Very Sad Day...

I realize that there are tragic deaths every single day around the world; some close to home, some not-so-close. Some make headlines, some don't. But for whatever reason, last night's news of Brendan Burke's death really hit me hard.

It's people like Brendan who change the world for the better, and I really admire him for his courage and perseverance. He was an intelligent, well spoken and extremely well respected man, and he was in a very unique position to inspire change and acceptance in the all-too macho world of sports.

It's an incredibly sad day for the Burke family, and a major loss for those who fight to see their loved ones treated with equality and respect, regardless of how they live their lives.

Antoine Vermette

The second post in this series of 'all-time all-stars' may be a bit of a stretch for some Sens fans... his last year here wasn't exactly one to be remembered. But regardless, Antoine Vermette will always have a place in my heart. Not only was he was a penalty killing machine and a short-handed sniper, but every so often, when you least expected it, he showed signs of sheer offensive brilliance. His problem was that he could never produce on a consistent basis, and as they so often do here in Ottawa, the fans grew impatient with the young center.

Vermette was selected by Ottawa in the second round of the 2000 entry draft (55th overall). Early-on in his carreer, between Binghamton and Ottawa (he spent his would-be sophomore season playing in Binghamton during the lockout, finishing second in scoring behind only Jason Spezza), he showed a ton of promise with his incredible skill and speed. He became a staple at the Sentaors Skills Competitions, year in and year out.

But as he grew out of his rookie years, his lack of consistency began to be an issue. As is customary around the league, Vermette's potential combined with his inability to ever quite 'break through' made him a constant target for trade rumors. And finally, after a dreadful start to the 2008-2009 season and weeks of neverending speculation, the Senators pulled the trigger at the trade deadline, sending Vermette to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Pascal LeClaire and a second round draft pick.

It was a day of mixed emotions. I loved Vermette, and as much as he could be frustrating at times, he definitely had some spectacular moments. It always felt as though he was just about to explode offensively. And even when he was struggling, he gave his all every night. By all accounts he was a popular guy in the dressing room as well (reminds me of a certain current ex-Shark on the team...). But all that being said, I was (and am) also an enormous fan of Pascal LeClaire.

Bryan Murray traded a struggling center who could never quite live up to his potential for a bona fide #1 goalie, and somehow managed to get a draft pick thrown in as well. I was terribly sad to see Vermette go, and I will always root for the kid. He deserves the respect of Ottawa fans... he loved it here and gave this city everything he had. When the news broke that he had been traded, he was clearly devastated while speaking to reporters. But I think the change did him a lot of good (he's enormously popular in Columbus), and it brought Ottawa one of the missing pieces to being a legitimate contender again. It was an opportunity for the Senators that they simply could not pass up. With the struggles Steve Mason has had all year, you've gotta wonder if Columbus regrets trading away their star goalie.

Here's one last look at a really good young player, who showed flashes of greatness (You may want to turn off the sound... yikes!).

Marián Hossa

Why not start off with a bang, eh? Marian Hossa is, quite simply, my favorite hockey player, ever. That's not to say that Gretzky isn't The Great One, and Lemieux isn't right up there with him. It's not to say that Daniel Alfredsson shouldn't be knighted and given the key to the city of Ottawa. But Hossa is just one of those players... from the first second I saw him play, I admired him completely.

What I remember most of his rookie season was that he was a late comer, having missed several months due to a major knee injury suffered in junior the year before. He sort of came out of nowhere.

He was a highly touted prospect, picked 12th overall in the 1997 entry draft. But all we really knew about him was that his knee injury was a major issue and some were worried that as a result, he may never be the player the Senators hoped he'd be. Keep in mind, this was long before the blogosphere and rumor sites were around to keep us all up to the minute on such things.

So all of a sudden, there was this young rookie on the ice, #18, who immediately caught the attention of fans with his speed, his skill, and most importantly, his strength! I can still picture that trademark 'strong-arm' he would do (and still does...) as he forced his way through opponents. Hossa is a player with a ton of skill, no question, but he plays like a grinder. There's none of that 'soft-hands' softness you see with most skilled players. He just bulldozes his way around the net and he back-checks like a coach's dream.

In the summer of 2005, after years of dedicated service with The Ottawa Senators, Hossa was without a contract and push finally came to shove. But with just minutes to go, then GM John Muckler went against his word and signed the winger to a 3 year, $18M contract -- the highest salary in team history. And right before that giant sigh of relief could make it's way out of my lungs.... Disaster.

I was devastated. Totally devastated. I knew who Dany Heatley was, and I knew what he would bring to the table. I'm not going to say something ridiculous like "I knew he was a deadbeat"... none of us did. We were excited at the promise of this young talent, and Heater most certainly delivered on that promise.

Heatley brought with him a new, high octane offense that would contribute heavily to the Senators post-lockout success, and trip to the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals. And he came at a much lower price tag as well. But for all the glory the Sens had in those years following the deal that sent Marian Hossa packing, no player could ever compensate for the loss of HOSS.

The Senators underwent some alarming changes under Muckler, and the Hossa trade was a pinnacle moment. Players that had been drafted and cultivated through the Senators system were being traded away, and draft picks and prospects were flying out the window in exchange for aging rental players who would help 'put us over the top'. Of course, none of them ever did, and in the end, the cupboards were left bare and the culture on the team hit rock bottom, and ultimately, Dany Heatley left, too. In that sense, we lost Hossa for nothing.

