Dany Heatley Doesn't Need Letters, He Gets Digits

Written by Nichols

Sunday, 28 September 2008 20:30

It's unfortunate that I was away from the computer for the weekend, I've almost missed out on some amazingly hilarious material. Almost. Thankfully, the good folks at Hockeybuzz archive their material so I can discuss some of the off-the-wall critical commentary from the lips (fingers?) of THE Kevin Lee. Since Friday night's game wasn't televised, many Sens fans were busy spending their Saturday morning trying to catch the highlights of what transpired. Well, apparently the highlights didn't tell the whole story. That night, Dany Heatley wore the 'C' and his inexcusable leadership was a contributing factor for why the team was steamrolled by les Canadiens.

Is it any surprise that the Ottawa Senators struggled yet again without their captain Daniel Alfredsson? It doesn't matter if it's the pre-season or regular season, this team has no identity when their captain is missing from the line-up. New coaching staff, same results when Alfredsson doesn't dress for a game, this time a 5-0 drubbing by their division rivals the Montreal Canadiens. This has to be troubling for management here in Ottawa. I don't care if it's the pre-season, you don't allow arguably your biggest rival to roll over you in relative ease.

To make matters worse, the other two longest serving Senators in alternate captain Chris Phillips and Mike Fisher weren't in the line-up. Unfortunately for Sens fans, the player wearing the "C" for Ottawa Friday night is most likely going to be the other alternate captain this season with the departure of Wade Redden, that would be Dany Heatley. This was Heatley's chance to lead by example and show his teammates he is serious about being a leader on this team. Instead he floated all night long, showed how undisciplined he can be by laying out a ridiculous cross check and showed nobody in the building that he should be rewarded with the other alternate captain spot come the beginning of the regular season. I certainly hope the coaching staff took notice. ~ Kevin Lee

Seriously Kevin, what the fuck? I can understand the whole critique of Dany Heatley's game but honestly, how can you criticize this guy's leadership? Heatley's not Clark Kent. A letter on his sweater isn't the same as donning a spandex suit with an 'S' on it. It's naive to think that by slapping a letter on Heater, he's going to morph into some complete physical force on the ice. I've said it before, but the difference between a good Heatley game and a bad one is that he scores 1-3 goals in a good game.

You never hear people shit on Mark Messier's leadership qualities despite the fact that his tenure in Vancouver was marred by disappointment. And the Moose was there for three years, not for one meaningless exhibition game. Heatley leads by producing offensively, not by banging bodies - unless they're attractive women. I just don't understand how you can rip a guy that produces at more than a point-per-game clip.

Fortunately, Kevin wasn't done:

I wonder if Phillips or Fisher would have served notice to the young players on this team had they been in the line-up? I think many Sens fans would agree that both players would have led far better than the acting captain tonight!

You mean two of the core whose veteran leadership you criticized last year for their handling of the Emery situation? Wait, didn't Bryan Murray spend the offseason focusing on addressing character concerns? Fuck, let's settle the matter and just make Alfie wear the C and both A's on his jersey. It'd be unprecedented but completely deserved.

It's a good thing Kevin's not a Habs fan. He would have been completely disgusted with the lineup iced by Guy Carbonneau on Saturday night. I mean, how can the Habs just roll over and let a Northeast rival just trounce them. You gotta send a message! I think most Habs fans will agree.