The Sens rebounded nicely last night after that game that we do not speak of. Taking on the Habs at the Bell Centre in Montreal on "Larry Robinson Night", they were trying to prevent a two-game losing streak, which they have not had since December 2006, almost a full year ago.
As per usual, I missed the first period thanks to Murder Mystery practice (I'm not in it this year, just helping out) - so when I got home, it was already 2-0 Ottawa, thanks to goals by Patty Eaves and Chris Neil. Yes, that's right. I said Patty Eaves and Chris Neil.
Not Daniel Alfredsson. It was like a small Senators miracle!
Not that there's anything wrong with Alfie getting all the goals. In fact, I love it that Alfie's off to such an amazing start. He's been arguably
the best two-way player in the NHL this year, and has already garnered much talk of being the early favourite to win the Hart Trophy for MVP. Not too shabby at all.
However, with Jason Spezza out injured for the past few weeks and Dany Heatley mired in a 10-game scoring slump, Alfie was pretty much carrying the load, and it was starting to make me a little nervous. Being shut-out on Saturday night in the game that we do not speak of only brought to light a problem that I was already contemplating: Alfie can't be the best
every night, so we need other guys to start picking up the slack, and they're not really doing it.
Now, last night, Daniel Alfredsson did have an amazing game, and he collected a couple of assists I think. He just didn't get any goals. But thankfully, some of our "role players" did. Not only did Eaves and Neil score, but so did Chris Kelly. And thankfully, Heater broke out of his slump and finally potted one too. The Habs never gave up and came at the Sens relentlessly, but they were only able to tickle the twine twice, leaving us with a 4-2 final score.
WOO-HOO!!
Darth Gerber (as he now likes to be referred to) had another strong game between the pipes. I was a little surprised that he got the start, after the loss in that game that we do not speak of. I thought that would just be a perfect opportunity for Coach John Paddock to give Ray Emery another chance to prove himself. But he's letting Gerber ride this thing out, handing him the reins and seemingly saying, "This is your buggy now, Darth." And Gerber righted his wagon, bouncing back nicely and making some big saves.
I really love my 16-3 Sens this year. Absolutely
love them.
GO SENS GO!!
