The talk finally will turn to action this week. Read MoreThere won’t be many battles in camp, but keep an eye on the club’s top six and decisions on defence
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There won’t be many battles in camp, but keep an eye on the club’s top six and decisions on defence
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The talk finally will turn to action this week.
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The off-season will officially come to an end when the Ottawa Senators report to the Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday for medicals before hitting the ice on Thursday to begin preparations for the season opener against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 9 on the road.
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After making the playoffs for the first time in eight years this past spring, the Senators know they arrive in camp with expectations that they’ll not only make the National Hockey League’s big dance next spring, but maybe even win a round or two once they arrive.
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Success brings pressure. After losing in the first round of the playoffs against the arch-rival Toronto Maple Leafs, the Senators worked their way back from a 3-0 deficit in the series to lose a heartbreaker in Game 6 and know the task will only be more difficult.
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“We know what it felt like last year making the playoffs and we want to feel that every year,” centre Tim Stutzle said. “It was probably the best feeling I’ve had in a long time playing hockey, and the most fun I’ve had.
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“When you come in after a year like that, there are higher expectations. Everybody knows we made the playoffs last year, so it’s not going to be easy, but we’re definitely going to give our best and hope for a good year. Our goal is to get further than the first round, but we’ve got to take everything step-by-step and just get better every day.”
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The Senators finished with a 45-30-7 record for 97 points and went into the playoffs as the first wild-card team in the East. Five of the eight teams that made the post-season in the conference were from the Atlantic Division, which means the competition will be fierce.
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Much of the work done by coach Travis Green and his staff last season involved shaking off the past and looking forward to the future. He told the players he didn’t care what happened before he arrived and that the only way to improve was to focus on the path ahead.
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“We had the mentality of just going day-by-day and that’s what brought us forward,” Stutzle said. “We’re going to do that again this year.”
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Based on getting first-hand experience last spring, the Senators should be better this year.
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THE STATUS QUO
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Steve Staios, the club’s president of hockey operations and general manager, opted not to make many changes after the Senators made progress and qualified for the playoffs.
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The club acquired defenceman Jordan Spence from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a pick during Day 2 of the NHL draft, which was one of the most significant moves that Staios made.
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The Senators also signed veteran centre Lars Eller in free agency to anchor the club’s fourth line after Adam Gaudette opted to go to market and signed a lucrative deal with the San Jose Sharks.
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Eller, 36, won a Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in 2018.
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He will be expected to play a leadership role along with veteran winger David Perron, who is heading into the final year of his contract, along with alternate captain Claude Giroux, who signed a one-year, bonus-laden extension to end a contract stalemate in late June.
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Veteran backup goalie Anton Forsberg opted to sign with the Los Angeles Kings in free agency, which means Leevi Merilainen will be behind top goalie Linus Ullmark. Mads Sogaard is on a one-way deal as well this season, but the expectation is he’ll be in the American Hockey League.
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Staios has noted he didn’t feel he needed to make wholesale changes.
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“How do I feel about the upcoming season?” Staios said. “It’s pretty clear I have true belief in this group. My belief in this group is drawn from the character of these players.”
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The Senators appreciate the vote of confidence because they feel the sky is the limit with the talent coming into its own.
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The core has remained in place.
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Captain Brady Tkachuk and top centre Tim Stutzle, along with Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson, Drake Batherson, Ridly Greig and Shane Pinto, all had their first opportunity to compete in the playoffs.
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“Everybody is going to have an expectation on us,” Tkachuk said. “Internally, I think I said it after the season, it’s going to be as hard as it was to get to the playoffs last year. That experience is going to help us tremendously right from Day 1.
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“We have a group that’s able to do it, and for us it’s about having that Stanley Cup mindset right from Day 1. That’s something that I’ve seen up close and personal. I know we’re not going to stop until it gets done. Playoffs are a great goal to have, but there are bigger goals we’re going to set for ourselves.”
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WHERE DO THE BATTLES LIE?
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There aren’t a whole lot of openings heading into camp.
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Green likes to say that players decide for themselves where they fit on the roster and that will be the case for the Senators.
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The Senators struggled to score at 5-on-5 last season and that is an area that has to improve. The club was better defensively, which was the key to making the playoffs, so be careful what you wish for.
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Giroux was an automatic top-six winger last year, but he’ll be in a battle for playing time with Fabian Zetterlund.
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Acquired from the Sharks at the March trade deadline, Zetterlund was signed to a three-year contract extension that will pay him $4.275 million per season through the 2027-28 campaign.
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That contract raised eyebrows around the NHL because Zetterlund had only two goals and five points in 20 games down the stretch last season. With that term and money, he has to play in the top nine.
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A third line of Michael Amadio, Pinto and Greig just makes sense. They were a force in the playoffs.
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Veteran Nick Cousins was brought back to be a pest in a fourth-line role and there’s no reason to believe that won’t be the case.
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The biggest question mark is on defence with the health of veteran blueliner Nick Jensen up in the air. He isn’t expected to start camp but, by all accounts he’s way ahead of schedule. A summer skate is one thing, and the pace will lift big time at camp.
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It has only been just over three months since Jensen had the major surgery on the hip issue he played through most of the second half of last season. Most players are in the four-to-six-month range in their recovery, which means it’s doubtful Jensen will start the year.
