As I was writing this the baffling signing of Nick Cousins (3-68/11; 68-7-8-15; 1 year, 800k) came in, which means someone like Highmore is headed to Belleville, which is great for the BSens (cf my early roster speculation). Cousins was an irrelevant bit player in the Panthers Cup win (12-0-1-1), but Staios has shown a strong affinity for older players with Cup experience, so while it doesn’t move the needle at all, it does fit the mold (and also suggests the org thinks the team is on the verge when I think they have taken a small step back).

We’ll start off listing out the players by position arranged by points-per-game last season. Those still on their ELC’s are in green, veterans are in are blue (as per the AHL rules), and AHL contracts are in italics. For the prospects I’ll briefly go through their potential.

Gaudette, C, 28, 67-44-27-71 1.05 (0.91, 220 NHL games) FA Stl
Vancouver pick (5-149/15) is coming into his eighth professional season, having already had one (disappointing) tour with Ottawa in 21-22 (as a waiver claim from Chicago). He’s a productive AHL player (leading Springfield by a wide margin), whose NHL upside appears to be non-existent.
Crookshank, LW, 25, 50-24-22-46 0.92 (0.78, 13 NHL games) 5-126/18
Has fully recovered from missing the entire 21-22 season; there’s a chance he makes the Sens lineup out of camp, as his abrasive style of play makes him viable as a plugger (he and Greig have a similar approach to the game, but the latter is more talented). In terms of past Sens picks, the only comparables that fit (undersized collegian) are Ryan Dzingel (2011) and Erik Condra (2006)–he doesn’t have the blazing speed of the former, but is a bit more offensively talented than the latter, so a split between the two is the upside to envision.
Pilon, C, 26, 62-18-29-47 0.76 (0.63) FA Phi 23
One of the veterans signed the previous season, the BSens have made a commitment to him (two years) and it’s a reasonable investment for the former Washington pick (3-87/16). He’s not an elite talent at this level, but can serve as a solid #2 and was one of the better players in the playoffs for the BSens.
Highmore, C, 28-29, 43-9-22-31 0.72 (0.75, 146 NHL games) FA Stl 23
Also signed the previous season, the undrafted center (like Gaudette) has wound his way through the Vancouver, Chicago, and St. Louis’ systems before joining the Sens. He had an atrocious playoff with the BSens, but is a solid AHLer and can perform spot duty at the NHL-level.
Jenik, RW, 24, 55-16-20-36 0.65 (0.73, 22 NHL games) t-Utah
Acquired in the Sokolov trade, the Czech (3-65/18) is coming off a down season and struggled to make the porous Arizona (now Utah) lineup. The Sens are hoping a change of scenery helps; from a (dated) interview with Arizona’s development folks (here) he’s described as a very emotional player (something the Sens overvalue) who needs a lot of work defensively. What I take from that is there’s a hope he can become a bottom-nine player who can agitate while adding a little offense, but without seeing him it’s difficult to know how feasible that is.
Bongiovanni, C, 25, 48-16-9-25 0.52 (0.40) t-Win
The undrafted Collegian was given away by the Jets for nothing and he did well in his short time in Belleville. Is he the inconsistent defensive disaster that he was in Manitoba, or has he found his place with the BSens? We’ll find out this season.
Halliday, C, 22, 10-0-5-5 0.50 4-104/22
I’ve been a fan of his since the Sens drafted him, as the pick is one of their few attempts at looking for talent in later rounds. He was by far the best player during the BSens playoff run and there’s no doubt that he can dominate at this level (the NHL remains uncertain). For those with good memories, he reminded me of Chabot in his debut with the BSens back in 2017 as a ‘man among boys’ during the playoffs. Maybe that was a fluke, but if it’s representative, he won’t be in the AHL for long.
Daoust, C, 22-23, 4-0-2-2 0.50 (0.50) 6-158/20
He’s had catastrophic injuries in both of the last two season, so we simply don’t know what he is after that. This is the final year of his ELC, so he’ll have to be healthy to establish himself. He has talent, but to what extent and what else he can do remains unknown at the pro level.
Reinhardt, LW, 24-25, 56-8-15-23 0.41 (0.44) 6-181/20
This will be his fifth season for the BSens and he’s established himself as a speedy third-liner who can do spot duty up the lineup and has some edge. I don’t think there’s NHL potential, but at the AHL-level he’s a useful player.
Ostapchuk, C, 21, 69-17-11-28 0.41 (7 NHL games) 2-39/21
He had a solid rookie season and I’m waiting to see if he’s anything more than a tough plugger at this level (the Sens’ hope is as a top-nine PKer with a bit of scoring).
Bourgault, C, 22, 55-8-12-20 0.36 (0.46) t-Edm
An unremarkable late first-round pick (cf) coming off a bad year who represents the primary return from the Jarventie deal; it’s not clear he has much to give at this level and there’s no sign of NHL-potential. He was drafted while Staios was with the Oilers, so presumably he believes there’s something to get out of him (I need to see it to believe it).
Hodgson, RW, 28-29, 49-6-10-16 0.32 (0.34, 7 NHL games) FA LA
Undrafted player who has used physical play to create a minor league career for himself–he showed some talent in his AHL rookie year with Philadelphia (21-22), but seems to have settled into being a fourth-line banger (6 fights last year, which is a lot in the modern day).
Pettersson, C, 20-21, 29-3-4-7 0.24 3-72/22
Didn’t accomplish much in his pro debut. Drafted as a top-nine, PK type of player (if that sounds familiar, it’s because the Sens have drafted for this incessantly), I’m not sure how much production we should expect. There are questions not just about his hands (non-existent thus far), but his speed, and I don’t think there’s room for a slow plugger.
Boucher, RW, 21-22, 21-2-3-5 0.24 1-10/21
Injuries injuries injuries and when he did play he was unremarkable. I think he’s going to go down as Brian Lee-levels of stupidity as a first-round pick, but I won’t revisit his limitations as they are understood. His lack of footspeed makes his style of play almost impossible to pull off.
Rees, C, 23-24, 21-0-5-5 0.23 (0.43) t-Car
Was terrible when acquired, but the Sens must believe that the good season he had prior to that (22-23) is the version of him they will be getting.
Betts, C, 27, 56-5-4-9 0.16 (0.12) FA ECHL 22
Undrafted ECHLer has played his way into being a useful spare part for the org (they signed him to a two-year extension).
Washkaruk, C, 23, 63-4-6-10 0.16 (0.26) FA LA
Blues pick (5-155/19) flamed out with that org and is on an AHL-deal; hasn’t scored much and is poor defensively, so I’m not sure what they want from him (pims are high, so maybe agitation).
Chiasson, RW, 21, ECHL 68-9-11-20 0.29 t-Edm
Forced upon the team in the Jarventie trade; these are abysmal ECHL numbers (sub Vincent Dunn, for Sens fans with long memories), so I expect him to be buried in that league for the rest of his ELC.

