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Trade Rumors: Senators, Ferland, Goldobin

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In his latest “31 Thoughts” article, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman poses the question on the mind of many fans and general managers alike: how long will the Ottawa Senators wait to make a decision on the futures of their impending free agent stars? The team made it a point to say early in the season that they had talked about a new contract with Matt Duchene and just recently it was reported that Mark Stone is prepared to talk to the team as well, now that he is eligible for an extension in the new year. Friedman adds that the Ottawa has already approached Ryan Dzingel about a new deal as well. The Senators clearly have plans to discuss contract extensions with the trio, but with the NHL Trade Deadline less than two months away, at what point will they begin talking to other teams instead? On one hand, the Senators owe the bulk of their meager offense to these three impending free agents and seemingly must do their best to bring back as many as they can. Stone leads the team with 45 points, while Duchene has missed six games but nevertheless is second with 40 points, and Dzingel is fourth – third among forwards – with 29 points. The idea that the team could lose all three and somehow improve next season seems like a long shot to say the least. The team has to do their best to resign the group. Yet, if the trio were to depart, it would be much nicer if they did so with a parting gift. Even if GM Pierre Dorion holds on to each player through the deadline in hopes of resigning them, there is no guarantee that they will stay in Ottawa. Rather than lose them for nothing, the Senators would benefit far more from trading them for hefty returns this season. Odds are that the team negotiates with each one of Stone, Duchene, and Dzingel right up until deadline before making a move, but if the market is stronger beforehand, Dorion and company will have some difficult decisions to make.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes are in a similar position with off-season acquisition Micheal Ferland. Ferland, an overlooked part of the Dougie Hamilton trade between the ’Canes and Calgary Flames, has enjoyed a breakout season in Carolina. Ferland is fourth on the team in scoring with 19 points and is currently on pace to set a new career high in scoring despite missing seven games due to injury. Friedman’s opinion on this situation is somewhat more definitive than Ottawa’s. Friedman claims that the two teams are talking extension, but if one is not in place by the trade deadline, Ferland will certainly be moved. The two-way left wing would be a highly valued asset on the rental market and Carolina would not hesitate to get what they can in a trade. Ferland, who has found a fit with Carolina, may not even rule out returning to the team in free agency, even if they can’t come to terms on a new contract this year. The only question remaining is how soon the Hurricanes would be willing to move Ferland if a deal is not coming together.
  • One surprise player who Friedman notes could be available is Vancouver Canucks forward Nikolay Goldobin. Friedman states that the team is merely looking into the potential return for the young winger right now, but even testing the market on Goldobin is unexpected. The 23-year-old winger is fourth on the team in scoring with 23 points in 41 games and at times has looked like a key piece of the young core for the Canucks. Yet, he has also moved around the lineup frequently and has even been a healthy scratch. It could be that Vancouver is fearful of upcoming negotiations with the impending restricted free agent, as GM Jim Benning and head coach Travis Green are not yet sold that he is worthy of a long-term contract, nor does the team want to be saddled with an arbitration decision. Regardless, a young player with the offensive upside of Goldobin is a rare entry into the trade market (although he has already been traded once in his career) and if the Canucks truly make him available, they will surely find takers.

Ottawa Senators, St. Louis Blues Put Three On Waivers

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Wednesday: All three players have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.

Tuesday: The Ottawa Senators have decided that two assists in 37 games from Tom Pyatt just isn’t enough as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Senators have placed the veteran forward on waivers today. A moment later, Friedman added that the St. Louis Blues put a pair of players on waivers as well, including defenseman Chris Butler and forward Jordan Nolan. Friedman also writes that Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Jason Garrison cleared waivers.

After losing five games in a row, the move to put Pyatt on waivers comes as no surprise as general manager Pierre Dorion is obviously sending a message to head coach Guy Boucher that the team needs to turn its fortunes around as the new year comes about. Pyatt, a favorite of Boucher, has struggled offensively as he has no goals and just two assists in 37 games as a bottom-line forward, but even more disappointing is his minus-16 rating on the ice. The 31-year-old has already seen his playing time drop to under 10 minutes in the nine of the past 10 games. The move could have been made as Jean-Gabriel Pageau is expected to return to the ice soon, possibly as early as Wednesday. Pyatt is in the final year of a two-year, $2.2MM contract and could generate some interest from a team looking for some veteran depth options.

