Dorion's biggest mistake in 2022...

[Tuna99]

The injury thing is a fact not an excuse, you don't sing a guy to his contract and operate like its no big deal when you lose him for the season and don't fill the void. Hes a core player and integral to this teams success. We don't have the same center depth as NJ either. More or less Norris would have about 15 to 20 goals by now, 10-15 es goals give or take...a decent number or primary assists, now add those theoretically to the teams total and we are never having a discussion about this 5 on 5 non sense.

To win in the playoffs you need to have good special teams. My personal opinion is that its the goaltending that is hurting our play 5 on 5 the most. For all the blame the defense gets on here one would assume they are constantly giving up the pucks and leaving goalies out to dry yet weirdly the Sens are in the top 10 for fewest dangerous scoring chances given up but bottom 5 worst in the amount of those chances ending in goals in their net. They also dont give up a lot of shots so its hard to imagine putting up those type of stats and saying the defense is to blame when your goalies for a good portion of the season were near the bottom of the league in average save percentages.

Agree The goaltending is bad too. Bad decisions by management to think these two goalies could be competitive

 

[Beech]

Things were bound to turn around. Since that totally random cup final and decent finish in 2018 i think it was, the Devils have been near the bottom in the East until now. In the last decade they picked in the top 5 five times and out of those 5 times twice 1st and once 2nd. On top of that they have been drafting pretty well. Whats scary is that their top picks from the last two drafts 2nd and 4 th overall are only on their way. Nemec and Hughes will be a nightmare to defend against.

from Feb 13 to Feb 13 (2018-2023).. google it

Detroit ~ 131 wins
Ottawa ~ 144 wins
NJ and I believe Buffalo at 145 wins... that one I am not sure on. Like I said google it.

So yea, The unholy 4.
They have drafted around each other.
The difference is: 1-2 key moves. In NJ's case 3-4 key moves. With Buffalo and Detroit, slow and steady progress.

All 3 teams around the Sens have changed GM in the last 3 - 4 years.

 

[Beech]

NJ was awful last year, how about we wait and see what that team does in the playoff and maybe see if they keep this up next season ...everything does suggest they will but you never know...if the Sens break out next year will Dorion all of the sudden be a pure hockey genius ?

Its a lot easier for a GM to make moves when he has a foundation made up of two 1st overll picks both of which are 1st line centers. Not saying he doesn't deserve any credit but thats like getting a 10 minute head start in a race the normally lasts 30 minutes.


2013-2014 he was like a decade younger and well in his prime

Tom F. took over a poor team. He made:
1) what is now appearing to be a good goalie move
2) what is appearing to be a good D men move with 2 more coming (their picks)
3) stayed away from trades and FA's like a drunken sailor and his money on booze.

2020..Ottawa, Detroit, NJ, Buffalo were more or less at the same point.
Ottawa chased 3 different goalies now
Ottawa has chased 3-4 journeyman D men. All have failed.
Ottawa has chased 3-4 journeyman forwards who have failed
Ottawa has traded away some key players for nothing!!!

Hughes = Stuzle
Hischier = Norris = Giroux when he plays center > Better than Pinto

NJ did not have a head start. They made an in race adjustment. GM change, Coach change. All in 2020

As for Claude. Yea he was younger, but the essence of his game is the same. Put him with big guys, one of which has good hands... They have that.

 

[boxbox]

Tom F. took over a poor team. He made:
1) what is now appearing to be a good goalie move
2) what is appearing to be a good D men move with 2 more coming (their picks)
3) stayed away from trades and FA's like a drunken sailor and his money on booze.

2020..Ottawa, Detroit, NJ, Buffalo were more or less at the same point.
Ottawa chased 3 different goalies now
Ottawa has chased 3-4 journeyman D men. All have failed.
Ottawa has chased 3-4 journeyman forwards who have failed
Ottawa has traded away some key players for nothing!!!

Hughes = Stuzle
Hischier = Norris = Giroux when he plays center > Better than Pinto

NJ did not have a head start. They made an in race adjustment. GM change, Coach change. All in 2020

As for Claude. Yea he was younger, but the essence of his game is the same. Put him with big guys, one of which has good hands... They have that.

This past off season was the first time in a lonnng time where Ottawa actually was active in signings and trades without the intention of saving every buck possible.

