With the Tampa Bay Lightning leading 2-1 in the third, the stage was set for yet another furious third period charge from the Ottawa Senators. This time it was the Captain, Daniel Alfredsson that ripped one past Dwayne Roloson to tie the game at 2-2.
Great to see Alfie get back on the scoreboard in this one. He has struggled a little bit since coming back from a concussion earlier this season but looked like his usual self tonight. I have to take partial credit for Alfie's outing as for the first time this season, I dusted off the old #11 jersey and wore it to the game.
Clearly the Captain was inspired.
Later in the third, a line of Alfie, Jesse Winchester and Nick Foligno teamed up for what wound up being the game winning goal. The quick hands of Foligno beat Roloson to the post and tucked in a goal that put the Sens up 3-2. Zack Smith scored a beauty, his second of the night, that put the Bolts away for good.
For the second straight outing, the Sens got extremely solid goaltending from Criag Anderson. Andy stopped 31 of 33 Tampa Bay shots and was named the game's first star. It was actually a heads up play that earned Anderson an assist and led to the game tying goal from Alfredsson.
MacLean paired Erik Karlsson and Jared Cowen again tonight and the two looked extremely comfortable together. The highlights will show you a miscue that led to the Martin St. Louis goal but I thought Karlsson was solid in his 26:22 of ice time. Along with Cowen (24:35), they played the majority of the night against the Bolts top line of St. Louis, Stamkos and Downie and looked quite comfortable doing so.
The Sens continue the run on home ice on Wednesday night when they welcome Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capital to town.
___________________________________________________________________
All the buzz in NHL circles is about the new alignment that was approved by the NHL Board of Governors. The Ottawa Senators will stay with the same Northeast teams but will be joined by the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers. Each team plays each team outside their conference twice per year, once at home and on the road. Then within the conference, teams would play each other six times which includes three home, three away. Here is how the the new alignment shakes out.
Anaheim
Calgary
Colorado
Edmonton
Los Angeles
Phoenix
San Jose
Vancouver
Chicago
Columbus
Dallas
Detroit
Minnesota
Nashville
St. Louis
Winnipeg
Boston
Buffalo
Florida
Montreal
Ottawa
Tampa Bay
Toronto
Carolina
New Jersey
NY Islanders
NY Rangers
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Washington
GO SENS GO!
Oh and chirp do you think this new alignement is better then the one we currently have? And is there a update about the turris thing or d.b
Nothing new on Turris and the situation with Brassard remains unchanged. Sens like him but would need to move a contract. Garrioch suggested there are a number of suitors so if that is the case, the Jackets will likely look for a deal where they can avoid taking a contract back.
Seems like an elegant solution and it means we play every other team every year - so that should help attendance. And also ensure that we get at least one chance to boo Heatley every season until he retires (barring mid-season trades and the "Heatley flu").
As per the previous post, really liking the new conferences. Which conference does everyone think is the toughest right now to play in?
They all seem pretty even and balance IMO. Although that last conference looks like it'll be pretty tight.
(You should have worn it earlier...)
I LOVE this subplot !
I'm just sayin`
and in comment 9 i didnt mean to say buffalo is in NY's division
2nd: Chirp. I'm disappointed there was dust on your Alfie jersey.
3rd:
Quoting MoeDozer:
Snowbirds will fill the stands in Florida for all those OTT/TOR/MTL games down south. That's why.
I hope you keep wearing The Captain's Jersey every time we play from now on!
Great game. Once again, the refs started ok, then put their whistles away from the Sens. A few missed calls and I thought that was going to be the game story. BUT as proven before, the Sens didn't give up. They fought tooth and nail and pull a victory out of Tampa's hands!!
Beautiful night by Smith, beautiful first period hit by Captain A, nice to see Foligno put one in... he was having a frustrating night...
GREAT GAME, GREAT WIN - GO SENS GO!!!
New Format
Doesn't bother me. Nice that we get see all teams each year.
You are in luck - this goes down tomorrow night, not thursday!
