With a win tonight, and other games going the Senators’ way, the Sens could clinch a playoff spot and not worry about the game against Boston.

With a loss, the season could be over, and the Senators going down in infamy in one of the NHL’s worst breakdowns in history.

10. The Early Years … Expansion.

Hockey returned to the nation’s capital in 1992 after a 58-year absence, but it was nothing to cheer for. Although the Senators won their team opener against the future Stanley Cup winning Montreal Canadiens 5-3, they went on to lose 70 games that season; managing only one road win all season long. Their record that season had cemented them as dead last, with a 10-70-2 record, and made the Senators known as the “joke” of the National Hockey League.  They continued to place dead-last in the league for the team’s first four consecutive seasons. It wasn’t until 1996-1997 when the Senators finally grabbed the seventh playoff seed in the Eastern Conference, led by star centre Alexei Yashin, and a young Calder-Trophy winning rookie named Daniel Alfredsson, who both had 70-point seasons. They would scare the Northeast Division winning Sabres, pushing the series to a game seven, before the inexperience of the new Senators finally took its toll.

9. Ownership Stability, Finally …. Eugene Melnyk.

The Ottawa Senators were almost taken away twice from the nation’s capital due to ownership and financing problems. Developer, first owner, and founder of the modern-day Senators, Bruce Firestone, struggled to come up with the $50 million USD expansion fee, but the Ottawa Senators, along with the Tampa Bay Lightning, were awarded expansion teams on the condition that they were to develop a new arena fit to NHL standards. It was because of this condition that Mr. Firestone left the Senators, after being one of the forces to bring the team back to the nation’s capital. The Ontario Government refused to help out their new NHL team, demanding that Firestone pay for the highway infrastructure and the building on his own; leading him to estimate a $80 million USD loss. It was then he sold the team to Rod Bryden who was finally able to get financing for the Palladium arena (now known as Scotiabank Place).

 In 2003, Bryden declared bankruptcy due to the loss in the energy business and threatened Senators fans that if they didn’t buy season tickets that the team would be lost. This came in the same season that the Senators won their first President’s Trophy, beating out the Dallas Stars for first overall, and battled to a game seven against the eventual Stanley Cup winning Devils team. With the heartbreaking loss, Sens fans were left wondering if the team would return for a new season.

 On August 26th, 2003, current owner Eugene Melnyk came to the rescue of the Senators and pulled them out of bankruptcy while promising the fans that the team would not leave the nation’s capital. He purchased both the Senators and Scotiabank Place, and is willing to do “whatever it takes to bring the Stanley Cup home.” Thanks to Melnyk, the Senators are now able to spend to the NHL salary cap and keep its superstars for years to come.

8. Goodbye one era, Hello another …. Alexei Yashin Dispute.

Alexei Yashin was the first draft pick of the Ottawa Senators, going second overall in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. He arrived to Canada for the 1993-1994 season, debuting in the same game as Alexandre Daigle. Yashin overshadowed Daigle, scoring 79 points in his rookie season which ended up earning him a Calder nomination. He continued his dominance in the following seasons, eventually leading Ottawa to its first playoff run in 1997. He quickly became a star in Ottawa, and his talent was noticed when he scored the winning goal to bring Ottawa its first playoff series victory against the New Jersey Devils in 1998. Soon after he was named the Senators’ captain, and in 1998-1999 he set a personal record for points in a season with 94. He was the runner-up for the Hart Trophy and was named to the second All-Star team for the Eastern Conference, even though the Senators were swept in the first round by the Buffalo Sabres.

 The Senators were originally wary of backing Yashin, choosing Daigle over the Russian centre and signing Daigle to one of the largest rookie contracts in history. This started many nasty contract disputes between the Ottawa Senators and Alexei Yashin. The team was first hesitant to give him a 5-year $4 million salary from day one. Eventually, Yashin wanted the same salary as Daigle, which caused friction between the captain and the fans of the Ottawa Senators.

