Sens Writer: Senators’ Roster Facelift: Next Steps

Good overall assessment. Only part I don't quite agree with you on is the underspending on the 3rd pairing. The odd man out is Hamonic but JBD may be easier to move. At worst, they may have to spend an extra 1M on a decent replacement for Hamonic but finding one at 1M is not a far stretch either. They may have to wait for what's available as teams finalize their roster just before the season begins.

Nice write up.
Nothing really in there to disagree with or take issue with. (refreshing I'm sure as the internet just loves to disagree for the sake of disagreeing)

Despite the moves he has made, which to me, seem more stabilizing than sizzling.....the biggest factor is coaching/structure/team buyin. None, and I mean NONE of these adds mean squat if Green Yeo and Alfie can't get them all pulling the rope in the same direction night-in and night-out. If Ullmark is facing 5 or 6 2-on-ones a period....it won't matter.

Good overall assessment. Only part I don't quite agree with you on is the underspending on the 3rd pairing. The odd man out is Hamonic but JBD may be easier to move. At worst, they may have to spend an extra 1M on a decent replacement for Hamonic but finding one at 1M is not a far stretch either. They may have to wait for what's available as teams finalize their roster just before the season begins.
- SENSible_Fan

I'm not convinced that Hamonic is the odd man out of anything. Were that the case, they absolutely should have bought him out because it would add both roster flexibility and $0.7M of much-needed cap space. And it's not like they haven't been very direct about moving out players they no longer wanted around like Chychrun, Korpisalo, Joseph, Kelly, Brannstrom, Kubalik, etc. But there wasn't even a suggestion they might consider a Hamonic buyout, plus they've specifically added 3 players over the age of 30 in order to expand their veteran presence. So it's not too hard to envision them being fine with Hamonic playing one more year, especially if they want to have a veteran RHD partner in place to support Kleven.

Soogard extended to a two year deal. The second year is a one way contract, so it sounds like they'll expect him to be the backup by that season, ideally behind Ullmark?

No next steps unless there is a deal to be had for a forward making less than $2million that helps the team and involves MacEwen's contract? Same thing for a D if it involved JBD or Hamonic's contract?

Roster is what it is. We have 11 guys signed at forward, including MacEwen. We have 6 D if you include Kleven. We bring up one guy from B-Sens and suddenly we have only $1.6 million in cap space. Bring up a second guy and drop down MacEwen to AHL and we still only have that amount.

Having said that....Kaileyev in LA? MacEwen and a third?

And what is going on with Boris K. Resigning?

Soogard extended to a two year deal. The second year is a one way contract, so it sounds like they'll expect him to be the backup by that season, ideally behind Ullmark?
- david22

That would seem to be the ideal state - or else backing-up whoever the #1G would be if Ullmark can't be extended. Given the history Forsberg has of injuries, there's quite a good chance Sogaard could see 10G-15G this year. That also works well in terms of transitioning to having Merilainen in the #1G role in Belleville by the start of next season. Another prospect in goal that's kind of flying under the radar is Kevin Reidler (5th round pick, 2022) - a huge 6'6/200 Swede who last year wound up playing a back-up role on the Swedish WJC team, and putting up a 27-5-2 record for Dubuque in the USHL. He's headed to the NCAA next year at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, so it will be interesting to monitor his development.

TRANSACTION: We have acquired forwards Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Roby Jarventie and the #Sens 2025 4th round draft pick.

Uhm...maybe the front office wasn't so high on Jarventie as we all thought? And what's with the draft pick?

From TSN .....

The Ottawa Senators have acquired forwards Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Roby Jarventie and a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.


This is just some AHL moves in my opinion. I doubt anyone sees any time in Ottawa and it gets an oft injured Jarventie to another location for a new start. Looks like Ottawa doing a whole sale cleanout of it minor league system and ensuring they have enogh guys for Belleville and their ECHL franchise.


Not sure why Ottawa does this trade. And we have to add a 4rth round pick? Especially when it appears Edmonton is getting the best player in the deal ? WTF?

No next steps unless there is a deal to be had for a forward making less than $2million that helps the team and involves MacEwen's contract? Same thing for a D if it involved JBD or Hamonic's contract?

Roster is what it is. We have 11 guys signed at forward, including MacEwen. We have 6 D if you include Kleven. We bring up one guy from B-Sens and suddenly we have only $1.6 million in cap space. Bring up a second guy and drop down MacEwen to AHL and we still only have that amount.

Having said that....Kaileyev in LA? MacEwen and a third?

