The big question in my part of the world is ” What is wrong with the Ottawa Senators? ” They have talented players but to be quite honest with you they really really suck. They have fired the General Manager, Coach, Goalie Coach and most of the Assistant Coaches. The new ownership inherited an organisation that was mismanaged and run on a shoe string budget for years. They play well for short periods of time and then they absolutely melt down. The hockey media and pundants are totally at a loss for an answer. So, here is my two cents.
It got me to review my notes from Dr. Bhrett McCabe’s book Break Free From Suckville and I came up with some ideas. Doc McCabe writes that every athlete has a psychological fingerprint. It is composed of genetics and sporting and life experiences. These merge with character to form a framework on how athletes respond to challenge and opportunity. When this fingerprint gets tested with each challenge it is supposed to get refined. In the case of the Senators it gets refined negatively. I think at this point in the season the Management Team is evaluating the players on this team in a number of areas like player disposition, mindset, and how resilient they are. It is important to understand that each player is unique. However, the three areas previously mentioned greatly influence the competitiveness, intelligence, and chemistry of a team. Each player may perform a skill and tactic differently, which is fine as long as it works within the overall team concept and the athlete remains coach-able. A challenge reveals and sharpens the athletes fingerprint. In the case of the Senators it also reveals just how vulnerable they are to challenge and an inability to learn from it.There are a number of Senator players on this list.
So where do they go from here?
The easy answer is to trade this player or buy out that player. However, with no trade and no movement clauses it is easier said than done. Also you need to keep in mind that the whole league is also looking at the team and evaluating who can play and who can not. The continued poor play only drives the value of these players down. The Senators are not sitting in a position of strength.
If it was me I would look at the way Vegas built their hockey club when it was an expansion team. They got assets from other NHL teams that worked with the overall team philosophy. They put a premium on character, followed by hockey IQ, and finally skill. Ottawa for years drafted skill and this team is a result of that. As one of my hockey mentors told me years ago ” never fall in love with talent, it will break your heart”.
“Confidence is believing you can stand up to the challenge combined with the belief you can handle anything that stands before you to free you up to achieve.” Dr. Bhrett McCabe
The Senators need to find players that embody that statement.
It will be an interesting off season.
Until next time!
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Opinions are my own
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