Kevin Francis: Can DJ Smith push the right buttons for Ottawa tomorrow night?!

4-2 Boston, if Zeitsev plays 5-2, then Sens lose VS the Caps 5-4, they most likely lose VS ARI too then Smith will get fired hopefully.

4-2 Boston, if Zeitsev plays 5-2, then Sens lose VS the Caps 5-4, they most likely lose VS ARI too then Smith will get fired hopefully.
- Mithos

Well the Yotes are up 2-0 late second period on the Leafs.....

4-2 Boston, if Zeitsev plays 5-2, then Sens lose VS the Caps 5-4, they most likely lose VS ARI too then Smith will get fired hopefully.
- Mithos

Ottawa catches Boston off a game tonight at home....Bruins currently up 2-1 on FL.

Ottawa catches Boston off a game tonight at home....Bruins currently up 2-1 on FL.
- Kevin Francis

it will be home ice for OTT yet boston is gonna have last change

it will be home ice for OTT yet boston is gonna have last change
- Mithos

Everyone see how Boston has started quite nicely 3-0. I can see Ottawa losing to a very well coached Boston team. I’ll be betting against ottawa as long DJ is your coach

I didn't mind Zub being on the bench in the last few minutes because Ottawa needed to score. Zub is not an offensive minded defenseman. I mean, I am still not sold on Brannstrom even being an NHL player, but if he's supposed to be an offensive d-man, then yeah, if you're down, you bring him out if you want to score. Zub's job is to keep the score the same.

"Mark Kastelic is playing over six minutes of even strength time against the Matthews line..." I don't see how that's bad? Mathews had 7 shots and zero goals. That's why Kastelic was on the ice and stayed on the ice. He was containing the current best goal scorer in the league. Even the play-by-play guys kept saying that Kastelic was keeping it simple and proving he belongs in the NHL. The only point Matthews got was the assist on the powerplay... which I personally found ca-ca because Marner tripped Norris with his skate (almost a slew-foot), and it didn't help Sanderson didn't take away the passing lane. He just stood in the middle and reacted to the pass too late. But either way, Kastelic was great in that game. I'd rather he be out on the PK than Josh Norris. Saying that, I fully admit I don't know Norris' full skillset. I just view him as a sniper.


Unrelated to everything - Colin White has 4 points in 3 games.

I see that Arizona beat TO. Boston won their game and Washington has been doing well. I don't think you can really judge to many teams casually. There's always a bit of luck involved with this game and if you get the bounces you can win games you have no business winning and vice versa. Not much you can do when it comes to the hockey gods!

I personally think the coaching position is very important and I don't think Smith is a good NHL coach. That doesn't mean I don't like the guy. I remember watching them when Duclair, Tkachuk and Logan Brown looked to me like they were going to be an awesome line for years to come. Smith was able to keep a weak, losing team motivated and I always enjoyed their effort.

Things are different now. The Sens are ready to play with the big boys but unfortunately their coach is not. It's impossible to predict how this homestand will go because there's just no telling who will be in the final lineup, how the players will be deployed and what kind of coaching instructions they will have received.

I'd like to see Brassard rather than Kelly. Motte on the fourth line and definitely not on any PP. If you don't want to play Holden for some reason then bring up JBD or Thomson since you have the last change. Chabot plays no more than 24 minutes and tell him that so he knows he doesn't have to save his energy.

For the love of God hire a defensive coach advisor or something so that these guys have some idea of what's expected of them in their own end. It might be an idea to also hire an offensive coach advisor who can take advantage of the team's speed to break out of their own end, move through the neutral zone effectively and attack in the O zone with some kind of workable strategy.

Playing a dump and chase game with DeBrincat, Norris and Giroux? Come on! Even I know that's stupid.

I'll just leave it there.

I see Connor Brown is on the 4th line in Washiington getting 10 min. a night playing with Dowd and Hathaway......wow, he cant be happy!!

Everyone see how Boston has started quite nicely 3-0. I can see Ottawa losing to a very well coached Boston team. I’ll be betting against ottawa as long DJ is your coach
- PuckPix

The difference is Boston has a legit NHL coach and Ottawa doesn't. Look at what Jim M. has done for the Bruins to start the year. Incredible how the contrast in 2 coaches can mean far different results......

I didn't mind Zub being on the bench in the last few minutes because Ottawa needed to score. Zub is not an offensive minded defenseman. I mean, I am still not sold on Brannstrom even being an NHL player, but if he's supposed to be an offensive d-man, then yeah, if you're down, you bring him out if you want to score. Zub's job is to keep the score the same.

"Mark Kastelic is playing over six minutes of even strength time against the Matthews line..." I don't see how that's bad? Mathews had 7 shots and zero goals. That's why Kastelic was on the ice and stayed on the ice. He was containing the current best goal scorer in the league. Even the play-by-play guys kept saying that Kastelic was keeping it simple and proving he belongs in the NHL. The only point Matthews got was the assist on the powerplay... which I personally found ca-ca because Marner tripped Norris with his skate (almost a slew-foot), and it didn't help Sanderson didn't take away the passing lane. He just stood in the middle and reacted to the pass too late. But either way, Kastelic was great in that game. I'd rather he be out on the PK than Josh Norris. Saying that, I fully admit I don't know Norris' full skillset. I just view him as a sniper.


