A “Force United” No More, Jason Spezza Is Paying the Price

By Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter… When you visited the Ottawa Senators website last season the Senators slogan, “A Force United,” was very prevalent. This season, the slogan has disappeared from the site and with it has gone Dany Heatley’s scoring and Jason Spezza’s status as an elite NHL player.

Through 20 games, Spezza has an alarming one goal to show for his efforts. To be fair, Spezza has always been more of an assists guy, but, having scored 32 goals in 2008-09, 34 goals in 2007-08, and 34 goals in 2006-07, Spezza is far off his usual 30-goal pace.

When Dany Heatley departed for San Jose this summer, there were two schools of thought on Jason Spezza. First, he would find a renewed passion for the game and instant chemistry with free agent acquisition Alex Kovalev, re-establishing himself as one of the NHL’s best puck distributors, keeping the nay-sayers at bay.

The flip-side was less than complimentary. Many prognosticators felt that the departure of Heatley would spell doom for Spezza, citing Heatley’s ability to deposit the puck as the true reason for Spezza’s success, and not Spezza’s passing skills.

When you look at the numbers, it would appear as if those that sided with Heatley’s scoring abilities outweighing Spezza’s passing were correct. Sure, through 20 games, Spezza has 12 assists, which puts him on pace to register 40 plus assists on the season. That is well in line with his 41 assist performance in 2008-09, but well off his 58 assists in 2007-08 and 53 assists in 2006-07, not to mention his 73 assists in 2005-06.

For many Senator fans, it is not the depletion of points that has them concerned, it is the lack of creativity with the puck, and the lack of cohesion with his teammates that is most troubling.

Spezza and Heatley were household names for the better part of six seasons with the Senators, and were regarded within NHL circles as one of the League’s fieriest combinations.

Now, with Heatley gone, Spezza has failed to rediscover the magic that he once shared with Heatley. And with Heatley not missing a beat alongside San Jose’s Joe Thornton, Spezza’s lack of scoring has been exposed.

Chemistry is a funny thing. At the best of times a combination such as Heatley and Spezza seems invincible. That said, when you take one or the other out of their comfort zone with new teammates, it has the potential for disaster.

The Senators are in a tough spot with Spezza. His inability to gel with his current linemates makes him a target to be traded. But Spezza’s lofty $8 million cap hit in 2009-10 through 2012-13 ($5 million in 2013-14) makes him almost untradeable.

Lack of performance and a massive salary will likely cost the Senators for years to come. The current landscape of the NHL’s salary cap does not allow teams to absorb deals of Spezza’s magnitude and, based on his performance to date, why would any team want to take such a big risk on Spezza?

For Jason Spezza and the Ottawa Senators, the only friend they have right now is time. Time to find Spezza’s game, time to find some chemistry with his linemates, and time for his contract to expire, which, admittedly, is a lot of time!

Spezza’s lack of results is not solely his fault. A good portion of the blame has to go to his linemates, who, for the most part, have let Spezza down. Alex Kovalev, who was expected to make sweet music with Spezza, has four goals and ten points in 19 games played, a poor showing for a player of Kovalev’s ilk and skills.

With an average of 19:58 in ice-time per game, Spezza is getting premium ice-time with the Sens. Head Coach Cory Clouston has been very patient with Spezza. That said, Spezza’s leash is getting shorter, the collar tighter, and by all accounts, Clouston’s patience, much like Senators general manager Bryan Murray’s, is wearing thin.

With their hands seemingly tied, Sens management will have little choice but to stay the course with their struggling veteran. After all, despite the slogan’s absence, the Senators must remain “a force united.”

Until next time,

Peace!

Francois Beauchemin Flourishing As Shut-Down Defender

by Jon Neely… The stage doesn’t get much bigger than CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada in Toronto on Saturday night. Add in a matchup against the game’s most explosive player, Alexander Ovechkin, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a nationally viewed disaster for a struggling team.

It’s one thing to be the player a coach asks to have the dubious duty of attempting to shut down Ovechkin.

It’s another thing to tell the coach you want to be on the ice every time Ovechkin is; to tell him that you can shut down the league’s best player.

A strong statement, indeed, and one that Francois Beauchemin of the Toronto Maple Leafs made last Saturday night prior to their game against the Washington Capitals.

