Recently the Ottawa Senators were thrust into the rumor mill when Darren Dreger of TSN speculated on a possible trade. The fire was only stoked when Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet spoke about a potential gap in terms of contract length for the new deal, but now Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia spoke directly to Senators GM Pierre Dorion on the matter.
“No panic” is the quote Garrioch shared, reporting that Dorion believes something can get done between the two sides. Turris is clearly an important part to the Senators and is averaging 21 minutes a night through the first three games of the season. He’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, but could reach a long-term deal to center the Senators’ top line for some time.
An interesting factor in the Senators’ decision may be the long-term health of Clarke MacArthur. The forward’s contract is fully insured, meaning that if he can’t return to the NHL after his latest bout with post-concussion symptoms, not only will the team get potential cap relief but also likely remove a financial burden. That $4.75MM in salary per season would go a long way in helping an internal budget team like Ottawa afford to keep Turris around.
They also have to worry about new contracts for Mark Stone and Cody Ceci this summer, when the pair reaches restricted free agency, and the pending massive deal Erik Karlsson will be signing for the 2019-20 season. Still, watching a 28-year old top line center walk in free agency is almost unheard of, making this a case of extension or trade by the end of the season.
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