Senators News

"It looks like the Senators and longtime defenceman Wade Redden have officially parted company... It looks like the door is now closed. The Redden camp is apparently not interested in discussing a contract similar to that of veteran blueliner Chris Phillips and Redden appears ready to hit the market as an unrestricted free agent July 1, according to Sun Media sources. "

"So the less than dynamic duo of Spezza and Staal has been split for Canada's game today against upstart Norway, which upset Germany 3-2 last night and sent Slovakia reeling into the relegation round. Canadian coaches sat Spezza down before practice to tell him he'd be joining a four-man rotation on the fourth line. He'll be at centre with Jason Chimera on the left side and either Jamal Mayers and Patrick Sharp on the right."

" The goalies themselves are not certain where they'll be -- and there's still no word on the identity of the next coach -- but the Senators' goalie coach is fully expected to return for the 2008-09 season. "I'm looking forward to getting back at it," Eli Wilson said after putting in some time at the office yesterday. "

" The top candidate to be Senators' coach next season may already have the job. While GM Bryan Murray has insisted he has no plans to return behind the bench next season, two league executives told the Sun yesterday they believe Murray has been asked to "at least consider the possibility" of doing both jobs by owner Eugene Melnyk. "

"They were paced once again by red hot sniper Dany Heatley, who added Canada's modern-day points record at this event to the modern-day goals mark he set Friday against Slovenia. With his fourth point yesterday, the Ottawa Senators star made it to 40 in five appearances in this event, and that's one more point than Canadian team general manager Steve Yzerman had managed."

" Our match at the Royal Ottawa Golf Club, his home course, is even as we stand on the tee of the par-3 eighth hole, a brute of a hole at 220 yards to a well-protected green that requires all carry. We're playing on a late summer's day during last year's training camp. With a big lash, he nails his tee shot with a 3-iron to about five feet. Clearly intimidated, I bail into a bunker right. He makes the putt. "

"Dany Heatley had a choice. He could spend an extra long summer answering questions about the sudden, dramatic demise of the Ottawa Senators. Or he could pick himself back up, put on a Canadian sweater and give himself something to play for. It really wasn't much of a choice. The call for Team Canada – especially with the world championship being played on home turf – was an easy one to make."

"But Emery, who turns 26 in the fall, has done little to build up goodwill around the league. He's only played 134 NHL games and he's coming off a pedestrian 12-13-4 record with a 3.13 average and .890 save percentage. Here's the usual trade suspects: Tampa, Los Angeles, St. Louis."

"Pat Quinn, Ottawa Senators coach. Admit it, it does have a nice ring. If he was to lead the Senators to the Stanley Cup championship in a year or two, Quinn could run for mayor in hockey country and win."

"In short, he pretty much has all the credentials Senators general manager Bryan Murray says he's looking for in a coach to take over his dysfunctional club. That makes Tortorella perhaps the most colourful possibility among a group of candidates that also includes fellow veteran coaches Bob Hartley, Pat Burns, Pat Quinn, and Terry Murray, Bryan's brother."

" Senators GM Bryan Murray doesn't want to return as coach after his team was swept out of the first round of the playoffs. He wants a disciplinarian behind the bench who will clamp down on the club's young players and make them accountable. Sources say Murray plans to speak with Quinn, former Atlanta coach Bob Hartley, -- a Hawkesbury native -- former New Jersey coach Pat Burns and Kitchener coach Peter DeBoer about the coaching job. If Tampa Bay's John Tortorella becomes available, he will also be on the list. "

"You can put Bob Hartley's name on the list of candidates for the Senators' coaching job. It is expected within the next couple of weeks the Senators will ask permission of the Thrashers -- with whom Hartley is still under contract -- to speak to the Hawkesbury native, who won the Stanley Cup behind the bench of the Avalanche in 2001. Hartley was let go as coach by Thrashers GM Don Waddell after the club opened the season with six straight losses. "

" How satisfied are you, Ottawa Senators fan? Come on now -- tell the truth. You must have experienced a degree of contentment after last year, right? "

"The Ottawa Senators reached the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in franchise history last season, but it wasn’t enough for General Manager John Muckler to keep his job. Muckler was sent packing for not doing enough at the trade deadline and failing to push the Senators over the top."

