Apr 13, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Ottawa Senators center Kyle Turris (left) and left wing Clarke MacArthur (16) and defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) stand for the national anthem before playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Senators won 3-2 in a shootout. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
While many of these reasons for optimism rely on a drastic turnaround from the club that was on the ice (or behind the bench) last season, you can always rely on the phrase, “it can’t really get much worse now, can it?”