Sens' Brass Gets Look Into Promising Future
If Wednesday’s preseason opener for the Binghamton Senators is any indication, Ottawa fans should be excited about the talent in the pipeline.
With Ottawa General Manager Bryan Murray, assistant GM Tim Murray and head coach Paul MacLean all in attendance, they had some pretty positive things to evaluate.
Granted it’s only one game, but highly touted prospects Mika Zibanejad, Mark Stone and Jakob Silfverberg all got on the scoresheet. Throw in Jean-Gabriel Pageau (fourth-round pick in 2011) and it was a great night for the youngsters in the organization.
Zibanejad and Silfverberg, both from Sweden, got key goals in Binghamton’s 4-3 shootout victory on Wednesday. Zibanejad scored the second goal of the game with just under five minutes left in the first period, to give Binghamton a 2-0 lead.
In the third period, the duo hooked up on a shorthanded breakaway that saw Silfverberg tally, making it 3-1 at that point.
The Swedish domination did not end there, as Robin Lehner, who struggled in 2011-2012, looked sharp in net. He stopped 28 of 31 shots in regulation and all three he faced in the shootout.
“Robin’s been solid all camp and tonight was just another demonstration of that,” said Binghamton coach Luke Richardson. “All three goals were probably bouncing off shin pads and went to the open guy. The second and third one, I thought we over back-checked and left guys open.”
Lehner, coming off a 22-13-1 season a year ago, has been in better shape in camp and come in to this season with a better attitude.
“He was moving the puck and taking charge out there,” said Richardson. He was being very vocal and was dominant in the shootout.”
Stone, a 2010 sixth-rounder from Winnipeg, played well in the game and got on the scoresheet in the shootout and played with high energy much of the night. He got the puck where it needed to be and looked very comfortable.
The same could be said for Zibanejad and Silfverberg, who were not in over their heads at all.
Ben Blood, who had an assist on Binghamton’s first goal, skated very well as did Darren Kramer, who got into his first pro fight 14 minutes into the contest.
All of the young guns seemed to be a bit fatigued as the game went into the third period, which explains the Hershey comeback, but that is to be expected this time of year.
That said… Richardson has been very impressed by what he has seen so far, not only in the game, but also in camp.
“Without a main camp, this is the main camp this year and the guys have all come in in great shape and worked extremely hard,” he said. “We have some real tough decisions, but that’s hockey and that’s what we want.”
Binghamton will practice today and play at Hershey on Friday, in preseason game two. They wrap up the three game exhibition season on Saturday against Albany at the Broome County Arena.
Richardson said they will use all the time they have left to continue evaluating, before making decisions on the final roster.
With all the talent coming in I'm really excited for the senators of five years. When whoever gets the captainship after alfie retires if silf plays like he is speculated to and acts mature he will probably be named captain.
I still think it will be Spezza. Silf MAY get his chance after Spezza, but that is way too far to tell.
Great game last night, it would be nice if the feed had some audio...but I'm just thankful we had something to watch. I think I may get to know a lot of prospects by watching a lot of AHL this year. :)
Why not have Sportsnet Channel, who have been broadcasting
at least 60% of The Ottawa Senators home and away regular season games, get the crew geared up to broadcast the Binghamton Senators AHL home and away games ??
If the NHL does come back, they can then switch and cover the Ottawa Senators games. Am pretty sure TSN and CBC are not interested in covering AHL hockey, but Sportsnet would
most likely be willing to get involved ??
Anyone have an idea on how to peak the interest of Sportsnet ???
As awesome as that would be, i dont think there is a big enough fan base for them to justify it. unlike, the followers on this site, most fans are not interested in anything below regular and playoff NHL hockey. To that end, most fans don't follow the preseason or training camp let alone the AHL.
likely the only channel that would look at offering coverage is Rogers 22 which unfortunately, I dont get...
i think were screwed.
This makes the most sense, since the Rogers 22 Channel,
would not be interested in covering the Senators AHL team.
Maybe we should lobby the Ottawa Senators, to promote the Sportsnet Sens Channel, to cover the home and away games of the Binghamton Senators !!
I mean, the Sportsnet Sens channel is only ever broadcast for Sens games so they might as well use it this year for Bingo with no Ottawa games on until the season starts (if it does).
Stone = Jason spezza
Pageau = ryan shannon
anyone thinks they have a good one go ahead.
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockeynightincanada/yourpick/
Even though we are not gonna see the Binghamton Senators on Sportsnet, at least we will get some AHL hockey 2 Saturday nights in a row !
Maybe this will force Sportsnet East or Sportsnet Sens to cover some Bingo games later on !!
BSens Line Up
Silfverberg-Pageau-Zibanejad
Dziurzynski-Culek-Stone
Cowick-Grant-Peltz
Kramer-Gazely-Downing
Ekford-Blood
Gryba-New
Claesson-Wideman
Lehner
Saturday will be the indication with what I would expect the final lineup to be.