Guenette, DR, 23, 58-7-27-34 0.59 (0.52, 8 NHL games) 7-187/19
I’ve always seen him as the second coming of Max Lajoie (5-133/16)–a talented AHLer who can’t quite make the jump to the NHL. He’s solid if unspectacular offensively and decent defensively (the kind of tweener you see a lot in the upper echelons of the AHL). There’s still time for Guenette to prove me wrong, but for Belleville he’ll occupy the #1 slot on the right side.
Davies, DL, 27-28, 66-12-23-35 0.53 (0.49, 23 NHL games) FA Buf
Former Jersey pick (7-192/16) has been a productive point producer at this level, but not talented enough to be pushed into NHL service except in dire emergencies. I’d expect him to be #1 on the left side.
Wylie, DR, 24-25, 45-2-11-13 0.29 (0.27) FA LA
Former Flyer pick (5-127/18) failed out of that org and comes to Ottawa on an AHL-deal to flesh out the depth (so a seventh defenseman).
Roos, DL, 25-26, 59-2-14-16 0.27 (0.28, 21 NHL games) FA Chi
This feels like Kristians Rubins all over again (22-23); the undrafted Swede is big, but not overly skilled and unremarkable defensively; he arrives after two seasons in Chicago’s system. If he is like Rubins, he’ll be moved before the season is out. I expect him on the bottom pair.
Matinpalo, DR, 26, 67-4-10-14 0.21 (4 NHL games) FA Finland 23
I like Matinpalo, although there’s probably not enough puck skills for him to be more than a useful defender at this level. As things stand he’s slotted in as the #2 on the right side.
Sebrango, DL, 22-23, 35-0-7-7 0.20 (0.15) t-Chi
Forced onto Ottawa in the Debrincat trade, he performed at about the same unremarkable level (although he did pick up a lot more pims). He seems set to rotate as the #3 option on the left side.
Donovan, DL, 20, OHL 66-13-33-46 0.69 5-136/22
He’s had a good junior career and it will be interesting to see how well that translates at this level. I’d expect him to be the #2 on the left side as things stand (behind Davies). He’s a good all around player (a bit like his father, despite the different position) and I think that’s what you have to imagine his upside as a pro–a solid #4 who can play on the PK and (maybe) the second PP.
Hamara, DL, 20-21, OHL 44-1-19-20 0.45 3-87/22
I don’t see room for him in Belleville so I expect him to be loaned elsewhere (or moved). He has good speed, but isn’t overly physical (he’s not big) and doesn’t have notable hands, so I have no idea what the Sens expect from him–I think Staios will move him if he gets the chance.
Toure, DR, 21, OHL 45-8-10-18 0.40 FA OHL 23
A likely candidate to spend time in the ECHL. When he does play it would be on the third pairing where the Sens will expect strong defensive play (whether he can do that or not remains to be seen).