"That list begins with San Jose Sharks defenceman Brian Campbell, whom Murray tried to acquire from the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline. Campbell, a former junior star with the Ottawa 67's, scored a combined eight goals and 54 assists in 83 games with Buffalo and San Jose during the regular season."

"It's easy to toss out names of possible unrestricted free agents the Ottawa Senators could sign in the summer, as if the National Hockey League was a fantasy league. Who couldn't use forwards such as Marian Hossa, Brendan Shanahan and Markus Naslund, and defencemen with the talents that Rob Blake, Brian Campbell or Mattias Norstrom possess?"

" The Senators' Dynamic Duo is going to help Team Canada dig for gold. While Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley won't get a chance to hoist a Stanley Cup this spring, Team Canada GM Steve Yzerman will give the Ottawa forwards a chance at another title, inviting them to suit up at next month's world championship in Halifax and Quebec City. "

"Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley of the Ottawa Senators will play for Team Canada at the world championships that begin next week in Halifax and Quebec City. Along with the other additions named yesterday, it gives Team Canada plenty of firepower on its 2008 IIHF world hockey championship roster. Anaheim Ducks' Ryan Getzlaf and Chris Kunitz were added to the forward corps, while veteran Phoenix Coyote Ed Jovanovski and high-scoring Minnesota Wild Brent Burns were added along the blue-line."

"Don't be fooled. Last week's storyline regarding the Ottawa Senators didn't paint the complete picture. Yes, there would be no Stanley Cup again for Ottawa this season as the Senators, suffering through injuries, fatigue and other distractions, could not beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in their Eastern Conference quarterfinal. What was left out of the picture? It's pretty obvious if you watched the other series unfold after the Senators became the first team to be ousted from postseason play. The Senators shouldn't have even been in the playoffs, considering the quality of hockey that fans in other NHL cities across North America were treated to in the past couple of weeks."

" Dave Nonis' firing may have opened the door for the Senators to land hotshot free-agent winger Fabian Brunnstrom. Brunnstrom, an undrafted 23-year-old from Sweden, was expected to sign a contract with the Canucks, but those negotiations ground to a halt last week when Vancouver axed Nonis as GM. Enter Senators GM Bryan Murray, who talked to J.P. Barry, Brunnstrom's agent, yesterday about what it would take to land the 6-foot-1, 210-pounder. "

"Ottawa Senators centre Jason Spezza has been elected to a two-year term as one of five National Hockey League Players' Association representatives on the competition committee. He'll be joined by Brian Campbell of the San Jose Sharks, Jeff Halpern of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres, and Mathieu Schneider of the Anaheim Ducks."

"A federal government tribunal will not hold a hearing into a local hockey fan's claim that the Ottawa Senators had contravened the Competition Act with a ticket-marketing plan over the winter."

"Ray Emery... Good riddance. Was a huge distraction off the ice and his work ethic left a lot to be desired. He should be ashamed of himself and his effort this past season. Will anyone else give him a chance? "

"Unless the Los Angeles Kings, who are always in the market for goalies, want to take a shot at Ray Emery, I don't see many trade partners for Ottawa bench boss Bryan Murray. Emery's contract ($6.75 million US over two years) isn't as big an impediment as his laissez-faire attitude to rules and practice schedules."

"Ray Emery's rise was sudden and steep. His fall has been just as dramatic. At this time last year, the Senators' mercurial goalie was growing into a star — helping Ottawa reach the Stanley Cup Finals while setting himself up to become a millionaire in the summer. Now, he's widely viewed as nothing more than a malcontent."

"How does a team that starts out 15-2-0 end up being swept out of the playoffs in the first round? That's something the Ottawa Senators can ponder over the summer after the Pittsburgh Penguins, who lost to the Senators last April, disposed of them in four games."