 Yashin pledged a $1 million donation to the National Arts Centre (NAC) in Ottawa; the NAC’s largest single donation. Yashin made a condition that the NAC were to pay his parents a $425,000 consultation fee. The NAC refused the donation and strained his relationship further with the Sens fans and media. However, it wasn’t until after the 1998-1999 season that the Senators had the last straw with their captain; Yashin refused to honour the last season of his contract and demanded a $3.9 million raise to the like of Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman. The Senators quickly refused to listen to Yashin, who then, on advice of his agent Mark Gandler, demanded a trade from the team. The Senators stood their ground and suspended Yashin, stripping him of his captaincy and handing it to a young superstar in the making: Daniel Alfredsson. The NHL had its full support for the team suspension of Yashin, who tried to sign with a team in Switzerland, but was stopped by the International Ice Hockey Federation. When an NHL arbitrator refused to allow Yashin to become a free agent, he returned in the 2000-2001 season for the last year of his contract.

The Senators ended up trading Yashin to the New York Islanders in exchange for Zdeno Chara and a pick which ended up being Jason Spezza. This was the biggest trade in Senators history at the time, in which the Senators stood up for “team players” instead of overpaying a “superstar”.

7. The Biggest, Littlest Sens fan …. Elgin.

One of the biggest stories in the 2006-2007 Senators playoff run was a three-year old boy named Elgin-Alexander Fraser. Diagnosed with a rare form of childhood cancer called neuroblastoma when he was just nine months old, Elgin was as big of a Senators fan that you could find. He passed away two hours after the Senators won the biggest game in modern-day franchise history, defeating the Buffalo Sabres in overtime for the Eastern Conference Championship.

Chris Phillips, the Senators alternate captain, and his wife, Erin Phillips, had brought Elgin to a practice a few weeks earlier. One of Elgin’s final wishes was to go to a Senators practice and meet the players. Senators centre Mike Fisher skated over to Elgin and took him for a skate on the ice holding him, and little Elgin-Alexander found his way into the hearts of every Senators fan. The whole team spoke with Elgin, and even Senators tough-guy goalie Ray Emery let Elgin score on him. I had raised money to send him to a playoff game with his family. Mike Fisher would later become close with the Fraser family, visiting Elgin and his parents on a few occasions at their Carleton Place home in Ottawa.

Tumours had grown in little Elgin’s back and were leaking into his lungs, and as he lied on the pillows watching the Senators defeat Buffalo, he lost his vision and relied on his father to whisper the play by play.  He passed away peacefully, watching his favourite team go on to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time. Fisher promised Elgin that he’d bring him the Cup one day. Fisher and Phillips were the pallbearers at Elgin’s funeral.

Mr. Fraser talked to his son on the phone during the visit and asked Elgin to ask Mr. Fisher if the Senators were going to win the Stanley Cup. “OK, Dad, hold on,” said Elgin over the phone.“Mike,” said Elgin, “You’re going to win the Stanley Cup, right?”“We sure are, buddy,” said Mr. Fisher.“Dad, he said yes,” Elgin told his father.

6. What’s old is new again … Bryan Murray.

 Everywhere Bryan Murray goes, success seems to follow him. Look at the Red Wings of the 1990’s, or the Anaheim Ducks of today. The ex-General Manager for both these teams, as well as the Florida Panthers,  he left the Ducks in 2003 to become head coach of the Ottawa Senators. A Shawville native, Murray is a hometown boy looking to win his first Stanley Cup with his home team. He holds the best record of any active coach currently in the NHL. He has the experience and talent to bring the Senators to their first Cup.

Bryan Murray was the head coach of the Washington Capitals for seven years: and brought them into the playoffs each year, winning the Jack Adams Award in 1984. He left the Capitals to become the General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings in 1990, where he had mixed results at first but he had built what would later became the most dominant team of the 90’s. He had another move of teams, and switched to becoming the GM for the Florida Panthers. In 1996, his team made it to the Stanley Cup Finals and he was later named the NHL Executive of the Year. In 2002, he was offered a job with the Anaheim (Mighty) Ducks and stayed there until 2004, eventually building the team that would defeat his Senators last season.

 On February 20th, 2007, Bryan Murray became the fifth coach in NHL history to reach the 600 victories mark. The Senators defeated the Edmonton Oilers in a shootout win for Murray to achieve this mark. In the off-season after a heartbreaking loss in the Finals to the Ducks, a team that was by majority created by him, he replaced John Muckler as the Senators new GM. He appointed his longtime friend, and assistant coach, John Paddock to the Head coach position. However, on February 27, 2008, after two months of mediocrity, he fired John Paddock and assistant coach Ron Lowe and became head coach of the Senators, whose play has already changed in just a month.