Unrelated to everything - Colin White has 4 points in 3 games.
- PogBoi

First off, nice to see Colin White being deployed properly and have a coach that has confidence in him. He could never do anything correct under DJ. I will never forget how DJ made him a healthy scratch for 6 games so he could play Cedric Paquette and Artem Anisimov!

The Kastelic thing isn't sustainable.....sorry but not a chance. An inexp. 4th liner against the other teams top line wont continue. That is the problem with this coach, he will get outcoached every damn night with stuff like this. Lets put Kastelic out against McDavid or McKinnon too while we are at it lol! What a joke.

I see that Arizona beat TO. Boston won their game and Washington has been doing well. I don't think you can really judge to many teams casually. There's always a bit of luck involved with this game and if you get the bounces you can win games you have no business winning and vice versa. Not much you can do when it comes to the hockey gods!

I personally think the coaching position is very important and I don't think Smith is a good NHL coach. That doesn't mean I don't like the guy. I remember watching them when Duclair, Tkachuk and Logan Brown looked to me like they were going to be an awesome line for years to come. Smith was able to keep a weak, losing team motivated and I always enjoyed their effort.

Things are different now. The Sens are ready to play with the big boys but unfortunately their coach is not. It's impossible to predict how this homestand will go because there's just no telling who will be in the final lineup, how the players will be deployed and what kind of coaching instructions they will have received.

I'd like to see Brassard rather than Kelly. Motte on the fourth line and definitely not on any PP. If you don't want to play Holden for some reason then bring up JBD or Thomson since you have the last change. Chabot plays no more than 24 minutes and tell him that so he knows he doesn't have to save his energy.

For the love of God hire a defensive coach advisor or something so that these guys have some idea of what's expected of them in their own end. It might be an idea to also hire an offensive coach advisor who can take advantage of the team's speed to break out of their own end, move through the neutral zone effectively and attack in the O zone with some kind of workable strategy.

Playing a dump and chase game with DeBrincat, Norris and Giroux? Come on! Even I know that's stupid.

I'll just leave it there.
- Whatisavailable

What I find comical is looking at Josh Brown's first 3 games in AZ under Tourigny, 17:38 with a -1, 22:23 +1 and 1 G, 18:44 +1. Like how is that happening?! Oh wait, he is actually getting NHL coaching! End of story.

I agree with you on the dump and chase crap.

I would love to see a guy like Wade Redden elevated to asst. coach status once DJ and Jack Capuano are fired! As for an offensive guy, Todd White is doing nothing....bring him in....anything is better than what they have! Great post my friend.

Sens have the Bruins and Stars both 3-0 coming to town in the next 6 days, plus a 2-2 Caps team. Many thought the Yotes would be an easy win, but they are 1-2. It's the Wild who are struggling at 0-3 that come to town in 10 days.

Sens have the Bruins and Stars both 3-0 coming to town in the next 6 days, plus a 2-2 Caps team. Many thought the Yotes would be an easy win, but they are 1-2. It's the Wild who are struggling at 0-3 that come to town in 10 days.
- Kevin Francis

If Ottawa goes 1-4 or 2-3 on that homestand, you can bet DJ will be the first head coach to be fired.

it will be home ice for OTT yet boston is gonna have last change
- Mithos

That is so true, as all of us cappers saw that last year. He ruined his own team last change, it was beyond comical watching him ruin yet another game for Ottawa.

So many of these silly story lines revert back to the coach.

So many of these silly story lines revert back to the coach.
- Octavarium

Your coach contradicts himself for three years in which he says one thing then a few games later does the opposite of what he said he wouldn’t do. I can’t believe he still has an NHL job

I'm expecting a big game from the top 6 forward group tonight. The team should be pumped as the building will be full. Hoping for a W tonight!

Wondering what it would take to trade for Shayne Gostisbehere to pair him up with Brannstrom.

I think right now the sens have two fowards duo whom have showned chemistry at a certain level:
Stutzle + Batherson
Giroux + Debrincat

Dj should move thing around a bit around those weird left field idea of :

Norris- Stutzle- Batherson
Tkachuk - Giroux - Debrincat
Brassard - Pinto - Joshep
Motte - Kastelic - Watson

Sutzle and batherson who are more of playmaker puck carrier type of player get a scoring winger

Giroux and Debincat who need space to get the TIC Tac Toe going get a huge net front presence

Pinto and joseph get a responsable veteran foward who can score if need be.

4th line gets motte who should not take stupid penalty in the neutral zone. wich it self would be a win

Def should look like
Chabot Zub - +- 22 min a game
Sanderson-Hamonic -19 min a game
Gostisbehere - Brannstrom - 19 min a game

Carried over from the last thread...

