It’s just one game into the preseason schedule, but the Ottawa Senators defence has excellent internal competition. And what better way to end it, than the 2024 Senators first-round pick, seventh overall Carter Yakemchuk? Yakemchuk went end-to-end with a tired Auston Matthews on the ice, and tip-toed Jake McCabe at the blueline, to walk in and beat Matt Murray on the backhand along the ice. The 18-year-old is definitely one of the main figures to discuss, but there are others as well.
Welcome to the NHL, Carter Yakemchuk! 👀 @SensProspects pic.twitter.com/MVROO8ArX7
— Locked On Senators (@SensCentral) September 23, 2024
The Hot Topic and the Ottawa Senators 2024-25 Preseason Defence
A lot of your offensive attack, especially when you are playing a stacked offensive lineup like the Toronto Maple Leafs threw out there tonight, is going to need to start with your defence. It helped the Sens jump out to a 15-1 shot advantage after the first period. It seemed the Senators defence that played tonight was poised and all were making a case to make the team. Just 18 seconds after the Leafs made it 4-3, Donovan Sebrango scored a beautiful wrister to tie it at four. Another player, this time a forward fighting for a roster spot, Jan Jenik collected his fourth point of the game on that goal as well. Sebrango’s confidence seemed to grow as the game wore on, as he was out there with less than three minutes to go defending the lead.
The Star of the Show Tonight and Carter Yakemchuk
As the clock continued to tick down tonight, then Yakemchuk found himself out there with Thomas Chabot, against the Leafs best 6-on-5 alignment. Chabot was out there a lot with Yakemchuk tonight, proving to be a great mentor for the soon-to-be 19-year-old. Yakemchuk showed excellent poise out there, was confident enough to be making short passes, and was solid along the boards. All very great traits to carry with you for a young defenceman. It’s only one game, but he seems to have immediately sparked a debate. A debate of whether he can stick in Ottawa as a 19-year-old.
Alternatively, will he be sent back to his junior team, the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen, for another year of development? He is, at the very least, making a case for his nine-game, regular season tryout. That is the tryout before his first year of his entry-level contract kicks in, before being sent back to junior. This is definitely a big developing story to watch through the exhibition schedule.
The Front-Runner to Stick is Tyler Kleven
The next defenceman to dive into is Tyler Kleven. It seems that Kleven has the inside track at a third-pair position. Kleven has a bomb of a slapshot. Unfortunately, as he did late in an early first-period power play, he misses too often, twice in that instance in fact. Overall, he seemed a bit slow on pucks, and Leaf stars like Mitch Marner or William Nylander were able to make plays on him during battles for the puck, by simply moving their feet.
However, Kleven did show a calmness in his own zone and never seemed to panic, even if he was getting out hustled to pucks. Then, when the play shifted to the front of the net, he did an excellent job of staying disciplined but physical. Those are the type of aspects to his game that shows he is NHL-ready. His tentative play could be as easy to fix as having a smooth skating defence partner on the third pairing for Ottawa. Calen Addison, someone currently on a professional tryout is a possibility in that role. Right now it is earmarked for Jacob Bernard-Docker, with Travis Hamonic there for veteran support. Needless to say, there is plenty of competition within the organization.
Main Photo Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports
