Obviously it’s been a surreal week in Ottawa, and not one I’m going to spend any time on this hockey blog pontificating about. Let’s repress with the best of them and take a look at our Sens, and around the league a lil’ bit, as we come up on the 10% mark of the NHL season.

All prayers are dedicated to the health of Erik Karlsson and our goaltenders, for without them we are but dust

We’re only seven games in, but the new Sens look an awful lot like the old Sens. Which is to say, they allow a butt-load of shots, have terrible possession stats, and it’s only by the grace of our outstanding goaltenders and Erik Karlsson playing in all situations and 30 minutes a game that Ottawa is anywhere near contention. According to that link we’re only outperforming Calgary and Buffalo who, according to this Swiss Chalet wet-nap I consult on all NHL related questions, are terrible teams barely disguising their desire to tank.

Interesting to see MacLean dip into his coin satchel of psychedelic line combinations already. Mark Stone sits last night against Chicago? Sure, why not. Cowen is now officially in Siberia? Works for me. Erik Karlsson with Patrick Wiercioch, no wait, Chris Phillips? Ulp. The only constant, it seems, is Chris Neil on that second unit power-play, which I’ve just come to accept at this point the way I’ve come to accept that a Conservative majority government will force anti-democratic measures through Parliament by way of omnibus bills. Give me the serenity to accept what cannot be changed, the courage to change what can be changed, and the wisdom to know the one from the other.

Happy to see our one legitimate scoring line of MacArthur – Turris – Ryan reunited and looking consistently dangerous. But outside of those golden three, we’re just going to have to summon all good thoughts and all of the hosts of hoggoth that Robin Lehner (.944%) and Craig Anderson (.936%) can keep up this play / stay healthy / not go insane under a constant barrage. Only in the NHL would this count as a game plan.

Let’s lookit the schedule. Dammit shouldna done that.

Ottawa’s a respectable 4-2-1, and it’s only because everyone else in their division has also been putting together respectable records and have been playing more games that they aren’t in a better position in the standings. But this next little while is going to get turbulent.

This week they’ve got a beaten up Columbus, who are co-opting our “secretly not very good / pesky!” approach to hockey. They are eminently beatable, but this will likely come down to a one goal game either way. Then they play Chicago again, who looked lazy last night and played a goaltender who’d never played an NHL game before and still won. Then there’s Boston, who Ottawa are contractually obligated to lose every game to, then Detroit and Minnesota – both very respectable, veteran-laden teams. If Ottawa can’t steal some points from the Winnipegs, Torontos, Edmontons and Calgarys to follow, then they’re going to be in a tough spot come the end of November when the fan base yells “I hate you!” and runs into its room, slamming the door behind it.

Jason Spezza is still Jason Spezza

Let’s check in on the One Who Got Away. No, not Alfie. No, not Heatley. Nope, not Chara. I mean Jason Spezza! (*waits for laughter to subside*) I mean, we all agreed he would go to Dallas, play on a line with Ales Hemsky, and be an absolute beast for them, right?

Well, yes and no. On the one hand, he’s got 11 points in 8 games which, according to the wet nap, is extremely good. He’s also a -5, which is the Spezzaist-Spezza-to-ever-Spezza.

How about Hemsky? Not to be outdone, he’s also a -5…except he only has one assist in those same 8 games. Did anybody watch that 7-5 loss to the Islanders the other night? Holy hell, that is some premier OHL hockey if I ever saw it. We were right that Dallas is going to be entertaining to watch this year. We were wrong that they were going to be very good. Anyway, looks like we might have dodged a bullet on Hemsky, even with our totally insulting low-ball offer we never really expected him to accept.

I told you Tampa would suck

Speaking of not being as good as everyone assumed they’d be, Tampa Bay, despite spending more money than God spent when she created the NHL, is 5-3-1 with some very embarrassing losses in there. They lost to Edmonton and Ottawa. Needed OT to beat Florida and Calgary. Were destroyed by Minnesota. Ben Bishop is a decent .918%, but hasn’t been a world-beater.

