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Mark Stone

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Ottawa Senators

December 16, 2018 at 5:58 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Ottawa Senators.  Click here for the other articles in this series. 

What are the Senators most thankful for?

Not being dead last. Most experts as well as fans had the Senators picked as the worst team in the league and with all the offseason turmoil coming from issues surrounding Erik Karlsson as well as locker room issues, the team was being viewed as a laughing stock. Throw in the fact that the team traded away their first-round pick to Colorado in the Matt Duchene trade and things were looking even worse. While the team isn’t in the playoff hunt, the Senators have been respectable on the ice and considering that they have opted to rebuild their team, 14-16-4 record, which could be a lot worse.

Who are the Senators most thankful for?

After almost an entire year of Erik Karlsson rumors, the team finally unloaded their superstar defenseman in a deal with San Jose. Many felt that loss would destroy the team, but second-year defenseman Thomas Chabot has been nothing, if not remarkable. The 21-year-old has already surpassed his offensive totals from last year when he posted 25 points in 63 games. This year, Chabot has already reached 35 points in 34 games and is tied for first in the NHL in points along with Toronto’s Morgan Rielly and Washington’s John Carlson.

This development has made the transition away from Karlsson, who hasn’t taken off yet in San Jose, much easier for Ottawa fans as Chabot is starting to just scratch the surface to his skills in Ottawa. For a young team with very few veteran players, to have a defenseman averaging a point a game is a big deal.

What would the Senators be even more thankful for?

The team needs even more offense and while many of their young players have had some success already, the Senators are a team loaded in young talent. If the team could get some of those players to take that next step, the team would be far better off. The team have gotten some success from both Brady Tkuchuk and Colin White as both players have nine goals already. Surprise defenseman Max Lajoie is another rookie who has already posted six goals and 12 points. However, the team needs others to step up, including Drake Batherson who has seven points in 16 games so far. However, the team needs some of the top prospects in Belleville to take that next step at some point as well, including players like Rudolfs Balcers, Filip Chlapik and Logan Brown.

What should be on the Senators Holiday Wish List?

More than anything, the Senators need some clarity with some of their veteran players. The team has a number of pending unrestricted free agents in Duchene, Mark Stone and to a lesser extent Ryan Dzingel, and the last thing this franchise needs is for those players to walk away in free agency and leave the team with nothing. Unfortunately, no players have given a solid indication that they intend to return and if the team can’t come to terms on an extension with any of them before the trade deadline, they need to move them. Both Duchene and Stone have been impressive this year, so the team should get significant returns for those two if they are forced to trade them, but the team has to hope they can sign one of these players and begin to build this franchise up from there. Another firesale isn’t going to make the franchise look any better.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ottawa Senators| Thankful Series 2018-19 Colin White| Drake Batherson| Erik Karlsson| Filip Chlapik| John Carlson| Logan Brown| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene| Morgan Rielly

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Snapshots: Nielsen, Ferland, Senators

December 10, 2018 at 4:02 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 1 Comment

With Seattle being officially announced as the upcoming 32nd franchise in the NHL, teams are already starting to prepare for an upcoming expansion draft. While the Vegas Golden Knights will be exempt from the draft, June 2021 will be a focus for all other 30 teams. One of the most notable rules as we move towards the process is the one surrounding no-movement clauses and their automation protection. Teams’ ability to protect their young skaters will hamstrung by these clauses, and could force them into a trade with Seattle.

The Detroit Red Wings were one of these teams, as it appeared that Frans Nielsen had a no-movement clause that would force protection despite him nearing the end of his playing career by the time the draft rolls around. CapFriendly today reported that they had been mistaken previously when listing Nielsen with that clause, as it actually expired at the end of last season. Nielsen now only holds a modified no-trade clause, which does not have the same restrictions in the draft process.

  • Micheal Ferland has been activated by the Carolina Hurricanes, as he has fully recovered from his recent concussion. The forward still leads the Hurricanes in goals this season despite his four-game absence, and will try to step right back into the top-six role he’d shown the aptitude for. The physical, skilled forward is the only player on Carolina with double digit goals this season, something they’ve sorely lacked all year. Ferland is also a pending unrestricted free agent that carries just a $1.75MM cap hit this season, and will be very appealing to many teams at the deadline if Carolina drops out of the race.
  • Ian Mendes of TSN recently looked at the history of eight-year extensions and when they were usually signed, noting that the Ottawa Senators are approaching “uncharted territory” if they still intend on signing long-term deals with Matt Duchene and Mark Stone. Both players are pending unrestricted free agents and could very well be among the highest-paid players on July 1st. The Senators meanwhile will have to consider long and hard on whether they want to hand out huge extensions during the very early stages of their current rebuild.

