One Thing I Don't Get

One thing I don't understand is how people can slam Pascal Leclaire while at the same time admitting that our defense corps is not up to scratch? Take this missive about last night's game:

You can point the finger at Pascal Leclaire and Alex Kovalev for having another bad game but to me, the Senators are carrying an inept set of defenseman who have zero defensive acumen and zero character on the ice.

...ok, that's a bit more even-handed than I first read it. Here's a better one:

Holy crap Pascal Leclaire. I thought I kind of put you on notice about those soft goals. I get that they’re going to happen, but they shouldn’t be happening to us first! That’s Martin Gerber Bush League Goaltending. You’ve got to step it up a bit here buddy. I understand there’s a lot of pressure to playing in a Canadian market, and I get that you had the flu, but there was a reason we were so excited only 15 short games ago. You seemed to deflect everything; point shots, criticism, redirections, invitations to the orthodontist. You name it, and you just weren’t having it. Find your mojo Pascal, and do it quick. Brian Elliott is chomping at the bit.

Really, how can you blame Leclaire for failing to back-stop the team when he is being put in situations that he shouldn't be in?

This has long been a pet peeve of mine. I never thought Gerber was the incompetent clown that many made him out to be. I have long thought that Gerber was a solid, if unspectacular goalie who didn't get the necessary support from the guys in front of him.

There are many nights when Martin Brodeur couldn't win with these guys on the ice in front of him. Blaming Leclaire for everyone else's failings is just short-sighted.

Well that's over

The Senators ended this season the way they've ended each of the previous eleven seasons: with a loss. The only difference is that instead of getting kicked out of the playoffs, this year it is a meaningless game played against the equally mediocre Maple Leafs.

On the one hand, it is funny for Toronto. Yes, there will be another round of gee you guys really suck for the summer. But on the other hand, this win puts a final nail in the already very dead chance of them getting that mythical first pick this year.

On the other hand, I watched the first period of the game, and then I turned it off. The lack of defensive coverage in the Ottawa zone was just painful to watch. Even Don Cherry's eye-searing jacket was a relief after having watched the Senators skate around in their own end.

So what this does to Cory Clouston's chances for next year, I don't know. One might suggest that this game shows that the team is perfectly willing to stop performing for him. On the other hand, when was the last time the team won a "game seven"?

Oh wait, those are both the same hands.

Never mind then.

The one bright spot this evening was The Gerberator getting the win against his old club. I liked Martin Gerber, and even though his game couldn't stand up to the lack of defense played by the Senators, I think he deserves this one.

I think that this summer is going to be an exercise in both pain and tedium, as GMs discover that the Incredible Shrinking Salary Cap will either prevent them from doing anything, or force them into painful deals to take "problems" along with their "assets". Murray, having locked up most of his salary problems with no-trade clauses, has hand-tied himself more than perhaps is necessary.

It will be interesting to see who, if anybody in the league, can dig their way out of this situation.

Irony

The Hockey Scanner reports on Murray's reaction to Gerber's win last night:

One wise-guy reporter saw Bryan Murray walking by after the Senators game and said, sarcastically, “guess you should have kept Gerber.” To which Murray shot back: “You guys ran him out of town.”

Heh.

Gerber is a can't lose proposition

So Martin Gerber backstopped the Maple Leafs to a win last night over Washington. True, scoring machine Olvetchkin was out of the Capital's lineup, but Gerber hung tough and according to some managed to look pretty good.

It occurred to me that having Martin Gerber in Toronto is a can't lose proposition for Senators fans, because:

• if they win, they are further burying their potential draft position; and
• if they lose, they are the Leafs losing, and that's never bad.

About the only game Senators really care about is Monday's game with the Leafs in town; that one is still a must-win for both teams, even though there isn't much on the line except pride.

Still makes me laugh that the Leafs can't even tank a season properly after all these years of trying.

Deadline Day Dealing 2009

So the Senators made one move, sending Antoine Vermette to Columbus in exchange for goalie Pascal Leclaire and a second round pick.

Leclaire is highly regarded for his skill; he led the league last year in shutouts with 9, while the world's greatest goalie¹ Martin Brodeur only had 3. The problem is that he is fragile too, as he hurt his ankle this year in training camp and as such has been out for long periods of time.

The second-round pick, eh, by the time you get to the second round you end up in a lottery as to whether or not your pick will even end up helping the farm team, let alone make it to the NHL. So that's like saying a lottery ticket is "worth" something. Maybe the team will get lucky, maybe they won't.

In exchange, we give up a center with good work ethic, an amazing face-off capability, who has the ability to score occasionally while making chances for the rest of the team -- which pretty much sums up what you want with your second or third line center. Will he develop into an elite center? Probably not at this point, but he should continue to be a good second- or third- line center. However this team is positively dripping in prospects for center, so while his departure creates a short-term hole, it isn't likely to be a long-term issue.

So on an asset-for-asset exchange, I think the Senators have done well by this trade.

But here's my problem with this trade: it implies that the main weakness on this team has been the goal tending, and in my opinion it has not. We don't have Martin Brodeur by any means, but the guys we have had (and then tried to run out of town) are not the amateur-hour players the media would have you believe.

This trade implies that Murray still believes he can tweak this team back into contention, that the team will be in a place to make a valid run next year or the year after.

The problem on this team continues to be the defense, and the lack of defensive discipline on the part of the forwards. Martin Gerber let in some soft goals, to be sure. But the rest of the squad basically hung him out to dry many, many times. The team was better in front of Auld, and better still (at times) in front of Elliot; but consistent defensive play is still something we look for rather than take for granted.

My point: not even Martin Brodeur would look good with this team in front of him.

The Senators still lack two top-two defense players, and that will have to be on Murray's to-do list as he watches the playoffs as an observer, not a participant.

At this point I'm willing to back off of the "fire Murray" rampage I have been on. Today's deals send mixed messages as to what the plan really is, but today showed good progress towards future improvement. I think it is time to cut Murray a break and let him work the program, and next fall we will see where we really are.
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[1] BOB-FM's morning man liked to describe Martin Brodeur as the world's greatest goalie, complete with reverb effects. I like that description.

Gerber to Toronto

...I wish I had a joke for this. You can't make this stuff up: Ottawa is now paying half of a Toronto player's salary.

And when Toronto comes by and beats the Senators on Monday, with Gerber in the Toronto goal... well, it will be a sight to see. I think several brains will explode. I hope that game is on TV.

My comment on one of the live blogs:

re:Gerber to Toronto -- I guess if you are going to tank, you should get a professional tanker. Although since the Toronto defense isn't as awful as Ottawa's play is, we might discover that Gerber isn't as bad as we hope he is.