SB Nation - Pascal Leclaire

Silver Nuggets: Fisher and Underwood engaged, injury updates

PeterR — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 18:46:34 -0000

IS SILVER NUGGETZ NOW! Ottawa Senators news for the day

Yes, it is confirmed: Senators centre Mike Fisher has proposed to country star Carrie Underwood, and she accepted. Good for them, congratulations to both. Now, some buzzwords to increase the SEO: fisherwood, boyfriend, american idol, girlfriend, hot celebrities. (Sun)
The prediction panel makes a triumphant return for tonight's game against the Boston Bruins, and a pretty significant majority are picking Ottawa for the win. (Citizen)
No lineup changes for tonight, but Pascal Leclaire and Chris Neil are both expected to slot in for Wednesday's game, while Shean Donovan may be as little as a week away from a return. (Twitter)
It had been a while between goals for Erik Karlsson, but he's apparently looking for a bit more consistency. I'd be fine with that. (Citizen)

(Read more... )

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds head coach Denis Lambert gave Senators prospect goaltender Robin Lehner plenty of credit for his team's early-season success (or at least relative to their expectations going into the year). (Sault Star)
Apparently a swap of Jason Spezza for Dion Phaneuf would be a "dream deal" for both teams, according to Brian Costello's blog on The Hockey News website. As much as I'd love to see Phaneuf come in and stabilize the d-corps, Ottawa's future offensive picture are a lot bleaker than the defensive prospects in the system. Getting rid of Spezza, even if he is underperforming, would just compound those problems. (THN)

Silver Nuggets: Spezza has torn MCL, Foligno injured, Campoli to play forward

DarrenM — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:57:45 -0000

More photos » by Ryan Remiorz - AP

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Good afternoon Sens fans, and welcome to another highly anticipated edition of Silver Nuggets, your collection of all the Ottawa Senators headlines fit to print:

According to Ian Mendes, Jason Spezza has a torn MCL in his right knee and will miss 6-8 weeks. Clouston said they'll be lucky if he's back before the Olympic break. Uh-oh. (Mendes)
To make matters worse, Nick Foligno is out for tonight's game with a lower body injury. At the skate this morning, Peter Regin took Nick's spot on the second line, and on the fourth line with Ryan Shannon and call up Josh Hennessy was... defenceman Chris Campoli. It makes sense, I guess, as he's the best d-man on the team at joining the rush, but it's still worrisome. (Mendes)
Other injury updates: Clouston hopes Leclaire and Neil can return next Wednesday for the game against the Penguins. (Score)

Though commentators on Sportsnet and TSN have speculated as much, Canada's Olympic team assistant coach Lindy Ruff has put it on record that Mike Fisher is on the team's radar and in consideration. Fisher probably won't make the team, but I'm sure he's quite flattered just to be in the conversation. (Examiner)
It turns out prospect Robin Lehner will be a part of Team Sweden's World Junior squad -- he'll travel with the team as their "third goalie." Congrats to him on the honour, even if it just means he gets free tickets to watch some games. It'll be a good experience. (Sault Star)
Another Ottawa Senators Blog with an interesting article, crunching the numbers to show how the Senators' offence is more potent with Pascal Leclaire in net. (AOSB)
Sens players spread some Christmas cheer by visiting children at hospitals. (Senators)

Silver Nuggets: Leclaire back soon, Daigle returns

PeterR — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:06:36 -0000

More photos » by Jae C. Hong - AP

15 days ago: Ottawa Senators Daniel Alfredsson(11), of Sweden, and Anaheim Ducks Scott Niedermayer(27) go after the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. The Senators won 4-3 in a shootout. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Excitement! There's a surprising number of headlines I want to link to today. Here goes:

Brian Elliott is going to start again tonight, but Pascal Leclaire may be ready to return within ten days. (Sun)
It looked like Alex Picard would be ready to return for tonight's game, but it looks like he's not. Maybe that's just because Chris Campoli is playing too well to be scratched. (Twitter)
Short-lived experiment: Jason Spezza and Alex Kovalev are split up. Which means Mike Fisher has to play with Kovalev and Nick Foligno, which is kind of a bum deal. (Twitter)
Prediction panel for tonight's game against the Philadelphia Flyers: Four pick the Sens, two pick the Flyers. (Citizen)
Also, in anticipation of tonight's game against Philly, I made an appearance on Broad Street Hockey's Broad Street Radio last night, talking about the Sens and last year's No Habs No! campaign. Take a listen to the podcast, if you're interested. (BSH)
Yesterday Ryan Keller was re-assigned to Binghamton of the AHL. (Sens)
Daniel Alfredsson took the heat for the too-many men penalty last game. Pre-tire #11 already. (Sun)
One-time Senators' franchise player Alex Daigle is back in the national spotlight as a member of Canada's upcoming Spengler Cup team, and he's not the only former Senator on the team: Also there will be Brendan Bell, Randy Robitaille, and Jamie Rivers. (Hockey Canada, h/t Puck Daddy)