I’ll keep saying it – you don’t finish third last in the league, lose Martin St. Louis, get swept in the first round, and then become a contender. It doesn’t happen in that order. You gotta take some steps in between. Watch for Stevie Y to spend even more money this off-season on whichever defenceman becomes available.

Go Preds!

My second favorite team and the little engine that could keeps right on trucking in the toughest division in all of hockey. They’re amazing, and, perhaps for the first time in franchise history, also watchable!

I have nothing novel to say here, other than Go Preds! which I guess is pretty novel after all.

So, this is a thing I found on the internet.

Yes, Ottawa should definitely upgrade at the deadline

Ok, look: I hear you, people. I hear the people who say we shouldn’t sacrifice the future for the present. The people who say we already don’t have a first round pick, so why would you give up even more when we’re hovering around a 40% chance to make the playoffs? These are all perfectly reasonable and valid opinions. They’re just incorrect.

The thing about this season, which might not be the case next season, is that the East is wide open. There isn’t a team outside of Boston or Pittsburg that I don’t think Ottawa could beat in a seven-game series. And even with Ottawa likely having to play Boston or Pittsburg, that’s not like, an inconceivable upset.

Ottawa has the 10^th best offense in the league, and that’s with their best offensive player, Jason Spezza, playing with either Colin Greening, Eric Condra, or an out-of-position Mika Zibanejad. Sure, they’ve allowed more goals than all but four other teams in the league, but with Anderson’s numbers trending the right way, Lehner ready and willing to usurp Anderson’s role, Cody Ceci providing much needed depth, and oodles of cap room to improve, I think Ottawa can still make some noise in the playoffs.

And if they trade a 2^nd round pick or some prospects and it doesn’t work out, are you really telling me our window is going to slam shut because we no longer have Mike Hoffman in our system? Depth is important, but outside of Curtis Lazar, Ottawa doesn’t even really have a prospect that isn’t already on the roster who might be considered a blue chipper. Upgrading is likely a matter of a low pick in a weak draft or mid-tier prospects going out in exchange for short term rentals and long-shots. It’s reshuffling the deck. Why wouldn’t you do it?

It’s not like Matt Moulson is going to instantly turn Ottawa into a contender. But this is the year when truly anything can happen in the NHL playoffs. If a rental helps us win that one extra game it will take to make it into the playoffs, I’m all for it, even if it ends in a glorious slaughter at the hands of the Penguins. (Again.)

Seriously though: Trade for Daniel Alfredsson

I mentioned this briefly in my post about who Ottawa should target at the deadline, so you can read my reasoning there. It’s all pretty self-explanatory, though it should perhaps be revisited today considering:

How incredible would that homecoming be?

Sub-question: do you give him an A?

Ottawa’s new television deal

It’s been reported that between their annual payout from Bell of around $33.3 million, and the invasion fees and royalties paid as part of the new national package with Rogers, which are estimated at about $10 million for each Canadian franchise, you see Ottawa’s revenue for television going from about $7 million to $43 million.

This seems like a good a time as any to link back to the article I wrote on economics in the NHL. If this decreases Melnyk’s operational losses in the short term, and the franchise continues to increase in underlying value to the tune of 4%-7% year-over-year (not totally out of the question when you consider it generated this new TV deal and there’s nowhere to go but up), then we should absolutely, positively, not give a moment’s notice or modicum of respect if Melnyk cries poor when it comes time for a new arena.

This is a big step in the history of the franchise—the biggest, according to Leeder and Melnyk himself—and it’s wonderful to see. (Also, no more Sportsnet broadcasts, with their tinny audio and strange color correction and Nick Kypreos.) But if Melnyk insists that the franchise, after all of this, is still revenue neutral at best, then the traditional media needs to start paying better attention to the rising underlying value of his investment and calling him out on it. When Melnyk finally does sell, it will make him hundreds of millions of dollars. More than enough to make up for what I’d much rather call short term ‘investments’ than ‘losses.’

What does Ottawa’s next goaltending deal look like?

