Can Anton Volchenkov Play An Entire Season ?

With all this talk about Anton Volchenkov as being possible trade bait, I was reviewing his career stats. Last year, he played 75 games, which is the most he has even played with the Senators, but suffered a rib injury, a mild-concussion and a neck injury in 2006 alone. His style of play is great to watch (except for colapses in the overtime during the playoffs) but it leads to injury.

The A-train is great, when healthy, but his stats lead me to wonder if he can complete a full season and if we should worry that much about him getting injured. Should we keep him as the physical presence on the blueline (in hopes that he stays healthy) or trade him away during the season if his value goes up before he gets injured again (perhaps for a forward, depending on what we need at the time being).

I am an A-train fan, but first and foremost I am a Sens fan and it would suck to lose him a few times a season or even to lose him to concussions like many other cases. What do you guys think?

I think depth at defence is critical in the new NHL in that there can be a real gap in the capabilities of true NHL-calibre defencemen and minor leaguers.

Among forwards, it is not as noticeable IMO.

I think depth at defence is critical in the new NHL in that there can be a real gap in the capabilities of true NHL-calibre defencemen and minor leaguers.

Among forwards, it is not as noticeable IMO.

Agreed. I like having 6 solid NHL defenceman. When teams are light on their blueline depth, it becomes a major problems in the playoffs. You either have to work your top guys heavy minutes, and hope they don't get worn down as the series wear on. Or, you put faith in guys with major weaknesses on the ice in crucial times, with the opposing coaching staff looking to exploit those weaknesses.

I'm reminded of when the Sens played the Islanders in the playoffs, when they had one of the best top 4's in the league, but junk after that. Ottawa was able throw a guy like Havlat on the ice any time they put their bottom pairing on, and then they had to resort to overplaying their top 4 to prevent it. We eventually just wore them down.

As for Volchenkov and his health issues, I'm never a fan of moving a guy who plays physical because of injury problems. I've had the same arguement about Fisher. You want your guys to play physical, and when they do, you have to be patient if they get hurt. It comes with the terroritory. If you tell all your players to play hard, and take the body, but, you turn around and trade guys because they get injured, you're sending a message to the team. Stay healthy above all else. That creates a team full of perimeter players.

Volchenkov may get hurt again this year, who knows, but, he should be assured that he's not going to lose his roster spot if he does. He's most valuable to us when he steps up his physical play, especially in Chara's absence.

75/82 games isnt too bad for someone who plays like the A-train. It can also be a mild blessing in disguise because it lets our depth guys get a little experience. As NyQuil said, any deficiency at defense can be exposed far more easily than on defense. One of the main reasons why Buffalo was able to take the series from us was their incredible depth at D. On top of that, I dont think Volchenkov has reached his potential yet, so there's really no need for us to move him. Our forwards are solid, what we need to work on is our back end. We picked up two more experienced guys and a solid goaltender, so I think we'll do just fine.

While I would agree that depth on defence is critical in the new NHL, I would also argue that what is more important are fast and good passing transitional defencemen, which I don't believe that Anton is. IMO A-Train was better suited for the old NHL where clutching and grabbing helped his slow skating style. I also think that the speedier Schubert could be a decent replacement for A-Train in the 5th or 6th D spot. We have three other capable short term replacements in Bingo in Rivers & Malec who has played in the NHL with the Ducks & Barinka who has played in the AHL for the past few season to fill in temporarily in the #5 or 6th D spots.

With that in mind, I would suggest that a package of Volchenkov and possibly Vermette may get us Conroy at the trade deadline if LA would be willing to let their #1 centre go. Conroy and Alfredson would certainly improve the second line scoring which most here think needs improving. That is to say if Vermette is unable to take hold of the 2nd line centre position himself. This is the year where he needs to prove that he can not only handle that job but run with it. Of course, this all goes out the window if Kaigs miracuously shows up.