(Read a bunch more after the jump... )

I don't usually link to Bleacher Report, but I'm going to today to address anyone who says Ottawa shouldn't be surprised about Kovalev's inconsistency: His production hasn't been inconsistent. It's been nonexistent. (B/R)
Speaking of Kovalev, what the hell? All this "Montreal was magical" garbage is just making him sound like a jilted lover, not a hockey player. He should read He's Just Not That Into You, or at least watch the movie, one of these days. (Sun)
Not only was Brian Lee assigned to the Binghamton Senators, but he's also got a mysterious lower-body injury that will keep him out of the lineup until the new year. Am I the only one who thinks it's a weird injury? (Press & Sun Bulletin)
The B-Sens outdoor game against Syracuse is apparently the "Mirabito Outdoor Classic". What a great name... So full of energy! (The Cannon)
I just realized that former Senators tough guy Denis Lambert is head coach of Robin Lehner's Soo Greyhounds. (Sault Star)

Coyotes vs. Senators - Game Preview #29

OdinMercer — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 01:06:31 -0000

Spartacat? Really? This looks like some sort of high lion. Random drug test!

View full size photo »

The Coyotes try to extend their winning streak to 4 games tonight as the Ottawa Senators visit Jobing.com Arena for a late 8:00 start for some reason. We're not on Hockey Night in Canada so I don't understand the lateness if we're aren't showing up the Sens on National TV.

Unfortunately some of our divisional rivals have already gotten some pity points today, so we need to make up for it and kick some Senatass!

FIVE FOR WINNING

Take Advantage of the Sens Goaltending
With Pascal LeClaire on the shelf the Senators have been leaning on backup Brian Elliot to keep the season going. On the current road trip it really hasn't gone that well for them as they've gone 0-2-1 and got shelled after coming out to the West Coast. They lost 5-2 to the Sharks followed by a 6-3 loss to the Kings on Thursday. Prior to that he hadn't fared all that badly, but now has a 3.03 GAA and a .895 save percentage. With the Coyotes stingy defense 3 goals could be plenty.

Jovanovski Back in the Lineup
Looks like Ed Jovanoski will be back in the line up for the first time since November 27th when he came back for a couple of games after being out for most of the month. The Coyotes miss his defense, but more importantly his offense which he seems to have re-discovered this year. Jovo has 13 points in 18 games so far this year with 5 goals. Before his injury he was starting to get some power play time with him parked near the net that was really disrupting opposing PK units. Hopefully there's not much rust to knock off and he gets back to for soon.

Which Brother Will Be Victorious?
Milan Michalek and his brother Zbynek Michalek will meet for the first time since Milan was traded to Ottawa in the Dany Heatley trade. They always seem to play well against each other, but we need Zbynek to be the better Michalek tonight, especially on defense as his brother has four goals over the last three games, even though those have all been losses.

Get Hitting!
With an already thin defensive core, defenseman Alex Piccard was taken out of the game against the kings after a hit by Dustin Brown. Pair that with the fact that the big hitter for Ottawa, Chris Neal, is out until likely the middle of the month and we'll see a team that can be pushed around a little in terms of hitting them consistently when they touch the puck. The team isn't riddled with injuries, just at key positions and to important guys.

Be Consistent on the Power Play
During the last game fans watch the Coyotes constantly passed back and forth and cycled on both 5-on-4 and 5-on-3 chances without a lot of results. They would mishandle the puck, step on the puck, kick the puck, etc. The team would tic tac it at the points, but couldn't get the puck anywhere near the slot because of the bobbles. The whole point of the passing back and forth is to pull a guy out of position and get behind him. The Coyotes just seem to be passing for the sake of passing. Make something happen guys!

