New rink and new look for Ottawa’s Senators

 It’s pre-season . . . or exhibition . . . whatever or whichever you prefer calling it, but it’s still the National Hockey League and it’s here. Ottawa opened its ‘before-regular-season-hits’ schedule Sunday night with a pretty wild 6-5 overtime win in Toronto. We’ll get to that and a couple

Senators reach agreement to build new rink downtown

 It came down to the final hour, but the Ottawa Senators are on their way to seeing a new arena being built at LeBreton Flats in the downtown core. The new facility won’t see shovels hit the ground for quite a while as several hurdles need to be dealt with

Rink deal in the offing, again

 Nothing like near record setting warm temperatures to inspire thoughts of hockey, but here we are. The long summer is making way for fall in stubborn “I’m not going anywhere yet” fashion as the gauge closes in on 30 C. At the same time, all 32 National Hockey League clubs

Eastern Playoff Chase Gets Tougher

 Is the Great 8 the only thing standing in the way of qualifying for the great eight? While likely not completely accurate, it sure makes for an awe-inspiring lede. (Withholding judgement on that for now . . .). But seriously people, when you truly break it down, is it Alex

Young Blood Could Dictate Success in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto

 If you’ve read this corner of the page with any regularity over the past year or two or six or eight, you’ll recognize my three favourite centres for topic and discussion – Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Reasoning here is pretty simple: Eastern Ontario is predisposed to root for one or

Meet the anti-homer

 Figuring out fans - and who and why they worship – isn’t quite an enigmatic, complicated process. In my experience it generally kind of goes like this: Person is born in Toronto, Montreal or Ottawa. Said person then follows and adopts the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens or Ottawa Senators

NHL: Where the Captaincy Really Means Something

 Outside of battling and baffling offer sheets, it’s been the hot topic in hockey this past week. It’s Toronto. It’s a new captain. And his name is Auston Matthews. Which hauls me into today’s discussion and debate – does it really, truly matter who your captain is in this day

Questions and queries surround the NHL’s East

 From shakeups to shakedowns, it hasn’t exactly been a quiet summer in the National Hockey League’s Eastern Conference. Your Ottawa Senators added in the way of veteran help (as advertised), your Toronto Maple Leafs shook up that targeted, beleaguered blueline, and your Montreal Canadiens stuck to due diligence on the

Junior Hockey Delivers the Goods

 It’s an undeniably great scene. Early in Season 2 of the generally exceptional Disney+ drama The Bear, pain-in-the-ass semi-main character Richie Jerimovich sits in the basement of the tumbling down, soon to be demolished and renovated restaurant he and ‘cousin’ Carmy Berzatto run, lamenting the state of his life. Richie

NHL’s Best Draft Happened 21 Years Ago

 It was a weekend to remember at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville in late June, so many years ago. It was an enormously successful event – that summer’s entry draft – and its impact is still, some how, being felt around the National Hockey League today. It not only

The Extraordinary Connor McDavid . . . (and other noteworthy observations)

 Back in college and - eventually - university days we had what we called The Gretzky Rule. It was pretty simple: Any playoff hockey pool worth its salt would eliminate any of the participants from having the ability to select Wayne Gretzky. The thinking was equally simple: The gap between

Florida Panthers – Inevitable or What?

 So unlikeable. So abrasive. So damn good. There’s absolutely nothing ‘so-so’ associated with this year’s Florida Panthers who stepped to within a pair of wins from a franchise-first Stanley Cup triumph after Monday night’s 4-1 win over a game Edmonton Oilers hockey team. Yup, the Oilers were very game in

On the Cup, Tkachuk and Marner

 Trudging the road to happy destiny – aka, the Stanley Cup finale - is taking its sweet time. Many, many steps it seems on this journey. So, while we have a moment or two (or a day or two or six) to get set for what should be dynamite on
Matthew Tkachuk, Courtesy ESPN.com

Panthers’ identity has outcasts dying to grow and bare teeth

 “There is a creature alive today who has survived millions of years of evolution, without change, without logic, it lives to kill. A mindless eating machine, it will attack, it will devour. Anything. It is as if God created the Devil and gave him . . . jaws.”   This

Oils well that ends well? You bet

 June 9, 1993. The day, and last time a Canadian entrant won the Stanley Cup. The Montreal Canadiens. “Amazing it’s been 30 years,” said Guy Carbonneau to Global last year at this time. Carbonneau remains the last captain from a Canadian team to take home the trophy. “Not just Montreal,
Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staios

‘Summer of Steve’ well underway

 Like the result or not, Step 1 in the Ottawa Senator ‘rebuild’ was accomplished lickety-split. The hiring of Travis Green just last week, while certainly not universally lauded, quickly took care of some much-needed business during what promises to be a busy off-season. Quite simply, there’s lots-to-do in Ottawa as

Ottawa goes Green

 As Kermit the Frog sang – lyrics and melody by Joe Raposo – It’s Not Easy Bein’ Green. And you can sing that one to the Ottawa Senators newest head coach who’s getting nailed with the negative from a large majority of wordsmiths on the team’s main chat board. Like
The first round of the NHL playoffs

Bizarro’s rise during NHL’s first round

 Modest certainty never came to fruition on a Tuesday night when-and-where three of Canada’s entrants into the NHL’s playoff derby walked into the spotlight. With no Auston Matthews and his eight-gazillion goals, the Toronto Maple Leafs were done like a Tiger Williams dinner, correct? After the Honky-Tonk Highway Miracle, the

Oilers, Leafs, Jets and Canucks takin’ care of business

 The most fabulous time of the year hasn’t disappointed, and we are what, only three-days-and-change in? Fabulous. Lots to chew on from a Canadian team perspective as the NHL post-season rages onward. It is – after all - the most fabulous time of the year . . .   WHERE

Ottawa’s Off-Season Won’t be Dull

 “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” • Moms around the globe   Well, if we followed up on the quote, there wouldn’t be a whole heck of a lot to this column then would there? Picking apart the Ottawa Senators’ season is akin to putting the

Panthers Boast What Senators Do Not

 Here are a few words and phrases I collected from print, online and broadcast late Tuesday night and early into Wednesday morning after the Ottawa Senators were shut out (again) by the Florida Panthers. ‘Blueprint for success.’ ‘Playoff-hardened.’ ‘Clutch.’ ‘Smothering.’ ‘Team identity.’ ‘Another level.’ ‘Pack mentality.’ . . . And

NHL’s Dance to the Playoffs isn’t Dull

 Never let a great story go untold, and there are two considerable ones ramping up in the National Hockey League. With exactly four weeks left in the regular season, the NHL has dandy cliffhangers being played out in both the Eastern and Western Conference. But while they’re both enticing, they’re

Ottawa Senators: Rebuild Part II?

 “I think the Senators are going to be a really, really busy team in the off-season.” Hockey’s pre-eminent insider Elliotte Friedman (Sportsnet, HNIC) had those words earlier this week and they are all of being the following: Predictable, believable, somewhat alluring to Ottawa fans and somewhat frightening to Ottawa fans.

What’s the Real Story Senators? Maple Leafs?

 Another sampling of little ideas that just didn’t quite grow into big ones. Minor columns that just couldn’t sprout into big ones. Why not. Have at it and enjoy your week.   HALLOWEEN, OR NOT? The guys on Sportsnet brought this up this week – not that it’s anything new,

NHL trade deadline a pickle for Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto

 Complex and potentially puzzling are a couple of ways to project the upcoming National Hockey League trade deadline for the three Eastern-based Canadian operations. Take any one of the above descriptions and apply it to your favourite Canadian team around these parts if you want, but you can also and