Both Butler and Nolan have already been on waivers earlier this season as both cleared to start the season. Butler, however, has already seen 12 games and with the imminent return of defenseman Carl Gunnarsson, who has missed quite a bit of time with an upper-body injury, the team was required to place the 32-year-old on waivers. As for Nolan, he has also appeared in 11 games this year and has two assists to go with 14 penalty minutes. The 29-year-old Nolan, who has played parts of eight seasons in the NHL, will likely return to San Antonio where he has seven goals and 15 points there.

Matt Duchene To Be Patient With Next Career Move

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Much has been made of the dwindling core of the Ottawa Senators. Erik Karlsson and Mike Hoffman are gone, Craig Anderson is nearing retirement, and the teams top three forwards are impending unrestricted free agents – that would be Mark Stone, Matt Duchene, and Ryan Dzingel. Given the current state and direction of the team, it has been estimated by many that all three could opt for the open market next summer. Stone took a direct approach to those rumors this week, stating that he loves Ottawa and wants to remain with the Senators.

As TSN’s Frank Servalli writes, Duchene is not so eager to decide one way or the other on his future. Earlier this off-season, Duchene said that an extension is something that he would definitely consider, but wanted to see how things go this year. Since then, it has gone from bad to worse in Ottawa with the departure of key players, as well as ownership and the front office committing to a rebuild. It seems very unlikely that the season will go well for the Senators, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it will sour Duchene on sticking around. Duchene called last year a “disaster”, both personally and for the Senators and is looking for a fresh take this season. In his first full season with the team, Duchene’s individual performance and his fit in the locker room and in Ottawa’s long-term plan is instead what will likely dictate his next move. Duchene appreciates being close to home in Ottawa and could cherish a role as a leader with the Senators. Then again, polarizing owner Eugene Melnyk has been apprehensive about awarding expensive contracts and Duchene could decide after a strong season that he has a much better chance at getting market value and finding a winning situation with another team.

Sens fans would love to hear that Duchene is committed to the team, and sooner rather than later. After all, Ottawa gave up quite the package to acquire him from the Colorado Avalanche early last season, including what could turn out to be the top overall pick in next year’s entry draft. However, given their recent rash of bad luck, those same fans would rather Duchene be patient with his decision than be yet another player hoping to be dealt away. Unlike Stone, who – after going through the arbitration process – may not re-sign until after January 1st, Duchene is eligible to ink an extension already. Just don’t expect a decision any time soon, though.

Atlantic Notes: Canadiens, Maple Leafs, Senators

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If you were heading into the season believing that Jonathan Drouin will be the first-line center for the Montreal Canadiens, you may have to rethink that position. GM Marc Bergevin was on TSN radio today and told Tony Marinaro that he currently projects Max Domi, Phillip Danault, Tomas Plekanec and Matthew Peca as the four centers for the Canadiens to start the year. Drouin obviously still could end up at the position at some point given Domi’s lack of experience there, but it sounds like he’ll be starting on the wing.

The Canadiens have been searching for center help for quite some time, and though there is help on the way with prospects Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Ryan Poehling and Nick Suzuki—though the latter has played quite a bit of wing as well during his junior career—2018-19 doesn’t look like it will necessarily be any different. For Drouin at least the move might be beneficial, given that he struggled to score last season down the middle with just 13 goals in 77 games.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs meanwhile aren’t handing out roster spots at all to their young players, instead expecting them to earn a role in training camp. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet writes that Mike Babcock expects both Travis Dermott and Andreas Johnsson, who are expected to play big roles on the Maple Leafs going forward, to prove that they deserve spots instead of just acting like they’ve “arrived now.” Many Toronto fans are hoping that Dermott will be part of the solution to their perceived defensive woes this season, but he’ll have to convince his head coach that he’s ready before being handed a full-time job.
  • Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion was on CBC radio with Robyn Bresnahan today, speaking about the dilemma he faced with the recent Erik Karlsson situation. Dorion admitted that he knew he couldn’t “get nothing” for Karlsson by watching him walk away in free agency next offseason. Contract negotiations quickly broke down between the two sides this offseason, meaning Dorion felt he “owed it to our fans to tell them what the plan was and before the season started.” The team is quite openly in rebuild mode, and are expected to give plenty of opportunities to young players this season.