"Bryan Murray's ray of hope for a fresh start next season will be to get Ray Emery out of town. The goaltender will have to take his act elsewhere after the Ottawa Senators GM/coach said yesterday one of his top priorities will be to trade the 25-year-old or buy him out of the final two years of his $6.75-million contract. "

"Ray Emery wore out his welcome as an Ottawa Senator because of, among other things, his unprofessional approach to being a pro athlete, arriving late for many practices and then not bothering to break a sweat. He also tested the patience of the team when stories reached general manager and coach Bryan Murray of partying in various Ottawa nightspots."

" Bryan Murray's got ex-Ray vision. Senators goaltender Ray Emery will almost certainly have to take his act elsewhere next season. Murray confirmed yesterday one of his top priorities is trading the 25-year-old troublemaker or buying out the final two years of his $6.75-million (all terms US) contract. "

" So what is next for the Ottawa Senators? The obvious has now been confirmed, and goaltender Ray Emery will not be back next season. But that is the easy answer. And applying all blame to Emery for all that went wrong with the Senators is wrong. "

"Goaltender Ray Emery, pack up your gear. The King of Distraction will, surely, be gone come fall. Murray will first seek a trade for the goaltender who has been accused of everything from sucking the work ethic out of the once-dominant Senators to causing the potholes on the way to Scotiabank Place with his white Hummer."

" The Senators are looking to bring back Wade Redden -- if the price is right. Senators GM Bryan Murray revealed yesterday that he's spoken with Redden's agent, Don Meehan, about signing the veteran defenceman before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in July. "

"Let the search begin. Ottawa Senators general manager Bryan Murray says his busy summer of trying to re-sign existing players, bringing in new ones and dumping others will begin with a quest to find the ideal coach for the underachieving club."

"Handed the keys to a Cadillac, Bryan Murray was as shocked as anyone to see it careen into a ditch."

"Ottawa Senators coach and general manager Bryan Murray said Friday he'll do whatever he can to move goaltender Ray Emery to another team this summer. Speaking at a press conference alongside team owner Eugene Melnyk and president Roy Mlaker at Scotiabank Place, Murray stopped short of saying he'll buy out the troubled netminder if he can't find a trade partner. He acknowledged the team is moving on, however, adding he felt comfortable with Martin Gerber as the No. 1 goaltender next season. "

"If goaltender Ray Emery has indeed played his last game with the Ottawa Senators, he's not leaving quietly. Emery, who had faded into the background ever since Bryan Murray replaced John Paddock as coach on Feb. 27 and is expected to be bought out of what remains on his contract in the summer, let it all hang out before he packed up his equipment and walked out of Scotiabank Place for the next chapter in his controversial career. He was an open book on any and all topics, labelling it a "really bad year" with little enjoyment and few positives."

"Among the many rumours making the rounds yesterday was the possibility of a blockbuster deal sending centre Jason Spezza to the Vancouver Canucks for goaltender Roberto Luongo. Anything is possible, of course, but veteran defenceman Chris Phillips was throwing up a caution sign yesterday. As upset as he was with the team's shocking second-half dive and playoff no-show, he says a total overhaul of the roster is unnecessary. "Big changes, no," Phillips said, when asked whether general manager Bryan Murray needs to rip apart the roster to start anew."

"Less than a day after the Senators were swept from the NHL playoffs by the Penguins, Spezza reiterated he signed a seven-year, $49-million US contract with the Senators because he wants to remain in Ottawa. While Spezza agrees he needs to contribute more than the one assist he had in four playoff games against the Penguins, he scoffed at the notion of being dealt this summer, although a rumour has surfaced that has him headed to Vancouver for goaltender Roberto Luongo. "

" It's hard to foresee any scenario that would see the 30-year-old, an unrestricted free agent July 1, return to the Senators. It has been clear since Redden exercised his no-trade clause when Senators GM Bryan Murray tried to trade him last summer to the Edmonton Oilers -- and sought his permission to talk trade with the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline this season -- that this day would arrive. That means his 12 years here in Ottawa, in which he grew from a teenaged kid with the blush high in his cheeks into a stubbled veteran, have ended. "

"Because he has the maddening ability to be loved and hated from shift-to-shift, Jason Spezza is the Ottawa Senator most symptomatic of the team's season. When his stars are aligned, Spezza is a beautiful player, an often breathtaking playmaker with an instinctive feel for the game. That's the way he was in the first 10 games of the season when he had one goal and 12 assists and the team was 9-1."