Sogaard, GL, 23-24, 18-9-3 2.45 .916 2-37/19
Coming off his best AHL-season, although he struggled with consistency in the playoffs. Consistency has been his major problem, but that’s not uncommon in young goaltenders.
Merilainen, GL, 22, 10-9-1 2.87 .906 3-71/20
Battled with Mandolese to be the backup last season and perhaps not having that pressure will help him this season. There’s a lot of talent, but can he put it together?
Simpson, GL, 21-22, OHL .908 FA OHL 24
A bit of an odd pick-up as a free agent, but he’ll spend the year in the ECHL where the Sens can assess if there’s more value in him.

Last year the BSens were over the veteran limit which caused them all kinds of problems. Now they have space making demotions possible and avoiding having to bench players simply due to numbers. I worry a great deal about the team’s blueline, which only has two proven puck movers. The top of the lineup should be fine with three veteran scorers to balance things out, but in terms of the pipeline, once you get beyond Crookshank and Halliday, there’s not much talent (the Sens just aren’t drafting for it).

I think the BSens will (again) be on the bubble for the playoffs and, since I think the Sens will miss, should get help late in the season to help them out. I’m not sure we’ll get a run like last year, but it’s a possibility.

Speaking of the pipeline, there’s a lazy Corey Pronman article assessing it. Due to his use of age (rather than career stage) as a marker, most of it is copy/pasted from things he’s written in the past with almost no added insight whatsoever. Pronman sticks with his draft assessment until a player has made a mark in the NHL that forces him to adjust it, so the mid-prospect assessments are basically worthless.