McAmmond - Spezza - Heatley - Dean is the defencesive concience of this line.
Eaves - Vermette - Alfredson - young linemates for Alfie but energetic.
Schaefer - Fisher - Neil - don't fix what ain't broke, they're good together.
Hamel - Kelly - McGratton - can Hamel duplicate his AHL success in the NHL?
We could also have a number of potential call ups:
Luttinen LW - Payer C - Heerema RW - Hennesey

Redden - Corvo - could be a good tandem together
Phillips - Preissing - one is good defensively, the other is good offensively
Volchenkov - Meszaros - hard to believe after last yr that Mez is on the bottom pairing. And Schubert as our #7 guy, again. How long before he gets tired of riding the pine?
Call ups - Malec D - Barinka D - Rivers D

Gerber - Emery - Guard and even possibly Glass

Should be an interesting year.
Something to look for - a 4th line of Kelly - Payer - Hamel when Gratts isn't playing.

I would also argue that what is more important are fast and good passing transitional defencemen, which I don't believe that Anton is. IMO A-Train was better suited for the old NHL where clutching and grabbing helped his slow skating style.

Jay McKee was arguably Buffalo's most valuable defenceman in the playoffs and he played a style very similar to Volchenkov.

Anton blocks shots, hits, and clears the crease much like Jay does.

Plus, Anton is a good penalty killer IMO.

We just added Joe "What's shot blocking" Corvo.

I'm not saying we shouldn't trade Anton if we get a great offer, but I think we should think long and hard about it first.

75 regular season games was 2nd most among our defensemen last year, and keep in mind Volchenkov's Olympic team also played more games than most with 8.

I still don't buy this whole thing about slower defenseman not being able to survive in the "new" NHL. Look at the defensemen on Edmonton and Carolina. They had a few good puck moving guys, but guys like Commodore, Smith, Ward, Staios, and Greene aren't exactly going to 'wow' you with their skating ability.

Anton blocks shots, hits, and clears the crease much like Jay does.
And he's the only guy who does so left on this team, except for Phillips. Losing him means we lose a big physical presence. Despite the changes in the last year, it's still important to have someone who can hit back there.

Anton is a very good defenceman don't get me wrong but I think that Schubert can also be just as good and physical. And lets face it, Anton's value is much higher than Schuberts so we would get a much better return. The only reason I would consider moving Anton is for that 2nd line centre we desperately need. A guy like Conroy who adds grit, leadership, scoring and playoff experience and can play 1st or 2nd line centre. We have depth on D now ( 10 D deep) and yes we can never have enough depth at that position but if the opportunity comes up to fill a hole on your team than I think you take it and hope that your depth roster can fill the loss.

I don't know if Conroy will be available but he would be someone I think this team should target and pursue to fill that void at centre and if it costs us Anton I can live with that. But I would only make this move after Christmas after I've seen whether Vermette will be able to handle the 2nd line centre job effectively. He did well in Bingo in that position can he do it in the NHL, that is the question?

I'd argue that Meszaros is a premier shot-blocker on this team as well. And all of the Sens d-man can clear the crease. With the new rules, that aspect of the game has really been limited anyways.

And all of the Sens d-man can clear the crease. With the new rules, that aspect of the game has really been limited anyways.

I disagree.

Defencemen were not allowed to do anything in the crease for the start of the season, and we saw a lot of obstruction of goalies and complaining as a result.

By the end of the season, and the playoffs, defencemen were pretty much allowed to play as they did in past seasons around the net without fear of being penalized.

Obstruction basically applied only to transitional play.

Clearing the crease is particularly important in PK as opposing times will often try to put a player in front of the net for tips and to obstruct the goaltender's view. You need upper body strength in order to be able to limit the ability of opposing players to do this.

Is it any coincidence that Phillips and Chara were the PK unit of choice? Both were the top players on the team in that capacity.

I disagree.

Defencemen were not allowed to do anything in the crease for the start of the season, and we saw a lot of obstruction of goalies and complaining as a result.

By the end of the season, and the playoffs, defencemen were pretty much allowed to play as they did in past seasons around the net without fear of being penalized.

Like in past seasons? I don't think so. A defenseman used to be able to slash the forwards legs, cross check the forward in the back, sit on the forward in front of the net and trip the forward in front of the net along with pushing the player around. Even in the playoffs, you could push a little bit, but you couldn't REALLY push. Chara, for example, couldn't use all his strength to move the opposing forward, he had to use restraint. Before, he could use 100% of his strength to move the forward without fear of a penalty.

We didn't see Antoine Vermette parked in the crease like he was at the beginning of the season either.