News that Semyon Varlamov signed for close to $6 million in Colorado confirms that the new price point for a starting goaltender is going to be: ridiculous. Crawford, Rask, and Varlamov all got about $6 million. Lundqvuist got north of $8 million. Steve Mason, who’s terrible, got north of $4 million. Tim Thomas, who is old and didn’t even play in the league last year, got $2.5 million fer Chrissake.

All of this makes Anderson’s $3.2 million look very reasonable—bum season or no. But it also raises the question of how much you pay Lehner, considering his very solid numbers and readiness to be a starter. If you figure that Cowen, who had less than 100 games at the time of his extension, got over $3 million per based on potential alone, then what do you pay your more experienced goalie of the future? It’s not unreasonable to see Ottawa spending close to $6 million between their two goaltenders, and soon.

So, this is a thing I found on the internet.

On Spezza

Jason Spezza has, and will always be, a divisive figure on this team, for reasons both fair and unfair. As I said during our inaugural Scotchcast, he’s a creative player who seems to pass to where another player with similar anticipation would have been, rather to where the players who he’s on a line with actually are. As a result, when his plans go awry, they seem to do so in spectacular fashion. I mean, I get it: it’s frustrating for a team that spends as little time in the attacking zone as Ottawa does to have its highly skilled, highly paid captain then whip the puck to an empty spot on the ice, effectively clearing it for the opposition.

That’s why this team went out and got Bobby Ryan, a player who excels at finding the open ice, at anticipating his playmaker, and at getting a shot off in small spaces. He seemed like a perfect compliment to Spezza. Instead, we’ve learned that Ryan can make plays too, and fits almost perfectly on a line with MacArthur and Turris, two well-rounded players who drive the possession game and make smart, simple plays consistently. Spezza and Ryan look lost together, perhaps because it’s not clear who’s driving the boat. The M-T-R line knows that you’re trying to find Ryan for the shot, and both of Ryan’s linemates are smart enough to read the situation and flow with it.

As a result, Spezza is looking a little bit lost out there. MacLean is cycling through line mates, but it’s tough to find a compliment for a free-wheeling playmaker who prefers the low-percentage, counterintuitive strategy to the traditional playbook. Michalek is invisible at times, neither able to receive nor get off a pass, and Spezza’s right side has been a motley amalgam of Neil, Greening, and Zibanejad. At this point I’m starting to wonder if Zack Smith deserves a shot on Spezza’s wing, and even I have to admit that’s a pretty stupid idea.

I’m not sure what the solution is. Ottawa’s offensive prospects aren’t really anywhere near ready (though one imagines Puempel getting his shot alongside Spezza in 2016-2017). It’s still far too early to target anyone on the trade market, not that Ottawa has the money to take on new salary anyway. And Spezza’s numbers are fantastic to start the season, though that’s buoyed by a few offensive outbursts rather than consistent production.

It’s not that I’m at all concerned, and I definitely don’t share the hate-on that some seem to have for Spezza. A few atonal improve-jazz moments are more than worth it for a point-a-game center making less than market value. (Don’t even act like Spezza wouldn’t make $8MM+ if on the free market now.) But I remember the good old days of Spezza with weapons on his wing. There were games when he looked unstoppable. He must also think about playing with an in-their-prime Alfie and Heatley when he looks over and sees Chris Neil charging the goaltender while holding his stick upside-down. As good as he is, we’re not getting the best out of Jason Spezza.

On puck movers and Weircioch

Ottawa’s transition game looked rough again against Montreal, especially in the first. Outside of Karlsson, who’s already playing about 30 minutes a night, there just isn’t anyone back there who knows how to do anything with the puck to start the rush. Cowen made a cross-ice pass in front of his own net that clearly surprised Karlsson, and which Montreal’s strong forecheck promptly turned into a chance to score. Phillips and Methot are far better at muscling someone off the puck than getting the puck to their forwards. And Gryba and Borowiecki are replacement-level AHL call-ups. That leaves the struggling Cowen, who the team has to hope is going to get his head out of his ass soon, and Wiercioch, who has a hell of a pass but who played the most sheltered minutes in the NHL last year, and who is a player more the mould of Anton Babchuck. He can play the point on the powerplay, and he can start in the offensive zone, but MacLean clearly doesn’t have any faith in Patty in the d-zone.

