CHABOT WHERE HE WANTS TO BE
Young blueliner never wavered in his desire to remain with Senators for the long term
Thomas Chabot sat in the hallway Friday afternoon, just outside the door to the dressing room he’s going to call home for the next nine years, and tried to put in perspective what’s been a whirlwind few days.
Signed to a massive eight-year, US$64-million contract extension that will pay him an average of $8 million starting next season, the 22-year-old Chabot couldn’t hide his excitement — and relief — at getting the deal done. It’s a contract that’s going to keep him in an Ottawa Senators uniform until the end of the 2027-28 campaign.
When the talks started between general manager Pierre Dorion and the all-star defenceman’s agents, Dominic DeBlois and Ian Pulver, in mid-July, the only thing Chabot told his representatives was he’d like to sign a long-term deal with Ottawa. He just hoped they could find a way to make it happen.
“Now you know you’re settled, it’s done, I’m in Ottawa for the next nine years and that’s what I wanted,” Chabot said after the Senators’ skate at Canadian Tire Centre. “I’m very excited for it.
“At the end of the day, this was the last year of my contract and now I don’t have to worry about it next summer, wondering what’s going to happen and if the deal is going to get done or whatever. It’s a relief. Now, all I have to focus on is playing the best I can for the next nine years. That’s something I wanted and I mentioned to my agents I wanted to stay here.”
Drafted by the Senators 18th overall in 2015, Chabot had no hesitation in signing a long-term deal to remain in Ottawa. He is convinced the team’s rebuilding effort is headed in the right direction under Dorion and there’s a commitment by owner Eugene Melnyk to get the Senators back to contender status by keeping the right pieces in place.
“I wanted to be here and I wanted to commit to being with the Senators,” he said. “That never changed. I wasn’t in every conversation, but we’re lucky it went very smooth between both sides — the team and my agents. That helps a lot, knowing with my agents everything was going smooth, and there was no fighting or anything.
“The team wanted me to be here and I wanted to be here, so we were on the same page.”
Chabot welcomes the opportunity to be one of the centrepieces of the rebuilding plan.
“Your dream is to play in the NHL, and I’ve achieved that dream by playing in this league, but then you’re having a chance to be on a team that wants to rebuild and wants me to be a big part of that rebuild,” Chabot said.
“Yes, we’re going to have some ups and downs and it won’t be easy through it all, but just the fact they want me to be a big piece of the puzzle to build a team and build some leadership ... it was a no-doubter for me for sure.”
Chabot has liked the direction Ottawa has taken and believes they’ve got the right group as the rebuild enters its next phase under new head coach D.J.
Smith. After the Senators signed centre Colin White to a six-year, $28.5-million deal last month, it paved the way for Chabot.
“There are some young guys coming up that are very talented and I don’t even think (where this team is headed) is a question,” Chabot said. “We’ve got plenty of talent, but now it’s going to come down to who’s going to do well enough or want it enough to make the team.
“Over the years, whether it’s this year, next year or four years, the new guys coming in are going to be a big part of it. To see (White) committed for a while and (me) committed for a while, it shows the younger guys that we really, truly want to be a part of it.”
Chabot has heard the predictions the Senators aren’t going to be very good this season and knows the expectation level is low, but he’s hopeful the club can take a step in the right direction.
“It’s normal. The last two seasons weren’t the greatest, we were at the bottom, and you understand where people are coming from but how many times in the NHL have you seen a new coach come in and things totally turn around?” he said.
“We have some talent, we have young guys, we have some guys that can skate and the way that D.J. wants us to play, it’s exactly what we have with our team. We want to be fast, we want to be in people’s faces and we’ve got some young guys with a lot of energy that can skate.
“As we get further, it’s going to be good to build something.”
The Senators opted not to go with a captain this season. They’ve turned to veterans Mark Borowiecki, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and newcomer Ron Hainsey to be alternates. Down the road, the torch will be passed to Chabot, White and Brady Tkachuk, but Dorion and Smith want them to learn from the older players.
“I don’t see a letter on your jersey meaning that you’re the only guy that can talk in the room,” Chabot said. “Everybody’s allowed to talk and everybody has their own opinions. (Leadership) is something I want to build for sure. Hainsey, Boro and Pager ... you can’t take away all the years of experience they have.”
It was a whirlwind 48 hours for Chabot. His camp agreed to the deal around midnight Wednesday, he went to the office and signed the contract in the morning before appearing at a noon news conference with Dorion.
Melnyk spoke with Chabot to let him know how happy he was to have him in the fold.
“He called me and it was very much appreciated,” Chabot said. “It was big for the organization but for him to pick up his phone to chat for five to 10 minutes to tell me he was happy to have me here, it shows that he cares and he wants the team to do well in the next couple of years.”
Chabot and his girlfriend, Marion Pandreau, had dinner with his agents to toast getting the contract in place but it was not an over-the-top celebration.
“It was hard to sleep knowing that the next morning you were going to sign the biggest contract in your career,” he said. “We celebrated a little bit, but I’m still in mid-camp so you can’t go to crazy about it. I spoke with my parents, my friends reached out and called me to congratulate me.” bgarrioch@postmedia.com
There was no fighting or anything ... the team wanted me to be here and I wanted to be here, so we were on the same page.