Poll: Ottawa’s Impending Free Agents

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The Ottawa Senators are a team in trouble. The Senators finished with a 28-43-11 record last season for a total of 67 points, second-lowest in the NHL. The team also placed close to the bottom in both goals for and goals against, which combined for a the league’s second-worst goal differential of -70. Ottawa dealt with a public relations nightmare this summer surrounding Mike Hoffman and ended up having to deal the dependable scorer away for pennies on the dollar. They have thus far failed to add any difference-makers via trade or free agency this off-season as well. On top of that, owner Eugene Melnyk is reportedly hemorrhaging money and appears to have a singular focus of spending as little as possible this season. That task is made difficult by a roster that features overpaid, ineffective veterans such as Bobby Ryan, Marian Gaborik, and Mikkel Boedker and a 37-year-old goalie coming off the worst season of his career in Craig Anderson. The Senators are the popular pick to be the worst team in the NHL in 2018-19, but even that has no silver lining, as the Colorado Avalanche own Ottawa’s first-round pick, potentially the first overall pick in next year’s draft.

It almost seems like so much is going wrong in Ottawa that things can only get better. Unfortunately, that is simply not the case. Early in this off-season, the Senators made a contract extension offer to all-world defenseman Erik Karlsson, who is slated for free agency next summer. When Karlsson dismissed this initial offer, the team made it know that they were open to trading the face of the franchise. Just this week, the team was unable to come to terms on a long-term extension with top scorer Mark Stone, instead signing him to a one-year deal that will make him an unrestricted free agent after the season, where he will potentially be the biggest available name behind Karlsson. Perhaps the biggest bargain on the team, Ryan Dzingel’s team-friendly contract runs out after next season and the young forward will want a significant raise, even if that means it doesn’t come from the penny-pinching Senators. Finally, Matt Duchene, who Ottawa gave up substantial trade capital to acquire early last season – when their future looked much brighter – is also entering the final year of his contract and may not want to stick around any longer in Ottawa after the team fell apart soon after his acquisition.

With Hoffman and Derick Brassard already gone, the Senators face a very real possibility that they will begin the 2019-20 season without all of their top six scorers from the 2017-18 season (make that top seven if they succeed in trading Ryan). Between the value each would have on the open market prompting them to test the waters and the mounting pressure on the team to trade them during what will almost certainly be another season of struggles, the odds of each of them returning is slim. If the team was second-worst last year, did nothing to improve this off-season, and doesn’t have the pick that could otherwise land them a franchise cornerstone in next year’s draft, it is scary to think about how much worse things could get in Ottawa if all four of these prominent free agents depart.

This begs the question: how many of Karlsson, Stone, Dzingel, and Duchene will still be Senators this time next year?

Atlantic Notes: Karlsson, Pacioretty, Blashill, Kotkaniemi

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When looking across the spectrum at different sports, there are often situations that have similarities, which is what happened last week with the San Antonio Spurs when they were forced to trade their superstar basketball player Kawhi Leonard away, eventually trading him to the Toronto Raptors. While a very different sport, The Athletic’s Arpon Basu (subscription required) writes that the Spurs handled everything with class, even if they didn’t come out with the best return, and there are other general managers in the NHL, such as Montreal’s Marc Bergevin and Ottawa’s Pierre Dorion who should be paying attention.

The most comparable situation comes to Dorion who is tasked to move superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson as soon as possible. Just like in San Antonio, everyone knows Dorion has to trade him, making it more challenging to get a quality return. The Montreal’s situation with Max Pacioretty isn’t the same, but is similar to DeMar DeRozan, who the Spurs received from Toronto in the Leonard trade, who the team wants to move in fear of him leaving eventually. Regardless, Basu writes that both teams need to move on from their respective situations and the longer they wait the more desperate they are going to get. Neither team is going to want Karlsson or Pacioretty to show up at training camp in a few months. Both teams need to do the best they can and move on as quickly as possible.

