It’s been a while, friends.
When I left HockeyBuzz in 2015 after a three-year run as the site’s Tampa Bay Lightning blogger, I wrote that this is truly the best community for hockey discussion on the internet. I believed that then, and I believe it now. It’s why I’m so excited to be back, and didn’t want it to be anywhere else.
While I won’t be covering the Lightning this time around, I am incredibly excited to be picking up where Trevor Shackles left off as the Ottawa Senators blogger. Simply put, he was phenomenal in this role. I understand that the shoes I’m filling this season are large, but I’m also really looking forward to the challenge. Ottawa is one of my favorite cities in the country, so having the opportunity to cover this team at this specific point in time is something I won’t be taking for granted.
Some of you might be asking: “At this specific point in time?… Well, yes. I put up with a lot of long, painful years with the Lightning as a fan before I had the honor of covering them as they grew into the Stanley Cup contender they are today. Assuming I’m the magic x-factor for success, brighter times are on the horizon for Ottawa as well.
Of course, I’m only joking on that last point, but I’m not joking about being excited to cover this group right now. There are a number of young pieces in the system, the 2020 draft is expected to be deep, and there is no better case study in capology and the business of hockey than the present day Ottawa Senators. Those topics, along with what happens on the ice in 2019-2020, are some of things I’m looking forward to writing about here this season. In addition, I'd be remiss if I didn't also say that I'm really looking forward to interacting with all of you on the message boards again, so please stop by to say 'hello'.
Once again, thanks for reading.
Michael Stuart was the Tampa Bay Lightning writer for HockeyBuzz from 2012 to 2015, and has been the Ottawa Senators writer since September 2019. Visit his archive to read more or follow him on Twitter.