2003–04 Ottawa Senators season

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 Bruins would have 104 and the Leafs 103. Ottawa would meet Toronto in the first-round of the playoffs, meeting Toronto for the fourth time. Toronto 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 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. Mr. 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 league, which had become low-scoring.
===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.
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 203 penalty minutes and six men left.
===Division standings===
===Game log===
 Regular season schedule
No.	R	Date 	Score 	Opponent 	Record
1 	W	October 9, 2003 	5–2 	Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	1–0–0–0
2 	L	October 11, 2003 	2–3 OT	Detroit Red Wings (2003–04) 	1–0–0–1
3 	L	October 15, 2003 	3–4 	@ Los Angeles Kings (2003–04) 	1–1–0–1
4 	W	October 17, 2003 	3–0 	@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2003–04)	2–1–0–1
5 	W	October 18, 2003 	4–1 	@ San Jose Sharks (2003–04) 	3–1–0–1
6 	W	October 23, 2003 	5–1 	Washington Capitals (2003–04) 	4–1–0–1
7 	W	October 25, 2003 	6–2 	@ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	5–1–0–1
8 	L	October 30, 2003 	2–3 	Florida Panthers (2003–04) 	5–2–0–1
9 	T	November 1, 2003 	1–1 OT	Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	5–2–1–1
10 	L	November 3, 2003 	3–6 	@ New York Islanders (2003–04) 	5–3–1–1
11 	T	November 6, 2003 	3–3 OT	Edmonton Oilers (2003–04) 	5–3–2–1
12 	L	November 8, 2003 	0–1 	New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 	5–4–2–1
13 	W	November 11, 2003	5–3 	@ Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 	6–4–2–1
14 	W	November 13, 2003	5–2 	Columbus Blue Jackets (2003–04) 	7–4–2–1
15 	L	November 15, 2003	2–3 	Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	7–5–2–1
16 	L	November 17, 2003	1–2 	Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	7–6–2–1
17 	W	November 20, 2003	6–1 	Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 	8–6–2–1
18 	L	November 22, 2003	1–2 OT	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 	8–6–2–2
19 	L	November 23, 2003	2–6 	@ New York Rangers (2003–04) 	8–7–2–2
20 	W	November 25, 2003	6–3 	@ Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 	9–7–2–2
21 	L	November 27, 2003	2–3 OT	Vancouver Canucks (2003–04) 	9–7–2–3
22 	L	November 29, 2003	1–2 	Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	9–8–2–3
23 	W	December 1, 2003 	4–1 	Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 	10–8–2–3
24 	W	December 3, 2003 	4–0 	@ Florida Panthers (2003–04) 	11–8–2–3
25 	W	December 4, 2003 	4–1 	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 	12–8–2–3
26 	L	December 6, 2003 	1–2 	New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 	12–9–2–3
27 	T	December 8, 2003 	2–2 OT	@ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	12–9–3–3
28 	W	December 11, 2003	3–2 	Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 	13–9–3–3
29 	L	December 13, 2003	2–3 	Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	13–10–3–3
30 	W	December 18, 2003	6–1 	Chicago Blackhawks (2003–04) 	14–10–3–3
31 	W	December 20, 2003	3–1 	New York Rangers (2003–04) 	15–10–3–3
32 	W	December 22, 2003	3–2 OT	Florida Panthers (2003–04) 	16–10–3–3
33 	T	December 23, 2003	2–2 OT	@ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	16–10–4–3
34 	T	December 26, 2003	3–3 OT	Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 	16–10–5–3
35 	W	December 28, 2003	5–2 	Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 	17–10–5–3
36 	W	December 30, 2003	3–0 	@ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	18–10–5–3
37 	W	January 1, 2004 	1–0 	New York Islanders (2003–04) 	19–10–5–3
38 	W	January 3, 2004 	5–2 	Washington Capitals (2003–04) 	20–10–5–3
39 	W	January 6, 2004 	5–2 	Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 	21–10–5–3
40 	W	January 8, 2004 	7–1 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	22–10–5–3
41 	L	January 9, 2004 	2–3 	@ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	22–11–5–3
42 	T	January 11, 2004 	2–2 OT	@ Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 	22–11–6–3
43 	W	January 13, 2004 	4–0 	@ New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 	23–11–6–3
44 	T	January 15, 2004 	4–4 OT	New York Islanders (2003–04) 	23–11–7–3
