The Ottawa Senators play tomorrow.
I SAID- THE OTTAWA SENATORS PLAY TOMORROW.
Sure it might be a preseason game but tomorrow at 5:30 PM (weird), a collection of hockey players wearing the uniform of the Ottawa Senators will take on a collection of hockey players wearing the uniform of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
On the scale of meaningful hockey games, it’s probably a few steps ahead of an EA Sports simulation but damn it, we’ve gone five long months without Sens hockey so this will have to do.
And as we get set for the start of this year’s preseason, behold, a desperate attempt at Monday News and Notes.
We’re back, baby!
-Training Camp is in full swing and while game action has been limited to scrimmages, the Coaching Staff has already seen enough to make the first round of cuts. Yesterday, 11 players were sent packing including Kevin Mandolese, Mads Sogaard, Jonathan Gruden, Francois Beauchemin, Michael Brodzinski, Jack Dougherty, Adam Capannelli, Chris Clapperton, Maxim Trépanier, Conner McDonald and Nathan Todd. No big surprises in that bunch. There are 52 players left in camp including five goalies, 16 defencemen and 31 forwards.
-One player to keep a close eye on heading into the preseason schedule is Vitaly Abramov. By all accounts, he has been turning heads early in Training Camp and he’s already caught the eye of Head Coach DJ Smith.
There are so many young guys chasing down just a few forward spots so it’s going to be hard to stand out. Abramov has managed to do just that. The 21 year old Abramov was acquired in the Matt Duchene trade, appearing in one game with the Senators last year.
-It’s early but it certainly looks like the Senators have found a pretty special player in Lassi Thomson. Thomson was a standout during the team’s summer rookie camp and he has hit the ground running in Finland this year. Thomson is a smooth-skating defenceman that is comfortable with the puck on his stick. Oh and he has a rocket of a shot too. Chabot, Brannstrom, Thomson and Bernard-Docker. Sounds like a pretty, pretty good top four to me.
-Injuries are always a factor this time of year. And while it’s bad news for the injured, it opens up opportunities for others. Mikkel Boedker, who was on the roster bubble to begin with, has been injured throughout Training Camp and according to DJ Smith, is likely to miss at least another week with what the team is calling a hip flexor injury. Filip Chlapik, who scored a nice goal in scrimmage the other day, is also dealing with a minor injury. He is expected to miss at least one preseason game. Meanwhile, Christian Wolanin, who had a damn good chance at making this team out of Camp, is expected to miss four months.
-The waiting game on Thomas Chabot continues. Both Management and Chabot have confirmed that there have been productive talks towards a new long-term deal for Ottawa’s top defenceman but it’s not clear if they’ll be in a position to get something done before the season starts. Across the NHL, there have been some interesting comparable signings including the likes of Charlie McAvoy, Zach Werenski and Ivan Provorov although you could certainly make the argument that Chabot is in line for a bigger pay day than all three of those guys. What’s going to be really interesting is to see if the Senators can come up with the signing bonuses required to get a contract like this done.
-Eugene Melnyk has been unusually quiet the last little while. This is the time of year that he always seems to find his way in front of a microphone but we really haven’t heard anything from the Sens Owner in a while now. Well that was until this weekend when we learned that a casino in Connecticut is suing Melnyk for $900,000, saying he tried and failed to pay them with bank drafts. No comment from Melnyk on this story so far but Melnyk’s lawyer Sheldon Plener said he expects a “swift result”. Well that’s a relief. Would hate for it to drag on and become an off-ice embarrassment for the franchise 😐
