2003–04 Ottawa Senators season

2003–04 Ottawa Senators
Division 3rd Northeast
Conference 5th Eastern
2003–04 record 43–29–10
Home record 23–8–5–5
Road record 20–15–5–1
Goals for 262
Goals against 189
Team information
General Manager John Muckler
Coach Jacques Martin
Captain Daniel Alfredsson
Alternate captains Zdeno Chara
Curtis Leschyshyn
Wade Redden
Arena Corel Centre
Average attendance 17,758 (92.7%)[1]
Team leaders
Goals Marian Hossa (36)
Assists Daniel Alfredsson (48)
Points Marian Hossa (82)
Penalties in minutes Chris Neil (194)
Plus/minus Zdeno Chara (+33)
Wins Patrick Lalime (25)
Goals against average Martin Prusek (2.12)
<2002–03 2004–05>

The 2003–04 Ottawa Senators season would see the Senators again finish with over 100 points, finishing with 102, but this was good for only third in the tightly-contested division, as the Boston Bruins would have 104 and the Toronto Maple Leafs 103. Ottawa would meet Toronto in the first-round of the playoffs for the fourth time, where the Maple Leafs would win the series 4–3 to end the Senators' playoff hopes. Ottawa would fire Head Coach Jacques Martin after the playoff round.

Offseason

In the off-season, Eugene Melnyk would purchase the club to bring financial stability. Another change was in the general manager position. Marshall Johnston resigned and was replaced by John Muckler on June 3, 2003. Muckler had been a candidate for the positions of Ottawa head coach or GM back in 1992, but had chosen to sign on with the Buffalo Sabres instead.

On June 21, 2003, Assistant Coach Roger Neilson died after four years of battling cancer. The Senators would wear a patch on their jerseys with an illustration of his signature and a necktie. Neilson would often wear distinctive neckties and the necktie became associated with him, and also became the symbol for "Roger's House," a residence for the use of families with a family member fighting cancer while in hospital, established by him and the Senators.

Regular season

Marian Hossa lead the club in scoring with 82 points, good enough for sixth overall in the NHL.

Highlights

On February 5, 2004, the Senators were playing the Toronto Maple Leafs and were leading 4–0 in the second period. The flu started affecting players on the Senators leading the team to be down to only 15 skaters by the end of the game. The Maple Leafs took full advantage and won the game 5–4 in overtime.[2]

On March 5, 2004, in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers, a record was set for the most penalty minutes in a game by both teams, at 419 minutes. Five brawls broke out in the last two minutes of the game. It took the officials until 90 minutes after the game was over to sort out the penalties. By the end of the game, Philadelphia had 213 penalty minutes and seven men left on the bench, while Ottawa finished with 206 penalty minutes and six men left.

The Senators finished the regular season first overall in the NHL in scoring (262 goals for), power-play goals scored (80) and power-play percentage (21.62%).[3]

Division standings

Northeast Division[4]
No. CR GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
12Boston Bruins 82 41 19 15 7 209 188 104
24Toronto Maple Leafs 82 45 24 10 3 242 204 103
35Ottawa Senators 82 43 23 10 6 262 189 102
47Montreal Canadiens 82 41 30 7 4 208 192 93
59Buffalo Sabres 82 37 34 7 4 220 221 85

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern Conference[5]
R Div GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 Z- Tampa Bay Lightning SE 82 46 22 8 6 245 192 106
2 Y- Boston Bruins NE 82 41 19 15 7 209 188 104
3 Y- Philadelphia Flyers AT 82 40 21 15 6 209 188 101
4 X- Toronto Maple Leafs NE 82 45 24 10 3 242 204 103
5 X- Ottawa Senators NE 82 43 23 10 6 262 189 102
6 X- New Jersey Devils AT 82 43 25 12 2 213 164 100
7 X- Montreal Canadiens NE 82 41 30 7 4 208 192 93
8 X- New York Islanders AT 82 38 29 11 4 237 210 91
8.5
9 Buffalo Sabres NE 82 37 34 7 4 220 221 85
10 Atlanta Thrashers SE 82 33 37 8 4 214 243 78
11 Carolina Hurricanes SE 82 28 34 14 6 172 209 76
12 Florida Panthers SE 82 28 35 15 4 188 221 75
13 New York Rangers AT 82 27 40 7 8 206 250 69
14 Washington Capitals SE 82 23 46 10 3 186 253 59
15 Pittsburgh Penguins AT 82 23 47 8 4 190 303 58