As I have said Norris is a key player for us and losing him changed the whole make up of the forward group. You slot Stuzle as your #2 and Giroux as your #3 and have Norris as your #1 center and you are now looking at potentially 3 very good lines vs 2 what you essentially have without Norris. Just like if you take away Hischier out of the NJ line up they become far less effective. Those guys get max type money for a reason.

Stuzles has exceeded expectations so far by a lot. It was known he was skilled but no one assumed he would adjust to the NHL so quickly. The way hes playing he would have been picked first overall without a doubt.

So why was NJ almost dead last last year ?They went trough 6 goalies last year... if it was mainly the change in goalies then I will find it hard to disagree because that is my main theory as to what is dragging the Sens down this year. I had no problem with the Talbot signing, he's been consistently good for the past few seasons under different teams. If he was putting up the same numbers as he has in his last few seasons I do think a lot would change for the better. Hes been either very good or plain awful.

Ottawa is not exactly a preferred destination for players. Taxes are high, winters are long and cold and if you are gonna put up with that then 2 hours away is MTL and 5 hours away is TOR; both of which are more appealing as teams and cities atm. When we get new ownership changes will most likely be made but to constantly crap on Dorion who had his hands tied financially fairly tight is just not fair. He resigned the young core and the team didnt cheap out, traded EK who has been far from a 10 mil player after the trade until this year and that trade led to the pick that got us Stuzle who now appears as a franchise type player and Norris. He made good moves and bad moves...cant fault him for trying. If every GM just made great moves then what would be the point of the position.

Buffalo has owners who have no problem throwing money at players. How many coaches and big off season spending sprees have they been through in the past 5 years or so ? they still have not done anything and have been rebuilding much longer then the sens.

None of the team you keep comparing Ottawa with have done anything yet. None have gone deep in the playoffs. BUF DET are couple points ahead and all teams have been playing well as of late so I am not sure what the issue is. If anything Ottawa has done about the same without any #1 picks and on a tight budget.

 

[boxbox]

from Feb 13 to Feb 13 (2018-2023).. google it

Detroit ~ 131 wins
Ottawa ~ 144 wins
NJ and I believe Buffalo at 145 wins... that one I am not sure on. Like I said google it.

So yea, The unholy 4.
They have drafted around each other.
The difference is: 1-2 key moves. In NJ's case 3-4 key moves. With Buffalo and Detroit, slow and steady progress.

All 3 teams around the Sens have changed GM in the last 3 - 4 years.

The draft lottery has not been kind to us I am not saying its a guarantee but I feel there is a noticeable difference between piciking #1 and picking below that when it comes to rebuilds. NJ sucked last year so for me they still have not proved anything. They by all means should be good with all top picks.

 

[JD1]

I think Dorion's biggest mistake in 22 was not spending hours scrutinizing the content in HFSens as input to his strategy for 2023

 

[boxbox]

Agree The goaltending is bad too. Bad decisions by management to think these two goalies could be competitive

If Talbot played at the level he has in the last 3-4 years a lot would be different. Hes been all over the place and this team given it still fairly young d group need a dependable goalie, does not need to stand on his head just give a consistent level of play. Forsberg has improved in each of the last 3 seasons and started to come around just like Talbot. With goalies a lot of how they play is about getting into a rythm and playing regularly , hard to do when both have been in and out of the line up constantly..

 

[Tuna99]

If Talbot played at the level he has in the last 3-4 years a lot would be different. Hes been all over the place and this team given it still fairly young d group need a dependable goalie, does not need to stand on his head just give a consistent level of play. Forsberg has improved in each of the last 3 seasons and started to come around just like Talbot. With goalies a lot of how they play is about getting into a rythm and playing regularly , hard to do when both have been in and out of the line up constantly..

agree, it if everything had to go right for this team to be competitive they weren’t good enough from the get go.

This is the thing with short term solutions - if they don’t go right you are left with very little. Talbot didn’t work out. Gus is working out. hard to feel good about the goaltending future of this team right now

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

When Dorion made the trade I'm sure he had no realistic thought that he would be picking 3rd overall. Did he give up Byram in the Duchene trade? We don't think of it like that. In the Yashin trade, they traded the 2nd overall pick knowing it was the 2nd overall pick, so that's different.

