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Ottawa Senators Sign Nick Paul

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The Ottawa Senators have reached an agreement with one of their restricted free agents, signing Nick Paul to a two-year contract according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. Garrioch reports that the deal will carry a $1.2MM salary in 2020-21 and $1.5MM in 2021-22, giving Paul a $1.35MM cap hit.

Paul, 25, has been moving in and out of the Senators lineup for years, playing 112 games at the NHL since the start of the 2015-16 season. He finally broke through in 2019-20, scoring 20 points in 56 games and becoming a full-time roster player that should get regular minutes again this season.

One of 26 players that filed for salary arbitration, Paul actually had a hearing set for November 1. He won’t need that anymore, as this contract takes him right to unrestricted free agency. The Senators meanwhile have several other hearings on the schedule and even more restricted free agents to get deals done with in the coming months.

Olle Alsing Loaned To Graz99ers

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The Ottawa Senators have sent another prospect overseas, loaning Olle Alsing to the Graz99ers in the Austrian professional league. Alsing will be recalled ahead of NHL training camp for the 2020-21 season.

Alsing, 24, was signed to a two-year entry-level contract by the Senators in the spring of 2019 after excelling in the SHL. The young defender had led the league in +/- and was integral in helping Djurgardens get all the way to the league final. In 2019-20 he played even better, posting 20 points in 36 games in league play and then leading all defensemen in goals, assists and points during Champions League.

Now set to come to North America and push for a role in the Senators organization, Alsing will first get his skating legs back under him in Austria.

Tim Stuetzle To Undergo Surgery

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Just a few days after being selected third overall in the NHL Entry Draft, Tim Stuetzle has received some bad news. The Ottawa Senators prospect will require arm surgery and will be out for six to eight weeks, his DEL team announced. Stuetzle suffered a broken bone in his arm during practice on Monday according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. Senators GM Pierre Dorion released this statement once the news broke:

In consultation with doctors in Germany and with our own medical staff, it has been determined that Tim requires a surgical procedure to stabilize a fracture. The procedure is scheduled to take place in Germany later this week and has an expected recovery time of six to eight weeks. Our medical staff will remain in regular contact with Tim and his doctors as he begins his recovery through to the point that he is medically cleared.

Stuetzle, 18, is one of the players from the recent draft that is expected to challenge for an NHL roster spot immediately, though he was already training with professionals in Germany. He played 41 games for Mannheim last season, scoring 34 points.

Even if the recovery takes more than eight weeks, the Senators have time to make sure Stuetzle is at full strength before bringing him to North America. His DEL team explained to Garrioch that they will be working with Ottawa through the process, which should be complete long before the NHL training camp gets underway. Stuetzle goes under the knife on Wednesday and will face the first big challenge of his pro career.

Senators Acquire Austin Watson

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The Senators have added some muscle on the wings, announcing the acquisition of winger Austin Watson from Nashville.  In return, the Predators acquire Colorado’s fourth-round pick in 2021 (previously acquired by Ottawa).  GM Pierre Dorion released the following statement on the deal:

Austin Watson is a big, strong winger who will bring a significant presence to our forward group. He was among Nashville’s forward leaders in blocked shots last season, was the team’s leader in hits and is someone who is especially physical on the forecheck. We also expect him to be a valuable asset on our penalty kill.

The 28-year-old is coming off a fairly quiet season offensively after putting up six goals and eight assists in 53 games in 2019-20, his lowest point total since his rookie year in 2015-16.  However, as Dorion alluded to, he has been one of Nashville’s more physical players over the years and will bring that dimension to the Senators.  He has two years remaining on his contract with a $1.5MM AAV and that same salary each season.

As for Nashville, Watson’s spot is effectively being filled by Nick Cousins who signed a two-year deal yesterday with the same $1.5MM AAV.  The Preds now have over $14MM in cap room to work with, per CapFriendly but have several forwards to sign to fill out their roster.  Moving Watson out gives them a bit more flexibility as they look to reshape their forward group following the departures of Nick Bonino, Craig Smith, Kyle Turris, and Mikael Granlund.

