Why Zdeno Chara Left Ottawa?

Senators Flashback: July 1st 2006.

Zdeno Chara officially leaves Ottawa and signs with Boston. A future Norris trophy winner, gone with no compensation. The Sens had tried to negotiate with Chara but he and his agent were being inexplicably difficult.

In February 2006, former GM John Muckler asked his agent what it would take to get an extension done. His agent basically said, make us an offer. We'll see how it stacks up with the rest. Wade Redden offered him $500,000 per season to stay, to keep the team together.

Chara didn't have much of a playoff earlier that year, nursing a hand injury. So keeping Redden over Chara wasn't as outrageous as it seems now. But now we may have an explanation as to why Chara, who seemed to really like Ottawa, had such little interest in signing here.

Chara is tight with teammate Marion Hossa, a fellow Slovak. Apparently, according to a source quoted in Wayne Scanlan's column in today's Ottawa Citizen, Chara was livid that Muckler had taken his friend out at the knees a year earlier. Hossa had signed a big new contract with the Sens, assuming that Ottawa was where he would be for the next three years. But the next day, Muckler shipped him off to Atlanta for Dany Heatley. That led to every half decent player in the league demanding no trade clauses in their contract. As a result, according to the source, an angry Chara vowed not to re-sign with Ottawa.

So, had Muckler not made that deal, Hossa might still be here, we wouldn't have had any of the Heatley nonsense and Chara might have re-signed here. Oh, what might have been. Uh, don't worry, Milan Michalek...no pressure.

5 Steps to Senators Success

As the Ottawa Senators’ disappointing season continues, there’s been no shortage of diagnoses and suggested remedies. Local newspapers are handing out poor grades as if the players were school children. Our talk shows point out the many ways the team is brutal. The wind of change is about to blow.

But let’s set aside the futures of Cory Clouston and Bryan Murray for a moment and take stock of the Senators' talent pool. While some want to trade the entire roster to Siberia, I still think there’s plenty to salvage from this roster. In fact, I think the club can return to contention with just five steps.

That’s right. Five. Maybe it's not achieveable in just one calendar year – curse you, salary cap. But that’s what it will take.

Steps 1 and 2. Two scoring wingers to play with a healthy Jason Spezza. I have not been Jason Spezza’s biggest fan but the Sens’ 1-8 record in his absence speaks for itself.

In 2007, the Sens won the East with only one scoring line. In 20 playoff games that year, not one Senator had more than 10 points, except for the big three. But the non-scorers were all quality characters who’d go through a wall for you. I believe that’s still the case today. They simply cannot do anything without a scoring line like they had in '07. They must properly replace Dany Heatley and, not too long from now, Daniel Alfredsson.

As I sat and watched the 3-1 loss last night, I saw a team working hard, giving limited chances to the Washington Capitals through two periods. For their efforts, the Sens led just 1-0 after 40. In better days, the Senators would score three or four in a game like that, breaking their opponent’s will.

Naturally, scoring will also make the defence better. The blueline could then return to playing with confidence, knowing the team can survive a mistake or two. As it is now, they have no room for error, leading to the Sens’ D consistently handling the puck like it’s a landmine. That said, my Step 3 is a mean, physical, shot blocking defenceman. Yes, they miss what Anton Volchenkov used to bring, although I don’t think Volchenkov will be physically capable of doing it for much longer.

Step 4. A Proven Goalie. The free agent crown jewel? Ilya Bryzgalov. The Coyotes said this week re-signing him is a priority. But if talks should bog down, the Sens should jump on the 30 year old July 1st at 12:01am. Bryzgalov is in the midst of his 4th straight season as a legitimate star goalie in the league. Martin Gerber and Pascal Leclaire were both one season wonders when the Sens scooped them up.

The fall back position? Florida’s Tomas Vokoun. He’s grumbling right now about losing starts to backup Scott Clemmensen, which won’t help the Panthers re-sign him. Just 35 years old, he’s still rolling with a .920 save percentage this season. By the time he’s deemed too old, you’d hope that Robin Lehner is ready for prime time. Just to be on the safe side, I’ll go ahead and draft another goalie this summer with the second rounder I’ll acquire for someone at the deadline.

Step 5. Dump the current centurion. I'm deadly serious.

They brought New Sen guy in right after the Stanley Cup final berth. New Sen guy may be way more impressive but he's done nothing. He's unlucky and useless. He looks a little arrogant too, like, "Hey, look at me. I'm a handsome superhero! Check out my sassy cape. I'm gonna save the day! Remember me in 300? Blah blah blah." The guy thinks he's too cool for school. Old Sens guy isn't pretentious. Sure, he won't look you in the eye but he's a simple, hard-working, no-frills gladiator who takes nothing for granted. He'd kick new Sen guy's ass.

Do all this (at least the first four steps), remove the obvious overpaid deadwood ASAP and you've got yourself a contender again.