While expansion was the early headline in what will be a busy NHL offseason, there are still several other storylines for each team in the months to come. Here is a closer look at what lies ahead for the Ottawa Senators.
The Senators made a big impression in their first season with head coach Guy Boucher and GM Pierre Dorion at the helm. Although they didn’t win the Atlantic, they took care of business in the first two rounds before falling to the Cup-champion Penguins in the Eastern Final. With a lot of players in need of new deals, Dorion will have a lot to accomplish this offseason. Here are some of the key highlights.
Decide Phaneuf’s Future
While it was understandable that defenseman Dion Phaneuf was believed to be on the block prior to the Expansion Draft, it’s a bit more intriguing that his name has still been out there. Defenders are in high demand and with it being a shallow free agent market, there are teams still showing interest.
The catch here, of course, is Phaneuf’s contract which isn’t exactly a bargain. He has four years remaining with a $7MM cap hit and the expectation is that the Sens would have to either retain some salary or take a sizable contract or two in return. Regardless of what the interest level in the 32 year old is, Ottawa’s willingness (or lack thereof) to retain or match money will go a long way towards determining whether a trade gets done. Phaneuf also carries some say as he has a 12-team no-trade list.
While Ottawa has some youngsters that are close to making it, it would still be a bit surprising to see the team lose both Phaneuf as well as Marc Methot in the same offseason. Accordingly, it’s realistic to expect that if they do decide to deal the veteran blueliner (and as things stand, the thought is he’s more likely to stay though that could change depending how the UFA market plays now), they’re going to be looking for a left shot defender in any potential trade return.
Extension Talks For Turris
Center Kyle Turris has been one of the better bargains league-wide in recent years. He has been Ottawa’s top pivot while only carrying a cap charge of $3.5MM. Unfortunately for the Senators, that bargain will soon be coming to an end as he will be eligible for unrestricted free agency next summer and will be eligible to sign an extension as of July 1st.
Having hit the 55 point plateau in three of the last four seasons, Turris is going to be in line for a substantial raise. As a team that typically spends well below the cap ceiling, finding room within their budget will become the biggest question here.
Dorion has done well to build up some depth down the middle with Derick Brassard, Zack Smith, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau but there’s no doubt that if Turris were to depart in 2018, that group would be a weakened unit. This one may not be on the top of the bucket list at this stage of the summer but it’s something that the Sens will likely want to address sooner rather than later.
New Deal For Pageau
After re-signing Mike Condon earlier today, Pageau is the most notable of their remaining free agents, restricted or unrestricted. While he didn’t produce as much during the season as he did in 2015-16 (33 points compared to 43 the year before), he still filled an important middle six role while being well above average at the faceoff dot, checking in at 54.8%.
And then there was his postseason run where Pageau scored eight times in just 19 games, further bolstering his reputation as a player with a knack of scoring some key, timely goals. That playoff performance makes his RFA case a lot more intriguing and he does have arbitration eligibility as well.
Pageau sits two years away from unrestricted free agency status and is coming off his bridge deal now, one that carries a qualifying offer of $1.1MM. He should easily surpass that on this contract regardless of whether it’s a long-term or a short-term one. Smith inked a four year, $13MM extension midseason and while those were all UFA years, that should be in the range of a new deal for Pageau.
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