Fourteen penalties. Eight in the second period alone. If you're looking for a reason why the Senators lost to the Leafs, look no further.

Don't get me wrong, I like feistiness and showing the other team who's in charge. I also understand that the officials seemed to have some problems with their eyesight as well. But some of those penalties were just dumb in the extreme. Case in point is Mike Fisher's 3rd period penalty when, after being solidly plastered, he resolved to hold on to his adversary's skate for a while. Blatantly and very visibly so. Which penalty led to the winning goal, of course.

Three of Toronto's goals came on the power play. Let me ask a really simple question here: do you for a moment think the Leafs would have had a chance if not for those penalties? In the first period, I admit that the Leafs dictated the pace, with the Senators blueliners granting them all kinds of access to the slot. But after that, it was pretty much all Sens... except for the penalties.

You can;t find yourself on the wrong side of a 14-10 penalty exchange. You can't even afford to find yourself on the right side of a 14-10 penalty exchange. It's sad to see in the pre-season in that it doesn't bode well for the regular season. Cory Clouston had better lower the boom right away, or we will see a repeat of last season where the Senators lost too many games to undisciplined play.