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Ottawa’s Austin Watson Suspended Two Games

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The NHL Department of Player Safety worked swiftly to hold a hearing with Ottawa Senators forward Austin Watson this morning and have acted just as quickly to hand down a suspension. Following a late, high hit on Boston Bruins’ defenseman Jack Ahcan in the Senators’ Saturday matinee match-up, Watson has received a two-game suspension for interference, Player Safety announced. The league summarized the situation as follows:

Well after the puck is gone and outside the window where a check may be legally finished, Watson delivers a late, high hit that makes significant contact with the head of Ahcan, knocking him to the ice. This is interference… Watson begins his hitting motion well after Ahcan moves the puck… Ahcan has no reason to expect to be hit at this time or in this manner, leaving him particularly vulnerable. In addition to the lateness, what causes this hit to rise to the level of supplemental discipline is the significant head contact on this play, combined with the force of the blow.

When it comes to the length of Watson’s suspension, he certainly did not receive any in-game help from the referees. The officials in Saturday’s game misread the incident completely, giving Watson just a minor penalty for interference for what should have been at least a major penalty. Especially given that the hit occurred in the first period, had Watson suffered a more severe penalty during the game, he may have avoided a second game in his suspension. To add insult to injury, the officials also handed Bruins forward Anton Blidh a roughing penalty for coming to the defense of Ahcan, which canceled out any Boston power play on what should have been an obvious man-up situation.

Conversely, Watson is saved by the fact that Ahcan was not injured on the play. The rookie defenseman returned to the game as the Bruins held on for a shutout win. The severity of an injury plays into suspension determinations and length and – especially in the case of head injuries – the optics can be a powerful contributor.

Watson will feel the impact of the suspension immediately, as he was preparing to suit up for the second of a weekend back-to-back on Sunday with the Senators on the road in Washington. He will also miss a difficult match-up with St. Louis on Tuesday. Watson is not exactly a key contributor for the Senators though; he has just three points and -8 rating in 31 games. His physicality will be missed however.

Austin Watson To Have Hearing With Department Of Player Safety

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Senators winger Austin Watson will have a disciplinary hearing on Sunday, the Department of Player Safety announced (Twitter link).  The play in question is an interference penalty he had on Bruins defenseman Jack Ahcan in Saturday’s game, one that saw him receive a two-minute minor.  Conor Ryan of the Boston Sports Journal has the clip of the hit here.

Watson has one prior suspension for an on-ice incident when he was suspended for two games back in 2017 for boarding.  While that won’t factor into how much money he’d forfeit if he was to be suspended (the repeat offender tag for that lasts 24 months), it could be taken into consideration for any discipline here.

Ottawa wraps up what has been a very busy week for them on Sunday when they host Washington Sunday afternoon for their fifth game in seven days.  Accordingly, a decision on any further penalty to Watson will need to be made quickly following the hearing.

Drake Batherson Targeting Late March Or Early April Return

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  • Senators winger Drake Batherson is targeting a return of either late March or early April from his ankle injury, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. Batherson was injured on a hit from Buffalo goaltender Aaron Dell late last month.  While normally, a return in early April would only bring a player back for a couple of games, the late finish to the regular season would still allow the 23-year-old to get into the final 15-20 games even with Ottawa extremely unlikely to make the playoffs.

Zaitsev, Brown, And Gambrell To Return; Kastelic Recalled

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The Senators will get some help on the injury front for their game against New Jersey on Monday as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports (Twitter link) that defenseman Nikita Zaitsev, winger Connor Brown, and center Dylan Gambrell will all return to the lineup.  Zaitsev has been out for nearly two months due to a heel injury, Brown has missed just under a month with a broken jaw, and Gambrell has been out for a couple of weeks with an upper-body injury.  Gambrell and Zaitsev will need to be activated off injured reserve but the Sens carried a minimum-sized roster through the All-Star break so no corresponding moves will need to be made.

  • Still with Ottawa, the Senators announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Mark Kastelic from Belleville of the AHL. The 22-year-old made his NHL debut late last month and has played in three games for Ottawa this season, averaging just under eight minutes a game while winning over 72% of his faceoffs.  Kastelic has a dozen points in 34 games at the AHL level.

Dorion Provides Injury Updates On Centers, Haven't Finalized Plan For Anton Forsberg

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The Senators have had some tough luck when it comes to their center situation this season as several players have been injured.  The latest was Josh Norris who is dealing with a shoulder injury.  GM Pierre Dorion told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that the youngster is currently getting a second opinion but for the time being, the hope is that he’ll be able to return within the next three to four weeks.  Norris leads all Ottawa players in goals with 18 in 36 games so far.

They may get Colin White back by then as well as Dorion indicated that they’re targeting February 26th as a target date for his return.  White has missed the entire season so far due to a dislocated shoulder suffered back in October.  The timeline for him to return was four to six months and it appears that, barring any setbacks, he’ll return in the middle of that window.  As for Shane Pinto, the youngster is expected to be re-assessed in mid-March to determine if he’ll be able to suit up at all down the stretch for the Senators or if his season has come to an end.

  • Also from Garrioch’s interview with Dorion, the GM wouldn’t commit to whether or not he plans to keep pending UFA goaltender Anton Forsberg past the trade deadline. The Senators have received interest in the 29-year-old but Dorion floated out the possibility that Ottawa keeps him past the deadline as a way to ensure that prospect Filip Gustavsson receives as much playing time as possible down the stretch with AHL Belleville to help prepare him to potentially serve as Ottawa’s backup goaltender next season.