The Leafs were struggling mightily, last place in the Eastern Conference and coming home after a heart-wrenching shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Not exactly a perfect start coming into a game against the best team in the East.

Before the puck dropped, before the cameras were rolling and the bright lights were shining, and before millions of eyes were focused directly on him, Beauchemin went to coach Ron Wilson and told him that he wanted to go head-to-head against Alex Ovechkin every single shift.

A wish that was granted by the coach, but one that may have been puzzling to fans and media alike had they heard about it before the game.

Coming into his first season with the Leafs, Beauchemin was regarded as a solid defender capable of shutting down opposing players, with a Stanley Cup ring to prove it. But much has been said about Beauchemin’s success largely coming from playing alongside Scott Niedermayer, the future Hall-of-Famer of the Anaheim Ducks.

It didn’t start out well for the 29-year-old, either. Through the first 20 games or so, Beauchemin looked out of place while seemingly trying too hard to make plays that Niedermayer himself wouldn’t even try.

The criticism came early and often and it looked as if the heat was getting to him. Fans feared the worst; could this be yet another overpaid player not able to perform up to expectations?

It certainly seemed that way, but that all changed Saturday night when Beauchemin decided to not only prove his worth to the team, but do it while attempting to shut down the best player in the league in a nationally televised game.

Ovechkin scored early in the game and it looked to be the same old story for the Leafs, who have repeatedly been unable to stop opposing teams’ best players.

Then something strange happened; it was if Ovechkin simply disappeared from the game. Sure, he was on the ice for over 26 minutes and recorded six shots on net, but watching the game you certainly wouldn’t know it.

Ovechkin had been struggling—by his standards—coming into the game, and that could have been a reason for the disappearing act, but when you check the tape you’ll see that it most certainly wasn’t simply an off-game.

Francois Beauchemin was shadowing the Great 8 so tightly you’d think the guy owed him money.

Not only did he keep him from breaking free and getting scoring chances around the net, but he rarely allowed Ovechkin to even gain possession of the puck. An extremely impressive performance by the new Leaf, and one the fans had been waiting for since the season began.

But Beauchemin’s shut-down play didn’t stop there; next up was the New York Islanders and their wonder kid, John Tavares. The coming-home party for the first overall pick in this year’s draft was hoping to impress, coming back to the place where his hockey career began.

But with over 50 friends and family members in the crowd, Tavares did not put on the display they were hoping for. In fact, the kid was essentially invisible for his 17:42 minutes of ice time, thanks to Beauchemin, who kept him in check all night. Tavares had one shot and spent most of his time on the ice in front of the net, as he was swarmed by the new-and-improved Leaf defender.

Then came Monday night in Tampa, against the star-studded cast of the Lightning; the best of which is last year’s first overall pick and budding superstar, Steve Stamkos.

Stamkos did register two assists in the game, but was matched stride-for-stride on each of his 28 shifts—by none other than Beauchemin, once again.

Three straight games against three first overall picks all looking to punish a Leafs defense that has been weak all season, and instead it was like stick-handling in a match box thanks to a man who knew he needed to step up his game; and there’s no better way to test yourself than against the best players in the NHL.

He averaged over 28 minutes of ice time in those three games and was one of, if not the most integral part of the team’s success, and why they secured six of a possible eight points.

It could have failed miserably for Beauchemin and no one would have blinked an eye, because that’s how he’s been playing all season. But instead, the Quebec native challenged himself to be better and not only has he answered the call, but his teammates seem to be following him.

There are plenty of people who can lead in the dressing room, voice their opinion and say all the right things, but a true leader is one who leads by example every night; no matter who they’re up against.

For a man who’s name rolls of the tongue like a butterfly fluttering eloquently through the air, Francois Beauchemin has proved in the last three games that he is a legitimate shut-down defender.

It wasn’t the coach who demanded him to play better, but the player who demanded better play out of himself. That’s what makes a true leader, and that’s what this Leafs team needs if their improved play is to continue.

It’s now up to the rest of the team to take a look in the mirror, too.

UFC 107: Does Frank Mir “Have a Prayer in Memphis” Against Cheick Kongo?

by Stoker MacIntosh… The Ultimate Fighting Championship is scheduled to entertain and enlighten us with its 107th event next month, and this time it will illuminate from the FedEx Forum in the beautiful and picturesque city of Memphis, Tenn.