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

Z- Clinched Conference; Y- Clinched Division; X- Clinched Playoff spot

Schedule and results

Regular season schedule
No. R Date Score Opponent Record Attendance
1WOctober 9, 20035–2 Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 1–0–0–018,500
2LOctober 11, 20032–3 OT Detroit Red Wings (2003–04) 1–0–0–118,500
3LOctober 15, 20033–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (2003–04) 1–1–0–118,180
4WOctober 17, 20033–0 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2003–04) 2–1–0–113,885
5WOctober 18, 20034–1 @ San Jose Sharks (2003–04) 3–1–0–114,807
6WOctober 23, 20035–1 Washington Capitals (2003–04) 4–1–0–118,188
7WOctober 25, 20036–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 5–1–0–121,273
8LOctober 30, 20032–3 Florida Panthers (2003–04) 5–2–0–117,086
9TNovember 1, 20031–1 OT Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 5–2–1–115,445
10LNovember 3, 20033–6 @ New York Islanders (2003–04) 5–3–1–110,957
11TNovember 6, 20033–3 OT Edmonton Oilers (2003–04) 5–3–2–115,216
12LNovember 8, 20030–1 New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 5–4–2–118,359
13WNovember 11, 20035–3 @ Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 6–4–2–113,547
14WNovember 13, 20035–2 Columbus Blue Jackets (2003–04) 7–4–2–115,297
15LNovember 15, 20032–3 Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 7–5–2–118,337
16LNovember 17, 20031–2 Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 7–6–2–115,744
17WNovember 20, 20036–1 Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 8–6–2–117,159
18LNovember 22, 20031–2 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 8–6–2–211,233
19LNovember 23, 20032–6 @ New York Rangers (2003–04) 8–7–2–218,200
20WNovember 25, 20036–3 @ Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 9–7–2–211,937
21LNovember 27, 20032–3 OT Vancouver Canucks (2003–04) 9–7–2–318,500
22LNovember 29, 20031–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 9–8–2–318,500
23WDecember 1, 20034–1 Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 10–8–2–316,289
24WDecember 3, 20034–0 @ Florida Panthers (2003–04) 11–8–2–311,520
25WDecember 4, 20034–1 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 12–8–2–315,221
26LDecember 6, 20031–2 New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 12–9–2–317,931
27TDecember 8, 20032–2 OT @ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 12–9–3–310,662
28WDecember 11, 20033–2 Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 13–9–3–317,256
29LDecember 13, 20032–3 Boston Bruins (2003–04) 13–10–3–317,671
30WDecember 18, 20036–1 Chicago Blackhawks (2003–04) 14–10–3–316,420
31WDecember 20, 20033–1 New York Rangers (2003–04) 15–10–3–318,037
32WDecember 22, 20033–2 OT Florida Panthers (2003–04) 16–10–3–317,189
33TDecember 23, 20032–2 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 16–10–4–315,317
34TDecember 26, 20033–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 16–10–5–318,316
35WDecember 28, 20035–2 Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 17–10–5–318,500
36WDecember 30, 20033–0 @ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 18–10–5–316,388
37WJanuary 1, 20041–0 New York Islanders (2003–04) 19–10–5–318,500
38WJanuary 3, 20045–2 Washington Capitals (2003–04) 20–10–5–317,695
39WJanuary 6, 20045–2 Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 21–10–5–316,890
