NHL: A League of Knee-Jerks

 A few months back I foraged my way into a very heated argument with a friend. It began with me accusing him of things – we’ll call them character flaws - and then he fired back accusing me of other things – also known as character flaws. On my side

NHL Free Agency conjures Questions in Need of Answers

 By mid-afternoon on an unusually bright and sunny Canada Day (doesn’t it always rain on July 1st?), the National Hockey League was zipping along quite nicely as the free agency period opened with a slew of deals and decisions. The price tag was enormous as teams spent more than $1

Ottawa Hits its (Ull)mark, Draft Day Approaches and the Cup Comes Through Big Time

 It’s June 25th – you know, the heart of summer – and hockey continues to roll. The winter-ish sport enjoyed one of its busiest days during the past 24 hours with ramifications locally and across the continent. Let’s have a look.   BEST FINAL IN YEARS ENDS IN HIGH DRAMA?
Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staios

‘Summer of Steve’ well underway

 Like the result or not, Step 1 in the Ottawa Senator ‘rebuild’ was accomplished lickety-split. The hiring of Travis Green just last week, while certainly not universally lauded, quickly took care of some much-needed business during what promises to be a busy off-season. Quite simply, there’s lots-to-do in Ottawa as

Ottawa’s Off-Season Won’t be Dull

 “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” • Moms around the globe   Well, if we followed up on the quote, there wouldn’t be a whole heck of a lot to this column then would there? Picking apart the Ottawa Senators’ season is akin to putting the

Under .500 Again? It’s not all on the Coach

 It’s the justification I just don’t get. Ottawa management, yeah the new group, keeps bringing up the suggestion that sending Senators’ head coach D.J. Smith and his crew packing would just simply be . . . a bad idea. The reason? ‘The players have told us there’s already been far

Hockey’s back! (Well, not quite yet)

 I get it. I mean seriously – National Hockey League training camps don’t even open for nearly another three weeks so anything resembling the wording season preview needs to be shelved for the immediate future. . . in an appropriate world. But my world is anything but appropriate (or insert

Hockey rolls on!

 Been there, done that must count for a lot given the lack of love the New York Rangers are getting heading into the Eastern Conference final. Across the board, hockey prognosticators are throwing their affection at the two-time Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning. At NHL.com, some of the best

Year-end awards a mixed bag for Senators

 Pack up your things and head for the hills for the summer. The season, for the Ottawa Senators is done. And how about that season? Some advances to be sure, a few disappointments and a lot of ifs and buts. We’ve created a few categories here – as opposed to

Senators vying for better grades in second half

 Give or take a few days or games or COVID breaks, the National Hockey League hits the halfway point during a very intriguing season. In Ottawa, this season was hailed as the end of the rebuild. While the phrase wasn’t exactly plastered on the facing of the Canadian Tire Centre,

Leafs’ lesson a tough pill to swallow

 I hope you were watching, Ottawa Fan. I hope you were listening, Ottawa Fan. ‘Cause Saturday night you were schooled, and even though you despise your teacher, best you’d been paying attention. In the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 6-0 dummying of the Ottawa Senators a number of things stood out. And

No surprises as Senators start season

 ABOVE: Anton Forsberg has filled in while Matt Murray recovers from a flu bug. (PHOTO: courtesy NHL.com) It certainly is, as they say, a small sample size. Nevertheless if this is what the Ottawa Senators ‘are,’ no one should be terribly surprised. (Add in a Brady Tkachuk who plays Thursday against

Grades improving; this student has potential

 I remember those dreaded days: Getting the sealed envelope with my school’s emblem adorning the front. “Please bring this home for your parents to look at (‘pick apart,’ you mean) and have them sign it and bring it promptly back to your home-room teacher.” The cringe-worthy report card. Twice a

Senators make ‘slight’ moves at deadline

 Really, when you think about it, it’s the small things that matter in life. So-hope the Ottawa Senators who did a few of the little deals at the trade deadline but picked up a small piece that - hopefully (for them) - eventually makes a difference. Ottawa tapped on its

Goalie woes continue, prospects shine, and Karlsson makes news

 ABOVE:  Joey Daccord injured himself in the third period of Wednesday's game against the Canucks. (PHOTO: SPORTSNET.CA) The Ottawa Senators played two games last week, and both were spirited efforts against the Vancouver Canucks. Ottawa played well enough to win each game, but, unfortunately for them, both ended in an overtime loss. Canucks

Erik Gudbranson is back home, but the cheers will have to wait

 Photo: Photo by Matt Zambonin, Freestyle Photography, Getty Images Last Thursday, Blackburn Hamlet’s own Erik Gudbranson found twine with a wrist shot from the point – his first goal as a member of the hometown NHL team. Scoring for the Ottawa Senators was a proud moment for Gudbranson, one that he’ll

The Sens have found an identity

 The Ottawa Senators keep sending teams into tailspins. When they made a comeback down 5-1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs two weeks ago, columnist James Mirtle wrote that the Leafs needed a trade to fix the “complacency that kills them.” Last week, two consecutive wins over the Montreal Canadiens ended

Tim Stützle has arrived

 On Tuesday night, it looked like the week would tell the same old story for the Ottawa Senators. The Edmonton Oilers took an early 4-0 lead over Ottawa, giving Senators fans an excuse to go to bed rather than stay up for the third period of a game that started

After a tough week, Ottawa Senators need to give young players a chance

 Last week was a tough one for the Ottawa Senators, losing all three games versus Winnipeg. They led 3-2 until the last minutes of the game on Tuesday, before allowing an equalizer with 1:17 left, and then losing in overtime. The Senators outshot the Jets 41-28, they deserved to win.

Naughty or nice: the ABC’s of Xmas

 It’s been one helluva year, said everyone everywhere. Even in the usual sanctified domain of the sports world, the Year of COVID-19 hit hard and fast and repeatedly. But we’re moving on here, good people. ‘Tis the season for some much-required joy and boy do we need that lift, especially

Erik Brannstrom can’t wait to prove his worth to Ottawa fans

 by Daniel Rainbird When Erik Brannstrom skated in from the point, beat his defender, and lifted the puck short-side over the goalie’s shoulder for an overtime winner, something very unusual for 2020 occurred. The crowd went wild. That play introduced Brannstrom’s talents to fans of the Langnau-based SCL Tigers, the

Good and bad: Senators have changed their look

 Above: Alex Galchenyuk Are the Ottawa Senators accelerating, or just blocking the path towards achieving their self-proclaimed rebuilding plan? It’s a little bit of both from this corner. Let’s put it this way, general manager Pierre Dorion was definitely not “sit-tight-and-let-the-process-playout” during this very odd off-season. You likely knew that

Isles-Bruins East finale? You betcha’

 The Great Eight. With apologies for the steal on Alex Ovechkin’s nickname, that’s where we stand right now. Eight teams with a shot at Lord Stanley. After a qualifying round record of 5-3, Round 1 of the true playoffs produced a resounding 5-3 record (resounding?) of guess-taking. So be it.

Report cards come a little – too – early

 We are supposed to be gunning for a playoff season just around the corner. We’re supposed to be talking about who’s going to win the goal-scoring race, Auston Matthews, Alex Ovechkin or David Pastrnak. We’re supposed to be talking about MVP and whether the unexpected Leon Draisaitl can accomplish the

Figuring out Senators’ near future is going to be a puzzle

 The possibilities are endless. This is the reality of the world where Ottawa Senators’ general manager Pierre Dorion exists. The next few weeks – and months – are rich with ifs, ands, buts, maybes and maybe nots. In Ottawa the only sure thing is there’s no sure thing. Here’s what