optimisticThe Ottawa Senators will not be playing until tomorrow (Thursday), and that's a game that I'm looking forward to as the Sens will home to play the Washington Capitals. But...
Hockey's back!
I will say that I'm not thrilled about how little off-season changes the Ottawa Senators made to their line-up. I'm a die-hard Senators fan, and I like to think (as all hockey fans do at this stage of the season) that the Sens will make the playoffs, though I don't know how deep they'll go and whether they'll be able to drink from Lord Stanley's cup. The Sens surprised everyone last year by not only making the playoffs, but also by coming within one goal of beating the Pittsburgh Penguins to go the finals. There's a few rule changes this year that should make the game better, notably the slash to the hands penalty being enforced, but we'll see how that shakes out. I still wish the league had gotten rid of the shootout and overtime business in regular season games, as overtime should be reserved for the playoffs, but 3-on-3 overtime was exciting last year, to say the least! While there's a good crop of rookies this year, the focus will be on the Sidney Crosby-Connor McDavid rivalry and the Austen Matthews-Patrick Laine rivalry that's starting to brew.
From the pov of the Ottawa Senators, the keys are Erik Karlsson (who won't be in the starting line-up for a bit), Craig Anderson and Bobby Ryan. While Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman have to repeat the success they had last year, those three are the big factors. Craig Anderson has to have another terrific year in goal. Eric Karlsson needs to have another Norris Award-winning season, and he has to make it last the whole year, without Marc Methot (now a Dallas Star). And finally, Bobby Ryan needs to get back on track and be the goal scorer that Ottawa dealt for in the trade with Anaheim.
Meantime...
Go, Sens, Go! :)