I like the realignment. I am glad that the red wings stay on the opposite side of the Sens so come playoff time they will only meet in the finals. I can cheer both teams with a clear conscience.
The rivalry's are going to get intense again which is awesome. it will be a lot of games against the same teams though.
the real winners in re-alignment are the western fans who now can see ZACK SMITH at least once a year!
that flight to florida is only an hour and a bit longer than traveling to new york and in the same time zone. its not that big a deal. I am sure Murray was voting in favour. As I read somewhere else and thought it was a great point, how cool would it be for us up here to book a golf trip in Florida during the winter and be able to catch a few sens/habs/leafs games in the process?
I hate to say it but you've got to give Bettman credit, he got this done fast and almost had a unanimous vote.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/How-does-the-new-NHL-realignment-impact-teams-8?urn=nhl-wp19087
6x6 = 36 conference games
23x2 = 46 out of conference games
total 82 games.
However with 8 teams:
7x6 = 42 conference games
22x2 = 44 out of conference games
total 86 games.
The only way I see it working is the two western conferences with 8 teams are going to not play the other conference twice each season.
7x6 = 42 conference games
14x2 = 28 eastern conference games
4x2 = 8 home and home with 4 of 8 teams
4x1 = 4 1 game with other 4 teams
total 82 games.
Okay.... makes more sense now: per TSN:
In the seven-team conferences, teams would play each other six times - three home, three away. In the eight-team conferences, a bit more maneuvering would be required.
Teams in the conferences of eight would play either five or six times per season on a rotating basis; three teams would play each other six times and four teams would play each other five times. This process would reverse each season.
Cowen sure looks calm and composed out there, even on a 2 on 1, amazing stuff for a rookie. For such a big man, he can skate pretty damn well too.
Zack Smith, don't anoint him the next Mike Fisher just yet, but he is playing surprisingly well though. Far better offensively than I would have ever imagined. What I like best about Smith's game is his ability to handle the puck in traffic, which leads to a clear or a scoring chance. Can't give Smith and the coaching staff enough credit for creating a very dangerous third line.
Foligno has proven to be a much much better center than a winger and I see him improving his game there each and every shift. Hope he stays there.
Alfie looks like he's not even close to hanging up the skates, that hit last night was not from an old man and he's not too shabby on the scoreboard either.
I was thinking the same thing, new alignment means two of these conferencs are a team short, leaving the window open for 2 more teams to enter the league. You have to believe this was the intention behind the change, because you can't bring in new teams with the old system in place. Let the rumours flow!!!
I know this was kind of an ongoing thing in the past few weeks about TSN's bias against the sens and i was going to post about it then but i haven't watch Sports Centre in months and didn't want to bring up an argument that might just be my own bias seeing it. But when i watched their segment about the realignment and the clips of the Red Wings were of them scoring on Ottawa, a team they've played once this season, from the first game of the year and the only game between the 2 teams. Couldn't they have chosen clips from division rivals? or even a team in their conference? Nope, let's just show them scoring on the sens...
8g 7a - 15p +6
Mike Fisher:
5g 7a - 12p -2
Smith is doing pretty good as we all know. Fact that he has as many goals as "Fuckin All-Star"
The only one that bugs me is Chris Kelly
10g 7a - 17p +17
This was definitely what Bettman had in mind. He's pretty damn stubborn, and seems intent on making a team work down south.. I think the options are: Seattle, Kansas, Hamilton, Quebec City, and Vegas. What would make sense would be getting 2 teams for the West coast, and then moving Columbus + Detroit over to the East. Although, should they add a team on the East, you'd think he's taking a good look at Hamilton right about now......
I think everyone who watched Kelly last season knew he was on the verge of being a really really good hockey player.
Pains me to say this, and I've really enjoyed Michalek's success this season compared to the player he was traded for, but sadly, Heatley is on the NHL's best team right now and I wish him all the worst.
How are playoffs gonna work???
