Ottawa Senators: Premiere Weekend Recap

.  The Sens still have plenty of offensive firepower, but the added dimension of good team defence means they can now win 2-1 and 3-1 games instead of having to win 5-4 every night.

As far as individual player performances go, there were a few standouts for me:

Dany Heatley: The guy is a goal-scoring machine, but this season he seems to have added an extra dimension to his game.  He was blocking shots, hitting, and playing great defensive hockey. It's amazing what putting an 'A' on someone's jersey will do.

Jason Spezza: despite the HNIC haters, I was impressed with Spezza's game.  He was creating offence and seems to be making a genuine effort to try the safe play first.

Jarkko Ruutu: I love this guy, and I take back all the harm I wished on him in previous years. He adds a dimension to the Sens that they have needed for years—pain-in-the-ass-ed-ness. His presence seems to have reinvigorated Chris Neil as well, perhaps because he was worried about his role on the team once Ruutu was signed.

Jason Smith: I always loved this guy in Edmonton, and now he's a Sen. I love the fact that he smiles in scrums—it's that little added element of insanity that brings so much to the game.

Alexandre Picard: Forget about Filip Kuba (who has been great)—this kid is worth Andrej Meszaros straight up. He looks poised on the power play, has a great shot, and adds a physical dimension.

Nick Foligno: This kid is going to break out this season.  He has added some strength and some moves to his game—which, when you add in his already-present determination to get the puck at all costs, is a great combination. I see 20-25 goals from him.

Jesse Winchester: I have to admit, I didn't like him in preseason. I thought he was overhyped and being handed a roster spot without merit.  But now that he has been taken off the Heatley-Spezza line and put with Kelly and Vermette he looks much more comfortable. He's a determined forechecker, tough to get off the puck, and he has some great hockey sense and always makes the safe play. Another Brian Murray diamond in the rough, perhaps?

Overall, what I took out of the weekend was a renewed sense of optimism that this team has learned from its mistakes—even I wasn't drinking my own Kool-Aid completely before. There was a renewed commitment to team defence, much improved physical play, and a far greater sense of “team” was evident.

This edition of the Ottawa Senators will probably not lead the league in goals anymore, but the more well-rounded team game they have displayed so far suits me just fine. I'd much rather watch a group of hard-working guys win 2-1 than a group of lazy prima donnas win 5-4.

Now if we could just get Gerber to get his head in the game, the Sens would be a force to be reckoned with. If not, I think Ottawa is still good enough to cover for Gerber—at least until the playoffs, and then all bets are off.

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