Here’s your Wednesday night edition of what’s kicking around the Interwebs. Enjoy.
For those of you who were hoping that the 2012 NHL All-Star Game announcement would be a precursor to the Senators getting a new scoreboard, this news is going to hit you like a bucket of cold water. Via Twitter, Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) has let it be knownst that Senators owner Eugene Melnyk indicated there won’t be a new scoreboard at Scotiabank Place for the 2012 NHL all star game. Isn’t it fitting that the organization spends more time and resources modernizing their jersey than they do on their scoreboard? Don’t get me wrong. I can understand why. But at some point, will the organization stop preying upon those devout fans who exhibit a tendency to drop significant coin on any jersey that’s new. At this point, I wish the team would follow Buffalo Sabres model by recognizing the errs of their ways and reintroduce the original uniforms.
Out of the rumo(u)r pages, Eklund is mentioning on Hockeybuzz that the Senators have held discussions with the Los Angeles Kings and that Spezza’s name is at the forefront of many of the rumours. Personally, I believe that the Spezza rumours are without base. If he truly was on the way out of town, I doubt that he would have taken the time to attend today’s Senators function at the Chateau Laurier. Albeit, it is often that I find that with Eklund and other rumo(u)r mongerers is that when they discuss some information, they may not have the names of the players right but they sometimes tend to have the correct teams named. Interestingly, Bryan Murray was conspicuously absent from today’s events. Maybe he was working the phones? Regardless, I feel that if Ottawa was to make a move, it would be to trade some of their depth for a better individual talent.
As I noted earlier, the Senators revealed their official 50-man training camp roster today. While the Ottawa Sun also revealed the Senators camp roster, at quick glance it looked as though they neglected to mention Brian Lee. Fear not though Lee fans, he was included in the Sun article. However, his name simply wasn’t given the same formatting as some of his peers, thereby making it look like he wasn’t invited to camp.
Over at Off the Posts, Don Brennan rightfully asserts that although the All-Star Game confirmation is great news for the local economy, the game itself is fluff. In the piece, Don notes that the game itself is an insult to Canadian hockey fans who like more about the game than fancy stickhandling and nice passing. Or in other words, he doesn’t like the game because it showcases the same skills that he demands from Alexei Kovalev on a nightly basis.
TSN is running a featured article on where Jared Cowen future lies for the 2010-11 season. In it, there are two interesting comments from Kurt Kleinendorst and Jon Klemm. First, here’s Kleinendorst, “I think when you watch us play and you watch our blue-line, he is the one guy that just kind of jumps out at you. He’s probably the closest to being ready (for the NHL), but is he ready? He’s a young kid.”
And here’s Klemm, an assistant coach for the Spokane Chiefs who truly believes that Cowen won’t be returned to the junior club, “He’s a big, physical presence out there. He can change the game at any time with a big hit or a great defensive play. That’s kind of the player he is. He handles himself very well not only on the ice but off the ice — he’s great in the locker-room, he works extremely hard. It was a pleasure to work with him last year.”
When asked how he’d feel about playing another year of junior, Cowen responded with this,
“This is where I think I can improve the most,” he said. “If I went back to junior, it would be a step back. If I stayed here, I’d obviously get a lot better and become a better player. Going back to junior, it would be a familiar spot — Spokane’s a nice place to play, I love the guys on the team, love the coaching staff and everything.
But this is a step forward. This is where I want to start.”
In the past month, we’ve seen a number of mainstream media types weigh in on the battle between bloggers and journalists. Bruce Dowbiggin, of the Globe & Mail, is the latest to chime in on the issue. According to Dowbiggin, if NHL teams are going to begin the process of credentialing bloggers, it isn’t enough of a deterrent to simply threaten bloggers with a loss of credentials or libel lawsuits, in fact, he recommends that bloggers post a $10,000 bond before being allowed in a pressbox. I shit you not. Anyways, without getting into the debate, the folks over at the Toronto Maple Leafs blog aptly named Pension Plan Puppets weigh in and it’s a worthwhile read. So check it out.
Odds are, if you’re a fan of the Ottawa Senators, you have an innate hatred for Darcy Tucker. Hell, even if you don’t, this brilliant and original piece by SLC of Five For Smiting deserves to be read. What are you waiting for?! Read it now!
According to the Ottawa Citizen, Nick Foligno believes that he has the opportunity to grow and grab one of top six spots on one of Ottawa’s first two lines. It’s a bold statement and in fairness to Nick, I don’t know how he’s going to do it. If Peter Regin assumes the left-wing slot that he played alongside Jason Spezza during last spring’s playoffs and Milan Michalek fills the second line left-wing spot, where does Nick Foligno fit in? Especially when you consider that the Ruutu – Kelly – Neil line will remain intact. Nick’s not a fourth-line player, but with Ottawa’s depth, where else does he fit?
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