Are the Ottawa Senators not as bad as people expected them to be?

[Tage2Tuch]

I guess it really depends on what you thought they would be?

Just because their management is a mess doesent mean they don’t have good players and prospects. All of them seem to be playing with a us against the world vibe vegas had. That being said I don’t expect them to be 1-4th as good or do as good as vegas did.

They won’t make the playoffs but Craig Anderson is a goalie capable of making a team look much, much better then they are. I wanted Anderson as buffalos goalie. Few years ago when the sabres got Lehner I said they got the wrong sens goalie.

I’m ok with the two buffalo has now but yeah Anderson is good.

I think the energy a team has and goaltending are two of the most important things a team can have.

People talk about franchise d men franchise centers d depth scoring depth wingers, centre depth, coaching, but honestly if a team brings the effort and has a goalie them at is there to make up the mistakes a team that works hard goes further then they should.

Look at Montreal and Vancouver so far. Van started winning when they rode the hot hand. Don’t expect it to continue for more then October for any of these three teams, like I don’t expect buffalo to be at .500 all yeAr and I expect them to be below, but the start is at least decent for all four teams as said.

 

[Ivan13]

As an Avs fan am I safe in assuming you didn't grow up playing hockey? Your American? probably didn't spend a lifetime playing.

The boxscore against LA was kinda ugly eh? They beat LA solidly but you don't get that from a boxscore. That Dallas game was tied 1 to 1 going into the 3rd. The Sens dominated, completely dominated, for about 8 minutes and scored 2 goals. up 3 to 1. they had one shot over the remaining 12 minutes. a goal on an empty net. a boxscore will tell you who scored and who took penalties and not much else

Great way to start the post and make people lose respect for anything that follows. I guess hockey is played only in Canada. Like what in the actual f*** are you on about? I get disagreeing with someone but steeping so low to use borderline xenophobic remarks just boggles the mind.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

I would not want to jinx Habs fans. But I think a thread should be created for them too. I kind of thought both Ottawa and Montreal would be better this year. And the Sabres too while we are at it. It is very early but it's good to see considering how bad they were last year. Now if Florida can get untracked the Atlantic is going to be a fun division.

 

[NyQuil]

I would not want to jinx Habs fans. But I think a thread should be created for them too. I kind of thought both Ottawa and Montreal would be better this year. And the Sabres too while we are at it. It is very early but it's good to see considering how bad they were last year. Now if Florida can get untracked the Atlantic is going to be a fun division.

Well we’ve got the injury bug now which is disappointing.

But Saturday night’s match up with the highflying Habs will be an interesting one.

I think they’ve been playing better hockey than we have.

A big silver lining so far is that Batherson and Balcers are lighting it up in the AHL.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Well we’ve got the injury bug now which is disappointing.

But Saturday night’s match up with the highflying Habs will be an interesting one.

I think they’ve been playing better hockey than we have.

A big silver lining so far is that Batherson and Balcers are lighting it up in the AHL.

Yeah, really a bad break(no pun intended)for the fine rookie Brady Tkachuk. Some people questioned the pick, but I liked it. He's the better Tkachuk of the 2 brothers. I caught some flack for this, but it may be looking that way.

The game itself is going to be fun. Both teams play fast. I would love to see a tie, and then OT. Make it a 3 pointer. I like both teams. Hopefully they can keep it up. The Habs remind me of NJ last year. If Habs fans want to chime in. I think they can sustain their play.

 

[NyQuil]

6 games into the season, Ottawa's injuries at the NHL and AHL level:

Pageau
Dzingel
Tkachuk
Formenton
Ceci
Chlapik
Brown
Sturtz
Luchuk
Hogberg
Sexton
O'Brien

On the plus side, the staff and management is getting a lot of looks at a lot of guys in different roles and positions.

 

[TeamRenzo]

Great way to start the post and make people lose respect for anything that follows. I guess hockey is played only in Canada. Like what in the actual **** are you on about? I get disagreeing with someone but steeping so low to use borderline xenophobic remarks just boggles the mind.

Xenophobia...really guy? Talk about losing respect for anything that follows...

