http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/players/radek_bonk/4854 Recent articles about Radek Bonk en-us from the Toronto Star, Though some Toronto Maple Leafs fans were consoled their team even made it into the playoffs, many others were bitter at their Game 7 loss to the Boston Bruins. We compiled the top 10 bitterest tweets — sometimes hilariously so. Whether you are a die hard Toronto Maple Leafs fan or you like to laugh at their woes, here is what they had to say.   Do thousands of fans walking away from Maple Leafs Square count as a parade? — Radek Bonk's Mullet (@BonksMullet) May 14, 2013 read on for the rest... Tue, 14 May 2013 12:27:18 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/tweeting_toronto_fans/13614917 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/tweeting_toronto_fans/13614917 Tweeting Toronto Fans http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/tweeting_toronto_fans/13614917 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png I thought this was supposed to feel like a shortened season… Yet, somehow I feel as though I’ve been watching this team for half a year if not years and not a mere two months worth of hockey. Maybe I have. Tonight in Dallas, the Predators start a 5 game road trip that many are rightfully deeming the “fate of this season.” I won’t belabor the point and tell you Nashville’s current place in the standings, how close the West is, or how the placement of Hornqvist and Wilson onto IR Monday couldn’t have come at a worst time. You know these things. So why, after months and months do I yet again feel the urge to write the ever so rare column? Why not just stick to tweeting my thoughts sporadically (@brandon_felder)? Good questions. But first, let me tell you a story. A true one at that. It was the 2006-2007 season. There I sat on media row, pondering the fate of the Predators headed into the trade deadline. I knew the team was good, really good, as did everyone truly following the NHL tha... Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:47:51 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/felders_focus_an_old_voice_and_a_tough_choice/13120444 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/felders_focus_an_old_voice_and_a_tough_choice/13120444 Felder’s Focus: An Old Voice and a Tough Choice http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/felders_focus_an_old_voice_and_a_tough_choice/13120444 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png After two consecutive losses, Senators head coach Paul MacLean joined Team 1200's In the Box yesterday morning. The 'Stache hits on a number of important topics including Craig Anderson's play, his trepidation in dressing Borowiecki and Wiercioch in the same lineup and the ol' three-legged stool. Like in any other interview, MacLean touched on a few things that I did not bother to include in this post, so if you wish to listen to the full interview, you can do so here, or via streaming the embedded audio below. As always, my thoughtsare in bold.   On back to back games and it being crunch time… “Well, I think everyone in the league has a similar type schedule and you have to try and manage your minutes. We have to play the game, so I feel like it’s like a playoff series type atmosphere – where your practices are limited to the time. The hour practice is… we’re already into the playoff mode where practice is twenty or thirty minutes long and then... Tue, 29 Jan 2013 14:40:02 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/maclean_speaks_about_the_ol_three_legged_stool/12785542 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/maclean_speaks_about_the_ol_three_legged_stool/12785542 MacLean Speaks about the Ol' Three-Legged Stool http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/maclean_speaks_about_the_ol_three_legged_stool/12785542 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png According to a report in the Ottawa Business Journal that was fueled by comments from the Mayor's office, the City of Ottawa will be throwing its support behind the team as it attempts to bring an outdoor game to Lansdowne Park. The idea is to have the Senators face off against the Montreal Canadiens, according to Ottawa Marriott general manager Daniel Laliberté, a member of the committee helping plan the city’s offerings for 2017. Mayor Watson has had bringing an outdoor game to Ottawa on his "to-do list' since 2010, and tweeted the following during the leadup to the ASG: Just chatted with NHL's Gary Bettman and said it's time for Ottawa to get the outdoor classic! He said when you get a new stadium, it's coming. With Lansdowne slated to open in 2014, the intended 2017 date certainly lends itself to stale jokes like, ‘maybe there will be NHL hockey by then’ or ‘maybe Mika Zibanejad will finally have recovered from the flu by then’. Mor... Fri, 21 Dec 2012 04:48:38 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/an_outdoor_game_in_ottawa_sure_why_not/12486154 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/an_outdoor_game_in_ottawa_sure_why_not/12486154 An Outdoor Game in Ottawa: Sure, Why Not? http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/an_outdoor_game_in_ottawa_sure_why_not/12486154 