Closing thoughts on the Sens

[fundonny]

Listened to the station this morning - can't stand Angry Al by the way.

I'm upset that the Sens lost, like every other fan out there. But geez can people get a sense of the big picture. Only one team, ONE, every year gets to win the Stanley Cup. One team out of 30. 16 make the playoffs, and ANY one of those teams has a CHANCE at winning the Cup. Giving yourself that chance should be a good enough accomplishment, a good season. And people are dissing Buffalo too, which I don't understand. Buffalo is a very good team, and they have a great chance at winning the cup.

Sens fans were able to turn off the television or come home from a game with a big smile on their face more often then not, way more often. We have a very talented team that's exciting to watch. So we didn't make it past the second round. Hurts, sure. Reason to panic? No.

ONE team gets to hoist the cup, that's it. I'm looking forward to next year! For now, counting down to the NFL preseason.

[Chieflongtee]

Bring back Jacques Martin

[covanant]

Biggest problem arises when the fans expect to win a cup.
You cannot expect a cup win!
Regular season means nothing.
Look at Detroit

[fundonny]

It's the same in football and it drives me nuts. Marino never won a Super Bowl. ONE QB a year gets to start for the winning Super Bowl team. Ridiculous to be judged by that.

[jonf]

I see what your saying, and I agree to an extent. You certainly can't expect your team to win the cup - it is probably the hardest championship to win of all the professional sports.

That said, I just wish that the Sens would show up in the playoffs - I would have no problem seeing them knocked out when they played their best and were beaten by a better team. The first couple years they were in the playoffs they showed up. They showed up when they made it to the Conference finals against Jersey. They even, dare I say, showed up for a couple of the Toronto series. What kills me is not that they did not win, but that they did not play nearly to their full potential.

[fundonny]

Playing to your potential 100% of the time is impossible for a human being. Fatigue, emotions, too many factors. If anything, the Sens just need better timing.

[jonf]

Ya, understood, they will have off games. They can't win all of them. But their timing sure does suck. They played a really good series against the Lightning, then all but vanished against buffalo.

[Law]

A very dissapointing finish to yet another good year. The shorthanded, overtime goal really just sums up our series against Buffalo. They beat us at our own game. I wouldn't be surprised if Buffalo makes it to at least the SC finals. Till next year, GO OIL!

[jonf]

Yep, Buffalo played a great series. You can't take anything away from them at all. Honestly, even if Ottawa had played their best I don't know if it would have been enough against Buffalo. That conference final is going to be an exciting one (assuming Carolina puuls through, that is).

[Andru]

Ya, understood, they will have off games. They can't win all of them. But their timing sure does suck. They played a really good series against the Lightning, then all but vanished against buffalo.

That's the funny thing. If Tapa had a decent goalie. I'm not so sure YOW wins that series, but that's just an opinion. The truth is Buffalo finished 3 points behind YOW so they're a good team. In fact given the injuries to some of the starters. I'd say Buffalo is deeper than anyone thought.

I always thought YOW was fast, but Buffalo is light speed. Everyone on that team can fly. BUF's big forwards also finished their plays with the puck in the net. hard to beat.

The sens just weren't as good as I thought they were. BUF had another gear. The sens did not.

[dH]

It's like the whole city got ahead of themselves and already wrote down a 4 under par performance @ the 12th hole. Stuff happens the sens ended up say 2 over par which is awesome but awful compard to 4 under par so liek in golf don't get ahead of yourself!!! Most people were like disgusted when we lost a game saying it was our cup. The cup isn't yours until your skating around the rink with it!

[LobWedge]

It's the same in football and it drives me nuts. Marino never won a Super Bowl. ONE QB a year gets to start for the winning Super Bowl team. Ridiculous to be judged by that.

There's no denying that guys like Marino & Alfredsson are exceptionally talented athletes who have had wonderful individual careers, but sports like football, hockey, baseball, etc., are team sports, and while their careers likely merit hall of fame recognition, they have failed to produce (in Alfie's case "so far") the most important thing, a championship.

The single objective of every franchise at the beginning of each season is to bring home the championship trophy and nothing else, and it requires the effort of the entire team to produce that, not the effort of a single player.

