Right into the guts of winter and right into the guts of hockey season.
Early February, brothers and sisters, and it’s the best time to be a fan of the NHL.
Here are a few examples as to why.
OTTAWA REJOICES, THERE’S MOVEMENT FORWARD INSTEAD OF BACKWARD:
A genuinely interesting development in the nation’s capital and in the nation’s capitol (that’d be the Canadian Tire Centre for you grammar lovers). The home team Senators are not only ‘in’ the playoff race, but they’re also rattling cages and generating talk about stepping on some big-time toes.
Hello over there Toronto and Florida.
Ottawa’s general station in life and in the Atlantic Division has – at least for the past half-decade plus – been struggling to keep its head above water. And generally? It’s been a drowning venture.
This year’s story is unfolding as a completely different animal.
The latest streak of positivity, a five-game winning gambit, has the Senators within four points of Toronto (the Leafs have a game in hand) and five within Florida’s top-of-the-East placement (the Panthers have played one more than Ottawa as of Wednesday morning).
The optimist looks ahead instead of behind and so, if Ottawa Fan can focus the attention on grabbing a couple of wins prior to the 4 Nations break, anything is possible.
The Senators have been playing so well as of late – 10-3-1 since mid-January – positive thoughts about chasing instead of fending off could dominate the thoughts. And those two upcoming games this week could dictate which way the head and mood turn.
The league breaks away from play after Sunday night for the 4 Nations Face-Off and the Senators have monster matches just prior. Thursday night it’s back to Tampa, then Saturday to wrap up the schedule before the league breaks away, the team heads to Florida.
Both are much-watch affairs of you’re an Ottawa fan.
Tuesday’s loss in Tampa was a tough pill to swallow (but exceedingly entertaining) and the Bolts and Senators get back at it just 48 hours afterwards. Another win by Tampa and the tone changes with the Lightning then tied at 62 points with Ottawa.
Maybe more intriguing is Saturday’s set-up against the Cup champs. Recent history suggests this upcoming Panthers-Senators tilt will be wild and adding to the zest will be another battle of the Tkachuks. The irony is that just a few days later, Matthew and Brady will be together on Team America.
Suffice it to say that a couple of games in early February haven’t held this much consequence for Ottawa in years. And with that, perhaps taking a run at the perennial top togs.
MORE THAN A ‘BUMPS-N-BRUISES’ TYPE SEASON:
It’d take a veritable math wiz to figure this one out, but does it not seem as if the number of heady injuries this season is a whole lot greater than in season’s past?
The bodies keep dropping.
No one is immune. In Toronto, John Tavares, Anthony Stolarz, Auston Matthews, Max Pacioretty and Matthew Knies have all missed big chunks of time. Now there are questions surrounding Mitch Marner’s health.
In Ottawa, the big hit was with Linus Ullmark who sat and rusted for more than a month. Josh Norris and Shane Pinto have also dropped while supporting staff like Artem Zub, Travis Hamonic and Nick Cousins sit or have sat for lengthy stretches.
Roll from team to team and it’s pretty much the same story.
The realization is the game is faster and the skaters bigger and stronger and a heck of a lot more mobile than they/it have/has ever been.
The message going into the trade deadline then?
Acquire depth; loads of depth. You’re likely going to need it.
GO FIGURE:
“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” – Michael Corleone/Silvio Dante.
While talking with an old friend during the weekend, the Toronto Maple Leafs, as is bound to happen, came up in conversation.
Craig Berube’s charges had been laying a number of eggs recently. The team was 3-6 in its last nine and headed out for what looked to be a death-knell type of roadie. Games in Edmonton against a returning Connor McDavid (goon) then in Calgary against a rejuvenated Flames squad didn’t appear remotely profitable.
But just as I said to my pal – ‘Watch, they’ll go out and win the pair.’
Bingo.
That in essence is Toronto these days: as unpredictable as Johnny Rodz (oh man, old-time pro wrestling references never die). The Leafs do what they do . . . which is the unexpected.
Toronto Fan is used to the extreme mood swings by now, and again – “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!”
GO FIGURE, PART DEUX:
The Habs, Les Canadiens, Le Bleu-Blanc-et-Rouge, La Sainte-Flanelle, Le Tricolore, Les Glorieux, Le Grand Club.
Things were so much prettier just weeks ago. A sparkling 16-7 mark since Dec. 3 had Montreal touching and clutching on a playoff rung. The youngish club appeared ready to take the next step. I mean, come on, consecutive road wins over Tampa, Vegas and Florida? The Habs were booting.
But as anyone will tell you in the Eastern Conference race, joy can be fleeting. That latest run of five straight losses – three at the Bell Centre – just might have torn the hope out of this season.
Montreal can take solace out of the thought that none of the losses were necessarily of the blow-put variety. That’s something to build on for the next campaign, but that five-point wedge between the Habs and Tampa for the final wild-card spot might just signal the end of thoughts for the post-season in 2025. (Add in they’d need to hop past three more teams to qualify).
A five-game dip at this juncture of the year can be the difference between playoffs or no-playoffs.
Close but no cigar looks likely.
OTTAWA SENATORS WEEK AHEAD:
Thursday, Feb. 6: Ottawa at Tampa Bay (7 pm)
Saturday, Feb. 8: Ottawa at Florida (7 pm)
(4 Nations Face-Off begins)
thegrossgame@yahoo.com
Photo: CourtesyAP