It’s a pretty big gap in Ottawa’s strategy, and it has a domino effect. The defense backs up and concedes all kinds of space knowing they don’t have the stick work or wheels to strip the puck away, and hoping to block a shot or stop the rush in their own end. The forwards have to carry the puck most of the way up the ice, with only MacArthur showing any success because of his reliance on simple and effective chip-and-chase plays along the boards and his excellent speed. Karlsson ends up playing more minutes than maybe he should, which results in him making mistakes. The goaltenders end up facing more shots. It goes on and on. Next thing you know, this team is outshot 2-1.

The inclination has been that Ottawa needs someone who can stop the bleeding because of how many shots the team is allowing. Personally, I think they’re allowing so many shots not because they don’t have their share of solid or all-around defensive players, but because their transition game stinks. And for that, they need to look at where the transition game starts. They need someone who can make a first pass to save his life. Even more than finding a linemate for Spezza, this team needs to find a defenseman who can move the puck. None of Phillips, Gryba, Borowiecki, Methot, or Cowen seem capable of doing that at the moment.

When do the fire sales begin?

You’ve got to feel for Panthers fans (the unicorns of the NHL): they’re about to bottom out again. They’ve already got their last several top five picks in the lineup, and they seem to be stagnating anyway. Huberdeau might be for real, but Gudbranson and Markstrom look like their souls have been crushed. Barkov is young, but already learning how little it matters to succeed in a market like Florida. Bjugstad looks frustrated. The whole team looks thwarted.

Their second-tier prospects are transitioning in, but their veterans have tuned out. (Remember that Brian Campbell and Ed Jovanovski are somehow on this team.) After finally parting with Stephen Weiss, and many years earlier with their prominent pick Nathan Horton, you have to wonder if they’re stuck in a perpetual mediocre machine. But as pointed out on several blogs, most of the teams in the league are within a couple million dollars of the cap. There just aren’t any trading partners out there in a season where the cap has come down.

Having said that, is anyone else surprised by the repeated mentions of Edmonton being a team ready to blow up its core? Hall, Eberle and Nugent-Hopkins are already on or approaching their second deals, eating up tons of money and cap space on a team that still has to deal with goaltending and defense. I’m genuinely surprised that they’re this bad, though. With the addition of Ference and a change-up on the team’s bottom six, I thought they were ready to at least be a bubble team. Instead, we’re all talking about who among Edmonton’s elite young players is going to be the next Tyler Seguin. Could this be an opportunity for Ottawa?

Fighting in Hockey

Uggggh…am I right? Who even wants to debate it anymore, I know. Well, I’m sure this argument will definitively end the conversation for good, and we can all go home.

It seems to me like the conversation can be handily compartmentalized thusly:

1) The ethical question of whether or not we should allow the possibility of serious injury because the person is engaged in something we may enjoy. This is a massive question that extends well beyond fighting in hockey to include pretty much everything we enjoy as a crass, materialistic society. Who cares if thousands die in car accidents every year, I hate the bus! Once again, with feeling: people enjoy fighting enough not to care if someone is hurt doing it. It seems to me like this debate is totally pointless, even if that makes me a defeatist and a shill. Whatever; we’re all culpable. You’re not going to solve it without also solving the mystery of why it’s so hard for people to be empathetic. And sports, as we all know, isn’t about empathy. It’s about Leafs suck.