But ultimately yes, the return was Norris, Tierney, Demelo, Stutzle, and Ostapchuk.

I think you’re missing a piece or two…. Pretty sure one of the draft picks is a goaltender, if I remember correctly…. One that has played for the Sens in the past week.

in any case, the EK65 trade to SJ was a “grand slam” for PD, and not a negative as you indicated in your original post.

 

[topshelf15]

Still the Mark Stone trade.....That return was terrible,and it was unnessary

 

[Beech]

I think you’re missing a piece or two…. Pretty sure one of the draft picks is a goaltender, if I remember correctly…. One that has played for the Sens in the past week.

in any case, the EK65 trade to SJ was a “grand slam” for PD, and not a negative as you indicated in your original post.

he didn't, I did.

It was a negative based upon reality.

1) yes Norris
2) SJ decided to keep Kane, thus loosing that #1, which differed it to the year after and a crazy collapse.

So a horse Shoe up old Pierre's ass, is not to be given credit for. If you want to give him that credit, then condemn him, if Norris' injury is more severe and his career either ends or slows.

The 2019 draft, a year in which SJ went to the conference finals and thus their pick was 29. Would have netted you anyone of 5-6 failed picks and Ottawa's own Pinto or LA's Kaliyev. Assuming they were that bright. Effectively, the #29 would have gotten them nothing. Essentially from pick 16 on down to 60 has thus far produced Pinto and Kaliyev. No one, could have foreseen SJ's collapse. I believe that Kemptville boy Doug Wilson (who you could be in football pool with at the Marlborough in Kemptville) is still in therapy over.
the 2021 pick, Zack O.. good move, it will yield a solid player.

So;
Norris, possibly injured and who knows if done.
Stuzle, a horse shoe up their behind large enough, you can use it on the trojan horse
Zach O.. Who may become another Mike Fisher..

Sogaard was a separate deal. It involved a second round pick. They could have easily used one of their own. Come on!!! You can link everything in any way you want. Be real. Carolina had already taken a goalie at 36..
I will give them credit for identifying Sogaard and drafting him, but linking it to the Karlsson trade. Come on. Independent actions.

 

[Beech]

This past off season was the first time in a lonnng time where Ottawa actually was active in signings and trades without the intention of saving every buck possible.

As I have said Norris is a key player for us and losing him changed the whole make up of the forward group. You slot Stuzle as your #2 and Giroux as your #3 and have Norris as your #1 center and you are now looking at potentially 3 very good lines vs 2 what you essentially have without Norris. Just like if you take away Hischier out of the NJ line up they become far less effective. Those guys get max type money for a reason.

Stuzles has exceeded expectations so far by a lot. It was known he was skilled but no one assumed he would adjust to the NHL so quickly. The way hes playing he would have been picked first overall without a doubt.

So why was NJ almost dead last last year ?They went trough 6 goalies last year... if it was mainly the change in goalies then I will find it hard to disagree because that is my main theory as to what is dragging the Sens down this year. I had no problem with the Talbot signing, he's been consistently good for the past few seasons under different teams. If he was putting up the same numbers as he has in his last few seasons I do think a lot would change for the better. Hes been either very good or plain awful.

Ottawa is not exactly a preferred destination for players. Taxes are high, winters are long and cold and if you are gonna put up with that then 2 hours away is MTL and 5 hours away is TOR; both of which are more appealing as teams and cities atm. When we get new ownership changes will most likely be made but to constantly crap on Dorion who had his hands tied financially fairly tight is just not fair. He resigned the young core and the team didnt cheap out, traded EK who has been far from a 10 mil player after the trade until this year and that trade led to the pick that got us Stuzle who now appears as a franchise type player and Norris. He made good moves and bad moves...cant fault him for trying. If every GM just made great moves then what would be the point of the position.

Buffalo has owners who have no problem throwing money at players. How many coaches and big off season spending sprees have they been through in the past 5 years or so ? they still have not done anything and have been rebuilding much longer then the sens.

None of the team you keep comparing Ottawa with have done anything yet. None have gone deep in the playoffs. BUF DET are couple points ahead and all teams have been playing well as of late so I am not sure what the issue is. If anything Ottawa has done about the same without any #1 picks and on a tight budget.

