Unlucky Foligno

Sens sophomore Nick Foligno, has been hit with an unlucky stick and will be sidelined 6-8 weeks with a broken leg. Foligno suffered the injury in yesterdays franchise breaking 9th straight win, while blocking a shot. Unfortunate news as he had really started to play well as of late, awful timing for the kid.

Thoughts?

Franchise History Made On HDIC

So there you have it Sens fans, something we have never seen in 17 years of play, the Sens winning 9 in a row. How sweet was it to come against Montreal as well? Not too shabby at all.

We started the game off well and were firmly in control, we looked to be cruising to fairly easy victory in my opinion, until we did the one thing you can't do against the Habs, we took penalties. The Habs have a real problem scoring 5 on 5, but scored on the 2 powerplays we did give them to tie it up. Especially bad was Chris Kelly's near the end of the game, how ironic is this from the program at SBP? Haha

In the OT period we were screwed over LARGE by referee Tim Peel, who deprived us of a clear penalty shot and then called a needless penalty on Jason Spezza. Hopefully he recieves some sort of repremand for nearly costing us the game. But in the end, we won in OT with a goal by none other then Mr OT himself, Mike Fisher.

All in all it was a great start to Hockey Day In Canada and amazing to see us pull through and get the W, even if we did give MTL a point. Does it ever feel good to set a franchise record for wins in a row. I love the way this team is playing. Celebrating HARD tonight!!! Come join the Mayor out and about. Pictures from the night will be post as it happens on my Twitter so follow me.

Thoughts from the game:

-Another team effort was amazing to see, good crowd too

-Karlsson played very well again, he's bringing me over to the dark side....slowly.

-Kuba had a pretty good game too.

-For once against MTL, Alfie was held pointless

-Let's hope Foligno isn't too hurt, good lookin out on the blocked shot though. (Update: Out 6-8 weeks with a Broken Leg, poor guy)

-Loved seeing Kovie score against his old club

-I'm loving Regin and great to see Spezza score again

-Kelly has to be smarter and not take that penalty

-Triple C for coach of the year? He's got my vote, as does Guy Carbonneau for worst annoucer of all time.

So there you have it, what a feeling! 9 in a row wow! Did you ever think we'd get there just a few weeks ago? I sure didn't. The way we've turned things around is truly remarkable and shows the potential this team has. We may have lost Heatley but we're a better TEAM without him. Don't look now Pittsburgh but we're only 1 point behind you for 4th.

Thoughts?

GDP #56: Hockey Day In Canada, Sens V Habs

We all know the deal, early game which means the Mayor has less time to write a GDP lol.

Sens are going for a franchise record 9th win in a row against the hated Habs. Can they do it? We will know in 3 hours.

Happy Hockey Day In Canada!

Prediction: Sens get the record and win 5-2.

Thoughts? Feel free to join and comment throughout the game. I will be in the comments section all game. Go Sens Go!

Exclusive: Carrie and Mike Step Out

Thanks goes out to a big fan of the site, who sent these Exclusive pictures in, though they wish to remain anonymous. Hope you all like them. It looks like Fisherwood was quite happy and jovial throughout the night, which was at a charity gala for the Sens Foundation, that ended up raising $325,000. Not bad in an economic downturn for one night of work.

Thoughts? Leave your comments.

Also shoutout to Carrie, who will be singing the anthem at the Superbowl on February 7th, that's major.

Elite 8

After going down 1-0 less then 2 minutes in, the Sens bounced back to score 4 unanswered goals, to beat Pittsburgh 4-1 and extend their winning streak to a franchise record tying 8 games. With the win, we closed to within 3 points of 4th place Pittsburgh and are now 9 points clear of a playoff spot with 27 games left.

It was another total team effort, especially after letting in that early goal to Malkin, who seems to always score against us. At that point we could have folded fast, instead we didn't let it phase us and double them up to finish the period up 2-1.

While the whole team played well, special attention must be paid to several players. First off to the top line of Alfie, Spezza and Michalek, who were a threat all night and constantly looked dangerous. Awesome to see Spezza back scoring, we're gonna need that if we're going to amke any serious noise this season. Nick Foligno played another great game, setting up Fisher's goal with a ridiculous pass and potting the empty netter for a 2 point night. The Sens D gets a shoutout for holding Crosby scoreless yet again. If only we could play him 82 games a year, just kidding.

And last but not least, Brian Elliott was solid in goal again and made the saves he had to when he had to. More importantly he didn't let in any weak goals.

Thoughts from the game:

-What a hit by Neil on Easton. Hopefully Carkner isn't too hurt.

-I'm not a hater, Karlsson played pretty well again, if he could only hit the net with his shot now. Looks like the kid might be a gamer after all. I can admit it.

-Those 2 "penalty" calls against Kovalev were brutal, hope the refs get repremanded for that, what a joke. When does the Letang diving school classes start?

-Awesome to see Cry Baby Crosby fail yet again against us

-Why did no one take a shot at Adams in the last minute when we were ahead 4-1?

-Clouston for coach of the year?

-MAF's glove hand looked so weak, hope he doesn't see the ice for Canada.

So there you have it, Sens win their 8th in a row unbelievably and look forward to an afternoon affair on Saturday with the Habs, with a chance to set a new record for wins in a row. Can we do it? The way this team is playing I wouldn't bet against us.

Thoughts?

GDP #55: Sens @ Pittsburgh

Is that the best Pittsburgh can do? I mean I know they're supposed to be a blue collar, working class type city, but a ginger is their poster girl? Just sayin'......

On to more important matters, like tonights revenge, errr I mean game against Pittsburgh, the reigning Stanley Cup Champs. There are 2 things we need to make up for tonight, but I'm ok with sacrificing 1 for the other no problem. Sure a win would be nice, extending it to a franchise tying 8 game win streak and moving closer to 4th place Pittsburgh, but there is something more pressing at hand, and that's sticking up for the Captain. So Craig Adams, if I were you, I'd be worried all night. You can't get away scott free for that unecessary hit that nearly killed our season. Of course this is the Sens we're talking about here, so no payback will be had and another player has taken a cheap shot at #11 with no reprecussions.