Josh Norris Won't Return Until After All-Star Break

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  • Senators center Josh Norris won’t be able to return to Ottawa’s lineup until after the All-Star break, relays Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link). Instead, he’s set to undergo further examination on his injured shoulder.  Norris has been a bright spot for the Sens this season, notching 18 goals in 36 games while sitting third on the team in points with 26.

Lassi Thomson And Mark Kastelic Recalled From The Taxi Squad

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  • The Senators announced (Twitter links) that they have recalled defenseman Lassi Thomson and forward Mark Kastelic from the taxi squad. Thomson has played in 14 games with Ottawa this season, picking up four points while Kastelic – who will make his NHL debut today against Anaheim – has 11 points in 31 games with AHL Belleville.

Senators Receiving Interest In Anton Forsberg

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What a difference a good year can make.  Last season, Senators goaltender Anton Forsberg was claimed on waivers three different times, bouncing around while hardly playing.  He did get an opportunity with Ottawa and did well enough to get a low-cost one-year extension worth $900K, a reasonable move for both sides in terms of getting them some goalie insurance and Forsberg a bit of stability.

Fast forward to this season and the 29-year-old has had a nice year so far, posting a .912 SV% in 16 games for the lottery-bound Sens.  Not surprisingly, with goalie depth being an issue for some teams and cap space an issue for many, Ottawa has been receiving trade interest in Forsberg, reports Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli.

However, while Ottawa is well out of playoff contention, it’s far from a guarantee that they’ll want to move Forsberg.  With Matt Murray struggling again this season and Filip Gustavsson still unproven in the NHL, Forsberg could still be viewed as an insurance policy for the Senators for next season.  While Gustavsson will be waiver-eligible at that time, Ottawa was able to get Murray through waivers earlier this season and with two years left on his contract after this one, they’ll likely be able to get him through next year without any issues so Forsberg’s return wouldn’t necessarily create an unwanted logjam between the pipes.

The in-season goaltending trade market usually isn’t particularly robust and there’s little reason to think it will be this season either.  Nevertheless, Forsberg’s cheap cap hit will make him more desirable than some of the other rentals making two or three times more than what he’s making and a mid-round pick could definitely be attainable for GM Pierre Dorion which would represent a nice return on a waiver claim from less than a year ago.

Meanwhile, with teams having interest in trading for him and the fact he’s having a good season, Forsberg himself appears to be well-positioned to land a sizable raise on the open market this summer.  Not bad for someone who was bouncing around the league as a third-stringer for the better part of last season.

Nick Paul Open To Extension With Ottawa Senators

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Over the last few weeks, Nick Paul has emerged as a top target in trade deadline speculation, because of his versatility and inexpensive expiring contract. The 26-year-old carries a cap hit of just $1.35MM this season and has shown an ability to play all over the lineup. Even if teams were interested, he may not actually be available. Paul’s agent Paul Capizzano of Quartexx Management told Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that his client would “love to stay in Ottawa if it can work.”

On TSN radio earlier this week, Paul himself gave a similar sentiment:

I love Ottawa. My agent works on the business side but we want to be here. My fiance is from here, she works at CHEO. We live here year round. We want to be here and be a part of the community. 

While a contract extension would seem like an easy thing to accomplish, given his pedestrian offensive numbers and obvious desire to stay, it may not actually be the best thing for the Senators. The team is not yet as far along with their rebuild as they believed last summer, and depending on the price they could generate at the trade deadline, could use the additional assets. There is also the potential to bring Paul back in the offseason after a deadline move, when he hits unrestricted free agency for the first time.

In 35 games this season the versatile forward has six goals and nine points, while filling in at center or the wing depending on the rest of the Senators lineup that day. He’s been given heavy defensive responsibility, usually alongside Connor Brown, and often been used as a veteran safety net for young forward Tim Stutzle. At just $1.35MM he’s a useful, inexpensive player, though if the number gets much higher than that he’ll have to bring a bit more offensive production as well in order to continue to provide excess value to the team on the ice. His leadership and other intangibles are also something to consider, especially in a market that doesn’t always get players publicly announcing their hope to be part of the community.

Ottawa Senators Extend Nick Holden

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The Ottawa Senators have announced a new contract for Nick Holden, avoiding unrestricted free agency later this year. The veteran defenseman has inked a one-year extension that will carry a salary of $1.3MM in 2022-23. Senators’ general manager Pierre Dorion released a statement:

Nick has seamlessly integrated himself into our lineup and into our dressing room. His veteran presence and leadership qualities have been instrumental in helping our young group this season, while his strong defensive play and accountability on the ice has really helped with the maturity of our young defensive core.

Holden, 34, currently carries a $1.7MM cap hit in the second season of a two-year deal signed with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2020. Last summer, he was acquired by the Senators along with a third-round pick in exchange for Evgenii Dadonov, who hadn’t really worked out in his short time in Ottawa. Holden on the other hand has been a good reliable option for head coach D.J. Smith, averaging more than 19 minutes a night while seeing almost exclusively tough defensive deployment.

Once a player that could contribute on the powerplay, Holden had a career-high of 34 points in 2016-17 with the New York Rangers. He isn’t at all used in that way for the Senators, who have several young defensemen to take on those offensive responsibilities. Instead, he’ll slot in as a depth option to help cover some of the mistakes those young players make as they grow and learn in the NHL.

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