Carolina Hurricanes| Detroit Red Wings| Expansion| Ottawa Senators| Seattle| Snapshots Frans Nielsen| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene| Micheal Ferland

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Trade Rumors: Senators, Blackhawks, Avalanche

December 8, 2018 at 12:08 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 5 Comments

With leading scorer Matt Duchene on injured reserve and expected out for “weeks”, what little chances the Ottawa Senators had of making the playoffs this season are likely to slip away. This was always the expected result of the 2018-19 season for Ottawa, but their efforts thus far to stay out of the basement of the NHL have surprised many and inspired some. However, as reality now begins to finally set in, the team must decide what they want to do with Duchene and fellow impending free agents Mark Stone and Ryan Dzingel. As Ken Warren of the Ottawa Sun writes, Duchene – currently tied for ninth in the league in scoring – will likely ask for an eight-year deal in the ballpark of $60-70MM to remain in Ottawa, reflective of the salary he will likely command on the open market. Stone will be in the same neighborhood, with Dzingel significantly lower albeit not cheap by any means, but the Senators cannot even begin negotiations with the pair until the new year, per the rules pertaining to their recent salary arbitration decisions. As such, the team is dealing with three high-quality expiring assets without any guarantee that they will be re-sign or if the team will be willing to meet their salary demands. In a season in which Ottawa could finish with one of the worst records in the league but lacks their first-round pick – given to the Colorado  Avalanche in the deal that landed Duchene – it stands to reason that GM Pierre Dorion will strongly consider recouping as much trade capital as possible if extensions are not in place by the trade deadline. Given the uncertainly surrounding the ownership status of Eugene Melnyk, whose tactics thus far leave much to be desired anyway, Warren believes that Duchene, Stone, and Dzingel, as well as any other free agent in the coming off-season, will think twice about a future in Ottawa. All things considered, it’s beginning to look like the trio stand a better chance to all be traded away in the coming months than any of them do of signing a long-term extension.

