If this is anyone other than Super Mario, YOURE STEALING MY BIT!

Lets see here…..hockey…hoooockey…hoooooooooockeyyyyyyy…whoa sounds weird when you say it all slow like that…HHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhh…

Anyway, Tuesday night is hockey night in Pencil-vania the OTHER Draculavania! Especially when it’s in Ottawa! Everyone following so far? This post is off to a 2011-2012 Ottawa Senators hot start.

So, going into tonight’s game there is a player whose name is being thrown around capital city a lot. I’m speaking of course about feisty young winger, Nail Yakupov. Okay, now boys and girls, lets all get on our lil tyke’s time out hot yoga mats and relax a little on this whole Yakupov thing for five minutes.Ottawa is just starting this rebuild. You know what else they are starting? The current season! I’m just saying. We’ve all been through a very long off season’s postulating from hockey experts (who all tend to LOVE AND BELIEVE IN the Ottawa Senators) that our boys in red, white, gold, black and occasionally off-white will be a lottomax team come spring. Okay okay, great, it’s a pretty safe bet we’ll be in the bottom 5. Also of note: there are still 77 games to watch and enjoy before that. I’m not saying the Sens aren’t going to be in the draft lotto. No, what I’m suggesting is that it might be helpful if there were a statue of limitations…or some other free standing structure of limitations on when Central Scouting can publish its draft rankings. Can these kids at least get a chance to sort themselves out till January or something before everything gets all “Derp for Daigle?”

Now look, I want the Sens to have a Ryan Ted Nugent-Sir Anthony Hopkins as much as the next Joe Insulted Reusable Lunch Container but I am also interested in what happens in the NHL in MID OCTOBER. Believe me, I am going to head out to the Top Nails Nail Spa presents Ottawa Civic Centre when the Sarnia Sting is in town to watch Herr Yakupov in action vs. our 67s. Yes, I will, just like I made it out last season for a delightful little ragamuffin named Gabriel Landeskog. Remember how satisfying it was when Ottawa drafted Gabriel Landeskog? Yeah. Good times? Great times. In the mean time I’m going to try to focus on DaCostco, Zibanejad, Cowen, Rundblad, you know…young players currently on Ottawa’s roster, many of whom still in the midst of their 9 game(!) try outs. Again, it was a long ass off season and I’m going to try at least “get into” the team I’ve been waiting to see play all summer, “Cuz it’s a long way to the bottom if you want a Yakupov” – I’m pretty sure a president of something said that in a dream once. Rome wasn’t rebuilt in a sdfjkl;gdf. Let’s get to tonight’s thing!

The battle of Milli vs. Vanilli: In net tonight goalie people cared about for 5 minutes Sergei Bobrovsky takes on Alex Auld. I’m sure Alex Auld played for Philadelphia at some point of his career and would like to show his old teamma- WHAT HE HASN’T?! Well, there goes that storyline. Im sure he played for the Winnipeg Jets at some point and I can just use that story for the next game *dusts off hands* One thing that is guaranteed twixt the Philly pipes tonight is that we wont be seeing Bobby Butler put another absolute beauty past Bobrovsky as Bobby B is out with a pulled bathing suit area. I think I just broke the “B” and “O” keys on my keyboard with that last sentence . So yeah blah blah blah goaltenders.

Special Little Guy Watch: Did anyone see Erik Karlsson making Alexander Ovechkin his stepnephew who’s name he can’t remember all game long on Saturday? I think Adnan over at Silver Seven had it right that his game against Washington might have been his best yet in terms of defensive play. With the likes of Claudius Giroux, Jaromir “I still occasionally forget he’s back in the NHL again” Jagr, Dany “That’s not how you spell Danny, dum dum” Briere and Jymz Vyn Ryms Dyk, The Stockholm Slickback and his defensive cronies will certainly have their work(s?) cut out for them. Ottawa’s D fared very well against an offensive dynamo in Washington so…oh quick question from the audience, what’s that? How did it go against Colorado? I …uh…Moving on!

With just one W on the season, Ottawa has thus far demonstrated that they will likely lose tonight’s game the question is HOW will they lose? Third period multigoal comeback to make it interesting? Spirited “this could go either way” one goal loss? Death by goal called off (does any team get more disallowed goals than Ottawa btw)? Coloradoesque shitestorm? The loss is their oyster!

Puck drop is scheduled for the beginning of the game. Enjoy!