Ottawa Senators Sign Matt Murray To Four-Year Extension
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
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
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
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
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.
Josh Brown Signs With Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators have signed the newly acquired Josh Brown to a two-year contract, inking the defenseman to a deal that extends through the 2021-22 season. Brown will earn $1MM in 2020-21 and $1.4MM in 2021-22, meaning the contract carries an average annual value of $1.2MM. Brown was recently traded from the Florida Panthers and was scheduled for restricted free agency.
Brown, 26, is expected to basically be a replacement in Ottawa for the outgoing Mark Borowiecki, bringing the same physicality to a group of defensemen that already has plenty of skill. The former Panther has scored just ten points in 96 career games, but stands 6’5″ and is a strong shot-blocker. Ottawa already has players like Thomas Chabot and Erik Brannstrom to carry the offensive burden on defense, though Brown could very well be asked to play more than the 13 minutes he usually received in Florida.
He also will serve as a leader under head coach D.J. Smith, who was with Brown at the junior level when they won the Memorial Cup with the Oshawa Generals. Brown was the captain of that team, tasked with shutting down Connor McDavid in the OHL Championship. Though he may not get those kind of assignments in this case, there’s little doubt that the Senators feel he can play a regular role on the team.
Ottawa Senators Acquire Josh Brown
The Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers have completed a trade, sending Josh Brown to Canada’s capital in exchange for a fourth-round pick in next week’s draft. Brown is a pending restricted free agent and will need to reach a new agreement with the Senators. Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion released a statement on his newest addition:
Josh Brown is a big, strong defenseman who plays a physical style of game. He’s a defensive defenseman who skates very well and who is exceptionally competitive. He’s also a very good shot blocker who clears a lot of space in front of the net. We’re looking forward to seeing him in our lineup.
Interestingly enough, you could say many of those same things in reference to veteran defenseman Mark Borowiecki who is not expected to re-sign with the Senators this offseason. Brown enters the roster as a potential replacement, but one who is considerably younger and has posted much better possession statistics over his short NHL career.
In 93 games with the Panthers over the last two seasons, Brown has posted just ten points, but was often asked to play just a few minutes of ice time. Averaging a little over 13 minutes a game, he only broke the 17-minute mark in four of his 56 contests. In Ottawa, that number will likely increase as they look to find a new mix of talent.
The Senators will watch Borowiecki and Ron Hainsey both hit the open market when free agency opens and have just four defensemen under one-way contracts. Young options like Erik Brannstrom are expected to be given a chance to secure full-time roles, but a more experienced name like Brown could find a big opportunity on the rebuilding club.
You can bet head coach D.J. Smith will give him that chance, given their history together. Brown was the captain of the Oshawa Generals back when Smith was coaching in the OHL, winning the Memorial Cup together in 2015.
For the Panthers, defense was a position that needed an overhaul after their struggles last season and new GM Bill Zito has worked quickly. Brown joins Mike Matheson on the way out and leaves the Panthers with just three players of their own on one-way contracts. Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle and Anton Stralman are an expensive trio at the top of the chart, while MacKenzie Weegar will surely get a new contract as an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent. But more changes may be coming from Zito, who obviously saw something that needed fixing and is acting quickly.
Overseas Notes: Sorensen, Chlapik, Maltsev
Marcus Sorensen has signed a contract with HC Vita Hasten in Sweden’s second league, according to the team. The San Jose Sharks forward is still under contract in the NHL, meaning this is almost certainly a loan agreement for the next few months until NHL training camps open again. The 28-year-old forward is set to earn $1.5MM on the final season of his two-year contract with San Jose.
With just 197 regular season games under his belt, Sorensen is on track to be quite an interesting free agent case next offseason. He scored just 18 points in 60 games during the 2019-20 campaign, but did put up 17 goals a year before that. At some point this year the Sharks could look to extend the Swedish forward, but for now he’ll be suiting up overseas to stay in shape.
