So just over a week into the season, but at the first mini break in the schedule, there is already plenty to talk about when it comes to the Ottawa Senators.

They are still very much in the steep part of learning Guy Boucher's expectations, systems and attitude.

Boucher has been on point throughout, saying all the right things, speaking the truth whether it hurts or not. He is not afraid to tell it like it is, and to go in depth in his reasoning with the media, unlike the curt answers from Dave Cameron or the sarcastic and occasionally comical from Paul MacLean.

As for the implementation of the system, it is still a work in progress and Boucher himself said it will be a month and a half to two months before everyone is on the same page. Although it has been far from pretty on most nights, winning three of their first four games is a positive.

Some people wondered heading into the season about how Erik Karlsson would fit into the system, but that hasn't been a problem so far. Karlsson has 7 points in 4 games, but more importantly to the naysayers, he is a +7 on a team that is even in terms of goals for and goals against on the season.

The same cannot be said for the pairing of Dion Phaneuf and Cody Ceci. Analytically, they have been victimized in terms of possession and shot attempts while they have been on the ice. Two games in particular, Toronto and Arizona, they were on the wrong end of lopsided numbers. They are leading the team in blocked shots with 12 and 10 respectively, but that can be looked at both ways...they are sacrificing themselves but they are also spending too much time in their own end.

Too much is being made of a one-off in terms of the attendance at Tuesday's game. A mid-week, early-season game against an opponent that is probably one of the worst draws in the league on a night where the Blue Jays were facing elimination can offer reasons. That being said, if the trend continues then we can talk read more into it.

Derick Brassard has been decent in coming over from the Rangers, but it looks like Mika Zibanejad is flourishing on a line with Chris Kreider. Zibanejad has 5 points in 4 games, and is voer 60% in the faceoff circle. Again still very early on, and I still like the trade, but maybe Zibanejad has taken the step the Senators were waiting for, or found the right system for him to take that step.

While he has won all 3 of his starts so far, Craig Anderson has to improve his game because he can't expect his team to put up 5 goals each time out. His save percentage of .887 is tied for 23rd among goalies that have played 2 or more games. If this was something new, I would say it is nothing to worry about, but it is carrying over from last season and you can only blame shots against for so long before you have to admit that he just hasn't been good enough. Fortunately his club has been able to outscore those deficiencies, but again that won't last forever.

Raise your hand if you said before the season started that Tom Pyatt would have 3 points in 4 games and lead all forwards with a +4 rating. If you have your hand up, you are lying.

I have never been a big fan of Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone playing together. They way Pyatt and Ryan Dzingel have been playing, if things start to go sideways I wouldn't hesitate to mix the lines up and go Hoffman - Turris - Dzingel; Pyatt - Brassard - Ryan and Smith - Pageau - Stone. If the last trio can recapture what they had at the tail end of last season, that should be three pretty dynamic lines that you could play pretty evenly, and mix in Chris Kelly and Chris Neil when needed.

It will be interesting to see how long Curtis Lazar's stay in Binghamton will be. The BSens play Friday night and Saturday night, which will only be their second and third games of the season. Lazar missed most of camp with mono and is still working back into game shape but if things continue as they are for the big club I would just let Lazar stay down there and work on his offensive game to see if he can recapture some of the touch that has so far eluded him at the pro level. It is something that I was pretty vocal about last season, and he is still young enough to reap some benefit even if he is an NHL caliber player in other aspects of his game. The Senators now have Chris Kelly back in the lineup, so the don't need the "next Chris Kelly" out of Lazar. Heck, I think the Senators and their fans would be satisfied with getting the "next Mike Fisher" out of him when he eventually returns.

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