GRIT FOR THE FORWARD GROUP
Senators ‘ecstatic’ to land Burrows
Talk finally turned to action for Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion on Monday.
Trying to help get the Senators to the post-season, Dorion made a big deal by acquiring winger Alex Burrows from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Swedish forward prospect Jonathan Dahlen.
Dorion, who has been working the phones in advance of the National Hockey League trade deadline Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET, wanted to obtain some grit for the club’s top group of forwards, and Burrows certainly fits the bill.
Burrows had to waive the “no move” clause in his contract for the deal to be completed. He is expected to sign a two-year extension worth $2.5 million per season Tuesday.
“We’re elated,” Dorion said Monday night. “The best sign for me is when I have five key veterans in our locker-room come up and I think one wanted to hug me and the other (one) shook my hand and thought this was a great move for our organization.
“Getting someone of Alex’s character is something we couldn’t turn (away from). Our players have done exactly what we’ve asked of them. They’ve played hard, they’ve played a system and we just felt it was time to add another piece. In Alex Burrows, we’re ecstatic to have that piece.”
Dorion said Burrows wanted to come to the Senators, and that made a difference.
“He refused trades, to the best of my knowledge, in our division. For him come to Ottawa shows he has faith in our team. I think he just didn’t want to be a rental for a few months and that’s what we’ve talked to him about,” Dorion said.
“We want Alex to be part of this organization. He has only been part of one organization so far in his career. For us to bring a character guy like that, I’m happy if we can have a guy like that around guys like Colin White, Thomas Chabot and Logan Brown. When you put all the intangibles together, to me it was a no-brainer to do this deal.”
Burrows, who has spent his entire NHL career with the Canucks, told a Montreal radio station the decision to accept the trade was difficult. However, he had been scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, so this will give him an opportunity to know where he’ll spend the next two seasons.
“I was emotional when I finished practice and I saw the message from my agent who said that the (trade) was made,” Burrows told 91.9 Sports in Montreal. “But at the same time, I’m excited to join a good organization.”
The Senators may not be done, either.
There’s a lot of talk the club has been shopping winger Curtis Lazar for a first-round pick. It’s believed at least one other team has offered Dorion a second-round pick for Lazar, but he’d like to get more if he’s going to move the 22-year-old.
Dorion did say he was willing to do more if the opportunities presented themselves.
“I’m always open for business,” Dorion said. “That win in Florida and New Jersey told me a lot about our team. … If we have to add another piece or two, we’ll look at it. We felt this was something we needed to get done.”
Burrows played for Senators coach Guy Boucher with Canada’s team in the 2012 world championship and for associate coach Marc Crawford with the Canucks.
Giving up Dahlen was difficult, but the Senators didn’t want to touch their current roster and they wanted to add without subtracting.
Dahlen has 41 points in Timra-2 Sweden this season. The Senators drafted him in the second round, 42nd overall, last June.
“Jonathan is a very skilled player with natural goal-scoring instincts,” Canucks GM Jim Benning said. “He’s had a terrific season playing in Sweden and was a big part of Sweden’s offence at the world juniors.
“His offensive upside combined with his willingness to go to difficult areas of the ice will make him a valuable player for our organization.”
Dorion said it “hurt” to give up Dahlen.
“You know Vancouver is getting a good player, but, at the same time, we’re getting a player (like) Alex Burrows without giving up something (off the roster). I have four or five guys that we’ll never trade and (Dahlen) wasn’t one of them, but we’ve got a lot of prospects,” Dorion said.
And, no, Burrows doesn’t have the mumps, which have been a problem for the Canucks recently.
“If you want to go hug him, you’re more than welcome to,” Dorion said with a smile.
He refused trades, to the best of my knowledge, in our division. For him come to Ottawa shows he has faith in our team.