It’s becoming an annual tradition for the Ottawa Senators.
While playoff-bound teams are gearing up for a run at the Stanley Cup this Spring, the Senators are positioning themselves for a run of a different sort.
As they have in years past with guys like Bobby Butler, Jesse Winchester, Stephane Da Costa and most recently Matt O’Connor, the Management team is again looking to the list of upcoming NCAA free agents for a little boost to their prospect depth.
It makes sense for Ottawa.
After the disastrous season in Binghamton and the recent promotion of a few of the team’s younger players including Matt Puempel, Ryan Dzingel and Nick Paul, the organization is in need of an influx of young talent.
And while NCAA guys signed as free agents rarely turn out to be stars, it’s sort of equal to found money if it works out. Almost zero risk and the possibility of some reward down the line.
In particular, the Club seems to be looking closely at North Dakota the last little while. It was reported previously that the Senators had interest in Drake Caggiula and from what I’ve heard, they’ve been watching him pretty closely.
He’s a talented 21 year old forward who’s put up 39 points in 31 games this season and has become a bit of a YouTube sensation this year scoring a couple ridiculous highlight reel goals for the North Dakota Fighting Hawks.
Of this year’s NCAA free agent class, Caggiula is probably going to be the most highly sought-after.
Troy Stetcher, a 21 year old defenceman with 25 points in 35 games, is also a free agent and may be of interest to the Senators.
Ottawa won’t be alone in their pursuit though. A handful of teams apparently have interest in Caggiula and Stetcher will have a list of suitors lined up too. So no guarantees with either of these guys. And at the same time, it’s possible the Senators have some others guys in mind too.
What Ottawa may be in a position to offer though is NHL games for an NCAA free agent down the stretch and maybe even a chance at a roster spot next season. That possibility is always pretty enticing for a guy just coming out of school. For the top teams, the NCAA season can go as late as April 9th so it may be some time before we hear where these kids are headed. But what we do know is the Ottawa Senators will be in the mix.
Something to keep an eye on in the next couple weeks.
Game Day post coming in a little bit.