  • The Athletic’s Graeme Nichols wonders if yet another Senator is prime trade bait right now as well. With veteran goaltender Craig Anderson playing his best hockey of the season so far, Nichols opines that Ottawa would be best-served to try moving their starter while his stock is high. While the recent home-and-home series with the Montreal Canadiens did not go so well, Anderson did look very good in wins over the New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks prior, recording 63 saves on 65 shots over the two contests. Anderson also made 48 saves against the Dallas Stars last month and notched wins over the Tampa Bay Lighting and Pittsburgh Penguins. Admittedly, even as this best, Anderson is still a 37-year-old replacement-level goaltender at this point in his career and won’t command much of a return. However, the Senators’ season is sinking and they should get what they can while his value is potentially at its peak. The knock on moving Anderson this season has been that Ottawa has no suitable replacement – backups Mike Condon and Mike McKenna have performed very poorly in limited appearances – and thus trading Anderson means giving up on the season. Yet, with Duchene out long-term, any postseason hopes will fade and moving Anderson will begin to make more sense. As Nichols recalls, Anderson himself also alluded to a desire to move on from Ottawa this summer, so making a deal seems to be in the best interest of all parties. There are plenty of teams out there who would be intrigued by adding an established veteran in net this year and Anderson could soon fill that role.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks made it known yesterday that they are looking to move out some of their defensive depth, but NBC Sports’ James O’Brien asks if they are focused on the wrong players. Rather than try to flip the likes of Brandon Manning or Jan Rutta, for which they would receive relatively little, O’Brien believes that the team’s long-term needs would be better served by trading away a mainstay like Duncan Keith or Brent Seabrook. This is not so cut-and-dry, as O’Brien admits, but would be worth looking into. Both players carry no-trade clauses that Chicago GM Stan Bowman would first need to ask them to waive. Even if Seabrook was to agree, it seems very unlikely that Bowman would find a taker for the depreciating defenseman and his albatross of a contract. If by some chance he does, it would be a small return similar to Manning or Rutta, but with a far greater salary cap relief. Keith is another matter; while not what he once was, the 35-year-old is still a very capable defenseman who would play in the top four for nearly every team in the NHL, at least for now. The worry is that Keith will continue to age and his ability will fall off, while the Blackhawks continue to pay him more than $5.5MM per year and rely on him for top minutes. Removing that crutch (and cap hit) now, in what appears to be another lost season for the team, would give Chicago a strong return that they could use to begin rebuilding the team. The alternative, which also appears to be the current plan, of waiting for the current roster to turn things around, will only increase the risk of injury or drop-off from Keith while damaging his market value as he ages. A move now would be painful to the fan base in the short term, but the right move looking toward the future.
  • One team who could be a dangerous player at the trade deadline this season are the Colorado Avalanche. Per CapFriendly, the Avs are currently projected to have more than $56MM in cap space available at the deadline, or in other words have no limit to the amount of talent they can bring in if they so choose. Colorado is currently tied for the lead in the Central Division with the Nashville Predators and could even emerge as President’s Trophy threats this season. Armed with the best line in the NHL, including the top two scorers in the league, Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon, and the best power play as well, the Avalanche are second in goals for per game among all teams. They also play well in their own end, seventh in goals against per game behind the efforts of Semyon Varlamov. Yet, the Avalanche are not without fault and could stand to add a contributor or two both on defense and up front. The team was expected to add top prospect Cale Makar to their blue line by the end of the regular season, but with his college squad, the UMass Minutemen, ranked No. 1 in the nation, Makar could be occupied through the Frozen Four tournament in mid-April. A capable puck-moving defenseman should thus be at the top of the list for Colorado, followed by an injection of offensive ability and two-way accountability among the forward corps, where their secondary scoring and penalty kill could both use work. While the matter of cost in trade capital is another question entirely, the Avalanche will have the cap space to hypothetically address their needs by adding the likes of Jordan Eberle, Kevin Hayes, and Jay Bouwmeester for example. That’s a dangerous premise for other contenders to consider as Colorado continues to excel this season.

Arbitration| Chicago Blackhawks| Colorado Avalanche| Dallas Stars| Injury| Montreal Canadiens| NHL| Nashville Predators| New York Rangers| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| Players| San Jose Sharks Brandon Manning| Brent Seabrook| Cale Makar| Craig Anderson| Duncan Keith| Jan Rutta| Jay Bouwmeester| Jordan Eberle| Kevin Hayes| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene| Mike Condon| Mikko Rantanen| Nathan MacKinnon| Salary Cap| Trade Rumors

5 comments

Atlantic Notes: Palat, Pageau, Dermott, Hudon, Rask

November 25, 2018 at 12:24 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper announced that winger Ondrej Palat is not expected to play Sunday, but after that the 27-year-old is expected to be listed as “day-to-day” and could be back soon. Palat hasn’t played since Oct. 26 when he left the game with a lower body injury and subsequently was listed out for at least four weeks. That seems about right as the team could get him back at some point this week.

Palat has appeared in just nine games this season and has failed to find the back of the net as he has just five assists in that span. The team needs the winger to return and re-establish himself in the team’s top-six as he also dealt with injuries last year as he played in 56 games, tallying only 11 goals.

Cooper also added that defenseman Anton Stralman is being re-evaluated and will be out Sunday. The 32-year-old hasn’t played since Nov. 8 with an undisclosed injury. Stralman has eight points in 16 games.

