2007-08 Regular Season, Game 31

Senators 7, Thrashers 3

PRESIDENT’S 2 CENTS: The 7-3 whooping aside, the Senators should be credited with two W’s tonight: one for winning their fifth in a row, and one for the mental game. Dany Heatley’s goal, the 200th of his career, came off a gorgeous one-timed feed, over a Thrasher stick, from Joe Corvo, who had an outstanding game. The Bank erupts in relief. It was quite significant that the two hopped out of the penalty box together and connected to put away the Thrashers. Two minutes before, Joltin’ Joe was whistled for a cross-check on Slava Kozlov, who, in the opinion of zebra Bill McCreary didn’t get in two jabs on Joe. Heater voiced his displeasure with The Moustache, who teed him up for two more. Result? Sens kill the second of the 5-on-3s, decide enough is enough with the Thrasher comeback, and end things. Heater, who scored his 199th earlier in the game, seemed to mock Ilya Kovalchuk’s first of the night, scoring in similar fashion on the far side … Speaking of which, the Thrashers seemed to want to get into a Far Side comic by making a mockery of diving. In the span of about a minute, Kovalchuk and newly-acquired vet Mark Recchi drew two penalties on four suspiciously easy fall-downs. First, the speedy Russian gets “hauled” down by Andrej Meszaros, then Recchi felt contact from Chris Phillips and fell. Recchi tried it before on Wade Redden, but the fellow league vet didn’t bite. Kovalchuk scored to make it 5-3 on the first 5-on-3, but the Sens saved their bite for the Heatley goal … It was just one of those games for the Thrashers, who have been up and down all season. They lost to the Leafs 4-0 only the night before, and maybe it was that plus the travel which did them in. A good example of Atlanta’s lack of attention: Atlanta blueliner Niclas Havleid (three giveaways on the night) with a third-period, horrible giveaway to Dean McAmmond, point-blank, who couldn’t believe his fortune. Second game of the back-to-back aside, the Thrashers had trouble containing the Sens, who held the zone slightly more than they usually do, and usually the Sens are excellent at it. Most obvious? Those battles along the boards and individual plays for the puck. The Sens were able to win those battles nine times out of 10 and wear out the already-weary visitors, whose only consistent effort came from Kovalchuk. The best Atlanta chance in the second period before the Perrin goal was a Steve McCarthy post … A great example of the Sens forcing the issue: when Mike Fisher went down with an abdominal injury in the first period, the fourth line of the hour, comprised of Dean McAmmond, Shean Donovan (who was the best skater in the first), and callup Cody Bass (playing his first NHL game), skated incredibly together, forcing three turnovers on one shift. It was an example of how they didn’t give the Thrashers any break from covering the Sens’ big guns, who rang up the score early …

… You can’t really say Alfie “saved his best for last,” but the captain did make sure to notch an assist on Antoine Vermette’s goal, the last one of the game, keeping his 10-game point streak alive. The captain’s best work—as it often is—was away from the scoresheet, as he battled for loose pucks, killed penalties, and drew a few in the process. Kanye West’s “Stronger” was the appropriate song of choice in the Bank right after Alexei Zhitnik hauled him down when Alfie forced a turnover. Amen. And though the captain’s a millionaire, we know he’s not a gold digger … Speaking of music, some Sens players have a certain song played over the PA when they score. Notables: U2’s “Beautiful Day” when Alfie pots one; Glenn Frye’s “The Heat is On” when Dany Heatley bulges twine; and of course, Mike Fisher has his own song, named in his honour by local band Thousand Foot Crutch. However, none is more appropriate than Kriss Kross’ “Jump” for Nick Foligno, who opened the scoring tonight. Nick’s on record as saying he wont do The Hop anymore, but to the Bank’s DJ Glenn Gower: good on ya for trying …