5. National Pride on the line … Hometown factor.

During the Finals, only 10% of Canadians (according to a Decima research poll before game 2), were cheering for the Senators. This is a huge difference from both the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers runs, where the whole country was united in the dream of bringing a Stanley Cup home after a decade without. So, why not cheer for the nation’s capital team? Many people used the excuse that the Ducks had more Canadians on their roster, so the Cup would have more time in Canada if Anaheim won. That is the case no longer as the Senators, under Bryan Murray’s leadership, now have the most Canadian players on their roster than any other Canadian team or the favourite Ducks. Although captain Daniel Alfredsson was born in Sweden, he plans to live in Ottawa for the rest of his life and now considers himself more “Canadian than Swedish.”

The Senators, once known as a fast, talented mostly-European team, have had a major facechange since the 2003 run. Looking at just some of the names that have been replaced:

Out: Zdeno Chara, Marian Hossa, Martin Havlat, Petr Schastlivy, Karel Rachunek, Martin Prusek…

In: Dany Heatley, Mike Commodore, Cory Stillman, Luke Richardson, Martin Lapointe, Dean McAmmond, Jesse Winchester…

4. Good guy gets his dues …. Martin Gerber.

 Who would have thought that after the team’s backup, Ray Emery, carried the team into the Stanley Cup Finals that he would lose his job to the man that he took it from? And who would have thought that Ray Emery could cause so much drama in just half a season? I don’t think even psychics could have predicted this.

 Martin Gerber was a key part of the reason why the Ottawa Senators were off to the best start in franchise history since re-entering the league in 1992. Gerber’s stellar play catapulted the Senators to first in the NHL, giving the team a 13-1-0 record. While Ray Emery was still recovering from off-season wrist surgery, all eyes were on Gerber and he flourished, giving the Senators the most consistent play they’ve seen in a while from goaltending. It was when Emery was ready to come back when things started to get rough for the goaltenders.

The drama from Emery is well publicized: the hissy fit in practice where he beat up on a water bottle and tossed his stick into the stands, being sent home from practice for being late twice, the fights in practice, and the poor driving habits. While this was all going on, however, the Swiss goaltender, who was quiet and patient behind the scenes, worked harder to prove that he was ready to keep going as the number one guy.

Since the firing of John Paddock, which the Emery situation was a main factor to, Murray has declared Gerber as the unofficial number one. He has said he won’t comment publicly on the goaltending situation, but he has been giving just about every start to the Swiss goalie. Gerber is known as a hardworking guy, a team player, and a quiet guy that only wants to play. He arrives early to practice and is usually the last guy off the ice. The good guy finally gets his chance, after making it to the Finals on three separate teams. Nicknamed “Darth Gerber” by fans for his black mask, it’s time to see where hard-work and patience can get you in today’s NHL. He is the second player in NHL history from Switzerland to win a Stanley Cup.

3. Bebop and Rocksteady, Philichenkov  … Phillips and Volchenkov.

The beginning of the 2006-2007 season was anything but happy for the Senators defense core. Anton “A-Train” Volchenkov was thrown into every trade rumour possible; his confidence still low since the overtime flub in the playoffs early in the series against Buffalo. Chris Phillips was unable to find chemistry with any other defense partner since the loss of Chara, and the Senators were quickly free-falling to the bottom of the standings. After putting Volchenkov with Preissing for seven games, the only Russian Senator got confidence back and forced Murray to give him a chance with Phillips. The Senators started to rebound and made it to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Phillips and Volchenkov became one of the steadiest defensive pairings in the East. Their confidence radiated through the defense, and, through the rest of the team. They became a goaltender’s best friend, Volchenkov leading the shots blocked category in both the regular season and the playoffs by a wide margin of nearly 80 shots. Phillips wasn’t far behind, in the top five for shots blocked by defensemen in the NHL in the regular season and playoffs as well. Both averaging over 20 minutes a game for the Senators, Volchenkov was voted the #5 best defensive defenseman in the NHL by The Hockey News in the off-season.

 Through Volchenkov and Phillips’ leadership, the Senators were able to shutdown Crosby and his young Penguins, the New Jersey Devils, and the President’s Trophy winning team Buffalo Sabres. Both physical defensemen, they have been the perfect replacement for Zdeno Chara on the Senators blue-line. They were the first two Senators to defend team-mates in the February 22nd, 2007 brawl against the Buffalo Sabres and are not afraid to pay the price to help the team win a game.

