Traded Vladimir Tarasenko (1 year, 5 million)

[PlayersLtd]

Chychrun coming in mid season with no training camp learning new team mates and systems vs coming to camp, having a bit of experience with the system and chemistry with linemates. You can choose to reserve judgement out of an abundance of caution because of an 12 game sample where we juggled paring to see what works, but he's got an entire career of to go off of where anyone with eyes can see that he's an improvement over the likes of Hamonic, Zaitsev, Holden, or Brannstrom, who all spent time in the top 4 last year.

Our second line center was in his 3rd season and yet still had more experience at center than our other two top 9 centers combined, so yeah, ideally you have more experience at center and losing Norris doesn't cripple the team but the reality is we didn't, so losing him had a big impact as Stü and Pinto were both still very much learning the position at the pro level.

Beyond that, team depth looks improve by swapping DBC for Tank and Kubalik, so no more Gambrell/Motte/Brassard on the third line. Heck, Greig might push Joseph down to the 4th line if he's still around and not traded.

We could go from a bottom 6 of

Motte-Brassard/Gambrell-Joseph
Kelly-Kastelic-Watson

To this

Greig-Pinto-Kubalik
Kelly/Joseph-Kastelic-MacEwen

There isn't a lot of reason to be skeptical the team has/will be improved, I guess the proof is in the pudding, but at this point it seems like you're being pessimistic for pessimism's sake.

This is the stuff some people are overlooking, not accounting for improvement simply through growth. A young team being 1 year older and thus 1 year better and playing together within a system for one more year is monumental.

A better team emerges year over year as the whole slowly becomes greater than the sum of the parts.

Best example would be Stutzle and the recent discussion about how bad our forwards corps will be in the defensive end. Nobody is really giving Stutzle the benefit of the doubt that he is going to become much better on the defensive side of the puck. There is no question to me that Stu will become a good two way centreman with time. As this happens everything around him will be improved- the D he is supporting, how the goalies anticipate play with extra back pressure on an incoming rush, how Brady plays, how our transition develops etc...

The same could be said about a lot of things when it comes to the growth of a young team. Even if our roster remained status quo this team would get significantly better just by how the young players evolve.

 

[Alex1234]

Drake with no DBC on his line and a little more D focus should help a lot the 2nd line

 

[PoutineSp00nZ]

Our young guys really gotta improve on the defensive side of the puck for us to be good

thats the next big step

It really is.

Teams that win championships buy into that mindset. This team has loads of talent in all the right places (except goal question mark), they just need decide they want to play at both ends of the ice.

Coaching helps, but its up to them to do it. Their success absolutely hinges on the top guys deciding to sacrifice some offense and play the game the right way.

That whole core is locked up longterm. They don't need to worry about money
... maybe that will be extra motivation to play defense.

I mean it hasn't yet so who the hell knows. Maybe this is the year

 

[SensFan1010]

That might of been the worst interview ive ever seen. Can sens media wake up a bit. Awful way to introduce the guy into ottawa

 

[Pierre from Orleans]

That might of been the worst interview ive ever seen. Can sens media wake up a bit. Awful way to introduce the guy into ottawa

Hilarious and not surprising how bad they were.

 

[Micklebot]

Now take a look at the save percentage of their goalies vs. their shot differentials and expected goals.

They were a team that were sunk by goaltending in a season where we had Forsberg put up a .917.

Their advanced stats predicted the season they just had provided they actually got decent goaltending as opposed to among the league’s worst.

There was nothing overnight about it.

NJD
2022 @5v5 2111 SF 2098 SA (+13) 51.45 xGF%, .8970 sv%

They were definitely sunk by Goaltending in 2022, what does the advance stats predict for us next year?

OTT
2023 @5v5 2016 SF 1899 SA (+117) 51.55 xGF%, .9068 sv%

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

That might of been the worst interview ive ever seen. Can sens media wake up a bit. Awful way to introduce the guy into ottawa

No kidding. Parroting the same question. He got a little agitated there for sure.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

Chychrun coming in mid season with no training camp learning new team mates and systems vs coming to camp, having a bit of experience with the system and chemistry with linemates. You can choose to reserve judgement out of an abundance of caution because of an 12 game sample where we juggled paring to see what works, but he's got an entire career of to go off of where anyone with eyes can see that he's an improvement over the likes of Hamonic, Zaitsev, Holden, or Brannstrom, who all spent time in the top 4 last year.

