FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-Well that wasn’t pretty. Despite Sidney Crosby’s absence, the Pittsburgh Penguins have been rolling right along recently and last night, the Ottawa Senators got a first-hand look at why they’ve been able to hold it together in Pittsburgh. At the ripe old age of 33, Evgeni Malkin is still capable of taking over a hockey game and that’s exactly what he did to the Senators. From the moment the puck dropped, you could see he was going to be a handful. Every time the Senators found a way to fight back, it was the Malkin line that tipped the ice in the home team’s favour. The Senators just had no answer for that trio. Ottawa pushed back at times, as they almost always do, but it just wasn’t enough.
-While Malkin remains one of the game’s most dominant players, he’s still a bit of a rat. He doesn’t necessarily have that reputation around the league but Sens fans have seen it first-hand in the playoffs over the years and it was on display again last night. The punch in the head of Scott Sabourin and the stick to the neck of Jean Gabriel Pageau were two prime examples. If you watch him closely, you’ll notice Malkin always does his rattiest work when the officials are close by. And what’s so frustrating, is that he always seems to get away it.
-Nick Paul had himself a game. Two more goals and now three in his last couple games. He has six on then season, a career-high, and he continues to be one DJ Smith’s most-trusted players. And it’s amazing what that trust has done for his confidence this season. In his post-game remarks, Smith specifically mentioned that Paul is in the best shape of anyone on the roster. Paul’s emergence as a legitimate NHL forward is certainly one of the most pleasant surprises this year and a good reminder that not all prospects figure it out right away.
-Anthony Duclair is an NHL All Star. From being a spare part in a deadline deal to one of the best players in the league. Quite a run for the 24-year old forward from Point Clare, Quebec. There have been a few good stories for the Senators during the first half of the season but the unlikely rise of Anthony Duclair has to be the best of the bunch. When he arrived in Ottawa via Columbus, expectations were pretty low. Four teams had already given up on the guy and it really felt like Ottawa might be last chance to prove he could be an everyday NHLer. He took the opportunity the Sens gave him and ran with it. 21 goals, a career-high, in just 40 games. Watching Duclair on a nightly basis and it’s clear that this is just more than a run of good luck. When he’s on, he is capable of dominating a hockey game. Certainly seems like a player that can be a key part of the rebuild here in Ottawa.
-Decade reviews seem to be the thing to do these days. With 2019 almost in the rear-view mirror and a new decade looming, it’s a good time to look back on years gone by. For the Ottawa Senators, it’s been a period of time marked by dizzying highs and devastating lows. The Hamburglar run and the 2017 march to the Eastern Conference Finals are moments that every Sens fan will remember for the rest of their lives. Not every fan base has memories like that to look back on and for that, Sens fans should feel pretty lucky. Unfortunately the back-end of the decade has been littered with off-ice distractions and ugly departures. Looking at the prospect pool and the collection of picks in hand, it certainly seems like better days are ahead for the franchise. Speaking of looking back, here’s what this place looked like 10 years ago. Wonder what it will look like ten years from now?
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