Hossa is about as complete a player as they come. He plays with energy, with skill and with heart, and he gives'er 100% every time he steps on the ice. Every time he has an expiring contract on the horizon, I get gitty with excitement at the thought of his return to the Senators. But I know it's a pipe dream. After all, it's not like he was treated very fairly in his final days here.

For what it's worth, the Chicago Blackhawks are in deep, deep cap trouble heading into next season. Perhaps?

My favorite all time Hossa moment... If anyone has an english version, please let me know!

Senators All Time All Stars

Alright, so here's the deal. I've been doing a lot of thinking. This blog has been out of action for various reasons almost all season long. Family pet emergency, travels abraod... but even when I have had free time, I just haven't felt much like writing anything.

I'm not a rumor guy, I don't have close ties to the team or NHL insiders, and everything that can be written about the team from a 'journalistic' point of view is already taken care of by bloggers who are much, much better at it than myself.

This morning I was thinking of the best way to close up shop here. Should I just stop? Should I say some final words? Does anyone honestly care what I do? And then it hit me... there is still something I could do with this site that is unique and hopefully interesting to one or two people out there like myself, who are just looking for something to do between games.

So here it is... I'm going to profile some of my all time favrite SENS, both past and present -- there are a few -- and give a run down of some of their accomplishments and virtues as an Ottawa Sentator.

Drum roll......

Blood Red Who?!

Back in action after a jaunt overseas. A lot happened in the five weeks I was away. A rise to the to the top of the division, a rash of injuries, the loss of our starting goaltender, and most recently, a road trip reminiscent of Craig Hartsburg's final days. But that's not what I want to discuss. It's all been covered.

As posted on SensChirp recently, this is a rumored 3rd jersey for 2010. Surprisingly, it seems like the majority of poster on that site are completely against the design. I for one think it's one of the nicest I've seen. Ever.

Thoughts?

MIA

Been missing in action for a couple of weeks due to a family emergency. A very sick pet to be specific. But he's almost out of the woods and all is looking bright. Anyway, apologies to the 4 of you who read this from time to time.

As I always say at this time of year, it's a good time to struggle. Lots of time left to iron things out and spot and reduce deficiencies in the team and the system. Better now than in March or April.

As for yesterday's game, what can be said? Atlanta goaltender Ondrej Pavelec was brilliant. But it's not the first time he's done this to the Sens. On December 16th, 2008 he completely stole the game for Atlanta in a 4-1 victory at Scotiabank Place. It was a ridiculous performance by a completely unknown goalie. He was 1:18 away from his first NHL shutout (obviously... no one had ever even heard of the guy!) before Chris Kelly spoiled his night. But I do believe this guy's for real. Kari Lehtonen should be sweating a bit.

There's obviously still work to be done. With injuries to key contributors like Jason Spezza and Anton Volchenkov, some of the holes on this team are being exposed. But like I said, much better now than in April.

Now let's fix those holes and start winning some games again! Who's with me?

Trounced!

What else is there to say, really? The Ottawa Senators simply dismantled The Tampa Bay Lightning tonight in every single department of the game, and Milan Michalek was a one-man wrecking crew, scoring his first ever NHL hat-trick.

All four lines for the Sens scored tonight, with goals from Michalek, Nick Foligno, Alexei Kovalev and Jarkko Ruutu (who had three points on the night!) as well as one from Alexandre Picard. And despite only registering a single point, Jason Spezza was a force all night long. He was hitting, creating chances and fighting for pucks. There are still great things to come from #19, it's only a matter of time.

In the midst of the offensive flurry, Daniel Alfredsson quietly racked up 3 points as well. All in all a great effort from everybody, with the results to back it up.

For those toying with the idea that rookie defenseman Erik Karlsson should be sent down to Binghamton, or even worse, back to Sweden (which throws all logic out the window), how about Tampa's prized rookie Viktor Hedman? He had a rough go tonight and was directly responsible for two of the Sens goals. However, much like Karlsson, he is here to learn from those mistakes and will be a better player for them down the road. Sending either of these guys back to Sweden would only slow them down. They both need to adjust to the smaller ice surface, which enables them less time to make key decisions. Given the time to get used to the speed in the NHL, we will be looking at two top end defensemen in a few years, if not less.

And speaking of rookie defensemen, Matt Carkner had another outstanding game. Not only was he a +/- plus 2 on the night (plus 6 on the season!!), but he finally, once and for all took that little weasel Steve Downie to town! I'm not sure Downie even got one punch in. It's so refreshing to see bodies flying out from the blue paint in front of Pascal LeClaire after just about every whistle. This team has been missing that defensive presense for... well, forever!

Michalek's hat-trick is a small slice of redemption for Sens fans, especially after Dany Heatley's explosive start out of the gate. But what's even more exciting is that the newest buzz word in Ottawa is finally starting to show signs of life -- depth. When was the last time the Sens blew out their opponents and treated fans at Scotiabank Place to a good old slice of 'za? When was the last time it happened without Heatley in the lineup? But even more importantly, who can remember the last time all four lines scored for the Sens in a single game?

On a night where he was barely rewarded for a full 60 minutes of hard work, Jason Spezza was all smiles skating off the ice. We're looking at the dawn of a new era in Ottawa. No more Pizza line. No more top 3. Instead, we've got a coach and a team on a mission, with many, many tools at their disposal.