Ottawa Senators Sign Matthew Peca, Logan Shaw

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The Ottawa Senators are bringing in some relatively young, but experienced depth up front. The team has announced the signings of forwards Matthew Peca and Logan Shaw to one-year, two-way contracts. Peca, who finished this past season in Ottawa, will make the minimum $700K in the NHL and $300K in the AHL, while Shaw has a slight advantage with a $725K NHL value and $375K AHL value.

Shaw, 28, may actually end up being a difference-maker for Ottawa this season. The big forward quietly played a semi-regular role for the Winnipeg Jets this season, playing in 35 NHL games versus just 16 AHL games. And while he didn’t contribute much offense – just five points – he was playing behind a deep, talented forward corps in Winnipeg. With the potential for more opportunity in Ottawa, Shaw could have a chance to shine. He recorded 27 goals and 46 points in 63 AHL games just two years ago and if even a portion of that output translates to the NHL, Shaw could be a bargain scorer for the Senators.

Peca, 27, was acquired by the Senators from the Montreal Canadiens at the trade deadline this past season in what was little more than a tryout for a new contract this season, which he seemingly passed. The small, hard-working forward has not been able to much in the way of offense in the NHL but has done enough to stay in the lineup on multiple teams and accrue some valuable experience. Peca could be a reliable bottom-six option for the Senators this season.

Ottawa Senators Sign Matt Murray To Four-Year Extension

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After acquiring their new starting goaltender Matt Murray from the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Ottawa Senators have worked quickly to lock him up long term. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the two sides have come to terms on a four-year, $25MM extension. The deal will keep Murray under contract through the 2023-24 season at a whopping $6.25MM AAV.

Murray, 26, was a restricted free agent for the final time this off-season, so his new contract buys out three UFA years. However, this is still a substantial raise from his $3.75MM AAV in Pittsburgh, despite performance and injury struggles over the past few years. In fact, Murray currently has the seventh-highest goalie AAV in the NHL. His contract also contains a ten-team no-trade list that kicks in in year two.

Part of the reason why Ottawa was so willing to commit money to Murray is that the team is still short of the salary cap floor. With a deep prospect pipeline, the Senators are hoping that many of their roster spots are filled by affordable young players. In order to meet the cap floor, the team will need to commit sizeable amounts of cap space to those few veterans that have concrete roles. Murray, who is still young himself, is clearly the top man in net for years to come and the Senators were comfortable paying him as such.

Ottawa Senators Acquire Erik Gudbranson

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The Ottawa Senators have found one of their cap-floor targets, acquiring Erik Gudbranson from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a 2021 fifth-round pick. The veteran defenseman comes with a $4MM cap hit, though is only actually owed $3MM in salary this season, the last on his current contract. Senators GM Pierre Dorion has released a statement on his newest defenseman:

Erik Gudbranson provides another sizable presence to our defence corps. He’s a reliable veteran who plays an intimidating style of game and someone who will add a combination of grit, energy and, most importantly, leadership to our lineup.

The Senators have obviously made a decision that they want to get more physical on defense this season as they continue to push young players into the lineup. After losing Mark Borowiecki to free agency, the team has now added Josh Brown and Gudbranson in the span of a week, giving them two behemoths on the back end. With the team not expected to compete for the playoffs this season, instead using it as a development year for their young core, bringing in an experienced leader like Gudbranson (who also happens to be very willing to stand up for his teammates) makes sense.

It also helps Ottawa get towards the salary cap floor without taking on any long-term money. Gudbranson will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year and would likely not even cost much to retain at that point. Once one of the most hyped defensive prospects in the world, Gudbranson was picked third behind Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin in the 2010 draft. He was a monstrous player in junior who could skate well and was expected to take a step forward offensively, but never did once he reached the NHL. Now 28, Gudbranson has just 73 career points in 518 games.

