Trevor Shackles: Senators who Could be Real Difference Makers in 2019-20 Looking at which players could be difference-makers this upcoming season

For me Nilsson gonna make a difference. Last year he was good with a pour defensive so this year with Smith and Capuano, I think the defense gonna be better. I predict 45 games for Nilsson. Another player gonna make a impact it s C.Brown with is energy and also maybe Zeitsev help the defense.

For me Nilsson gonna make a difference. Last year he was good with a pour defensive so this year with Smith and Capuano, I think the defense gonna be better. I predict 45 games for Nilsson. Another player gonna make a impact it s C.Brown with is energy and also maybe Zeitsev help the defense.
- Crosside

I am hoping Ceci will be "adequate" for us. I would not expect Zaitsev to be anything more than adequate for you guys. He might get more minutes and more pp minutes and put up more points with Ottawa than he did with Toronto, but he is not a difference-maker.

I am hoping Ceci will be "adequate" for us. I would not expect Zaitsev to be anything more than adequate for you guys. He might get more minutes and more pp minutes and put up more points with Ottawa than he did with Toronto, but he is not a difference-maker.
- Aetherial

my expectations for Zaitsev are simply "don't be a highlight reel of hilarious defensive mistakes"....which is exactly what Ceci was here.

if Zaitsev goes out, and I don't "notice' him on the ice, i'll be happy. I noticed Ceci all the time, which lead me to yell at him through my TV on practically every shift.

I'm hoping that now that Smith and Z are away from Babcock (who I think is one of the most overrated coaches in the NHL..........not saying that to troll, I said the same when he was in Detroit and when he coached team Canada) that they'll improve.

my expectations for Zaitsev are simply "don't be a highlight reel of hilarious defensive mistakes"....which is exactly what Ceci was here.

Well he's not caught flat footed often. You'll notice very quickly that his patented play is flipping the puck off the glass and giving possession back to the other team.

Z's play without the puck if fine. He has no idea what to do with it when it's on his stick, though.

Well he's not caught flat footed often. You'll notice very quickly that his patented play is flipping the puck off the glass and giving possession back to the other team.

Z's play without the puck if fine. He has no idea what to do with it when it's on his stick, though.
- leafsfann

I'm okay with that....Ceci's play with and without the puck is atrocious, which means Z is already 50% better.

literally EVERY SINGLE GAME, Ceci made mind boggling mistakes that could only be characterized as comical and sad, and almost always lead to goals by the other team.............Ceci is, WITHOUT DOUBT, one of the absolute worst dmen in the league. I legitimately think that even Jared Cowen might have been better. his hockey IQ is non-existent, his defensive ability is laughable, his shot isn't great, his passing isn't great....he's an okay skater, and that's about the best thing I can say about him.

my expectations for Zaitsev are simply "don't be a highlight reel of hilarious defensive mistakes"....which is exactly what Ceci was here.

if Zaitsev goes out, and I don't "notice' him on the ice, i'll be happy. I noticed Ceci all the time, which lead me to yell at him through my TV on practically every shift.

I'm hoping that now that Smith and Z are away from Babcock (who I think is one of the most overrated coaches in the NHL..........not saying that to troll, I said the same when he was in Detroit and when he coached team Canada) that they'll improve.
- sensarmy_11

Yeah that is a rational take. I think we hope the same.

I can't get a read on Babcock. Sometimes I think he is one of the premier coaches in hockey and then other times I think he is a dinosaur that has lost touch with the game and the players. I don't think there is any question that he has a strained relationship with at least some of the younger core, and you can make a reasonable argument that his use of players was poor.

Yeah that is a rational take. I think we hope the same.

I can't get a read on Babcock. Sometimes I think he is one of the premier coaches in hockey and then other times I think he is a dinosaur that has lost touch with the game and the players. I don't think there is any question that he has a strained relationship with at least some of the younger core, and you can make a reasonable argument that his use of players was poor.
- Aetherial

I think he's a great coach when he has a team full of veteran, future HHOF players..........I think he's completely unable to coach a team full of young talent. the guy has won like a single playoff round in the last decade. he has a couple of cups, but we both know that was a result of having a STACKED team, you could stick any coach in with that team and they're likely still winning.

