So, if the Sens can beat the Bruins...

How the hell does this work?

Somehow, the Senators have established that they're superior to the Montreal Canadiens and (on one occasion) the Boston Bruins, and yet they're not going to the playoffs. Just goes to demonstrate how little enthusiasm the Sens had at the beginning of the season.

As a commentor pointed out in the last post, this enthusiasm is most evident in Dany Heatley. It seems to me he just woke up mid-way through this season. He's got 4 points in his past three games. 38 goals on the year. Is it fair to expect 50 from him every season? 40 ain't bad... He could have hit 50 if he played like this all year.

You know who I'm really excited about? Ryan Shannon. This young guy is so fast, plays an energetic style, and can score. We haven't seen a guy like this since Martin Havlat... I hope I didn't just curse Shannon.

The 30 saves from Alex Auld makes a great case for Brian 'excellent but inconsistent' Elliot to be sent to the minors next season. Won't happen. Contract year.

This win set a franchise record for most consecutive wins at home, with nine. The last few times the Sens have played the Bruins, they've been close games, so we shouldn't be surprised that Ottawa pulled off the win here. Tim Thomas was usually the difference, and Fernandez did his best but didn't play like a mad-man, as Thomas usually does.

Can we start the 2009-10 season now?

Old Senators lose to themselves three years later

It's really hard to write about this year's Boston Bruins without referencing the Senators.

The Bruins' GM, Peter Chiarelli, was a associate of John Muckler, followed in Muck's footsteps by building the 2000-01 Senators... in Boston... in 2005-06.

Zdeno Chara, Peter Schaefer, and Brendan Bochenski? I suppose it's a start for the Bruins, who have been struggling to remain respectable since Joe Thornton left. They put up a good fight on Saturday night at Scotiabank Place, but the Senators managed to pull out a win thanks to some grind from Mike Fisher and some style from Dany Heatley.

What a shot from Heatley, and what a game from Fisher. Both players doing exactly what those expensive, long-term contracts are telling them to do.

Why are the Sens fans booing Chara? The man left through free agency. Of course, he left for more money, but players do that all the time. There's no hard feelings from me towards the Z-Tree - that guy was awesome in Ottawa, and I wish the Sens kept him. Are the fans booing because the Sens chose to keep Redden instead?

The rematch goes tonight. Watch this one to see if the close game on Saturday was the result of Tim Thomas standing on his head, or if the Sens just couldn't finish their plays.