SENShobo
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‘Consistency’ Still A Few More Solid Games Away
by SENShobo on 11/03/08 at 08:38 AM ET
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Today’s Ottawa Senators stories,
- Auld’s play a key to improved Senators.
- Sens still fishing for Sundin.
- Alfie’s unique contract approaching approval.
- No saviour crowns yet, please, but praise for Auld is certainly warranted (Ottawa Citizen).
“I think our game is more where we want it to be, more consistent,” Auld said.
“Obviously the points are great, but we’ve been focused more on the effort and the process more than the results
“I think we were really able to establish our focus and really make sure we were all on the same page and moving forward. It’s a big step. We’ve just got to keep building on that. It’ll be important for us to have a good effort back at home, and it’s going to come right away.”
Auld has been the most shiny part of the Senators’ renewed armour. His .931Sv% and 2.15GAA are 4th and 5th in the League, respectively. Not always having to look over your shoulder — or having your goalie look over his — is giving this team more confidence. Still, just as I didn’t fall into the pit of despair after early season losses, I’ll look for a longer streak of success before I feel it’s safe to say this is a team turned around.
- Sundin appears to be headed for a return, but that just leaves so many heads spinning (Ottawa Sun).
With the former Toronto Maple Leafs captain expected to soon start skating in Los Angeles amid speculation he’ll back in the NHL by early next month, the Senators are one of several teams interested in the 37-year-old.
“The only thing I would say is that we remain interested,” said Senators GM Bryan Murray.
While Murray wouldn’t confirm it, sources say he’s held regular discussions with the Sundin camp to make sure he’s aware of the genuine, high-level interest in bringing the Swede to Ottawa to help win a Stanley Cup.
Considering only one line has an identifiable and very pertinent source, it’s hard to put too much stock into this. The Sens have nowhere near the current cap space, a glut at center, and are rivals of Sundin’s longtime employer, none of which bodes well for our chances of landing him. Anything we would try to offer, other teams could easily one-up.
Still, it would be something to see former linemates from Sweden’s national team suit up together, but I can’t put any stock in this happening.
- Alfie’s deal about to go through, but is there something a little off here? (Ottawa Sun).
The NHL is close to settling the dispute over Daniel Alfredsson’s salary cap hit.
After the Senators captain signed a four-year, $21.6-million deal last week, the NHL and its Players’ Association were trying to decide how to deal with the $2.1-million bonus included in the contract to buy out the last three years of Alfredsson’s previous deal that included option years.
While the league needs union approval, sources say they’ve come up with the following formula: The cap hit in the first three seasons of the deal is expected to include the bonus, for a total of $5.75 million per year. In the final year of the contract (2012-13), the cap hit will drop to $4.875 million, when Alfredsson’s salary will be $1 million and the bonus paid off.
It will be nice to see Alfie’s deal get the stamp of approval, cementing his Senator-for-life status. One thing concerns me though: typically, the cap number is the average of all the yearly salaries for a player. This option year buyout bonus appears to be the reason for what I assume is the first-ever single contract with a cap hit that changes.
The weird part? Do the math, and 3 years X a $5.75 million cap hit + 1 year X a $4.875 million cap hit = $22.125 million. Alfie’s contract is only $21.6 million, so where’s this juicy extra $525,000 lying in the sum of his cap hits coming from?
Filed in: NHL Teams, Ottawa Senators | SENShobo | Permalink
Tags: Alex+Auld, Daniel+Alfredsson, Mats+Sundin,
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