Hockey's Back!
And so the start of the 2015-2016 NHL hockey season is upon us.
The Ottawa Senators will not be playing until tomorrow (Thursday), and that's a game that I'm looking forward to, as the Sens will be in Buffalo to face the Sabres and their former goaltender Robin Lehner. But...
Hockey's back!
I can't say that I'm thrilled about how little off-season changes the Ottawa Senators made to their line-up. I'm a die-hard Senators fan, and I like to think (as all hockey fans do at this stage of the season) that the Sens will make the playoffs, though I don't know how deep they'll go and whether they'll be able to drink from Lord Stanley's cup. The altered overtime format for the regular season (where the teams play 3-on-3 before going to shootout) should cut down on the number of shootouts this year, and some of the other rules changes will be interesting. There's a good deal of interesting rookies to watch in the league this year (not including Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel), but from the pov of the Ottawa Senators, the keys are Eric Karlsson, Craig Anderson, and Bobby Ryan. While Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman have to repeat the success they had last year, those three are the big factors. Craig Anderson has to have a terrific year in goal, and return to the form that made him a great goalie. Eric Karlsson needs to have another Norris Award-winning season, and he has to make it last the whole year, not just during "good times with Marc Methot". And finally, Bobby Ryan needs to get back on track and be the goal scorer that Ottawa dealt for in the trade with Anaheim.
Meantime...
Go, Sens, Go! :)
The Ottawa Senators will not be playing until tomorrow (Thursday), and that's a game that I'm looking forward to, as the Sens will be in Buffalo to face the Sabres and their former goaltender Robin Lehner. But...
Hockey's back!
I can't say that I'm thrilled about how little off-season changes the Ottawa Senators made to their line-up. I'm a die-hard Senators fan, and I like to think (as all hockey fans do at this stage of the season) that the Sens will make the playoffs, though I don't know how deep they'll go and whether they'll be able to drink from Lord Stanley's cup. The altered overtime format for the regular season (where the teams play 3-on-3 before going to shootout) should cut down on the number of shootouts this year, and some of the other rules changes will be interesting. There's a good deal of interesting rookies to watch in the league this year (not including Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel), but from the pov of the Ottawa Senators, the keys are Eric Karlsson, Craig Anderson, and Bobby Ryan. While Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman have to repeat the success they had last year, those three are the big factors. Craig Anderson has to have a terrific year in goal, and return to the form that made him a great goalie. Eric Karlsson needs to have another Norris Award-winning season, and he has to make it last the whole year, not just during "good times with Marc Methot". And finally, Bobby Ryan needs to get back on track and be the goal scorer that Ottawa dealt for in the trade with Anaheim.
Meantime...
Go, Sens, Go! :)