Back to the game, the big question is can the Sens make it 8 in a row? Tonight will be a tough test for sure, as the Penguins have won 5 of their last 7 and are on a roll themselves. The good news is they do have a few injuries to key people, as Chris Kunitz and Max Talbot are out, with the Bill Guerin looking likely to be out as well.

For the Sens, Jesse Winchester skated yesterday but still isn't ready to return for awhile. Other then that, it's the same lineup that's been gettin it done for us lately. Alexandre Picard and Shean Donovan remain in the pressbox. Other change is Kovalev being moved up to play with Foligno and Fisher again to see if they can regain some early season chemistry. Brian Elliott gets the start of course.

The key with the Penguins always, is keeping Malkin and Crosby in check. For some reason, Crosby has had very little success against us, only scoring 2 goals in 16 careers games. He is coming in on a hot streak, scoring 9 goals in his last 10 games, so let's hope the Big Rig and A-Train are on their games tonight and his frustration against us continues.

Prediction: The Pens are the champs and they sure killed us last time we played, but this is a different team and we're on one hell of a roll right now. This will be a tough game and with a win, we will pull within 3 points of the Pens for 4th place in the east, which would mean home ice advantage in the playoffs. Hard to pick against the Sens right now, so I'm just gonna ride it out until we lose. Sens win the revenge game 5-3.

Thoughts?

Complaints & Grievances: 50/50 Draw

I'm for charity, you're for charity, everyone is for charitable operations. I mean try and find me one person who is against helping people out, right? Well I love all the work the Sens Foundation does for local charities and all but I have a complaint about their 50/50 draw.

Now correct me if I'm wrong here, but isn't the object of any charitable operation to get the most amount of money possible for their organization? So why did they change the rules and only sell tickets through the 1st intermission, instead of through the 2nd intermission, which they had previously done for years. I'm no accountant, but selling for half the amount of time results in less money, as evidenced by the payouts they announce. It used to always be close to the maximum amount they were allowed to pay, but now it hovers around 10-13k each game.

So why the change? Why deprive charities of an extra say 5,000 a game or so? The other night I witnessed numerous people asking ushers where they could buy tickets and they were told they don't sell them past the 1st intermission. You should have seen the look on their faces, it was priceless. Like they couldn't believe what kind of stupid decision this was to turn away money. I have to agree.

The Sens Foundation does a lot of good work, and way more often then not, they excel not fail, but this is definitely something they should correct, along with the rule of only having 30 minutes after the game to claim the prize or they get it your winnings. Should the winner not have a few days to claim it? Seems a bit greedy to me. Other lotteries from the OLG tend to have months if not a full year to claim it.

My point is in this economic downturn, when someone wants to help out a charitable cause and donate money via the popular 50/50 draw, we shouldn't be cutting it back, but rather working with the fans to ensure they have more time to buy tickets, thus making more money for the Sens Foundation and local charities.

Thoughts?

Camps Hits 300

Shoutout to sens D-Man Chris Campoli, who last night played in his 300th career NHL game. Camps had an assist in the 3-0 shutout over the New Jersey Devils. Congrats on the Milestone from Sens Town.

Thoughts?

Kicking Ass And Taking Names

Another team we haven't beaten in forever is now history, first Boston and now New Jersey falls victim to the Sens tonight, in a shutout 3-0 win, our SEVENTH in a row. That is our longest streak since we started the season on fire in 2007-08.

Man I just can't say enough about our team, we dominated really from start to finish, New Jersey was never in the game, we even chased Martin Brodeur from the net, so take that. We previously hadn't beaten Jersey since early 2007, when we spoiled the debut of their new stadium.

Put it this way, Brian Elliott had a shutout and was the 3rd star. Ya we dominated them that much, I can't even remember a nice save he had to make.

Thoughts from the game:

-I give credit where it's due, Karlsson looked good again tonight, hell so did Kuba.

-Shoutout to Real Sens Army who were loud all night out of Sec 305, well done.

-Good to see Spezza on the scoresheet in back to back games.

-Loved seeing Ruutu draw that penalty from Peters and just standing there with a funny ass smirk on his face. On a scale of 1-10, how bad do you think Peters hates Ruutu from the biting incident? I'm gonna say about a 17.

-Kovie had another nice game, he sure is fun to watch

-Nice to see 18k plus on hand at SBP, and they were loud all night, especially loving up the wave.

-Poor Cheechoo, can the guy get a break? this guy couldn't score in a whore house, Hiiiiiiiyo!!

So now we try and make it 8 in a row on Thursday vs the Penguins in Pittsburgh, who we owe an ass kicking to for that 8-2 pounding before Christmas and for taking out Alfie. You're next up on our list Penguins, look out!

Thoughts?

GDP #54: Sens V Jersey

Sens are back it tonight, riding a 6 game win streak, hoping to make it 7, fist pump!

Some thought it might be a battle of the Brodeurs, but Brian Elliott will get the start. There was no way you couldn't start the NHL's player of the week in my opinion.

Anton Volchenkov returns to the lineup tonight, after missing 1 game and a period, and it's a very welcome sight. We need the A-train on it's tracks. To make room for him, Alexandre Picard will come out of the lineup. Other then that, no changes from Saturdays lineup.

Speaking of Jersey Shore, do you ever get the feeling we have a few of the characters on our team. You're probably think Mayor, what are you talking about, but hear me out.

Take Cheechoo, does he remind you of anyone on the show? He's like Snooki, always on the lookout, always trying so hard, but neither has the ability to score, yet they come back for more, time after time, never yielding any results. You wanna cheer for them, but in the end, nothing ever works out.

Then there's Jason "The Situation" Spezza. He's the star of the show, a little too over confident to mask his insecurities, and while he is usually the leading scorer, his conquests never seem to live up to the expectations.

Then you got Milan Michalek. Minus the goofy haircut, he's the Pauly D of the squad. Kinda quiet, doesn't talk too much, a total team guy, who will take a grenade or two for the good of the team, but quietly pounds them out in a all around game kinda way. Both are severely underrated in their genre and once you get over the goofy smile, you see he's actually a great guy, battling the beats or boards all night.