  • The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch reports that center Jean-Gabriel Pageau, who has been out all season with a torn Achilles muscle, continues to make amazing progress as he joined the team on their four-game road trip in New York and skated with the team Sunday in a non-contact jersey. Despite a six-month timetable in mid-September, Pageau looks closer and closer to returning to the team quite a bit earlier than the original diagnosis. Garrioch also notes that Mark Stone, Colin White and Mark Borowiecki all took part in skating Sunday.
  • The Athletic’s Ian Tulloch (subscription required) breaks down the play of many of the Toronto Maple Leafs from Saturday’s game. Of note, Tulloch writes that one necessity in the near future is that Toronto must find a way to find a spot in their top-four for defenseman Travis Dermott. The 21-year-old is only averaging 17:53 of ATOI, but has been used more and more, getting 23:06 of ice time Saturday. The scribe adds that Dermott has developed into the team’s top defenseman and the Toronto needs to make adjustments accordingly, which means cutting playing time for struggling blueliners Ron Hainsey and Nikita Zaitsev.
  • After being a healthy scratch for Friday’s game, Montreal Canadiens forward Charles Hudon talked to head coach Claude Julien, who told him to be more aggressive, like he was last season when he had 126 hits, according to Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan. Hudon’s response was he had 13 hits in 9:09 of ice time.
  • It looks like the break that Tuukka Rask took a week ago has been paying off for the netminder. Rask has had three impressive starts since taking a critical weekend off earlier this month, including a .938 save percentage in his three appearances since his return, according to the Boston Globe’s Kevin Paul Dupont.

Claude Julien| Injury| Jon Cooper| Montreal Canadiens| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs| Uncategorized Anton Stralman| Colin White| Jean-Gabriel Pageau| Mark Borowiecki| Mark Stone| Nikita Zaitsev| Ondrej Palat| Ron Hainsey| Tuukka Rask

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Ottawa Senators, Matt Duchene In “Substantive Contract Talks”

November 7, 2018 at 2:59 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Despite the dark cloud that has hovered over the Ottawa Senators for more than a year, the team now finds themselves at 6-6-3 on the season after a big win last night against the New Jersey Devils. That win was important to show the team’s resilience after the latest public scandal that included a recorded conversation of players badmouthing their coaching staff. Interestingly, as Bob McKenzie of TSN notes on the latest edition of Insider Trading, one of the players involved in that video was Matt Duchene who is currently in a contract negotiation with the team. McKenzie reports that Duchene’s agent and Ottawa GM Pierre Dorion are in “substantive contract talks” and that there is interest from both sides in at least discussing a long-term extension.

As we examined recently, Duchene’s future with the Senators is perhaps the single most important decision that Dorion has to make this season. The team gave up a large package of assets to bring him to Ottawa that included Kyle Turris, prospect Shane Bowers and infamously an unprotected first-round pick. At the time, it looked like Duchene was acquired as the missing piece of a puzzle that was closer to the Stanley Cup finals than the draft lottery, but basically everything has gone downhill since then. Now in the final year of his contract, Duchene is potentially one of the top names available in the 2019 unrestricted free agent class and could be a valuable trade chip at the deadline if no extension is reached.

Still just 27 years old, despite now being in his tenth full NHL season, Duchene is off to a fast start. With 15 points in 15 games he is well on his way to one of the best seasons of his career, something that would set him up for a huge windfall in free agency. Currently making $6.5MM (with a $6MM cap hit) in the final season of a five-year $30MM contract signed with Colorado in 2013, he could secure a substantial raise with a point-per-game season. The Senators are giving him every chance at that type of contract by playing him more than any other forward not named Mark Stone, but whether they’re willing to hand it out themselves is still up for debate. Ottawa has cut costs considerably over the last few seasons, and couldn’t come to an agreement with captain Erik Karlsson on an extension of his own. Karlsson was likely demanding quite a bit more than Duchene’s camp will be asking for, but the finances of any long-term market value deal are tricky for Ottawa.

The team is heading towards a similar result with Stone, who is proving to be one of the best wingers in the NHL and is currently on a one-year deal worth $7.35MM. He’s also scheduled for unrestricted free agency and will perhaps be asking for an even bigger contract given that he’s younger than Duchene and is on track for his second consecutive point-per-game season. There seems little chance that both players will be re-signed, especially with others like Cody Ceci also needing a slice of the pie next summer.

Duchene though remains the focus at the moment, and if the “substantive talks” result in a contract extension soon it would show that the latest scandal is behind the team, and that both players and executives are focused on winning right away. Though they still may end near the bottom of the standings this season, the group on the ice right now has shown that there is still talent in Ottawa—whether it is enough to convince their free agents to stay is still yet to be determined.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Free Agency| Ottawa Senators Bob McKenzie| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene

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Minor Transactions: 10/21/18

October 21, 2018 at 9:36 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Another Saturday night in the NHL has gone by, and with it another chance for young players to impress their coaching staffs. Now a new day opens and we’ll be right here keeping track of all the minor moves around the league.