And what is going on with Boris K. Resigning?
- GrimmdaGoalie

You can bury up to ~$1.1M/player in the AHL without cap penalty, so there's no reason to worry excessively about MacEwan's contract. Hamonic has a NMC, so there's not much they can do there. Bernard-Docker might have a bit of trade value, but I really don't think a guy like Kaliyev is what they're looking for. They don't have a natural C in the Bottom-6 outside of Greig, and he's still on his ELC. It's possible they could put Amadio at #4C, but $2.6M is an awful lot for someone playing such a relatively minor role, plus he's not exactly an established face-off man.

As for Boris Katchouk, they didn't give him a QO so he's now a UFA. I thought he actually looked half-decent as a depth forward, but they obviously had a very different vision of the 3rd/4th lines for next season.

I'm not sure what Sogaard's future in Ottawa will look like. But I am interested in the progression of Merilainen and Reidler over the next few years.

Curious as to what Ottawa does with Mandolese who is still an unsigned RFA. I don't think he will be playing in Belleville this year unless there are injuries (Sogaard and Merilainen). I think Mandolese will be playing in the ECHL with The Allen Americans (Ottawa's ECHL affiliated franchise, out of Texas). Also playing for Allen or Belleville will probably be the goalie, Michael Simpson, signed from the London Knights ...... probably a filler goalie as needed when injuries occur.


Also, Ottawa's cap remaining is $1.9 million according to Puckpedia and assumes that Klevin is now on the main roster. So that means 7 d-men ..... with Klevin/JBD/Hamonic combo forming the bottom 2 pairing.

This doesn't leave much more space for any additions. Maybe 1 more at league minimum (forward ...... I still would like to see the cost of adding Nick Cousens and sending MacEwen to Belleville).

I still like this .... and let's build up our Swedish contingent to make Ullmark feel more at home.

Just read that apparently the Utah team may be looking to trade Victor Soderstrom, a right d-man ...... at 6 feet tall and almost 200lbs.
An uber competitive two-way defenceman who thinks the game at the highest level, A gifted skater, his ability to traverse all three zones is best described as smooth and effortless. He never looks disinterested and it's always apparent just how badly he wants to win. His vision and awareness is great, allowing him to play a responsible yet dynamic brand of hockey. He's a dangerous puck-carrier with a great shot. Defensively, he makes good decisions quickly and consistently, never looking out of place when pitted up against the other team's top players. He pressures the opposition and limits options, never getting in the way of his goalie. (Curtis Joe, EP 2019)

Looks like Soderstrom is being passed on the depth charts in Utah. Only 53 NHL games over 4 seasons. Only 23 years old.

To me this shouts of trade to give guys a new start somewhere else.

How about Ottawa trades Jacob Bernard-Docker to Utah for Victor Soderstrom, straight up. Soderstrom is an RFA right now so would need to be re-signed ..... but I figure a new start, and $775,000 to $825,000 for 2 years would get the job done.

TRANSACTION: We have acquired forwards Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Roby Jarventie and the #Sens 2025 4th round draft pick.

Uhm...maybe the front office wasn't so high on Jarventie as we all thought? And what's with the draft pick?
- GrimmdaGoalie

They've taken a very assertive perspective in terms of the realistic NHL chances of quite a few players. I've referred before to the notion of a 2nd-line or bust player, and players like Sokolov/Jarventie are prime examples. They don't have first-line upside, and lack the two-way game to handle a 3rd/4th line assignment. Factor in major concerns around injuries and waiver-eligibility, and you have some of the possible motivations for this trade.

In terms of the return, Bourgault was a former 1st round pick in 2021, and has under-performed so far in the AHL, so they may be trying to "buy-low". Regardless, he's a natural C which is not a position of strength in their prospect system, and is a high-value NHL position. Chiasson is more of a depth forward, but seems to play the style of game that Staios wants to see in the bottom-6. This move will also give a young winger like Oskar Pettersson a chance to prove he has a projectable NHL-game.

I think Hamonic stays the full season. This guy is really well liked by his team mates and coaches. It is important that your 6th and 7th Dmen be good team players. Guys who ride the bench can be incredibly disruptive for the entire team. Hamonic has demonstrated that he can play protected minutes and he will bring along a young guy playing at #5.

New management appears to value a veteran presence. Hamonic stays.

I still like this .... and let's build up our Swedish contingent to make Ullmark feel more at home.