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png Ottawa Rush a strong candidate for Ottawa CFL team name, the Citizen has learned ottawacitizen.com/sports/Ottawa+… via @sensreporter — James Gordon (@SensReporter) December 14, 2012 Hope they make the Kappa Gamma Gamma sorority they're aiming for. RT @sensreporter Ottawa Rush a strong candidate for Ottawa CFL team name. — Radek Bonk's Mullet (@BonksMullet) December 14, 2012 Oh, no. Please, no. @sensreporter: Ottawa Rush a strong candidate for Ottawa CFL team name, the Citizen has learned ottawacitizen.com/sports/Ottawa+… — John Bowman (@johnbowman) December 14, 2012 @team1200 Ottawa Rush?? WTF is this, the arena football league circa 1991. #Bustoutthezubaz #CFL — Sabs (@saboothatswho) December 14, 2012 Awful RT @stumillscbc OSEG's Jeff Hunt says, though not preordained, "Ottawa #Rush" is a name in the running for 2014 CFL franchise #ottcity — Toban M (@tobanm) December 14, 2012 Rushriders? @chrismcclus... Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:09:44 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/everybody_loves_ottawa_rush/12438271 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/everybody_loves_ottawa_rush/12438271 Everybody Loves "Ottawa Rush" http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/everybody_loves_ottawa_rush/12438271 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png With the advancement of hockey statistics over the past few years, one of the leaders at the forefront of this movement has been Rob Vollman.  He may be the founder of HockeyAbstract.com, but he is also a founding writer of Hockey Prospectu and a regular contributor to ESPN Insider, NHLnumbers.com and Arctic Ice Hockey. You may remember us having him one our podcast, or you may recall us publishing the Ottawa Senators' Player Usage Charts in a blog article earlier in the year.  Even if you only have a passing interest in the advancement of stats in hockey, at some point, you have invariably come across some of his work.  One of his innovations is the Snepts System that is used to make statistical projections for current NHL players based upon similar historical players. Borrowing from HockeyAbstract.com, Vollman explains the Snepts System in detail:    The system of searching NHL's history to find statistically similar players for a variety of purpo... Thu, 01 Nov 2012 13:09:57 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/projecting_the_201213_ottawa_senators_production_using_historical_comps/12111007 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/projecting_the_201213_ottawa_senators_production_using_historical_comps/12111007 Projecting the 2012/13 Ottawa Senators' Production Using Historical Comps http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/projecting_the_201213_ottawa_senators_production_using_historical_comps/12111007 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png Most of you probably know this by now, but I am a big numbers guy when it comes to hockey and sports in general. The human mind is very selective and deceptive, which is why I pay attention to the statistics instead of relying on soley memory to form my opinion after watching games. Stats are not perfect and they never tell the whole story, but they do help fans get a better understanding of the overall picture and present objective, factual information about the events that occur in a game. This is another issue for another post, though. Today, I am going to talk about one stat that I never use on here, which is plus/minus. Plus/minus, or +/- as it's often referred to as, is pretty simple stat to calculate as it takes the difference of the number of goals for and against a player is on the ice for at even strength. It is also one of the most widely used stats in the general hockey community as you'll see just about every sports site list a hockey player's +/- rating on... Sat, 20 Oct 2012 02:27:45 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/why_i_rarely_use_plusminus/12013633 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/why_i_rarely_use_plusminus/12013633 Why I rarely use plus/minus http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/why_i_rarely_use_plusminus/12013633 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png When your favorite hockey team is not in a position to be contending for a Stanley Cup, there is only one thing that organization can sell you on as a fan: hope. Hope that your management team can be prudent with its investments - whether it be in free agency or when it comes time to renegotiate extensions with its best players. Hope that its amateur scouting staff can unearth some early round studs and late round gems at the NHL Draft. Hope that your team's GM isn't Scott Howson or Jay Feaster. Hope that your favorite team's management staff isn't pressured by ownership to do something brash and ridiculous just because it has the fiscal resources to do so. Hope like hell that your team has stockpiled enough young talent to inevitably make that ascent up the standings.  