Then there's babyface Erik Karlsson. He's the Vinnie of the show, a total momma's boy, or in this case, a total Alfie's wife boy. He needs to be babied and taken care of, if he isn't completely comfortable his surroundings, his play will suffer. Both appear to be nice guys, but as time goes on, they both seem to have a little more attitude then we thought. As a result, both of their perofrmances picked it up at the end, though thankfully Karlsson hasn't had pink eye or sweaty armpit syndrom yet. The jury is still out if Karlsson fist pumps like a champ or not, time will tell.

Mike Fisher as Sammi Sweetheart. At first you might be like wtf kinda comparison is that, but follow me here. Sammi is a Jekyl and Hyde type person, always causing drama, you never know which girl you're gonna get. Same with #12. Sometimes he looks like an elite secondary scorer who's being considered for the Canadian team and the next minute he's on another 15 game goaless streak, promising to do better and work harder. At least Fish doesn't have that annoying accent and say like every 2 seconds.

So after just describing the Sammi on our team, I'm sure you're all wondering who Ronnie is. Well it's a tie, between Triple C and Bryan Murray. Both are always preaching accountability and neither follow through with it. Just like Ronnie, always trying to be the tough guy who doesn't care, but every night he crawls into bed and apologizes like the whipped man he is. They both talk a mean game, but when push comes to shove, they back down. All you need to know is Cheechoo has not been a healthy scratch once this year.

Coming up with a JWoww was a little harder, but before I get into that, what's with the extra W in her name anyway? That sad part is I can't tell if she did it on purpose or if she's too dumb to notice, both options are in play. The closest I could come up with is Alexei Kovalev. Both are too tanned, both have semi blonde hair and both you can kinda forget they're there, until the come up with the play of the game and steal the show, ala Jwoww's punch to the situation's face or Kovie's 4 goal game. In the end, they're both star supporting players and key to the success of the team, but always leaving you thinking they could have done more.

Then there was Angelina, who only lasted a few episodes but had a big attitude, and was ultimately forgotten. How about we go with Ilya Zubov for this one. They both had a bad attitude, both thought they were way better then they were (I'm a bartender I do like great things, and hey I'm a mildly succesful AHLer), both team and show went out without them and both are now a hey, I wonder whatever happened to them.

Back to the GDP my friends.

Predicition: The Sens have not beaten the Devils in nearly 2 and 1/2 years, going 0-5-2 over that span, but things in Senator Town sure are different these days. Everyone is confident and in a good mood, a 6 game win streak will do that. Still the Devils are one of the elite teams in the NHL and as long as they have Martin Brodeur, they are always a tough W. All win streaks must come to and en eventually, but not tonight. Sens win 4-2.

Special Shoutout going out to the Real Sens Army crew, who tonight are gonna be representing in section 305, with 70+ members at the game. Sens Town definitely co-signs these guys, as they are the loudest fans we have and will be signing and making noise from start to finish. If you have a chance and are at the game, stop by and get involved, so we can make our rink a louder place and a real home ice advantage. It has to start sometime, tonight seems as good as ever.

Thoughts?

Elliott Named NHL's Best

Special shoutout goes out to Kid Elliott, for being named the Player of the Week in the NHL, which is of course quite the accomplishment. He was a perfect 4-0 this week, with 2 wins over rival Boston, 1 win over St Louis and 1 win against the NHL's best team in Chicago.

By the way, who wrote that article? Seeing his most extensive playing time in his career, really? You mean except last year when he played like the last 50 games in a row, fail!

Congratulation to Brian, keep up the strong play. Pascal who?

Thoughts?

Jersey Foul 54

Is she making a public commentary on how our goalies typically play like? Or her way of advertising she's a puck bunny, but only for netminders? Or is this a nod to roller girl from Boogie Nights? These are the type of things I have time to think about when we've won 6 in a row and I have nothing to really complain about it.

Thoughts?

Deja Vu Win

Another afternoon game in Boston and another win, who woulda thunk it. After being the Bruins' prison bitch for the past few years, the Sens have made it 2 in a row againt the B's, and both in the same week. It begs the question, are we now Boston's kryptonite? Are we in the bizzaro world? Until I see Feldman, Vargas, Kevin and Gene, I won't know for sure but it's a great start.

Of course I have to give it up to Spezza, who scored the game winner on his first game back. Was it just me or did he look refreshed and motivated today? A verynice first game back for Giggles indeed.

Once again, another team effort, with no one really playing poorly and no one player standing out either. Obviously the key to us winning is a 60 minute effort and good goaltending. Brian Elliott was decent, not spectacular but he got the win and that's what counts in the end. That and the 2 points we won.

With the win, the Sens have opened up a 5 point gap in 5th place in the east. Quite impressive seeing as how 10 days agow e were tied for 8th and struggling. That's how fast things can turn in the NHL, oh ya a sweet 6 game win streak doesn't hurt either.

In the words of Jay Z, On To The Next One.........

Thoughts?

GDP #53: Sens @ Chowdaheads

The Sens are back in Boston AGAIN, to play another afternoon affair AGAIN, less then a week after they played the same team in the same arena at the same time. Nice scheduling NHL. Thankfully this is the last meeting of the season between the 2 clubs, since Boston has won 4 of 5 this year and dominated us the past few seasons, although the Sens snapped the curse on Monday by getting the win.

The big news in Sens Town is that Jason Spezza is expected to make his triumphant return to the lineup, after missing 20 games. Good news for the Sens, since he is our number 1 centre and has 34 points in 37 career games against the B's.

The other change in the lineup is Zack Smith has been sent down to Bingo in an unfortunate numbers game. Anton Volchenkov, who left the game on Thursday and missed the 3rd period, is expected to play. Brian Elliott is expected to get the start.

Where things do get a bit dodgy is in the line department. There's some weird combo's going on but they can always be adjusted throughout the game. Especially odd is Fisher in the middle of the 3rd line. How Cheechoo hasn't been sat once this year is insane. Here's your lines for the game

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

Prediction: Can the Sens make it 6 in a row and 2 in a row against the B's? That's the million dollar question isn't it. We are playing well but win streaks can't go on forever and Boston usually has our number. Even still, with the addition of Spezza and Michalek back in our already steady lineup, I think the Sens pull this one out 4-2, with Spezza getting 2 points in his return.

Thoughts?

A reminder this game is a 1pm start and to follow me on Twitter as I always have a running commentary throughout the game and also feel free to comment throughout the game in the comments section. I will be there leaving comments and answering questions you have.