Key Players

Daniel Winnik

#34 / Center / Phoenix Coyotes

Height: 6-2

Weight: 210

Born: Mar 06, 1985

Daniel Winnik may not be getting goals or points or be the driving force on the offense, but lately he's been everywhere on the ice defensively. When I watch games on TV he gets noticed by both our home announce team and by the opposition as a player that along with his linemates Vernon Fiddler and Taylor Pyatt are just pains for the opposition to play against. He's been handing out hits and making all the little plays that help prevent goals and get wins.

Brian Elliott

#30 / Goalie / Ottawa Senators

Height: 6-2

Weight: 201

Born: Apr 09, 1985

Like I said earlier, he's filling in for the injured Pascal LeClaire and the Sensators will live or die based on his performance in goal. Sure the defense gets some of the credit for the goals against over the past few games, but if we let Elliot get comfortable in the crease he'll be the one that caries the team. If he's soft he'll be the goat that the loss gets hung on.

The Owie List

Phoenix Coyotes Injuries

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Ed Jovanovski	other-excused	12/05/2009
Peter Mueller	other-excused	12/05/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Kurt Sauer	other-excused	10/07/2009

Ottawa Senators Injuries

Doubtful

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Alexandre Picard	other-excused	12/05/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Shean Donovan	knee	11/20/2009
Pascal Leclaire	jaw	11/24/2009

Silver Seven Radio: Nov. 30, 2009

PeterR — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:00:21 -0000

View full size photo »

Make sure you check out Silver Seven's relaunched Silver Seven Radio podcast this week, as Darren McLeod, Mark Parisi, and Peter Raaymakers discuss the week of Nov. 22-29, 2009 for the Ottawa Senators, including a discussion of the promotion of Erik Karlsson and subsequent demotion of Brian Lee, the emergence of Brian Elliott in Pascal Leclaire's absence, and what the Senators may do about their logjam at defence. Follow the link below, or stream it live with the embedded player below the link"

Silver Seven Radio, November 30, 2009.

Want to get in on next week's action, or give us some feedback? Feel free to e-mail us at silversevensens@gmail.com.

Bruins and Senators set for Northeast Division showdown

Stanley Cup of Chowder — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:24:52 -0000

More photos » by Fred Chartrand - AP

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The Bruins will try to bounce back from yesterday's 2-1 shootout loss to the New Jersey Devils tonight when they host the Ottawa Senators at TD Garden. Both teams enter tonight's game with 29 points and are tied for first place in the Northeast Division, although the Bruins have played two more games than the Senators. Bruins Head Coach Claude Julien indicated yesterday that Tim Thomas, who missed the last 6 games with a hand injury could return today. Meanwhile, Ottawa is looking for their second straight win after defeating the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 on Thanksgiving.

Know Your Enemy

Ottawa Senators (13-7-3)

Head Coach: Cory Clouston

Season Series: 2nd of 6 meetings; Bruins won the first meeting 4-3 in a shootout back on October 24th after the B's staged an epic late third period comeback.

Leading Goal Scorer:

	G	A	P	+/-	PIM
2009 - Milan Michalek	11	4	15	-1	6

Goaltending:

	GP	MIN	W	L	T	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Brian Elliott	9	491	5	2			21	2.57	236	215	.911	0

	GP	MIN	W	L	T	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Mike Brodeur	0	0	0	0	0		0	-	0	0	-	0

Injury Report

Boston Bruins Injuries

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Tim Thomas	hand	11/28/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Milan Lucic	ankle	11/26/2009

Ottawa Senators Injuries

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Mike Fisher	other-excused	11/28/2009

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Shean Donovan	knee	11/20/2009
Anton Volchenkov	elbow	10/29/2009
Pascal Leclaire	broken cheekbone	11/24/2009

Notes:

- Tim Thomas was the first goalie off the ice during the morning skate for the Bruins, indicating that he will likely be the starter tonight.

- Neither team has lost in regulation this season to a Northeast Division opponent. The Bruins are 3-0-1 against division rivals, while the Senators are 4-0-1.

- Ottawa goalie Pacal Leclaire is expected to miss four weeks with a broken cheekbone after being struck in the face with puck while sitting on the bench during a game against the Washington Capitals on Monday.

- Senators forward Jonathan Cheechoo's birthplace might be my new favorite name for a town: Moose Factory, Ontario

- Fun Fact: According to Jason Spezza's Wikipedia page, he is a former youth model and appeared in commercials for Minute Maid and Kmart.

- Tim Thomas has recorded 3 of his 15 career NHL shutouts vs. Ottawa.