Here in Ottawa, the Senators organization is shovelling hope down our throats faster than Theoren Fleury could throw away chips at a casino. And really, who could possibly blame the organization fo... Tue, 04 Sep 2012 22:35:26 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/freshman_orientation/11632768 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/freshman_orientation/11632768 Freshman Orientation http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/freshman_orientation/11632768 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png Usually when people hear the phrase ‘Never Tear Us Apart’, they think of that schmaltzy INXS ballad that was released in the late ‘80s. Here in Ottawa, Kyle Turris should be employing the words as part of his recruiting pitch to encourage Alfie to play another season. For years, the organization has tried to cultivate and develop an effective two-way center whose offensive skills lived up to the position. They had hoped that Mike Fisher would be that guy. He wasn’t. He was an exceptional third line center who never elevated the play of his skilled linemates. The Antoine Vermette experiment was short-lived, maybe too short-lived.. He was eventually dealt to the Blue Jackets for Pascal Leclaire and a second round pick that became Robin Lehner. In the eight seasons that Jason Spezza has tallied more than 50 points, only once has he had another center tally 50-plus points in the same season. In fact, in the Senators’ 20 season existence, there have only been six seasons in which ... Thu, 19 Jul 2012 08:23:54 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/filling_the_void_ottawas_perpetual_search_for_a_second_line_center/11251840 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/filling_the_void_ottawas_perpetual_search_for_a_second_line_center/11251840 Filling the Void: Ottawa's Perpetual Search for a Second Line Center http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/filling_the_void_ottawas_perpetual_search_for_a_second_line_center/11251840 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png   As much I looked forward to last night’s ‘meaningful’ installment in the Battle of Ontario, the one game on Ottawa’s six game road trip that I am most interested in is Kyle Turris’ return to the desert on January 24th. Despite having published a number of posts that conveyed the point that as a young player who had produced some promising offensive results proportionate to his limited role1, Turris was exactly the kind of underappreciated player that the rebuilding organization should be targeting in a trade, I’d still lying if I said that I could have foreseen the kind of success that he’s had thus far. In the fifteen games that the center has played with the Senators, the team is 11-2-2 and he’s developed some nice chemistry with Daniel Alfredsson tallying 3 goals, 11 points and an equally impressive +11 rating. Based off of his 0.733 point per game production since joining Ottawa, if you take that number and multiply that over the course of a full season, Turris would be i... Thu, 19 Jan 2012 08:52:01 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/let_the_countdown_to_january_24th_begin/9446519 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/let_the_countdown_to_january_24th_begin/9446519 Let the Countdown to January 24th Begin http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/let_the_countdown_to_january_24th_begin/9446519 http://www.yardbarker.com/media/6/8/68f862dafbd88c3874567c64d2337c23744fdc49/mini/Phoenix_Coyotes_v_a930.jpg Daniel Alfredsson scored his 401st goal on a power play 4 minutes into overtime to give the Ottawa Senators a 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Monday night. Alfredsson, who scored his 400th in overtime Friday against Calgary, beat Martin Brodeur with 59.4 seconds left in the extra period after David Clarkson was called for hooking 2:58 into overtime. Ottawa's Erik Condra tied it at 2 with a short-handed goal 13:17 into the third. The Senators scored a pair in the third to erase a two-goal deficit. Jason Spezza scored 1:21 into the third to spoil Brodeur's bid for his first shutout of the season. Condra fooled Brodeur with a shot from the right faceoff circle that slipped in under the glove of the NHL's career leader in wins and shutouts. That tied it with 6:43 left in regulation and Spezza in the penalty box for tripping. Craig Anderson made 27 saves for Ottawa, which has won three in a row. Dainius Zubrus and David Clarkson scored in the second to put New Jersey up 2-0. The Devils had Tue, 03 Jan 2012 00:19:04 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/sens_beat_devils_on_alfredsson_ot_goal/9093754 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/sens_beat_devils_on_alfredsson_ot_goal/9093754 Sens beat Devils on Alfredsson OT goal http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/sens_beat_devils_on_alfredsson_ot_goal/9093754 http://www.yardbarker.com/media/c/4/c461bcdc7f57e8b61bebe832245bb2868cf62e42/mini/Ottawa_Senators_v_aa7d.jpg Daniel Alfredsson scored his 401st goal on a power play 4 minutes into overtime to give the Ottawa Senators a 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Monday night. Alfredsson, who scored his 400th in overtime Friday against Calgary, beat Martin Brodeur with 59.4 seconds left in the extra period after