Jean-Pierre Allard shares some thoughts about the Senators, their ownership and the local media corps in the wake of the Dany Heatley debacle now that the snivelling sniper has been traded to San Jose, where the man-to-woman ratio at bars is typically 4:1. (Good thing he's a got a girlfriend in California, if that story is true.) J.P. also warned in July that the Good Ship Melnyk is sailing into some choppy waters, with a broken rudder.I've gone back and read all the microfiches of the Heatley era here in Want-out-tawa and have not found one single critical comment written by, the Ottawa Six Scribes (TOSS) (other than he failed to score 50 goals or is a lousy shootout driver). It cannot be that Dany Boy wanted out for the "Uh Oh" Corvo factor. Nor was he ever verbally promised a renegotiation if he scored 40 goals for a truly lousy team in a season where they had a junior coach, Craig Hartsburg, so it can't be explained by the "Yashin-Sexton line."
Nor was Heater ever embarrassed by the team dressing him in a nurse's outfit, so forget the Daigle angle. There is no way that he is pissed at the team for re-signing three-goal man Chris Neil or for not trading Jason Spezza before his no-trade clause kicked in July 1, though these would explain everything about him uninviting himself from the Spezza nuptials. I could not find anything to the effect that Heatley was miffed that the team had a parade for winning a big fat can of air, before playing the Ducks in the 2007 Stanley Cup final.
Nowhere was there anything about him voicing his displeasure about the team taking Ray Emery's job away from him when he was hurt and bad-mouthing him around the league. I thought I had seen something about Heatley pleading with John Muckler, whom owner Eugene Melnyk later fired for finishing second in the a 30-team league, to keep Zdeno Chara instead Wade Redden in 2006, but that was in a non-confirmed blog of twits and two-facebookies.
Apparently, Heatley almost did a spit-take with his Starbucks coffee when he read that Mike Fisher was crowned King in this town with the astronomical salary he was given to score 13 lousy goals. This has not been confirmed either but he absolutely loathed hearing "shutdown defenceman" and "Chris Phillips" in the same sentence.
So my guess is that when Professor Bryan Murray heard that Inspector Cory Clouston was gonna wait to see the white of Dany's eyes before deciding if he was a type-A personality (as in alternate captain), he figured he better talk to him the day before "tanning camp" opened.
When he saw Heatley's lazy eye had not perked up, he had no choice but to tell the Hogtown Horseman (Melnyk) that he had to trade him. Never mind that Heater would have been an Oiler for two freaking months by then, had he decided to play on the NHL's best ice surface and for the worst GM.
Before pulling the trigger on a trade that did not include Patrick Marleau, Ryane Clowe or one of those, what are they called, defencemen (19-year-old Erik Karlsson will instantly become the Eastern Conference's answer to Nicklas Lidström, I forgot), he sent his two loyal lieutenants to have a cheap breakfast at IKEA with the ingrate. Heatley quickly asked Captain Alfie if he could piggyback on him when he rides his skidoo to practice next winter. When Daniel said no to his brother Dany, the soon-to-be Shark then turned to Phillips if he could ride shotgun in his SUV and number 4 said: Don't even think about it.
That's when the differences became "irreconcilable."
Seriously, judging from the Senators organization's dubious track record in money games, plus all the tasteless promotions, questionable personnel decisions and horrendous mismanagement of its star players, could it be that maybe, just maybe Dany Heatley took a long and profound look at the big picture and decided he wanted no part of this team while his career was still in its peak years?
Who knows. Here's hoping that some astute member of the media will pull the story from him one day.
This is the one and only time I will be chiming in this season. On the advice offered by CBC Sports boss Scott Moore during last spring's playoffs and decided to take up gardening. Apparently, this sport is less hectic and physically easier than watching NHL, especially when you have to get up and change the channel every time Don "Disgraceful" Cherry comes on or an Ultimate Boxing Event breaks out.
Where have you gone, Davey Keon?
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15 comments:
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more like rusty rotting nails. Seriously, there is nothing of substance in this article...where's Sager when you need him?
Sager is telling people that negative comments should at least be backed up by a name, otherwise it's chickenshit.
J.P., once again you are all over the map. Are you truly suggesting that Heatley wanted out because of alleged mistreatment of Ray Emery? Emery was given a contract extension and the number one job after his run to the Finals - where was the mistreatment? You have tried this line before about Emery somehow being a victim, and it is wildly unpursuasive.
You might be closer to the truth if you are suggesting he was angry about Fisher, although I would submit the better phrase is "jealous". He was even more jealous of Alfie - jealous of the leadership role he had on the team, and jealous of the respect he has in the community. Ditto for Fish - Fisher is beloved in the community because he actually works hard in it and tries to be a part of it. Besides, Fisher will drop the mitts occasionally and plays a physical game - the next hard hit Heatley lays will be his first.