It's much more about positioning now, not brute strength. That's where the shot-blocking skills come into play. And anyone who watched the Sens down the stretch last year can wholeheartedly attest that Meszaros was the MVP in that category. You can't do half the stuff in front of the net you used to be able to do, unless you want to take a steady stream of penalties (which Chara and Phillips did often). I'd argue that a main reason that those 2 (especially Chara) were effective on penalty kills was because of their reach. That's Chara's most impressive defensive tool, not his brute strength.

It's much more about positioning now, not brute strength. That's where the shot-blocking skills come into play. And anyone who watched the Sens down the stretch last year can wholeheartedly attest that Meszaros was the MVP in that category.

Well, Volchenkov was 6th in total number of shots blocked in the entire NHL with 189.

Meszaros was 45th with 124.

If Volchenkov ends up killing more penalties, you could see that number increase further, given that Phillips and Chara occupied most of that time and there are generally a lot of shots from the point in that eventuality.

Volchenkov was also Ottawa's 2nd leading shot blocker in the playoffs with 17, to Phillips' 25. Meszaros was fairly close with 14.

Again, we're looking at big bodies who play that grinding, traditional style of hockey.

Meszaros is a more than capable shot-blocker but don't underestimate Anton's abilities in this area.

comment 1: its nice to see a thread on the Sens board where everyone's commentary is valid, hockey related, and can actually be seen as smart conversation

comment 2: Volchenkov is not the type of player you ever want to trade, as he sells his body out for his team each and every game, while being an above average PK guy. I have mentioned in numerous threads my thoughts on trading him, but that is more to do with Corvo's contract causing future problems in keeping the rest of D intact. Volchenkov is far from out of place in the New NHL, as he would become a main part of our PK now, can play strong in the corners down low, and knows when to pinch. We now have alot of guys who are willing to pinch, but Volchenkov very well may be one of our smartest players, making up for his slower stride in the transition game.

Bottom line, hes either getting dealt during the season, or they let Phillips walk at the end. I think they make a move with him as the cornerstone of a package, and try and re-sign Phillips.

one other note: although Volchenkov is still a physical player compared to our other defensemen, he is far from the player he used to be in that department. His positioning is better now and doesnt get caught out of position as much, but while his physical game used to set him apart, its is more part of a package he brings now. Volchenkov and Phillips are fairly close in their physical aspects, but Phillips being a much better skater, but Volchenkov being a little steadier.

I am of two minds on this debate and I agree with the basic premise of both sides.

I like Volchenkov and what he brings to the table. Stay at home Dmen, especially ones that can bring the physical play like he can are often important parts of Stanley Cup Victories. Commodore, Stevens, Hatcher all helped give their defances a degree of intimidation and reliability. And while Phillips is very reliable (well maybe not last playoffs), he is not as good as Volchenkov at either the physical play or the shot blocking. Volchenkov may also be a very good role model for our supposedly wimpy Russian prospects coming in the next couple years.

On the other hand, we lost two thirds of a line in the offseason (one first liner) and the replacements are a bit questionable. I mean Kelly as a second or third liner in the playoffs is very worrisome and that may have to happen with an injury. Right now I would put our issues on offence to outweight the issues on the back end. This is a team that couldn't score in the playoffs last year when it mattered, and it's lost two of the more successful forwards and replaced them with scrubs. That should be the team's major concern though I am not sure how they can address it.

Havlat has never in his career played on a 1st line. Whether you think that he should or not is up for debate but you can't state that the Sens lost a 1st liner this offseason because that's simply not true. You could even make the argument that the Sens only lost 1 everday forward from their lineup (Smolinski) on account of Havlat barely playing last season anyways.

It's always been my opinion that solid defensemen are much harder to come by than skilled forwards. A defense corps can be much more exposed by injury than the forward ranks. If Jamie Allison is playing significant minutes on this team because of injury, then that hurts a lot more than Kelly having to step up and play with Alfie because of injury.

Every team in this league has some holes because of the cap. You can't have everything and I think having a slight deficiency at centre is a whole lot better then being shorthanded on the backend.

I will say this about Volchenkov though. He had better get his **** together this year because IMO, he took some huge steps back last year. Meszaros shot by him on the depth chart and he seemed to lose a step from the lockout. He puts himself out of position a lot and only throws those big hits once in a blue moon now. I agree that the Sens would benefit from having a player of Volchenkov's type on the team, he'll have to really bring it this year to be deemed reliable enough to fall into this group.

