FHM Ottawa Senators Historical Challenge, January 1999: Ties, Ties, Ties

Franchise Hockey Manager 6 is a text-based hockey management simulation game by Out of the Park Developments. It’s a lot of fun, and I find it super realistic. I recommend checking it out if you’re looking for a good way to kill time while social distancing.

In the game, you take over as GM and/or head coach of pretty much any hockey team on the planet, and make roster moves to bring your team a championship. The CPU plays the games for you, but you craft the team.

One of the coolest game modes is the Historical Challenges, wherein you take over as GM of a team at a particular point in their NHL existence, and attempt to relive or rewrite history. For the purposes of this play-through, we’ll be taking over the Ottawa Senators in the Fall of 1996, and attempting to win a Stanley Cup no later than the spring of 2007.

For the purposes of this little exercise, I’m going to play through this mode, trying to win a Cup for the Sens, with help from you - yes you - the readers! At the end of every edition, I’ll ask you questions about key roster moves, and make it based on how you respond!

We’re going to take this on a month-by-month basis, with a new installment coming out every week, so make sure you let me know in the comments what you want to see, and any suggestions you have to achieve this goal! I want to make this as interactive an experience as possible, so I really want to hear from you!

A new year begins, with January 1999!

You voted to shop Sami Salo, and so he’s been moved to the trade block.

Off to a good start, with a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. Pavel Bure and Bret Hedican had the goals.

The next game was hard-fought, but not so lucky this time. Rich Parent stole a 1-0 overtime win for his New Jersey Devils.

A win, a loss, a tie. This one coming in Carolina. Robert Lang drew us even with the Hurricanes.

Back in the win column, with a 5-3 win in Detroit. Bure scored twice, along with Bryan McCabe, Markus Naslund, and Miroslav Šatan, to power us past the Red Wings.

Make it back-to-back W’s, this one coming against our expansion brothers from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bure, Dan Boyle, Jozef Stumpel, and Rob Zamuner doubled up the Bolts.

The good luck against the Wings continues with a 4-2 victory. Eric Weinrich lit the lamp twice, while Boyle and Stumpel added markers of their own.

Not much to go on, here.

Back in the ‘T’ column, against the Devils once more. Stumpel, Wade Redden, Martin St. Louis, and Magnus Arvedson combined for the four goals.

Dominik Hasek steals one for his Buffalo Sabres, and it’s a 2-0 loss.

Ties, ties, ties. St. Louis, Naslund, and Lang put three goals together, but it was just as many as the Flyers did, thanks to a stout Ron Hextall performance.

Points are points, I guess. This one comes against the rival New York Rangers, with Bure and Anson Carter getting the goals.

Hedican and Jeff Friesen combined for two, but this ends in a 3-2 loss to the Boston Bruins.

To make matters worse, we’ve had to move Hedican to IR for a few weeks. Salo has been recalled.

Ugh.

At least the month ends on a good note, with a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders. Šatan and Carter scored the goals.

Okay, question time:

Here are our current points leaders. It seems to me that we’re struggling to outscore teams in the absence of Alexei Yashin, who should be back in a month or two. That said, with the trade deadline coming up on March 23rd, we should start figuring out what areas to target.

We’re doing okay so far, but with no salary cap, we should definitely look to make some additions going into the playoffs.

What’s our biggest need?

All told, we finish January with a record of 6-3-4 (24-16-7 overall), good enough for 55 points. It leaves us second in the division, sixth in the East, and ninth overall.

Thanks for reading! Make sure you vote on the poll, and check back next week for February 1999!