This article was written by Peter Levi

September 4, 2024
Categories: Belleville Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

Fandom is like religion in that its adherents have almost no control over its function. This impotence provides heavy doses of tragedy and triumph, sensations far removed from more prosaic eudaimonic satisfaction. In this era understanding of sport is very high, so management has ceased to be messianic bearers of secret knowledge and revealed as a (mostly) bungling group of well-connected insiders whose foibles cause most franchises nothing but pain and, like corporate executes, simply fail into new positions. For Sens fans, the franchise has been struggling ever since the John Muckler-constructed team was blown-up in 2010 (and, arguably, since the 2007 Cup loss to Anaheim). Other than one blip in 2017 during the Murray rebuild (Rebuild #1), the org has been a disaster and new ownership (Andlauer) and leadership (Staios) is headed in the same direction. All the way back to Bryan Murray’s tenure as GM (2007-17), the team obsessed over veterans, pluggers, and grinders (as if they were still trying to sign Gary Roberts almost 20-years later). The organization is notorious for being patient with the bad players and impatient with good ones, and almost a year into Steve Staios’ tenure the same tendencies have emerged. With that preamble aside, let’s look at the roster changes from last year.

Gone
Tarasenko, RW, 31, 57-17-24-41 0.72 (T – Flo)
Chychrun, LD, 25, 82-14-27-41 0.50 (T – Wsh)
Joseph, RW, 26, 72-11-24-35 0.48 (T – Stl)
Brannstrom, LD, 24, 76-3-17-20 0.26 (FA – Col)
Kelly, LW, 24, 80-8-10-18 0.22 (FA – Col)
Kubalik, LW, 28, 74-11-4-15 0.20 (FA)
Katchouk, LW, 25, 21-2-2-4 0.19 (FA)
Kastelic, CR, 24, 63-5-5-10 0.16 (T – Bos)
Korpisalo, G, 30, 0.890 3.27 (T – Bos)
Draft picks: 1st/25 (Bos/Korpisalo trade), 3rd/25 (Stl/Joseph trade) 6th/24 (Car/Rees trade), 7th/26 (Col/Mandolese trade)

Added
Perron, RW, 36, 76-17-30-47 0.62 (FA Det)
Amadio, C/RW, 28, 73-14-13-27 0.37 (FA VGK)
Gregor, CL, 26, 63-6-6-12 0.19 (FA Tor)
Jensen, RD, 33, 78-1-13-14 0.18 (T – Wsh)
Ullmark, G, 31, 0.915 2.58 (T – Bos)
Draft picks: 3rd/25 (Flo/Tarasenko trade), 3rd/26 (Flo/Tarasenko trade), 3rd/26 (Wsh/Chychrun trade) 4th/25 (Edm/Jarventie trade), 6th/26 (Col/Mandolese trade)

All the picks added by Ottawa (with the exception of Washington’s) will be late in those rounds, while their own picks will be early (other than the 1st they surrendered, which was not their own). As I pointed out in July, in the offseason the Sens got older, smaller, and less talented. No important free agents signed here and the two main signees are overpaid (particularly Perron). Asset management has been so atrocious a term is being used to explain it all away: ‘sunk cost’ (ala ‘collateral damage’ in the military or Microsoft’s ‘situational disability’). The Chychrun trade was the worst in the offseason and the Sens’ once talented blueline has virtually returned to the era (2018-22) of being a Chabot-injury away from dreadful. I’ve gone over (link above) what I think the Sens are trying to do with Perron, but there’s not much gas left in the tank and he doesn’t make those around him better (unlike Giroux)–signed for two years, there’s no possibility of moving him or buying him out if the experiment fails. As for Amadio, he’s only had success on a very good Vegas team, so can he sustain that elsewhere? As we’ve seen with the player he replaced (Joseph), if the experiment fails, moving him (for Staios) is virtually impossible. Jensen is going to be a disaster, while Ullmark is a bigger question mark for me than most, as I go over here (in short: what will his performance be outside of Boston’s defense-first system? And he’s never had to handle a starter’s workload).

