The Ottawa Senators have had trouble over the years retaining the talent they develop, with earlier this week being the latest example. Though they reportedly discussed an extension with Jean-Gabriel Pageau, the two-way center was eventually traded at the deadline only to immediately sign with the New York Islanders for six more seasons. One could be skeptical then when Pierre Dorion tells TSN radio that he wants Mark Borowiecki to be a “Senator for life.”
Perhaps Borowiecki is different though. The 30-year old defenseman was a fifth-round pick by the Senators back in 2008 and slowly made his way up the hockey ladder. Originally thought of as just a physical presence in Ottawa’s lineup, he has become much more than that this year, establishing himself as a leader on and off the ice while also experiencing his best offensive season to date.
Though he has seven goals on the year—nearly doubling his previous career total—it’s still hard to envision that Borowiecki would price himself out of the Senators’ market by the end of the year. Currently in the final season of a two-year, $2.4MM deal he can expect a small raise but not even to the level of some other Senators’ players.
Not only is Borowiecki a leader for the Senators, but his influence on the Ottawa community has been felt as well. The hometown boy gained national notoriety when he was involved in stopping a crime in Vancouver, but citizens of Canada’s capital will tell you stories of him helping regular folk on a regular basis.
An unrestricted free agent in July, it’s hard to imagine Borowiecki in any other jersey at this point in his career.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
If he’s smart he will wait for unrestricted free agency. One team will pay up better then the Sens can.
Why would a human being ever wish something like being a “Senator for life” on another human being……
Because the “human beings” you refer to are named Melnyk & Dorion…they’re wearing black-and-red colored glasses… Thing is, does BoroCop feel the same way? We’ll find out soon enough.
In Canada you can be a senator for life so the hockey team is just trying to mirror the government.
@MoneyBallJustWorks – The key difference being the guys that take the ice have a better chance of getting things done!
bingo
Great guy, great leader. If he realizes his role and keeps the cap low, make it happen!
@JD – if anybody would want to stay, it seems like Boro might be one of the very few. Unfortunately, that might not set the trend that needs to happen to rescue the fan base. Seems kinda odd to root for a guy to stay on the cheap, because of you-know-who, doesn’t it?
Ya hopefully you-know-who will be gone by the time the next wave of prospects are in need of a pay day. I just don’t think they should give Boro too much since he would ideally be the 6th-7th dman by the next time they’re ready to compete. Most of the time those sort of guys are interchangable, but Boro means more to the team than the average depth player would though. So if they do lock him up, I just don’t want it to block a better player or take up too much cap, which might be a possibility with the sentimental value.
should be 5 years at 3-3.25 per
@JD – Sounds a bit like Deryk Engelland in Vegas, except Boro is a bit younger.
Boro was born and raised and drafted by Ottawa. All you haters may not realize he too may wants to be a Sen for life. If Ottawa gives him fair market value, I’m sure he jumps all over that. I’m skeptical of Ottawa giving market value to many players, however, boro probably won’t demand much.
@andrewgauldin – Very few of us here are hating on Boro – just Melnyk. Boro may very well turn out to be the exception to the rule. If he gets an offer that he deems acceptable, it sounds like he’d stay. Look at the recent track record of guys racing to get out of Dodge, aka The Canadian Tire Centre Tire Fire. He may be one of the few that bucks the trend, but it’ll be up to Melnyk to do right by him.
Skill league vs Limited skill player. Why would you care to keep? Easily replaced
@jmartin87 – Have you seen Ottawa’s track record of getting/keeping guys seen as a “valuable veteran presence?” See my comment regarding Deryk Engelland. It’s not about the skill of the player, but rather his leadership qualities.