Our second line center was in his 3rd season and yet still had more experience at center than our other two top 9 centers combined, so yeah, ideally you have more experience at center and losing Norris doesn't cripple the team but the reality is we didn't, so losing him had a big impact as Stü and Pinto were both still very much learning the position at the pro level.

Beyond that, team depth looks improve by swapping DBC for Tank and Kubalik, so no more Gambrell/Motte/Brassard on the third line. Heck, Greig might push Joseph down to the 4th line if he's still around and not traded.

We could go from a bottom 6 of

Motte-Brassard/Gambrell-Joseph
Kelly-Kastelic-Watson

To this

Greig-Pinto-Kubalik
Kelly/Joseph-Kastelic-MacEwen

There isn't a lot of reason to be skeptical the team has/will be improved, I guess the proof is in the pudding, but at this point it seems like you're being pessimistic for pessimism's sake.

We will see. DJs teams have never possessed the puck. Don’t know why they would magically start now.

Drake with no DBC on his line and a little more D focus should help a lot the 2nd line

Drake needs to worry about himself none of this no DBC garbage.batherson was ghastly last year.

 

[Super Cake]

That might of been the worst interview ive ever seen. Can sens media wake up a bit. Awful way to introduce the guy into ottawa

Confirmed With Link: Sens and Tarasenko both mutually agree to terminate contract due to terrible interview.

 

[Korpse]

NJD
2022 @5v5 2111 SF 2098 SA (+13) 51.45 xGF%, .8970 sv%

They were definitely sunk by Goaltending in 2022, what does the advance stats predict for us next year?

OTT
2023 @5v5 2016 SF 1899 SA (+117) 51.55 xGF%, .9068 sv%

Not only did last years team have a low sv% (24th), sh% was 7.49 (32nd) at 5v5. As bad as the Devils goaltending may have been that season they still came away with a higher PDO. Plenty of reason to believe the Senators could see a modest improvement to middle of the pack in sh%. 20 extra 5v5 goals would go along way.

 

[SpezDispenser]

Drake with no DBC on his line and a little more D focus should help a lot the 2nd line

And his ankle healed. Norris, healed batherson and Tkachuk = pain and suffering for defences out there. Then you call on the Stützle, giroux, tarasenko line for their 2nd pairing d lol

 

[bert]

Hilarious and not surprising how bad they were.

I mean look who's asking the questions. First thing Andlauer should look into is talking to bell about having real professionals on the media side. Players don't respect Garrioch. He can't even spit out the questions. He doesn't know what to ask. There is no relationship or trust between the players and him. It's Mickey mouse.

 

[Micklebot]

We will see. DJs teams have never possessed the puck. Don’t know why they would magically start now.

Except last year we did, 12th in the league in 5v5 CF%, generally considered a very reliable proxy for possession. Prior years we'd always been near the bottom.

What we struggled with was DZone giveaways, 5th worst in the league. Hamonic and Chabot being the worst offenders. This needs to be addressed, and has gotten worse during DJs tenure, as we started middle of the pack his first year as HC. Adding Chychrun and pushing Hamonic to the third pair should help, Chabot having his role scaled back might help too. Better support from the forwards will be key, I think our on paper improved third line might help.

 

[JD1]

Now take a look at the save percentage of their goalies vs. their shot differentials and expected goals.

They were a team that were sunk by goaltending in a season where we had Forsberg put up a .917.

Their advanced stats predicted the season they just had provided they actually got decent goaltending as opposed to among the league’s worst.

There was nothing overnight about it.

I think our advanced stats were better than our W-L record weren't they? Goaltending and 5 on 5 shooting percentage did us in

 

[The Waffler]

That might of been the worst interview ive ever seen. Can sens media wake up a bit. Awful way to introduce the guy into ottawa

Call me old fashioned but I’m definitely not a fan of the Zoom interview format. Get the guy a f***in podium!

 

[xVolchenkov]

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

 

[Psycroptic86]

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

Shouldn’t be too worried about that now that Ottawa can attract notable free agents.

 

[Senscore]

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

He absolutely is using this as a 30+ "show me" contract and I don't think anyone is really under any illusions about that. Maybe it ends up being a good fit and he stays but I'm not super confident in that. But we all knew what this was when it happened.

