Rita MacNeil at it again...

God, I wish that lady would stop singing. The Sens brilliant run to the Stanley Cup finals is finally over, and, although I am disappointed, I am quite pleased with the Sens run to the cup. The Sens exorcised many of their demons this spring, and it made for an excellent month and a half of hockey as a Sens fan.

First, Alfie was a monster. He led all playoff players in goals scored. He physical and was a force on the ice to be reckoned with. Although he didn't win the cup and Alfie is starting to get old, the nucleus of the Sens lineup is still in tact and I predict they will be a force again next year. They got a taste of what the cup taste likes, but now they will be hungrier than ever.

Speaking of the nucleus of the team, the Sens roster was outplayed by the Ducks. After reading an article by James Duthie, it turns out that the Sens had some ailing players. Up to six Senators had serious injuries ranging from bad groins to separated shoulders. Even if they had of been healthy, I don't know who you would trade off that team. The Sens were one of the most balanced attacks in the NHL, and considering they will be hungrier for a cup next year, I would not be trading this talent away.

With that, I had been a critic of Wade Redden's play. I distinctly suggested that he was overpriced and no longer was needed before the playoffs began. Arguably, he had some weak performances in the regular season as well in the playoffs, but somehow he changed my opinion. I thought Redden had played terrifically against the Buffalo Sabres, and that he was an integral part of why we had so much success against them. It is in that series where I saw his value.

When Joe Corvo was being criticized by mostly everyone in Ottawa earlier in the season, I know that I was one of the few that still believed in his ability to turn things around. For Wade Redden, I believe that he has the capacity to turn things around and the reason for his sluggish play at times was due to a nagging groin injury. I hope that the Sens do not trade away Redden. He'll be able to turn things around. The Sens struggle in the season when he was out of the lineup, so they are better off to keep him.

Next, I want to give management the respect it deserves as well. Melnyk could have easily cleaned house when the Sens were stuggling earlier in the year. Melnyk decided that he would not interfere with the hockey operations and it almost paid off huge dividends. They made it to the cup finals and thats something to be proud of. As for John Muckler, there were two major incidences during the year that are distinct in my mind. First, he believed that the Sens would pull through their early season funk. They did. Second, he believed that the Sens didn't need to make a big splash at the trade deadline. There was huge pressure to acquire Gary Roberts, but Muckler believed that the current team had what it took to make it to the finals. They did.

Although I respect Muckler's faith, I believe that its almost time for him to step aside and let Bryan Murray control the team. I believe that Bryan Murray would make some changes to the lineup. He has a system that he wants in place and he has witnessed who has played hard for him, so he should be able to judge who he should have on his team. Bryan Murray was the guy that drafted Getlaf and Perry in Anaheim, and I believe they were the difference makers in the series. Although I don't like Getlaf personally, I do respect his hockey talents and what he can bring to the ice. For that, Bryan Murray knows what he needs in a hockey player and can help to rebuild the youthful talent that Ottawa used to be so good at accomplishing. Muckler has drafted poorly and he has made some questionable trades in the past. Last year, the best thing for him to do was nothing. He let Bryan Murray control the variables. Bryan Murray should have complete control over the variables.

Wants Stanley back home,
Chad