attack mode all the time.
Even with all of his negativity I'm not sure he has said anything totally outlandish. Let's be honest we really did suck last year.
It hurts to realise that the leafs are/were better than us. I think they had a better team than us last year. This year it's closer.
I think the 18 skaters in front of him had something to do with it too Tookie.
I think you are overstating the value of next year's draft class and understating the quality of our current roster. I just hope you are wrong on both accounts, but never wish for a tank job to get any player in any draft.
Also it will take longer than 6 to 9 mos for a re-build.
I want to see the young players develop. As McLean said when he was hired.. he wants them to be a little better each game.
I want to see competitive hockey with the team having a chance to win most nights. Let the other team know they were in a hockey game. Be hard to play against.
Whatever system McLean brings with him... work at it in pre-season. Don't have 50 players in training camp. Keep about 5 extra that have an outside chance and send the rest to Bingo.
They have to get the system working before the regular season starts. They need to take teams by surprise early...having a good October will go a long way for their confidence.
not sure I agree on that one... I'd say that this is THE year to invite 50 players to camp for a few reasons
1. The new coaching staff should familiarize themselves with the entire system. All the players, in all the ranks.
2. This is one of the rare times when the organization gets to see all of our players/prospec ts at the same time. This makes it easier to compare the progression of our prospects.
3. We want all our players to feel like they're getting their fair chance... they know we didn't do to well last year, they know there's an opening in certain areas. We don't want guys like Weircioch getting discouraged and having another poor year in Binghamton even if he doesn't end up in Ottawa in the future.
The Binghamton Senators announced today that they have signed defensemen Josh Godfrey and Bob Raymond to one-year, two-way American Hockey League contracts.
Also, nice to see sens fans on this picture
http://www.binghamtonsenators.com/news/topnews/index.html?article_id=1110
The guy in the black Sens jersey with paint on his face is our one and only SensChirp.
pretty tough to compare a kid to crosby or ovie but it's generally accepted that next years draft has more star quality than the last one and yakupov is considered to be at the top of that list... there is no question that drafting in the top 2-3 would officially fill the prospect cubord and set the sens up as a contender within a few years.
I dont think there is a fan on this site that doesn't want the team to win but if i have to choose between finishing 9 or in position for a lottery pick, I'd prefer the pick.
regardless, this team should be exciting to watch win or lose. there is always something to be said for youthful exuberance.
as much as im excited for hockey to start, i dread the end of summer....
with hockey comes winter and hibernation...
He didn't even put up 100 with the Pizza line. Spezza will produce 60-70 points this season. 50 of those points will be stat-padding extravaganzas against the Jets or Islanders and the remaining 9-10 "relevant" points (IE game-winners). Next year none of us will remember any of them because we'll be in 15th i nthe East.
If Spezza wants to prove me wrong, two things will do it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_J._Selke_Trophy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Cup
Nothing else matters. Win or remain a stat-padding coattail rider of Alfredsson.
Gonna disagree with you here, it's called being an OTTAWAN.
This is negative city that eats its young. Stay here long enough and you'll feel the cynicism and bitterness seep into your veins. Listen to the post-game show sometime, people bitch non-stop about everything and when the team wins...no one calls! Ottawa is a complainer's paradise.
CAPGEEK.COM CAP CALCULATOR
FORWARDS
Nikita Filatov ($2.195m) / Jason Spezza ($7.000m) / Daniel Alfredsson ($4.875m)
Milan Michalek ($4.333m) / Mika Zibanejad ($1.775m) / Ryan Malone ($4.500m)
Colin Greening ($0.816m) / Zack Smith ($0.700m) / Bobby Butler ($1.050m)
Nick Foligno ($1.200m) / Zenon Konopka ($0.700m) / Chris Neil ($2.000m)
DEFENSEMEN
Sergei Gonchar ($5.500m) / David Rundblad ($1.500m)
Erik Karlsson ($1.300m) / Jared Cowen ($1.265m)
Chris Phillips ($3.083m) / Brian Lee ($0.875m)
GOALTENDERS
Craig Anderson ($3.187m) / Alex Auld ($1.000m)
Condra and Carkner as extras ...
It is when 90% of people on here including you thought the Sens would make the playoffs and were expecting a solid year, I said thwe team would suck and probably end up bottom 5 BEFORE the season started. Where as most people were excited to see Foligno and Regin cuz they had great pre-seasons.
Its not shitting on a team that is already down, they hadnt even started yet. That and with only 20 games played I kept saying we were in trouble and to make moves now to get back into a playoff race. Nothing happened until traded deadline where we went into rebuild mode.
Maybe not Lambchop but I think its as close as it ever going to be, Yakupov got 101pts (49G 52A) as a 16 year old rookie in the OHL. Destroying records once held by the now ELITE player Stamkos.
Either way if we have a chance at landing one of these 2, we must make it happen at all costs. The Sens would be instant contenders in 3 years and for maybe anothe 10 with Yak or Gal.
Back to the drawing board Tank :)
Not sure being called a piece of meat would go very well with the ladies maybe with gents, which ever way you swing!
You just proved yourself wrong...
Do you see 2 strong wingers? Filatov and or Butler or whoever gets interchanged during the season. For Spezza to have a stellar year, his wingers must produce, he couldnt even get 100 pts with Alfie and with Heater potting 50 goals. He certainly aint gonna do it with the wingers he has now.
I have to agree with you there, wow, that would be one hell of a slap!
Maybe SlickRick can confirm.
Spezza is trying to improve his overall game every year. Become a more responsible player. Much better skater and his on-ice vision is something else.. if you really just sit back and watch him. We don't know what Filatov will do when paired with him. Butler had chemistry with Spezza.... so over a full season what can we expect from him?
The point regarding him alongside Alfie and Heatey is well made. I don't know for sure what we are likely to get out of Filatov and Butler but to expect they will have Alfie or Heatley like seasons is delusional.
This year Spezza needs to carry on with being a leader for the Sens, maturing and becoming a mentor for the players around him. He's a leader on this team now.
Only 9 players got more than 80 points last season. Spezza can absolutely be up with them next year but we shouldn't be leap all over the guy if he isn't as long as his all round play continues to improve.
Certainly not 100pts, Butler aint gonna get 50 goals, neither is Filatov, lol.
Im just going by the last 2 years for Spezza where he was just a dip below PPG, so 64pts in 68 games is about right, its still very respectable considering where the team is talent wise with our top 6.
Butler and Filatov will both be under 50pts
I don't think that tookie goes over with the ladies very well either
What about pookie or cookie?
80 GP, 27 Goals and 44 Assists, 71 Points total.
Possible, assuming he stays healthy and his wingers can produce.