Numbers Victim

In an unfortunate news kinda way, Zack Smith has been assigned back to Binghamton of the AHL. He was played well in his short time here, and many people, myself included, thought he had done enough to stick with the big club, but I guess not. He has become a victim of a numbers game. With Jason Spezza and Milan Michalek returning, there is no roster spot for young Zac. But fear not, his future looks bright and I'm sure he will be back soon.

Thoughts?

Carkner Vs Janssen

In case you missed it, here is a fan's view of the big tilt from last night's game. Matt Carkner vs Cam Janssen, enjoy!

Thoughts on the bout?

Happy 1200th

A very happy congratulations goes out to Alexei Kovalev, who last night played his 1200th career NHL game, which is quite the accomplishment. Shoutout to AK27 on the major milestone. Hope the best is still to come from the Mayor.

Thoughts?

Sens Leave St Louis Blue

The Sens made it 5 in a row tonight, narrowly edging the fiesty St Louis Blues 3-2.

We were all over them from the puck drop and it looked like we might cruise to an easy win, but not so. St Louis battled back and showed some heart, they have a decent little team there, definitely some big talent.

Once again Brian Elliott had a very solid game for the Sens and looks to have secured the #1 spot, for now at least. Another big game was had by Peter Jensen, err Regin, who continues to look better with each game that passes. He seems to look very comfortable out there and that is benefitting our team in a huge way.

I love the way the team is playing now, hopefully we can keep it up. This is a team you want to cheer for.

Thoughts from the game:

-Karlsson again played a pretty well rounded game. I know I love to hate on the kid, but the kid is looking better as of late I must admit.

-Great to see Michalek back on the scoreboard in his first game back, and he seems to have gotten his speed back as well.

-Was it me or were both those Kovie penalties kinda iffy?

-Volchenkov left the game with an injury and did not return and if he left you know it can't be good news.

-Only 16,000 on hand to see a team playing so well is just sad

-The PP hate can stop, at least for a day, as the Sens scored all 3 with the man advantage

-Man Erik Johnson is the real deal. What a stud St Louis has. He's the type of player we've never had and I've always wanted

So there you have it, the Sens have won a season high 5 games in a row and are holding steady alone in 5th in the East. We know take our the rival Bruins again on Saturday, in another afternoon affair in Boston, looking to make it back to back wins against the B's in a big 4 point game. The way we're playing right now, no one should scare us.

Thoughts?

GDP #52: Sens V St Louis

The Sens are back at it tonight, looking for their 5th win in a row, as they have a rare game with the St Louis Blues. There is definitely some excellent buzz going at the moment in Sens Army, that'll happen with the way we've played as of late. It's important not to take St Louis lightly, this is what they call a classic trap game.

St Louis had big expectations going into the season after a surprising playoff appearance last year, but struggled out the gate, leading to their coach being fired. They definitely do have some talent, so this is anything but a gimme. I look forward to a tough, well skated affair tonight.

On the Sens side of things, some good news, as Milan Michalek will make his return to the lineup after being out 7 games. He will start on the 4th line to get back in game shape, playing with Cheechoo and Zack Smith, but I could see him promoted quickly. Hopefully the time off has brought back his speed, looked to me he had been hurting a bit even before the bigger injury, so welcome back Milan.

With his return, Shean Donovan hits the press box as a healthy scratch. Other then that, no lineup changes from the team the owned the Hawks on Tuesday. Brian Elliott will get the start, hoping to ride the hot hand.

Prediction: Not really too sure what to expect with St Louis, although they did beat MTL in OT on Tuesday, so that's something. The way we're playing, it depends on us. If we continue to play the way we have, then we should get the win, so it's in our hands. I say the strong play continues and we make it 5 in a row. Sens win 5-2 with goals from Alfie, Michalek, Kovalev, Regin and Karlsson.

As always follow me on Twitter, as I always update it throughout the game live from SBP and I have a new column up on Fadoo.ca, which is a site by Bob McCown from the Fan 590. I was offered to be the columnist for the Ottawa Senators for them, so check it out whenever you have time. I usually put up different content then I do here so give it a look and let me kno hat you think.

Thoughts?

And The Last Horse Crosses The Finish Line.....Soon. Maybe.

Big news in Sens Town, as the possibility of getting a new scoreboard was brought up by Sens owner Eugene Melnyk yesterday. As much as I love Euge, this is long overdue and the fact that our scoreboard is so bad is frankly embrassing. The Senators love to say we're a first class organization all the time, yet we have a 2nd rate, out of date videoboard. I've been to plenty of rinks around the NHL and ours is BY FAR the worst one I've seen so far. Montreal has a beautiful new one, hell even Tampa and Florida do too. So will the Sens finally get on board with the 21st century? Don't get too excited, we might still be a few years away from a new one by the sounds of it. Sweet, only 5 years late. Remember we're still waiting 14 years later, for hot water in the bathrooms and a solution to the parking problem, so don't hold your breath. I guess they're too busy adding more Tim Hortons' to SBP.

Thoughts?

Welcome Back Milan

After missing 7 games with a concussion, Sens sniper Milan Michalek will return to the lineup tomorrow night against St Louis. This is music to my ears as we've missed Milan big time. He brings an all around game with him, that can kill penalties and has the skill and speed to break a game open at any time. Welcome back Milan from The Mayor.

Thoughts?

Unoriginality Reigns

Shoutout to the Sun and the Citizen newspapers for both using the same boring, unoriginal and plain headline (click the pic to enlarge) after the game last night. You would think they could come up with something a little more clever and would have someone at least check to make sure their competitor wasn't already using it but apparently not. Pretty weak.

Thoughts?

A-Train Hits 400 Trips

Shoutout goes out to the A-Train, Anton Volchenkov, for hitting the 400 career game mark Monday afternoon against the Boston Bruins. The tough as nails Russian defenceman has 92 career points and his always a league leader in blocked shots. His style of play has made him a big fan favorite with Sens fans Hopefully we find a way to keep resign him this offseason. Congratulations on the milestone Anton from The Mayor.

Thoughts?

Save Of The Year?