 

[NyQuil]

Xenophobia...really guy? Talk about losing respect for anything that follows...

Meh, it was still a dumb remark and he apologized for it.

There are plenty of Americans who know far more about hockey than a lot of Canadians.

My perspective on the shots against and goal differential debate is that it has more predictive value the larger the sample size.

In the games where Ottawa have been most outshot, they've usually had the lead.

The question is whether Ottawa will outshoot their opponents when they're down and need a goal.

Over the course of the season, score effects and in-game scenarios balance out for the most part IMO.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

6 games into the season, Ottawa's injuries at the NHL and AHL level:

Pageau
Dzingel
Tkachuk
Formenton
Ceci
Chlapik
Brown
Sturtz
Luchuk
Hogberg
Sexton
O'Brien

On the plus side, the staff and management is getting a lot of looks at a lot of guys in different roles and positions.

Didn't know it was that bad. Man that is some list. Tkachuk is one that really hurts. And the games I have seen Chlapik he was a very good looking young player. Ceci is another loss. Was also looking fwd to seeing how Logan Brown would do with more opportunity. They have some good pieces, and a guy like Boucher can get a lot out of a team that is fast and skilled.

 

[NyQuil]

Didn't know it was that bad. Man that is some list. Tkachuk is one that really hurts. And the games I have seen Chlapik he was a very good looking young player. Ceci is another loss. Was also looking fwd to seeing how Logan Brown would do with more opportunity. They have some good pieces, and a guy like Boucher can get a lot out of a team that is fast and skilled.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

If he is slotted correctly on the 2nd pairing. He takes up mins and top 6 competition so others do not have to face them. I would say so. When we get to a #3 or #4 D man, there are always warts that go with them.

 

[NyQuil]

If he is slotted correctly on the 2nd pairing. He takes up mins and top 6 competition so others do not have to face them. I would say so. When we get to a #3 or #4 D man, there are always warts that go with them.

The sad part is that every D partner he has looks better when he isn't with Cody Ceci.

At some point it's not about the tough minutes.

 

[swiftwin]

I guess it really depends on what you thought they would be?

Just because their management is a mess doesent mean they don’t have good players and prospects. All of them seem to be playing with a us against the world vibe vegas had. That being said I don’t expect them to be 1-4th as good or do as good as vegas did.

They won’t make the playoffs but Craig Anderson is a goalie capable of making a team look much, much better then they are. I wanted Anderson as buffalos goalie. Few years ago when the sabres got Lehner I said they got the wrong sens goalie.

I’m ok with the two buffalo has now but yeah Anderson is good.

I think the energy a team has and goaltending are two of the most important things a team can have.

People talk about franchise d men franchise centers d depth scoring depth wingers, centre depth, coaching, but honestly if a team brings the effort and has a goalie them at is there to make up the mistakes a team that works hard goes further then they should.

Look at Montreal and Vancouver so far. Van started winning when they rode the hot hand. Don’t expect it to continue for more then October for any of these three teams, like I don’t expect buffalo to be at .500 all yeAr and I expect them to be below, but the start is at least decent for all four teams as said.

This is exactly what I've been arguing forever. Stone and Duchene are legitimate 1st line players. How many players out of the bottom 10 or so teams in the league have two legitimate 1st line players like this? Everyone is so fixated on Dorion and Melnyk, they don't even look at the actual roster.

The craziest thing is Duchene and Stone have actually been relatively quiet in this hot start for the Sens.

The other thing I argued was the fact that last year, the Sens injected no rookies into the lineup out of training camp (ie. there were no spots open in training camp), and not a single player was a UFA at the end of the season. Those two things are just begging for complacency to set in. This year it's the opposite. No fear in trading players away, no fear in giving spots to kids, no fear in putting established players on waivers. The top 3 forwards are UFA. Add a ton of youthful energy. Add a dash of "us against the world" mentality.

All those things truly add up in a league where parity is so tight.

At the end of the day, I still don't know if they make the playoffs. It's certainly a real possibility. My original prediction was 85-90pts, just outside the playoffs, and I'm sticking with it.