Still, this is a nice moment for Gudbranson, who is from Ottawa and will get a chance to embrace his hometown team for the first time in his career. In a year where the scoreboard outcomes don’t matter as much as the on-ice development, he’ll be an easy player for Senators fans to cheer for with his rough style. If he can somehow find the level of play that he flashed during a short period with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2019, he could even become a core piece.

For Anaheim, they get out from a bad contract and free up some space to play with in free agency. The team has no restricted free agents left to sign and had previously been right up against the cap. Now, with $4MM out the door, they could potentially get in on someone they believe can make a difference.

Free Agent Focus: Ottawa Senators

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With free agency now just a few days away, teams are preparing for a frenzy of action.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign.  The Senators have several restricted free agents to deal with this offseason while one of their top scorers is now set to hit the open market.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Connor Brown – The move from Toronto to Ottawa last offseason gave the 26-year-old the opportunity to take on a much bigger role which is something that wouldn’t have happened had he stayed with the Maple Leafs.  He responded quite well, posting career highs in assists (27) and points (43) while finishing just one point behind Brady Tkachuk for the team lead in scoring.  He also was called upon to play more than 20 minutes a night which will certainly help bolster his arbitration case.  Brown is a year away from UFA eligibility but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Sens try to try to sign him to a medium-term deal to have him as one of the veterans as they come out of their rebuild.

F Chris Tierney – Had it not been for the pandemic, Tierney might have had a shot at three straight seasons with 40 points or more which is pretty consistent production for someone that isn’t too far removed from being a role player in San Jose.  Between that and his penalty killing acumen, he has become a useful middle-six pivot for Ottawa which should help him earn a small raise on his $2.975MM qualifying offer that the team tendered.  Tierney is eligible for arbitration and is also a year away from UFA eligibility.

G Matt Murray – Before he puts on an Ottawa sweater for the first time, GM Pierre Dorion will need to reach a contract with his newly-acquired goaltender.  Murray’s numbers dipped considerably with Pittsburgh this past season and his .899 SV% was a career-low and Pittsburgh turned around and committed to Tristan Jarry as their new starter.  He’s a year away from UFA eligibility but expect the Senators to try to work out a long-term deal which could wind up approaching the $6MM range.  With no prospects that are ready to take over as the number one in the near future though, it’s a price tag that’s justifiable to pay.

Other RFAs: F Rudolfs Balcers, F J.C. Beaudin, F Filip Chlapik, G Joey Daccord, D Christian Jaros, F Nick Paul

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Anthony Duclair – In a move that came as somewhat of a surprise, the Senators opted to non-tender the winger after they weren’t able to come to terms on a new contract with Duclair representing himself in negotiations.  The 25-year-old had a career year offensively with 23 goals and 40 points but on the other hand, only two of those tallies came in his final 23 games as he struggled in the second half of the season.  Nevertheless, while he is a streaky player, he has established himself as a better scoring threat than he was when he entered the UFA market as a non-tender player two years ago.  Whether that’s enough to earn him a bigger raise than Ottawa was initially offering him remains to be seen.

D Mark Borowiecki – The fan favorite was unable to agree to terms on a new deal with the Sens and instead will hit the open market for the first time in his career.  The 31-year-old surprisingly posted 18 points in 2019-20; that’s only the third time in his career that he has hit the double-digit mark.  Borowiecki isn’t known for his offensive prowess but rather his leadership, physicality, and willingness to block shots.  That combination should generate a fair bit of interest as an upgrade on a third pairing somewhere.

G Craig Anderson – Prior to the Murray acquisition, Dorion had already confirmed that the 39-year-old wouldn’t be returning.  While Anderson’s days as a starter are done, he has still played in at least 34 games in each of the last seven seasons.  Considering the 2020-21 season (now targeted to start in January) is expected to be a bit more compressed than normal, the fact that he can handle a larger than average workload could make him appealing to teams as a backup.  Coming off of a season that saw him post a 3.25 GAA and a .902 SV% though, he’s looking at a substantial pay cut from the $4.75MM he played under the last two years.

