At his season ending press conference, Bryan Murray made it clear there are two areas where he’ll be looking to add this off season.
The Senators GM indicated he will be looking to add another shutdown type defenceman and a 20 goal scorer to the forward ranks. And while trades are always an option, he may have to fill those holes through free agency. Easier said than done when you consider this is fairly thin UFA market.
With the uncertainty surrounding the future of Sens Captain Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa’s top six for next year is still very much up in the air. The team hopes that guys like Foligno and Silfverberg can contribute on a regular basis but obviously they’d like to give them some support.
Not surprisingly, a quick Twitter poll I did the other day indicated that Sens fans would love to see Zach Parise brought in to solidify the team’s top six forwards. Considering the run the Devils have gone on this off season, it’s hard to believe Lamoriello lets the team captain get away but it’s obviously a possibility.
Other names mentioned on Twitter include Jiri Hudler, Jarret Stoll and Alex Semin.
Semin is an interesting option on a short term deal but he'll likely be looking for something longer than one year this time around. Dustin Penner, who is having a great playoff with the Kings, is another option but according to Darren Dreger, the Kings have shown interest in retaining his services.
On the back end, the team has quality puck movers but would like to add another all around type defender that can play tough in his own end.
Again, it should come as no surprise but the name mentioned most often by Sens fans continues to be Ryan Suter.
Suter is far and away the best defenceman on the market and will cash in big time this off season. Other names mentioned include NCAA free agent Justin Schultz, who is drawing a ton of interest around the league and Dennis Wideman, who had a decent playoff with the Capitals.
One name to keep an eye on is former St. Louis Blues defenceman Kent Huskins. The Almonte native is coming off an injury riddled season where he played just 25 games but is still a reliable guy in his own end. Could be an affordable option for the Sens this off season.
Which UFAs would you like to see Bryan Murray target this off season?
- The Binghamton Senators are looking for a new head coach now that former bench boss Kurt Kleinendorst has announced he will not be returning to the club next season. Conventional wisdom suggests Luke Richardson is the leading candidate for the job but the Senators will still be thorough in their search. Steve Stirling, who served as an assistant under Kleinendorst, is another viable option. For what it’s worth, I think Richardson would be the perfect guy to lead Bingo next season.
- On Tuesday night, Bruce Garrioch tweeted that the Sens have not yet held discussions with UFA to be Matt Carkner. It’s important to note that while the two sides have not yet talked, there is still plenty of time to get something done.
- Team Canada has been eliminated from the World Championships after a shocking defeat at the hands of the team from Slovakia. Ranted about this a little bit on Twitter this morning but I have a hard time believing GM Kevin Lowe put together the best team possible. When a guy like Jason Spezza asks to play, you make room especially when the roster already includes guys like Teddy Purcell, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and 18 year old defenceman Ryan Murray. Any Sens fans that were on the fence can now throw their full support behind Team Sweden, led by Daniel Alfredsson, Erik Karlsson and Jakob Silfverberg. They take on the Czechs at 2:15 PM.
