Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Senators Streak Stopped in OT at Rogers; Just Burrows Being Burrows?

November 21, 2011, 12:05 AM ET [ Comments]
Travis Yost
Ottawa Senators Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Make sure to follow Travis on Twitter!
--

Another Ottawa Senators winning streak has come to a close, as the Vancouver Canucks knocked off the road warriors 2-1 in overtime on Sunday night.

Starting on emergency basis, Alex Auld was extremely solid for an Ottawa Senators team without their starting goalie in Craig Anderson. Earlier in the day, Anderson had complaints of a stiff neck, and was unable to go against a previously white-hot Canucks offense.

Only Henrik Sedin - via the power play - was able to beat Auld in regulation. In overtime, it was Chris Higgins who did the Ottawa Senators in, deflecting a point shot from Dan Hamhuis for the game-winner.

Make no mistake about it, though - Ottawa once again played a perfect road game. They kept the scoring margin low, protected their goalie in front, and slowed teh tempo of a Vancouver Canucks team that can get up and down the ice with the best of 'em. In fact, past Vancouver's Cory Schneider, I wasn't particularly impressed with anyone tonight. There seemed to be a malaise that this Vancouver team fell into early on, one that they couldn't snap out of until overtime.

Needless to say, the skaters will be thanking Cory Schneider relentlessly in the locker room. The guy was absolutely sensational, and provided yet another reason why there's a legitimate goaltending controversy in Vancouver.

Ottawa's lone goal came on an absurd feed from Jason Spezza in the third period, one that'll probably be slapped on his highlight reel in short time. He fed Colin Greening - parked right in front of Vancouver's net - and 'Cyborg' buried it accordingly.

The end result might have been disappointing, but collectively speaking, you can't be disappointed with a Western Canada trip that yielded five of a potential six points. Vancouver's a tough beat on home ice, and even though Ottawa was in it through 60+, they simply couldn't solve one Cory Schneider.

--


As a whole, the game was a bit bizarre. Arguably two of the best power plays in the NHL combined for just one score. Ottawa's once-maligned penalty kill continues to improve with each passing game, and for whatever reason, there appears to be some kind of shield in front of the opposition's net every time Ryan Kesler's in a prime scoring area. Can Kesler catch a break? My guess is we see a serious scoring run sooner rather than later. Just need more prayers to the hockey gods, I imagine.

Hell, Sergei Gonchar went in for a kill shot on Manny Malhotra. Yeah, Sergei Gonchar. Enough said.

In fact, the only thing that seemed par for the course was Alex Burrows being Alex Burrows. I've made it quite clear that Burrows - much like Sean Avery in New York, and Matt Cooke in Pittsburgh - can absolutely play hockey and play it well. But, it's the 'antics' that rightfully rile up rival fan bases, and tonight's controversial incident was no exception.

The incident occurred in the first period when Maxim Lapierre checked Jesse Winchester into the boards. Upon impact, Winchester went flying into the Canucks bench. At first, it was hard to tell how the gate had opened up, but after further review, it appeared that Alex Burrows may have opened it himself, effectively sending Winchester flying. Below, a screen shot of the incident.

Video to follow.


Image and video hosting by TinyPic


Winchester complained of a sore back in the post-game, but it doesn't sound like anything serious.

In his talk with the media, Burrows expressed sadness for Winchester's injury on the play, and stated that the door wasn't fully latched on impact. A very possible scenario, no question.

Should he get the benefit of the doubt? Here, I'd say so. It's too tough to conclusively say one way or another what happened. But, I fully understand why some - including myself - were quick to grow skeptic of the 'door latch' defense even before it was pulled out. Burrows lost a lot of his credibility with bite-gate.

Back with more tomorrow.

--


Thanks for reading!
Join the Discussion: » Comments » Post New Comment
More from Travis Yost
» Wrapping Things Up
» Enforcer
» Random Thoughts
» Shot Coordinate Fun
» Any Room?