Ottawa Senators

[notch4077]

any reason why?? 2 weeks away I do believe.


Alfie in on Dec 1 @ 5pm.

I'm just guessing but I think it has something to do with Eugene Melnyk not having enough money to turn on the lights at the Canadian Tire Center. I find it odd that Ottawa only plays 3 home games this year. Haha.

Seriously now, nothing is booked at the CTC at the start of October so I think it is just an anomaly and one I am happy with. This will be the third year in a row (if I recall correctly) that they have started on the road, but its never been an extended run of games like this. It could just be part of the renos that CTC is undergoing as part of re-branding everything that comes with Canadian Tire as the major sponsor. Things like Frank Finnigan's restaurant being totally demo'd and redesigned and renamed Sport Chek Sports Bar & Grill. It was said that that wouldn't be ready until mid-October at the time.

I don't know, I'm just spitballing.

[notch4077]

Interesting interview by Cyril Leeder (Prez of the Sens) today. Pretty much said that the plan was to have Ryan and Alfredsson as RW #1 and #2. MacArthur was always going to be signed.

http://www.the6thsens.com/2013-artic...sue-pt-ii.html

Still makes no sense to me as to why #11 bolted.

[Dakkster]

Interesting interview by Cyril Leeder (Prez of the Sens) today. Pretty much said that the plan was to have Ryan and Alfredsson as RW #1 and #2. MacArthur was always going to be signed.

Still makes no sense to me as to why #11 bolted.

Because Murray lowballed him by a lot at first? That's already been established. That made him talk to other teams and then he found that the Wings wouldn't lowball him while he'd play a brand of hockey he finds good and fun.

[Big Ev]

Because Murray lowballed him by a lot at first? That's already been established. That made him talk to other teams and then he found that the Wings wouldn't lowball him while he'd play a brand of hockey he finds good and fun.

Ottawa then said you can have whatever you want, and we play the same style of hockey. Boo hoo if he was offended by a first offer and then didn't negotiate. Now he can enjoy moving his family to a bankrupt city with crime out the ass.

[Dakkster]

Ottawa then said you can have whatever you want, and we play the same style of hockey. Boo hoo if he was offended by a first offer and then didn't negotiate. Now he can enjoy moving his family to a bankrupt city with crime out the ass.

Could you possibly be more butthurt? Murray dropped the ball here. Blame him.

The Red Wings players don't live in Detroit. They live in places like Novi around Detroit.

[Big Ev]

Could you possibly be more butthurt? Murray dropped the ball here. Blame him.

The Red Wings players don't live in Detroit. They live in places like Novi around Detroit.

Not butthurt at all, the team is much better today than it was two weeks ago. I feel bad for Alfie who made a very poor life and career choice, and I feel bad for his family. I was ready to move on from him a couple of years ago.

Murray didn't drop the ball, he was just following orders from his boss. But I blame Alfredsson 100% for leaving, it was his own choice, and a poor one at that. I don't care if you got "lowballed" Alfredsson, I say that as fair and $5.5 million is an overpayment for what you will bring at 41 years old.

Alfredsson just moved his Canadian children away from their hockey, their friends, and everything else. He made an illogical choice and he will regret it when he looks back in 10 years, just like every other aging player who makes the same move.

[finnys_fanatsy]

not so sure it was Murray at work here. methink he was dictated to play the money card by EMelnyk.

i dont blame Alfie for leaving, he likely knew the $$ situation Melnyk is in and didnt want to be caught up in the off-ice drama that he knew was coming. would you want to stick around an organization that you thought was cash strapped even if you had been there your entire career?not me

either way as much as it sucks there will be no #11 this year, i hold no grudges and will thouroughly enjoy the 2013-14 product with the new additions and a healthy 65 and 19.

[notch4077]

As per Paul MacLean, I call that Detroit player, player #11 now.

[HockeyProphet]

As per Paul MacLean, I call that Detroit player, player #11 now.

I don't know who he is, but I would blame # 11 for what happened! HA

[Big Ev]

I don't hold any grudges either. But I won't mind if Methot takes Alfie out with a nice hipcheck.

[Dakkster]

Not butthurt at all, the team is much better today than it was two weeks ago. I feel bad for Alfie who made a very poor life and career choice, and I feel bad for his family. I was ready to move on from him a couple of years ago.

Murray didn't drop the ball, he was just following orders from his boss. But I blame Alfredsson 100% for leaving, it was his own choice, and a poor one at that. I don't care if you got "lowballed" Alfredsson, I say that as fair and $5.5 million is an overpayment for what you will bring at 41 years old.

Alfredsson just moved his Canadian children away from their hockey, their friends, and everything else. He made an illogical choice and he will regret it when he looks back in 10 years, just like every other aging player who makes the same move.

It was going to be a "thank you for your services" contract and Melnyk/Murray/whoeverthe**** lowballed their longest serving player and captain. That's about as unclassy as you get as an organization. Then again, Melnyk is showing his true colors with this whole casino hissy fit.