The Sens and these 3 teams (NJ, Buff and Detroit) have all swam in the same ocean. All were bad in 18/19 to 21/22. Add LA and Chicago.

We are talking a pool of 6 teams that are/were bottom feeders. All made hard management moves, all made coaching moves

NJ has recovered
LA has recovered
Buffalo, appears to be recovering
Detroit is stagnant to mildly climbing
Chicago is collapsing

Ottawa is "stagnant to mildly climbing".. There is something to be said for "harsh/cut throat dealings in hockey management. At some point using the axe may not be a bad idea.

I cannot quickly think of a once stagnant team, one that is rebuilding but appears to be doing so slowly. One that has endured 5 years of misery and now a 6th that is so-so, that has stuck with their management!!!!

Most teams would have done a GM change already.

OHH, we should not forget NYR and their management dump.

I am not sure that "be patient" works. "shit or get off the pot" does seem to work better.

But you may be right, wait t'ill next year!!! Were we not told; judge us on next year (this year), last year?? Well, FYOUS was suppose to start in 2021. We waited this long. What is another year or two.

 

[Beech]

I think Dorion's biggest mistake in 22 was not spending hours scrutinizing the content in HFSens as input to his strategy for 2023

no..Dorion did not make big mistakes in 2022.

The Sens owners/board did, by retaining him.

A new thread is needed; Sens Ownership/board of directors/Gar Bettmans' biggest mistake in 2022. but 600 post of "not firing Dorion" would be boring

 

[boxbox]

Still the Mark Stone trade.....That return was terrible,and it was unnessary

Yeah at that point the team was a total mess and it was well documented by the media for everyone to see. As much as people love EK all that drama happened under his captaincy and that to this day bothers me. When your personal life drama spills into the locker room, that will always create division in the room. Moving on, back to the topic on hand. All reports indicate there was a lot of teams interested, they also indicate that Dorion's asking price was high. Stone was also set to become a UFA and no team was going to give up what the asking price was unless it came with a guarantee he would resign with that team. Stone was unwilling to do so and the killed a lot of possible trades with better returns coming Ottawas way. So yeah its easy to say that Dorion got a crap return but ultimately it was Stone that killed deal with better returns. I do believe that was the best offer available that met the criteria of him re-signing.

In all honesty that trade doesn't really bother me. EB is only 23 and has shown flashes of what he potentially could be. Stones health has to be somewhat a concern now for Vegas. Hes a big body , uses it well and he plays physical and simply doesn't have the speed to really play differently. Players like him are so frustrating to have on your team, they eat up a lot of cap space, often make the difference between the team being good vs very good, but are always in and out of the line up because they always tweak somethng or get injured.

 

[boxbox]

agree, it if everything had to go right for this team to be competitive they weren’t good enough from the get go.

This is the thing with short term solutions - if they don’t go right you are left with very little. Talbot didn’t work out. Gus is working out. hard to feel good about the goaltending future of this team right now

Well there is still a third of the season to play; well not for Gus haha (too soon, going to hell). If Talbot shows up and delivers all will be forgotten. Goalie prostpects are such a weird breed. I mean there was a time when goalies were often taken in the top 10 of the first round of the draft and some even in the top 5. Now they just seem to come out of nowhere, average in the AHL and turn teams around in the NHL, get labelled as busts by some teams only to flourish on the next team they play for. You don't need elite goaltending to win, just needs to be dependable and consistent. Tampa is really the only past cup winner that actually has an elite goalie by NHL standards. How that team is so stacked with talent at every position and within the cap needs to investigated, they for sure hand out duffle bags with cash under the table to the players.

 

[boxbox]

The Sens and these 3 teams (NJ, Buff and Detroit) have all swam in the same ocean. All were bad in 18/19 to 21/22. Add LA and Chicago.

We are talking a pool of 6 teams that are/were bottom feeders. All made hard management moves, all made coaching moves

NJ has recovered
LA has recovered
Buffalo, appears to be recovering
Detroit is stagnant to mildly climbing
Chicago is collapsing

Ottawa is "stagnant to mildly climbing".. There is something to be said for "harsh/cut throat dealings in hockey management. At some point using the axe may not be a bad idea.