45 	W	January 17, 2004 	4–0 	Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	24–11–7–3
46 	L	January 19, 2004 	2–5 	@ New York Islanders (2003–04) 	24–12–7–3
47 	W	January 20, 2004 	3–1 	@ Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 	25–12–7–3
48 	W	January 22, 2004 	6–5 	Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 	26–12–7–3
49 	W	January 24, 2004 	9–1 	New York Rangers (2003–04) 	27–12–7–3
50 	L	January 28, 2004 	3–5 	@ Dallas Stars (2003–04) 	27–13–7–3
51 	W	January 29, 2004 	4–1 	@ Phoenix Coyotes (2003–04) 	28–13–7–3
52 	L	January 31, 2004 	1–5 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	28–14–7–3
53 	L	February 3, 2004 	1–2 	@ New Jersey Devils (2003–04) 	28–15–7–3
54 	L	February 5, 2004 	4–5 OT	Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	28–15–7–4
55 	W	February 10, 2004	3–1 	St. Louis Blues (2003–04) 	29–15–7–4
56 	W	February 12, 2004	3–2 OT	Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	30–15–7–4
57 	W	February 14, 2004	5–2 	Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	31–15–7–4
58 	W	February 16, 2004	4–1 	@ New York Rangers (2003–04) 	32–15–7–4
59 	T	February 17, 2004	1–1 OT	@ Washington Capitals (2003–04) 	32–15–8–4
60 	L	February 19, 2004	2–3 OT	Atlanta Thrashers (2003–04) 	32–15–8–5
61 	W	February 21, 2004	2–1 	Calgary Flames (2003–04) 	33–15–8–5
62 	W	February 22, 2004	6–3 	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2003–04) 	34–15–8–5
63 	L	February 24, 2004	2–4 	@ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	34–16–8–5
64 	T	February 26, 2004	1–1 OT	Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 	34–16–9–5
65 	W	February 28, 2004	7–1 	Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	35–16–9–5
66 	L	March 3, 2004 	3–4 	@ Buffalo Sabres (2003–04) 	35–17–9–5
67 	L	March 5, 2004 	3–5 	@ Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 	35–18–9–5
68 	W	March 6, 2004 	4–2 	Nashville Predators (2003–04) 	36–18–9–5
69 	W	March 8, 2004 	4–1 	@ Washington Capitals (2003–04) 	37–18–9–5
70 	L	March 11, 2004 	2–4 	@ Calgary Flames (2003–04) 	37–19–9–5
71 	W	March 13, 2004 	2–1 	@ Vancouver Canucks (2003–04) 	38–19–9–5
72 	L	March 14, 2004 	1–3 	@ Edmonton Oilers (2003–04) 	38–20–9–5
73 	L	March 16, 2004 	2–5 	@ Minnesota Wild (2003–04) 	38–21–9–5
74 	W	March 18, 2004 	2–0 	Colorado Avalanche (2003–04) 	39–21–9–5
75 	L	March 20, 2004 	2–3 OT	Carolina Hurricanes (2003–04) 	39–21–9–6
76 	L	March 23, 2004 	2–4 	@ Boston Bruins (2003–04) 	39–22–9–6
77 	W	March 25, 2004 	4–0 	@ Montreal Canadiens (2003–04) 	40–22–9–6
78 	T	March 27, 2004 	2–2 OT	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	40–22–10–6
79 	W	March 29, 2004 	5–4 OT	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2003–04) 	41–22–10–6
80 	W	March 31, 2004 	5–4 	@ Florida Panthers (2003–04) 	42–22–10–6
81 	W	April 2, 2004 	3–1 	@ Philadelphia Flyers (2003–04) 	43–22–10–6
82 	L	April 3, 2004 	0–6 	Toronto Maple Leafs (2003–04) 	43–23–10–6
==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, coach Jacques Martin was fired, and goaltender Patrick Lalime was later traded to the St. Louis Blues. 
Mr. 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 a league leader. He also won the Jack Adams Trophy in 1999. However, after losing eight of twelve playoff series, including all four series in five years versus the Leafs, team management 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 been general manager.
Eastern Conference Quarter-finals 
 
Date 	Away 	Score 	Home 	Score 	Notes
April 8 	Ottawa 	4 	Toronto 	2 	
April 10 	Ottawa 	0 	Toronto 	2 	
April 12 	Toronto 	2 	Ottawa 	0 	
April 14 	Toronto 	1 	Ottawa 	4 	
April 16 	Ottawa 	0 	Toronto 	2 	
April 18 	Toronto 	1 	Ottawa 	2 	2OT
April 20 	Ottawa 	1 	Toronto 	4 	
Toronto wins series 4–3	Toronto wins series 4–3	Toronto wins series 4–3	Toronto wins series 4–3	Toronto wins series 4–3	
==Player stats==
===Regular season===
;Scoring
Player	Pos 	GP	G 	A 	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
 	RW 	81	36	46	82 	46 	4 	14 	1 	5
 	RW 	77	32	48	80 	24 	12 	9 	0 	5
 	RW 	68	31	37	68 	46 	12 	13 	0 	7
 	C 	78	22	33	55 	71 	22 	5 	0 	3
 	C 	80	19	27	46 	49 	22 	4 	0 	3
 	C 	66	12	32	44 	66 	2 	6 	0 	1
 	D 	81	17	26	43 	65 	21 	12 	0 	3
 	D 	79	16	25	41 	147	33 	7 	0 	3
 	LW 	81	15	24	39 	26 	22 	2 	2 	3
 	C 	53	9 	20	29 	22 	12 	1 	1 	2
 	D 	82	7 	16	23 	46 	15 	0 	0 	1
 	RW 	38	7 	10	17 	16 	6 	2 	0 	2