2) Whether or not fighting actually detracts from the ability to enjoy a good hockey game. Ah, now here’s something we might actually talk about. Just as the shootout is viewed as a gimmicky aberration detracting from the purity of a well-contested, TEAM-based exploit, I have to ask how two ‘specialists’ dropping gloves to stop the course of play isn’t also gimmicky. We also debate hybrid icing, and the coach’s challenge, and all manner of other reforms because of the incremental way they may slow down the game. In the case of that Toronto-Montreal game where Parros was hurt, the game was wide open and all sorts of fun to watch because it was two fast and relatively skilled teams playing an uptempo possession game with lots of scoring chances. The game stopped about a half-dozen times for fights, and then for a solid ten minutes when Parros had to be stretchered off. When play resumed, it was halting, tentative, and less exciting. I don’t blame the players. They just cooled down for an extended period of time, and watched a fellow player become seriously injured. It’s not easy to get the adrenaline flowing again after that. Bottom line: is seeing a bunch of terrible fights, where they grapple each other’s jersey, miss each other’s heads a bunch of time, and then fall over, really worth interrupting the game so much? Is what I just described really that much fun to watch?

It’s impossible to understand how the same fighting apologists can talk about the shootout like it’s a sin against nature.

Zibanejad’s Demotion

Bit of a weird one here, innit? Remember, though, that Karlsson–he who can do no wrong–was also demoted in his rookie season. Karlsson was upset at the time–apparently weeping in Murray’s office–but it turned out pretty well. He was back the same season, and went on to be the Karlsson we know and love and name blogs after. Teaching the organization’s most prized young player a valuable lesson about not taking anything for granted is worth not having him in the lineup for a month or two.

Not to mention that Ottawa has a number of prospects who have been in the system long enough that if they don’t crack the lineup this year, their future in the organization is in doubt. Murray made the pointy in an interview that if you set goals for young people, and they meet them, and you don’t reward them for that, then you lose credibility. Da Costa did what he was asked to in the off season, and now he’s getting his chance. You have to give those guys a close look, because you know Zibanejad will be a part of the team for a long time to come. Plus, if it ends up saving a year on his ELC, all the better (not sure how that works though, what with him already having used a year up).

My twoonie is on Z-Bad being back in the lineup by mid-season. Nothing motivates a player more than having to ride the bus and then asking if they want back on the chartered plane.

That Kessel Contract

Toronto has to feel good about only having to sign Kessel for eight years. Sure, $8 million per is steep, but under the old CBA you could be sure they’d have to sign him well past his 34th year, which is what his new deal will take him to. If you make that a 12-14 year deal, with a long tail of ‘possibly retired’ years, you risk having to pay that player well out of his prime. As it stands, it’s a reasonable assumption that Kessel will still be productive at that age. For those who laughed at how much money Toronto tied up in one player, I can only admit that there isn’t really another player like that in Toronto’s lineup, or readily available anywhere else, and even if they overpaid it was only by maybe $1 million a year or so. In Toronto-bux, that’s nothing.

What it means for us, and the6thsens guys pointed this out already, is that Ottawa is well and truly fucked in two seasons time when Spezza and Ryan both need new contracts. (And also MacArthur and Methot and Condra and Anderson. No biggie. Just three top six forwards, a top two D, and your starting goaltender.) Last year, the St. Louis Blues spent less than anyone else in the league on salary; this year, after having signed all of their good young players (and trading Perron to make room), they’re 14th in the league in salary. (And are among six teams with less than $1 million in cap space.) With Eugene Melnyk making (yet more) noise about how much money the organization loses, and claiming to already be over budget, you can’t think that he’s up for a jump of that kind.

Obviously a lot can happen between now and then–will we even want to re-sign those two players, for one thing–but it can’t help but be concerning. Let’s enjoy this window while we can, Sens buddies.

Newsy News

Two interesting stories over on Senators Extra: How Clarkson almost ended up a Senator, and MacArthur ripping into his former coach, Randy Carlye.

Hard to imagine that if Ottawa had ended up with Clarkson that they’d have pulled off the Bobby Ryan trade. Toronto has been ripped a lot for favoring the lunchpail Clarkson so much they bought out the skilled Grabovski to make it happen, but sometimes we forget that Murray can be plenty old school in his thinking too. Especially interesting in light of the work Tyler Dellow is doing over on MC79 about how good the Devils’ possession was last year, and how Clarkson was the prime beneficiary in a contract year.

There but for the grace of god go I? Ottawa might still have Silfverberg, Noesen and their first rounder, along with a boat anchor contract and an aging power forward.