Sorry, DM I thought we were on a hockey board, where first liner generally connotates a skill level rather than a position in a lineup which can differ on a day to day basis. My mistake.

Yes and well I would say that of our top 10 players, 6 may be on defance and I am inclined to play our 7th best Dman ahead of at least three of our forwards AS a forward. While its great to have good Dmen, and I think they are generally more valuable then forwards, there comes a point where you get diminishing returns due to reduced ice time. I like the A-train, but I prefer a 2nd line center who may play 19 mins a game to a 5th or 6th Dman that plays 14-16 mins a game. If that will be his role.

Havlat has never in his career played on a 1st line. Whether you think that he should or not is up for debate but you can't state that the Sens lost a 1st liner this offseason because that's simply not true. You could even make the argument that the Sens only lost 1 everday forward from their lineup (Smolinski) on account of Havlat barely playing last season anyways.


take this into account:

With Havlat
18 games
16W 2L (prorated: 139pts)
4.6goals per

Without Havlat
64
36W 19L 9OTL (prorated: 101pts)
3.5goals per

everyone seems to discount how much Havlat effected the season we had. We were absolutely dominant with him in the lineup, and much closer to the pack without him. Whether you want to believe it or not, without that 4th 1st line player, our teams offense falls drastically. I dont get where the dream of another 300+ goals come from, unless goals go up again drastically across the league. 270-280 is much more likely, if not a little high.

take this into account:

With Havlat
18 games
16W 2L (prorated: 139pts)
4.6goals per

Without Havlat
64
36W 19L 9OTL (prorated: 101pts)
3.5goals per

everyone seems to discount how much Havlat effected the season we had. We were absolutely dominant with him in the lineup, and much closer to the pack without him. Whether you want to believe it or not, without that 4th 1st line player, our teams offense falls drastically. I dont get where the dream of another 300+ goals come from, unless goals go up again drastically across the league. 270-280 is much more likely, if not a little high.


Concerning the games that were played while Havlat was in the line-up, it bears mentioning that for that period, our entire roster was pretty much healthy. During the games that Havlat was out, we lost Spezza, Chara, Redden, Phillips, Fisher, etc.. for different and concurrant periods. Should we have lost those players with Havlat in the lineup I tihnk the numbers would be a lot closer. Especially since we're pro-rating only 18 games and thus there's a greater degree of potential variation as well.


As for how we'll do next year, a lot will come down to team defense, coaching and injuries.

He puts himself out of position a lot and only throws those big hits once in a blue moon now.
IMO, he puts himself out of position FAR less now than before the lockout, and it's because he's not always looking for the big hits.

People forget he played his off-side for 70% of the season, which took away from his game, and once he got moved back to the left side after the Olympics played very steady. I assume he'll be on the left side pretty much all year this season, and you'll see a large improvement in his play.

take this into account:

With Havlat
18 games
16W 2L (prorated: 139pts)
4.6goals per

Without Havlat
64
36W 19L 9OTL (prorated: 101pts)
3.5goals per

everyone seems to discount how much Havlat effected the season we had. We were absolutely dominant with him in the lineup, and much closer to the pack without him. Whether you want to believe it or not, without that 4th 1st line player, our teams offense falls drastically. I dont get where the dream of another 300+ goals come from, unless goals go up again drastically across the league. 270-280 is much more likely, if not a little high.


Without a doubt Havlat presence made us that much more of an offensive threat. And looking back on the year, his shoulder injury combined with Hasek's long absence really took away that extra shine that made us so hard to defeat. That Sens team with Havlat for depth and Hasek of all goalies providing a last line of a defense was downright scary on paper. But without Hasek and Havlat, plus with consistant injuries to big defensive names like Chara (hand), Redden (personal), and Phillips (knee)........ not so much. Injuries to Fisher (ankle), Spezza (chest), and Alfredsson (rib) hurt too. This team actually had alot of injuries to contend with in comparison to usual upon further examination, not to mention in high places. That often gets lost in the shuffle by fans of other teams since they see another 100 point season beside our club name.

