Pre-Game Talk: SENS vs Leafs tonight ons SportsNet

[swiftwin]

I just don't understand what management sees in Ceci and how they possibly can think he still has room for progression. There is no trend of him getting better. Maybe they should relegate him to the bottom pairing where he might show a glimmer of competence but he is in way over his head.

I think it's a confidence problem personally. He's easily our fastest and strongest defenseman. He's also shown some skill in his earlier days. He's been pidgeon holed in such a tough role the past few seasons, it's affected the offensive side of his game. They're probably hoping with a bigger offensive role this season, he'll get some of it back. He has the potential to be a decent 2-3 guy.

 

[Upgrayedd]

Another ugly effort from the entire team imo and carrying on the same errors and poor systematic garbage we saw all last year, time to change that I guess but really not much to be excited about as a fan of the team, it will be a long year imo where the Sens lose a lot of close boring low scoring neutral zone games. Sens appear locked into that bottom 5 league wide slot.

 

[swiftwin]

Another ugly effort from the entire team imo and carrying on the same errors and poor systematic garbage we saw all last year, time to change that I guess but really not much to be excited about as a fan of the team, it will be a long year imo where the Sens lose a lot of close boring low scoring neutral zone games. Sens appear locked into that bottom 5 league wide slot.

lol. It's early pre-season. Atleast wait until the final pre-season game or two when we dress all our regulars. Our best defenseman didn't play in either of these games.

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

Another ugly effort from the entire team imo and carrying on the same errors and poor systematic garbage we saw all last year, time to change that I guess but really not much to be excited about as a fan of the team, it will be a long year imo where the Sens lose a lot of close boring low scoring neutral zone games. Sens appear locked into that bottom 5 league wide slot.

I've repeated this several times but it makes this season that much more difficult to watch knowing we don't have our first

 

[Upgrayedd]

I've repeated this several times but it makes this season that much more difficult to watch knowing we don't have our first

Agreed, basically will have to choke back two full seasons of straight garbage hockey and being the undisputed punching bag of the league before the chance a small glimmer of hope creeps in, but with Eugene, well we better get used to the darkness!

 

[ReginKarlssonLehner]

It's called playing with that call up adrenaline, eventually it will wear off.

Yup. Gryba did exact same thing in 2012-2013. You coulda sworn he was gonna be legit top 4 after seeing him play then.

 

[DueDiligence]

Another ugly effort from the entire team imo and carrying on the same errors and poor systematic garbage we saw all last year, time to change that I guess but really not much to be excited about as a fan of the team, it will be a long year imo where the Sens lose a lot of close boring low scoring neutral zone games. Sens appear locked into that bottom 5 league wide slot.

Seriously? Sure some guys stunk but others played well. Give it some time and most of the plugs will be gone.

 

[DueDiligence]

I've repeated this several times but it makes this season that much more difficult to watch knowing we don't have our first

develop selective amnesia!

 

[Upgrayedd]

Seriously? Sure some guys stunk but others played well. Give it some time and most of the plugs will be gone.

I hope that's the case, I'm not expecting a lot of wins this season and that's fine but some decently entertaining hockey would be great, from the first two games Duchene and Stone looked in prime form (surprise surprise) but appeared to have nobody to play with making plays only to have them die on others sticks immediately, nobody else really stood out in a good way for me personally so far. Could be the competition I suppose, the Leafs looked pretty good across the board, crisper passes, generally first to more pucks, moving the puck faster etc...

 

[swiftwin]

I've repeated this several times but it makes this season that much more difficult to watch knowing we don't have our first

Why? Are a fan of the sport that is played on the ice, or are you a fan of business management and paperwork?

It's not hard to separate the two and focus on the actual game that is played on the ice.