I believe only 2 Cdn teams have their AHL teams in the US.. and that's Ottawa & Edmonton.
Now Oklahoma City may get air time considering Eberle, RNH & Hall will be in the lineup.
I got my tickets to the B-Sens for the 19th & 20th of Oct. Thanks to Mike McCarthy for the Bingo contact...
If anyone wants to go to the games in Binghamton contact Karen Brown at kbrown
Really looking forward to regular updates on the B-Sens.. that along with the 67's will be our hockey for this season. Hoping for good seasons from both teams.
Thank you, much appreciated!
Sounds like Turris will pick a place to play in Europe in the not too distant future.
messsier wasn't the best or fastest skater but he was clutch in the slot and around the net.
Messier didn't have finesse like many NHLers yet still became one of the best in the games history.
you cant hold anything on a guy with hockey sense.
I think stone will take a little longer than silfverberg to make a difference in the NHL, but he will certainly produce as he just knows where to be on the ice to score. Rare find so kudos to the sens staff
I haven't seen too much stone action...so I'm asking for opinion more than stating mine, but from what i've seen, mark is overall more involved than heatly was overall in the play. I don't recall the announcer ever saying: heatley passes to spezza...spezza shoots and scores. heatley found an open spot and sniped it (very well mind you), stone, although not the fastest skater, seems to pass, push, shove, get in dirty areas, as well as try to snipe it (not quite the sniper heatley was yet though).
So i don't know if i'd compare him to heatley...i kind of liked the messier comparison i think...as far as playstyle goes (not potential)
I've actually heard stone compared to knuble but with better hands.
With Bingo starting up it is nice to see some of the diehards here still contributing... heres a shoutout to the usual crew...RUSH, Apostle, Sensation, HAX ans as much as I hate to say it even you Tooks... no offense to those I have missed cant list them all :)...
what are your thoughts on which players will shine in Bingo, and which ones because of this lockout will benefit and we will see in a Sens uniform sooner rather than later?
Could their play even make some of the current ones expendable?
thoughts?
I'm really excited to see how Cowen develops this year in the A. I mean he will easily be the most dominant on our team and will be used in all situations i'm sure. If we lose this year I can't even imagine how good him and Karl could look together. Expected big things from him this year, and can't wait until next Saturday!
What about everyone else? We all know those forwards are gonna shine this season too right?
I certainly agree on Cowen, he will be our new Chara in a couple of years, in fact as I have said before, he is further ahead in his development than Chara was at the same time in their careers.
I really believe that there will be a couple of big surprises in Bingo by players such as Hoffman, DaCosta, and of course the usual crew of Zibby, Silfver, and Stone, that will seriously put to doubt some of the current Senator players that are sitting out.
I will predict that there will be one or two per NHL team that will go the way of a Jesse Winchester when some of these kids prove their worth.
I'm looking for big things out of Hoffman and Da Costa. I know Silfverberg, Zibanejad, and Stone will be very solid.
Chara has an insane work ethic though. I'm not sure many in the league work harder than he does. If Cowen has that work ethic, then look out for sure.
Cowen will have a very good career, but you guys are dreaming if you think he can be compared to Chara.
Zibby & Silf will be a joy to watch all season if they stay together (hopefully they build chemistry that they can apply to the big league later on.
Costa, hoffman obviously...but the player that I'm most anxious to see play is Petersson. So much offensive potential, and it's his time to prove himself to the big leauge. Will he be able to stand above the rest, or become a Filatov?
I think what makes Chara...well... Chara...is his competitive edge and his determination (well...besides the size). Chara is a leader, he inspires, he leads by example, he is a beast.
Can Cowen ever become like this? I don't know...I'm going to say Cowen will be a very good player, but Elite players like Chara/crosby/ma lkin/etc...are very few, so I agree with you and wouldn't be too quick to throw him in the same league so quickly.
I'd put Cowen somewhere between Phillips and Pronger.
More offense than Phillips but not as much as Pronger
Grittier than Phillips but not as mean as Pronger.
All in all, a great 2nd -3rd dman
I was honestly thinking the exact same thing.
Just a thought!
Really?
does anyone remember Chara's early days in Ottawa?
If not have a look at these numbers
1997-98 New York Islanders NHL 25 0 1 1 50 1
1997-98 Kentucky Thoroughblades AHL 48 4 9 13
1998-99 New York Islanders NHL 59 2 6 8 83
1998-99 Lowell Lock Monsters AHL 23 2 2 4 47
1999-00 New York Islanders NHL 65 2 9 11 57 -27
2000-01 New York Islanders NHL 82 2 7 9 157 -27
2001-02 Ottawa Senators NHL 75 10 13 23 156 30
it took Chara 5 years and at the age of 24 before he looked decent.