But just as people often discredit Havlat's large contribution to this team's success, many people also read too much into our record with him in the lineup vs. with him on the sidelines. Early on in the saeson the whole team was absolutely on fire. Neil was on pace for 50 goals! Nearly everybody else was heading for a career year. It seemed only Pothier wasn't playing well above his head at the time (his play picked up later however). Meanwhile, some other strong clubs stumbled out of the gates who we got to play at the time (Buffalo for one). The combination of the two led to rather fortunate scorelines for the Sens. Mach 9 or not, the Sens likely would have had a similar record early on IMO. Later on is when we really could have used Havlat as more injuries started to pile up and the general "dog days" of the NHL came into effect. Some extra speed and jump would have been nice on those long Western swings. And his breakaway skills sure could have helped our pathetic shootout record.

As for 300+ goals, I agree it'd be setting oneself up for dissapointment to expect the team to reach that again. However, this is mainly due to other teams getting better in the off-season. In terms of defense in particular and in our division no less. With Toronto beefing up its blueline don't expect as many blowouts this time around. Meanwhile, Boston has added Chara (and subtracted Gill!). Looking at our own lineup, I don't see much of a decline offensively. How many goals do we have to replace exactly? Since Havlat was hurt all year anyway it can't be that much. Smoke wasn't that great and big losses like Chara have been more than replaced in terms of a purely offensive standpoint with Corvo and Preissing. Guys like Spezza, Vermette, and Eaves should only improve too and in some cases also play more games (Fisher, Spezza, etc).

But just as people often discredit Havlat's large contribution to this team's success, many people also read too much into our record with him in the lineup vs. with him on the sidelines. Early on in the saeson the whole team was absolutely on fire. Neil was on pace for 50 goals! Nearly everybody else was heading for a career year. It seemed only Pothier wasn't playing well above his head at the time (his play picked up later however). Meanwhile, some other strong clubs stumbled out of the gates who we got to play at the time (Buffalo for one). The combination of the two led to rather fortunate scorelines for the Sens. Mach 9 or not, the Sens likely would have had a similar record early on IMO. Later on is when we really could have used Havlat as more injuries started to pile up and the general "dog days" of the NHL came into effect. Some extra speed and jump would have been nice on those long Western swings. And his breakaway skills sure could have helped our pathetic shootout record.

I do not discount the fact that the team had nowhere to go but down after the start it had, but I think its inbetween the two degrees as to how much Havlat added. As you said, our team was scary the month and a half we had everyone together, and really should not have lost once. We really played THAT well. While Havlat seemed to add that extra element that set our team apart and took pressure off everyone else on the team, I agree that the other injuries would have set us back over time as well.

As for 300+ goals, I agree it'd be setting oneself up for dissapointment to expect the team to reach that again. However, this is mainly due to other teams getting better in the off-season. In terms of defense in particular and in our division no less. With Toronto beefing up its blueline don't expect as many blowouts this time around. Meanwhile, Boston has added Chara (and subtracted Gill!). Looking at our own lineup, I don't see much of a decline offensively. How many goals do we have to replace exactly? Since Havlat was hurt all year anyway it can't be that much. Smoke wasn't that great and big losses like Chara have been more than replaced in terms of a purely offensive standpoint with Corvo and Preissing. Guys like Spezza, Vermette, and Eaves should only improve too and in some cases also play more games (Fisher, Spezza, etc).

You are right on in pointing out the quality of opponent as a main area of concern. Toronto will not be giving up 8 goals against us this season, neither will Buffalo. Everyone seemed to get better, and no one lost as much as we have. As far as our own guys providing the offensive pickup by maturity, I hope you are right. I think alot of teams did a better job on our top line as the season went on, and I think our top line will have to work alot more for their goals this season. I also think the ability to get the puck out of our zone quickly could be a problem without Chara. While his transition game wasnt as smooth as other defenders, the job Chara does in getting the puck out of his zone is second to none. That means more chasing, and less puck possession for our team. This may prove to be a cause for concern as the season goes on.

Agreed on Havlat.

As you hinted at earlier, Chara's loss is going to be huge in more ways than one. You already mentioned he was exceptional at getting the puck out. Obviously, he was one of the most physically imposing players in the league to go along with his defensive skills and underrated offensive ability. But I like the new-look defense. It's more balanced and mobile than in years past at least, and definately more suited to the "new" NHL. It should at the very least be fun to watch on the attack. On the defensive side of things how it may become frustrating, but I am confident everyone will do reasonably well. Corvo is the only one I worry about but he wasn't brought in to shut people down. At the end of that day we still have one of the deeper, better defenses in the league. That's good enough for me right now as this team has bigger holes to worry about (2nd line C. Is Gerber playoff capable?). Having that stacked blueline hasn't done us much good in April anyway. I actually think Muckler did a great job with dealing of the loss of Chara this summer. My only problem is the amount he Corvo signed for; the actual acquisition was and is fine by me.

