SENShobo
Next entry: Sens End Brutal Road Trip With Boston Loss
Previous entry: Hearing Expected For Ruutu's Bite
Change, You Can Sens It Coming
by SENShobo on 01/08/09 at 09:03 AM ET
Comments (1)
You can’t see it. Sometimes you can’t even believe it could happen.
But, irrespective of this, change is coming to the Ottawa Senators.
Even if it’s not what you expect or when you expect it.
From the Ottawa Citizen, Melnyk and Quinn shoot down some recent rumours,
“Contrary to what is being reported (yesterday) by the media, I have made no decisions with respect to any personnel changes within the Senators organization,” the statement from Melnyk read. “Winning remains our No. 1 priority and there is a collective focus by our management, our coaching staff and our players to deliver this to our fans.”
....
“I think that report is awfully unfair to Bryan Murray and Craig Hartsburg,” Quinn told NHL.com yesterday evening. “As far as I’m concerned, there has not been one iota of mention of a job for me. The report is way off-base. Unfortunately, I think it doesn’t speak too well of some people in your business.”
It’s not happening now, folks. At the very least, remember what Melnyk is: he is a business man. When Paddock and the team flailed, he waited until the dying moments of the season to move Murray in temporarily, chewing through as much of Paddock’s contract as possible, before potentially having to arrange for Murray to do double-duty. He has also said through Murray that he will not pay NHL salaries to players in the AHL, and that buyouts are a last resort for the dead cash they bring.
Does any of that honestly sound like a man who’s going to make a move? His closeness to Quinn and Nicholson is the same closeness you will see to his contest-winning fans at his personal bar in Barbados, to his potential business associates in his owner’s box, and to families and children when he graciously hosts them at SBP to brighten their day. I’d say it’s feeling a bit like the tabloids, wondering what tiny thing will be jumped on next without acknowledging the man and his mannerisms, but at least they got it right and reported on the Mike Fisher-Carrie Underwood romance when all the evidence was laid bare.
Fans aren’t the only ones who realize what a rebuild can do for this team. Think about this one small notion: bring in Nicholson now, and he’s got half a dozen weeks to learn NHL GM particularities, his players, and the other GMs and players of the League. Yes, he has never been an NHL GM in his life. That’s nothing compared to the years of experience of Murray, nor his years of watching and creatin relationships with both his players and fellow GMs. Burke may despise Lowe, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a Murray-hater. Right now, when at least a decent overhaul is needed, and experienced, connected individual is needed.
On the coaching front, does it really seem right that the best time to install a new system is midway through the season? Quite literally, it will only get the team further from useful draft picks, and closer to the Toronto standings purgatory of the past many years.
From the Ottawa Sun, Murray will go far to shake things up,
“(Hartsburg’s) as frustrated as all of us. I have to say this coaching staff has worked hard and long to try to get these guys to play the right way. Obviously, there’s a time for everything. It’s just a matter that we’re sinking fast if we don’t win some hockey games pretty soon.”
Murray confirmed he is considering waiving a couple of players to see if they get claimed so he can get them off the payroll. League executives say Murray has been shopping Antoine Vermette and Christoph Schubert.
More than anything, waiving players confirms that he might well take the hard step of making one of those moves he’s mentioned, where they are open, but at the cost of taking on salary. Vermette could very well disappear by the trade deadline, teams realizing they will get another year from him at a bargain price, and since he’s third best in the League at winning faceoffs, and has both offensive creativity and defensive responsibility.
At some point, even as they want to hold the high ground, GMs will realize that something isn’t as it seems when they declare every one of our players to be useless or overpaid. They might start to notice that there are many seasons prior to this in which each player here was playing to a worthy level, and then, surprise, they notice that an entire team has collapsed, even if all the parts are still shiny on their own.
A trade may well come soon, trying to move pieces deemed unnecessary for the future, giving a new player or two for fans to watch and get at least interested if not fully excited about. In some ways, aside from the other reasons I’ve given in its defense, that was one of the other good things that came of the deal for Stillman and Commodore.