 

[DueDiligence]

I hope that's the case, I'm not expecting a lot of wins this season and that's fine but some decently entertaining hockey would be great, from the first two games Duchene and Stone looked in prime form (surprise surprise) but appeared to have nobody to play with making plays only to have them die on others sticks immediately, nobody else really stood out in a good way for me personally so far. Could be the competition I suppose, the Leafs looked pretty good across the board, crisper passes, generally first to more pucks, moving the puck faster etc...

Don't forget the Leafs AHL team won the Calder Cup last year. There are very deep with a lot of experienced prospects who have played together. The Sens don't have the degree of talent the Leafs do but they still have some real talent. Give it some time.

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

Why? Are a fan of the sport that is played on the ice, or are you a fan of business management and paperwork?

It's not hard to separate the two and focus on the actual game that is played on the ice.

I am a fan of the team and I want what's best for the TEAM

 

[Cosmix]

develop selective amnesia!

I have a different and more effective solution: 82 cases of beer!

 

[topshelf15]

We have one of the greenest bluelines in the league ,yet we are think its wise to play a defensive game.....Cut the kids loose we dont have the damn team to win 1 to 0 games....Come the f*** on Boucher smarten up

 

[coladin]

Tkachuk looked pretty quick out there, I didn't think he was quick, buy all accounts. Easily knocked down, though, something that time will fix. I really liked his chemistry with Stone, notably a nifty pass along the boards that Tkachuk read and got off a shot. I didn't mind his penalty.

Lajoie, again, looks so poised. A guy the Sens have been waiting to be ready, maybe he doesn't start here but will get callups. Jaros was solid, another guy who plays and skates well.

I like Balcers and Tierney. Tierney is more important than ever with Pageau down. Carey has good wheels. Chlappy, I am not a believer, but wish him well.

I liked the pace of the team in general, though. Smith looked invogorated, also enjoyed a good laugh at the hit Tkachuk laid in the 1st, which is good. Guys need to laugh and have fun, it is a game after all.

This is going to be a dogfight for the last few roster spots.

 

[glucker]

My mistake, I meant to talk about "Bergman", the Sens player.

Carry on, lol

 

[Xspyrit]

Well, last years team and the state of our current team is the reason I'm predicting such a bad result.

Yeah that season being 48 games helped us out immensely.

Let's forget the 10 year aspect, The Sens are going into this season with the worst D core in the league.

I don't know, expecting Wolanin to be a top 4 D this year, let alone a #2, is a bit far fetched to me.

Here's hoping, would go a long way.

Of course that's a bit unfair to any rookie unless your name is Dahlin to be a top-6 or top-4 right away, but that's the situation they put themselves in by not spending and "forcing" a rebuild. If you have your first round pick and the next draft is said to be good, the risk with doing that is mitigated BUT it is not the case here. Knowing Melnyk, Dorion should have known that his boss could decide to do what we are actually witnessing if the team failed last year. That is why he should have never traded his first knowing that it's very possible with Melnyk.

So going full rebuild right now serves no purpose except saving money on salary expenditure. Speaking of which, if you count that Pageau will be out for months, the team salary expenditure is roughly 60 M$, same as the struggling Coyotes and the rebuilding Devils, or Hurricanes which should be higher next year. But the sad thing is Melnyk can say that they're spending 70 M$ as it is the actual cap. Not everyone will know the difference...

===================

Finally, Habs are without Weber right now (even when he was playing, he is really not who he used to be) and are going with :

Mete (their poor's man and smaller Chabot)
Petry (their Ceci but can be good offensively)
Alzner (their Harpur but way overpaid and overplayed)
Schlemko (their DeMelo, but it remains to be seen who is better lol)
Jordie Benn (their Boro but not as physical and much slower)
Mike Rieilly (their Wolanin I guess but IMO Christian will be better)

I guess Weber is much better than Wideman when healthy but he hasn't been in a while and is having his career derailed ala Bobby Ryan. Xavier Ouellet should be their other D-man for now.

Wolanin is no where near being ready to fill a #2 or 3 spot.

I feel pretty confident our defensive results will get worse from last year. If we dont have a least a -80 goal differential, I'll be shocked.