I cannot quickly think of a once stagnant team, one that is rebuilding but appears to be doing so slowly. One that has endured 5 years of misery and now a 6th that is so-so, that has stuck with their management!!!!

Most teams would have done a GM change already.

OHH, we should not forget NYR and their management dump.

I am not sure that "be patient" works. "shit or get off the pot" does seem to work better.

But you may be right, wait t'ill next year!!! Were we not told; judge us on next year (this year), last year?? Well, FYOUS was suppose to start in 2021. We waited this long. What is another year or two.

Again I will ask what have those teams achieved to suggest Ottawa is lagging.

It does not really matter what GM you bring inn if the team works on a tight budget.

Buffallo in the last 10 years...1x9th, 4x8th , 1x 7th, 2x 2nd ....2x 1st overall....undergone management and multiple coaching changes...NHL best front office winners 5 years in a row...4 x top 3 picks

NJ in the last 10 years 1x 30 , 1x 17, 1x 12, 1x 9, 1x 7, 1x6, 1x 4, 1x 2, 2 x1st overall, not until this year have they not been near the bottom also your boy TOM was an in house promotion, he was assistant GM since 2015 so he had a very good idea of was up and hardly would call that a dump or splash .... 3 x top 3 picks

DET in the last 10 years 2x20th, 1x19th, 1x15th, 1x9th, 1x 8th, 3x 6th, 1x 4th... 0x top 3 picks their GM change consisted of Holland handing over the team to Steve Y who was with Detroit forever...again no splash Holland was the GM for ever, stepped down, no drama or splash

OTT in the last 10 years 1x 28th, 1x19th, 1x 18th, 1x 17th, 1 x11th, 1x 10th, 1x7th, 1x4th, 1x 3rd .... 1 x top 3 picks...

(picks teams traded are assigned to the original team in the draft order position assigned to the team it was was traded to)

DET is literally the only team comparable to Ottawa. You simply cannot compare Ottawa with franchises that had multiple 1st overall picks and blame them for not having as much success; which is not even the case. If anything Ottawa has done the same with far less. Ottawa is in the 4th year of the so called "rebuild", and this year is the first year in a long time with some buzz and excitement around the team. Ottawa had an identity problem before officially blowing up prior core. They would be lottery bound and then go on some miracle tear, fun yes at the time but not long term. After runs like that what do you do ? logically you hope to do it again, maybe add a piece or two thinking it will help. Things dont turn out as expected and team is average, miss the playoffs by a few points , blame the pressure maybe an injury or two. Try again next year and results are even worse...So now its been 3 years where you should have been lottery bound but because of some bs magic run you end up a middle of the pack team, have given maybe some assets trying to recreate that magic ...before that 20-0-1 run Ottawa was well in the mix for 1st overall in the draft that featured McDavid. Those are the type of players you normally get with picks 1 and 2 . We got lucky with Timmy. Hes our Jedi and Last Hope.

 

[Beech]

Again I will ask what have those teams achieved to suggest Ottawa is lagging.

It does not really matter what GM you bring inn if the team works on a tight budget.

Buffallo in the last 10 years...1x9th, 4x8th , 1x 7th, 2x 2nd ....2x 1st overall....undergone management and multiple coaching changes...NHL best front office winners 5 years in a row...4 x top 3 picks

NJ in the last 10 years 1x 30 , 1x 17, 1x 12, 1x 9, 1x 7, 1x6, 1x 4, 1x 2, 2 x1st overall, not until this year have they not been near the bottom also your boy TOM was an in house promotion, he was assistant GM since 2015 so he had a very good idea of was up and hardly would call that a dump or splash .... 3 x top 3 picks

DET in the last 10 years 2x20th, 1x19th, 1x15th, 1x9th, 1x 8th, 3x 6th, 1x 4th... 0x top 3 picks their GM change consisted of Holland handing over the team to Steve Y who was with Detroit forever...again no splash Holland was the GM for ever, stepped down, no drama or splash

OTT in the last 10 years 1x 28th, 1x19th, 1x 18th, 1x 17th, 1 x11th, 1x 10th, 1x7th, 1x4th, 1x 3rd .... 1 x top 3 picks...