The best example of this right now (steroid accusations aside) is Barry Bonds. Chasing individual immortality, yet his teams have failed to grab the brass ring.

[fundonny]

That is their objective, no question. From the day they first followed their sports. But only one team per year, one out of 30, gets to actually win. In a 10 year career, there are 10 winners. Your odds are against you the whole time.

[dH]

A aquaintance I know plays @ Royal Ottawa & plays with Alfredson from time to time; he is an exceptional athlete supposedly he's ~2 handicap as well!

[mcnorth]

Expecting a Stanley Cup every year is a bit much, of course.
What Sens fans desire and continue to wait for is a really, really good run at the Cup. Year after year they show promise with a strong regular season and seem to have most of the parts in place but they just never seem to all play well at the same time once the playoffs begin.
For decades we've been haunted by Yashin disappearing, or Bonk, then Havlat a few years ago, Alfredsson has usually been super in the playoffs and then he struggles, and where was Heatley this post-season? And then to have Chara, Redden, Phillips and Co. ALL struggle mightily at the same time? It's just inexplicable. Redden was so bad and he's soooo good.
And then goaltending. Emery was fine, he really was. But that's been the problem - in their entire (albeit short modern) history has Ottawa ever had a goalie get hot and steal a series? Rhodes played strong for a round (I think against New Jersey?), and Tugnutt and Lalime were solid at times as well but they've never, ever had a guy put the team on his back and get them over the hump. And it's tough to win when your goalie is constantly being outplayed by the guy at the other end. Add in, invariably, two of your four top forwards pulling an invisible man act, and then your defense getting the stupids and then, boom, you're gone.
It's not about "choking" anymore because really, it's not the first round and it's not a loss to a team that is a real underdog - but it is about under-achieveing and a failure to meet expecatations and lose because you got beat rather than lose because you, essentially, beat yourselves by not bringing your A game. Buffalo played great and took advantage of their opportunities, someone each night stepped up and made a key play at a key time and their goaltender was better than the opponent's. That's how you win.
Ottawa continues to be a team of superstars but a team with no heroes.

[byerxa]

Hasek actually summed it up back in the middle of the regular season. He was asked if this team had what it took this year (while they were crushing everyone). He kind of chuckled and hesitated and then made the statement that the team was very young. He was right - the team is talented but just too lacking in that "trenches" experience. I fully agree on the timing thing - it always seems they are playing poorly when they hit the post season. And they have never had a goalie stand on his head. This time around the defence was uncharacteristiclly brutal (kudos to Buffalo for their team speed). I almost yearn for the early days when they had to work to get into the post season and then to win a series was gravy.

Unfortunately the core has gone through this so much you have to wonder if (as a group) they can know any other way? Because of this the team needs considerable overhaul, if only for the change. I'd rather see a lot of new blood at the risk of more significant failure. One definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results...

[EDSGOLF]

I tried to book a tee-time at Marshes for tomorrow, but no space available, all the Sens took the spots, hehe, just kidding. It sucks they are out......I guess Go OILERS Go!

[Big Johnny69]

All I can say is, new coach same results.

[SGH]

Well, luckily I was away for the weekend, and wasn't subjected to yet another playoff exit. It is too bad Ottawa doesn't have the grit and perseverance of say Edmonton or Carolina. Just that ability to never give up, and believe that every game is do-or-die. I'm not sure this is something that comes with age, but is rather an intangible quality of the players.

Watching the Edmonton game right now, Ottawa definitely needs a Ryan Smyth-type personality. The way he leads by example, and never stops working just seems to lead the rest of the team to constantly over-achieve.

[byerxa]

Gretzky said when they checked out the Islanders' dressing room after the Isles (Billy Smith) beat the Oil in the Oil's first cup appearance, and he was shocked. He expected to see the guys celebrating, whooping it up, etc. Instead he saw a bunch of guys completely spent just sitting there, exhausted. It was a big wake up call for Gretzky on what it took to reach the promised land.

Hey, I'm just an arm chair QB but when you watch Buffalo and the Oilers play, they leave nothing out there. That is what so frustrating with the Sens - if they could play like that with their talent...

[mberube]

I don’t know about you guys but that wossy poke check move that Alfie did on Pominville on last goal was brutal. He should have taken the body. That’s a first year Peewee full contact move. Take the body not the puck. I was shocked to see a team captain make an amateur move like that. Unbelievable.