Just read that apparently the Utah team may be looking to trade Victor Soderstrom, a right d-man ...... at 6 feet tall and almost 200lbs.
An uber competitive two-way defenceman who thinks the game at the highest level, A gifted skater, his ability to traverse all three zones is best described as smooth and effortless. He never looks disinterested and it's always apparent just how badly he wants to win. His vision and awareness is great, allowing him to play a responsible yet dynamic brand of hockey. He's a dangerous puck-carrier with a great shot. Defensively, he makes good decisions quickly and consistently, never looking out of place when pitted up against the other team's top players. He pressures the opposition and limits options, never getting in the way of his goalie. (Curtis Joe, EP 2019)

Looks like Soderstrom is being passed on the depth charts in Utah. Only 53 NHL games over 4 seasons. Only 23 years old.

To me this shouts of trade to give guys a new start somewhere else.

How about Ottawa trades Jacob Bernard-Docker to Utah for Victor Soderstrom, straight up. Soderstrom is an RFA right now so would need to be re-signed ..... but I figure a new start, and $775,000 to $825,000 for 2 years would get the job done.
- OttawaB

I'm okay with this deal so long as the Sens:
- think Soderstrom is better than JBD
- can sign Soderstrom to a contract $1million or less
- think JBD isn't in the long term plan for the Sens

What is with all of these meaningless draft picks included in trades ..... I will call them Dorion Draft Picks.

Ottawa trade the RFA rights of Kevin Mandolese and a 2026 7th round draft pick to Colorado for a 2026 6th round draft pick.
I could care less about the trade as Mandolese would never play for the Sens and keeps falling down the depth charts of the team .... So why not just trade Mandolese and get a 6th ot 7th round pick?
Goalies depth chart in order:
Ullmark, Forsberg, Sogaard, Merilainen, .... not signed, reserve list are Reidler, Nikitin, Simpson

St. Louis Blues
Bouwmeester - Cup win 17 years after being drafted
Perron - Cup win 12 years after being drafted
Pietrangelo - Cup win 10 years after being drafted
Schenn - Cup win 10 years after being drafted
O'Reilly - Cup win 10 years after being drafted
Tarasenko - Cup win 9 years after being drafted
Schwartz - Cup win 9 years after being drafted
Binnington - Cup win 8 years after being drafted
Parayko - Cup win 7 years after being drafted

Tampa Bay Lighting
McDonagh - Cup wins 13 & 14 years after being drafted
Stamkos - Cup wins 12 & 13 years after being drafted
Hedman - Cup wins 11 & 12 years after being drafted
Kucherov - Cup wins 9 & 10 years after being drafted
Vasilevskiy - Cup wins 8 & 9 years after being drafted
Point - Cup wins 6 & 7 years after being drafted
Sergachev - Cup wins 4 & 5 years after being drafted

Florida Panthers
Barkov - 11 years after drafted cup finals, 12 for cup win
Verhaeghe - 10 years after drafted cup finals, 11 for cup win
Ekblad - 9 years after drafted cup finals, 10 for cup win
Reinhart - 9 years after drafted cup finals, 10 for cup win
Bennett - 9 years after drafted cup finals, 10 for cup win
Montour - 9 years after drafted cup finals, 10 for cup win
Tkachuk - 7 years after drafted cup finals, 8 for cup win

Ottawa's most likely / best time to win a cup:

2028 - B.Tkachuk (10) Stutzle (8) Sanderson (8) Batherson (11)
2029 - B.Tkachuk (11) Stutzle (9) Sanderson (8) Batherson (12)
2030 - B.Tkachuk (12) Stutzle (10) Sanderson (10) Batherson (13)

Josh Norris - 16 goals

Goal 1 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 2 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 3 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 4 - Batherson - on ice
Goal 5 - No Batherson
Goal 6 - No Batherson
Goal 7 - No Batherson
Goal 8 - No Batherson
Goal 9 - Batherson - on ice
Goal 10 - Batherson - on ice
Goal 11 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 12 - No Batherson
Goal 13 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 14 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 15 - Batherson Primary A
Goal 16 - Batherson - on ice

Think you keep 19 with 9

My starting lines

Tkachuk - Stutzle - Giroux
Perron - Norris - Batherson
Grieg - Pinto - Amadio
Crookshank - Gregor - MacEwen

Sanderson - Zub
Chabot - Jensen
Kleven - Bernard Docker

Ullmark

What is with all of these meaningless draft picks included in trades ..... I will call them Dorion Draft Picks.