40WJanuary 8, 20047–1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 22–10–5–319,395
41LJanuary 9, 20042–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 22–11–5–318,690
42TJanuary 11, 20042–2 OT @ Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 22–11–6–39,350
43WJanuary 13, 20044–0 @ New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 23–11–6–311,456
44TJanuary 15, 20044–4 OT New York Islanders (2003–04) 23–11–7–317,197
45WJanuary 17, 20044–0 Boston Bruins (2003–04) 24–11–7–318,500
46LJanuary 19, 20042–5 @ New York Islanders (2003–04) 24–12–7–314,213
47WJanuary 20, 20043–1 @ Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 25–12–7–38,810
48WJanuary 22, 20046–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 26–12–7–316,777
49WJanuary 24, 20049–1 New York Rangers (2003–04) 27–12–7–318,500
50LJanuary 28, 20043–5 @ Dallas Stars (2003–04) 27–13–7–318,006
51WJanuary 29, 20044–1 @ Phoenix Coyotes (2003–04) 28–13–7–313,387
52LJanuary 31, 20041–5 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 28–14–7–319,419
53LFebruary 3, 20041–2 @ New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 28–15–7–312,304
54LFebruary 5, 20044–5 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 28–15–7–418,500
55WFebruary 10, 20043–1 St. Louis Blues (2003–04) 29–15–7–418,238
56WFebruary 12, 20043–2 OT Boston Bruins (2003–04) 30–15–7–418,364
57WFebruary 14, 20045–2 Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 31–15–7–418,500
58WFebruary 16, 20044–1 @ New York Rangers (2003–04) 32–15–7–418,200
59TFebruary 17, 20041–1 OT @ Washington Capitals (2003–04) 32–15–8–413,901
60LFebruary 19, 20042–3 OT Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 32–15–8–518,500
61WFebruary 21, 20042–1 Calgary Flames (2003–04) 33–15–8–518,500
62WFebruary 22, 20046–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 34–15–8–511,780
63LFebruary 24, 20042–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 34–16–8–521,273
64TFebruary 26, 20041–1 OT Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 34–16–9–518,500
65WFebruary 28, 20047–1 Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 35–16–9–518,500
66LMarch 3, 20043–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 35–17–9–511,956
67LMarch 5, 20043–5 @ Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 35–18–9–519,539
68WMarch 6, 20044–2 Nashville Predators (2003–04) 36–18–9–518,500
69WMarch 8, 20044–1 @ Washington Capitals (2003–04) 37–18–9–517,776
70LMarch 11, 20042–4 @ Calgary Flames (2003–04) 37–19–9–517,869
71WMarch 13, 20042–1 @ Vancouver Canucks (2003–04) 38–19–9–518,630
72LMarch 14, 20041–3 @ Edmonton Oilers (2003–04) 38–20–9–516,839
73LMarch 16, 20042–5 @ Minnesota Wild (2003–04) 38–21–9–518,568
74WMarch 18, 20042–0 Colorado Avalanche (2003–04) 39–21–9–518,500
75LMarch 20, 20042–3 OT Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 39–21–9–618,500
76LMarch 23, 20042–4 @ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 39–22–9–615,887
77WMarch 25, 20044–0 @ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 40–22–9–621,273
78TMarch 27, 20042–2 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 40–22–10–619,480
79WMarch 29, 20045–4 OT @ Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 41–22–10–619,844
80WMarch 31, 20045–4 @ Florida Panthers (2003–04) 42–22–10–615,876
81WApril 2, 20043–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 43–22–10–619,776
82LApril 3, 20040–6 Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 43–23–10–618,500

