Silly Senators

So deadline day was fun. From trying to figure out just why Montreal accepted so little for Cristobal Huet, to trying to figure out how Pittsburgh got so badly-fleeced in the Marian Hossa trade, to linking Mats Sundin and Wade Redden for refusing to do the right thing, and waive their no-movement clauses. Riotous, all.

Then there was much speculation about winners, losers and in-betweens on deadline day, which led to speculation about which head coaches and general managers were running out of time with their current teams.

There was quite a bit of speculation during TSN’s broadcast Tuesday that Senators head coach John Paddock wouldn’t make it to the weekend with a job. Over here, we couldn’t see it happening.

Which leads us to this week’s biggest over-reaction: the Senators have indeed fired their first-year head coach after a mere 64 games.

Former head coach and current GM Bryan Murray will step back behind the Ottawa bench-- since he was so successful there last June.

The word is that Paddock lost the Sens’ dressing room, that the players weren’t willing to play for him anymore. And yes, Paddock allowed the goaltending situation to become the goaltending controversy, which probably has more to do with Ottawa’s struggles than anything, but Murray sewed the seeds.

All in all, the move reminds me of two things: a year ago, when the Habs were struggling, and underachieving, and everyone thought Guy Carbonneau had lost the room. New rumours popped up every day about Carbo’s impending axing, which never materialized, and now the Habs are nipping at the Sens’ heels. Alternately, it reminds me of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns making a move to get the rapidly aging and declining Shaquille O’Neal, sensing their championship window is slamming shut. Does the Sens’ brass feel the same way about their own championship window?

Either way, the smart money says the Senators are regretting this decision sooner than they’re celebrating it.