2. The Cash Line …. Heatley, Spezza, Alfredsson.

The Ottawa Senators have arguably the top line in the National Hockey League. With the NHL looking to find ways to create a more offensive league, if the Senators were to win the Cup it isn’t unimaginable that other teams may try to copy Ottawa’s style of explosive offense.

The CASH line, named after Captain Alfredsson, Spezza and Heatley, combined for 113 goals in the 2006-2007 regular season. In the playoffs, they lead all scorers with 22 points each, setting a record for the Ottawa Senators for most points by a player in a post-season. A dominant force in the regular season and playoffs, they are the primary offense for the Senators. In 2005, the first time the line was put together, the three Senators came together for a league-best 296 points.

Dany Heatley, entering this season after two 50-goal back-to-back seasons, was acquired by the Senators in exchange for Marian Hossa and Greg DeVries. It didn’t take long for Heatley to break records made by the all-star Hossa in Ottawa: Heatley became the first Senator in franchise history to have a 50 goal season; the first player since Pavel Bure in 1999-2000 to have back-to-back 50-goal seasons. His 105 points last season broke another franchise record for most points in a single season by one player, and gave him 5th place for points in the NHL. A dominant winger for the Senators, when he’s hot the offense is unstoppable for this team. Before his shoulder injury in the Red Wings game in January, Heatley held a 208-game consecutive playing streak with the Senators. He signed a contract extension with the Senators on a 6-year contract in September before a game against the rival Maple Leafs, worth $45 million. Jason Spezza was signed the same week to a contract extension.

Jason Spezza started his career with the Senators in the AHL on the farm team, the Binghamton Senators. He believed he was good enough to be a regular on the NHL roster immediately, and was unhappy with this decision by the Senators management. He was the first pick in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft by the Senators, second only to Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk. He was the third player to represent Team Canada at the age of sixteen at the World Hockey Championships, only Wayne Gretzky and Eric Lindros had done so before him.  

Spezza became a critical part of the Senators 2003 playoff run; a call-up from the minors, he helped win a critical game against the New Jersey Devils, helping push the team back to a game seven. The 2003-2004 season, Spezza finally became a regular on the lineup, where he put up 22 goals for 55 points. In the NHL lockout, he played in the AHL and won the Les Cunningham Award for league MVP. In 2005, Jason “Giggles” Spezza was second in the league for assists, setting a team record with 71. He was also the leading points-per-game player, and lead the league in scoring before being hit by an injury bug. On February 9th, 2008, Spezza scored his first NHL hattrick against the Montreal Canadiens, where Spezza contributed to all 6 of the Senators goals, making it the most productive night of his career. The CASH line combined for nearly 15 points on the night.

 The CASH line is the most powerful offensive line the Senators have had in modern franchise history. While Heatley is seen as the “goalscorer” of the line, and Spezza the “set-up-guy,” both are offensive threats on any given night. When the top line is hot, the Senators are unstoppable.

1. The Face & Heart of the Senators … Daniel Alfredsson

After years of being the scapegoat of the Senators, Alfredsson finally shred the “playoff choker” label in the 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs. The driving force behind the Senators, his leadership is key to the team’s success or failure in the playoffs. He proved to be one of, if not the, most dominant player in the NHL playoffs last Spring, scoring the biggest goal in franchise history against the Buffalo Sabres to send the team to the Stanley Cup Finals. Entering the zone in overtime on a one-on-three rush, he slid the puck through the defense and behind Miller to become the first European-born captain to lead his team into the Stanley Cup Finals. Not bad for a guy that was chosen in the sixth round.

Alfredsson is able to play with any combonation of players, however, he plays his best with Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza. Usually it’s Alfie leading the rush and setting up the play in the opposition’s zone, having the shot from the point on the powerplay, and rushing into the other zone on the penalty kill. His shots are dangerously accurate, and if he’s on, he is almost impossible to contain. One of the best two-way players in the game, he hits, forechecks, backchecks, protects the puck, and has an amazing shot. He isn’t a vocal leader on the team, although he has promised on two separate occassions that the Senators WILL win the Stanley Cup. Alfredsson leads by example, and is a definate bet to be the first modern-day Senator retired to the rafters of Scotiabank Place.