  • Nick Paul and Christian Jaros have been returned to the AHL by the Ottawa Senators, in another cost-cutting maneuver. The Senators aren’t back in game action until Tuesday night, at which point they’ll likely make following transactions to bring some players back up or activate them from the minor leagues. After Mark Stone’s game winner last night, the Senators are flying high on early season success.
  • Kevin Rooney has been sent to the minor leagues by the New Jersey Devils, likely meaning that Jesper Bratt is getting close to a return. The Devils don’t play again until Thursday, giving the young forward several more days to recover from the broken jaw he suffered just before the start of the season. If he can’t go, expect New Jersey to make a different move in the next few days.
  • The San Jose Sharks announced they have assigned center Dylan Gambrell to the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL and is expected to play for them today. Gambrell has been on a roller coaster getting called up and sent back done several times already this year. The 22-year-old hasn’t made an appearance for the Sharks yet this year and has only made two appearances all season for the Barracuda, although he has posted three goals and five points in those two appearances.

AHL| New Jersey Devils| Ottawa Senators| San Jose Sharks| Transactions Christian Jaros| Dylan Gambrell| Mark Stone| Nick Paul

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Matt Duchene To Be Patient With Next Career Move

September 20, 2018 at 7:31 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 3 Comments

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.

Colorado Avalanche| Ottawa Senators| Pierre Dorion Craig Anderson| Erik Karlsson| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene| Mike Hoffman

3 comments

Snapshots: Stone, Panthers, Olofsson

September 19, 2018 at 3:30 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 2 Comments

As if being an Ottawa Senators fan wasn’t hard enough right now, a report surfaced this morning that suggested Mark Stone wanted out of the city when his contract expired at the end of this season. Stone settled with the Senators this offseason on just a one-year deal that will pay him $7.35MM this season and qualifies for unrestricted free agency on July 1, 2019. The 26-year old forward was asked about the report after practice today, and denied it vehemently.

I love it here. This has been a great month for me, I’ve enjoyed my previous four years here and I want to continue to be here. 

As a player you’re looking to win every time you step on the ice. No matter who you’re playing with, no matter who’s in the lineup you have to look at it the same way. Obviously [the Senators front office] has said they’re rebuilding, but I think for the guys in this locker room we’re looking to win hockey games and looking to win as many as we can.

Stone could potentially be one of the very best forwards available on the open market next summer if he decides not to re-sign with the Senators, and can’t actually put pen to paper on a contract extension until January 1st, 2019. Even if he is enjoying things right now, it’s a dangerous situation for the Senators to be in given their expected struggles this season. Still, Stone has never said anything to make Ottawa believe that he wouldn’t be willing to stay and was even in discussions on a long-term deal this offseason at one point.

  • Not only do the Florida Panthers have a new captain in Aleksander Barkov, but today they announced their entire leadership group. Keith Yandle, Aaron Ekblad, Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau will all wear an “A” as alternate captains at various times this season, solidifying that group of five as the core of the team going forward. Among them, only Yandle is older than 25 while Barkov and Ekblad are still just 22 and 23 respectively, giving the Panthers a chance to keep most of the group together for a long time. In fact, all five are signed through at least the 2021-22 season and should help Florida return to the playoffs at some point in the next few years.
  • Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) is reporting that Gustav Olofsson has suffered another shoulder injury, and there is fear that it is serious. Olofsson underwent an MRI yesterday, but there has been no update from the team as of yet. The 23-year old defenseman played 41 games for the Wild last season and could have perhaps battled for a full-time spot had he not suffered the injury. Selected in the second round five years ago, Olofsson has been limited by injury throughout his professional career and will hope for good news this time around.

Florida Panthers| Free Agency| Injury| Minnesota Wild| Ottawa Senators| Snapshots Aaron Ekblad| Aleksander Barkov| Gustav Olofsson| Jonathan Huberdeau| Keith Yandle| Mark Stone| Vincent Trocheck

2 comments

Poll: How Many Pending UFAs Will Stay With Ottawa?