First 2 rounds are within the conference (1v4 2v3 then winners play each other). Third round the 4 conference champions will be reseeded according to their point totals from the regular season. So, we could see a Boston and Philly, or even better Carolina vs Florida (/sarcasm) compete for the Cup.
Teams in 8 team conferences will play 5 x 4 teams & 6 x 3 teams within their conference and it will rotate through a 7 year cycle.
What has been said is that the first two rounds will be played within the conferences ... 1v4 & 2v3; then winners play for a conference championship (much like the old Adams Division prior to 1993).
What is yet to be decided is how Round 3 plays out. Will the 4 Conference Champions be reseeding based on either overall records or head-to-head records; or will the Conferences be paired East/West like before. Bettman says this will be decided by the GMs at their upcoming meeting in January.
GO MIKA.
Amazing what a tender who makes the key stops at the key times can do for the confidence of a team.
Screw the stats, the only one worth monitoring on a goalie is the Wins.
He is one of the key reasons we are in a playoff spot today, and like I said before the start of the year.
A legit #1 goalie, a new coach with a winning attitude, a bunch of young kids who do not know any better = exciting, fun, and the sky is the limit hockey!
Great win Sens!
The boys are playing well, dare I say better than anyone expected.
Also, he has only been in the NHL for 3 months. Imagine 2 years from now!
It's going to be discussed further at the general manager's meeting in the spring, but the current plan is the first two rounds are conference play, so 1 plays 4, 2 plays 3 in round 1 and then the winners play in round 2. This means each conference has a representative in the semi-finals.
I personally like the idea behind the realignment, but don't like the way they've broken it down for playoffs. I wish it was top 3 in each conference and then allow for some crossover. The current Northeast division normally has given 3-4 playoff teams each year, and now you add in Tampa Bay and an up and coming Florida team and it's going to be harder to make the playoffs. I also would've liked 1st round of playoffs being conference play, but then re-seeding everyone after that.
I like that we can have Toronto/Montrea l/Buffalo/Bosto n against Ottawa in the semis right now.
Who cares their style is obvioulsy not working at the moment, they will fixe themselves...
The hate on for Foligno has been beyond ridiculous and all he's done is play hard nosed consistent hockey and improve his game every year. The haters deserve to be called out.
Also I'm tired of hearing that this team is doing better than "anyone expected". I expected this, others did too. So haters welcome to a world where your team actually has success and the players on it are celebrated for their achievements instead of torn down for not meeting your unfair expectations.
GO SENS GO!!!
Just goes to show what these young kids are bringing to the team.
Smith-Condra-Daug are doing great as a shut down line.. especially considering the lack of experience they have.
Now, let's get that win against the Caps..
Come to think of it each city should have their own Refs just like Tranna has now!
Is it just me or is obvious now that there are 2 Divisions with 8 teams and 2 with 7, that the NHL is planning on bringing in expansion?
Quebec City and someone else??
Just seems weird that it's "easier" to make the playoffs in two of the Divisions.
I totally agree with you on this !
In the past it was not possible, but to me if the 2 best teams are in same conference, it definitely should or could happen.
In the past the NHL had 4 Divisions and since they are not named as of yet, they should consider the names they once had.
I remember the Adams Division, the Patrick Division, and
the Prince of Wales Division, and I think the other one
was the Conn Smyth Division.
Maybe the January meeting of the GM's, will decide to revive those names ???
Prince of Wales was the name of the "eastern conference" that included the Adams & Patrick Divisions.
Norris was the name of the 4th Division that, with the Smyth, made up the Campbell Conference.
I agree, these type of posts are just as bad as the negative nancy's... Thing is, on this site I've noticed a lot of people can't accept someone else opinion if it differs from theirs, positive or negative
No one is a "hater"... You can be critical of your team and still be a fan...
Replying to your own post - poor forum etiquette. but what can you do.
1st round of playoffs inter conference, each conference has 2 teams in the last 8
2nd round of playoffs 1v8, 2v7, 3v6, 4v5 based on the records of the remaining 8 teams, regardless of conference
3rd round of playoffs 1v4, 2v3 based on the records of the teams left regardless of conferences
SCF - whoever is left
I guess it could mean for more traveling for some teams but wouldn't have thought, in a short term scenario, this would be that significant.