In case you missed it, here is the crazy save made by Brian Elliott during the Hawks game on former Sen Marian Hossa. It is definitely the best save early in 2010 and a candidate for save of the year. There might have been a little luck involved as well, but who cares, it was definitely worthy of the standing O that SBP gave Elliott. Is it wrong that I found it funny that Hossa was unable to bury it? Something I've said he underachieved at his whole career.

The more I see this, the more I'm shocked it didn't go in. This happened live right in front of my section and was still trying to figure out how it didn't go in 20 minutes later. Shoutout to Brian Elliott who was able to save himself after nearly blowing it. One of the most spectacular saves I've ever seen in person. Congratulations!

Thoughts?

A Pleasant Surprise

Wow!

What a truly amazing performance all around. I had very low expectations going into this one. In fact, I secretly was hoping we could keep it within 3 or 4 against the high powered, high skilled Chicago Blackhawks. I definitely was worried we might be embarassed by an elite team, especially after having played yesterday and travelling.

The Sens have now won 4 in a row and are in sole possession of 5th place in the eastern conference, after tonight's convincing win over the league's best squad. We definitely played a total team game tonight and made the high flying Hawks look somewhat normal, but man can you ever see the skill there. The Blackhawks are a scary, scary team and I almost feel bad for whoever has to play them in the playoffs. Sadly they looked quite disinterested tonight and they could have still won the game if it wasn't for the strong play of Brian Elliott.

Seeing the way the Hawks played reminded me of the Sens back in the day, when we would just dominate teams with our high skill level and it reminded me of how differently we play now. Ah the good old days.

Thoughts from the game:

-1st let me start out by saying that Erik Karlsson definitely played his best game as a Senator.

-Regin's solo effort was amazing

-Zack Smith is looking great to me, he deserves a full time roster spot

-Brian Elliott made the save of the year so far

-Unfortunate to see us only have 17,500 in the building tonight against the league leading Hawks, with Alfie coming back and us on a 3 game win streak

-It was awesome to see all the old gear being rocked by Hawks fans. Starter and Zubaz never looked so fine

-That was one of the best games of the year for the Sens, big win and SBP was buzzing.

-Are the Sens only allowed to play rock and heavy metal from 10 years ago or more? They need to switch up the beats at SBP big time

-Good to see Fisher back on the scoresheet again with a legit goal

So there you have it, the Sens shock the hockey world and beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1. Who woulda thunk it? It's so satisfying to see them play so well as a team, just goes to show you that they're capable if they play a smart, hard working style. Let's take the night and enjoy the awesome victory.

Thoughts on the game?

GDP #51: Sens V Blackhawks

Yesterday the Sens slayed thier nemesis, today they are rewarded with having to play the best team in the league with little rest. It's safe to say we don't play too well in back to back affairs, especially with travel involved and even more so when playing the most dangerous team in the NHL.

The Hawks are truly a stunning group of talent that included Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, former Sen Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Cam Barker, Brian Campbell, etc etc etc. They can score in bunches and quickly, so we must stay out of the box tonight as much as possible.

On the Sens side of things, no changes to the lineup that beat Boston yesterday, which means Brian Elliott gets the start. Spezza and Michalek are still a week away, too bad we could definitely use them tonight against this all star team.

Prediction: The Sens are tired and may have used all their energy to finally beat Boston yesterday. This is the type of game that measures how your season might go and we need a huge effort to stay in the game with the type of players they possess. If we play the way we have the past 3 games, then we might have a chance to take down the might Hawks. I wouldn't be shocked to see it happen, but surprised a bit. I think we play well tonight, we just aren't talented enough and lose 6-3 in a game that's closer then the score indicates. Hossa scores for the Hawks. Alfie, Kovalev and Neil for the Sens.

PS-The game is going to be a sellout so let's be loud and welcome Alfie back and show our appreciation for the boys for battling and winning 3 in a row. They're gonna need it tonight to get hyped up and this is one of the biggest games of the year, let's act like it. Go Sens!

Thoughts?

Baby Sens At The All Star Game

Since the NHL won't be having an All Star Game this season due to the Olympic break, this will be the only All Star hockey we ill get to watch this year, as far as the Senators go. The format is still Canada vs Planet USA, which is pretty bland to me, having said that (shoutout to LD), there are 2 members of the Sens organization who will be participating for Team Canada. A pair of miniature forwards made the cut in Martin St Pierre (5'8) and Ryan Keller (5'10), who have both seen limited action with the big club this season.

Congratulations to Ryan and Martin on the accomplishment.

The game is on tonight at 9:30pm on TSN, catch it if you can to see how they do.

Thoughts?

That Was Quick

Do the Senators brass read Sens Town?

They just issued an apology to all of those who couldn't watch the game, which is a nice touch but didn't help me watch the game any better. They need to be more pro active and anticipate some of these problems for next time in my opinion. Thanks anyways Sens.

Thoughts?

Sens TV Fail

I'm sure we all remember the Sens pay per view problems of a few seasons ago. Problems so bad that they had tons of complaints that eventually forced them to abandon it all together. Well today was another poor spot in Senators technology history.

I'm sure many of you noticed that the game wasn't on TV today, but that's OK because the Senators said they would have the game available online on their site for all of us in the Sens viewing area to watch. Only problem was, it didn't work. (click on the above picture to enlarge btw)

I know I got many emails asking me what the problem was or if they were doing it properly and yes you were, it didn't work for me either. I know some of you were able to watch the game there, some even from Montreal or the Maritimes. The problem for most was actually that people from Ottawa couldn't get it to work. Count me in the 2nd group.

Apparently living right smack in the middle of downtown Ottawa is no longer part of the Ottawa viewing area. Thanks for the geography lesson Sens TV. Just another frustrating, poorly run thing from the organization, as we're all used to.

The Sens dropped the ball yet again and ruined me being able to see the Sens finally beat the Bruins. One more reason why the Mayor needs to be put in charge of some things at SBP. I'd fix them right away. To borrow an idea from Bill Simmons, we need a VP of common sense for the fans, I'd nominate myself.

Were you able to see the game or no? Thoughts?

Finally!

Just as I predicted, the Sens finally got a win against the Boston Bruins this afternoon, 5-1. It was another team effort and we have now won 3 in a row. It was a symbolic win, great to get one off a team who have dominated us, and chasing Tim Thomas from the net was the cherry on top.