  • In an interview with Detroit Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill, the Detroit Free-Press’ Helene St. James asks the coach about the importance of integrating youth onto their roster next season. The head coach says that there will have to be more advantages given to younger players this coming year. “I think one of the big keys is that when you are a playoff team on an annual basis, the right move is that when a young player and a veteran player are tied, the tie goes to the veteran,” Blashill said. “When you are a team that hasn’t made the playoffs for two years and a young player and a veteran player are tied, I think now the tie should go to the young player.” That could be a big advantage to some of the team’s top talents from Michael Rasmussen, Filip Zadina, Filip Hronek and Dennis Cholowski who will all be fighting for roster spots in training camp.
  • Sean Farrell of NHL.com writes that the Montreal Canadiens’ 2018 first-round pick, center Jesperi Kotkaniemi could make the team out of training camp. Bergevin said Kotkaniemi will be at training camp and didn’t rule out the third-overall pick from making the team. “He got better every day, so we’re going in with an open mind,” Bergevin said. “I don’t know, but just the fact that he’s signed and he’s coming to camp and he’s closer to the NHL. Where he’s going to be Oct. 1, I can’t tell you, but we see a lot of potential and growth in this young man.”

Ottawa Offers Erik Karlsson Contract Extension

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The Ottawa Senators kept to their word Sunday as the team offered superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson a contract extension, according to NHL.com’s David Satriano. Terms of the extension offer were not disclosed. Despite the rumors of unhappiness with the ownership and his not willing to accept a “hometown” discount that has led to quite a bit of trade speculation over the past six months, general manager Pierre Dorion said the team had to make one final effort to keep Karlsson in the fold.

“We don’t really want to talk about roster players, contract negotiations, trades, all these things, but I think we owe it to our fans and we made a promise at the town hall that we would make a contract offer to Erik Karlsson and we’ve done so,” Dorion said Sunday.

Karlsson is in the last year of a seven-year, $45.5MM deal that he signed in 2012, which looks like a bargain as his AAV sits at just $6.5MM. However, with the sudden increase in salaries for star defenseman having increased, it’s likely that a new Karlsson deal will break the bank. Several defenseman have cashed in over the past few days, including Drew Doughty (eight years, $88MM, $11MM AAV), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (eight years, $66MM, $8.25MM AAV) and John Carlson (eight years, $64MM, $8MM AAV).

With increased trade rumors over the past week, there still hasn’t been a trade yet. The team has made it clear to teams that they are asking for a big return for their superstar center and have made it even more challenging for teams as they want the team also to take on the contract of Bobby Ryan, which still has four year left at $7.25MM. The Vegas Golden Knights have been the most talked about team since the trade deadline to get a deal done and they still could, but nothing has materialized yet. The Senators still have hope that Karlsson will sign an extension.

“I think Erik wants to be a Senator for life,” Dorion said then. “I don’t want to speak for him, I’ll let him speak for himself. We’ll see what the next few months bring, but if Erik Karlsson is here on July 1, we will be making him a contract offer.”

Mike Hoffman Traded To San Jose Sharks

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9:20am: The Sharks have flipped Hoffman to the Florida Panthers. For more information check the latest story.

7:55am: The Ottawa Senators have traded Mike Hoffman, Cody Donaghy and a 2020 fifth-round pick to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Mikkel Boedker, Julius Bergman and a 2020 sixth-round selection. This comes after weeks of trade speculation surrounding Hoffman, following an incident between his fiancee, and team captain Erik Karlsson and his wife. Senators GM Pierre Dorion released a statement regarding the trade, that seems to point towards a rift in the locker room:

Today’s trade showcases our determination to strengthen the future of the team by improving chemistry, leadership and character in the locker room and on the ice. We are confident it is a step in the right direction for the long-term success of this organization. 

Hoffman, 28, is about as consistent a goal scorer as you can find in the league right now. After four straight seasons with at least 22 goals, Hoffman will look to establish even better numbers in San Jose playing with what has quickly become an impressive forward group. After trading for and re-signing Evander Kane, and now adding Hoffman to the mix, the Sharks have used poor off-ice reputations to acquire top end talent on the cheap. With Joe Thornton expected to re-sign for a relatively low price to remain in San Jose, the team has three legitimate scoring lines that can do damage at even strength.

While Hoffman brings an upgrade in goal scoring, Boedker may fit into Ottawa’s system with ease. The two-way speedster can help the team utilize Guy Boucher’s defensive style, bringing an added level of responsibility to the forward group. Still, it’s not clear where the goals will come from in Ottawa, especially given the team is still considering a trade of Karlsson. Just this morning, Darren Dreger of TSN tweeted that the team is listening on both Karlsson and Zack Smith as they attempt a full rebuild. If they do pull a full overhaul on the roster, there may be another trade coming for Boedker, who is owed $3MM in each of the next two years (with a $4MM cap hit).