The above are the NHL roster changes, but what about in the system? (Players in italics are on AHL-deals; those in italics and green are prospects):

Gone
Jarventie, LW, 21, AHL 22-9-11-20 0.91 (T – Edm)
Chartier, CL, 27, AHL 19-7-6-13 0.68 (FA KHL)
Sokolov, RW, 24, AHL 71-21-25-46 0.65 (T – Utah)
Larsson, DL, 26, AHL 61-7-26-33 0.54 (FA NLA)
Currie, CR, 31, AHL 62-12-17-29 0.47 (FA DEL)
Smejkal, LW, 26, AHL 47-9-13-22 0.47 (FA Czech)
Thomson, RD, 23, AHL 67-6-15-21 0.31 (Loan SHL)
Imama, LW, 27, AHL 53-3-7-10 0.19 (FA Pit)
Saulnier, CL, 29, AHL 36-3-4-7 0.19 (FA Wsh)
Fizer, RW/CR, 22, AHL 30-2-3-5 0.17 (FA Stl)
Heatherington, LD, 28, AHL 60-3-7-10 0.17 (FA Ana)
MacKinnon, RD, 29, 29-0-3-3 0.10 (FA Slovakia)
Mandolese, G, 23, AHL .901 3.07 (T – Col)

Added
Gaudette, RW, 28, AHL 67-44-27-71 1.05 (FA Stl)
Jenik, CL, 24, AHL 55-16-20-36 0.65 (T – Utah)
Davies, DL, 27, AHL 66-12-23-35 0.53 (FA Buf)
Bourgault, CR/RW, 21, AHL 55-8-12-20 0.36 (T – Edm)
Hodgson, RW, 28, AHL 49-6-10-16 0.32 (FA LA)
Wylie, DR, 24, AHL 45-2-11-13 0.29 (FA LA)
Roos, DL, 25, AHL 59-2-14-16 0.27 (FA Chi)
Washkurak, CL, 23, AHL 63-4-6-10 0.16 (FA Stl)
Chaisson, RW, 20, ECHL 68-9-11-20 0.29 (T – Edm)
Simpson, G, 21, OHL .908 2.59 (FA)
Donovan, DL, 20, OHL 66-13-33-46 0.69 (5-136/22)
Hamara, DL, 20, OHL 44-1-19-20 0.45 (3-87/22)
Toure, DR, 21, OHL 45-8-10-18 0.40 (FA 23)

The BSens got younger and less talented (a talent gap with very little to fill it over the next few years, as the Sens have persistently drafted pluggers and grinders, cf). It’s likely one of Hamara or Donovan (probably the former) will be loaned elsewhere rather than stay as an eighth defenseman.

Let’s talk about the major changes at this level. Thomson (first-rounder), Sokolov (2nd-rounder), and Jarventie (2nd-rounder) have all been moved (albeit the Sens retain the rights to the blueliner). I don’t like any of this, but I will make the org’s case for each:
Thomson – struggled under coach Bell and regressed (in part due to usage, although I’m sure Bell would argue his performance dictated that change); he needs to get his confidence back and because of changes in Ottawa there actually is room for him should he return next season (he’s arguably already better than the 6/7’s the Sens have on their right side, namely JBD and Hamonic), although he’s much more likely to have his rights traded for virtually nothing.
Sokolov – his skating remains abysmal, but his down year seems tied to confidence and the Sens could reasonably fear there’s no more upside. I think the player they swapped him for (Jenik) has his own issues, but Gaudette can replace the production if he flames out and the team has to hope the change of scenery for Jenik works out. Of the two trades this is the one I understand best, even if I think in terms of talent the Sens got the worst end of it.
Jarventie – his trajectory is fine, so his issue is staying healthy (he’s missed half of each of the last two seasons). With that said, the Sens got nothing of value in return, as the Oilers simply washed their hands of two failed picks with term remaining. Why trade him for nothing? It’s the sort of impatience that’s becoming a Staios trademark–an unwillingness to wait and get better value in favour of making moves quickly. There’s no universe where this isn’t better for Edmonton.

