Dionysus
Registered User
Coming out of the 2004-2005 lockout the Sens were one of the top teams in the league, but had been dogged by playoff failures, particularly against the Maple Leafs.
They were in a cap bind as well, with many elite talents causing tough decisions to be made.
In hindsight, it appears they were exceptionally close to a team that could have been a cup contender for years. A couple poor decisions shortened their cup window to 2005-2007.
Trading Hossa for Heatley started their demise. Heatley shone bright for a couple seasons before flaming out. Hossa went on to play in 5 Cup Finals, and continued to be an elite player pretty much until he retired.
Keeping Redden over Chara. At the time both were very good defenceman. It was a tough decision. Chara was apparently not happy with the shady dealings Muckler made in signing Hossa before immediately trading him to Atlanta. He also had a poor playoffs against Buffalo in 05-06.
As we all know, Redden's play tailed off quickly and he was gone by 2008. Chara on the other hand went on to win a Cup and play at a high level into his 40's.
The last big mistake coming out of the lockout was squandering the 9th overall pick on Brian Lee with Anze Kopitar on the board. Three time Cup winner, still playing at a high level.
These three decisions being swapped leaves the Alternate Reality Senators with a powerhouse that could have contended for 10+ years. Viability under the cap would likely take some creativity.
-Kopitar-Hossa
-Spezza-Alfie
Vermette-Fisher-Neil
Chara-Phillips
Volchenkov
All of the poor decisions involved picking North American over a European. Possibly some bias on Muckler's part. The Sens were also thought of as a soft team of euros by many at that time.
Interesting to think about the long-term ramifications of every big decision as this current team goes into a potential off-season of changes.
They were in a cap bind as well, with many elite talents causing tough decisions to be made.
In hindsight, it appears they were exceptionally close to a team that could have been a cup contender for years. A couple poor decisions shortened their cup window to 2005-2007.
Trading Hossa for Heatley started their demise. Heatley shone bright for a couple seasons before flaming out. Hossa went on to play in 5 Cup Finals, and continued to be an elite player pretty much until he retired.
Keeping Redden over Chara. At the time both were very good defenceman. It was a tough decision. Chara was apparently not happy with the shady dealings Muckler made in signing Hossa before immediately trading him to Atlanta. He also had a poor playoffs against Buffalo in 05-06.
As we all know, Redden's play tailed off quickly and he was gone by 2008. Chara on the other hand went on to win a Cup and play at a high level into his 40's.
The last big mistake coming out of the lockout was squandering the 9th overall pick on Brian Lee with Anze Kopitar on the board. Three time Cup winner, still playing at a high level.
These three decisions being swapped leaves the Alternate Reality Senators with a powerhouse that could have contended for 10+ years. Viability under the cap would likely take some creativity.
-Kopitar-Hossa
-Spezza-Alfie
Vermette-Fisher-Neil
Chara-Phillips
Volchenkov
All of the poor decisions involved picking North American over a European. Possibly some bias on Muckler's part. The Sens were also thought of as a soft team of euros by many at that time.
Interesting to think about the long-term ramifications of every big decision as this current team goes into a potential off-season of changes.