Wake up NHL, Senators are chumps no more 

 “Without labour, nothing prospers.” “Hard work betrays none.” “Much effort, much prosperity.” Pretty heady stuff, eh? I’m fairly certain the authors of these famously weighty quotes weren’t pondering the game of hockey when they wrote them up but that won’t stop this corner from applying, forthwith. Pretty heady stuff, eh

Welcome to hockey on perpetual pause

 This would be comical if it wasn’t so maddening. It’s almost as if the National Hockey League’s Ottawa Senators have taken on the schedule of a National Football League club. The amount of games in relation to actual time off is ridiculous – Ottawa now has played just 29 times

Senators not alone on the Isle of Stink

 I always kind of wondered what it would be like to live full-time in Phoenix. You know, the warm days throughout the year, world-class golf courses, thin, clean air, superb dining, the constant hum of air conditioners and a perpetually bad hockey team. Well now I know. We’ve got all

Social media pushes the envelope, for once

 The days of turning a blind eye are over. If there is one good thing about social media – and there really is not much, truly – it’s that information and deplorable, inappropriate behaviors can no longer be swept under the rug. (Ask certain characters currently in public office). When

No surprises as Senators start season

 ABOVE: Anton Forsberg has filled in while Matt Murray recovers from a flu bug. (PHOTO: courtesy NHL.com) It certainly is, as they say, a small sample size. Nevertheless if this is what the Ottawa Senators ‘are,’ no one should be terribly surprised. (Add in a Brady Tkachuk who plays Thursday against

All thoughts remain on Brady as NHL season hits pavement

 And I quote: “When these things stretch on, they take on a bit of a life of their own. And, unfortunately, and this may be a little bit of news for you, you can’t believe everything you see on social media. But, unfortunately, what we’ve seen in the last couple

Time to get a move on, Ottawa

 Put up or shut up. Can Ottawa folk finally agree we are there? I mean, come on, the leeway given this franchise (that would be the Ottawa Senators) – especially by some members of the local media – for the past 3-4 years has been especially generous. Especially. And especially

Leafs-Jets setting intriguing tone

 Maybe next year Johnny Senators Hockey Fan will be invested in the realm of baited-breath as well. But for this year? Enjoy what lies ahead . . . regardless. The playoffs loom and for close followers of the all-Canadian division, it promises to be a Christmas-morning-style experience. First off, the

A shutout for the Senator while Vancouver heads into marathon month

 Just a little more than three weeks left to dip in and get a taste of what you like and – perhaps – don’t like when looking at the Ottawa Senators’ future up closely. With that in mind, as the playoffs draw near for four of the Senators compatriots in

Questions and more questions surround NHL’s return

 Uncertainty is the only certainty. Welcome to the current landscape of professional sports. In hockey, the uncertainty surrounding an upcoming season prompts a few questions. Like: What if there is no season? Don’t kid yourself, this is a real possibility. National Hockey League owners have zero appetite to return to

Qualifying round highlights summer’s hottest time

 Nothing like a hot August day-and-night to get you set for hockey. I guess fans of the sport will have to take what they can get this year. Such is life under the heavy heft of a pandemic The National Hockey League’s first-ever qualifying round – involving all of Canada’s

Canadian teams look to post-season and draft

 Above: Morgon Reilley will return to the Leafs lineup (Courtesy NHLI via Getty Images) It’s lonely at the bottom. The Ottawa Senators – as discussed at great length in this space last week – won’t be taking part in the 24-team slap-and-tickle know as the NHL playoffs later this summer.

Few certainties in the Senators’ picture

 Anticipation, anticipation Is makin' me late Is keepin' me waitin' Carly Simon   Pretty cheesy lede, eh? Point being, in Ottawa playing the anticipation game is a daily occurrence, whether you’re a fan of the Senators or a finger-crossing rider on LRT. Things are seemingly never a certainty around these

Making the grade – your Ottawa Senators

 A new year, and for a change, the Ottawa Senators head in with a modicum of hope. Couldn’t say that on the brink of 2019, or 2018. Been a while, eh? Face it, the farm is filled with potential plums and if you’ve been watching the world junior tourney, there

Sens empty dust-bin of calamitous past few seasons

 “Who is Chris Tierney, Alex?” It’s the type of stumper that’ll perplex even the best of Jeopardy champions (even James Holzhauer, me-thinks). Answer being: This player lead the Ottawa Senators in scoring by a forward last season. Matt Duchene was long gone to Ohio by the time the year ended,