- Tonight's game starts at 7:00 can be seen on NESN. For our friends to the North, tonight's game will be featured on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada. The open thread starts at 6:30.

- For more on tonight's game from an Ottawa perspective, check out Silver Seven

Today's Obligatory Embarrassing Senators Fan YouTube Video

Game 24 Preview: Jackets End Rough Roadtrip in Ottawa

Mike MacLean — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 18:53:30 -0000

More photos » by Graham Hughes - AP

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First of all, Happy Thanksgiving to my friends south of the border! I'm going to make this short and sweet- the Jackets need a win tonight, badly. This is the fifth and final game of their longest road trip of the season, and it has been a disastrous one for the Jackets. Tonight they face the Ottawa Senators, who have been playing pretty solid hockey of late. Their top six forwards are still very dangerous, even with Mike Fisher potentially out.

This marks the return to Ottawa for Antoine Vermette, I'm sure he'll be up for this one. Unfortunately, the Jackets won't be facing Pascal Leclaire- he got hit with a puck in the face while sitting on the bench recently. The Jackets need to get back to playing Hitch hockey, and avoid getting too fancy with the puck. Let's see a solid 60-minute effort tonight boys!

Fearless Prediction- I just want a win.

Game Time: 7:30pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Silver Seven

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Senators Coverage

TSN Preview: Blue Jackets vs Senators Preview

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

R.J. Umberger	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
Kristian Huselius	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Michael Blunden
Raffi Torres	Derek MacKenzie	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Anton Stralman
Rostislav Klesla	Jan Hejda
Marc Methot	Mike Commodore

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Kris Russell, Tom Sestito

INJURED: Fredrik Modin, Andrew Murray, Derek Dorsett

Ottawa Senators

Milan Michalek	Jason Spezza	Daniel Alfredsson
Nick Foligno	Mike Fisher	Alexei Kovalev
Jonathan Cheechoo	Peter Regin	Ryan Keller
Jarkko Ruutu	Chris Kelly	Jesse Winchester

Chris Phillips	Filip Kuba
Chris Campoli	Brian Lee
Alexandre Picard	Matt Carkner

Brian Elliott

Mike Brodeur

Wednesday Links: Searching for goals and finding nothing but disappointment edition

averagejoe — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 11:00:28 -0000

Judging by my Facebook friends, this week seems just about over for most people. Most people can eat a bag of dicks. I work every day this week plus Saturday. But hey, at least the Blues play tonight.

Blues news

The Blues take on the Dalls Stars tonight. Will Carlo Colaiacovo and Steve Ott exchange pleasantries? [CBS Sports]
The Blues are last in the league in goals. In other news, the lede of this article is pretty damn weak. You can do better, JR. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]
One of the reasons the Blues offense is so awful? The power play is worst in the league. [Belleville News-Democrat]
Yoda and Louie: A match made in heaven. [Blues]
Jori Lehterä is playing well. [Blues]

Hockey news

Here are today's games. [Yahoo! Sports]
Here are last night's result. Montreal won 5-3. [Yahoo! Sports]
Should've gotten to this yesterday: The Florida Panthers unveiled a new third jersey. As has been said by everyone (including Hildy and myself in the GDT) it looks like the Blues third and the Penguins third mated. Thoughts? [Puck Daddy]
Rick DiPietro is nearing a return, opens mouth. [Lighthouse Hockey]
Hat tip to Mirtle at From the Rink: A quiz. I got 69, or the 92nd percentile. [sporcle]
I haven't seen much of hockey this year thanks to this whole greedy TV deal, but is television trying to show less violence? [Stanley Cup of Chowder]
Daniel Briere is suspended two games. [ESPN]
Marian Hossa will return today. [ESPN]
Get used to hearing this story a lot: Brendan Burke, son of Maple Leafs GM Brain Burke, is openly gay and pursuing a career in the NHL. [ESPN]
Miikka Kiprusoff won't play for Finland unless he's starting. Fact: Before I read this, I had no idea there were that many Fins in net in the NHL. [CTV Olympics]
Vesa Toskala is on the IR. [TSN]
Pascal Leclaire will be out with a fractured cheekbone. [TSN]
Someone new wants to buy the Coyotes. [TSN]

Other links

What do you get when you replace booze with cats? Boozecats, of course. [Boozecats]
Well this is absolutely terrifying. [Craig's List]
Like TV intros? Go here. [TV Intros]
Speaking of TV themes, what if Neil Young sang the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" theme? Wonder no more. [Warming Glow]

Video

If you don't like this, please leave quietly. (Thanks to Blue Monday and "Jason" for sending me this.)

