OTTAWA — Here we go. Into a season like no other.
All summer, hockey fans in Ottawa have looked forward to October in a way they have not for many years. A new owner, Michael Andlauer, was welcomed in as part of an organizational culture shift, which, combined with the Ottawa Senators maturing young core of talent meant there would be playoff expectations. Finally.
Of course, that was before anyone expected the Shane Pinto contract situation to extend all through training camp and before all the recent trepidation over the health of No. 2 centre Josh Norris. Norris was unable to play a single pre-season game and is expected to miss the first few weeks of the regular season, at least.
Instead of all the pieces falling into place, we have early drama in Ottawa.
Come to think of it, is that really unexpected? Over the years, Sens fans have had their share.
Despite the absence of Norris and Pinto, the Senators were impressive in the pre-season, rolling out a 6-2 record in eight games. These were just exhibition games, of course, and the actual record means less than Ottawa’s style of play, which was an excellent audition for the real season. A strong team game with outstanding penalty killing.
2022-23 regular season record: 39-38-8, 86 points
2022-23 finish: 6th in Atlantic Division (6 points out of playoffs)
Roster additions: LW Vladimir Tarasenko, RW Dominik Kubalik, RW Zack MacEwen, G Joonas Korpisalo
Subtractions: RW Alex DeBrincat, C Derick Brassard, LW Austin Watson, C Dylan Gambrell, C Patrick Brown, RW Julien Gauthier, D Nick Holden, G Cam Talbot
Goaltender health
Fans in Ottawa have dared to get excited before about finding the answer to the departed stability of Craig Anderson.
When Matt Murray was acquired from Pittsburgh, folks hoped he had gotten past his health issues. Oy, was that a disaster.
Last year, veteran Cam Talbot came over from Minnesota and looked capable of providing a solid tandem with Anton Forsberg. But both Talbot and Forsberg had injury issues and battled inconsistency. Talbot was not brought back.
Enter Joonas Korpisalo, who had a strong season with Columbus and the L.A. Kings (after the trade deadline). One might think the Sens would turn cautious after the Murray burn (he remains on Ottawa’s books), but GM Pierre Dorion committed to Korpisalo, 29, giving him a five-year deal. It’s early, but the early indications are strong. Not just on Korpisalo but also on Forsberg, returning from MCL tears in both knees. If these two tenders can play to form and keep clear of injury, the Senators will have the type of goaltending a playoff contender must have.
Centre position
If we had been typing this two months ago, we would have said Ottawa’s strength down the middle was a plus.
On paper, a centre group of Tim Stützle, Josh Norris, Shane Pinto and Mark Kastelic pretty much checks all the boxes. A sensational top-line guy in Stützle, a double threat (pass or shoot) at 2C with Norris and an effective two-way centre on line three with Pinto, who scored 20 goals last season as a rookie. Add in Kastelic as a strong faceoff man with muscle and the Sens were in good shape.
Unfortunately, reality got in the way of theory. Norris hasn’t been able to test in pre-season a shoulder that has undergone two surgeries. The 24-year-old is expected to start the year on LTIR. Add in Pinto’s contract dispute and Ottawa is thin down the middle as the season opener approaches.
Bottom 6 effectiveness
The third- and fourth-line forwards for the Sens were already a bit of a work in progress, with real jobs available, especially on the wing. But given the crisis at centre, there is even more opportunity, as players move up into those second and third-line roles thought to be spoken for by Norris and Pinto.
Norris could be out for a while with shoulder issues. Pinto, meanwhile, could be signed imminently but will need a bit of time to practice with the club before seeing game action.
That means extra work for depth centres like Ridly Greig and Rourke Chartier. Where’s the depth scoring? Dominik Kubalik is a solid addition, a 20-goal player, but after that, the Sens will need a bounceback year from Mathieu Joseph and at least some production from the likes of Parker Kelly and Chartier.
Korpisalo and Forsberg stay healthy, the defence plays up to its potential and if the Senators can replace the 49 goals that went out the door in the persons of Alex DeBrincat, Derick Brassard and yes, that grinder Austin Watson, who scored nine goals with his knack for timely, unexpected offence.
The biggest improvement is on the back end, with the addition of Korpisalo and having Jakob Chychrun for a full season, hopefully.
Let’s put it this way, with Norris out and Pinto late to the party, Greig had better be a pleasant surprise as a regular in this lineup. At 21, Greig has just 20 games of NHL experience but is going to get a lot of opportunity this season anywhere from second-line centre to fourth-line centre, depending on how quickly the Senators can get their planned lineup back.
Forwards
Brady Tkachuk-Tim Stützle-Claude Giroux
Vladimir Tarasenko-Ridly Greig-Drake Batherson
Dominik Kubalik-Rourke Chartier-Mathieu Joseph
Parker Kelly-Mark Kastelic-Zack MacEwen
First recall - LW Jiri Smejkal
Defence
Thomas Chabot-Jakob Chychrun
Jake Sanderson-Artem Zub
Erik Brannstrom-Travis Hamonic
Goaltenders
Joonas Korpisalo
Anton Forsberg
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