The Sens finally put a W on their record for the season, but the game was rife with upsides and downsides. The Senators will have a few things to practice over a rare weekend off before they face the Atlanta Thrashers on Monday.

• On the upside, "the Senators are starting their move up the standing" as Denis Potvin underscored after the game. On the downside, it may just be a momentary blip on their clide down the standings.
• The Senators were able to manufacture some scoring for goalie Pascal Leclaire. On the downside, they did leave him hanging quite a few times.
• Pascal Leclaire bobbled that first goal by the Devils. Totally. But it seemed to have reinforced his determination and we was rock solid afterwards, sometimes brilliant.
• The Senators were able to apply some steady pressure in the first, not letting up on the Devils and rarely letting them get past the neutral zone. Total role reversal in the third period where the Senators had a hard time getting out of their zone. They were content to dump the puck back into the neutral zone, which equates to a turnover every time. It felt like trying to stem the tide with a roll of paper towels.
• The Senators finally managed to get a two-goal lead in a game. Unfortunately, they almost immediately went into "protect-the-lead" mode. Instead of relying on one forechecker with the rest clogging the neutral zone, they should have been looking to extend the lead. Applying the same pressure throughout the game and forcing the opposition to play defensively would have kept the Devils far from the Sens' net.
• The Senators were caught on a few bad changes in the second, one of which cost them a goal. On the upside, some of those bad changes should hav ebeen called as too many men on the ice, but weren't. Coach Cory Clouston will definitely have to have the boys practice line changing.
• The Senators were lucky that Martin Brodeur, back to the game after a lengthy asence, was coughing up rebounds. Big ones. They unfortunately didn't take advantage of the fact as much as they could have.

Overall, it was a step in the right direction. Don;t get me wrong, I think the Sens have a long way to go yet, but they really needed that win. There's nothing more disheartening than working hard for a victory, and seeing it friter away as happened against the Rangers.

GO SENS GO!!