That's all for me. GDT later. gametimelinks(at)gmail.com

Game 22 Preview: New Jersey Devils vs. Ottawa Senators - 11/25/2009

John Fischer — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 06:00:14 -0000

by Adrian Wyld - AP

Zach Parise scored on Pascal Leclaire on November 7. As much as we'd like to see this happen again, it can't as Leclaire is out with a fractured cheekbone. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Adrian Wyld)

View full size photo »

The Time: 7 PM EST

The Broadcasting Info: MSG+2 for the TV, 660 AM WFAN for the radio

The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (14-6-1) vs. the Ottawa Senators (12-6-3)

The Last Devils Game: The Devils went down early, tied it up at 3, and then let it all slip away to lose to Dallas 5-3. The result marks the team's third straight winless game, earning a total of one point on the road last week. I recapped the game as such.

The Last Senators Game: The Senators continue their hot streak with a win over Washington. Tell me if you heard this before: the Senators rose up from a two goal deficit in the third period to tie it and then win it all in overtime. They have now won 4 straight games and have taken the Northeast Division lead - for now. Peter R recapped the game at Silver Seven.

The Last Devils-Senators Game: The Devils were in the middle of a hot streak - four straight and undefeated on the road - going into Ottawa on November 7. The Senators struck first and second, but the Devils amazingly scored three power play goals to win the game. Here is Peter R's take at Silver Seven, and my recap of the game.

The Goal: Remain focused. The Devils scored first against Dallas, but lost their focus along the way in the first period. After the 20 minute mark, they were down 3-1. The Devils battled back in the second period to get one back and then got an equalizer in the third period. Yet, a few minutes later, Dallas jumped on the Devils. The Devils became sloppier in their own end and in moving the puck, and the Stars got their chance to not only re-take the lead but put an exclamation mark on the win. Focus is crucial, especially now with the injury list expanded to six players of various importance. Thinking back to the last Ottawa game, that's how the Devils got back into the game. The Senators took stupid penalties, kept taking them, and the Devils power play took advantage of the shooting opportunities the Senators' PK let them have. Had Ottawa remained more focused, perhaps they keep the lead or at least keep it tied. Focus is a critical issue for the Devils tonight - whether or not they score first (or more), it is imperative that they don't allow Ottawa to take control for much of the game.

Read on for a guess at the Devils' lineup and for some insight into the Senators (and Dean McAmmond) from Peter R of Silver Seven. (ASIDE: Other than College Night, it's apparently a Free Energy Efficient Lightbulb Night for NJ residents over 18? Yay? Source: Devils' official site)

The Devils should take this opportunity to get familiar with being in Newark. They play 5 of their next 6 games at the Rock. With the benefit of having that last change and not traveling, the Devils should make the most of their virtual homestand. One Devil who should step it up is Nicklas Bergfors. According to Tom Gulitti, Jacques Lemaire has called him out:

"Energy," Lemaire said. ‘He doesn’t have the same energy. That’s not why he’s not as effective."

...

"He’ll be fine," Lemaire said. "I like Bergie. It’s a little tougher for him right now. He’s just got to work a little harder. That’s what it takes. Because when you start to taste that glory or that fame a bit, to stay there it’s tough. Now, he starts to slip. He’s just got to work a little harder to get back where he was."

This is not a criticism without merit. Since his 3 point performance against Pittsburgh, Bergfors has only 2 assists in the last 4 games - both coming in that 5-2 win over Washington. Mind you, he had no shots on net in that game or in the next two. The Dallas game had him get 2 shots on net . In other words, his last four games featured him on the top two lines and got at least 21 shifts per game, and Bergfors only registered 2 shots on net and 2 assists - while earning no points in his last 3 games. Sure, Bergfors didn't start off the season registering points, but at least he was shooting. Recently, he hasn't done that and he needs to as a scoring line winger.

It's good that Bergfors got the message and - more importantly - understands why, as Gulitti reported on Monday. I don't expect his minutes or his role to be reduced as a result unless Bergfors continues to bring little to the rink. I expect him to fire the puck on net more often. With respect to the whole roster, there won't be any call ups from Lowell for the time being. Per Gulitti on Tuesday, the only major switch of note is that Lemaire has lined Tyler Eckford up as a wing and Matthew Corrente as a defenseman with the reason being that Eckford used to play forward in college. Fair enough.