I’ve never visited the American city, yet whenever I hear someone speak of Memphis, I immediately envision the portrait brilliantly painted in the lyrics of the classic song “Walking in Memphis.”

The song was written by American singer-songwriter Marc Cohn, from his self-titled 1991 album, and he walked us through Memphis as surely as if we had been there.

I don’t know whether the former UFC heavyweight cagefighting champion Frank Mir ever owned a pair of “Blue Suede Shoes” or not. However, what I do know is that he will undoubtedly have to board a plane next month and “touch down in the land of the Delta Blues” for what will undoubtedly be another tough UFC Octagonal battle.

It may not be “in the middle of the pouring rain,” either, but he is sure to encounter foul weather in the middle of the cage from the 6′4″, 240-pound French kickboxer known as Cheick Kongo.

Mir has been very outspoken recently, regarding his desire to get revenge on the now-sidelined UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, but “first thing’s first,” Mir needs to get past this next huge hurdle.

Kongo is an amazingly conditioned athlete, yet, luckily for Mir, he is a kickboxer with very little experience in submissions. However, he does possess the size, power, and certainly the reach advantage to give Mir trouble should Mir get cocky and try to keep the fight standing.

In a recent YouTube.com video, Mir decides to take a test drive in a bright yellow Lamborghini, and he jokingly refers to Kongo as a great “groin striker,” saying he plans to wear “family jewel protection” with a spike implanted on the surface, just in case.

We sportswriters, most times, try to be as unbiased as possible, but I will admit that I’ve been a fan of Mir since watching his amazing standing arm-bar submission over Tim Sylvia at UFC 48, a move that visually snapped the large bone in Sylvia’s forearm.

Sylvia, another huge fighter at 6′8″, 250 pounds, not unlike Lesnar, was also a dominant UFC champion at the time, but he had recently been stripped of the title for failing a random drug test.

This was the first evidence that Mir was nobody to mess with from the BJJ guard position, and if it weren’t for his career being interrupted by a potentially crippling motorcycle accident, he would have undoubtedly been a dominant champion even back then.

To borrow a line from the greatest heavyweight boxer who ever lived, Muhammad Ali, “Champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them—a desire, a dream, a vision.”

The greatest heavyweight boxer of all time could have easily been describing a former mixed martial arts champion, such as Mir, who has certainly demonstrated rare human qualities—not only in his career, but also in his life.

Life skills which are extremely hard to come by, such as honor, integrity, courage, and a tremendous amount of pride.

His passion for the sport is clearly evident also in his on-air commentating for the lightweight fight promotion known as World Extreme Cagefighting.

I am thoroughly impressed with the detailed job he does, especially during a recent featherweight championship event.

Mir took the time to explain each transition in detail, which is appreciated by laymen such as me who have no formal training in regard to the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu side of MMA.

Understandably, Mir is extremely proud of his accomplishments so far. And from watching his fights throughout his career, it seems Mir not only believes he is a winner and a survivor, he has also proven it and lived through it.

As we know—from watching the most recent UFC event—trilogies in fight sports are extremely popular, so, if Mir beats Kongo impressively, he may just find himself in another rubber-match of sorts between him and the behemoth Lesnar.

Or perhaps Mir will face off against a new interim heavyweight champion.

In any event, Mir may not have had a prayer last time out against Lesnar, but that was then, and this is now, and to borrow line from Cohn and his famous song: Mir, “boy you’ve got a prayer in Memphis.”

Raptors’ Road Record Really Sucks!

by Stephen Brotherston… On the road, losing with the Raptors. Their road record is now 2-7.

To be fair to Toronto, the NBA handed them a very tough opening road schedule against eight Western Conference clubs to start the season.

And to be fair, the Raptors have been very good at home in the ACC. Plus, no one could realistically be disappointed ahead of time if they knew the Raptors would lose games to Western Conference playoff teams on the road.

But losing to the Memphis Grizzlies isn’t the mark of a team hoping to make the playoffs.  And losing badly to the 5-9 Charlotte Bobcats can only be described as a major disappointment, even on the back-end of a back-to-back.

Wednesday night’s blowout loss, 81-116 to Charlotte, was a Bobcats record.  Not something the Raptors should be proud of.

And the game wasn’t typical of any of Toronto’s games so far this season.

