The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

It happened once again tonight.

One miscue, and it's all over. With Ottawa dominating the majority of game 5, it seemed to be a game destined for a Sens victory with Buffalo off for a hooking call in OT. Special teams have been the difference maker in a lot of these playoffs, and you had to think luck was shining in Ottawa's favour.

Unfortunately, the special teams of Buffalo was the difference when they scored their third short-handed goal of the series against Ottawa. And what a time to do it...in an elimination game in overtime.

The Senators had me fooled. When Alfredsson finally got a big monkey off his back by finally scoring in the first period, it was like a ray of hope was shining in SBP. The big guns were coming through. Maybe this is the start of something special.

Nope.

Ottawa outplayed them for the most part. Had them beat, again, on the shot clock. But no one will remember that. They'll remember another choke job and the past reputation of the Sens merely repeating itself. The Sabres did a good job of keeping Heatley, Alfredsson and Havlat off the scoresheet throughout the series. Spezza lead the team in goal-scoring which shows you how backwards the playoffs can be to the regular season. He tallied 19 goals in 70 or so regular season games. He managed 5 in just 10 post-season ones. This also tells you that Heatley, Alfie and Havlat needed to pot a goal once in a while.

Although no one can blame Ray Emery for the loss, he didn't exactly set records ablaze with his performance against Buffalo. He was horrible in game 1, couldn't make a big stop in game 2, and while he played well in games 3 and 4, he let in a big softee 30 seconds into the match in game 5. But, he is only 23 years old and this experience will only make him better, and will probably be called upon to be the #1 keeper for the Sens next season.

The sting of losing wasn't as hard as I thought I'd be. Mostly because the real stinger was game 3 when the Sens put themselves in too deep a hole Tuesday night. That loss hurt the most. No one, not even me, thought they could pull it off. And that' s exactly what happened.

So now what? What changes are coming? Based on what transpired in the playoffs, it will be a much easier decision to hold onto Redden than Chara. This supposed dominate defenceman was pretty invisible for the most part, and Brian Pothier with less ice time played more of a role than Big Z. Maybe Chara will take a nominal raise to stay to try to make amends for his post-season, but that's unlikely to happen and I expect him donning a new uniform next season.

Havlat needs a new contract. Spezza needs a new deal. Redden, Chara, Schaefer, Pothier, and I think Philips...they all need to be re-signed.

Questions are going to mount about captain Daniel Alfredsson. It doesn't help his cause that he was the one Jason Pominville walked around to score the OT winner. Do you keep him, trade him or maybe give someone else the C?

It will be interesting to see what transpires in the off-season for Ottawa. Moves will be made, and a renewed sense of optimism will probably result. But this season, which was supposed to be different, which supposedly was fixed to correct what happened in the past and lead to a the prize of a Stanley Cup, didn't happen. Eugene Melnyk will still be dedicated to giving Ottawa a winner, and for that reason alone, Sens fans shouldn't abandon their team, and instead look forward to what the future brings. I intend to take part.