Also, his wife is Swedish, so calling their children Canadian is a pretty long stretch. Nicklas and Annika Lidstrom's children aren't American.

[newfcollins]

All right, I'm hoping long-time Sens fans here can help me with something that's been bothering me for some time now.

They used to have a guy named Steve Larouche way back in the mid-90s. They guy scored 50 goals in junior twice, 50 goals and 100 points in the AHL with the Sens farm team, got called up to the Sens and scored eight goals and 15 points in 18 games (during the lockout year, but it was good for fourth on the team). Seven of those was powerplay points. He was only a -5, which was pretty good for that team that year.

However, the Sens traded him that offseason for Jean-Yves Roy. Why did the Sens give up on him? Does anyone remember him or his style? What type of player was he?

It's always been curious to me why he couldn't stay in the NHL when he did well where ever he played.

[Big Ev]

It was going to be a "thank you for your services" contract and Melnyk/Murray/whoeverthe**** lowballed their longest serving player and captain. That's about as unclassy as you get as an organization. Then again, Melnyk is showing his true colors with this whole casino hissy fit.

Also, his wife is Swedish, so calling their children Canadian is a pretty long stretch. Nicklas and Annika Lidstrom's children aren't American.

No, they are Canadian by nationality, but also Swedish obviously. Born and raised Canadian. Just like any other kids with immigrant parents. Mika Zibanejad is Swedish. Henrik Samuelsson is American. Etc.

Nobody would ever be "Canadian" if you were going by blood since we all came from other countries.

[Dakkster]

No, they are Canadian by nationality, but also Swedish obviously. Born and raised Canadian. Just like any other kids with immigrant parents. Mika Zibanejad is Swedish. Henrik Samuelsson is American. Etc.

Nobody would ever be "Canadian" if you were going by blood since we all came from other countries.

They're not born and raised Canadian. They're born and raised by Swedish parents, with Swedish language and Swedish customs and it just happened to be in Canada. Virtually all Swedes (and other Europeans too for that matter) go back home after their career is over. Just look at Alex Steen. Son of Thomas Steen. Born in Winnipeg. He's a Swede for all intents and purposes.

They might be growing up in Canada, but they're not Canadian. Huge difference.

Also, going "waaaaaah, he can stay in Detroit with all the crime for all I care... NYAH!" is like a kid sticking his tongue out just out of spite. The definition of butthurt. You can say you're not butthurt all you want, but you are, so...

[ross10019]

They're not born and raised Canadian. They're born and raised by Swedish parents, with Swedish language and Swedish customs and it just happened to be in Canada. Virtually all Swedes (and other Europeans too for that matter) go back home after their career is over. Just look at Alex Steen. Son of Thomas Steen. Born in Winnipeg. He's a Swede for all intents and purposes.

They might be growing up in Canada, but they're not Canadian. Huge difference.

Also, going "waaaaaah, he can stay in Detroit with all the crime for all I care... NYAH!" is like a kid sticking his tongue out just out of spite. The definition of butthurt. You can say you're not butthurt all you want, but you are, so...

What do you know about how THESE PARTICULAR KIDS feel, whether they consider themselves Canadian or Swedish? Nothing, that's what.

I am Canadian, and so is my wife. We came to the US in 1999 and my son and daughter were born in NYC in 2004 and 2005. They are Americans, but for sure they identify with their Canadian roots - we visit our family in Montreal regularly, we often vacation in the Canadian maritimes, where my wife's family has its roots, I watch hockey instead of baseball, we have more liberal views than your typical American (although not as much divergence with other New Yorkers, which is one of many reasons why I love this city). So if you were to ask my kids what they felt, they quite conceivably would tell you tha tthey consider themselves more Canadian than American. But YOU HAVE TO ASK THEM TO KNOW.

My hunch, just a hunch, is that Alfie's kids identify very much with their Swedish roots and might well consider themselves Swedish more than Canadian. You can bet that they cheer for Team Sweden, not Team Canada, in the Olympic hockey tournament. But they also play soccer and hockey in Canada, have made lots of friends whose families have been in Canada for generations, there is no way they don't identify in some ways with Canada.

So I get your point Dakkster but you just don't know enough to be able to make unequivocal statements like that.

Now, when it comes to Alfie, my view is Melnyk probably did completely diss him and I guess Alfie felt he had little choice but to say F U and join a team that would not only pay him but also respect his achievements over the years. A guy like Alfie, there's no way he did this for a minor grievance, it had to be really big. Judging by Melnyk's comments about the team's finances, my gut tells me he was the problem here, not Alfie. Still, all around, it's a sad turn of events for Sens fans and I sympathize with them, and I'm happy for Wings fans who get yet another Swedish legend on their squad and one of the classiest NHLers out there (fits in well with the Zetterbergs of the world).