Senators place Brian Lee on waivers
In what seemed like an inevitable move, the Ottawa Senators finally placed 23-year-old defenceman Brian Lee on waivers Tuesday morning.
In what seemed like an inevitable move, the Ottawa Senators finally placed 23-year-old defenceman Brian Lee on waivers Tuesday morning.
Lee has spent the last 18 games as a healthy scratch, unable to crack the Senators’ lineup after falling below veteran David Hale on the depth chart.
If he clears waivers, he’ll be sent down to AHL Binghamton.
What happens next is anyone’s guess. Lee is on a one-way contract that pays him $875,000 this year and next, so Ottawa is on the hook financially even if he’s in the minors. The salary cap hit does come off the books, however, which would allow the team to perhaps call up a forward like Bobby Butler to kick-start the struggling offence.
If the Senators do decide to recall him and he’s claimed by another team, they’ll have to pay half his salary and take half the cap hit as well.
Whatever happens, this wasn’t how Lee or the team expected things to go when he signed his new contract last season. In the end, he never lived up to the expectations of being a surprise ninth overall pick in 2005 and is often pointed to as an example of Ottawa’s poor draft performance in recent years.
Comments weren’t open on Mr. Scanlan’s column so adding one here.
John Muckler hasn’t been GM here since the 2006-2007 season.
Does that immediately absolve him of blame or responsibility for his moves? Of course not.
This is Bryan Murray’s team though.
PRetty much every contract, every draft pick, every free agent signing since 2007 (exclude Gerber and a few other notables) have been his decision.
Muckler didn’t go out and sign an aging Jason Smith that was useless.
Muckler didn’t give NTCs to every Tom, Dick & Harry on the team.
Muckler didn’t become obsessed with “good,character guys”.
Muckler didn’t make one of youngest teams in the league into one of the league’s oldest.
Absolutely, the Lee pick was an error. Havlat has never found is Ottawa form elsewhere and Preissing was solid, if marginal, for us.
Corvo, Preissing, those guys were puck-movers.
Remember how important PMDs were, according to Murray?
He had 2-3 of them and let them go in favour of slow, plodding D like Commodore, Smith, etc.
At some point, Murray’s Teflon coating has to take a little beating and some hard questions have to be asked of this man.
I’ve gone to two or three games this season.
That number will go down considerably, to one or none, in 2011 if management doesn’t swallow its pill by being held accountable.
Accountability, remember that word Sens fans?
Too bad management doesn’t.
Two more things.
This team used to be one of the classiest around.
A big part of that was Roy Mlakar.
Sure, “RAM” was sometimes a bit goofy, but he was genuine, classy and approachable. There was a real feeling of warmth around him and Tammy, that made you want to be part of the team, on or off the ice.
When the Ottawa Sentors got mentioned on Jim Rome, it was largely because of “RAM”.
Noise from fans.
Is Scotiabank place a morgue at times?
Sure it is.
How much of that is on us though?
I’m sure it was a lot more exciting during the Pizza Line days. Those days are long gone and I get that, but the Senators are in the entertainment business and a lot of nights they just aren’t that fun to watch.
Put it this way:
If I go see a band, I expect the band to get me out of my seat and rockin’. I took my friend to see Hole/Courtney Love and though he said it wasn’t his type of music and he wouldn’t see her again (fair enough) he had fun and he said it was a great concert.
There are some concerts that are just duds though.
Same with the Senators games…some games are going to have tons of atmosphere, some are going to be a dog’s breakfast.
I get what you’re saying, but the team has a lot to do with the excitement level.
So does the scoreboard… :p