 Alfredsson is an amazing player to watch, and he goes into every game like it’s the most important game of his career. He plays against the other team’s top lines and shutdown pairings, but still finds a way to rack up points. He’s always battling hard, fighting through checks, and never takes the easy way out. He is a thrill to watch, and is the core of the Senators. Even if the game is out of reach, Alfredsson still plays hard and doesn’t stop until the final buzzer sounds. Daniel Alfredsson is one of the most exciting players to watch in today’s NHL, even if he isn’t one of the flashiest.

 Alfredsson’s play in the post-season will help to decide how far this team goes, but expect that he will carry the team on his back until the end, whatever it may be.

http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com/291295494957302.php

What would have been a great game was destroyed by the officiating last night. For many Sens fans that stayed up until well past midnight to watch the entire game, it was a disappointment. There are hordes of fans planning to write the NHL head office, and The Hockey News about what transpired.

Anton Volchenkov: hit from behind half-way through the first behind his own net. He left for the remainder of the period with a sore shoulder, (the same one he had surgery on over Christmas four years ago). There was no-call on this play, when it was pretty obvious.

Andrej Meszaros: Another hit from behind and tackle, leading to an injured knee also half-way through the first. He needed team-mates help to get off the ice, and no call, even though he was being sat on. He returned for the second, surprisingly, it looked like it would be a season-ender for sure.

Daniel Alfredsson: Left the game after being cross-checked from behind and may miss time with possible cracked ribs. No call as well on the play, and it was the most obvious penalty of the injuries. He did not return.

Dany Heatley: the 50-goal-scorer received a cross-checking minor at the end of the game, after being cross-checked himself. He left the ice with two trainers chasing him going into the tunnel. No updates on his status.

This, coupled up with the continuous running of goaltender Martin Gerber, left head coach Bryan Murray fuming. He was ejected from the game, leaving the one assistant coach on the bench, Greg Carvel, to lead the Senators for the rest of the third period. Up until this point, it was a 2-1 game with a chance of a come-back for the Senators. Good on Murray for standing up for his team. After four players leave the ice, you would think the refs would at least give out equalizers? Not happening.

“I just kept telling (Wes McCauley) it was a bull—t call. ‘That’s a bull—t call you made. He said, ‘Say it again and you’re gone,’ so I said it again,” said Murray.

Good on you, Bryan Murray. The Senators need your emotion right now on the bench. Now the NHL will be forced to review the reffing tonight with your ejection. I’ll be at the next home-game, behind the bench, cheering you all the way.

The first time the Sens have played at the Honda Centre since losing the Stanley Cup, emotions should still be running high with this team. It should be a physical, great game tonight at 10 pm EST.

I am very nervous for this game, I can only imagine what the Senators are feeling. They brought their game to a new level against the Red Wings, (which they won in January), and I imagine the same thing will be happening.

The memories of that June night aren’t easily forgotten. They’re particularly painful when you’re on the losing side.“You don’t get anything for second,” Ottawa defenseman Chris Phillips said. “Coming up short is disappointing after how hard we worked just to get that far.”

Tonight marks the first and only regular-season meeting between the teams since the Ducks put a five-game whipping on the Senators in the Stanley Cup finals to claim their first title.

“They took something from us last year that we would love to get,” Phillips said. “It might add something to it.”

Hossa, 29, was acquired in a trade with the Atlanta Thrashers, along with Pascal Dupuis, in exchange for Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, prospect Angelo Esposito and a first round draft pick. Atlanta was unable to re-sign the UFA sniper.

During the second period of the Bruins - Penguins game, Hossa collided knee-on-knee with Glen Murray. He left the game and did not return. The Penguins believe he will be out for a week, but will update his status later today.

After the firing of John Paddock, Ottawa had become pretty optimistic about their playoff hopes. Going into last night’s game against Philadelphia, the players and fans thought it would be a piece of cake:  a team feeling guilty about letting a friend go, wouldn’t they want to win the game for their new-old coach and show what they’re made of?  Sounds good, if things hadn’t started off on the wrong foot in the morning skate.

Anton Volchenkov and Chris Phillips, the Senators shutdown tandem, both missed the game-day skate with flu-like symptoms. The Senators didn’t have enough time to call up a defenceman from the minors,  and with Christoph Schubert flipping back to his natural position on defence, they guessed one of the two would be able to go. “Bebop and Rocksteady” were on the ice to start the game.

Half-way through the first, however, Volchenkov was scrambling to block a shot and ended up injuring his chest. I didn’t see the puck hit him, (I bought the pay per view for the game), but he was stretched out awkwardly. After five minutes on the bench, looking like he definately had the flu, Volchenkov left the game. No timetable is out for his return.