The NHL wants the Conference matchups in the playoffs to build rivalries.
With this fact in mind, the only way you could do this would be to go with something like the FIFA World Cup where in the 2nd round you had the best surviving team from each conference play the lower seed from a different conference and ensure that teams from the same conference were on different sides of the bracket. They could either do a lottery to determine which conferences match up on the second round or reseed based on head-to-head play.
Doubt we'll see this though. NHL seems very adament about keeping the first two rounds as Conference matchups. Two power houses in the same conference would mean some early exits for good teams.
I have to agree here!
I am all too happy to admit I was wrong with Kuba this year, please continue to prove me wrong Kuba.
And I too was expecting this from our team this year,
Go Sens Go!!!
Thank you for refreshing my memory !!
What has happened to Tampa? They were so good last season. Question... did they play the same trap last year?
All the more reason to build a better team! I agree that the best teams should be in, but you could say that about the way the playoffs are set up now with a team getting into the playoffs in 8th in the East and a team sitting at 10th in the West with more points. Win games and it won't be a problem.
Dont label me like that or imply that i am [if you were].
I always stuck up for players and support the sens with thousands of dollars each year, i would never hate, i support them.
Im not a foligno hater, i pull for the guy but i'm pointing out the fact that he could be a 3rd or 4th line player next year, i hope i'm wrong we seem to go through this every year,he gets hot puts up points [he has value at this time] and then he gets cold and it lasts a while...
Hopefully under mclean he can get to that next level, look at zack smith this is his first full season with the sens its possible for him to surpass nicky in 1 full season. I'm just saying foligno now has value and its possible he gets moved, if he didn't pot one last night you would be saying he shit or whatever because he missed 2-3 great chances. I dont say sens players are shit ever, just making this clear. GO SENS!
No, Quebec city does not have an arena yet. They do have all the money they need to proceed now. So the plan is to have one built for 2015. If a team moves there for next season though, they would play in the Colisee temporarily and then move to the new arena when it's done. The Quebec Remparts play in the Colisee right now, it's a good temporary venue.
In the suggestion I made you still have your 1st playoff round opponent guaranteed to be from the same conference. There is no guarantee that your playoff opponents, as it currently stands, will be from the same division - in fact it's very possible that you might be the only team from your division even in the playoffs.
Creating a rivalry, when they already exist anyway, shouldn't be more important than generating an SCF between the two best teams in the league regardless of the city they are based in.
Anyone find the Tootoo suspension hypocritical? Was it any worse than what Lucic did?
Personally I feel what Tootoo did was a common "hockey play" on a goalie that more times or less is dealt with on ice. Players "crashing" the crease in that manner is not new, and normally the use of him as a punching bag that ensues is normal justification(a s happened in that game)
Not to beat an old drum, but in my eyes the Lucic hit was much more rare and not a typical "hockey play" on a goalie
If the teams are that good, they won't get knocked out of the playoffs that early.
I would love to see the all-star game now turned into a 2 day mini tournament! Make it an extravaganza..h ere me out...
4 Conferences = 4 teams
Each team plays each other 1, in a 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 format
Seed teams accordingly for playoffs
Games would be (3) 10 minute periods
Allstar game is now 3 day event(as always)
Friday: Skills contest amongst 4 teams
Saturday: Round Robin Day (6 games total)
Sunday: Playoffs (3 games total)
* Max games for one team is 5 so 150 minutes of total ice time. Spread over 12 players just over 10 minutes each
Now before people say that too many games, it would be 14 man rosters (12 players, 2 goalies, which means rolling of 3 lines 4-on-4 play. It would be quick pond hockey style
This would be great for the game I think and would be entertaining as hell
Nice and easy, fans vote for one of their representatives , league picks the other
Yeah it won't help the NHL - Boston conspiracy theories at all.. LOL
I don't think there should of been a suspension, the 5 minute and game was good enough for me, especially the way he got jumped afterwards.. Shanahan is quickly becoming almost worse than what Campbell was doing... With Shanahan you have absolutely no clue what he will be doing. The whole "past history" thing is BS too...
