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Sens rumours and will Martin Gerber start tomorrow night?

February 15, 2008, 2:37 PM ET [ Comments]

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First off, all of the e-mail I have received over the last few days regarding the goaltending situation in Ottawa has pinned the blame squarely on head coach John Paddock. This comes as no surprise, since it's Paddock who has continued to create further problems with the Senators. I didn't have one e-mail endorsing Paddock as head coach and many of the e-mails I received stated they believe Paddock has created further frustration in the locker room by the way he has treated his two goaltenders. You can hear it from both Ray Emery's and Martin Gerber's tone that they are clearly frustrated with the situation. Even the rest of the players are frustrated at this point. Sure neither has elevated their play to take a stranglehold on the number one job but when your head coach makes it more difficult to be successful by the win and you're in theory, one has to wonder if any other head coach in the NHL recently has employed this method on deciding who is going to start in goal. I doubt any coach has. So since Paddock has created a big part of this mess, what should be done to rectify it Sens fans? Secondly, should Gerber start tomorrow night against New Jersey after a very strong outing this past Wednesday night?

It's plain to see that Mike Fisher and Daniel Alfredsson are labouring from their respective nagging injuries. Fisher is not skating with the same authority the last few games since re-injuring his groin in practice a few days ago. Alfredsson seems to be moving around the ice much more gingerly than he was in his first game back against Montreal.
The problem is, when does Paddock rest these guys to give them the proper rest they need?

Now onto Sens rumours. There are plenty out there but as I always do, I do my best to get any rumour from 2 or 3 sources before posting a rumour. GM Bryan Murray is working the phones very hard and over the last few days his desire to rectify the goaltending situation has intensified. There is no doubt in my mind that he wants to trade Ray Emery, the problem is Emery's attitude both on and off the ice has created very little market value.
Murray has spoke at length once again with the LA Kings about possibly moving Emery to the West Coast. Who he would be seeking in return is tough to say? Do you hold onto Emery until the summer and then get rid a major problem in the locker room? Regardless, the goaltending situation will be fixed this summer. More on this over the next 11 days.

The Sens are still talking to the Coyotes about a puck moving defensemen. Murray's desire to have players either from the area who understand the dynamics of playing in Ottawa or players that can handle the pressure of playing in a Canadian market remains at the top of his list. Which is why two former Ottawa 67's captains on are his list. Brendan Bell and Nick Boynton fit the bill for what Murray is looking for. Bell comes much cheaper and is a great team guy who would be in the top 6 defensemen on a variety of teams in the NHL now if not for being caught in a numbers game in Phoenix.

As for Sergei Federov, he has stated to others close to him that he wants to play on a Canadian team before his career is over. I am sure he has enough left in the tank for the last few months of the season to give a team depth at the forward position. Federov would be great on the 2nd line in Ottawa and as I have stated in the past, Murray has had Federov in both Detroit and Anaheim which is why it wouldn't surprise me one bit if he is in a Sens uniform come February 27th.

Lastly, the Chris Gratton to Ottawa rumours remain out there. It wouldn't take too much to get him out of Tampa Bay.

Kevin

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