For years, I have spoken out against the idea of tanking.
Not because I didn’t realize the importance of a high pick but because I always felt like it was unrealistic to expect a team a team of professionals to just roll over down the stretch. It always sort of felt like it was something that was mostly out of my hands as a fan. And I still believe that.
Sure, a General Manager can manipulate his roster a little bit to give his team a better chance at failure but the players on the ice aren’t just going to give up.
And then I met this year’s Ottawa Senators.
With 27 games remaining in their season, this team has clearly checked out. And dropping lower than 29th really doesn’t seem out of the question.
And that makes tonight’s game against the 30th place Buffalo Sabres….THE BIGGEST GAME OF THE YEAR. Sigh.
Make no mistake, in a battle for the basement, the Senators are going head to head against one of the best. They have missed the playoffs in six straight seasons and have finished in 7th or 8th in the division in the last four years. Jack Eichel is by far their best player and he is out for weeks. Benoit Pouliot is on their first line and somebody named Casey Nelson is on the top D pairing.
These guys are pros.
Not to be outdone, the Senators come into this one having lost a couple in a row, outscored 12-6 in those two games.
They traded away one of their top four defenceman and added the oft-injured Marian Gaborik and Nick Shore. And there are more deals coming in the days to come. When all is said and done, this team will barely be recognizable. All part of #ThePlan.
#Sens general manager Pierre Dorion speaks with the media after last night’s trade with the Los Angeles Kings. pic.twitter.com/PnpuM5mjBB
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) February 14, 2018
Both Gaborik and Shore are expected to make their Ottawa debuts tonight. Gaborik will wear #12 and Shore #23. Ben Harpur was recalled from Belleville this morning.
A wild guess at line combinations. Game day skate at 10:30 AM so we’ll find out what the Coach has in mind then. Although to be honest, I’ve been trying to figure that out for the last five months.
Hoffman-Duchene-Gaborik
Smith-Brassard-Stone
Paajarvi-Pageau-Pyatt
Dzingel-Shore-White
Oduya-Karlsson
Harpur-Ceci
Borowiecki-Chabot
Craig Anderson starts in goal. Tonight’s game should last about 2.5 hours. A little longer if it goes to overtime.
 |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 17-30-10 (44 pts) | 19-27-9 (47 pts) |
| Goals For | 2.40 (30th) | 2.64 (T-25th) |
| Goals Against | 3.28 (27th) | 3.44 (30th) |
| Power Play | 17.8% (23rd) | 16.7% (26th) |
| Penalty Kill | 78.6% (22nd) | 74.7% (29th) |
| Shots For/Shots Against | 30.8 (23rd) 32.3 (T-20th) |
30.1 (25th) 33.4 (27th) |
| Plus/Minus Leaders | Okposo -24 Larsson -16 Kane -16 |
Karlsson -28 Smith -25 Ceci -18 |
| Team Save % | .898% (27th) | .897% (28th) |
| Draft Lottery Chances | 12.5% | 10.5% |
Only took me seven tries…
