If you are wondering why the Ottawa Senators organization development is progressing, and will they improve from last year, there are lots of reasons. As a matter of fact, you would not be out of line to hypothesize the Senators will be all-around better. That is to say, their forwards, their defence, and their goaltending will all see an improvement year-over-year. Heck, even the front office has improved immensely. Of course, no fault to the Melnyk daughters, but they probably did not want to be NHL owners. Kudos to them in fact, for their presence in and around the team last year. It was very much appreciated by the players, fans, and organization alike. Also, they did retain 10% ownership stakes in the club, which is positive, and they deserve to reap the rewards that go with it.
The Ottawa Senators Development and Improvements on Offence
Before we talk about the front-office development and improvements for the Senators, let’s start up front. For the most part, it is a young group, so one year more of development, leadership, and experience will make the collective group better. Budding stars Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk will continue to elevate their star power. Down the road, centre Shane Pinto will benefit immensely from the work he put in on the second line last year. Playing with the likes of Alex DeBrincat and Drake Batherson, despite the line’s woeful shooting percentage, will pay off in spades for Pinto. In addition, a prospect like Ridly Greig will look to grow upon last year. Based on his sample of work from the preseason, he appears ready to handle NHL matchups up and down throughout the lineup. Finally, having both Vladimir Tarasenko and Dominik Kubalik, to essentially replace DeBrincat improves the lineup.
If You Want to Get Better, Defence is a Good Idea to Make Better
Well after offence, comes defence. The Ottawa Senators defence will see growth and development. First of all, having a top-pair guy like Jakob Chychrun for a full season will pay dividends. He is a defenceman with career-highs of 41 points, 23:23 TOI, and a PS = 7.4, a fantastic add with the pieces already in place. Additionally, the sophomore Jake Sanderson has a year under his belt. Last year he scored 32 points in 21:55 TOI and played both specialty teams. We see no reason why he won’t improve on a stellar rookie campaign. Thomas Chabot will feel less of a load with the supporting cast and allow him to excel. Finally, even the bottom pair mixes reliability with up-and-comers pushing for jobs. Tyler Kleven has looked very strong this preseason. Jacob Bernard-Docker, and the surprise of blueline so far, Max Guenette, will be pushing hard for jobs.
It All Starts in Net
Now for the last line of the defence, the goalkeepers. The Senators are well equipped in between the pipes, with Joonas Korpisalo, Anton Forsberg, and two prospects, Mads Sogaard and Leevi Merilainen. It is exciting to imagine the possibilities of whether Korpisalo and Forsberg can relive the magic that won them the 2016 Calder Cup championship. Korpisalo is coming off a season with a .914 SV% in 39 games played, and a career-best GSAA of 11.5. Meanwhile, Forsberg is coming off knee injuries but is looking ready. In his three years with Ottawa, he has posted a .911 SV% along with three shutouts. The Sens have confidence in the tandem to split games between them to get the club through the regular season. If either falter, both Sogaard and Merilainen will be breathing hard down their necks. They are highly-touted goaltender prospects and would love a chance to prove themselves.
The Top Brass
One final point where the Ottawa Senators as an organization have seen development and maturity is the front office. First and foremost, is the new owner, Michael Andlauer. Besides deep pockets, and, as shown, a willingness to spend to the cap, he has a plethora of experience. He owns the Brantford Bulldogs of the OHL, and relinquished his previously owned minority ownership stakes in the Montreal Canadiens to purchase the Sens. Next, he decided to hire Sean Tierney to head up the analytics department for the club. Finally, he added a President of Hockey Operations, with professional acumen, and previous working relationship factor in Steve Staios. Andlauer even gave Dorion the initial stamp of approval. It just seems all facets of the club and the organization as a whole have bettered itself.
Given all these upgrades for the Senators, it seems they will increase their points of 86 from a year ago. It will be a battle to see if they can improve enough to squeak into the playoffs, but we can anticipate a battle. If you go by all the team’s development and improvements, it is hard to imagine them not getting over the hump. A hot start in October, to follow up their Atlantic division-leading 6-2 record, would do wonders.
Main photo: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