As for the MacArthur / Carlyle story…I don’t know what to say other than between Carlyle, Phaneuf and Kessel, Toronto has what must be one of the most unlikeable teams in the league.

Actual hockey

Hey, the Sens actually played! The weirdest, wonkiest opening week continues with the Senators not playing until Wednesday after having to wait a week to open their season…with back-to-back games on the road.

Observations? Nothing too specific to the Sens. Like a lot of teams, their early kinks are on embarrassing display. Lots of loosy-goosy passing plays that result in turnovers, scrambles, and three-or-two-on-ones. In other words: lots of fun to watch.

And speaking of fun, the MacArthur-Turris-Conacher line looks like it will be a ton of fun to watch all year. Turris is getting really creative out there, MacArthur is clearly a veteran in the way he can read and dictate the play, and Conacher is a royal pain in the ass. While Spezza looks dangerous and I’m so glad to have him back, that deal for Turris sometimes looks like absolute brilliance on Murray’s part.

— That’s it for now. Have a good Monday, everybody. Mark all those emails unread and go get yourself another coffee.

So, this is a thing I found on the internet.

Playoff Seeding

With every game that Washington wins, that magical 6-3 matchup is starting to look less and less appealing. I was all for playing the Southeast Division “Champs” when that meant playing the Winnipeg Jets. But Adam Oates’ system finally seems to have clicked with these players, and the Caps are looking unbeatable. Washington is 9-0-1 in their last 10; everyone is healthy; and it doesn’t need saying since everyone is saying it, but Ovechkin is looking like one of the best players in the world again.

At least Ottawa gets to play the Caps twice in their last seven games of the season. This should give everyone a good idea of how they line up against one another. I can imagine the scrappy Sens giving a finesse team like the Caps fits around their own net, which would be a welcome change given the Senators’ playoff history. But I never thought I would say this: as the Caps keep pumping and the Habs start falling apart, that 7-2 matchup against the suddenly terrible Carey Price and the Habs’ porous defense is starting to look good. Although, at the rate they’re playing, they won’t hold down the number two seed for too long. It’ll be Boston.

Erik Karlsson’s Unearthly Return

The night following Erik Karlsson’s gruesome injury, I wrote a tearful entry about how devastating it was to this team—not just to their playoff chances, and not just to the prospect of watching fun hockey, but to the notion that a unique player may not ever be the same. That was a worst-case scenario, to be sure, but the number of people in Ottawa reading about Achilles lacerations that week must have been astounding, and we all read the same things—four-six months recovery, then hardcore rehab; the whole season was lost, and the offseason, and maybe even the start of next season.

Now, just two months later, Karlsson is skating with full gear on, and Bryan Murray is saying in interviews that he could be back in time for the playoffs – which are about a half-dozen games away. That’s just unreal.

I don’t have a unique perspective on this one, except to say how awesome it is, and how special Karlsson’s work ethic (and healing power) has to be for this to be true. There are always a number of worthy candidates for the Masterton trophy (awarded to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance) – Josh Harding comes to mind – but you have to think Karlsson will be on the shortlist this year if he comes back.

2014 Outdoor Game

Ottawa gets an outdoor game against Vancouver, and I find myself wondering how all of these relatively warm weather locales are going to host outdoor winter games. I lived in Vancouver for a while; I remember the winters being very wet and maybe reaching -5C. Apparently this is a small fish problem because there’s also going to be an outdoor game in Los Angeles? Am I missing something here? Has outdoor water-freezing technology taken leaps and bounds in the last couple of years?

My second question is immediately and most importantly: does Ottawa dig out the barber pole jerseys for this game? Between those and the classically ugly Canucks jerseys of yesteryear, we could have a Make Your Eyeballs Bleed Matchup

So, this is a thing I found on the internet.

Playoff Chances and First Round Match-ups

Sure, that 4-0 beating laid on us by the Leafs over the weekend smarted. No, it more than smarted; it was humiliating the way only the Leafs can humiliate the Sens when playing a nationally televised game on a Saturday night. But hey, it was Hockey Night in Canada, and I’d bet the Sens’ overall record on Saturday night games against the Leafs is desperately low. ANYWAY, take solace: all of this could end up working in Ottawa’s favor.

