FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-To put it simply, the Ottawa Senators deserved better last night. Realistically, it was probably a bit more complicated than that. For a little over 58 minutes, they were clearly the better team. They were aggressive on the forecheck, they were shooting from everywhere, they were winning puck battles, playing solid defence and the power play was buzzing. Josh Norris scored his first in the National Hockey League. It had everything. And then in the blink of an eye, it was gone. It’s a damn shame too because for most of the third period, the Senators actually did a pretty good job of keeping their foot on the gas. They just went into a shell in the final two minutes and paid the price for it.
-DJ Smith took some heat from fans post-game and a lot of it seemed to stem from the “young mistakes” comment. Fair enough. Because when fans hear that, there is an assumption he’s referring to the young players on the team. Unfortunately DJ really wasn’t pushed on the topic and didn’t have a chance to clarify what he meant. Because when you look at the tape, there were pretty clearly five veterans on the ice, desperately trying to protect a lead, mostly by collapsing in front of their own net. So it’s likely that he misspoke or is referring to something else he didn’t like during the third period. It doesn’t really happen in any markets (and I know why) but there are times when it would be nice to push Head Coaches and General Managers to explain their thought process a little bit. DJ Smith isn’t the only coach that prefers veterans on the ice late in a game but it would be interesting to have him articulate what it is they do specifically- in terms of positioning, puck management and level of aggression that he likes. The answer may surprise and we may learn something about what coaches are looking for late in a game.
-That’s a good way to make a first impression. Playing in his first game as an Ottawa Senator, Alex Galchenyuk had jump from the moment the puck dropped. In fact, he just about scored on the first shift of the game. His one-time goal on the power play was a flash of the talent that made him the third overall pick in the 2012 Entry Draft. He only had three shifts in the third period (all in the first half of the period) which is too bad because he seemed to have a lot left in the tank. Definitely would have liked to see him get a chance in the 3 on 3. There is no way he should be the guy that comes out of the line up when Tim Stützle is ready to return.
-If you’re still wondering what the Senators like about Erik Gudbranson, check the tape on his first period penalty kill shift. Puts his body on the line to block a shot and is clearly hurt. Unable to get off the ice, he stays out there only to have the puck rotate back to his side and not ten seconds after being hobbled by a shot, he drops down the exact same way, exposing the exact same knee. The whole shift ended up being well over a minute. He hobbled down the tunnel and was back before missing a shift. That sequence was a pretty clear example of what you get from Erik Gudbranson. He’s looked really solid through three games.
-I’ve tried to steer clear of this topic because it seems like Sens fans are nearly unanimous on the issue and I find myself on the other side of the conversation. And frankly, angry Sens fans scare me. But through three games (and for years now actually), I’ve seen complaints about the drop pass on the power play. The thing is, it seems to work. Most of the time actually. I understand that visually, it looks like a waste of time but there’s a reason so many teams have adopted it as a strategy on the entry. The idea is you force that first PK forward in one direction and then in the process, open up more space for the puck carrier. Then assuming your wingers are moving as you hit the line, you have a couple good options to enter the zone. It did seem like the Senators were mixing it up a bit with their entries last night, which is a good idea. In general, whatever the Senators did on the power play last night should continue. That was as good as they’ve looked on the man-advantage in years.
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