How good is Alfie? Last game he has 3 points in his return and today he had another 3, dropping a natural hat trick. Mike Fisher seems to be back as well, having 3 helpers today and Kuba in his return had 2 assists. Was very nice to see Cheechoo get on the board as well, hopefully this will give him some confidence.

We now have a HUGE test tomorro back at SBP, as we take on the league's best team in Chicago. Hopefully the fans will let the team know we're proud of them and welcome Alfie back with a sellout. Go buy your tickets no if you don't have any yet.

Thoughts on the game?

GDP #50: Sens @ Achilles Heel

The Sens are back at it Monday afternoon, in a Martin Luther King Day affair against their kryptonite, their achilles heel, the one team they can't seem to beat under any circumstances. In fact the Sens are 11-1-0 in their last 12 against the B's, including losing all 4 matchup's this season. They will try and find a way somehow to beat Tim Thomas, who has owned us in the past, winning his last 11 starts with a 1.43 GAA and 3 shutouts.

The Bruins, like the Sens have had their share of injury problems this season and will be without Andre Ference, Patrice Bergeron, Marc Savard, Dennis Wideman and Marco Sturm for the game. That doesn't mean we should take them lightly. They still have a lot of talent and we need a win against them badly, no matter who's playing.

The Sens are finally starting to get healthy, with Alfie coming back last game and Kuba expected to play against Boston, but we are still without Michalek and Spezza, who should both be returning in the next week apparently. With those 2 still out for tomorrow's contest, we will need another team effort like we've had the past 2 games. Look for Mike Brodeur to get the start and ride the hot goalie. If the Sens win in regulation, we will move into a tie for 5th in the conference with Boston.

Prediction: All things have to eventually come to an end. The Berlin Wall came down, Napoleon's reign came to an end, Suddam Hussein was captured and today, we break the Bruin's and Tim Thomas' hold against us finally. With another team effort and Alfie back to lead the way, we win 4-2 and break the streak. This is also my 1000th career post on Sens Town, so reward me with the win boys, it would make the Mayor very happy for all his loyalty.

Thoughts?

I will be Tweeting throughout the game so follow me and you can read my somewhat witty and humorous comments updated during the game as it goes.

PS- Just a reminder that the game is at 1pm for the American Holiday

Spezza A Week Away?

Daniel Alfredsson is back, Kuba will return tomorrow in Beantown, Michalek is allegedly close to a return, and now comes word that Jason Spezza should be back in a week. The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Spezza is doing well and is way ahead of schedule and should be back in 7 days time.

This would be amazing news as we could certainly use his playmaking ability and talent back in our lineup. Especially since Alfie, Michalek and Kuba should all be back by then too, leaving only role player Jesse Winchester out of the lineup, though if Zack Smith continues his strong play, he may not have a roster spot to come back to.

Finally some good news, thoughts?

Zack Attack

Shoutout to Zack Smith, who last night scored his 1st career NHL goal on a beauty that beat Carey Price and what a shot it was. To make it even more memorable, it was even shorthanded. Zack has been looking good the past few games, let's hope he keeps it up. Congrats on the milestone Zack.


In Tribute of Zack's 1st tally, I present "Friends Forever" by the Zack Attack. Enjoy the stroll through memory lane.

Zack Attack - Friends Forever
Uploaded by ray548. - Check out other Film & TV videos.

Thoughts on this nostalgic guilty pleasure? or Zack's amazing debut goal?

A Win Deserved

Another nice game all around by the Sens, winning 4-2 like I called in the GDP. They once again played a full 60 minutes and the results came again. They now have back to back wins against teams directly competeing for their playoff spot.

Once again, the story was Alfie and goaltending. Daniel Alfredsson made a "surprise" appearance tonight and had a hand in all 3 goals, scoring 1 and assisting on 2. He is simply unbelievable, are we sure he is even human? What a Legend!!

Mike Brodeur was very solid again, minus the 2nd goal, which was awful, but other then that he was great. He is now 3 for 3 in his NHL career, do we have a goaltending controversy on our hands? I would say so, at least for the time being.

Thoughts from the game:

-What has happened to Fisher? Not only had he not scored in 15 games (he netted the empty netter finally tonight), but he can't seem to play anymore either. He had trouble skating and staying on his feet, making passes and controlling the puck. No coinicidence, the struggle is around the time perioud he got engaged, just sayin'. (see Spezza getting married/cold streak)

-We need do to a better job clearing the puck out of our end when we get the chance or it will come back to haunt us.

-We also need to be more disciplined, you can't take so many penalties against the league's best PP, especially bad were the Karlsson and Fisher penalties in my opinion.

-Interesting to hear Mike Brodeur almost retired last year but stayed as a result of Jacques Martin signing him, ouch!

-Man is Guy Carbonneau an awful commentator. Now he's brutal at 2 different careers. He was a great player though.

-Great to see us come back and play so well after going down 2-1, gutcheck time and we responded.

-Gorgeous 1st career goal from Zack Smith. That's one to remember. The kid had a nice game as well, bring an extra phsyical force to the team, I hope he sticks around.

So there you go, we now have a 2 game win streak and are looking considerably better as a whole. We now travel to Boston for a Monday afternoon affair, look for Brodeur to get the nod again. See what can happen when we play a full 60 mins? We win. Until next time....

Thoughts?

GDP #49: Sens @ Habs

The Sens are in la belle province to take on the rival Habs in a crucial 4 point swing game. We will be getting a huge boost as the Captain, Daniel Alfredsson will be returning to the lineup weeks before he was expected to, in typical Alfredssonian fashion. Our backend will get a boost as well with Kuba returning, thought he hasn't played well this season.

With his strong play on Thursday, Mike Brodeur will get the start tonight at the Bell Centre.

Prediction: Special teams will be a big one tonight, as MTL has the leagues best PP and PK, so we need to stay out of the box. If we can put together another effort like we did at MSG, we should be alright. The wildcard will be if Brodeur can continue is string play or will he come back down to earth. Sens win a tough one, 4-2 with Kovalev and Alfie scoring.

Thoughts?

Don't Call It A Comeback, I've Been Here For Years

Yes, Daniel Alfredsson will return to the lineup tonight as we take on the hated Montreal Canadiens at le Centre Bell. He was supposed to be out for several more weeks, but we all know how Alfie does and he is back weeks quicker then expected. The legend of Alfie grows again, but let's be honest, we all knew he'd be back. And oh ya, Kuba is expected to play tonight too.