re: Tootoo, i'm not sure if people will agree but from what I saw was Tootoo driving the net, not being able to go around b/c of the d-man, and trying to AVOID hitting Miller by jumping OVER him...and gets two games, yet Lucic has plenty of time to go around Miller, DROPS his shoulder and destroys him. Is Shanny now suspending the name and not the action? I even thought 5-and a game was too much for the play, 2min charging i thought would be better...and for Lucic MIN 5 games b/c of the intent.
NOTE: I know they're rivals but I'm a big fan of the Slugs ('cept when we play them of course)....
Also, Foligno has played well in that role and with Regin nearing a return, the situation is far less desperate than it may have seemed when Da Costa was demoted.
i think what you aren't taking into account is the fact that Lucic barreling into Miller and the subsequent reaction of Miller was hilarious.
awful idea. GMS will vote according to upcoming schedule lol. If ovechkin does something dangerous, and I know playoff time is coming and I play washington in 3 games, I'm sure as hell voting on 3 game suspension
Shanny has a panel, he is just the sheriff that takes the press.
Suspensions will never be right, hockey is all about perception. I honestly feel that it should be a non hockey player in this role. Shannahan's previous style of play seems to factor into decisions (i.e he wouldn't run a crease, but he would be opportunist if given the chance)
I disagree on Lucic though - I think he was fine on his play. He had his head down and wasn't expecting SilverMedal to be there and didn't see him in time to avoid him. SilverMedal is a little bitch. Lucic could have saved himself a little heat if he'd at least pretended to try and avoid him last minute instead of just thinking "well, may as well run him over", but I don't think Lucic did anything wrong.
Hating Shannahan more and more...
It's definitely a penalty. But that's where I think it should end unless there's clear intent to injure. However, after the Lucic hit, they had a meeting with GMs where GMs indicated they want these types of hits suspended, so the environment has changed since the Lucic hit, because of it. Hence the discrepancy between the two, imo.
(if this hasnt been posted already)
sens are well represented in this year's WJC.
Stone - Canada
Culek - Czech republic
Zibanejad and Claesson - Sweden
Prince - USA
- puempel didnt make canada because this year's roster consists mostly of 19+ year olds
- noesen didnt make USA isnt a big problem because USA only took 3 players from the OHL this year, most of their roster is NCAA guys
looks like our prospects can combine for a few medals this year!
I've only seen ice girls with big ol' beer bellys. Not exactly appealing.
It's really important that the casual fan of another team gets an opportunity to spend their money every season. It also makes it a lot more interesting for season ticket holders. Getting to see every team in the league means looking forward to more games. I've always found it really enjoyable as a fan to see the stars from the Western Conference up close because we really don't get that many opportunities. Nice to see fans will get more of that.
I think they should consider trading Regin to a contending team later on. He wouldn't be much help unless he's willing to play on the forth line
Teams can carry 23 players. Sens will have 2 extra forwards & 2 extra D... that's 24 players.
I certainly hope Daug goes nowhere. That line is playing lights out both defensively and offensively..
Something's gotta give...
since foligno has earned his spot on that 2C. and i still thing regin may be better than foligno. however i think instead of just wasting regin's skill on a 4th line, why not put him back with spezza since that first line is never consistant other than spezza playing center and usually greening on LW
When Peter Regin is able to play, which is very soon, I would love to see a Line 1 combination, with Regin used as
a RW. Greening - Spezza - Regin.
Line 2 could still be Michalek - Foligno - Alfredsson.
These combinations would give us 2 powerful scoring lines .
Daugavins goes down based on his two-way contract. This is a rebuild and he shouldn't get too upset when that happens. He and DaCosta can light things up in Bingo until a roster spot (or two) opens up due to injury or trade.