SENS SHOW PROMISE HEADING INTO OFF-SEASON
Club has assembled a solid nucleus, but goaltending remains an issue
The time has come to turn the page.
The Ottawa Senators wrapped up the season Friday against the Philadelphia Flyers, and after the 2021-22 campaign came to a close when the final buzzer sounded they were already looking ahead to training camp in September.
The Senators didn't make the kind of progress anybody expected this season, but looking at the big picture they made steps in the right direction. The year was derailed by a bout with COVID-19 in November and injuries to key pieces that hurt any chance to make the post-season.
The club went 1-10-1 in November and that pretty much did in the season.
The good news is the Senators will head into the off-season with a spring in their step. General manager Pierre Dorion, assistant Peter MacTavish, senior vice-president Pierre McGuire and coach D.J. Smith have seen progress with the young players, which has people buoyed about the future of this team.
If you look at the club's roster, the right players have had strong years.
Smith will meet with the media Saturday and Dorion will hold his end of season news conference Sunday at 10 a.m., but both have witnessed areas of improvement that bode well for the club being competitive next season.
We've seen captain Brady Tkachuk along with forwards Josh Norris, Drake Batherson, Tim Stuetzle, Alex Formenton and defenceman Thomas Chabot emerge as the key pieces for this franchise.
The torch has been passed, and now they have the chance to carry it to get this team to the next level with the right additions made by Dorion and the rest of the management in the off-season.
“This team is being carried by the core,” Smith said Friday before facing the Flyers. “In the past, in (Smith's) first year (J.G) Pageau carried it. Now, it's clear that they're the higher-end players for our team.
“Now, they've got to push themselves to go to the next gear and then the group around them gets better, and I think that's when you'll see this team take the next step.”
Moved to centre because of shoulder injuries to Shane Pinto and Colin White, Stuetzle has emerged as one of the club's best players. He had the puck more, he used his speed and Smith had him playing in all situations down the stretch, including killing penalties.
“He's had a great year,” Smith said of Stuetzle. “The sky is the limit for this kid. He'll just continue to get better.”
The priority is to find someone who can play with Stuetzle on the right side. That will come through a trade or free agency. The club has done a lot of ground work trying to identify candidates that could be available.
Winger Connor Brown played there most of the season, but the Senators would like to find an upgrade so he can be used in a third-line role.
Formenton has emerged as a breakthrough player for this team and had 18 goals heading into the season finale.
“He's had a really good year. There's going to be years where the puck goes in for him and years there's not, but I think he can be a steady 20-goal guy,” Smith said.
Norris, a restricted free agent, will be an important off-season signing while Tkachuk and Batherson are already locked up long term. Smith has liked the way that trio has matured, especially Tkachuk in his role.
“He's had a really good last six weeks of the season. I'd love to see him get his 30th (goal against the Flyers),” Smith said. ”On and off the ice he's been a great leader for us.”
On defence, the club is excited to see University of North Dakota prospect Jake Sanderson next season. He had hand surgery that didn't allow him to play this year, but the No. 5 overall selection in the 2020 NHL draft is widely regarded as a difference-maker that can move the puck.
The Senators went into Friday with a 9-5-1 record in April, and win or lose against the Flyers, they were poised for a strong finish to a frustrating season.
“It just shows if you play with structure and play the right way you have a chance to win every night,” Smith said. “That's the biggest thing we can take from this month. The wins and losses, they are what they are, but next season it's going to be a completely new season with new players added to the group.
“No one's going to remember this time of the year, but what they are hopefully going to take is that you have to play with structure, play inside of our game plan, take care of your own net defensively and you have a chance to win every night.”
MAKING CHANGES
While several of the key players are here already, the Senators won't return with the same group.
Unrestricted free agent forwards Chris Tierney, Tyler Ennis and Scott Sabourin likely won't be back. Defenceman Victor Mete, a restricted free agent, asked for a trade before the March deadline and wants a fresh start, which means he likely won't get a qualifying offer.
Tierney was a part of the deal that sent defenceman Erik Karlsson to the San Jose Sharks in September 2018, but the veteran centre has seen his role slip over the last two seasons. He's just not Smith's kind of player because Tierney doesn't like to get involved physically and it's time to move on.
Veteran defenceman Michael Del Zotto has one year left on his deal at $2 million and there's a good chance he'll be moved in the off-season. There was interest at the deadline and he can help a lot of teams.
The organization will have to make a decision on White.
He suited up for only 24 games because of shoulder surgery and was inconsistent. It's believed the Senators were close to moving him at the deadline, possibly to the Montreal Canadiens, so there's a chance that deal gets revisited if the sides can find a way to make it work.
If not, White, 25, who has struggled to stay healthy, could return in a fourth-line role and offer the club depth. The Senators could opt to exercise a compliance buyout for only one-third of the $13.375 million left on his deal, which would give the club $10.5 million in savings.
That may be something the Senators toy with and we've been led to believe White wouldn't mind moving elsewhere.
The spotlight will also be on defenceman Nikita Zaitsev in the summer. He has two years left at $4.5 million per season and if you look at the depth chart it's difficult to figure out where he might fit next season. He's struggled with consistency this season and that's why he's on the radar screen not to return. We fully expect centre Dylan Gambrell to be brought back for depth.
If the Senators are going to play meaningful games at this time of year next season, then the club has to have the depth in place to withstand injuries.
“If we do run into injuries, the guys that are filling in have to be able to do the job,” Smith said. “The biggest key is the depth to our core and we've got to stay healthy. There's no excuses, but at the end of the day in November we just weren't a very good hockey team.”
THE GOALTENDING QUESTION
Goaltender Matt Murray missed the final 25 games with a neck/head injury he suffered March 4 against the Arizona Coyotes.
Signed for two more years, the Senators need to figure out Murray's status in the off-season. He spent the last month skating with goalie coach Zac Bierk but never got himself to the point where he could return.
In two seasons with the Senators, Murray has made appearances in only 47 games. He has a 15-25-3 record in that stretch with a 3.23 goals-against average and an .899 save percentage.
He cleared waivers in late November, spent a month with the club's AHL affiliate in Belleville, looked like he was on the road to recovery when he came back and then had his season ended by the injury.
A two-time Stanley Cup champion, the 27-year-old Murray will have to earn his job if he's back next season. Forsberg has been the club's best and most consistent netminder while Filip Gustavsson has had a strong finish and is signed to a one-way deal next year.
It's doubtful the club will buy Murray out and it would be nearly impossible to trade him, so if he's back then he has to battle his way into the net. In the past, he's come into camp regarded as the No. 1, but that won't be the case next season.
Murray hasn't put himself in a position where he's handed anything.
Forsberg made the start in the club's final game and you wonder where the club would have been without him. He will head into camp as the No. 1 goaltender and it's going to be his job to lose.
The 29-year-old Forsberg, who signed a three-year extension at the March deadline, went into the final game with a 21-17-4 record with a .916 save percentage and a 2.84 goals-against average.
“He's been our best goalie,” Smith said. “He's over .500 and our team seems to play harder in front of him. He's been a real bright spot and he's given us a guy (they can rely on).
“Can he do this full time as the No. 1 guy next year? Everything's pointing to me that he probably can, but he's going to have to prove it. He's a guy that continues to prove it every day and he'll get that chance.”
Better days ahead? We'll see what happens in the off-season.