Even with Boedker’s $4MM cap hit, the Senators will save some money the next two years. Hoffman is signed for two seasons with a cap hit just under $5.2MM, a number that the Sharks can easily afford. San Jose headed into this offseason with a huge amount of cap space, and even with the Kane extension should be able to bring back all of their restricted free agents and Thornton.

For Ottawa, the simple fact is that they needed to move Hoffman before the season began. The off-ice problems had become too much, and they did well to at least acquire an asset in Boedker and a prospect in Bergman. The latter may be the key to the deal, as a puck-moving defenseman who will add another lottery ticket to the pile for the Senators. Make no mistake, Bergman isn’t an elite prospect ready to make a huge impact at the NHL level, but should play for the Senators at some point at least in a limited role. The second-round pick recorded 20 points in 65 games for the San Jose Barracuda this season, his third in the minor leagues since being drafted in 2014. Bergman has one year remaining on his entry-level contract, meaning he’ll be a restricted free agent in 2019.

It’s tough to think that the Senators will be better after this deal, and should they blow up the entire program and try to rebuild it could get even worse. The tough part about any scorched earth rebuild though is the fact that the Colorado Avalanche own their first-round pick from either this year (fourth overall) or next. The idea of giving up a real shot at first overall and Jack Hughes next season is a frightening one for a team trying to turn itself around, though it may be the only rational decision. Giving up the fourth pick this season is still an extremely difficult decision, especially if they believe Filip Zadina will still be available.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On The Ottawa Senators & Mike Hoffman

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As a general policy, PHR does not comment or report on a player’s off-ice situations unless they have a significant impact on their status with a team or around the league. This site is meant to wade through the unfounded accusations or hearsay and bring you only the most accurate transaction-related information and reporting from around the NHL and professional hockey. In this case, we decided not to cover a story on Mike Hoffman and Erik Karlsson of the Ottawa Senators because any effect it may have had on their status with the team was unclear. Now, as reports start coming from respected hockey sources on how the market has changed for an impending trade, we feel the need to release something on the situation. The original report came from Shaamini Yogaretnam the Ottawa Citizen, and subsequent response from Hoffman and his fiancée has just been published by Bruce Garrioch of the same publication.

Mike Hoffman has been rumored to be on the trade block for months, and the latest situation surrounding him, his fiancée and Erik Karlsson has only raised expectations of his movement. At one point, many believed that Hoffman was guaranteed to be traded before the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, something which is now not so clear. There’s no doubt that he will likely be moved still, but the situation has increased the difficulty of any deal.

In an updated version of the first report, the Ottawa Citizen spoke with Hoffman’s agent Robert Hooper. In his comments, he made it very clear that he believed there was no place in Ottawa for Hoffman any longer as long as Karlsson remained with the team.

What we’ve indicated to Pierre [Dorion, team GM] is that, and let’s call a spade a spade, it would be very difficult for both parties — both Erik and Mike as well as the wives and the fiancées — to co-exist in the same wives’ room and the same dressing room. 

In my 22 years in this business I don’t believe that I’ve ever come across a situation like this. This is an exceptionally unique situation and one that’s very unfortunate. Hopefully it can get resolved as quickly as possible.

This isn’t something we talked about with Pierre just today. We’ve been aware of this situation since the end of the season,

Insiders all around the league are speculating that Hoffman’s value has plummeted though, and could make it a much tougher sell for the Senators. Frank Seravalli of TSN reports that at least two GMs wouldn’t be willing to tough the situation until it is resolved, and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet believes it’s now a situation that could hurt Pierre Dorion’s reputation around the league. Friedman believes that the team dropped their asking price for Hoffman before the story broke, and that some other teams may see that as “dirty poker.”

If you make this deal without knowing [about the situation]—and I think there might be some teams mad at the agents too, but the agents are trying to protect their clients and Dorion is trying to protect his investment—whatever the case is I think there were some teams just mad at the overall situation: ’Oh, you tried to pull a fast one on us eh? So what else about some of your guys are you not telling us?’ It’s a brutal situation.