Christoph Schubert, who’s got a tendency towards humorous, over-the-top, and sarcastic facial expressions to go along with his similar personality, had two headshakes in these fashions tonight: firstly, when he was involved in a giveaway—which led to the Perrin goal from Recchi—in which he thought the puck went into the bench first; and secondly, when he missed a point-blank chance at the second period-ending horn off a gorgeous feed from the captain. If you saw them, thank the good CBC camera work … Speaking of chances, Recchi wasn’t going to miss that aforementioned 2-on-1 feed. An excellent passer (and suspected diving aside), there’s still room for a 39-year-old, wiley vet like Recchi. Nice to see him get new life as a Thrasher … Speaking of new life, Martin Gerber played solid when he was actually tested (shot count with 5 minutes to play in the second: 30-9, Sens), recovering somewhat from his mini-slump with another win. Darth Gerber played his angles well and shut down the Thashers on the second 5-on-3. The force is strong in this one. The Sens marketing staff played along with the new black mask-inspired nickname, using the Star Wars music and Vader’s breathing to accompany highlights right after one of his saves …

FUNNY STUFF: Yes, it was a CBC game, but with Bob Cole escaping the Line of the Night honours (again) because of the Leafs-Habs tilt, it was Garry Galley stepping up admirably: “He walked through and left everything on the ice except his jockstrap,” he offered, in reference to Vermette’s highlight-reel goal on Dallas last week while talking about another close one for tonight’s first star. A good one, Garry, but can you top it? “When Kovalchuk made the last zing, Recchi was already zagging,” said Galley when Recchi went off-side on the last Thrasher rush of the 5-on-3 before Corvo’s goal. Funny AND clever soundbites from the Ottawa native and former NHLer … Darth Gerber made a kick save off a solid Eric Cairns slapper from the wing in the first period, and you can’t help but laugh every time Cairns gets involved with kicking Senators. Remember the Havlat fight in 2005? … Maybe Recchi was “gambling” when he was risking a diving call while trying to draw those penalties in the third. Two of his three attempts took place in front of none other than the ad sign for the Casino du Lac Leamy in the corner …

Interesting Stat Line of the Night: Alfie, with one helper, five shots on goal, two missed shots, four hits, three takeaways, and four giveaways. Oddly enough, the Sens were awarded three more giveaways than Atlanta … The Sens have still not scored on a 5-on-3, dating back to last year’s playoffs. They had one tonight, and turned over the biscuit three times … It was nice to see Sens owner Eugene Melnyk and his wife host some underprivileged kids for a recent skate at the Bank, and the players visit CHEO for the annual Christmas visit. Especially for the players, the impact they have on young children—especially sick and underprivileged—is huge. One little conversation, a smile, or an autograph can lift spirits higher and take away the pain … Last but not least: a belated 2 Cents congratulations is in order to Wade Redden and Danica Topolnisky on their engagement. The latter was a solid University of Ottawa Gee-Gees basketball player when the Prez attended the U of O and was covering basketball for the campus paper. Danica has since worked with the alma mater, the Ottawa Lynx and the Sens in marketing/promotions capacities. Best of luck to the ultra-athletic couple, who might just produce either a hard-nosed hoopster, or a hockey player who could out-jump both Folignos combined.

2007-08 Regular Season, Game 25

Rangers 5, Senators 2

PRESIDENT’S 2 CENTS: Almost there, but not quite. Blair Betts’ (he played a pretty good game on the back end) empty-netter off a brutal cross-ice giveaway by Joe Corvo was significant, in that it spelled out how playing half a game isn’t good enough to snap the worst losing skid in seven years. Up till that point, the Sens overcame a sloppy first period and made a game of it, outshooting the Blueshirts 27-11 and outscoring them 2-0 after dropping the first four goals on 11 shots against. Of course, like Thursday’s Russian roulette display vs. the Predators, giving up the first goal kind of opens a floodgate. For the second game in a row, the defence and Martin Gerber kind of teamed up to chip in with enough mistakes to make sure the game was out of reach early on. The worst one? Jaromir Jagr walking right out into the slot and roofing one on Gerbs. There’s debate as to whether Alfie tipped it, but the captain didn’t by much if he did. Gerbs had a good look at it. The resurgent Sens netminder is in as much of a slump as the team as a whole, and everyone will be out of it soon enough … Speaking of good looks, the Rangers had more than the entire cast of Desperate Housewives. At the net, that is, especially the Jagr marker. They just did a good job of walking in, on the road, and firing biscuits at a struggling goalie and D. Makes you wonder if some of the Sens’ wives are reluctant to bring up their hubbys at dinner conversations these days, with the losing streak and all. At least we know Mike Fisher can go home alone (yes, he’s single, ladies) to a nice hot tub (designed by The Artistic Group, you know the overplayed commercial) and forget about it all. Maybe he, for one, has been in the tub thinking way too much about his personal scoring slump, now 13 games without a goal. That and his clearing attempt which found its way to Martin Straka on the left point, who had loads of time to feed Brendan Shanahan a perfectly-placed shot to tip in … On the subject, Dany Heatley should have had about three goals on the night. He did connect off of a gorgeous give-and-go from Jason Spezza, but that cross-ice slap pass from the Spezz Dispenser was thwarted by the steady Henrik Lundqvist, as was the power-play attempt where Spezza shook off two defenders to find Heatley alone in the slot. Lundqvist’s now got 11 wins in his last 14 battles, and was solid when the Ottawa skaters could actually muster either a good shot or a second chance at him. Rather ironic that he’s now stolen the torch—for how long, we don’t know—from the guy at the other end …