Well, the only thing we can do is wait and see. I'm not expecting miracles but the problem is they need everybody is 1 or 2 spots above where they should be.

Chabot needs to be a #1
Ceci needs to be a #2 or #3
Wolanin needs to be a #2 or #3
Borowiecki needs to be a #4 or #5
Wideman needs to be a #4 or #5

Harpur and DeMelo filling the rest. The only player I see being able to do what will be asked of him is Chris Wideman.

 

[Clayonator]

Boro on the left side to contend with as well.. I like Lajoie's game better than Boro's but .. Narc will be in the starting 6 most nights.
Jaros made a couple of risky reads and got caught but I like him better than Demelo. His mistakes can be corrected and he is much better skater than Demelo. Lajoie will get sent down .. He has Boro and Harpur (1 way) in front of him.

Likely
Chabot Ceci
Boro Wideman
Wolanin Demelo
Harpur


Does Demelo need to clear waivers? I don't think he does.

-------------------------------------

My expectations are Harpur, Boro and Demelo are all up. Lajoie and Jaros get sent down. Not what I would do but that's what I expect.
They should trade Boro .He is a 6/7 on an average team and some teams may be looking for the edge he brings .. Sens don't need his play now. Move Wolanin up with Wideman .. they are a little undersized but .. I'd like to try them. Send Demelo down.

What I'd do
Chabot Wideman
Wolanin Ceci
Lajoie Jaros
Harpur

Yeah I like those pairings. Especially Wideman with Chabot. Not the biggest Boro fan, but I definitely prefer him to the other two previously mentioned on the right. The worst part of the whole situation is that management loves two of the three, and it’s bad optics to give the other one the boot right away given how he was acquired. A real shame. All that aside, I personally think the most balanced allotment this year given current organizational property, could look something like this depending on injures (only realistic way we’d see it):

Chabot Wideman

Lajoie Ceci

Wolanin Jaros

I flipped Wolanin and Lajoie mainly because I think Maxime is slightly better equipped to deal with Ceci’s brain farts, but it’s close. As much as detest his play more than any other player on the roster, it’s not nearly as bad as witnessing Boro try to play the right side. It’s been a long time, but I hope I never have to witness that again. Utter and complete abomination. Was even worse than when Cameron tried him as a left winger down in Florida.

Man I hope we do something about that D sooner than later.

Bonus point: Harpur can hit the waiver wire and never return. What a waste of hope after that playoff run. Has done nothing but regress since then.

 

[Xspyrit]

I pretty much disagree with all of that. Very weak reasons for wanting EK traded.

And no, EK should not accept a less money to play on a crap team.

You're a bit too fast on judging that my reasons are very weak. If you read correctly, I said "I thought I could accept to see EK leave", which is very different from "WANTING EK traded" like you said...

We’re trying to catch up to Bobby Ryan

Frankly, I doubt you'd ever be able to do that

Because of Melnyk. Any other owner and he would have signed here.

Yes he was lying that he wanted to stay. He was gone, and there are a ton of sources that confirm this

And that’s no shot at him. He can’t say in a press conference that he wouldn’t have signed .

No, I know that he can't literally "say" in his PC that he wouldn't have re-signed in Ottawa, but why did he go out of his way then and acted like I really didn't want to leave? Is he trying to win an Oscar? His wife is from Ottawa, he has a lot of friends here and has been here for a while. He knows there is a lot of talent coming up and if he, Stone and Duchene are staying, this team could be very competitive in not too long.

Also, what are the sources that you are talking about? All I have seen is sources saying that EK WANTS to stay. But I know there was a problem between him and the owner, so maybe he was trying to see if there could be an ownership change coming but Melnyk made sure he wouldn't see that by imposing a "training camp" deadline to Dorion to trade EK...

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

Yup. Gryba did exact same thing in 2012-2013. You coulda sworn he was gonna be legit top 4 after seeing him play then.

He was money that year, i could hardly believe my eyes.