FanHouse Bryan Murray

Late Friday afternoon, the Islanders and Senators agreed to swap three players and a draft pick, a move that made waves across the blogosphere. The basic breakdown of the deal seemed to be Chris Campoli for a first round pick, as the other two parts -- Mike Comrie and Dean McAmmond -- were very similar. They both have contracts that expire this summer and weren't doing a whole lot of anything offensively for their teams.

Given that both teams should be trying to stockpile draft picks (let's face it, whether or not Bryan Murray knows it, that's what the Senators should be doing), they're going to be looking to trade off veteran assets of value. So, could we see McAmmond and/or Comrie get moved again before the March 4th trade deadline?

In a surprising move, the Ottawa Senators have acquired defenseman Chris Campoli and center Mike Comrie from the New York Islanders in exchange for Dean McAmmond and a first-round pick (originally belonging to San Jose) in the 2009 NHL draft, according to the Islanders website.

This move makes little sense for Ottawa, unless general manager Bryan Murray has another deal on the horizon. If he doesn't, well, then he's either under the delusion that his team, currently 13 points out of the final playoff spot, is primed to make a serious run in the final weeks of the season, or he's completely lost his mind and is trying to George Costanza his way out of a job.

The Ottawa Senators are currently on their third head coach in the past two seasons and sitting near the bottom of the Eastern Conference. The one constant over that time has been general manager Bryan Murray, and one of the former coaches is pointing the finger directly at him for the team's recent failures on the ice.

John Paddock, fired by the Senators on February 28, 2008, blasted his former boss saying, among other things, that he's now "next in line" to take the fall.

After 48 games behind the bench of the Senators, coach Craig Hartsburg is out in Ottawa.

In only his first season in Ottawa, the team has vastly underperformed and is currently sitting third-to-last in the league in points with 41. The team was 17-27-7 with Hartsburg at the helm, leaving them well clear of the playoff race.

Columbus Blue Jackets' defenseman Mike Commodore, who may be best remembered on the internet for making it rain in his underwear, is really becoming a great guy for reporters to question. Whether it's a blogger or a MSM journalist, he doesn't really shy away from many questions, specifically ones about folks he isn't too fond of.

You may remember that last week he called Detroit Red Wings' coach Mike Babcock "an obstacle in [his] career." This week, Commodore has a new target and it's another former employer. This time, he goes after Ottawa Senators' coach Bryan Murray. Let's watch the fireworks!

After advancing to the Stanley Cup finals two years ago, the Ottawa Senators opened last season on a 16-4-0 run, looking like the best team in the NHL. From that point on, however, it was all down hill as they finished the season 27-27-8, barely sneaking into playoffs as the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, which led to a quick and decisive four game sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Through the first two-and-a-half months of this season, things aren't looking much better for the Senators, as they currently hold the No. 12 spot in the conference with 27 points, six points out of the final playoff spot. Though, to be fair, it's a little early to be looking at playoff spots. Maybe.

Still, they're the lowest scoring team in the NHL (only 67 goals) and are coming off an embarrassing loss, at home, against the Atlanta Thrashers on Tuesday. The Thrashers, by the way, entered play on Tuesday with the worst record in the league. As you might expect, this isn't exactly sitting well with the front office.

According to the Ottawa Citizen, Bryan Murray vowed to shake up the roster on Wednesday, while head coach Craig Hartsburg decided to shake up the lines, splitting up the trio of Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson.

Every week there are minor moves and stories around the National Hockey League that tend to fall through the cracks. Consider this our weekly roundup of those moves from the previous week, all wrapped up in one neat little package.

I'm getting the idea that Ottawa prospect Alexander Nikulin was just a tad bit unhappy being a member of the Senators organization. On Sunday, the 23-year old forward issued what was, basically, an ultimatum to the team's front office when he threatened to return to his native Russia if he wasn't dealt to another team as soon as humanly possible. TSN had the story:

The 23-year old Nikulin has stated that he will return to Russia if the Senators do not have a deal in place by Monday. He was a scratch Saturday night as the Binghamton Senators faced Bridgeport. Nikulin stated on his Russian blog that he is disapointed in how slow the process is going. "So, I've asked for a trade, and the General Manager of the Senators Bryan Murray has agreed. But for some strange reason it's been really dragging. Because I was supposed to have been traded last week by Friday. Then they moved the deal to Monday. But then on Monday nothing was clear again, so I wait."

By Tuesday afternoon, Nikulin found himself as a member of the Phoenix Coyotes when he was dealt for defenseman Drew Fata.

Thus far, Nikulin has registered 52 points in 73 games in the American Hockey League, while Fata, a former third-round pick of the Penguins, is on his fourth different franchise in four years. Seems like a good deal for Phoenix, even if Nikulin never amounts to anything. Very low risk, potential high reward for the Coyotes.