[6]

Playoffs

In the first round of the 2004 playoffs, the Senators would lose again to the Maple Leafs for the fourth straight time. By now, Ottawa had developed a strong rivalry with their Ontario cousins and there was a great deal of pressure on the team to finally defeat the Leafs. Two days after the Senators' loss, Head Coach Jacques Martin was fired, and goaltender Patrick Lalime was later traded to the St. Louis Blues.

Martin had been coach of the Senators for eight-and-a-half years. He was well respected, earned a 341–255–96 regular season record with the Senators, had led the team to eight consecutive playoff appearances and was widely credited with changing the team into an elite NHL franchise. He also won the Jack Adams Trophy as Coach of the Year in 1999. However, after losing eight of 12 playoff series, including all four series in five years against the rival Toronto Maple Leafs, Senators ownership felt that a new coach was required for playoff success.

On June 8, 2004, Bryan Murray of nearby town Shawville, Quebec, became the team's fifth head coach, leaving the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. where he had previously been general manager.

Eastern Conference Quarter-finals

Date Away Score Home Score Notes Attendance
April 8 Ottawa 4 Toronto 2 19,535
April 10 Ottawa 0 Toronto 2 19,529
April 12 Toronto 2 Ottawa 0 18,500
April 14 Toronto 1 Ottawa 4 18,500
April 16 Ottawa 0 Toronto 2 19,584
April 18 Toronto 1 Ottawa 2 2OT 18,500
April 20 Ottawa 1 Toronto 4 19,646
Toronto wins series 4–3

Player statistics

Regular season

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Hossa, MarianMarian Hossa RW 81 36 46 82 4641415
Alfredsson, DanielDaniel Alfredsson RW 77 32 48 80 2412905
Havlat, MartinMartin Havlat RW 68 31 37 68 46121307
Spezza, JasonJason Spezza C 78 22 33 55 7122503
Smolinski, BryanBryan Smolinski C 80 19 27 46 4922403
Bonk, RadekRadek Bonk C 66 12 32 44 662601
Redden, WadeWade Redden D 81 17 26 43 65211203
Chara, ZdenoZdeno Chara D 79 16 25 41 14733703
Schaefer, PeterPeter Schaefer LW 81 15 24 39 2622223
White, ToddTodd White C 53 9 20 29 2212112
Phillips, ChrisChris Phillips D 82 7 16 23 4615001
Langfeld, JoshJosh Langfeld RW 38 7 10 17 166202
Rachunek, KarelKarel Rachunek D 60 1 16 17 2917000
Neil, ChrisChris Neil RW 82 8 8 16 19413001
Vermette, AntoineAntoine Vermette C 57 7 7 14 165010
Bondra, PeterPeter Bondra RW 23 5 9 14 161201
Van Allen, ShaunShaun Van Allen C 73 2 10 12 806010
Varada, VaclavVaclav Varada RW 30 5 5 10 262001
Fisher, MikeMike Fisher C 24 4 6 10 39-3100
Pothier, BrianBrian Pothier D 55 2 6 8 246101
Schastlivy, PetrPetr Schastlivy LW 43 2 4 6 14-1101
Leschyshyn, CurtisCurtis Leschyshyn D 56 1 4 5 1613000
Hnidy, ShaneShane Hnidy D 37 0 5 5 722000
Volchenkov, AntonAnton Volchenkov D 19 1 2 3 81000
Lalime, PatrickPatrick Lalime G 57 0 2 2 170000
Ray, RobRob Ray RW 6 1 0 1 140000
de Vries, GregGreg de Vries D 13 0 1 1 60000
Payer, SergeSerge Payer C 5 0 1 1 21000
Prusek, MartinMartin Prusek G 29 0 1 1 00000
Simpson, ToddTodd Simpson D 16 0 1 1 47-1000
Emery, RayRay Emery G 3 0 0 0 20000
Hamel, DenisDenis Hamel LW 5 0 0 0 0-3000
Hull, JodyJody Hull RW 1 0 0 0 00000
Kelly, ChrisChris Kelly C/LW 4 0 0 0 0-2000
Laich, BrooksBrooks Laich C 1 0 0 0 20000
Vauclair, JulienJulien Vauclair D 1 0 0 0 21000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T/OT GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Lalime, PatrickPatrick Lalime 3324 57 25 23 7 127 2.29 513341207.905
Prusek, MartinMartin Prusek 1528 29 16 6 3 54 2.12 3651597.917
Emery, RayRay Emery 126 3 2 0 0 5 2.38 05247.904
Team: 4978 82 43 29 10 186 2.24 820371851.909