(picks teams traded are assigned to the original team in the draft order position assigned to the team it was was traded to)

DET is literally the only team comparable to Ottawa. You simply cannot compare Ottawa with franchises that had multiple 1st overall picks and blame them for not having as much success; which is not even the case. If anything Ottawa has done the same with far less. Ottawa is in the 4th year of the so called "rebuild", and this year is the first year in a long time with some buzz and excitement around the team. Ottawa had an identity problem before officially blowing up prior core. They would be lottery bound and then go on some miracle tear, fun yes at the time but not long term. After runs like that what do you do ? logically you hope to do it again, maybe add a piece or two thinking it will help. Things dont turn out as expected and team is average, miss the playoffs by a few points , blame the pressure maybe an injury or two. Try again next year and results are even worse...So now its been 3 years where you should have been lottery bound but because of some bs magic run you end up a middle of the pack team, have given maybe some assets trying to recreate that magic ...before that 20-0-1 run Ottawa was well in the mix for 1st overall in the draft that featured McDavid. Those are the type of players you normally get with picks 1 and 2 . We got lucky with Timmy. Hes our Jedi and Last Hope.

I spent about 20 minutes on Hockeydb. Principally on the Chicago Blackhawks pages.

In 58-63, they were powerful.. Hull and Mikita 18-23 year old
in 2008-2017 a rise to glory... Toews, Kane et all.. 18-30 year olds (for that 9 year run). Most were 18-23 when it began.

They too, management and coaches changes a year or two before.

Tampa Bay, Colorado.... Even non-playoff successful teams (Toronto, Edmonton, Carolina) all relaunched after a GM and coach change. Pittsburg on 2 occasions in the Crosby era.

There is a pattern that appears to repeat itself:

Sink, allow a rebuild. At year 2-4 in the rebuild. Move on from staff. Bring in a new staff (GM and coach) that will seem to be able to put on the finishing touches.

The one example of a team that did not do that and paid the price: Vancouver 2014-2021. Jim Benning.. He needed to go after the 17/18 or 18/19 season. Now look. In 17/18 and 18/19 they were the Sens. Young, upcoming, the rebuild is over...PFFFTTT.

Again, let us hope. The Sens become an exception.

Dorion and Smith have every right to tell everyone to f*** off, should 2023/2024 and beyond be the true FYOUS (and they be here for it). But I have used this line for 3 years now.

Horvat is gone, Peterson is stagnant, Boeser is stagnant, Hughes will be killed at some point if he continues to be pummled. Vertanin is lucky he is not in jail. Stetcher and Hutton are now 5/6 d men. Their goalies have fizzled or are gone. If you had offered me the Canucks 2017/2018 lineup and their prospect pool. I would have been ecstatic.

 

[boxbox]

I spent about 20 minutes on Hockeydb. Principally on the Chicago Blackhawks pages.

In 58-63, they were powerful.. Hull and Mikita 18-23 year old
in 2008-2017 a rise to glory... Toews, Kane et all.. 18-30 year olds (for that 9 year run). Most were 18-23 when it began.

They too, management and coaches changes a year or two before.

Tampa Bay, Colorado.... Even non-playoff successful teams (Toronto, Edmonton, Carolina) all relaunched after a GM and coach change. Pittsburg on 2 occasions in the Crosby era.

There is a pattern that appears to repeat itself:

Sink, allow a rebuild. At year 2-4 in the rebuild. Move on from staff. Bring in a new staff (GM and coach) that will seem to be able to put on the finishing touches.

The one example of a team that did not do that and paid the price: Vancouver 2014-2021. Jim Benning.. He needed to go after the 17/18 or 18/19 season. Now look. In 17/18 and 18/19 they were the Sens. Young, upcoming, the rebuild is over...PFFFTTT.

Again, let us hope. The Sens become an exception.

Dorion and Smith have every right to tell everyone to f*** off, should 2023/2024 and beyond be the true FYOUS (and they be here for it). But I have used this line for 3 years now.

Horvat is gone, Peterson is stagnant, Boeser is stagnant, Hughes will be killed at some point if he continues to be pummled. Vertanin is lucky he is not in jail. Stetcher and Hutton are now 5/6 d men. Their goalies have fizzled or are gone. If you had offered me the Canucks 2017/2018 lineup and their prospect pool. I would have been ecstatic.