This isn't a country club. An NHL coach has to prepare his team for the challenge of winning games at the NHL level, and translate raw individual talent into team results on the ice. DJ was undeniably successful at establishing a more cohesive locker room and culture of work ethic, but he also had the benefit of low expectations. But now there are clear expectations for this roster, and the team can only tolerate a coach that's the weak link in the chain for so long. Players are here to win, and it's really the only benchmark that matters.

Put it another way, how close to another 4-15-1 start are you comfortable with before action becomes necessary? Can they really afford to torch another entire NHL season because of another terrible start, or because of how easily other teams exploit his lack of game strategy? Personally, I think DJ has maybe 10 games to prove he can get the team moving in the right direction, and that anything less than 4 wins in that timeframe will cost him his job.

The Kastelic thing isn't sustainable...
- Kevin Francis

No one said it was. You always harp on DJ for saying, "the best players will play" but not following through. Kastelic held Matthews off the scoresheet 5-on-5. So of course he will continue that because they couldn't do anything dangerous with Kastelic on the ice for that game. If DJ keeps putting out Kastelic against top lines and gets burned, then we know he's a fool, but Kastelic had Matthews number that game. The best player played. It's also early in the season where you can test players out. Kastelic passed that test with flying colours imo. Now it's up to DJ/Kastelic to see if that one a one-off or if Kastelic is a consistent shut-down kinda player.

The team is playing well, they just have not gotten the results. Crapping on defensive structure with only 2 games played when Forsberg has a 2.56 GAA and .924 save percentage is a tad silly.

If Kastelic is an "inexperienced 4th liner" and shouldn't get time against the top line (again, in that game, he was great against T.O.'s top line)... yet you want JDB/Thomson on the ice, who are inexperienced bottom pairing D, because they had a good preseason? They'll be up here eventually with injuries/trades I'm sure, but... it's been 2 games. Relax. Breathe. They'll have their time to see if they're ready/mature enough to handle NHL minutes. If Sens start playing like Minnesota, then yeah, heads will need to start rolling.

No one said it was. You always harp on DJ for saying, "the best players will play" but not following through. Kastelic held Matthews off the scoresheet 5-on-5. So of course he will continue that because they couldn't do anything dangerous with Kastelic on the ice for that game. If DJ keeps putting out Kastelic against top lines and gets burned, then we know he's a fool, but Kastelic had Matthews number that game. The best player played. It's also early in the season where you can test players out. Kastelic passed that test with flying colours imo. Now it's up to DJ/Kastelic to see if that one a one-off or if Kastelic is a consistent shut-down kinda player.

The team is playing well, they just have not gotten the results. Crapping on defensive structure with only 2 games played when Forsberg has a 2.56 GAA and .924 save percentage is a tad silly.

If Kastelic is an "inexperienced 4th liner" and shouldn't get time against the top line (again, in that game, he was great against T.O.'s top line)... yet you want JDB/Thomson on the ice, who are inexperienced bottom pairing D, because they had a good preseason? They'll be up here eventually with injuries/trades I'm sure, but... it's been 2 games. Relax. Breathe. They'll have their time to see if they're ready/mature enough to handle NHL minutes. If Sens start playing like Minnesota, then yeah, heads will need to start rolling.
- PogBoi

Great post. All valid points.

No one said it was. You always harp on DJ for saying, "the best players will play" but not following through. Kastelic held Matthews off the scoresheet 5-on-5. So of course he will continue that because they couldn't do anything dangerous with Kastelic on the ice for that game. If DJ keeps putting out Kastelic against top lines and gets burned, then we know he's a fool, but Kastelic had Matthews number that game. The best player played. It's also early in the season where you can test players out. Kastelic passed that test with flying colours imo. Now it's up to DJ/Kastelic to see if that one a one-off or if Kastelic is a consistent shut-down kinda player.

The team is playing well, they just have not gotten the results. Crapping on defensive structure with only 2 games played when Forsberg has a 2.56 GAA and .924 save percentage is a tad silly.

If Kastelic is an "inexperienced 4th liner" and shouldn't get time against the top line (again, in that game, he was great against T.O.'s top line)... yet you want JDB/Thomson on the ice, who are inexperienced bottom pairing D, because they had a good preseason? They'll be up here eventually with injuries/trades I'm sure, but... it's been 2 games. Relax. Breathe. They'll have their time to see if they're ready/mature enough to handle NHL minutes. If Sens start playing like Minnesota, then yeah, heads will need to start rolling.
- PogBoi

A+, especially as it relates to Kastelic, a rookie playing head to head against Matthews one to the premier centres in the league.

Smith says Kastelic is going to get some ice time against Bergeron tonight.

I am pulling for the kid. Love his size and his style. He make the opposing centre work really hard for every inch of ice.

so we just forgetting about Alex Formenton ? wtf!

so we just forgetting about Alex Formenton ? wtf!
- AlfieisKing

Right? That is such a non story right now. And its shocking the player and agent are so quiet about. I guess everyone assumes he is guilty/gone.