I think Lamirello and Shanahan saw the chance to bring in a "big name" guy and thought it would speed up the rebuild.......honestly, if Dubas was running the show at that time, I can't imagine any way that Babcock would be the coach.

Interesting that you mentioned DJ Smith’s usage of players in the blog often. While obviously you want the coach to put players in a position to succeed during games it also sounds a lot like gearing up ready to slam the coaches utilization of players for their failures rather than management and the players themselves. Basically, what was happening to Guy Boucher a lot of the time last year.

If players are good enough, they will get their ice time. If they are not good enough or just don’t add anything more to offer on the ice than a guy getting paid 3 times as much, they won’t get the desired ice time. Just the nature of the business. Part of the rebuild process is phasing out veteran players that won’t be in the long-term plans. However due to the nature of contracts you can’t move everyone right away.

I do think Brown and Batherson should be able to find full time roles if they are good enough. Force guys to be scratched rather than just having a roster spot available in a bomb year (which I think a lot of people expect right away).

my expectations for Zaitsev are simply "don't be a highlight reel of hilarious defensive mistakes"....which is exactly what Ceci was here.

if Zaitsev goes out, and I don't "notice' him on the ice, i'll be happy. I noticed Ceci all the time, which lead me to yell at him through my TV on practically every shift.

I'm hoping that now that Smith and Z are away from Babcock (who I think is one of the most overrated coaches in the NHL..........not saying that to troll, I said the same when he was in Detroit and when he coached team Canada) that they'll improve.
- sensarmy_11

Z should be fine, his only fault is 1/2 his breakout passes miss the target. Not too bad if they go for icing, but lots in the skates which turns the play the other way pretty quick. You guys could have a good d if he gets used properly and makes a few better passes.

Z should be fine, his only fault is 1/2 his breakout passes miss the target. Not too bad if they go for icing, but lots in the skates which turns the play the other way pretty quick. You guys could have a good d if he gets used properly and makes a few better passes.
- Garnie

pretty much my thoughts also......I wish I could reciprocate and tell you that you have a good one in Ceci also, but I can't, I literally hate everything about his game. the best part of Ceci, for you, is that you're only stuck with him for 1 year.

pretty much my thoughts also......I wish I could reciprocate and tell you that you have a good one in Ceci also, but I can't, I literally hate everything about his game. the best part of Ceci, for you, is that you're only stuck with him for 1 year.
- sensarmy_11

Maybe paired with Muzzin or Rielly may help him, plus all the fire power up front may make him look a little better. *probably not, but hoping

Maybe paired with Muzzin or Rielly may help him, plus all the fire power up front may make him look a little better. *probably not, but hoping
- Garnie

for your sake, I hope so....but during his time in Ottawa he was paired with a poop ton of guys...Karlsson, Methot, Gonchar, DeMelo, Chabot, Boro, Harpur, etc, etc, etc....and he was basically an anchor to every single one of them. Every single dman Ceci has ever been paired with has better numbers away from him than they do with him.

I guess it's not impossible that he'll turn it around in Toronto, but it's been years since he's shown any sign of being anything other than a giant pylon on the ice.

for your sake, I hope so....but during his time in Ottawa he was paired with a poop ton of guys...Karlsson, Methot, Gonchar, DeMelo, Chabot, Boro, Harpur, etc, etc, etc....and he was basically an anchor to every single one of them. Every single dman Ceci has ever been paired with has better numbers away from him than they do with him.

I guess it's not impossible that he'll turn it around in Toronto, but it's been years since he's shown any sign of being anything other than a giant pylon on the ice.
- sensarmy_11

Yeah- I feel your frustration with Ceci. Him and Phaneuf together gave me nightmares. His game is terrible in every facet. He might benefit with reduced minutes

for your sake, I hope so....but during his time in Ottawa he was paired with a poop ton of guys...Karlsson, Methot, Gonchar, DeMelo, Chabot, Boro, Harpur, etc, etc, etc....and he was basically an anchor to every single one of them. Every single dman Ceci has ever been paired with has better numbers away from him than they do with him.