This escalated rather quickly. You went from Buff, NJ and DET to pretty much the whole league in no time.

There is far too many variables that determine the course a team normally takes to achieve success; different market places, different owners, different financial structures, current CBA are just a few. If it were as easy as dumping your front office and coaching every 4-5 years then every team would have a cup by now. Certain teams can also make bolder moves simply because they have deep pockets. Some teams are expected to win by tradition and some teams won't lose sleep over being just average. A rather crucial bit of information has not been brought up yet and that is that not a lot of those teams had owners who were as involved as Melnyk. When owners do that it tends to do more harm then good and its also why a lot of GMs only accept positions where they are granted full control without any interference from the owners. Technically the owners only involvement with the GM should be during the hiring process, all GM duties/responsibilities are the GMs to handle. Make your pick and trust them. Melnyk always insisted Dorion was in charge and had full control but somehow Melnyk was part of every contract negotiation, seemed to have all the ins on every move made by Dorion. Also why no change would have most likely ever happened had he not passed away (RIP). PM got hired and fired and no Stanley Cup showed up.

The pattern that appears is the work of the current CBA and how contracts for players are structured. Its also the reason why I kept bringing up the amount of 1st overall selections NJ and BUF have had and how they on the same level as Ottawa who has drafter much lower. The idea is to have 2-3 elite or close to elite players and surround them with good players before you have to resign the elite ones to massive deals. If it werent for the cap or it being what it was CHI would have been absolutely dominant, more so then they were. The amount of key players both young and vets they were forced to let go for almost nothing because of eventual cap complications was ridiculous. Sure management can be blamed for not managing the cap better but they did squeeze every drop of possible success from that group. Its a copy cat league and teams watch and try to duplicate past winners and do better. Look at Tampa and the run they have been on and how well their cap is managed. Players saw it and now know in order to extend the window of opportunity they cant be demanding max money and instead accept cap friendlier deals. Its a team effort all around.

I went into detail in my previous message about how the Senators were by all means very close to drowning and then went on the crazy 20 game stretch of like not losing....that messed up the teams real downward trajectory.

Rest assured the new owners will bring new people inn, but I by no means think the current front office is doing a bad job. They stuck to the rebuild and have been improving the team. Sens have the leagues curiousity but soon will have its attention.

I think Dorion's biggest mistake in 22 was not spending hours scrutinizing the content in HFSens as input to his strategy for 2023

Maybe thats why the Sens have yet to clean house because if they do everyone here would have to go as well.

 

[Sun God Nika]

I hated this guy so much . I f***ing love him right now

 

[playasRus]

Should have fired DJ in about mid November.

EHhhhhhhh

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

5. Talbot trade obviously looks rough but I don’t fault him on this one. I thought it was a good move at the time and was losing faith in Gus.

At the time of this trade, I felt that PD was giving up way too soon on Gustavsson.

 

[bert]

At the time of this trade, I felt that PD was giving up way too soon on Gustavsson.

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I dont agree with you much but I do 100 percent on this one. I think the team is likely in a wild card spot right now if that deal isnt made. Might not have had to dump Connor Brown either due to the money in money out situation.

 

[Tuna99]

When Dorion came out and said Sogaard was an NHL goalie 3 games into his career I thought “oh no! Good way to curse a young goalie with not such a great track record who’s gotta win to get you into the playoffs” let’s see how this goes - but Dorion says tons of dumb things so let’s see if we add this to the list of dumb things Dorion has said or if Sogaard is legit and can push this team for the last 20 games.

 

[Tuna99]

I dont agree with you much but I do 100 percent on this one. I think the team is likely in a wild card spot right now if that deal isnt made. Might not have had to dump Connor Brown either due to the money in money out situation.

Might of given up a goalie with 10 more years in the NHL for a goalie who got you 15 wins

 

[SquidNasty]

At the time of this trade, I felt that PD was giving up way too soon on Gustavsson.

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-2nd in the league for S% at a ridiculous .935
-2nd in GSAx per 60
-4th in GSAx only behind Ullmark, Sorokin and Saros

He’s a legitimate Vezina contender at 24 years old. As I said, I liked the trade at the time but this could reach Zibanejad for Brassard/Stone for Brannstrom status if he keeps this up.