As for dumping and chasing vs. puck possession etc, I think a fine balance of both that is needed to succeed. Certain players excell at certain stratagies and obviously you want to exploit that. It's almost like NHL 07 where every line can have a different, pre-set philosophy to attacking. Schaefer - Fisher - Neil could be set to crash the net. :sarcasm: But you are right of course. The game plan the team eventually takes on could eventually become a problem. Espcially with Brian Murray not exactly being a tactical genius. His stratagy against Buffalo was to sit back and "let our best players be our best players". That goes without saying. And in a town where that has traditionally not been the case in the playoffs it'd be nice to have a backup plan. Or any plan......

i think A-train is too good to think about trading...he is going to get stronger and stronger....and will last the season!!!

Sorry, DM I thought we were on a hockey board, where first liner generally connotates a skill level rather than a position in a lineup which can differ on a day to day basis. My mistake.

Well that's a different way of looking at it I guess. I don't really care too much about semantics but to call a guy a 1st liner who has never actually played on said 1st line seems to be inaccurate. I guess he'll be one on Chicago (although I think I may be able to crack their 1st line if I laced my skates up) but fact is, even if the Sens had found a way to bring him back for another year, he still wouldn't be a 1st liner on this team. I like Havlat as a player but I have no worries about the Sens being able to replace his offence this year. I'll call 300 goals this year, I have no problem with that. They'll give up more than last year but offence won't be a problem and the fact that so many people are sweating losing Brian freakin' Smolinski's production amuses me. Because really, that's about it.

People shouldn't discount the importance of physical defensemen in the new look NHL.With the more free flowing game its more important than ever to have a guy like Volchenkov to throw punishing hits and have opposition forwards thinking about the possibility of being on the receiving end of them.A blend of skill and toughness is a must on defense.

take this into account:

With Havlat
18 games
16W 2L (prorated: 139pts)
4.6goals per

Without Havlat
64
36W 19L 9OTL (prorated: 101pts)
3.5goals per

everyone seems to discount how much Havlat effected the season we had. We were absolutely dominant with him in the lineup, and much closer to the pack without him. Whether you want to believe it or not, without that 4th 1st line player, our teams offense falls drastically. I dont get where the dream of another 300+ goals come from, unless goals go up again drastically across the league. 270-280 is much more likely, if not a little high.

Havlat is a very good player but our record and offensive production was also strongly affected by the new rules. This year's hockey won't be like October-November of last year.

Just to continue the Volchenkov discussion. I like Anton's play but at $1.5 Mil for a 6th D doesn't make sense to me in this cap era we are in, especially when there are weaknesses in other areas of your roster that need to be improved. Schubert plays a similar style to A-Train, is a better skater and IMO ready to take that 6th spot at a cheaper price. Our D-depth includes Malec, Rivers and Barinka with Lee, Lyamin, Gryba and Anikeyenko eventually making there way to Ottawa so the future looks bright. Anton's value is highest now at his young age and my guess is that Redden, Corvo, Phillips, Preissing and Meszaros are all ahead of him in the depth chart which makes him a valuable trading asset to get what we need this year.

I would wait to see how Vermette makes out at the 2nd line centre position for a while but if he doesn't succeed in that role I would look to move both Anton and Antoine for Conroy at the trade dealine for a run at the cup. If we lose Conroy to UFA well hopefully Kaigs comes over next year or Hennesey is ready to move into the line up so we will not miss Vermette too much. Barinka will likely also be ready to move up to Ottawa next year in case Schubert needs to be replaced so we will be fine on d as well.

Our D-depth includes Malec, Rivers and Barinka with Lee, Lyamin, Gryba and Anikeyenko eventually making there way to Ottawa so the future looks bright.

And yet I don't want to see any of them playing for the Senators in the playoffs.