The biggest thing Melnyk’s asset is sitting on now, his team, is that it has players that can command significant return in deals, and that he already has a pair of picks in the first round of this year’s draft; one likely to be high, the other likely on the low side. The biggest trade you may see might come before the trade deadline, but perhaps the real beauty might emerge closer to June. Imagine being able to snag another low and high first round pair of picks. Think of how much more that gives you to work with, in terms of a rebuild. Not only that, but quality has to be full throughout the lineup, and even if picks won’t step into Ottawa in September, Binghamton could use a further boost of power.
Tonight, the Sens play the best team in the East, Boston.
From the Ottawa Sun, Ruutu owns up to his deed,
While Ruutu insisted after the game he didn’t bite Peters, the winger came clean in a statement released by the team.
“I accept the ruling from the league. I feel that he put his glove in my mouth with intentions to injure me,” said Ruutu. “There was no intent to hurt him, just to get his thumb out of my mouth.”
Senators coach Craig Hartsburg stood by Ruutu.
“(Peters) shoved his glove in (Ruutu’s) face and came out of the pile jumping around, but it’s hard to believe there was anything wrong with him,” said Hartsburg.
Ruutu won’t face Boston tonight or the Rangers on Saturday. The bigger question, though, is what team will line up in the final games of this season.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Ottawa Senators | SENShobo | Permalink
Comments
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Who is SENShobo?
Fully addicted to hockey, Andrew Dodds finds it safe to live in the alleys, considering his allegiance to the Ottawa Senators in the middle of Leaf County. He tries to bring you as many worthwhile Sens stories as he can find, along with his musings on the team and the NHL in general; musings indeed since he is but a humble hockey hobo.
If you have any general comments, questions, suggestions, or concerns about myself or my blog and its content, you can post them publicly here, or drop me an email.
Email:
SENShobo Recommends
The Professionals
SENShobo, an excellent analysis on your part. Thanks.
IMHO Eugene Melnyk is being extra careful in his statements because he has Hartsburg signed for 3 years. One presumes Melnyk will have to keep paying even if he dismisses him. Reasonable to assume he also hasn’t fully thought through getting a replacement for Bryan Murray (whose experience is not easy to replace, even if one rightly or wrongly criticizes his performance as GM) .
The statement Melnyk issued, however, cannot reassure either Murray or Hartsburg, and most of all, the players, about the stability of the team going forward. If the Senators are tentative in the way they play now, this lack of a statement of confidence may only make it worse.
A very interesting piece of the trade rumours puzzle is La Presse writer’s Rejean Tremblay declarations yesterday on Corus Sports Radio that he has from ‘solid sources’ information that ‘at least six NHL teams will not make it to the end of 2009’. This, Tremblay says, means ‘a pool of players will become available’.
If this is true, Melnyk could just be biding his time.
The Senators can, in theory, lose Kuba, Gerber, McAmmond and Neil as UFAs, thereby trimming 8.8MM from their salary cap (source: NHLnumbers.com).
Who Bryan Murray waives, as he suggested he will, is a good question. The roster is already thin.
If one follows the logic that Melnyk wants to be fiscally prudent going forward, the trading of a Jason Spezza won’t be to take back an equal amount in salary, but to get younger, cheaper players, prospects and picks.
From a management perspective, your previously stated view of Melnyk implementing a ‘brain trust’ model makes eminent sense. One can envision a scenario whereby he brings in a senior man like Quinn as a ‘consultant’.
If the Senators are to rebuild with youth, the abilities of Murray, Hartsburg and a Pat Quinn (and possibly a Bob Nicholson) could come into play.
As discussed before, there is also the real possibility of fans making their displeasure known by holding back their dollars.
Challenging times for Mr Melnyk.
Posted by davetherave on 01/08/09 at 11:40 AM ET