A 7-3 loss at home, and most of the attention over the next 24 to 48 hours will focus on the post-game reactions from captain Daniel Alfredsson and head coach Paul MacLean.
For those who don’t feel inclined to watch the video, Alfredsson was asked by a reporter whether the Senators could come back from a three games to one series deficit.
“Probably not. With their depth and power-play right now, it doesn’t look too good.”
There’s no question that Alfie is going to catch flak from the sect of the fan base or media-types that will see this as weakness or the sign of a poor leader. They will admonish the captain for not throwing out some clichéd answer that describes the process of going balls to the wall, guns blazing, having to play the full 60 minutes and take it one game at a time while skating the whole 200’ and blah blah blah.
Alfie spoke the truth and I don’t see anything nothing wrong with that. Sure, maybe there is something to be said about the concerns for how this kind of quote could rub off on some of the team’s younger and more impressionable players, but the time for talk is over.
As a seven seed that is down three games to one, he’s right when he says that it’s going to be difficult to win three straight against the Eastern Conference’s best team. That is the reality of the situation that the Senators are in.
It can be done. The Senators have come back from a 3-1 deficit to push the New Jersey Devils to the brink in the 2003 Eastern Conference Finals, but it’s going to be tough and he recognizes that because he’s been through it before.
Frankly, Alfie could give some Any Given Sunday-like speech a la Al Pacino, but it won’t matter any if the team comes out in Pittsburgh on Friday and just rolls over.
All that we can expect as fans is for this team to put forth an honest effort and let the chips fall where they may. There’s no shame in that, especially when Paul MacLean can rally the troops with this gem…
See you in Pittsburgh.
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