Either way it's refreshing that we don't have to go through the wishy washy media bullshit that we just went through with DeBrincat.

 

[Hun]

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

Russian journalists said that Tarasenko called the Sens players every day with one question: Are the Senators really a contender? Maybe he just wants to make sure he's on the right team.

 

[Cosmix]

Shouldn’t be too worried about that now that Ottawa can attract notable free agents.

Now that we have money to spend and scrooge is no longer the owner.

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

And why would you think that?

I think our advanced stats were better than our W-L record weren't they? Goaltending and 5 on 5 shooting percentage did us in

And the month of November.

 

[Cosmix]

And his ankle healed. Norris, healed batherson and Tkachuk = pain and suffering for defences out there. Then you call on the Stützle, giroux, tarasenko line for their 2nd pairing d lol

If we agree that Batherson was not 100% last season due to his injury, we should not count on Norris being 100% for this coming season. Hopefully they are both 100% from the start.

 

[SpezDispenser]

If we agree that Batherson was not 100% last season due to his injury, we should not count on Norris being 100% for this coming season. Hopefully they are both 100% from the start.

Yeah, that's pretty much my biggest concern this upcoming season. Or he's not good to go period, or he reinjures.

Russian journalists said that Tarasenko called the Sens players every day with one question: Are the Senators really a contender? Maybe he just wants to make sure he's on the right team.

Every day? That would get old quick. Yes for f*** sake! Same answer as 5 days ago. DA

 

[JD1]

Not to be pessimistic but I get the impression he’s just looking to use his one year in Ottawa as an opportunity to rebound and put up some big numbers, then sign longer term with another club.

I hope I’m wrong or that he falls in love playing here and we’re able to extend him, but if he’s a one and done, we don’t really have anything internally to replace him and I still see that as a glaring hole moving forward.

That's great for us if that is his play. A motivated and productive Tank probably leads to a solid year. And we're left with his cap space next year.

Now that we have money to spend and scrooge is no longer the owner.


And why would you think that?


And the month of November.

Goaltending was a part of November. Early injury to Talbot had Forsberg playing I think 13 of the first 14, all while trying to adapt to the Norris injury.

 

[JD1]

If we agree that Batherson was not 100% last season due to his injury, we should not count on Norris being 100% for this coming season. Hopefully they are both 100% from the start.

One is easier to overcome than the other. Injuries that impact mobility are a problem if you can't get around like you expect. With a shoulder you can avoid initiating contact on that side. I'd think it's easier to manage but ya it might take Norris some time to get to 100%

 

[Mingus Dew]

Well, the argument was that by being a better possession team, it will help defensively since having the puck is the best defense.

I think improvement to the D should help with the breakout, which in turn should relieve some pressure. Adding Norris should improve both the 2nd line and third line's defensive play, Pinto will be able to match up against guys more suited to his development level, and Norris should provide an improved defensive conscious to his line.

I believe Batherson can be a better defensive player than he was last year, health probably played into it, but regardless it's easier to buy in defensively on a winning team, last year things went off the rails early, I think that made it more likely that players cheated.

Tbh I think the only area we aren't improved in is the top line and the fourth line, top line remains unchanged (presumably) and the 4th is likely a wash, though I suppose it may be improved if Joseph is pushed down to the 4th rather than traded.

There is lots of room for optimism this year, I think health will determine how successful we are, but I truly believe this roster can make some noise with a healthy run.

I'm optimistic for sure. We should absolutely be a playoff team with this roster and league average goaltending. The major wrinkle is that we are playing in what will probably be the best division in the NHL.

Better possession metrics and a better breakout will help. Ultimately we need guys to be more mentally focused and committed to structure so that unforced errors don't lead to gaudy GA numbers. I don't know shit about hockey systems so I don't know if we play a good one, but regardless there are lots of guys on this team that didn't execute the system well last year. That should be improved.

No way I can project the Sens to finish at the top of the division until we see how they're playing defensively. Would take a major step forward.

One is easier to overcome than the other. Injuries that impact mobility are a problem if you can't get around like you expect. With a shoulder you can avoid initiating contact on that side. I'd think it's easier to manage but ya it might take Norris some time to get to 100%

Norris is probably going to start the year cold. It's to be expected after all the time he missed.

Will be imperative that he's able to shake it off and also that we can insulate him somewhat in the early days.