Thoughts?

Happy 14th

A very happy shoutout goes out to the Palladium, err I mean the Corel Centre, err I mean Scotiabank Place, on it's 14th anniversary today. Hard to believe it's that old already, as I remember attending the first game and being shutout. Seems like only yesterday, where does the time go.

Thoughts?

Deja Vu: Brodeur Shutsout Rangers @ MSG

Shoutout goes out to Mike Brodeur, who scored his 1st career NHL shutout last night against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Quite the place to accomplish the feat and will make it extra memorable. Congratulations on the milestone Mike from The Mayor.

Thoughts?

Empire State Of Mind

Just when you count them out, they come back with a surprising performance and that's what's great about in sports. The only thing certain in life are taxes, death and surprises, tonight was a huge one for me, but in a good way. Shoutout to Mike Brodeur, who got his 2nd win in as many chances and his 1st career NHL Shuout. Do we have a goaltending controversy on our hands?

Thoughts from the game:

-What a pass from Kovie on the winning goal. I personally feel if we had better finishers that he would have a lot higher point total and that he's finally getting used to our team. He has easily been our best player over the past 20 games and had another great game.

-Good to see Campoli pot the winner back in the Tri State Area.

-How frustrated must the Ranger fans be right now. Back to back shutouts at home, both to M Brodeur's.

-I thought Zack Smith looked pretty good again and Daugavins didn't look out of place in his first NHL game.

-Who knew a 0-0 game for the majority of the 60 minutes could be so exciting.

It was great we got the win but even better to see us play a solid, fairly mistake free game. This is what I was talking about the past few games. Good to see us get back on track. Hopefully we can keep this up when our players start to return. We now head to MTL for a Saturday night affair at the Bell Centre with our rivals. Excellent performance all around, I don't even have anything bad to say about Karlsson, so you know that's major. Until next time....

Thoughts on the game?

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GDP #48: Sens @ The Garden

The Sens are in the world's most famous arena tonight, as they take on the New York Rangers, hoping to snap an awful 5 game losing streak, during which they have been outscored, outplayed and outworked. They deseparately need a win to get back on track and tonight would be a good start.

As if we didn't have enough injury problems, BOTH of our goalies are out tonight, forcing the Sens to recall Mike Brodeur from Bingo and presumably giving him the start. Pascal Leclaire, who may the worst luck on planet earth, was hit with a shot in practice apparently and is injured, though the severity is not yet known. Brian Elliott is out with the flu, which he has been apparently nursing for awhile. Gee I wonder if hanging outside in the dead of winter for practice yesterday helped aggravate that hmmmmm?

In more injury news (doesn't it seem like that's all we talk about now?), Filip Kuba skated but still won't play with which is most likely an aggravated hang nail. Kaspars Daugavins has been called up and will make his NHL debut tonight, playing on the 4th line. Not too sure what to expect from him but I hear good things. In good news, Alfie is set to return most likely for Monday's game. He can't come back quick enough. We are UGLY without him.

Predicition: At this point, I don't even need a win but I really want to see a strong effort and some heart. If we do that, maybe we can get the 2 points but at least our enthusiasm will be replenished. We have to face King Henrik tonight, which is never good news and the Blue shirts need to the win too. I think our slumping play continues tonight and we lose another awful game 5-2.

Thoughts?

Ottawa Senators Dodgeball Club?

The Sens decided to play a friendly game of dodgeball this afternoon in Central Park instead of practicing, because you know, a team who's lost 5 in a row and 3 in a row to some of the worst teams in the league clearly don't need to practice or improve, especially with that effecient powerplay we have. Also for a team with severe injury problems, is fooling around on the ice really a good idea? Just sayin'.

All crankyness aside, this is kinda of a cool, fun way to spend the afternoon and a welcome break from a long season. I wonder what Eli Wilson thinks about this? He gets fired and they're out playing that nothing happened, interesting.

Either way, let's hope this does the trick and we get a better effort tomorrow night at MSG.

To see the pictures click here and the video click here

Thoughts?

1 Up, 1 Down

The Senators sent down forward Martin St Pierre today to Bingo and recalled Kaspars Daugavins, who one would assume will make his NHL debut tomorrow night at the Garden. Daugavins is of Latvian descent and will represent them at the Vancouver Olympics. He has 11 goals and 10 helpers for 21 points so far in 37 games with Binghamton.

Zack Smith, who I've been happy with minus the multiple penalties, remains with the big club for now.

Thoughts on the move?

Breaking News: Eli Fired!

Ya that's right, Senators goaltending coach Eli Wilson has been let go by the club today. "Performance of the goaltenders in the organization had everything to do with it,” said Murray, reached at the team’s scouting meetings in Florida. “I think Eli was a hard worker and paid a lot attention to it, but for some reason, both at the NHL level and American league level, we felt that the goaltenders weren’t where we thought they were going to be and where they have shown they can be.”

This was a long time coming, as our goalies have been awful for years. Ironic that he was fired after the piece I wrote just before this but I'm glad to see changes coming. If you recall, Eli was brought in for Ray Emery and well, he's been gone awhile and for some mysterious reason, Eli stayed.

Thoughts on the move?

Ottawa: Where Goalies Go To Die

I thought this year was supposed to be different. We were supposed to finally have our elite goaltender and a very quality backup. This was the year we didn't have to worry about goaltending and yet here we are, more then halfway through a defining season for the franchise and we are just where we've always been, which is nowhere.

It's remarkable that in our franchise's 17 year modern history, we've never really had a star type goalie. The closest we got was Dominik Hasek for half a season when he was already way past his prime, but still very good. I'm still convinced that if he hadn't of been hurt at the Olympics that year, that we had Lord Stanley on lock and no one can convince me otherwise. That team was downright scary and for the first time, they played to their full capability knowing they had a HOF'er to cover their mistakes. It was perhaps the only 40 game stretch in Sens history where we had a stud netminder.