 

[NyQuil]

At the end of the day, I still don't know if they make the playoffs. It's certainly a real possibility. My original prediction was 85-90pts, just outside the playoffs, and I'm sticking with it.

If I put my objective hat on, I just feel a lot has to go right with respect to our goaltending, injuries and the sustainability of young players over a long season.

We won't be able to rely on Max Lajoie to win hockey games for us all season long.

 

[Eltuna]

This is exactly what I've been arguing forever. Stone and Duchene are legitimate 1st line players. How many players out of the bottom 10 or so teams in the league have two legitimate 1st line players like this? Everyone is so fixated on Dorion and Melnyk, they don't even look at the actual roster.

The craziest thing is Duchene and Stone have actually been relatively quiet in this hot start for the Sens.

The other thing I argued was the fact that last year, the Sens injected no rookies into the lineup out of training camp (ie. there were no spots open in training camp), and not a single player was a UFA at the end of the season. Those two things are just begging for complacency to set in. This year it's the opposite. No fear in trading players away, no fear in giving spots to kids, no fear in putting established players on waivers. The top 3 forwards are UFA. Add a ton of youthful energy. Add a dash of "us against the world" mentality.

All those things truly add up in a league where parity is so tight.

At the end of the day, I still don't know if they make the playoffs. It's certainly a real possibility. My original prediction was 85-90pts, just outside the playoffs, and I'm sticking with it.

Actually quite a few. I can count easily 5 of last years bottom 10 teams that have two first liners. The thing they all had in common was having a bad defence though.

The UFA thing is a great point, but also a double edged sword. The players should be extra motivated but they also might be moved at the deadline.

 

[a mangy Meowth]

i didn't outright assume, i asked if it was safe to assume.

What a cop out

Own what you said.

 

[swiftwin]

Actually quite a few. I can count easily 5 of last years bottom 10 teams that have two first liners. The thing they all had in common was having a bad defence though.

The UFA thing is a great point, but also a double edged sword. The players should be extra motivated but they also might be moved at the deadline.

Easily 5? I have 3: Edmonton and Chicago and Islanders.

 

[Eltuna]

Easily 5? I have 3: Edmonton and Chicago and Islanders.

Buffalo had ROR and Eichel which is easily better and of course Ottawa is the best example considering Stone and Duchene were also there last year.

 

[Beezeral]

5 on 5 PDO of 104.8 so far. This will even out soon enough.

 

[Korpse]

5 on 5 PDO of 104.8 so far. This will even out soon enough.

Sure over time that number will move closer to 100 though whether that changes results isn’t guaranteed.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

If I put my objective hat on, I just feel a lot has to go right with respect to our goaltending, injuries and the sustainability of young players over a long season.

We won't be able to rely on Max Lajoie to win hockey games for us all season long.

On the note of your young players. What is the general feeling amongst Sens fans on their prospects cupboard?

I will say this as a prospects draft guy, I did like Chabot, White and Chlapik in 2015. Would have taken Mcleod over Brown in 2016 though. Have no real opinion on Bowers. Other than he played with Brady Tkachuk in Boston. Would have moved up to pick Bokk, but that may have been more St Louis doing, very astute move IMO. Or The Sens would have gotten Tkachuk and Bokk in 2018. That would have been a home run IMO.

So guys like Bernard-Docker, Logan Brown, and some perhaps lesser known Sens prospects, how do you guys view them?

 

[JD1]

What a cop out

Own what you said.

I've got no issue owning what I said.

I was trying to understand why someone would think they understood a hockey game from reading a boxscore and then making disparaging remarks about one side or the other. Most people that understand the game know you cannot do that.

 

[Avsboy]

Two goals from Stone tonight, one from Duchene. Playing dogged offensive hockey. But their lineup is mostly AHL quality, especially on the backend. What is happening?

 

[Filthy Dangles]

It's a mirage

 

[Skipee]

Good players are good. Who knew? Plus Duchene is finally coming into his own after a kind of garbage year last year. Ryan looks pretty good too. Clicking on all cylinders and Anderson is playing some inspired hockey. Lets go Ottaway!