If Dany wanted to feel the love from his teammates and the city, perhaps he could have tried rolling up his sleeves and actually embracing it.
You don't get handed the captaincy in the NHL on demand, nor do you get to tell the head coach how much and when you wish to play. Those are two things Heatley wanted here, and he sulked when he didn't get them.
Ron Hextall nailed it - this is the second city in which Heatley has pulled this stunt. The fact that he whined his way out of this city as well shows that his move from Atlanta was motivated less by the Dan Snyder tragedy than it was out of the fact that Dany was bored, and wanted a new gig. He is the Belinda Stronach of the NHL.
Oh, and if Dany Heatley is looking for someone to blame for the fact that the Stanley Cup didn't come here in 2007, I have a very large mirror in my garage into which he can gaze. One goal, zero assists in five Cup Final games. Yep, sure sounds to me like a guy who can call his own shot on ice time.
Heatley was a douche before he was in Ottawa, while he was in Ottawa and will be wherever he goes. So why was everyone so upset and shocked when his true douchey colours shone through?
The Senators, of course, should be completely exempt from criticism. It's not like they went from first overall in the NHL in 2006 and Stanley Cup finalists in 2007 to being an also-ran team in 2009 which didn't even gain any cap space, or a serviceable blueliner, from the Heatley shit show.
Oh, wait.
Enjoy the "Fall for Taylor Hall," Sens fans.
Things may not be as bad as all that, Neate. If Leclaire can stay healthy, the Senators will immediately be better just by virtue of solid goaltending. They also have some impressive young players on the back end, and some balance on the first two lines. Last year, Ottawa might have had the thinnest team in the league past the first line - with Kovalev, Michalek and Cheechoo coming in, that is no longer the case. Toss in the fact that the Eastern Conference is significantly weaker than the West right now, and it is wide open. I'm not calling them Cup contenders, but I think they'll be in the mix for one of the last few playoff spots in the East.
I would like to use this space for more than debating whether the Senators are a playoff team. Counting on a weak field and Leclaire being able to play 60 games are thin threads.
He played 54 games with a 2.25 GAA for Columbus in '07-08 and that teammissed the playoffs.
Kovalev will put 25 goals, 60 points and flake off the rest of the time. Michalek will be a tourist too.
Outside shot at a playoff berth, tops.I
J.P. is going to dump all over the Sens regardless of their record - don't we cheerleaders get equal time? :-)
Good point, Dennis ...
There are so few places for Senators cheerleaders to go except for the Sun, Citizen, Team 1200, CTV Ottawa, A-Channel and the bigger Senators blogs. Ha-ha-ha.
I really think this team will do fine maybe better then expected.There ina very weak northeast the only strong team is boston.
I told you assholes they wouldn't get anything for heatley.
Sens are fucked this year.
Sens were "fucked" last year WITH Heatley.
Sure Ottawa will miss his goal scoring but the Senators won't miss his can't check his own hat work ethic.
And as far as all of us being "assholes"...well Alex, you're judged by the company you keep.
Alex
In fact many beleave ottawa is in better shape then last year.A much depper offense a up and comming defense and goaltending the best they have ever had.Will they be a top team no but they could contend.
"Fail for Taylor Hall", Neate? We should dust stuff like this off once in a while to see how it wears after a couple of weeks. Granted, we are only six games in, but the Senators are 4-2, and are giving every indication that they will at least be in the mix this season. The fact that they rebounded nicely from laying an egg against the Penguins is a good sign.
The Heatley trade is working out about like you might expect. The Sens got one very useful player, Michalek, but to get him we had to take on a painfully obvious salary dump in Cheechoo.
Doogie Howser might just be a Jack Adams candidate yet.
You can always a tell an Ottawa fan, you just can't tell him anything.
Dennis, you're a smart guy ... 6/82 works about the same as making a call on a NFL team after the first quarter of Week 2.
I withhold judgment really until the quarter-pole. I hope you're right, really I do. I also notice the Senators' four wins are over three franchises about to go under (Islanders, Thrashers, Lightning) and one (Maple Leafs) which is the league laughingstock but still a licence to print money.
Please keep in mind in October and Nov. of 2006, everyone was angsty about the Senators -- and they went to the Cup finals.
In October and November 2007, the Senators were being compared with the late 1970s Montreal Canadiens. They were swept in the first round.
Long story short, Mr. Eugene's fingerprints are all over this gong show. The Senators might lose millions this season, too, not that the eunuchs in the local media will touch that with a 39 1/2-foot hockey stick.
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