… Sometimes coaches are a tad reactionary when things go into the tank, and that’s what bench boss John Paddock seemed to be after the Sens coughed up four goals. He yanked Gerber after the first period, then started shuffling lines like a blackjack dealer. At first glance, it seemed kind of ridiculous. He broke up the Cash Line after the fourth goal and had a unit of Alfie-Kelly-Robitaille going for awhile. Then it was a return to Cash money, Corvo scores, and a switch back. In the third period, it was Fisher centring the captain and Kelly. Finally, Dealer Paddock throws out the full house, and Heatley scores with the help of fellow aces Spezza and Alfie. Seemed having the captain help to spread out the defensive awareness on another line helped give a comeback a chance, and putting him back with the Cash unit was timely for the scoring opportunites … An opportunity is something Brian McGrattan has been looking for, and he was arguably the Sens’ best player in the first period. A couple of strong drives to the net and an attempt to engage in fisticuffs with fellow pugilist Colton Orr helped to set a stronger tone for the second …

… It just wasn’t the same out there without shot-blocker artiste Anton Volchenkov. Or was it? Christoph Schubert, back on the blue line and helping to fill in for the A-Train, blocked one during a first-period penalty kill and got hurt (he kept playing and blocked one more). A-Train’s injury happened in the first as well … Speaking of “breaks,” (sorry A-Train!), Ottawa couldn’t buy one, seemingly, in any area of the game. Two icing calls in a row against the home team were followed up by one against the Rangers, a shift in which the Jagr line was tired. No change, right? Well, didn’t matter, as a TV timeout came right afterward … Joe Corvo played an otherwise solid game, despite the giveaway at the end. Two goals in two games for the slick-skating defenceman, who also had four more shot attempts blocked. In fact, it was Joltin’ Joe’s fleet of foot that made the difference between his hauling-down of Petr Prucha during a breakaway ruled as a minor penalty, and not a penalty shot …

FUNNY STUFF: Jim Hughson, calling the game on CBC with Garry Galley (he usually does the Western games), is one of the best at his craft. The Line of the Night, courtesy of him, came in the first: “Get some oxygen, take a number, you’ll be ready to go,” he said of Chris Neil, when Neiler tried to fight Colton Orr at the end of a tiring shift … As mentioned, Brian McGrattan played a fantastic first period and helped to get his team going. So much so that during a rush into the Ranger zone, his stick got hacked out of his hands by Fedor Tyutin and it twirled up and into the timekeeper’s bench. Smart move by Grats. May as well bribe the timekeepers with a souvenir or two and ensure some, you know, home cooking? … The Viagra advertising sign has been moved around a bit between the home and visitor’s benches lately. Before being moved back to the Ranger side for the third (same thing happened at the Predators game), it was right beside a McDonald’s ad in front of the Ottawa bench, which said—you guessed it—“I’m Lovin’ It.” Insert your own joke here … Speaking of jokes, CBC had to be joking when it showed a comparison of last year’s standings and this year’s, which is OK except when shown in the form of Ron MacLean’s spotty penmanship. Co-host P.J. Stock “complimented” it … Last but not least, how’s this for the Chummiest Interview of the Year? After the game, former Team Canada captain and gold medallist Cassie Campbell interviewed Rangers coach Tom Renney, who coached the Canadian men’s program for years. It just gave off a vibe of a chat between friends, especially when Cassie said “Do you want to say hi to anyone back home?” It was a clever way for Cassie to remind Tom to wish his parents a happy 62nd wedding anniversary, if he had forgotten.