 	D 	60	1 	16	17 	29 	17 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	82	8 	8 	16 	194	13 	0 	0 	1
 	C 	57	7 	7 	14 	16 	5 	0 	1 	0
 	RW 	23	5 	9 	14 	16 	1 	2 	0 	1
 	C 	73	2 	10	12 	80 	6 	0 	1 	0
 	RW 	30	5 	5 	10 	26 	2 	0 	0 	1
 	C 	24	4 	6 	10 	39 	-3 	1 	0 	0
 	D 	55	2 	6 	8 	24 	6 	1 	0 	1
 	LW 	43	2 	4 	6 	14 	-1 	1 	0 	1
 	D 	56	1 	4 	5 	16 	13 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	37	0 	5 	5 	72 	2 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	19	1 	2 	3 	8 	1 	0 	0 	0
 	G 	57	0 	2 	2 	17 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	6 	1 	0 	1 	14 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	13	0 	1 	1 	6 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	5 	0 	1 	1 	2 	1 	0 	0 	0
 	G 	29	0 	1 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	16	0 	1 	1 	47 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	G 	3 	0 	0 	0 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	LW 	5 	0 	0 	0 	0 	-3 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	C/LW	4 	0 	0 	0 	0 	-2 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	1 	0 	0 	0 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	1 	0 	0 	0 	2 	1 	0 	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player	MIN 	GP	W 	L 	T/OT	GA 	GAA 	SO	SA 	SV 	SV%
 	3324	57	25	23	7 	127	2.29	5 	1334	1207	.905
 	1528	29	16	6 	3 	54 	2.12	3 	651 	597 	.917
 	126 	3 	2 	0 	0 	5 	2.38	0 	52 	47 	.904
Team: 	4978	82	43	29	10 	186	2.24	8 	2037	1851	.909
===Playoffs===
;Scoring
Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
 	RW 	7 	3	1	4 	0 	2 	1 	0 	2
 	RW 	7 	1	2	3 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	7 	0	3	3 	2 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	7 	1	1	2 	8 	3 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	7 	1	1	2 	4 	-2 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	7 	1	1	2 	4 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	7 	0	2	2 	0 	2 	0 	0 	0
 	LW 	7 	0	2	2 	4 	1 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	7 	1	0	1 	4 	0 	0 	0 	1
 	D 	7 	1	0	1 	12 	2 	1 	0 	0
 	D 	7 	1	0	1 	2 	-5 	1 	0 	0
 	C 	7 	1	0	1 	4 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	7 	0	1	1 	8 	-2 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	7 	0	1	1 	19 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	4 	0	1	1 	4 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	RW 	7 	0	0	0 	6 	-4 	0 	0 	0
 	G 	7 	0	0	0 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	2 	0	0	0 	0 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	7 	0	0	0 	6 	-2 	0 	0 	0
 	G 	1 	0	0	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
 	C 	3 	0	0	0 	2 	-1 	0 	0 	0
 	D 	5 	0	0	0 	6 	0 	0 	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA 	SO	SA 	SV 	SV%
 	398	7 	3	4	13	1.96	0 	139	126	.906
 	40 	1 	0	0	1 	1.50	0 	15 	14 	.933
Team: 	438	7 	3	4	14	1.92	0 	154	140	.909
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T/OT = Ties/Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage; 
==Awards and records==
* Molson Cup - Daniel Alfredsson
* First NHL All-Star Team - Zdeno Chara
==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 LaichSecond-round draft choice, 2005 draftfuture 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 Jensen)
===Waivers===
October 3, 2003 	To Nashville PredatorsWade Brookbank
October 3, 2003 	To Washington CapitalsDenis Hamel
December 19, 2003	From Vancouver CanucksWade Brookbank
Source: 
==Roster==
						
Goaltenders
* 
* 
*		
Defensemen
* 
* - A
* 
* 
* - A
* - A
* 
* 
* 
* 
*	
Wingers
* 
* 
* - C
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
*		
Centres
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
* 
*GM: John Muckler
*Coach: Jacques Martin	
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)
1 	29 	Patrick Eaves 	 	Boston College (NCAA)
2 	67 	Igor Mirnov 	 	Moscow Dynamo (Russia)
3 	100	Philippe Seydoux	 	Kloten (Swiss.)
4 	135	Matt Karlsson 	 	Brynäs IF (SEL)
5 	142	Tim Cook 	 	River City Lancers (USHL)
5 	166	Sergei Gimayev 	 	Severstal Cherepovets (Russia)
7 	228	Will Colbert 	 	Ottawa 67's (OHL)
8 	269	Ossi Louhivaara 	 	Kookoo (Finland)
9 	291	Brian Elliott 	 	University of Wisconsin–Madison (NCAA)
==Farm teams==
* Binghamton Senators (American Hockey League)
==See also==
* 2003–04 NHL season
==References==
* 
Category:Ottawa Senators seasons
Category:2003 in hockey
Category:2004 in hockey