As of today, Boston has a 53% chance of starting the playoffs as the fourth seed, though they also have a 30% chance of overtaking Montreal for the division lead. Ottawa is pretty much split, with a 43% chance of starting the season as the fifth seed and a 41% chance of starting as the sixth seed. They share this scenario with the Leafs (42% fifth seed, 43% sixth seed). And who’s that locked down in the weird, vortex-y third seed that goes to the terrible Southeast? WINNIPEG. Terrible goaltending / thin-ass forward depth / tiny payroll Winnipeg.

I know who I’d rather face in the first round, even if an Ottawa-Winnipeg first round would generate all sorts of small-town Canada jokes and receive a modicum of coverage next to a Center-of-the-hockey-universe, first-playoff-game-in-eight-years Toronto v. Big Bad Bruins w/ a side of Kessel drama.

As an aside, I have to say: it’s almost nice to see Toronto enjoy a young, exciting player like Kadri. They drafted him, developed him, and now it’s paying off. I don’t think that’s happened in all my years of watching hockey.

All this to say: go Leafs go? You can have the Bruins. For me, the Bs are a worst-case scenario; I’d rather face almost anyone else, but if it was the Jets it would be like waking up on Christmas morning.

Calgary Rebuild is finally  happening

After receiving peanuts for probably the best player in franchise history, Feaster got a pretty good return for Bouwmeester last night. A first round pick in this very deep draft from a team that is probably going to have a mid-round pick is a good haul. Even if St. Louis makes the playoffs, it’ll be against Chicago or Anaheim and I don’t see them pulling that off. If they don’t make the playoffs, Calgary gets next year’s 1st rounder, which could be even more intriguing. St. Louis is a poor team with a huge number of quality players to re-sign this off season. You could see them returning a much inferior squad next year, in which case, who knows where that 1st will land? The gambler in me (presuming this gambler was also a Flames fan) would almost root for the Blues to miss the post-season so you could wait and see where that next pick is going to land.

On a related note, Feaster continues on his streak of demanding third-tier prospects in return. One of the prospects he received back is an older goaltender who isn’t even qualified yet. Either his scouting department is on some Rain Man, experimental jazz trip, or they’re using NHL 2013 like I am.

Also interesting: by trading two of its players, Calgary went from a  top five payroll team to 16th.

Buffalosers

Good to see Buffalo also come out blinking into the sunlight after their long period of acting like spending money turns you into a contender. I’m starting to think that trade deadline day is going to consist of watching Buffalo come apart at the seams. They haven’t received much of value yet (two 2nd rounders, starting next year? So, two players who you’re 5-6 years from even glimpsing in the pros?), but I’ll be very interested to see what they can get for Miller, Vanek, and Pominville. They could end up setting the market.

Oh, I guess this is an Ottawa blog

What should Ottawa do at the deadline, anyway? Well, considering how quickly any players of consequence are being snatched up, I can’t imagine Bryan Murray swinging for the fences on this one, and I desperately hope he doesn’t part with that 1st rounder. The best player I think Ottawa can hope for is a familiar face: Jason Spezza or Jared Cowen coming back in time for the playoffs. This deadline day was already going to be a boring one, but I think it might be especially so for Sens fans.

So, this is a thing I found on the internet.

The long weekend is here FUCKING FINALLY which means it’s time to spend enormous amounts of time on our smartphones while family members talk in the direction of our heads. Let’s get started!

The Iginla Trade

I know Iggy had the hammer on this one with his no trade clause, and maybe it just came down to him knowing that the Penguins had an offer on the table and refusing to waive his clause for anyone else, but this seems like an awfully low return for what was supposed to be the best rental on the market. Two college players, neither of whom have played pro at any level, one of whom is a former third round pick and the other a former fifth? Both Agostino and Hanowski have good numbers in the NCAA, but neither have what the race-horse-minded might call pedigree, or were ranked particularly highly on Hockey’sFuture AKA what people without scouting departments look at. Plus, they’re both wingers, so you’re not building from any particularly foundational position—goaltender, or puck-moving defenceman, or first line playmaking center, for example.