Playoffs

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Hossa, MarianMarian Hossa RW 7 3 1 4 02102
Alfredsson, DanielDaniel Alfredsson RW 7 1 2 3 20000
Havlat, MartinMartin Havlat RW 7 0 3 3 2-1000
Chara, ZdenoZdeno Chara D 7 1 1 2 83000
Smolinski, BryanBryan Smolinski C 7 1 1 2 4-2000
Varada, VaclavVaclav Varada RW 7 1 1 2 40000
Bonk, RadekRadek Bonk C 7 0 2 2 02000
Schaefer, PeterPeter Schaefer LW 7 0 2 2 41000
Fisher, MikeMike Fisher C 7 1 0 1 40001
Phillips, ChrisChris Phillips D 7 1 0 1 122100
Redden, WadeWade Redden D 7 1 0 1 2-5100
White, ToddTodd White C 7 1 0 1 4-1000
de Vries, GregGreg de Vries D 7 0 1 1 8-2000
Neil, ChrisChris Neil RW 7 0 1 1 190000
Vermette, AntoineAntoine Vermette C 4 0 1 1 4-1000
Bondra, PeterPeter Bondra RW 7 0 0 0 6-4000
Lalime, PatrickPatrick Lalime G 7 0 0 0 20000
Leschyshyn, CurtisCurtis Leschyshyn D 2 0 0 0 0-1000
Pothier, BrianBrian Pothier D 7 0 0 0 6-2000
Prusek, MartinMartin Prusek G 1 0 0 0 00000
Spezza, JasonJason Spezza C 3 0 0 0 2-1000
Volchenkov, AntonAnton Volchenkov D 5 0 0 0 60000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Lalime, PatrickPatrick Lalime 398 7 3 4 13 1.96 0139126.906
Prusek, MartinMartin Prusek 40 1 0 0 1 1.50 01514.933
Team: 438 7 3 4 14 1.92 0154140.909

[7]

Note:

Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards and records

Transactions

Trades

September 10, 2003 To Florida Panthers
2004 draft ninth-round pick
To Ottawa Senators
Serge Payer
October 5, 2003 To Washington Capitals
future considerations
To Ottawa Senators
LW Denis Hamel
December 29, 2003 To Florida Panthers
D Wade Brookbank
To Ottawa Senators
future considerations
January 6, 2004 To Atlanta Thrashers
C Daniel Corso
To Ottawa Senators
RW Brad Tapper
January 23, 2004 To Colorado Avalanche
RW Dennis Bonvie
To Ottawa Senators
C/RW Charlie Stephens
February 4, 2004 To Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
LW Petr Schastlivy
To Ottawa Senators
D Todd Simpson
February 18, 2004 To Washington Capitals
C Brooks Laich
Second-round draft choice, 2005 draft
future considerations
To Ottawa Senators
RW Peter Bondra
March 9, 2004 To Nashville Predators
D Shane Hnidy
To Ottawa Senators
Colorado Avalanche third-round pick in 2004 draft (Peter Regin)

Waivers

October 3, 2003 To Nashville Predators
Wade Brookbank
October 3, 2003 To Washington Capitals
Denis Hamel
December 19, 2003 From Vancouver Canucks
Wade Brookbank

Source: Ottawa Senators 2008–09 Media Guide. Ottawa Senators. 2008. pp. 189–190. 

Roster

2003-04 Ottawa Senators
Goaltenders

Defencemen

Wingers

Centres

Sources:

Draft picks

Ottawa's draft picks from the 2003 NHL Entry Draft held on June 21 and June 22, 2003 at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Round # Player Nationality College/junior/club team (League)
129 Patrick Eaves  United States Boston College (Hockey East)
267 Igor Mirnov  Russia Dynamo Moscow (RSL)
3100 Philippe Seydoux   Switzerland Kloten Flyers (NLA)
4135 Matt Karlsson  Sweden Brynas IF (Elitserien)
5142 Tim Cook  United States River City Lancers ([United States Hockey League|USHL]])
5166 Sergei Gimayev  Russia Severstal Cherepovets (RSL)
7228 Will Colbert  Canada Ottawa 67's (OHL)
8269 Ossi Louhivaara  Finland Kookoo (Finland)
9291 Brian Elliott  Canada University of Wisconsin–Madison (Big Ten)

Farm teams

See also

References

  1. "NHL Attendance - 2004". ESPN. Retrieved 2009-12-01.
  2. Panzeri, Allen (February 6, 2004). "Senators sick over loss". National Post. p. S1.
  3. http://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2004.html
  4. "2003-2004 Division Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  5. "2003–2004 Standings by Conference". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
  6. "2003–04 Ottawa Senators Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
  7. "2003-04 Ottawa Senators Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
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