And if anyone can remember the early years he looked awfully lanky and combersome.
Whereas Cowen at 20 is years ahead of Chara at the same age.
So will he be as determined as Chara can be debatable, but from strictly who was better at 20-21 so far Cowen wins that one... IMO only
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exAr8R4C6oY&feature=youtu.be&a
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?a=&feature=youtu.be&v=exAr8R4C6oY&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DexAr8R4C6oY%26feature%3Dyoutu.be%26a
Chara is a freak of nature. biggest man to ever play the game and i think it's understandable given his size that it took a bit longer for him to grow out of his awkwardness.
I just don't think it's a heathly comparison for Cowen to be maeasured against arguably one of the most dominant leaders in the game today. Chara isn't just a one dimensional beast, he is everything you want in a captain / # 1 defensman.
Hardest Shot
Longest Reach
Essentially unbeatable in a fight
Passing above average
Leadership off the charts
Strength off the charts
if you haven't noticed, i think Chara is the man...
Zibanejads shot was pretty dirty but Silfverberg's goal was awesome and his shootout goal was even better. The guy has an absolutely lethal shot. Looks just like it did last year.
That release is gonna turn heads in the NHL. I remember at one point Peter Forsberg said his shot is not only NHL calibre but comparable to the likes of Stamkos. I'd say he's right on the money with that analysis. Goalies barely move when he shoots. It's also insanely accurate. He picks corners all day.
If he learns to play a little more physical this year or at least learn to deal with the physicality of the north American game he should make a very solid 1st liner. I can't wait!
Not sure anyone else noticed, but all that fog on the ice really reminded me of the old school games you'd see on TV.
As for Cowen, he's not Chara, never will be I don't think and most will agree. Is he better at his age now than Chara was, yes. But this day in age you basically have to be or you just don't make it. In Chara's case, he managed to slip in more because of his size, than skill I think. And scouts just crossed there fingers hoping he'd put it all together over time, which he did. But I agree, Cowen is somewhere between Phillips and Pronger.
That arguement is so ridiculously flawed. So Cowen has had a better start to his career than Chara did, but so have many many many many many many other defenseman year in and year out all across the league.
I think that's the point though AFM11, it's too early to say he isn't going to be Chara, just like it's too early to say that he will be. But if anyone is going to replicate a Chara type of career he's on the right path.
Also Chara is not dominant offensively, he just has a ridiculous shot. His puck handling is average at best. Cowen's shown some good offensive instincts already in limited opportunities, so there is definitely a chance he could match Chara in that domain if our PP isn't dominated by Karlsson and Ceci in the future.
what I am saying is that at the same age Cowen is better than Chara was, so to say that he CANNOT be as good is really taking the glass half empty attitude, to protect yourself from being wrong.
Chara is one of the best of his time, so to reach that level would be very lofty aspirations, all I am saying is that if he continues to grow, and develope, then he may be that good... again my 2 cents
There will only ever be one Chara in my books... just like there will be only one Bobby Orr... Now obviously you can't compare them against each other.
What makes some Sens fans upset.. is they had Chara and let him walk. How great a role model he would have been for the young defensemen in the Sens system.
But you can't go back.... you can only look forward.
And forward is a bright future with great young prospects... that hopefully we can see in Ottawa in the near future.
Zibanejad-Pageau-Stone
Hoffman-Cannone-Petersson
Cowick-Culek-Schneider
Peltz-Kramer-Downing
Blood-Borowiecki
Cowen-Claesson
New-Wideman
ilya kovalchuck is captain of his khl team, nail yukapov is doing well, what happens if they decide to stay? could they argue the current lockout and them not being paid voids their contract?
what happens if they stay?
losing kovalchuk could be a back breaker for NJ and the teams attendance, nail hasn't had his first NHL paycheck yet so is his situation different?
could owners to forced to pay their players during a lockout to keep their contracts from being voided? who decides these legalities?
thanks in advance
Don't want to be a player on the opposing team...
Hopefully someone will post a stream???
Cowen is just big.
i think chara's off season sparring and wrestling sets him apart, guys could be 7',0" and not have those abilities, i believe chara had taken longer to develop because it would take along time for him to fill out his frame and use it as an advantage.
cowen will have great potential, i'm hoping he loves to hit and not be a player like philip kuba.
That has got to be a one of a kind. Ebay or are they friends of yours? :)
He has a goal and an assist, sounded like he also dominated this game today according to the radio stream, especially the third period he was all over the ice.
What is the score so far?
way to go boys!
Zibanejad:goal and assist
Hoffman:goal, and 2 assists.
Pageau: goal
Petersson: goal, and assist
Cowen: assist
He signed with TPS Turku in the sm-liiga (Finland) so far he has 7pts in 8 games. (1g 6a) best of locke to him this season. Pun intended
In 5 games 5 goals and 2 assists.