Ottawa trade the RFA rights of Kevin Mandolese and a 2026 7th round draft pick to Colorado for a 2026 6th round draft pick.
I could care less about the trade as Mandolese would never play for the Sens and keeps falling down the depth charts of the team .... So why not just trade Mandolese and get a 6th ot 7th round pick?
Goalies depth chart in order:
Ullmark, Forsberg, Sogaard, Merilainen, .... not signed, reserve list are Reidler, Nikitin, Simpson
- OttawaB

Teams have AHL rosters that need to be stocked. And, they have affiliations with teams in other leagues (ECHL). Often these kind of trades are smoothing out the needs of minor league rosters and this could be more about Colorado needing to do something.

What is with all of these meaningless draft picks included in trades ..... I will call them Dorion Draft Picks.

Ottawa trade the RFA rights of Kevin Mandolese and a 2026 7th round draft pick to Colorado for a 2026 6th round draft pick.
I could care less about the trade as Mandolese would never play for the Sens and keeps falling down the depth charts of the team .... So why not just trade Mandolese and get a 6th ot 7th round pick?
Goalies depth chart in order:
Ullmark, Forsberg, Sogaard, Merilainen, .... not signed, reserve list are Reidler, Nikitin, Simpson
- OttawaB

As I see it, Staios has been using draft capital in order to methodically un-Dorion this team. Not the worst of objectives, but I'd be inclined to agree Staios has pushed more draft assets out than necessary to move contracts out.

Long run, all that matters is the on ice product. If the team flubs now it'll be indicative of deeper and more serious flaws requiring action.

I'm okay with this deal so long as the Sens:
- think Soderstrom is better than JBD
- can sign Soderstrom to a contract $1million or less
- think JBD isn't in the long term plan for the Sens
- GrimmdaGoalie

Smallish Swedish offensively inclined high draft pick blue liner than hasn't been able to meaningfully crack the lineup since his draft... sounds very familiar. I'd certainly take Soderstrom over Hamonic, but Dorion handing out NMCs like candy after Eugene's death makes Ham an albatross that can't be moved or waived, so IMO Soderstrom ends up relegated to languish in the minors much like the guy drafted eight spots back from him - Lassi Thomson.

As I see it, Staios has been using draft capital in order to methodically un-Dorion this team. Not the worst of objectives, but I'd be inclined to agree Staios has pushed more draft assets out than necessary to move contracts out.

Long run, all that matters is the on ice product. If the team flubs now it'll be indicative of deeper and more serious flaws requiring action.
- Bartacus

Exactly

Sens cannot let assets be this mismanaged. Doiron's moves could've worked - DeBrincat one was stupid....9M QO

To Arizona: Tyler Boucher
To Ottawa: Victor Soderstrom

Get er done

To Arizona: Tyler Boucher
To Ottawa: Victor Soderstrom

Get er done
- AlfieisKing

At this point, I'd like to see what the new regime can do in developing a "healthy" Tyler Boucher (if that player exists). There is still potential if he can remain healthy. I would give it another season. At this point, if Boucher doesn't work out then its no big deal. Just another wasted pick in the Covid year by Dorion.

Besides, we couldn't even trade Brannstrom (DNQ) or Joseph (needed a sweetener). What makes you think we could get anything for Boucher at this point?

Exactly

Sens cannot let assets be this mismanaged. Doiron's moves could've worked - DeBrincat one was stupid....9M QO
- AlfieisKing

What Dorion utterly failed to recognize was the extent to which they lost virtually all of their two-way forward support in the 2021/22 season. Go back and look at that roster as the team was just starting to realize its potential, and you'll see guys like Brown, Paul, Formenton, Sanford, and Tierney. Not only did they provide solid two-way support, but they also had a combined 54G-124Pts. Who were they replaced by? Downgraded replacements like Joseph, Kelly, Brassard, Motte, and Gambrell, who combined for just 24G-64Pts and had nowhere near the defensive presence. It was a whole dimension of the team's forward structure that Dorion just ignored in favour of chasing shiny toys like DeBrincat... whose 2022/23 production didn't even fully account for the net loss of scoring from the ineffective replacement of that group of 5 two-way forwards.

This is why so much of Staios' time has been spent bolstering their two-way depth, and upgrading the Bottom-6F with players like Perron, Amadio, and Gregor - in addition to signing the likes of Highmore, Rees, and Gaudette to their AHL ranks, and trading Sokolov/Jarventie for less one-dimensional prospects like Jenik/Bourgault. Factor in their trio of drafted forwards with size/200ft games in Moore, Ellinas, and Montgomery, and it becomes clear that Staios has effectively now brought in a whole multi-level system of two-way forward support.