I guess it's not impossible that he'll turn it around in Toronto, but it's been years since he's shown any sign of being anything other than a giant pylon on the ice.
- sensarmy_11

Probably, maybe 3rd pairing with lots of ozone starts may be our only hope.

I think he's a great coach when he has a team full of veteran, future HHOF players..........I think he's completely unable to coach a team full of young talent. the guy has won like a single playoff round in the last decade. he has a couple of cups, but we both know that was a result of having a STACKED team, you could stick any coach in with that team and they're likely still winning.

I think Lamirello and Shanahan saw the chance to bring in a "big name" guy and thought it would speed up the rebuild.......honestly, if Dubas was running the show at that time, I can't imagine any way that Babcock would be the coach.
- sensarmy_11

I'm not entirely positive but I'm pretty sure Babcock was hired before Lou.

But I'm gonna disagree a bit with you. I don't think this Leafs team would have been as good as quickly as it was if it wasn't for Babcock. And I certainly don't think they would have made the playoffs 1 year after being literal last in the league without him.

Now, though, is a different story. If the Leafs don't win at least 1 round in the coming playoffs, I think there's a good chance he's out as coach.

pretty much my thoughts also......I wish I could reciprocate and tell you that you have a good one in Ceci also, but I can't, I literally hate everything about his game. the best part of Ceci, for you, is that you're only stuck with him for 1 year.
- sensarmy_11

Me too.

Like you said, though. Thankfully it's only one year.

Me too.

Like you said, though. Thankfully it's only one year.
- GreatGigInTheSky

Why one year. this one plus he sign one more no ?

Why one year. this one plus he sign one more no ?
- Crosside

Nah. It's just this coming season that he'll be a Leaf.

They avoided arbitration and gave him a one year deal. After this season, he's a free agent.

Interesting that you mentioned DJ Smith’s usage of players in the blog often. While obviously you want the coach to put players in a position to succeed during games it also sounds a lot like gearing up ready to slam the coaches utilization of players for their failures rather than management and the players themselves. Basically, what was happening to Guy Boucher a lot of the time last year.

If players are good enough, they will get their ice time. If they are not good enough or just don’t add anything more to offer on the ice than a guy getting paid 3 times as much, they won’t get the desired ice time. Just the nature of the business. Part of the rebuild process is phasing out veteran players that won’t be in the long-term plans. However due to the nature of contracts you can’t move everyone right away.

I do think Brown and Batherson should be able to find full time roles if they are good enough. Force guys to be scratched rather than just having a roster spot available in a bomb year (which I think a lot of people expect right away).
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

Of course it's up to the players too, but it'd be pretty negligent of me to not mention how much influence Smith has here with these players.

I think Brown goes back to the AHL until the trade deadline. The Sens will move a C out for some picks and bring him up for the rest of the year.

Of course it's up to the players too, but it'd be pretty negligent of me to not mention how much influence Smith has here with these players.
- Trevor Shackles

There is influence and then there is prep to just blame the coach for ice time given. We are coming off a year of two with a lot of blame was put on Boucher for the team’s failures and issues with ice time given to players. At times, fans made it seem like he was benching a Doughty or McDavid for the likes of Ceci and Smith.

If the prospects (such as Brown, Batherson, etc) are as good as people hope they will force their way into the lineup, easily. That’s all I am really trying to say.

There will def be some random blame thrown at coaching for having Ennis play instead of Brown if Brown does not play very well right off the bat.

Wish we could fast forward a couple of seasons. Gonna be nasty.

Batherson and Wolanin seem like the most likely prospects to make a significant impact. It's hard to say who else will even see enough games and meaningful ice time to make a real difference. To that point, I'm kind of surprised to see little mention of Duclair and Anisimov... both of whom seem likely to be top-6 fixtures, and could each have 20G/50Pts potential given the team's lack of established alternatives.

With Brown, White and (hopefully, I have high hopes for him) Norris, are we at a point where Tierny looks more expendable, and could be traded in the near future? Like at the deadline?

Maybe paired with Muzzin or Rielly may help him, plus all the fire power up front may make him look a little better. *probably not, but hoping
- Garnie

Honestly sheltered minutes with some time in the offensive zone, perhaps second powerplay and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

But I fear they'll put too much pressure on him and he'll not do well with over work.