I would wait to see how Vermette makes out at the 2nd line centre position for a while but if he doesn't succeed in that role I would look to move both Anton and Antoine for Conroy at the trade dealine for a run at the cup.

We had a tough time justifying moving Vermette and Volchenkov for Doug Weight. I think the price is a bit steep for Conroy, particularly as a rental.

Ok someone please explain, are we talking about Jamie Rivers who used to play for the sens? Is he back in the organization, there is nothing on him on the Bingo website...:dunno: While I would agree that depth on defence is critical in the new NHL, I would also argue that what is more important are fast and good passing transitional defencemen, which I don't believe that Anton is. IMO A-Train was better suited for the old NHL where clutching and grabbing helped his slow skating style. I also think that the speedier Schubert could be a decent replacement for A-Train in the 5th or 6th D spot. We have three other capable short term replacements in Bingo in Rivers & Malec who has played in the NHL with the Ducks & Barinka who has played in the AHL for the past few season to fill in temporarily in the #5 or 6th D spots.

With that in mind, I would suggest that a package of Volchenkov and possibly Vermette may get us Conroy at the trade deadline if LA would be willing to let their #1 centre go. Conroy and Alfredson would certainly improve the second line scoring which most here think needs improving. That is to say if Vermette is unable to take hold of the 2nd line centre position himself. This is the year where he needs to prove that he can not only handle that job but run with it. Of course, this all goes out the window if Kaigs miracuously shows up.

McAmmond - Spezza - Heatley - Dean is the defencesive concience of this line.
Eaves - Vermette - Alfredson - young linemates for Alfie but energetic.
Schaefer - Fisher - Neil - don't fix what ain't broke, they're good together.
Hamel - Kelly - McGratton - can Hamel duplicate his AHL success in the NHL?
We could also have a number of potential call ups:
Luttinen LW - Payer C - Heerema RW - Hennesey

Redden - Corvo - could be a good tandem together
Phillips - Preissing - one is good defensively, the other is good offensively
Volchenkov - Meszaros - hard to believe after last yr that Mez is on the bottom pairing. And Schubert as our #7 guy, again. How long before he gets tired of riding the pine?
Call ups - Malec D - Barinka D - Rivers D

Gerber - Emery - Guard and even possibly Glass

Should be an interesting year.
Something to look for - a 4th line of Kelly - Payer - Hamel when Gratts isn't playing.

Rivers??? Do you mean Jamie Allison??? Also, Charlie Cook might be good for the depth chart. Atuyshov might be good to add to that as well.

McAmmond - Spezza - Heatley - Dean is the defencesive concience of this line.
Eaves - Vermette - Alfredson - young linemates for Alfie but energetic.
Schaefer - Fisher - Neil - don't fix what ain't broke, they're good together.
Hamel - Kelly - McGratton - can Hamel duplicate his AHL success in the NHL?
We could also have a number of potential call ups:
Luttinen LW - Payer C - Heerema RW - Hennesey

Redden - Corvo - could be a good tandem together
Phillips - Preissing - one is good defensively, the other is good offensively
Volchenkov - Meszaros - hard to believe after last yr that Mez is on the bottom pairing. And Schubert as our #7 guy, again. How long before he gets tired of riding the pine?
Call ups - Malec D - Barinka D - Rivers D

Gerber - Emery - Guard and even possibly Glass


Damn I hate looking at that lineup. At least this one makes the offence a little more reasonable:
Eaves - Spezza - Heatley - If they can't play then split up Spezza and Heatley
Schaefer- Fisher - Alfredson -Frees up Alfy to get to the outside and shoot
Schubert- Vermette - McAmmond - Maybe they will score:dunno:
Hamel - Kelly - Neil
Gratts
We could also have a number of potential call ups:
Luttinen LW - Payer C - Heerema RW - Hennesey

Redden - Meszaros
Phillips - Preissing
Volchenkov - Corvo pairing.
Call ups - Malec D - Barinka D - Rivers D

Emery - Gerber

Just to clear things up, Jamie Rivers is on the St. Louis roster, not Ottawa's. Jamie Allison will most likely be the first back end callup (depending on how good Barinka ends up being).

Just to clear things up, Jamie Rivers is on the St. Louis roster, not Ottawa's. Jamie Allison will most likely be the first back end callup (depending on how good Barinka ends up being).

Yes, it is Allison, sorry ...