It's always the same. You can't wait for the start of training
camp, and then you can't wait for it to end. You get all excited
about practice line rushes, and then you're sick of them. Getting
hockey back has been a rush for all of us, but now we want something
more. This week we finally get it.



By now we all have a pretty good idea of what our team looks
like. I don't put a lot of stock in exhibition game results, but
if you're an Ottawa Senators fan you have to like what you've
seen. One thing that no one is excited about is the high
pre-season injury rate, and it's been a cause of concern for every
team. Take particular note early in the season in the difference
success rates for guys who played hockey last season and those who
simply sat out. Take even more note early on of the age of the
players who didn't play last season. I initially thought it might
help an older player to take a season off from the wear and tear of an
NHL season, but now I'm not so sure.



With all due respect to Eklund, I have not yet seen that magical game
that shows me the players and officials all get "it." I'm still
seeing a parade to the penalty box, which might not be as lengthy as it
was two or three weeks ago, but is still far too long to make this
hockey fan happy. Maybe it will be tonight's final exhibition
game against the Rangers; maybe it will be Wednesday's opener against
Montreal. Maybe. I'm hopeful, but I'm still waiting.



I was asked by Ek what my reasonable expectations were for this
season's "next great thing," Sidney Crosby. My guess is that my
expectations are lower than many others but I do feel they are much
more reasonable. I think this kid can be very special, but I hope
we don't expect it to be now. He's not Wayne Gretzky and he's not
Mario Lemieux. I hope people aren't disappointed when he does not
and can not live up to those lofty expectations.



Joe Thornton arrived in the NHL with high expectations, and like most
18-year-old kids wasn't prepared to live up to them. He was lucky
early on to have a coach like Pat Burns who didn't place that kind of
burden on him. In fact, many of us thought that Burns didn't lean
on Thornton's talents enough, and babied him too much in his rookie
season. It was another, more mature, rookie who dazzled us back
in 1997. But as good as Sergei Samsonov has been, no one would
suggest that he is a better player than Thornton, who lost the Calder
Trophy to the Magical Muscovite. Use Thornton as your guide, and
imagine what Crosby can be with a little seasoning, some physical
development and the kind of tutelage that a Mario Lemieux can provide.



Tonight for the first time since April of 2004, I get to sit in a
broadcast booth and call an NHL game. Andy Brickley and I will
kick some of the rust off in preparation for Wednesday's opener against
the Canadiens. They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder,
and it certainly has for me. Being without the same we all love
has given me a greater understanding of how much it means to all of
us. During the darkest days of the lockout there was some talk of
doing away with the NHL and starting over. As you sit in your own
arenas over the next week or so, close your eyes and imagine the game
being gone --- not for a year, but forever. Then say a silent
thank you to the people who were smart enough to not let that happen.

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