The Senators managed to score the first goal in the game, something they haven’t been able to do for a week. Actually, it was the first time they’ve scored since February 23rd, even longer for a power play goal.  It was during the goal celebration that everything went spiraling downward once again. Martin Biron, not liking Spezza celebrating in front of him, cross-checked the all-star centre from behind. Captain Daniel Alfredsson quickly came to Spezza’s rescue, saying something I’ll censor to Biron, when all the Flyers jumped ontop of Spezza. Next thing you know, everyone’s trying to save Jason “Giggles” Spezza, as he was getting thrown around like a ragdoll by two Flyers. Somewhere in the mob, Spezza used the butt-end of his stick to get out of there and was handed a game misconduct by the officials. Already a shortened bench, this spelt nothing but trouble for the Senators.

 The only other highlight of the game was Mike Fisher defending his team-mate against Steve Downie. Downie, who was ontop of former Bruin Shean Donovan, was immediately thrown off when Fisher saw who he was. Downie had already dropped the gloves and should have gotten an instigator, as coach Murray was arguing with the referees (ah, a sight long forgotten), but Fisher wound up winning the fight. I don’t think Fisher’s ever lost one.

Although they lost the game 3 - 1, with the Flyers putting up three unanswered goals, there were plenty of positives to take home for this team.

• With only a morning skate under his belt, Bryan Murray had gotten his team to play a more physical, tough style, which lead to the Senators out-hitting the Flyers 24 to 15. Christoph Schubert, who covered up for Volchenkov’s spot on defence once again, led the hits along with team-mate Mike Fisher.
•  The Senators were able to score a powerplay goal, which they were only previously able to do once in 28 chances.
• Chris Kelly is close to a new contract with the Senators. This time last year, Muckler was able to get Volchenkov and Phillips signed to home-town discounts and their play escalted from there. Maybe we’ll see a similar pattern? Only thing being debated on is the length of the deal. He’s a UFA this Summer.
• The Senators didn’t get shutout!
• The Sens came out with a new attitude, previously lacking from the past two games against the Bruins and rival Toronto. Although not a complete turnaround, they were already looking like a different team than they had earlier in the week.

Now it’s time to see what Murray can do with a practice with the free-falling Senators before their home game against the Penguins Saturday night. Who, by the way, will be without Marian Hossa for at least a few weeks with a MCL sprain from a knee-on-knee collision with Glen Murray.

EDITED: Assistant coach Ron Lowe has also been let go. Both Paddock and Lowe have been offered other positions within the Senators organization. Paddock is going to wait a few weeks before deciding if he will accept. There will be no new hiring of an assistant coach, as assistant coach Greg Carvel, video coach Tim Pattyson and development coach Randy Lee will continue their positions.

Paddock was part of the Senators organization for six years, which included his time spent since 2002 as the head of their AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Senators. Jason Spezza credits Paddock for helping him become the player he is today. He held a 36-22-6 record this season as the head coach of the Ottawa Senators, including a modern-day Senators record for best start.

The Ottawa Senators won the Prince of Wales Trophy under Murray’s guidance as a coach, and had their first trip to the Finals in modern-day Senators history. He is the seventh General Manager in modern-day Senators history, the first to hold dual GM-coach duties.

Murray’s regular season record in the Senators organization as head coach is 100-46-18. He has coached more than 1,300 playoff games, with 665 wins.

Sure, the Sens lost. Sure, our goalies suck.

BUT THERE IS ONE THING NO ONE SEEMS TO REALIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF:

WHY WAS VOLCHENKOV ON THE BENCH FOR THE LAST 7 MINUTES?

I am very serious with this question. Seriously. I saw him. Sitting there. All sad and such. Opening the door for the other defensemen. What’s going on? Our hero blocked a shot with his nose earlier in the game, in the first, and there was blood and many children cried the hardest cry that anyone has ever seen. Yet our Russian saviour came back out for his next shift so all was well again.

The question still stands: what happened to him? Is he hurt? WHY IS NO ONE REPORTING THIS? Does no one understand the gravity of this situation? The A-Train … de-railed?

Don’t worry Volchy, I noticed. I saw your gloves from all the way up there and knew you were on the bench while Schubert played in the spot that is rightfully yours.

I’m not super drunk,  I swear.