" Then, facing the reality he'll likely be bought out for only $2.25 million (all terms US) of the two years and $6.75 million left on his contract, Emery made it known he'd like to return to the capital next season. "That's the team's decision," said Emery. "I'd like to stay here. I like the guys on this team." "

" Mike Commodore is on a roll. After finishing tied for his pathetic team's lead in playoff points, the Senators defenceman has now scored tickets to the Georges St-Pierre-Matt Serra UFC extravaganza in Montreal tomorrow. All 21,000-plus chairs at the Bell Centre were spoken for months ago, snapped up just moments after the two fighters signed the contract, but Commodore is fortunate enough to be going as the guest of his new financial adviser. "

"The 2007-28 season of the Ottawa Senators came to an official, if not also ignominious, end last night when the Pittsburgh Penguins swept them out of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals with a 3-1 win. The season, however, really ended a long time ago."

" What went wrong? Somewhere about the 18-game mark of the regular season, the Senators forgot they were just months removed from being a conference champion. And now they'll have plenty of time to wonder what it'll take to rejoin the NHL's elite following last night's 3-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. "

"The tradition never changes. Most of the faces were the same, too. But beyond that, the handshake line at the end of the Penguins' first-round rematch against Ottawa couldn't have had any less in common with the one they experienced a year ago. The emotions were different. The expressions were different. Most important, the winners were different. This time, it was the Penguins who earned a berth in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by virtue of a 3-1 victory against Ottawa at Scotiabank Place in Game 4 of their opening-round series last night."

"They kept finding ways to motivate the Penguins, including a puzzling decision Wednesday to show video-board footage from the film inspired by the late, legendary former coach Herb Brooks' 1980 U.S. hockey team. But there was no "Miracle" for the Ottawa Senators, and any photographic evidence of this postgame handshake will serve only as a reminder from when Sidney Crosby's Penguins scripted their version of "The Avengers." "We wanted a little payback," center Jordan Staal said after helping the Penguins defeat Ottawa, 3-1, at Scotiabank Place in Game 4..."

"As the Ottawa Senators cleaned out their lockers Thursday, goalie Ray Emery tried to clear his conscience. "I was just like a time bomb," Emery said a day after his team's season ended in a four-game sweep to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Admitting he would have liked to have handled things differently, and regretting showing up late for practice twice this season, Emery wasn't quite ready to take all the blame for a season gone horribly wrong. "I don't take responsibility for the team losing in the playoffs, I'll tell you that much,""

"When it was over, there was this one, tiny miracle. Fans stood and cheered and yelled the captain's name: "Al-fie! Al-fie!" A hero even in defeat. But what a defeat, a 3-1 loss in Game 4 to close a four-game sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins, the team the Ottawa Senators spanked in five games a year ago. What began as a dream -- a 13-1 start to the season that was an NHL record for early excellence -- unravelled, bit by bit, like a team sweater made of yarn, until all that was left was a pile of red material and a lingering question. What happened to turn the dream into a nightmare?"

" Bryan Murray is staying with the Senators, at least as GM. Murray said he's got the green light from owner Eugene Melnyk to try to improve the team this summer. Speaking before Game 4 last night, Murray also revealed he was "reluctant" to fire coach John Paddock in February and go behind the bench himself. "No (I'm not worried about my job). Everybody around here knew I was reluctant to do what had to be done (firing Paddock)," said Murray. "

" It's almost a guarantee Redden will not be offered a new deal before he becomes an unrestricted free agent July 1 -- or if he is, it will be nowhere near what he'll be able to get from another team. He admitted thinking about the fact his 11-year association with the team and this city was coming to an end. "Looking back at the big picture, it's been a great time," he said, choosing to pass on the question of whether he even wanted to come back next year."