FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-Rebuilds are funny. There are times when you’re watching a game, and it’s not quite clicking, and all you can see are the holes in the lineup. And then there are other nights, when all the key players are buzzing, that your imagination drifts to that third Stanley Cup celebration. It plays tricks with the mind. But no matter how you look at it, this Ottawa Senators team is going to be dangerous for years to come. In every game, one of this team’s young stars finds a way to do something special. And last night against the Dallas Stars, they all had a turn. When Brady Tkachuk, Thomas Chabot, Josh Norris, Tim Stützle, Drake Batherson, Zub and Filip Gustavsson are buzzing like they were last night, this team is somewhere between a handful and basically unbeatable.
-When Matt Murray comes back, which could be as early as next week, the Senators are going to have a difficult decision to make in the crease. The longer term plan is fine. Anton Forsberg’s contract is expiring at the end of the year and a spot will open up at the NHL level. But in the short-term, it really looks like Filip Gustavsson is intent on sticking around for as long as possible. DJ Smith acknowledged as much in his post-game remarks. When a goalie is playing as well as Filip Gustavsson did last night, it’s basically impossible to send him down. It’s a good problem to have though. Gustavsson was spectacular last night.
-It’s sort of hard to imagine but there was a time last year when the Thomas Chabot-Artem Zub pairing didn’t work. They didn’t try it for long but that duo looked kind of rough for a game and a bit. It’s hard to imagine because now they basically look perfect in every way. It certainly puts DJ Smith in a tough spot because on one hand, you want to manage their ice time, but on the other hand they just never make mistakes. A slight exaggeration perhaps but my word, have they ever looked good lately. The way they read off each other in both ends of the rink and especially at the offensive blueline, is a sight to behold. I’ve been looking at the numbers and I have considered all the potential risk factors and I think it’s time for DJ Smith to increase their ice time. To like, the whole game.
-Dylan Gambrell made his Sens debut last night and while he didn’t play a ton, he was pretty effective in limited minutes. He drew a penalty at five on five, had a couple good shifts on the penalty kill and won 78% of his faceoffs, including five outta six in his own end of the rink. There’s nothing particularly flashy about his game but at this stage, they mostly just need him to be defensively responsible player that can make the most of limited minutes. He did exactly that vs. the Stars.
-Oh and a few other things- First of all, Neville Gallimore is a national treasure. Watching him try to sneakily rid himself of that terrible Dallas Stars jersey may have been the most entertaining part of the game. Second of all, who do I call at the league’s head office to get Drake Batherson and Tim Stützle the assists they deserve on that first Josh Norris goal? Ridiculous score keeping. Third of all, Zach Sanford has had a pretty quiet start to his NHL career but that was a hell of a back check in the third period. Fourth of all, Sens moneyline is basically free money these days. Fifth of all, Zub.
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