After the debacle that was the 2007-08 season it is easy to quickly dismiss this years edition of the Ottawa Senators—if you weren't paying attention.
And it seems many people weren't.
If you weren't really paying attention you might have just noticed that the Sens backed into the playoffs, losing their last game and finishing in seventh place in the East.
What you perhaps missed was that the team, on the strength of a core of players that is still in place today, ripped up the league for the first 20 games until Ray Emery came back and started whining. It was internal struggles, not a lack of talent, that brought this team down.
If you weren't really paying attention you might have simply noted that the Sens got swept by the Penguins in the first round of the playoffs.
What you missed is that the team was without its captain and emotional leader Daniel Alfredsson for most of the series (although he did make a heroic comeback in game four) and was also missing the likes of Mike Fisher, the team's number two center and on ice workhorse, and Chris Kelly, one of the team's best checkers and penalty kill specialist.
If you weren't really paying attention, you might have noticed that the Senators lost one of their best defencemen over the summer in Wade Redden.
What you missed is that Redden had been the Sens top defenceman in salary only, as his play had steadily declined since 2006 when Zdeno Chara left. Redden twice used his no-trade clause to squash potential deals as Brian Murray was trying to ship the overrated defenceman out of town. There is a reason why the Sens didn't re-sign him (they had the money) and a reason they offered him a low-ball $4 million contract. Rangers fans are already finding out why.
If you weren't really paying attention you might suggest that Ottawa is a one line team that can easily be shut down.
What you missed is that the “one line” you downplay has been the highest scoring trio over the past three seasons. The team's problem has been defence, the offence will be just fine.
If you weren't really paying attention you might have noticed that Ottawa's blue line lost a lot of players over the summer—Redden, Meszaros and Commodore.
What you missed is that the Sens upgraded their blue line in the area that was needed, defensive ability, by adding the likes of Jason Smith, Filip Kuba and Alexandre Picard.
You may also have forgotten that the Sens still have one of the best shut down pairings in the league in Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov, and now boast three of the top 15 shot blocking defencemen in the NHL—Volchenov, Smith and Kuba.
The 2008-09 Ottawa Senators are may not be as offensively dynamic as last year's team, but they will still score plenty enough to win. The key is the upgraded defence with a focus on physical play, defensive responsibility and good positioning.
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