If the Ottawa Senators could just find a way to beat the rival Toronto Maple Leafs in the postseason, hockey life in Canada's capital would be near perfect.

	2001-02 by the numbers
	Record: 39-27-9-7, 94 points (T13th overall, 6th East, 3rd Northeast) Goals for: 243/2.96 (5th overall) Goals against: 208/2.50 (14th overall) Differential: 35 (T8th overall) 20-goal scorers: Daniel Alfredsson (37), Marian Hossa (31), Radek Bonk (25), Martin Havlat (22), Todd White (20) 50-point scorers: Alfredsson (71), Bonk (70), Hossa (66), Havlat (50), White (50)

After all, Ottawa has a young and talented team that has been among the Eastern Conference's best in recent years. The Senators' roster is dotted with young stars like captain Daniel Alfredsson, Marian Hossa, Martin Havlat and Wade Redden. And, coach Jacques Martin -- an assistant coach for Canada's gold medal 2002 Olympic team -- is viewed by many as one of the best X's and O's coaches in the game.

But because of their inability to handle the Leafs in postseason, the Senators haven't been able to advance past the second round. In each of the last three seasons, the Leafs have sent the Senators to the golf course. Last spring, an injury-riddled Toronto team recovered from a 3-2 series deficit to eliminate Ottawa in a Game 7 (3-0 at the Air Canada Centre).

Of course, there would have never been a Game 7 if the Senators could've held on to an early 2-0 lead on home ice in Game 6. But, they didn't. Instead, they choked it away.

After the series, defenseman Sami Salo figured there was just one reason why his team couldn't knock out the Leafs.

"We lacked the killer instinct," Salo said.

And, Salo was right.

The brutal second-round loss overshadowed an impressive first-round series win over the Philadelphia Flyers, who could muster only one regulation time goal against the suffocating Senators defensive system in five games. Ottawa seemed much more comfortable against Philadelphia, which, as we later discovered, carried some heavy internal problems into the series.

Still, the Senators victory over the Flyers gave the club a taste of playoff success. In fact, it was their first playoff series win since 1998. Now, the question remains, can they build on that? And, if necessary, can they beat the Leafs? Until proven otherwise, however, the answer remains the same? no.

Looking at next season
Hockey lifer John Muckler replaces fellow hockey vet Marshall Johnston (who resigned because he didn't like the day-to-day stress of the job) as the club's general manager. Muckler, who was last seen in the NHL as the coach of the Rangers, did a nice job as the GM of the Sabres in the mid '90s before a losing that position due to some ugly in-house battles with then-coach Ted Nolan.

Muckler, who still lives in Buffalo, must still feel some love for the Sabres because he showed up at a recent camp for Sens' prospects wearing a Sabres team jacket. Hopefully, the team will see fit to give its new GM the appropriate outerwear.

Apparently, several members of the club's upper management staff didn't receive Muckler's arrival with much glee. Johnston, who could have stayed with the club in a scouting role, opted to join the Chicago Blackhawks as their director of player evaluation. Director of hockey operations Trevor Timmins, who'd been with the franchise since it's return to the league in 1992, left to become the director of player personnel for the Montreal Canadiens. And, highly respected director of player personnel Jarmo Kekalainen resigned after being passed over for Muckler.

Still, despite the management upheaval, Muckler managed to check off the biggest thing on his lengthy to-do list when he signed Alfredsson to a two-year deal, which could be worth up to $10 million based on various bonus clauses.

With Alfredsson signed, Muckler will turn his attention to center Radek Bonk and defenseman Chris Phillips, the two next most important unsigned players on the club. Both Bonk and Phillips opted for arbitration, which insures a deal will be done by mid-August. Phillips could sign before his arbitration case is heard. Bonk, meanwhile, is seeking between $3-3.5 million per season. And, because of his offensive numbers, he could get it. If he does, Muckler may deal Bonk, who has just three goals in 36 playoff games.

Eventually, Muckler also will have to come to contract terms with restricted free agents Mike Fisher, Chris Neil, Karel Rachunek and Salo. And, according to sources close to the situation, Muckler also would like to re-sign veteran unrestricted free agents Benoit Brunet and Jody Hull. All this, however, will have to be done within a tight budget as the club continues to have limited financial resources.

Budget space was opened up when the team dealt veteran left winger Shawn McEachern to Atlanta on June 29. To keep all the players they'd like to keep, Muckler might be forced to make another salary dumping deal before the puck is dropped in October.

If Bonk is moved out, it will be interesting to see if highly touted prospect Jason Spezza can take his place in the middle. Spezza, selected second overall behind Ilya Kovalchuk in the 2001 draft, is eager to play in the NHL. His performance in training camp will go a long way in determining whether or not he's ready for prime time.

Either way, the Senators still have a dangerous group of forwards led by Alfredsson, who tallied a career-best 37 goals last season. He'll again be joined by 23-year-old Hossa and 21-year-old Havlat, two of the most dynamic young wingers in the game. Last season, Hossa registered 66 points, while Havlat posted 50. Barring injury, both should record higher numbers this season.

Center Todd White, who was a pleasant surprise with 50 points and plus-12 rating, will be looking to prove last season wasn't a fluke. The 5-foot-10 pivot, who'll be pushed by Spezza, provided steady play in his first full NHL season.

On defense, youngsters Redden, Salo, Phillips and 6-9 Zdeno Chara should eat up a lot of ice time. Chara, who arrived in Ottawa from the Islanders as part of the Alexei Yashin trade, brought much needed size and physical presence.

Russian defenseman Anton Volchenkov, the club's top pick (21st overall) in the 2000 draft, signed his first NHL contract in July and he has a chance to earn a spot on the crowded blue line. Volchenkov, who doesn't shy away from the physical game, captained last year's gold medal-winning Russian team at the World Junior Championships.

In goal, Patrick Lalime will again be the No. 1 stopper. Lalime enjoyed a strong season and performed well in the playoffs, posting back-to-back-to-back shutouts against the Flyers. Finnish-born Jani Hurme should return as the backup. But, if Muckler needs to shed some payroll, he could move Hurme and promote prospect Martin Prusek to fill the spot.

Clearly, the Senators again will be a force in the East. Barring a major collapse, they'll be a playoff team -- perhaps a highly-seeded playoff team. Once there, though, the Sens will have to be tougher, both physically and mentally. And, they'll have to find a way to deal with the Leafs. If they can do that, a trip to the Cup finals isn't out of the question.