Top Sens prospects continue to shine

TAMPA, FLA. After a bumpy start, things are starting to fall in place quite nicely for the red-hot Belleville Senators, who have rapidly climbed the American Hockey League standings.

The best news for the Ottawa Senators organization is that the offensive charge is being led by a crew of high-profile prospects that includes 21-year-old Drake Batherson, 20-year-old Alex Formenton and Josh Norris and 22-yearold Rudolfs Balcers.

“A lot of the reason for the slow start was because we have a lot of young guys, and we’re one of the youngest teams in the league,” Belleville coach Troy Mann said. “We certainly have some high-end talent up front, but it takes time to build chemistry.”

Batherson, who played only two games with Ottawa to start the National Hockey League season before being assigned to Belleville, leads the AHL in scoring with 11 goals and 23 assists in 25 games.

Balcers, who injured a leg during Ottawa’s training camp, has been on a roll since being sent to the AHL, with six goals and 12 assists in a dozen games.

Norris, acquired along with Balcers in the Erik Karlsson trade in September 2018, has adapted quickly to pro hockey, registering 11 goals and 10 assists in 25 games.

Then there’s the speedy Formenton who, in Mann’s estimation, has been the biggest surprise of all.

“When he first started in October, he lacked some detail in his game. It’s typical for kids that come out of major junior at 19 years old to have some bad habits because they can dominate at that level,” Mann said. “Speed is his No. 1 asset, and that creates offence for him, but I didn’t expect so much offence so early.”

After going 10-3 in November, Belleville is off to a 3-1 start in December.

Naturally, all of the above might have some wondering why those young forwards remain in Belleville rather than joining the likes of Nick Paul and Logan Brown in the National Hockey League.

Senators general manager Pierre Dorion has said he doesn’t want to rush their development, preferring the longer term rebuilding process, and Mann agrees with that philosophy.

In the case of Batherson, who had some bright moments with Ottawa last season, it could certainly be argued that he could help the Senators’ offence immediately. The organization, however, has bigger plans for him. They’re pushing him to not cut corners defensively so, when he does return to Ottawa, it’s permanent.