"Lady Luck is in the building and she is wearing red!"

Gord Wilson was right; Lady Luck was on the side of the Ottawa Senators last night, but that wasn't the only factor in defeating the Bruins to the tune of 4-1.

The Ottawa Senators came off of a disappointing western road swing with 3 of a possible 8 points, but had a spark in their last game against the Coyotes with Mike Fisher's two goals that lead them to a victory. The number one issues on the road was that Bryan Murray had just taken the position of coach back after firing John Paddock from the position and there was little time to have a full practice with the Senators.

Tuesday's game against the Boston Bruins looked like the Murray coaching system was put back into place as very few mistakes occurred, yet when they did there was a second effort to correct or make up for the mistake. The Ottawa Senators were hard on the man as much as they were hard on the puck winning the small battles against the boards while busting the trap of the Bruins more often than not.

Goaltender Martin Gerber was absolutely stellar last night giving his team a chance to pelt the Bruins netminder (Auld) to the tune of 32 shots leading to 3 goals on him and 1 empty netter to complete the hattrick for Dany Heatley.

All in all, this was a quality game by the Ottawa Senators to show the fans and the league that being middle of the pack is a dangerous spot for this club. They may be six points from the eight spot and sliding into the obscurity that only the Toronto Maple Leafs are used to, but they are also only 2 points behind the conference leading Montreal Canadiens. Maybe Lady Luck can transfer some of the puck luck from the home arena to the Bell Centre on Thursday and push the Sens over the Habs for a tying drive at first. I would be absolutely beside myself watching my childhood team and current time pressing hard to one up one another for the top spot.

Once the playoffs begin...

This phrase seems to spark a lot of hope for the Senators fans 'round here. "Once the playoffs begins..." we should see the team rejuvenated; "As soon as the playoffs being..." they'll find their feet again; any variation on the hopes of playoff production will really fit into this lump, but unfortunately, this is a fan base that puts a lot of hope and prayer into their team.

Reading the posts on the Internet about the Senators and the woes that the team is dragging themselves through is tiring. The posts kind of remind me of those Q-Ray bracelets that you see mid-day on the crappy TV stations that attempt to hook in some slob without much of a hope in the world. Both are gimmicks to help encourage the user to believe in something that may or may not work.

Back to my remark about the Senators dragging themselves through these woes for a moment. On paper this team should be one of the best teams in the league. They have the top scoring line with some of the top defence both on and off the blue line and two starting goaltenders. Off paper and into reality they have very little focus and absolutely no determination. Sure, the interviews all sound amazing with promises of being better, but perhaps it's just simply time to stop doing interviews to give hollow hope to the Q-Ray fans and start actually doing something about it.

The playoffs are not a magic pill. The fans are saying it enough to lead me to believe that they are hoping for the cure to the disease known as the Senators Skid, but that cure isn't an externalized thing. To fix what has happened with the Senators from midway through November to the present day will come from within. They must look to themselves and sort out exactly what it is they believe in. It doesn't matter what that is, but each member of the team must buy into that belief and strive to grasp it. That sounds rather simple and in all truthfulness it is that simple ...

Perhaps the Ottawa Senators, like their fans, believe that getting into the playoffs will cure everything. With only a dozen or so games remaining in the regular season, however, the Senators and the fans need to come to grips with reality; this team may not make the playoffs if delusions continue.

Arena to Arena ... is there a level playing surface?

Last night the Ottawa Senators played in the city of the Ducks; they lost to the tune of 3-1. The big story wasn't how the Ducks played or how the Senators were robbed by J.S. Giguere, but rather that the Ottawa Senators bench boss was ejected from the game late in the third period. Bryan Murray was absolutely ticked off with with how the game was being officiated and this sentiment has been echoed in the media before.

Gord Wilson (colour commentator for the Ottawa Senators on SportsNet and/or Team 1200 broadcasts) echoed the fans on a televised broadcast just recently when he questioned the officiating. He again did the same on a radio broadcast a few days later when he brought up Stephane Auger's persistence to call an often tighter than tight game. As a fan, I have felt quite miffed at the officiating that seems to go against my team, but I truly don't think it is the referees against the Ottawa Senators, but I do believe that there is a lot of inconsistency.

Depending on which Arena you are in and which officials are picked for the game the outcome can be vastly different. The officials for the NHL are not only there to provide a fair and neutral playing surface for the players, but I believe they are there to ensure fairness to help keep fans interested. Last night was a tough game to watch for the Sens fans not only because of the lateness of the game, but because the Senators were bullied into the ice with cross-checking, boarding and hits from behind that all went uncalled. There simply is no consistency with officials in the NHL city to city.

Bryan Murray wanted to talk to the league about the officiating and with his ejection from the game last night he will certainly have the chance. If the NHL wants to continue to grow they must flatten the playing surface with the referees and ensure that what is called in Ottawa is called in Detroit. What is a cross-check in Montreal is a cross-check in Los Angles.

Pens @ Sens

To be fair, the Senators did play better, but like the captain said in the post game interviews ... they could have been better.

Yesterday afternoon’s game against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins was a good game to watch from about 11:30 onward in the first period. Before that it seemed as though the fans at Scotiabank Place were content to sit on their hands and give no emotional surge to the building. It wasn’t until after the TV time out around that time that the Senators woke up and started going to work; Gonchar must have wished he wasn’t on the ice last night.

The energy level was ramped up and the hitting was reflective of the frustration, determination and resolve of the Ottawa Senator. They repeatedly laid the body on the opposition, but most notably on Gonchar. Even young forward Antoine Vermette showed his rough side when he dropped the gloves ... if only he had an assist so he could have gotten a Gordie Howe hattrick. Even the Big Rig, Chris Phillips, decided enough was enough when he took a cheap shot from Pens’ Malkin and almost everyone from each side of the game came flying into the corner to have a say in the matter.

Goals came from not only the big line, but also from Vermette and LaPointe (his first as a Senator) lifting the Senators past the Penguins 5-4. For those things that looked right for the Senators –the big line scoring, secondary scoring, emotion and intensity – there were of course some downsides.

Martin Gerber, arguably, played a good game. He made some fantastic stops, but in Gerber fashion, he also let in some questionable goals. However, this win should prove to be a much needed shot in the arm to the embattled Swiss goalie come Monday night when the Senators get a rematch against the Anaheim Ducks (who last saw them in game five of the Stanley Cup finals).

As for the officiating, I hate to write like I am a Leafs fan or something, but it was absolutely horrible. Stephane Auger has to be one of the biggest mistakes in refereeing along with Bill McCreary. Usually these two dictate the pace and the game so drastically that it is often difficult for the Senators to get a win out because they spend plenty of time in the box. Thankfully the Penguins’ took bonehead penalties like Gonchar’s double crossing checking, but nevertheless, there was still a lot of suspect uncalled infractions that would benefit the Senators (the Gill sweater that Spezza wore as compared to the McAmmond lifting the stick as a hooking call).

All in all, though, this game was much better by the Senators. As it started out there was a lot of soft passing, but this seemed to correct itself. Players went below the goal line in droves, but again this seemed to correct itself. Shots were taken with no traffic ... yup, this too corrected itself. It was a back to basics, hardnosed, well fought effort that lifted the Sens to a victory. Now, all we need is to string together another five or six of these to quiet the naysayers and doubters from inside and outside the fan base.

By the way, Gerber or Emery, I really don’t care who is in net. Both are weak on one side or the other, but both will be more confident and play better with a team that wins.