FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-There is a good chance that on many nights this year, we’ll be talking about the standout individual performances on a night where the team lost the game. That’s exactly how things turned out against a Flyers team playing on back to back nights. While there were a handful of encouraging games turned in by young players, it wasn’t enough to keep the Senators in the hockey game. While last night may have been wildly entertaining, the Sens just weren’t able to go punch for punch with the Flyers. Another loss and another seven goals against.
-Safe to say this wasn’t Craig Anderson’s best effort. He actually made a handful of ten bell saves, especially in the first, but then seemed to let in a few that sort of deflated the team. This was a recurring trend for Ottawa goalies last year and it has already been an issue through the first four games of the season. In Anderson’s defence, there hasn’t been a lot of defencee of Anderson. The quality of the chances generated by the Flyers last night was well beyond sustainable levels. The Senators are playing a more aggressive, attacking style and while it is obviously leading to increased offence, there are a lot of issues to clean up in their own end of the rink. It will be interesting to see what sort of adjustments Boucher makes as the year progresses. You could already hear a bit “I told you so” in his voice last night when talking about their issues in the defensive zone.
-Okay, on to Brady Tkachuk. Probably goes without saying but he was the best player on the ice last night. If there is anyone still worried about his ability to put up points at the NHL level, last night should be of great comfort. And I’m not just talking about the two goals he scored because on most nights, those probably don’t go in. What really impresses me about Tkachuk is his ability to make plays in high-traffic areas. He has a reputation for being a guy that goes hard to the net but anybody can do that. What makes Brady Tkachuk special is his ability to do something with the puck when he’s there. It’s insane how good he is at finding the puck in a crowded space and that he always seems to have the presence of mind to do something productive with it. Add that to the swagger and confidence this kid has that is already well beyond his years and you have the making of a star. We got our first glimpse of that last night.
-Another positive- the continued impact of Max Lajoie. Something tells me there are going to be a lot of post-game thoughts dedicated to this kid over the course of the season. Lajoie’s rise up the organization’s depth chart to the point where he might actually be their second best defenceman has been unlike anything we’ve seen from an Ottawa prospect. And it’s a helpful reminder that drafting and player development is wildly unpredictable. While Lajoie had a productive three years in the WHL, his numbers were pretty stagnant. Not the usual improvement you expect from a legitimate NHL prospect. And that’s partly why the Senators were able to grab him in the 5th round. But it became apparent from the first time this kid came to the main camp that he had the potential to surprise some people. Now I don’t know if anyone had him as a point a game, 20 minute a night player at the NHL level but still. Lajoie’s development to this point has been staggering and it’s going to be fun to watch him over the course of the season. There will likely be some growing pains along the way but this kid has all the makings of a top four and maybe top pair defenceman.
-Lastly, a thought on attendance since this is clearly going to be an issue all season. First, I just want to point out how infuriating it is to watch people talk all summer about how they are going to send Eugene Melnyk a message and then at the same time, be the first to point out how embarrassing it is to have so few people in the rink. Second, a quick point on the impact of this message sending. And this is probably going to be hard for some you to hear. It makes no difference. At all. The organization has a pretty good idea of where they are at in terms of ticket sales and they can probably safely project how things will go throughout the remaining home games. If the team does well they might get a little boost but for the most part, crowds like last night are going to be fairly standard. It’s not going to “squeeze” Melnyk out, if that’s what you’re hoping for. It doesn’t mean you should go by any means but you should at least be realistic about the impact of your boycott. Less revenues just means lowering expenses. It’s not complicated. The only things that will have any impact on Melnyk’s future as Owner are a big ol’ expansion cheque, a signed/sealed/delivered deal at LeBreton Flats and an offer north of $600M from an interested buyer. Until then, less tickets sold will just mean less money spent. It will also mean that I will personally have to carry that giant Canadian flag over an entire empty section from time to time.
Highlight of the Night. pic.twitter.com/MttJ4CbbMK
— SensChirp (@SensChirp) October 11, 2018
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