The 81 points scored by Toronto is 25 points below their season average and 10 points lower than any game they have played to-date.  And this comes the day after the Raptors scored 74 points in a half against Indiana.

A scoring drought of this magnitude warrants some investigation.

Against the Bobcats, the hot-shooting Raptors, averaging 47 percent on the season, hit on just 34.5 percent of their shots.  The main causes were:

Target No. 1: Chris Bosh

For the second game in as many nights, Chris Bosh’s shot only found the bottom of the basket five times; a 5-14 night on the heels of Tuesday’s 5-19 performance.  Bosh has still been grabbing rebounds at a career-best rate, but the Raptors rely on Bosh’s scoring, and when he isn’t going, a lot of other things have to go right to get a win.

Target No. 2: Jarrett Jack

Chris Bosh’s college buddy bailed out his teammate on Tuesday with a 7-7 shooting performance.  But on Wednesday, Jack was 1-9 with two turnovers early in the second quarter, while the game was still under control.

Unfortunately, these early turnovers helped to fuel Charlotte’s fast break game that just kept getting stronger as the night wore on.

Target Number 3: Marco Belinelli

Belinelli was cold from the floor for his second game in a row.  But unlike Tuesday, when he made up for his 1-4 shooting by going 8-10 from the line, on Wednesday Belinelli was 2-9 from the floor and 2-2 from the stripe

Target Number 4: DeMar DeRozan

Normally it isn’t fair to point out a poor shooting performance by a rookie.  And the loss to Charlotte had little to do with DeRozan.  But DeRozan usually takes five or six shots per game; on Wednesday, he was 4-12.

Of course, getting blown out usually requires more than just poor shooting.  And lots of other things went wrong for the Raptors.

The Raptors gave up twice their season average in steals to the Bobcats.  Charlotte took 13 balls away from the Raptors and boosted their steals average to 8.1 per game.  And it seemed every steal led to a Bobcats fast break lay-up.

Uncharacteristically leading the Raptors with poor decision-making was Jose Calderon with six turnovers. The Bobcats pressured the Raptors ball-handlers and the Raptors coughed it up!

Unfortunately, Jose was also one a few Raptors doing anything right.  His 3-6 shooting and eight assists did help keep the Raptors in this game early. Maybe he should have shot more?

And Jay Triano seemed lost, frustrated, and confused by Charlotte’s refusal to give this game to the Raptors.

After watching Jarrett Jack start the second quarter 0-3 with two turnovers and Jose Calderon get two more turnovers after replacing Jack, Triano thought the best move was to finish the quarter off with both his point guards on the floor together.  No surprise, this didn’t help.

Perhaps more surprisingly was that Triano’s only reliable scorer in the first half barely saw the floor in the second half.

In the first half, Bargnani shot 6-10 for 15 points, leading the Raptors in scoring.  Playing only eight minutes in the second half and getting just two shots, Triano benched his only effective offensive threat.  And he did it while the game was still well within reach at 68-59 Bobcats in the third quarter.

With an explanation that smacks of desperation, Triano had a lineup of Amir Johnson, Antoine Wright, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, Jarrett Jack, and Sonny Weems to close out the third quarter.

Triano says he was looking for energy.  Maybe there is energy in that lineup, but who exactly is going to be putting the ball in the hole?

Is it any real surprise that the Bobcats went on a scoring spree in the second half of the third to go up 85-67?

The fourth quarter began with Jose Calderon, Jarrett Jack, Marco Belinelli, Chris Bosh, and Pops Mensah-Bonsu on the floor.

As anyone who follows these posts or has read Hollinger’s analysis of the Jack-Calderon lineups knows, everybody scores more against the Raptors when Jose and Jarrett play together.

Plus, down by 18 points, where was the Raptors’ leading scorer in this game? With Bosh unable to hit a shot, why was the hot-shooting Bargnani nailed to the bench?

The Bobcats cruised to 35-point victory in the fourth, with the Raptors who got to play barely putting up a fight.

To put the game in context, this is just a road loss on a back-to-back, but it is still a bad loss.

Maybe the Raptors’ players were suffering from the effects of playing back-to-back games, but one doesn’t expect the coaching staff to be out of it!

However, all will be forgotten with a good outing against the Celtics on Friday and a win Sunday at home against the Suns.