Welcome to the NHL FanHouse 2008-09 season preview. While other sites are previewing "30 teams in 30 days," we decided to take advantage of the extra time off before the start of the season to bring you all 30 previews over the next three weeks. We're counting down in reverse order of finish from last season in each conference every weekday from now until October 3. Look for an Eastern Conference preview every morning and a Western Conference preview every afternoon. Click here to read them all.

Who's In: Jarkko Ruutu, F (FA - PIT), Filip Kuba, D (Trade - TPA), Alex Auld , G (FA-BOS), Jason Smith, D (FA-PHI), Brendan Bell, D (FA-PHX), Ryan Shannon, F (Trade -VAN), Brad Isbister, F (FA-VAN)

Who's Out: Ray Emery, G (FA - KHL), Andrej Mezaros, D (Trade - TPA), Cory Stillman, F (FA - Florida), Luke Richardson, D (UFA - Unsigned), Wade Redden, D (FA - NYR), Brian McGrattan, F (FA - PHX), Mike Commodore, D (FA - CBJ), Lawrence Nycholat, D (Trade - VAN)

What's Changed: The Blue Line, that's for sure. Redden's departure was written in the stars last fall, so there's no surprise there. We'll see how well he handles the pressure of playing in New York, since we all saw how well he handled it in Ottawa. If you think this team is Cup material, consider this addition by subtraction. Then again, one has to have a defense to even get to the playoffs, and Redden is solid enough to get you there.

Couple that with The Lisp holding the line on contract numbers with Mezaros and we have the first trade of the Cap Era forced by the threat of an RFA Offer Sheet. So, out go two of the team's Top 4 defensemen (not to mention rental Mike Commodore) and in return come Filip Kuba, Alexandre Picard and war-horse Jason Smith. What's changed is that Ottawa's blue line will be meaner than previous versions as both Mezaros and Redden are not what you'd call physically dominant.

The Ottawa Senators are a highly-skilled team with a horrible disease of some sort. Call it cancer, but realize that something was amok as the Sens' season spiraled into a sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

How else can a team with the likes of Wade Redden, Dany Heatley, Daniel Alfredsson, Andrej Meszaros, Jason Spezza, and a bunch of other talented players completely collapse after starting the season 15-2?

There has been a lot of speculation about the nighttime exploits of certain players, as they prefer to party and booze it up rather than worry about their hockey job.

The #1 culprit, as everyone knows, appears to be Sugar Ray Emery, the guy who showed up late for practices, loves to get into fights, and is far too immature to be counted on as a #1 goaltender.

It's no small wonder, then, why the Sens want to get rid of the cancer, and get rid of Emery ASAP.

Ray Emery wore out his welcome as an Ottawa Senator because of his unprofessional approach to being a professional athlete, arriving late for practices and not working hard enough.

He also tested the patience of the team when stories reached general manager and coach Bryan Murray of Emery's partying in various Ottawa nightspots.

Friday, Murray said enough was enough. After talking to the 25-year-old goalie on Thursday, Murray put the For Sale sign on Emery, and will now try to trade him. If Murray can't trade Emery, then he'll have to decide whether to buy out the remaining two years of his contract.

"My plan is not to have him back," said Murray.

A buy-out may be the only option, because I just can't see anyone taking on Emery and his expensive contract right now.

There comes a point in a series where you know that it's over: Nick Lidstrom sailing a shot from center ice past a stunned Dan Cloutier, Ty Conklin making a bone-headed play to give Rod Brind'Amour a freebie, and the current day Ottawa Senators versus the Pittsburgh Penguins.

With the series 3-0 in favor of the Pens, you have to believe that it's pretty much automatic. NHL teams have returned from being down three games to none only twice, EVER ... and not since 1975.

As part of a last-ditch effort to save his team from elimination, and to save his own job, Coach/GM Cryin Bryan Murray is going to put all of his eggs into one basket..

The Ottawa Citizen calls it "The Cash Line" – because they take up most of the Senators' payroll.

The Ottawa Sun calls it "The Pizza Line" – because if the Senators score six goals in a game, everyone in the stands gets a pizza coupon.

Call it what you will, coach Bryan Murray is calling on it tonight when he will reunite the team's big line of Jason Spezza at centre, Daniel Alfredsson on right with and Dany Heatley on left. Desperate times call for desperate solutions – and "desperation" was a word used by every single player and coach at today's morning skate.

Oooh, I bet Pittsburgh is so scared.

How about this? Since the Sens have no chance in hell of winning this series, why not save everyone an extra flight or two and just throw the game? It'll allow the boys to hit the links earlier, and give Sens ownership an easy out in canning their pathetically inept GM. Let the healing and rebuilding happen as soon as possible. Why drag it out?

Really, is loading up the 'big line' going to do much of anything? Can a team that is now 3-9-1 in their last 13 games really pull off three straight wins against a cohesive, superior squad?

Jason Spezza has one measly assist in three games, and ditto for Dany Heatley. When Mike Commodore is your leading scorer, it's pretty much over.

Cya next year, Ottawa.