With the first two games of the regular season out of the way, so begins another endless stretch without Sens hockey. Although unlike the last 310 day odyssey, this one is far more manageable two days.
The Ottawa Senators came away with a split in their season opening back-to-back, which they have to be pretty happy with, all things considered. Friday’s effort was obviously much better than Saturday’s but in both games, there was a lot to like from the Sens perspective.
The key for DJ Smith’s group will be building on those positives this week.
Let’s start the week with a bit of news and a bit of notes.
-There was so much I had planned to do yesterday but instead I spent the whole day watching replays of Tim Stützle’s first goal in the National Hockey League. Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration but seriously, what a way to get your first. The speed, skill, hand-eye coordination and just…swagger required to pull off something like that as a 19-year old. Stunning. The replay below, which shows the entire shift leading up to the goal, is mesmerizing. The kid is all over the ice and you can tell Leafs defenders just lost track of him entirely. Expectations were sky-high for Stützle coming into this season and I’ll admit- I was a little bit worried he’d look overwhelmed at the NHL level to start. And while there were certainly times where he looked a bit nervous, his skills stand out in the same way they did at the World Juniors. As he gets more comfortable, he’s going to be incredibly dangerous.
-The play of Nick Paul may have been one of the most encouraging developments from the first weekend of the season. Paul is coming off a breakout year of sorts, where he finally established himself as an everyday NHL player. And now with a two-year/one-way deal in hand, it seems like Nick Paul is poised to take his game to a whole new level. He had a goal and an assist through the first two games and on both nights, was one of Ottawa’s most noticeable forwards in all three zones. A 4th round pick in the 2013 draft, Paul is serving as a good reminder that not all prospects develop the same way. In some cases, you need to be a little more patient. That patience with Nick Paul is paying off for the Senators in a big way.
-Really liked Matt Murray’s play through two games. Obviously his numbers don’t jump off the page (3.02 GAA, .905 sv%) but he just looked solid in there. Playing on back-to-back nights is never easy for a goalie but Murray seemed to get more comfortable as the second game rolled along. With no preseason, goalies around the league are expected to hit the ground running this year so it was encouraging to see Murray get off to a good start. With a condensed schedule, the Senators are going to need both Murray and Hogberg to play well but if the first weekend is any indication, DJ Smith is going to lean on Murray a lot this year. I’d go back to him tomorrow night, by the way. And then maybe give Hogberg the Thursday game.
-Lost in all the opening night excitement was an interesting comment from Darren Dreger. In the first intermission of Friday night’s game, Dreger dropped a pretty direct hint, saying that Pierre Dorion could have another deal up his sleeve at some point this season. Something along the lines of “I’m not sure Pierre Dorion is done” and “maybe he makes another splash via trade over the course of the year”. Dorion loves dealing so it’s a pretty safe bet but it did come across as a bit specific, as though Dreger believes Dorion is up to something specific.
-One thing to keep in mind as far as trades are concerned is it’s going to be complicated. Cross-border travel is an issue and there are quarantine requirements for any incoming player. This is one of the reasons Dorion wanted to get the Stepan and Coburn/Paquette trades out of the way early. It doesn’t mean it’s impossible but with such a condensed schedule, traded players are going to miss a pretty significant portion of the season. Really not expecting an overly active trade market this year.
-If a back-to-back against the same team in the same rink wasn’t strange enough, this week we’ll really get to experience just how strange this year is going to be in terms of scheduling. The Senators play three times this week (Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday), all against the Winnipeg Jets. Two of them in Ottawa and then one in Winnipeg to close out the week. The game in Winnipeg kicks off what is a seven-game road trip for the Senators. The Winnipeg Jets have had an eventful week, including a practice postponed for COVID related reasons, but they did travel to Toronto yesterday as scheduled although had to leave a few players behind. Ottawa catches them on the tail end of a back to back tomorrow too.