The 2024-25 Ottawa Senators (on paper)

To avoid this getting cluttered with text I’m going to include just points-per-game in brackets (positioning the expected LW-C-RW); I’m not predicting lines, simply listing them in order of prior performance with additions in green (two-way contracts in italics):

Tkachuk (0.91)-Stutzle (0.93)-Batherson (0.80)
Perron (0.62)-Pinto (0.66)-Giroux (0.78)
Crookshank (0.23)-Greig (0.36)-Amadio (0.37)
Gregor (0.19)-Highmore (0.29)-MacEwen (0.10)
IR: Norris (0.60)

Chabot (0.59)-Zub (0.36)
Sanderson (0.48)-Jensen (0.19)
Kleven (0.11)-JBD (0.19)
Hamonic (0.13)

Ullmark (0.915)-Forsberg (0.890)

It’s a serviceable first line, a weak second unit, a third based on potential, and an AHL fourth line. Things are hypothetically better if Norris returns, but he did not look great last year and I wonder if his shoulders will ever recover. As for the D, the right side is awful and outside the top-two there’s nothing on the left side. The goaltending has improved to average, but the team has to see production increases from a significant number of players to compete. Anyone facing Ottawa just has to target the first line and it’s going to be an easy night.

It’s possible the talented Halliday could get a shot at the NHL-level (the third-line would make the most sense), or a plugger like Ostapchuk on the fourth, but to me Crookshank (given his age and having nothing left to prove in the AHL) makes the most sense to start (as does Highmore who has plenty of NHL experience (146 games)–Gaudette is also an option, with 220 games). If Norris is healthy it’s not clear to me which of the two-ways get sent down (and we have to bear in mind that MacEwen could wind up in Belleville despite the one-way), but I don’t want to get lost in the weeds of that speculation this early.

The Depth Chart

This is purely a recall list in terms of how I think the org thinks (so based on performance and things that have been said).

Talented Forwards
Halliday
Jenik (assuming he bounces back)

Grinding Forwards
Gaudette (grinds at the NHL level)
Ostapchuk

Talented blueliners
Guenette

Defensive blueliners
Matinpalo

Goaltenders
Sogaard
Meralainen

The AHL depth on the blueline is filled with questions and it’s unclear if any can fill-in at a replacement level. The forward side isn’t much better, albeit Gaudette can do spot duty (as mentioned above) and Halliday is a real talent. Sogaard has struggled at the NHL-level (in 27 games he’s .884), but the talent is there. Meralainen has been inconsistent, but he’s younger and can probably fill in on an emergency basis if necessary (4 games, all as a rookie, .878). I think this is a make-or-break year for Sogaard (I mean from an organizational perspective, as from my point-of-view, at only 23, he’s still years away from his peak).

Have Things Improved?

I didn’t pose the question as the basis of the article, but it’s an implied one when going through this. Are the 24-25 Ottawa Senators better (on paper) than the 23-24 Sens? Let’s recall that going into last season The Athletic (and others) projected Ottawa to be on the outside looking in with a 94-point season. Ottawa submarined that with an anemic 78-points. The Athletic likes just one move the Sens made in the off-season (the obvious improvement, although they echo my concerns about the acquisition), but I think they (like the fanbase) bought into the pre-season hysteria from last year. We’ll see more sober estimates this season. But I digress, what do I think of the comparative rosters? The blueline is worse, the goaltending is better, and the forward group is less talented. I say the latter with the caveat that Greig and other young players could improve significantly, but we don’t know that and straight-up swapping Tarasenko for Perron is a downgrade. Overall the changes are a wash, given that some things will go better than expected and other things will be worse, but the Sens really are just a few injuries away from a season just as bad as last year. The org cannot (or will not) attempt to address their talent depth and Staios can’t win trades. I think they will get more points than last year, but not make the playoffs (similar to 22-23, so mid to high 80s in points).