Perhaps the weirdest is that they dealt their best hand well before the trade deadline. There was no waiting to see if the offers might sweeten, no playing one party off of the other until the bitter end. It seems unfair to say this was botched, but it certainly is underwhelming. One gets the sense that maybe, to their credit, Calgary wanted to end the uncomfortable situation for Iginla as soon as possible.

One hopes that if this really is the start of a Calgary rebuild that they keep going—convince Kipper to accept a trade, send off Bouwmeester, Tanguay, and Cammalleri if they can, etc. Because they just traded their most cherished player for two guys who project as complementary wingers and a late first round pick, and that’s not going to do it. We’re a long way from Atlanta trading a 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd round pick along with a roster player for Keith Tkachuk.

Update: great reads about this trade here and here.

The Trade Deadline

Why do the networks keep doubling down on this disappointing spectacle? TSN and Sportsnet are ramping up, as if any of us really plans to watch their networks from 8am until 3pm to see a panel endlessly debate why team X traded a 3^rd round pick for depth player Y. Morrow and Iginla are already traded; Getzlaf, Perry and Semin have re-signed. Most teams think they’re still in it, except for Florida, whose big trading chips are all hurt. We’re looking at a deadline day where the big trade may be Mike Rebeiro or Matt Cullen—though both of their teams are at least in the hunt and will probably stand pat. Despite all this, the networks are running epic, slo-mo commercials in which they display their armies of analysts, ready to spring into action with insufferable rhetoric and hyperbole. I’m pretty sure at this point we could all just pick up a newspaper the next day and get what we need, or follow Bob MacKenzie’s Twitter if you really need to know about how Jagr’s negotiations are going in Dallas.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Murray doesn’t have any of those delicious 2^nd round picks he likes to trade at the deadline, but we are blessed with a semi-interesting GM who always surprises his fan base. I’m sure he and Tim Murray have their eye on at least one or two Turris-like players—young enough to play on an upcoming club and be a part of the future, and worth giving up substantial assets for. Any late 1^st rounder who the Murrays pick at the draft this summer would be 3-4 years away from playing, and then another 1-3 years from hitting their prime, which is probably past when Ottawa wants to be competing anyway. So maybe they could package that 1st with Bishop and get a quality player. Or maybe we’ll do what we did at the start of Free Agency last year and go, “who the hell is Mike Lundin?”

Eugene Melnyk is still an idiot

Can’t say I’d act much differently if I was a billionaire who owned a sports team, and so had an open invitation to show up on any Toronto radio show I wanted, but man is this guy an embarrassment for the franchise. I wrote earlier how Euge has to be made to see how this conveys an impression of Ottawa as a small time market full of obsessed hockey fans and media, who, like most Canadian markets, are more difficult to play for and impossible to please. Stuff like this makes me shake my head that we ever thought Corey Perry was going to sign with an Ontario team. Why wouldn’t he take big money, the extra year on his contract, and the chance to play somewhere warm and not insane (or insane for different reasons) like Anaheim? You don’t see their owner embarrassing everyone associated with him on the radio.

Eugene. Stop it, man. Just stop it.

The Southeast

You’ve got to feel for Thrashers fans (they existed, I’m sure of it) who waited it out and waited it out and never lived through a simultaneous Carolina / Washington swoon, which would have allowed them to ‘win’ the pathetic Southeast division and enter the playoffs as the third seed in the conference. Now Winnipeg—only four games over .500, and almost ten full points back of the 4^th place Boston Bruins—will enjoy home ice advantage, and probably against the Leafs. They’re going to make so much money during that playoff series. They’re at least six points up on their SE competition, which is pretty insurmountable with only about 15 games left, so they can probably shell out at the deadline for something—anything—to help out poor Andrej Pavalec.

Enjoy this, Winnipeg fans, because realignment is going to kick your ass.

Who’s Ottawa playing tonight?

The Rangers? Pfft. We got this.