The truth has come out. The Pittsburgh Penguins have suited up an ape to play in this years playoffs. The player formally known as Gary Roberts is now known to be a ‘Damn Dirty Ape’!

Simple:

• Play with heart.
• Know your limitations.
• Forecheck.
• Back check.
• Follow the puck in and look for the rebound. (They’ve started coming…)
• Put Ray out in normal pads for a shift so he can go duke it out with Roberts.
• Kill the blind passes to nobody.
• Stop trying to get under Crosby’s skin. It isn’t going to work. Taking one guy out on a team full of young guns isn’t going to help.
• Play solid defense all around town, not just with a mind on the hot shots. Gary Roberts scored!
• Practice passing.
• Practice checking.
• Play the trap.
• Just be competitive.

I know it looks bad, but for a time we were doing okay last night. We killed off the surge in the second period. (Gerber!) And if we only could have gotten one during a PP then we would have been in a far better position. They weren’t reeling after the pointless assault but they were a step back until the PPs and it showed.

If we had score we would have broken them. In the end, it was an inevitable extra goal that sealed the deal… [sigh]

Let’s be serious here for a minute here…

Is anyone really surprised at the outcome from last night’s game? A little disappointed sure, but I’m sure every good Sens fan out there knew that we’d lose the first game.

Sure, miracles can happen, and they sometimes do in tough situations, however they are usually backed up by a few key things, such as the oppressed side deserving said miracle. Heck I’d settle for even just wanting to get the miracle.

To be perfectly clear (1/2 why we suck, 1/2 game notes):

• The Senators wheels fell off many months ago. We only got into the playoffs this year based on out start out the gate.
• Despite gaining entry to the post season, we’ve no respect from our peers. We are seen as undeserving of our spot and I’m pretty sure I agree with the naysayers here.
• We are too many men down. Alfredsson, Fisher are the biggest, but we can now add Volchenkov (even with a full face cage he’ll start flinching at shots now) and Spezza. Yes, Spez seems to be very lack luster out there after a few hits in the 3rd period including the slew-foot.
• Spezza & Heatley are unproductive when gaining the puck. No stretch passes, no rushing the net for rebounds. Pens overconfidence allows them to take chances and rush our guys wherever and whenever they want. Two easily killed 5on3s attest to that.
• Blind passes to nobody are killing us. Bad enough that we do that in our zone giving a skilled competitor ample opportunities that they don’t need, but we’re playing scared offensively throwing the puck away. Or are we always out of position?
• Our coaching has sucked since Christmas and Murray hasn’t fixed squat. Watching last night has shown me that we need to practice fundamentals. Not cycling the puck ad naseum during a PP, but passing drills. Passing under pressure means the puck still gets to the other guy. On his stick. C’mon!

I knew before the post season began that we’d lose this series… I just want us to look like we’re trying.

Quickie Summary (more later):

Ottawa lost. Kinda knew it was going to happen but I was hoping we wouldn’t get shut out.

All is not lost, despite the injury to Volchenkov, I think we showed a lot of gumption especially through the hardship of the second period. However, the fact that we didn’t score on either 2-man power play doesn’t instill a whole lot of confidence in me.

The next game will be interesting as the team showed the series isn’t over yet but the skirmishes seen in the dying minutes of the third period.

Despite letting in four goals Martin Gerber looked solid in the net making many huge saves at key times.

I look forward to what seems to be a single series playoff run for Ottawa.

Is it just me or does Ottawa look like they have whenever they play Toronto in the playoffs? I know they’ve not been their best since November and even worse now with the injuries, but it looks like 2002 out there when our biggest problem was that we didn’t have any heart, grit, gumption, *insert whatever you think a team needs to win here*…

There is something in the air today. There are bold predictions around the web. Hockey analysts are dusting off their best ties. TSN has had a facelift. The Maple Leafs are scheduling tee times. There is stubble on my face for the eleventh straight year.

In hockey, as in life, there are no certainties. A team with the best opening record in the history of the league, barely make it into the post season.

The second last game of their regular season against a team long since eliminated from competition makes more headlines than the goalie controversy.

Fittingly, the player who takes out the captain of a contending team now has to spend the summer in jail. (Perhaps he thought the original crime didn’t fit the time and felt he had more work to do to justify it?)

But as is said, the second season, is a new season. Anyone has a chance. Some have better chances than others. Some can argue who deserves to be here, and who doesn’t. Some will be up to the task, some won’t.

I predict, Ottawa’s first round will go long. Ottawa is a veteran team in the playoffs vs. a very young team. A team we knocked off easily last year. I team we outplayed 3-1 this past season. It won’t be easy. It won’t be a matter of fact. But we can do it.

We need only make it out of the first round. I don’t think anyone can expect anything more than that this year. Make it out of the first. Make a showing of it, and then heal in the off season.

Get out of the first round, and then Alfredsson and Fisher might just be back.

Then there are no guarantees…

Notes:

Sorry for the disappearing act this season. Work life has been tough, but that is now 100% behind me. I’m not a bandwagoner, I am a true fan. I’ve watched as many games as I could get my hands on. I’ve been out in bars in TO to have the heckles of the locals fall upon my back.

The next few weeks are busy ones for me, but I now have time again to analyze my favorite team and get this site back on track.

Many thanks to the faithful who’ve kept the internets alive with the teams antics in my absence (not that I’m the best or anything…)

Apologies to the BOOB, I dropped off the pool pretty quickly too. That won’t happen again. If you’ll let me into the next pool I’d be honored to be allowed a chance to participate again.

Anyone else notice that there are many more NHL bloggers out this year?