David Clarkson was called for hooking 2:58 into overtime. Ottawa's Erik Condra tied it at 2 with a short-handed goal 13:17 into the third. The Senators scored a pair in the third to erase a two-goal deficit. Jason Spezza scored 1:21 into the third to spoil Brodeur's bid for his first shutout of the season. Condra fooled Brodeur with a shot from the right faceoff circle that slipped in under the glove of the NHL's career leader in wins and shutouts. That tied it with 6:43 left in regulation and Spezza in the penalty box for tripping. Craig Anderson made 27 saves for Ottawa, which has won three in a row. Dainius Zubrus and David Clarkson scored in the second to put New Jersey up 2-0. The Devils had Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:06:01 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/senators_3_devils_2_ot/9092377 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/senators_3_devils_2_ot/9092377 Senators 3, Devils 2, OT http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/senators_3_devils_2_ot/9092377 http://www.yardbarker.com/media/7/8/78b172bdac82c68531b82fab55d69e707eb0c6b2/mini/Ottawa_Senators_v_9f67.jpg Towards the latter portion a World Junior Hockey related post on Puck Daddy, Greg Wyshynski references a CSNWashington.com article that examines Washington Capitals prospect Evgeny Kuznetsov's future. According to its author, Chuck Gormley, Kuznetsov's agent will be meeting with GM George McPhee to discuss the possibility of his client joining the Capitals at the conclusion of the World Junior Championships. So why the hell is any of this important from an Ottawa Senators perspective? Well, to get some unbiased perspective of how good Kuznetsov is, Gormley talked about the prospect with Senators GM Bryan Murray. In turn, Murray shed some light on Kuznetsov. “He’s a heck of a player,” Ottawa Senators general manager Bryan Murray said before Saturday’s game against his former team. “He’s fast, a big kid. There’s no question if they wanted to put him on the team today he could play. He’s a legitimate player in the NHL.” Murray said Kuznetsov was a “dominant force... Tue, 27 Dec 2011 09:38:57 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/bryan_murray_talks_russians/8965186 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/bryan_murray_talks_russians/8965186 Bryan Murray Talks Russians http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/bryan_murray_talks_russians/8965186 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png   On this Friday afternoon, I asked you readers to Tweet some questions for us to answer. If you're not following us on Twitter, give The 6th Sens a follow @6thsens and check out my personal Twitter account @GraemeNichols. Here are the questions... From @EugeneMelnyk1: Did you notice the Frenchman's faceoff stats from last night? If you’re referring to Da Costa’s putrid 1 for 16 record last night, I've repressed memories of it. It now lies trapped somewhere in the depths of my mind alongside Radek Bonk's rookie season and any of Troy Mallette's fights. No, it wasn’t a banner night for many of the Senators in the faceoff dot however. Jesse Winchester won 1 of 6 and Zack Smith was 5 for 14. Only Jason Spezza (8 of 13) and Zenon Konopka (4 of 5) managed to post some impressive totals against an Oilers team that is ranked in the bottom third of league for faceoff success rates. Don’t get me wrong though, obviously Da Costa’s 36.6% success rate is a concer... Fri, 18 Nov 2011 14:10:05 -0500 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/friday_afternoon_tweetbag/8183314 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/friday_afternoon_tweetbag/8183314 Friday Afternoon Tweetbag http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/friday_afternoon_tweetbag/8183314 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png If you're not completely burnt out on Zibanejad coverage, this is my last word on the subject, bear with me.Below is a table of every forward drafted in the last twenty seasons who made the NHL at eighteen. The third, fourth and fifth columns are their goal, assist and point totals through their first nine games. The two far right columns are their total games played and total points scored that season. The table is sorted by points scored through nine games, so where did Mika stand historically? Player Draft #    Goals    Assists    Points            Total GP Total Points Alexandre Daigle 1 5 8 13 84 51 Patrick Kane 1 3 10 13 82 72 Sidney Crosby 1 2 10 12 81 102 Patrice Bergeron 45 2 5 7 71 39 Sam Gagner 6 1 6 7 79 49 Chris Gratton 3 2 5 7 84 42 Jeff Skinner 6 3 4 7 82 63 Ryan O'Reilly 33 1 6 7 81 26 Ilya Kovalchuk 1 6 0 6 65 51... Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:54:06 -0400 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/what_if_20_years_of_18_year_old_fwds_in_the_nhl/7783360 http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/article_external/what_if_20_years_of_18_year_old_fwds_in_the_nhl/7783360 What if ? (20 years of 18-year-old fwd's in the NHL) http://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/what_if_20_years_of_18_year_old_fwds_in_the_nhl/7783360 http://www.yardbarker.com/images/yb_logo_square_grey.png