Gulitti also reported that Lemaire expects Martin Brodeur to be ready for Wednesday after Brodeur's wife gave birth on Monday. (ASIDE: Congratulations to the Brodeurs) I don't think Lemaire brings that up unless he's planning on starting Brodeur, so I'm guessing he'll start. I'm hopeful Rod Pelley will get to play tonight instead of, say, Andrew Peters; but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Zach Parise - Travis Zajac - Niclas Bergfors
Brian Rolston - Patrik Elias - Jamie Langenbrunner
Dean McAmmond - Tim Sestito - David Clarkson
Matt Halischuk - Rod Pelley - Tyler Eckford

Andy Greene - Bryce Salvador
Colin White - Mike Mottau
Mark Fraser - Matthew Corrente

Martin Brodeur
Yann Danis

Now, the Senators probably come into this game feeling pretty good. They won their last 4 and would like to increase their lead on the Northeast Division. However, they lost starting goaltender Pascal Leclaire to a weird injury. A puck fired into the bench area stuck him square on the cheek and fractured the cheekbone. As Darren M of Silver Seven notes, this is a significant injury and it means Brian Elliot is now the starter (with, get this, Mike Brodeur as their backup. No relation to Marty, thankfully).

Nevertheless, the four wins include Toronto (3-2), the Penguins (6-2!!!!), the Sabres (5-3), and the Capitals (4-3 in OT). All came at home for Ottawa, but confidence and momentum tend to travel. The Devils' defense will have to contend with Daniel Alfredsson, Mike Fisher, and Milan Michalek among other forwards - the Senator's top scorers. Not an easy task. And if Jason Spezza is allowed to get free shots, then the task just becomes much harder. Hence, maintaining focus on defense, I think, will be critical for the Devils tonight.

To learn more about the Ottawa Senators, who have played very well as of late, I asked Peter R of Silver Seven some questions. Here are his responses, including an explanation for why he loves Dean McAmmond:

Question #1. Let's get this out of the way. You love Dean McAmmond. Could you explain to those who aren't aware or haven't quite understood why?

PR: Yeah, my man-crush on Dean McAmmond is somewhat peculiar, I will admit. Between the love letters, the emotional retrospectives (yes, there have been two), the celebratory McAmmond-esque haircut, and the only McAmmond jersey in Ottawa (aside perhaps from his children), there isn't much territory left for me to cover. But since really getting to watch him play after he signed in Ottawa, I've really come to respect the honesty and integrity he brings on (and off) the ice, and his reliability and flexibility. He's an intelligent player, who can readily fill just about any role on a team--something you guys would have seen first-hand, when he climbed from fourth to first line in his first game of the season. His game-winning Stanley Cup Final goal was definitely the highlight of his time in Ottawa, and I was at the game--a fact I assume he knew, or else why would he have scored the goal? In all seriousness, though, I think everyone in the league has to respect his intelligence and the hustle he brings to the game, and that respect was shown not only when Mike Fisher fought Steve Downie (the bane of my existence since 'the incident'), but also when Matt Carkner absolutely pummeled Downie this season--dedicating the annihilation to McAmmond, even though M-C 'Ammer is no longer on the team. But enough about McAmmond, I trust you will grow to love him, too, in due time. [JF Note: In a word: Wow.]

Question #2. The Senators have enjoyed a great run of results as of late (e.g. murdalizing the Penguins) and are now challenging (if not taken over) the Northeast Division lead. What do you think has been the most crucial factor in their recent run of form?

PR: With a heroic come-from-behind overtime victory over the Washington Capitals, the Senators have indeed taken over first place in the Northeast Division for the time being. In "murdalizing" the Penguins, the most crucial factor was some very good scoring depth, but I'd say the key to the Senators success recently, and for most of this young season so far, has been the high-pressure system coach Cory Clouston has brought on since taking the reigns. It's built on not only a very strong forecheck, but also plenty of back-pressure, which in turn causes turnovers in the neutral zone and allows the speed of players like Milan Michalek and Mike Fisher to take advantage of them.

Question #3. The Devils completed a 3 goal comeback entirely through their power play to beat the Senators earlier this month. While Ottawa boasts a good penalty killing rate (82% prior to tonight's game), do you think the team will try to be a little less aggressive and/or more disciplined tonight?