This article was written by Peter Levi

August 25, 2024
Categories: Belleville Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: 2 Comments

As we sit in the doldrums of summer amidst the wreckage of our first Steve Staios off-season, we can look back at the season that was during the last gasp of Pierre Dorion’s incompetent run. The above charts are courtesy of an article from The Athletic who talk about their pre-season projections: “it turns out we should’ve expected something a lot closer to his [Korpisalo’s] usual body of work.” And “From just Kubalik and Korpisalo struggling immensely the Senators were 10 points worse than we thought.” Chychrun and Chabot were horrible defensively (the latter with the easiest minutes on the team and, of course, his usual injury problems). The above relies heavily on numbers and we know the current Sens’ administration (just like the one it replaced) fears and mistrusts numbers, so they will have learned nothing from this.

There’s definitely context to the above and it’s best not to simply glance at it as-is and think those at the top were fantastic and those at the bottom were awful (Kelly and Joseph could only go up from their awful 22-23 seasons, and both are marginal players and gone regardless). There’s not much surprising in the above, even if we all might adjust players a few places depending on what’s valued, their role, how much they played, and so on. It’s not hard to define the issues of the 23-24 season: horrible goaltending, a weak defensecorps (which is now weaker), and lack of production throughout the forward lineup (which hasn’t been addressed).

I’ve mentioned a few times (cf) the pick Pierre Dorion frittered away that became Justus Annunen, a young goaltender who continues to excel in Colorado. It’s one of many examples of how Dorion threw away picks for nothing and we see a similar tendency already with Staios (the Jamieson Rees deal was the first instance, albeit a 6th is less of a gamble than the 3rd used for Annunen). We can also mention Josh Doan, another pick Dorion discarded when he inexplicably brought in Derek Stepan, or the one discarded for Ian Cole that has become Alex Laferriere in LA. Asset management with Dorion was always awful and that trend has continued with Staios (for those with good memories, Pius Suter could have been signed years ago as a FA tryout).

While the fandom in Ottawa seems over the moon with the offseason, no one outside the market is under any such illusions. Courtesy of The Athletic we can see the abysmal impression elsewhere and I am heartened that, at least among its readers, Sens fans are being more realistic than what I see elsewhere. Optimism is a fine thing, but you have to be honest with what’s been done and how anyone can be happy with the moves overall (short-term or long) is beyond me. The one move that gets praised the most is acquiring Ullmark, but beyond the fact he’s never had a starting goaltender’s workload (cf), how will you keep him? If he goes, or if he bombs out, nothing has been achieved.

In terms of contracts overall, the Norris deal was always a gamble and it’s actually better that he be injured than play poorly–with the amount of money he makes, he either has to be excellent or off the payroll (they can use some of that Vegas magic with the cap perhaps). The Perron deal was ridiculous and Amadio could turn into a Joseph-like problem as well, but we will have to wait and see (the former would be impossible to move, which is why his deal is much worse as a gamble). The Jensen deal will be something fans will hate very quickly and the guy is basically unmovable at that salary.

The Sens have also fumbled the cap for no discernable reason. They should have plenty of room to make additions, but they don’t. The contracts that expire next season free up a lot of cash (and get rid of two players who serve no purpose on the roster, Forsberg and Hamonic), but there’s no replacing Giroux who will likely have to be dealt at the deadline if the team isn’t making the playoffs (which I don’t expect them to do). Given the sort of returns Staios is getting on trades, I expect to get rolled Chychrun-style again, likely acquiring some declining, broken down older player with salary carryover.

This isn’t the place to project forward, but nothing I’ve seen seems better than the Dorion regime. All this has done for me is confirm that Andlauer has no idea what he’s doing when it comes to the team and is easily exploited by people who simply talk the talk. The best fans can hope for is that I’m wrong and everything works out.

This article was written by Peter Levi

August 17, 2024
Categories: Belleville Senators, Ottawa Senators . . Author: Eye on the Sens . Comments: Leave a comment