One thing that I noticed during this series is that Jacques Martin was right to limit Spezza’s play two years ago. Brutal giveaways this kid makes in his own end.

Just to show you that Jacques Martin was not the problem

[Andru]

I don’t know about you guys but that wossy poke check move that Alfie did on Pominville on last goal was brutal. He should have taken the body. That’s a first year Peewee full contact move. Take the body not the puck. I was shocked to see a team captain make an amateur move like that. Unbelievable.

One thing that I noticed during this series is that Jacques Martin was right to limit Spezza’s play two years ago. Brutal giveaways this kid makes in his own end.

Just to show you that Jacques Martin was not the problem

Alfie is a forward. This is the NHL man. The line between defenseman and forwards is very thick. Pominville had a lot of speed going around Alfredsson. It's not easy to just throw a hit, he was beat. His only option was tripping or hooking the guy and in that half a second, he chose not to take a silly penalty, Sure after the fact it's easy to say "Take the penalty". But he's on the goal line. I'm sure Alfie thought he was going around the net. That's the way Emery played it and Redden.

That play was created by a very fast transition by Pominville. He was flying!! Sometimes guys make great plays. Buffalo made great plays and had some bounces. Here's the stat. 1 even strength goal in 5 games.

[mberube]

Alfie is a forward. This is the NHL man. The line between defenseman and forwards is very thick. Pominville had a lot of speed going around Alfredsson. It's not easy to just throw a hit, he was beat. His only option was tripping or hooking the guy and in that half a second, he chose not to take a silly penalty, Sure after the fact it's easy to say "Take the penalty". But he's on the goal line. I'm sure Alfie thought he was going around the net. That's the way Emery played it and Redden.

That play was created by a very fast transition by Pominville. He was flying!! Sometimes guys make great plays. Buffalo made great plays and had some bounces. Here's the stat. 1 even strength goal in 5 games.

That’s a joke. Did you even see the replay? Alfie poke checked and then straightened up his body not to touch Pominville. I’m not saying that he should have put him through the boards but he should have played the body. The line is not that thin in a one on one off wing situation. Alfie is a physical player in the corners, taking the body is what he should have done. No penalty would have been called if it were a body check.

Was it a great play by Pominville, it was but all because Alfie did not do his job.

[mberube]

Go to this link and watch the two different angles of the goal and know tell me he did all he could to close the lane.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=165821&hubname=nhl

Mike

[Andru]

Go to this link and watch the two different angles of the goal and know tell me he did all he could to close the lane.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=165821&hubname=nhl

Mike

Are you crazy. Alfie couldn't play his body, by the time he turned around and got his foot planted to create some leverage ( You need that on body checks ) he's beat. When Alfie stood up JP is already by him. Watch it again. You're being fooled by the camera angles. it looks like he's close but he's not. The only play is to hook or trip him. Watch it a 100 times. He's beat.

[mberube]

Oh man , your priceless. He had all the time in the world until he was net high. He didn’t even try to prevent him from going to the net.

I’m a speedy player and played good level hockey at a younger age. Played AA until I screwed up my knee. I would love to go around slow D-men and got nailed if the D played the body. I just loved when they played the puck. If it was Chara, Pominville would have not see the front of the net.

[Andru]

Oh man , your priceless. He had all the time in the world until he was net high. He didn’t even try to prevent him from going to the net.

I’m a speedy player and played good level hockey at a younger age. Played AA until I screwed up my knee. I would love to go around slow D-men and got nailed if the D played the body. I just loved when they played the puck. If it was Chara, Pominville would have not see the front of the net.

Hey no argument there. My first post was very clear. It was Alfredsson not Chara. if it's any defenseman he's not getting to the front of the net. Alfie is a forward. Pomanville knew that and admitted so. He exploited Alfie in a weak position.

I played at a high level as well in (the MTHL (AAA) now the GTHL). I entered the league as a forward and ended up playing D. I understand the position very well. Alfie was beat 10 feet inside the blueline. You're right if it's Chara. Pomanville kills 30 seconds and the sens may be playing tonight..... but we all know it wasn't Chara. Redden, Pothier, Philips, Volchenkov .......