D Ron Hainsey – Ottawa has expressed an interest in retaining Hainsey who was one of the few veterans on a relatively inexperienced back end this past season.  Given that he’ll turn 40 next season though, it’s likely that the Senators will be looking to bring him back in a more limited role, not one that will have him averaging more than 20 minutes a night again.  If so, they’re certainly offering less than the $3.5MM he made in 2019-20.

Other UFAs: D Andreas Englund, F Jayce Hawryluk, F Morgan Klimchuk, D Hubert Labrie, F Matthew Peca, F Scott Sabourin

Projected Cap Space

With just over $42MM in commitments to 10 players for next season per CapFriendly, cap space isn’t an issue here.  However, Ottawa has historically been a budget team so they’ll likely come in well below the $81.5MM Upper Limit when their offseason spending is completed.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ottawa Senators Acquire Matt Murray

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The Ottawa Senators have acquired goaltender Matt Murray from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins will receive the 52nd overall selection in today’s draft and prospect John Gruden in exchange. Murray, who is a pending restricted free agent, was already issued a qualifying offer from the Penguins this week, an offer that will travel with him to Ottawa.

Though the contract is not in place yet, the Senators are expected to sign Murray to an extension, giving them a new starting goaltender for the 2020-21 season and beyond. Still just 26, Murray has a championship pedigree from his time with the Penguins and will stabilize the net of a team that is quickly building an incredible prospect base.

If you think a second-round selection is a pretty good return for the Penguins, it is. In a year where goaltenders are available by the dozen, the Penguins will land another strong prospect on day two of the draft by nabbing a pick that originally belonged to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Senators meanwhile have draft capital to burn and will still select three more times in the second round.

Gruden is certainly an interesting addition as well. The fourth-round pick went to Miami University (Ohio) in 2018-19 and struggled, deciding to make the jump to the OHL this past year. With the London Knights, one of the strongest junior programs in Canada, Gruden found a lot more success, scoring 30 goals and 66 points in just 59 games. Now 20 he is eligible to turn pro and play in the AHL, he is still likely a few years away from making an impact for the Penguins.

Murray was always going to be traded this offseason, given the $3.75MM qualifying offer he required. The Penguins have decided to hand the net to Tristan Jarry and didn’t have enough cap space to keep both goaltenders in the fold. They also were facing a very similar situation with regards to expansion and would have had to expose one of Murray or Jarry to the Seattle Kraken if they kept them both.

In Ottawa, Murray will have to try and rebound from the .899 save percentage he registered this season. The two-time Stanley Cup winner did rebound and look better in the postseason, but still wasn’t the dominant presence he represented when first entering the league.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Overseas Notes: Texier, Sandstrom, Brannstrom

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have transferred the loan of Alexandre Texier from KalPa in Finland’s Liiga to Grenoble in the French professional league, where the young forward will continue playing for the time being. As Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch reports, Texier will remain in France with his family as someone close to him is dealing with an undisclosed illness.

Texier, 21, actually spent one season with Grenoble in 2016-17 before heading to Finland to continue his development. The young forward took quite an interesting path to the NHL, where he spent all of this season. Texier is still expected back in North America when the 2020-21 season begins.

  • The Philadelphia Flyers have loaned Felix Sandstrom to Vasterviks IK of the Swedish second league, where he will presumably play until things start again in North America. Sandstrom, 23, is another top goaltending prospect in the Flyers system that was the 70th overall pick in 2015. In 2019-20 he posted just an .885 save percentage in the ECHL, but there is still lots of upside in the 6’2″ netminder. Perhaps he can get things back on track in his native Sweden, where he already found success at the highest level before coming to North America in 2019.
  • Though the official announcement still hasn’t come out, Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion confirmed to reporters including Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia that Erik Brannstrom will be loaned to Switzerland until the next NHL season begins. Brannstrom is expected to play for the SCL Tigers in the Swiss NLA. Though he split time this season, the 21-year-old defenseman is expected to receive a full-time NHL role in 2020-21.

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