That sound you hear is my quiet sobbing.

24 hours ago, the Senators were outplaying the league-leading Red Wings, taking a 2-0 lead into the third (and frankly, that score flattered Detroit). All was well in the world.

Fast forward to today, when we have Heatley out for 4-6 weeks with a separated shoulder, Spezza out for something that looked suspiciously like a concussion (but, weirdly enough, might be his wrist. I don't know which to hope for!), a blown lead against Detroit that we just squeaked out as a win, and an annoying, penalty-riddled loss to the Islanders under our belt. Um. Great.

The one hope at this point is that Spezza isn't seriously injured. There just isn't enough offense to make up for the double blow of Heatley and Spezza -- Alfredsson is only one man, and Fisher won't maintain his recent pace forever. Vermette, Kelly and Donovan have provided a fat lot of nothing lately, but Paddock doesn't seem anxious to break them up (meanwhile, Christoph Schubert has been playing on the second line. Schubert, whose heart -- and, arguably, true talent -- is on D. I love Schubert endlessly, but come on. I swear, if Vermette was the only forward left on the team, Paddock would still pencil him in on the third line). Neil is Neil; McAmmond, bless him, has missed scoring chances at a pace to rival Chris Kelly. Robitaille will probably score two goals in February, to meet his monthly quota, but that's not very comforting right now.

Eaves should be back on Tuesday, and is apparently going to be gifted a top line role upon his return. That's good news in a way, except that I'm not sure I see the wisdom in throwing him into top line minutes in his first game back, since he's been out for the last thousand years. I also don't think it's particularly fair that no one who's played all this time gets a chance to step up instead, but Paddock works in mysterious ways.

On the bright side, at least we have something to talk about that isn't Gerber vs. Emery, Round 856322.

Insert standard blather about the stretches of silence. I've stopped feeling guilty about it!

Life in Sensland continued without me, obviously. Random thoughts, at the halfway mark:

• Emery can still be the #1, but he has to take the job back sooner rather than later. Emery's attitude gets him further than his sometimes questionable technical ability, and Emery needs to play a lot to get that attitude in full working order. Gerber's recent messes against the Capitals provided yet another prime opportunity (even if Gerber was backing up a bored, lazy team). It's time for Emery to run with it, because as much as I like Gerber, I have the sinking feeling that this team is going nowhere in the playoffs unless Emery gets his swagger back. Dedicating himself in practice is a good start.
  
• Emery and McGrattan are funny. The laziness in practice wasn't funny, but the scrap in practice? Kinda funny. The people who look at that as another example of Ray being a distraction and a problem are reading too much into it.
• Mike Fisher is overrated. Not because he's a bad player; these past few weeks, he's played extremely well. (Though, can he sustain that kind of offense over the course of a season? History says no, but we'll see.) No, he's overrated by the general fanbase, by whom he can do no wrong. There's a difference between admiration and blind devotion: the latter is annoying, but that's what I see with Fisher. I assume it's a remnant of those days of the "soft" Senators -- Mike Fisher, Our Hero, hits people. He isn't afraid to fight, he's a good grinder, and he's a two-way player. All very good, but I feel it's gone a little too far. Look at the front of Scotiabank Place, where a handful of players are featured. Alfredsson, obviously. Phillips, yes. Redden . . . embattled, but he still has an 'A,' and he's still one of the most recognizable players. Heatley, well, that makes sense; he's one of the star attractions. Finally, the obvious choice in Spe-- no, wait! It's MIKE FISHER. I can only assume it's because he's an Everyman -- he's devoted to Jesus, but still kills God's creatures in his spare time and has a Senators cover for his Bible (which, frankly? Disgusting); he's handsome enough for women to fall over him, but wholesome enough for men to like him without feeling threatened or gay; and he's all manly and "gritty." Fine, I accept all of that. It's like the people who appreciate Neil for what he does; I don't necessarily appreciate him, but I understand the love. But holding Fisher in greater esteem than someone like Spezza (and make no mistake, many people do)? Apologizing away his flaws, weaknesses, off games, poor playoff showings? (Showing up to the Finals made Fisher a "reliable playoff performer." While that's an excellent time to show up, it doesn't change his playoff history -- which, coincidentally, is just like his career history: streaky.) No, I don't get it. The Everyman HELPS to win Stanley Cups, no doubt, but as the Finals last year proved, the chances don't live and die by those kinds of players. Oh yeah, and it's still too much money.
  
• Call me crazy, but until the home and home against the Capitals, I barely noticed that Volchenkov was out. It's not so much a slight against him, as that I think Meszaros and Schubert, for the most part, were just fine in his absence.
  
• Jason Spezza is a motherfucking rock star.
  
• When Gerber is good, he is very very good.
  
• Corvo has been mildly less horrifying this year! Decent, even! His self-confidence has clearly improved, because he doesn't spiral into a week of depression every time he gives away the puck.
  
• I have no real problems with Richardson, Donovan, and Robitaille, but I have to admit, I often forget they exist. I'm not so sure that's a compliment . . .
• Did I mention up there that I don't fully appreciate Chris Neil? This year, I really don't appreciate Chris Neil. Dropping the invisibility cloak just long enough to take a stupid penalty is NOT what people mean when they say that Neil is an example of a goon becoming a real player in the new NHL. The longer he's played a top six/top nine role, the more confused he seems to be about what kind of player he is. Here's a hint, Chris: NOT OFFENSIVE.
• Nick Foligno and Cody Bass have been pleasant surprises! Nikulin is a pleasant surprise too, but mostly for his blog, so far.
• I have nothing else to say about the way we've handled Vermette.
• To the surprise of no one, Alfredsson and Phillips continue to be their wonderful, magical selves. I'm a little worried about how much we've played Alfredsson, but he seems to be having fun, so I hope that he can hold up to it.
  
• The evolution of Dany Heatley, Functional All-Around Player continues apace.
• The jury is still out on Paddock. Sometimes I agree with him, sometimes he makes me want to cry. The team under him has been sometimes brilliant, sometimes lazy and disinterested. I'm willing to believe that they've struggled with the importance of this regular season bullshit, when what they really want is to get back to the playoffs and get to work. I sympathize! But that's not how it works, so developing some better work habits in time for the playoffs would be lovely.

ELSEWHERE

• The Flyers terrify me. I'm not kidding, I don't care if we lose when we play them. I just want everyone to get out in good health. That's a ridiculous thing to have to say.
• The "parity" in the East is just a nice way of saying that 95% of the teams are mediocre-to-shitty.
• The Winter Classic would have been a great event, without the Penguins and the Sabres. (I may be somewhat biased.)
• Brandon Bochenski has found yet another home. This is only significant because I'm still glad I was right about him when he was in Ottawa. Scoring is great, but when you can't (or won't try to) contribute in any other way, your future in this league is not bright. Also, a monkey could score from Spezza's wing.
• The resurgence of the Blackhawks organization is the feel-good story of the year, hands down. I just wish they were on my TV more often! Which is really just a wish for Centre Ice, but still.
  
  
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