September 11, 2018 at 4:29 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 4 Comments

The Ottawa Senators made waves last night when they released a bizarre marketing video that seemed intended to settle down fans and sponsors upset with the direction of the team. Owner Eugene Melnyk and defenseman Mark Borowiecki discussed the roster, and how it may look completely different over the next 12 months. Melnyk even went so far to say there will be 10 “new”—rookies or players who played around ten games last season—on the roster this season and 15 or 16 in 2019-20. While that seems difficult to pull off for the 2018-19 season given the veteran group that is there right now, perhaps there is huge turnover coming in the next few weeks and months.

When looking at the Senators salary structure, there is certainly a few things that stick out. Only Bobby Ryan is signed for more than three seasons, and just Marian Gaborik and Zack Smith are even under contract that long. Almost the entire roster is set to hit unrestricted free agency in either 2019 or 2020, meaning there is a good chance they could have a much different looking group down the line.

That different look though is predicated on the idea that the Senators won’t re-sign any of their pending free agents. While Erik Karlsson seems like he’ll be gone soon and at the very least won’t be re-signing with Ottawa, Mark Stone and Matt Duchene have both remained open to the idea. Beyond them though are other key players like Ryan Dzingel and Chris Wideman, both scheduled for unrestricted free agency in 2019.

So how many of those pending UFAs will stick around? Vote below for all the players who you believe will re-sign with the Ottawa Senators before the beginning of the 2019-20 season. Leave your comments on where you think they are heading below!

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

Free Agency| Ottawa Senators Erik Karlsson| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene

4 comments

Ottawa Senators Preparing For Huge Roster Turnover

September 11, 2018 at 8:49 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 3 Comments

Late last night after much of the hockey news had died down for the day, the Ottawa Senators released a video of defenseman Mark Borowiecki and owner Eugene Melnyk discussing the future of the organization. Touching on subjects from dressing room leadership to overcoming the low expectations for 2018-19, Melnyk made clear he would be staying with the franchise for a long time and will not move it from Ottawa. He also noted an interesting point about roster construction, explaining how quickly the rebuild will get underway:

This coming year we’re going to have 10 out of the 22 players are going to be new. Meaning they’re either rookies or they’ve played maybe under 10 games last year. Then the following year, it’s going to go up to about 15 of the 22, maybe 16. So that’s a total turnover you know, which is exactly what should be in a rebuild. 

Stripping your roster down to the studs and letting a group of young players grow and mature together is often a strategy for struggling teams who want to rebuild, and the Senators saw a similar situation play out just down the road in Toronto a few years ago. In fact, when the Maple Leafs traveled to Ottawa to open the season in 2016 they had seven rookies in the lineup including Auston Matthews, who scored four times despite the loss. That would appear to be the blue print for Melnyk and the Senators as they look to pull a similarly speedy rebuild.

The question though becomes how do they achieve the goal of having 10 rookies on the roster at the beginning of the year. The team currently has at least 19 players—Mark Stone, Bobby Ryan, Matt Duchene, Zack Smith, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Ryan Dzingel, Tom Pyatt, Magnus Paajarvi, Max McCormick, Colin White, Marian Gaborik, Erik Karlsson, Cody Ceci, Chris Wideman, Ben Harpur, Thomas Chabot, Craig Anderson, Mike Condon and Borowiecki—who played more than 10 games for the organization last season and should at the very least be battling for roster spots. While perhaps Melnyk was exaggerating and players like White and Chabot would still be considered “rookies” given their relative youth and inexperience, it seems likely that there will be substantial turnover in the rest of the group.

We’ve heard for months that Karlsson may be on the block, speculation that will only increase given his complete absence from this video, but other players including Stone and Duchene are both heading into the final years of their contracts and could be shipped out for prospects and picks. If the Senators are committed to a full scorched earth rebuild, they are powerful assets in trade.

At the very least, we should expect the Senators to be involved in trade talks all season. Even though Melnyk and Borowiecki seem excited about playing the underdogs this year, the amount of roster turnover that the owner mentions isn’t possible without some transactions coming through the pipe quickly. Camp starts in just a few days and Senators rookies should be licking their chops on the opportunity that is apparently there for the taking.

Ottawa Senators| Prospects| Rookies Ben Harpur| Bobby Ryan| Cody Ceci| Colin White| Craig Anderson| Erik Karlsson| Jean-Gabriel Pageau| Magnus Paajarvi| Marian Gaborik| Mark Borowiecki| Mark Stone| Matt Duchene| Max McCormick| Mike Condon

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