In a video attached to Hoffman’s latest response, Garrioch claims that he believed the team was originally looking for a 2019 first-round pick and an established NHL roster player. Now, he believes that the team will have to settle for a prospect and first-round pick instead, and lists the Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild and Buffalo Sabres as potential candidates for a trade. Whether that comes to be in the next few days is still unclear.

The situation obviously also has an effect on Karlsson’s future, though the team has known about the situation since well before the original report. Even Hoffman admits that he spoke to his captain about it before the season was over, but that things weren’t resolved. Karlsson has always maintained that he loves the city of Ottawa and the team, though rumblings of a potential trade persist. If the team can’t get their superstar defenseman signed this summer to a long-term extension, the belief is they will look to move him and start a true rebuild.

Hoffman, 28, is under contract for two more seasons at a reasonable cap hit of just under $5.2MM. His production has been excellent through his four full seasons in the NHL, and he’s coming off a 22-goal, 56-point campaign. It’s obvious that many teams would enjoy adding the player to their lineup, but it seems clear that as long as this situation hangs over his head there will be a smaller market for Dorion to work with.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Avalanche Prepared To Pick Fourth If Senators Fold

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The first fireworks of the upcoming NHL Draft may show up at pick #4. When the Ottawa Senators acquired Matt Duchene from the Colorado Avalanche, part of the substantial package was a top-ten protected 2018 first-round pick. The terms of the deal afforded the Senators a choice between trading this year’s pick or next year’s pick to Colorado if the pick landed within the top ten spots. Finishing the season with the second-worst record in the league, Ottawa was obviously locked in to the top ten. Even after bad luck dropped them to fourth overall in the NHL Draft Lottery, GM Pierre Dorion confirmed that they would hold on to the pick this year and defer to the 2019 first-rounder.

However, that was back in April and things change. It seems more likely than ever that Erik Karlsson and/or Mike Hoffman will be traded away from Ottawa this off-season and that doesn’t bode well for a Duchene extension either. There also continue to be frustrations over the management of owner Eugene Melnyk and the fiscal future of the organization. Ottawa seems far from a free agent destination right now and no closer to turning around one of the worst records in the NHL. The initial Stanley Cup odds for next season reflect this, as the Senators at 100/1 odds are alone in last place. It’s understandable for public relations purposes that the Sens keep this year’s #4, both to add an exciting new prospect and to all but confirm to fans that the outlook for next season is better this season. It may not be the smart move though.

There is a trio of top prospects in the draft this year: defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and forwards Andrei Svechnikov and Filip Zadina. After that, there is no consensus on the next-best player. In fact, the fourth overall pick more or less marks the beginning of a lesser tier of prospects; not exactly a power position in 2018. Next year, the Senators are almost certainly going to miss the playoffs and will be a lottery team with a chance to land in the top three with a lucky draw. According to odds makers, they are also the favorite to finish 31st, which would give them the best odds at the first overall pick – highly-touted franchise center Jack Hughes – and would mean that they could fall no farther than fourth again. There is risk in giving up a pick as high as #4 this year, but there is also substantial risk in not giving it away, blowing up the roster, and simply hoping for a better finish next year. The pain that the organization and the fans would feel about losing #1 after another brutal season would be far worse than giving up a non-consensus top player at #4 this year. The mounting pressure of that very real possibility could force the Senators to give in and surrender the 2018 pick.

The Avalanche know this and are remaining vigilant. The Denver Post’s Mike Chambers caught up with Colorado Director of Scouting Alan Hepple, who says the team knows what direction they would go in if they wind up with #4 this year after all. Per Chambers, the Senators can wait all the way until they are on the clock to make the pick to instead complete the trade this year. Hepple doesn’t think that will be the case, but the Avs are prepared in case it is. They certainly wouldn’t mind the spot, as the team nabbed defensive phenom Cale Makar in that same draft slot last year and would be happy to make a repeat performance. With their own pick at #16, Hepple says that the team will simply take the best player available, regardless of position, but at #4 they have identified a more pressing organizational need, as they did with the UMass puck-mover Makar last year.

If the first three picks go as expected and Ottawa isn’t thrilled by the next-best name on their draft board, they could crumble under the pressure of the potential repercussions: losing a higher pick next year. It could pay off or it could be a mistake in hindsight; there is no way to tell with a lot riding on the decision. However, if they do, Colorado is ready to jump in. It’s not the most likely outcome, but it remains a possibility, and an intriguing one, as draft day approaches.

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