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The Senators will have to rely on their depth in the organization and the expectation is that 2024 top selection Carter Yakemchuk will push for a spot.
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He’ll be in tough because Spence was brought in to play in the top four, while Tyler Kleven showed in the playoffs that he deserves a bigger role. Nikolas Matinpalo returns after a strong rookie campaign.
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This area will be fascinating to watch because Artem Zub will be pushed for his role on the right side of Jake Sanderson and, if Jensen isn’t ready, then Chabot will have a new partner.
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Yakemchuk starting the season in Ottawa wouldn’t be the worst decision, but Kleven benefitted from a year in the AHL and it would be no surprise if the club wanted to follow a similar path with its best prospect.
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A NET GAIN
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All eyes will be on Linus Ullmark.
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A four-year contract extension that will pay him a whopping $8.25 million per season kicks in this year. He played a big role in getting this club to the playoffs last spring and needs to have continued success.
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Ullmark arrived with big expectations after the club made a deal to acquire him from the Boston Bruins and despite injury issues he lived up to them. He finished with a .909 save percentage in the regular season.
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He will be expected to carry the ball this year. He shared the duties with Jeremy Swayman when they were a duo in Boston and the most games Ullmark has played is 49 during the 2022-23 campaign.
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Merilainen is pencilled in work behind Ullmark. The Senators signed the 22-year-old top prospect to a one-year, one-way deal that will pay him $1.05 million this season.
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Merilainen appeared in 12 regular-season games for the Senators last season when Ullmark was sidelined with a back injury.
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He posted an 8-3-1 record with a 1.99 GAA and .925 save percentage in that stretch. Merilainen also recorded three shutouts during his stay with the Senators, including one in a 6-0 win over the Minnesota Wild in the final game he played last season.
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THE LAST WORDS
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The bottom line is the Senators have to shift to a higher gear this season.
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“The standard of, once you get in the playoffs, we want to get back there every year,” Chabot said. “We all went through the process of being on that stage and playing there for the first time, and we all went home thinking back on how the playoffs went.
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“That’s just going to help us for coming into this year. It’s more experience for everybody. It’s it’s a learning curve for everybody, we just want to keep doing the same thing we did last year put ourselves in the same position of being in the playoffs and, once we get there, I mean we went through it once, so I feel like we’ll be off to a better start.”
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FULL TRAINING CAMP ROSTER
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Five (5) goaltenders, 2024-25 team(s): Leevi Merilainen (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa – NHL), Jackson Parsons (Kitchener – OHL), Hunter Shepard (Hershey – AHL, Washington – NHL), Mads Sogaard (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa – NHL), Linus Ullmark (Ottawa – NHL).
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Seventeen (17) defencemen, 2024-25 team(s): Matthew Andonovski (Kitchener – OHL), Thomas Chabot (Ottawa – NHL), Cameron Crotty (Iowa – AHL, Minnesota – NHL), Jorian Donovan (Belleville – AHL), Gabriel Eliasson (Barrie – OHL), Tomas Hamara (Brantford – OHL), Nick Jensen (Ottawa – NHL), Tyler Kleven (Ottawa – NHL), Nikolas Matinpalo (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa – NHL), Jake Sanderson (Ottawa – NHL), Donovan Sebrango (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa – NHL), Jordan Spence (Los Angeles – NHL), Lassi Thomson (Malmö – SHL), Djibril Toure (Orlando – ECHL, Belleville – AHL), Eerik Wallenius (HPK U20 – SM-sarja, HPK – Liiga), Carter Yakemchuk (Calgary – WHL), Artem Zub (Ottawa – NHL).
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Thirty (30) forwards, 2024-25 team(s): Michael Amadio (Ottawa – NHL), Drake Batherson (Ottawa – NHL), Wyatt Bongiovanni (Belleville – AHL), Tyler Boucher (Belleville – AHL), Xavier Bourgault (Belleville – AHL), Jake Chiasson (Orlando – ECHL, Belleville AHL), Nick Cousins (Ottawa – NHL), Dylan Cozens (Buffalo – NHL, Ottawa – NHL), Philippe Daoust (Belleville – AHL), Lars Eller (Pittsburgh – NHL, Washington – NHL), Lucas Ellinas (Kitchener – OHL), Claude Giroux (Ottawa – NHL), Ridly Greig (Ottawa – NHL), Stephen Halliday (Belleville – AHL), Hayden Hodgson (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa – NHL), Landen Hookey (Owen Sound – OHL), Jan Jenik (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa NHL), Arthur Kaliyev (Ontario – AHL, New York Rangers – NHL), Olle Lycksell (Lehigh Valley – AHL, Philadelphia – NHL), Zack MacEwen (Belleville – AHL, Ottawa NHL), David Perron (Ottawa – NHL), Oskar Pettersson (Belleville – AHL), Garrett Pilon (Belleville – AHL), Shane Pinto (Ottawa – NHL), Jamieson Rees (Belleville – AHL), Tim Stützle (Ottawa – NHL), Brady Tkachuk (Ottawa – NHL), Blake Vanek (Stillwater High – USHS-MN, Chicago – USHL), Keean Washkurak (Belleville – AHL), Fabian Zetterlund (San Jose – NHL, Ottawa – NHL).
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