You would think by sure luck over 17 years that we would have wound up with an all star type backstopper, but our list of goalies in franchise history is truly scary. We thought Patrick Lalime might have been that guy, but he was more of a product of an amazing team in front of him and well, game 7 happened, he wasn't our guy. We thought Ray Emery was going to be that guy, after all he helped lead us to our first Stanley Cup Finals with his stellar play, but he lost his way, perhaps being a celebrity was more important to him then being a good teammate at the time. Then there were the others that were servicable like Ron Tugnutt and Damian Rhodes. They were decent but not good enough to back a contender and don't forget the over the hill acquisition of Tom Barasso for a playoff run that went nowhere.

This season we were to have not one but two credible goalies. One was to be an elite netminder with an excellent pedigree and some proven NHL ice time, and one was an up and coming youngster who showed he could be very capable in stretches. We had it all. If one went down for a bit, no problem, we had the other to pick up the slack. Some if wondered if we might have a goalie controversy on our hands because both were going to be that good. Now we find ourselves in a goalie controversy because both have been that bad.

One things for sure, we won't be going anywhere this season or anywhere in the future if we don't finally get someone who's solid in bteween the pipes. Until then, it's just another day in Ottawa, the goaltenders graveyard.

Thoughts?

Embarassed!

Wow! Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does, big time. Amazingly awful back to back to back performances against some of the NHL's bottom feaders, leaves us wondering what we can do to even try to turn things around. This was just a totally pathetic effort for a 3rd time in a row. Like I've said, I can accept losing but I can't accept not playing hard.

Thoughts from the game:

-the musical chairs goalie game continued as our starter was pulled yet again and his replacement didn't fair well again either

-why is hockey in Atlanta a better idea then Quebec City or Winnipeg again? The whole first section was empty. There couldn't have been more then 18 or 19 fans in the whole arena.

-Is it wrong that I was happy for a minute when I thought Cheechoo might have been out of the lineup long term?

-Ironic that Schubert was the one who hit him and got tossed.

-Karlsson absolutely, positively has to go. Amazing to see him on the PP when he fans on the pass with NO ONE around him adn then proceeds to recover and pass it right back to the Atlanta player. This kid is awful and he is taking a roster spot from someone who deserves it way more. Accountability is a joke around our locker room.

-Wouldn't the NHL be awesome if like in the NFL, we had the option to decline penalties? Atlanta had better scoring chances on our PP then we did. Another game, another day without a PP goal.

-Fisher has now gone 14 games without a goal. That's just Fisher being Fisher.

I don't really know what to say or where we go from here. It seems hopeless at the moment doesn't it? Everyone played poorly yet again and no one deserves any praise of any kind. I just hope we can somehow turn it around and quick, before it's too late and we miss out on the playoffs again.

Thoughts?

GDP #47: Sens @ ATL

The Sens are back at it tonight, taking on the Atlanta Thrashers, hoping to avoid a 5 game losing streak for the first time this season. The only good news is that ATL is playing just as bad as us, going 1-6-3 in their last 10 and with their coach hanging on by a thread, perhaps they will roll over for us to finish the job.

You would think a bottom dwelling team would be just what we need to snap our losing streak, but with a shutout loss to Florida and a 4-1 loss to Carolina, the league's worst team, no game is a for sure win. In fact, the way we're playing, I'd settle for a 60 minute effort with some heart, and let the scoreline sort itself out. If we lose so be it, as long as we actually play hard.

Look for Pascal Leclaire to start in net for us and Pavelec in net for ATL, hoping he doesn't save another fitty against us again.

Prediction: Look for the third ugly game in a row, but after they made a few adjustments like Mike Fisher playing the PP point tonight and a players only meeting, look for a better effort tonight. Both teams are struggling like crazy but we need the win more at this point. Sens win 4-1. Hey Murray, while you're there, try and get us Kovalchuk.

Thoughts on the game tonight?

Follow me on Twitter as I will be Tweeting throughout the game

How Is He Still Employed?

I'm sure many of you have noticed how awful our powerplay has been this season, but I don't know how many of you know that we are currently in dead last in the NHL. Yep, we're in 30th place with a pathetic 14.2% success rate.

I'm sure most of you don't really know that much about the man pictured above either. Well his name is Greg Carvel and he is a Sens assistant coach, in charge of our powerplay. This is his fifth season with the Sens, after joning the staff in the summer of 2004.

In his first season, we had the 4th best powerplay in the NHL, but given our roster at the time, I can hardly credit him for it, as I could have coached that team to finish 4th. Just to refresh your memory, our 2 PP lines that season had Zdeno Chara, Wade Redden (when he was still decent), Martin Havlat, Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza, Andrej Mesazros (who was good then) and maybe Mike Fisher, Antoine Vermette or Bryan Smolinski filling in as required. Not too shabby. Since then, it's been going downhill, although still respectable, with final finishes of 14th, 12th and 10th place in the league in the following seasons.

Despite declining statistics, he has managed to keep his job through 3 coaching changes, which is unheard of in NHL circles. Usually when the coach is let go, the entire staff goes with him, so to survive 3 separate changes is insane. His performance was decent as our PP coach but hardly someone who was a must keep, especially with those players he had on the roster. It was practically an all star team and their success could hardly been attributed directly to Carvel.

Now with the powerplay in dead last and an undisputed disaster, why does he still have a job? I thought Bryan Murray's big motto and philosphy was that people will be held accountable, apparently not. Take into consideration for the first quarter of the season we actually had a pretty decent powerplay, so if it wasn't for that, our PP percentage would be dead last by a lot. Half way through a season is enough to show me that it isn't working and he should be fired.

Nothing personal against Greg, but the results just aren't there and we need a change while we still have a chance to make the playoffs. I know part of it can be attributed to the multitude of injuries we have, but the powerplay was a mess long before Alfie, Spezza and Michalek went down. In my opinion, Carvel has been living on borrowed time and past accomplishments for far too long as is.

This is pro sports, where results matter and statistics don't lie, and right now we're in last place with no sign of us turning it around anytime soon. Someone has to pay the price and be accountable and his name is Greg Carvel.

Thoughts?

Jersey Foul 53

Figured with all our injury problems and struggling play, that we could use a bit of a cheer up, so I appreciate this woman's sentiments of shouting out her fandom, since it's very hard to be a fan lately. But it still is a foul. Enjoy and let's hope our losing streak and streak of losing players ends very soon.

Thoughts?