PR: The Senators penalty woes haven't been a result of being too aggressive, they've just been too stupid. Undisciplined minor penalties have killed the Senators, recent guilty parties being Chris Kelly, Chris Neil, and Jonathan Cheechoo, and no matter how strong your PK is, you can't keep giving the opponent those kinds of chances and expect to get out of it cleanly. Ottawa has been cleaning up their game recently, and I expect Clouston will insist that trend continue.

Question #4. Given that Brian Elliot started against the Capitals, do you think the Devils will see him start for the Senators? Do you even want him to start?

PR: Geez, terrible luck for Pascal Leclaire; Someone falls on him in a game against the Buffalo Sabres, so he backs up Brian Elliott against the Capitals. While sitting on the bench in the Capitals game, he gets smoked in the face with a puck and has to leave the game. He can't catch a break. I do expect Elliott to start (and, if Leclaire is backing him up, I expect him to wear his mask while on the bench), and I have no problem with that. Like any young goaltender, he's got his issues--rebound control being a common complaint from last season--but he's been the Senators' starter before. I think most fans, and more importantly most teammates, trust him in the net, and that will go a long way.

Question #5. Lastly, as usual, what is your prediction for tonight's game?

PR: Tough call, but I'll err on the side of homerism: 3-1 for the Senators, with Dean McAmmond scoring the Devils' lone goal. Now THAT's homerrific.

Big thanks to Peter R of Silver Seven for his answers. Though, I think he would understand and love a 3-1 Devils win should it involve at least two goals from "M-C'Ammer."

But seriously, Peter R drops a lot of knowledge here. The plan of attack on Elliott should be to crash the net and take plenty of low shots at him. This will force more rebounds than, say, shooting high; and the Devils would do well to take advantage when Elliott doesn't get a good bounce after a save. With respect to the other team, it seems Ottawa is still stupid-penalty-happy. That ultimately cost them the last game against the Devils and that they haven't learned yet just screams "opportunity" for the home team. Draw some calls!

Lastly, and this all goes back to focus, Peter R is right that Ottawa likes to play aggressive on the puck. An unaware Devil might as well paint a target on his back because should the Senators play as Cory Clouston would want them, they will mug that guy every time. The Devils will need to be alert and calm under their pressure, and that requires focus. It all goes back to focus.

I'll be in my usual seat in Section 1, Row 16, Seat 5. Steve will be here with the GameThread in time for the, er, game. Thank you for reading and please leave all your thoughts,and concerns about tonight's game in the comments. Go Devils!

Leclaire out with fractured cheek bone, will require surgery

DarrenM — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:23:01 -0000

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There were worries coming into this season that starting goalie Pascal Leclaire was injury-prone, but nobody expected he'd get injured while sitting on the bench.

Somehow, that managed to happen last night against the Washington Capitals, as Snoopy suffered a fractured cheek bone and will require surgery after a stray puck hit him in the face. There's no timetable yet for his return --TSN and Sportsnet have suggested about a omnth -- but he's out of the line-up indefinitely. Mike Brodeur of the Binghamton Senators has been recalled to back-up Brian Elliott while Leclaire is out.

This is a big blow to the Senators, as Pascal had been playing very good hockey recently. Also, the team is on the verge of having Anton Volchenkov return from injury and would have had a healthy back-end for virtually the first time this season. However, Brian Elliott has done well in his appearances this year, and hopefully he can keep up his impressive play. Here are Leclaire and Elliott's stats so far:

	GP	MIN	W	L	T	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Pascal Leclaire	16	907	8	5			41	2.71	416	375	.901	0

	GP	MIN	W	L	T	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Brian Elliott	7	371	4	1			18	2.91	183	165	.902	0

Mike Brodeur, meanwhile, posted two shutouts, a 2.92GAA and .898 SV% in 15 games with the Binghamton Senators this season. As you can probably imagine, the biggest worry here is not so much Elliott -- who can handle starting duties in the NHL, as he did last season -- it's Brodeur. Despite his last name, he has not proven he can play at the NHL level yet, and having a save percentage that's worse than either Leclaire and Elliott doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. Still, I'll reserve judgement until he's actually in the Sens' net.

Hopefully Leclaire's surgery goes well and he heals quickly so he can be back on the ice before the new year. Also, it's good to see he has a sense of humour about the whole thing: when asked if the injury might require plastic surgery, Leclaire responded "We'll see what's cool in Hollywood and I'll make my choice."