- Filip Chlapik doesn’t have a contract with the Ottawa Senators, but playing overseas won’t stop him from getting one. The young Ottawa Senators forward will be playing for HC Sparta Praha for free while he continues to negotiate his next NHL deal. Just 23, Chlapik is coming off his entry-level contract and scored six points in 31 games for the Senators this season. He is not arbitration-eligible, meaning the Senators could just issue him a qualifying offer and wait to see if he takes it.
- The New Jersey Devils have sent Mikhail Maltsev back to the KHL for the time being. Loaned to SKA St. Petersburg, Maltsev will join a crowded roster for the next few months and then be recalled in time for NHL training camps. The 22-year-old forward scored 21 points in 49 games for the Binghamton Devils this season, his first in North America.
Senators Notes: Draft Picks, Nilsson, Free Agency
Are the Ottawa Senators ready to take the next step in their rebuild and begin trading futures to add help in the present? The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch writes that Senators GM Pierre Dorion is listening to all offers for his numerous draft picks. The Senators own a whopping 13 picks in the 2020 NHL Draft, including three first-round picks and four second-round picks. In a draft class that is considered especially deep, there is a lot of value in those early picks. While No. 3 and No. 5 overall are certainly safe, No. 28 overall and any of the second-rounders could be in play. Dorion is not going to move all five of those picks, but could easily move one or two to bring in immediate help to his roster. Considering that this off-season will also see many teams looking to cut salary, the Senators could land a very good player (or two) by moving their high picks to a team that has no choice but to sacrifice the present and in Ottawa finds the opportunity to invest in the future.
- Among the pressing roster needs that Dorion could address by dealing a pick is an addition in goal. Garrioch notes that there are concerns around the organization about presumptive starter Anders Nilsson, who has not skated since February as he deals with concussion repercussions. While Dorion is “confident” that Nilsson will be ready for the start of the season, there may still be an impact on his play. If he falters, the team does not have any NHL-proven options behind him, with youngsters Marcus Hogberg, Filip Gustavsson, Joey Daccord, and Kevin Mandolese making up their pro depth. As a result, the team may be forced to add a goalie to serve as a short-term fix. If they don’t want to fill that need on the trade market, there are also plenty of options on the free agent market.
- A draft day trade and acquiring a goalie would be significant additions by the Senators, but they will be far from done after those moves are made. Ottawa has just eight players signed to one-way contracts for next season with maybe five or six entry-level players who will likely be on the season-opening roster. That leaves plenty of work for Dorion and company to do to fill out the roster. The team has a laundry list of restricted free agents to sign, up to nine of whom will be or at least could be on the NHL roster. Even if all of that adds up to a 23-man roster, the team also has to be wary of the $60.2MM, which they currently fall $22M under. The Senators will likely need to explore the trade and free agent markets for a few more additions before they can call their off-season complete.
Senators Talking With Ron Hainsey, Matthew Peca, And Scott Sabourin
Although Craig Anderson won’t be returning to the Senators next season, he isn’t planning on calling it a career just yet. He told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch that he still has some goals that he wants to achieve and that he won’t be overly picky about where he lands. While it’s unlikely that the 39-year-old will have a significant market, there should be some interest from teams that are looking for a veteran second netminder. Before this season, he had made at least 40 appearances in four straight years and with an expectation that 2020-21 will be more compact than normal, having a backup that’s capable of handling more than a typical number two workload will be more important than usual. Anderson posted a 3.25 GAA along with a .902 SV% in 34 games with Ottawa this season.
- Still with the Senators, the team is in discussions with pending unrestricted free agents Ron Hainsey, Matthew Peca, and Scott Sabourin on new deals, Garrioch reports in a separate column. Hainsey logged over 20 minutes a night on Ottawa’s back end this season and would give them a bit of stability on a relatively young back end but would likely need to come cheaper than the $3.5MM he made this season to stick around. Peca was acquired at the deadline from Montreal while Sabourin was converted to an NHL deal just before the season started and both would likely be vying for a depth role if they re-sign.