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Ottawa Senators Re-Assign Jacob Bernard-Docker

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Just two days after he was called up, the Ottawa Senators have re-assigned defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker to their AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators.

Bernard-Docker, 22, was a Senators first-round pick at the 2018 draft. The blueliner had a three-year collegiate career at the University of North Dakota before turning pro in the spring of 2021. That year, Bernard-Docker made his NHL debut, playing in five games for the Senators down the stretch of their season.

Last year, Bernard-Docker spent most of his year in the AHL, playing 58 games for Belleville. He didn’t exactly impress, scoring just nine points in those games, but his defensive play was at times strong and he did earn eight games at the NHL level.

This year has been seen by many as a crucial year for Bernard-Docker’s development. He has just one point in eight games at the AHL level so far this year and will head back to Belleville with a clear mandate to improve his overall game so that he can earn another NHL call-up, and perhaps one that even includes some NHL minutes.

Sale Of Senators Expected To Heat Up Around American Thanksgiving

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  • Yesterday, the Ottawa Senators formally initiated the process of being sold, just over seven months after the passing of owner Eugene Melnyk. Though that time might seem a bit longer than expected to some, the Melnyk family was able to oversee a team transition this offseason to lock in some of the organization’s young core talent, become one of the league’s more exciting groups, and of course, grieve Melnyk’s passing. Although the timeline to date has been unclear, the sale process might be a bit more clear, and quick. Also from tonight’s 32 Thoughts, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman expects the process to get seriously moving by American Thanksgiving, which is now 19 days away. No clear front runner(s) for the team have emerged yet, though Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the league would prefer one majority owner over a group of minority shareholders. Even with the Thanksgiving timetable mentioned, when exactly a new owner would be in place with all formalities and transition of power completed, is unclear.

NHL Prefers A Majority Owner To A Group Of Minority Shareholders

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With it being announced yesterday that the Senators are initiating a process to examine selling the team, it’s expected that there will be several expressions of interest and there have been a handful of speculative possibilities so far for people that could be minority partners as part of a group of investors.  However, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch notes (Twitter link) that the NHL’s preference is to find a single buyer that can own at least a majority of the team over a collection of shareholders.  Of course, that doesn’t mean that they’ll be able to find one but on top of finding someone that will commit to keeping the team in Ottawa, they have other preferences in terms of who they’d prefer as the next owner of the team.

Josh Norris Seeking Second Opinion On Shoulder Injury

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While it was recently revealed that Senators center Josh Norris would miss several months due to needing shoulder surgery, that procedure hasn’t happened yet.  Instead, as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports, the 23-year-old is seeking a second opinion in the hopes of avoiding having to go under the knife and miss that much time.  Head coach D.J. Smith indicated that the team is still proceeding with the expectation that Norris won’t be available for the rest of the season while Garrioch notes a final decision from the center is expected in the next couple of days.

Ottawa Senators Recall Jacob Bernard-Docker

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The Ottawa Senators lost again last night, despite outshooting the Vegas Golden Knights 46-32, and have decided to shake up their roster. The team has recalled prospect Jacob Bernard-Docker from the AHL, giving them a new look on defense.

Just this week, head coach D.J. Smith explained that Bernard-Docker’s development in the minor leagues was important, even as the team was dealing with an injury to Artem Zub. Today, after watching the team give up five goals in the first half of last night’s game, he has been recalled.

Whether he ends up in the lineup right away is unclear, but the two most likely candidates to come out are Nikita Zaitsev and Erik Brannstrom. Both played fewer than 18 minutes last night, with Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson, and Travis Hamonic taking the brunt of the responsibility.

Bernard-Docker, 22, has 13 games of NHL experience under his belt since signing out of the University of North Dakota, including eight last year. In eight games for the Belleville Senators this year he has just one point. The right-shot defenseman was selected 26th overall in 2018.

Ottawa Senators Initiate Process Of Sale

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Over the last few days, reports had emerged that indicated the Ottawa Senators would be the next NHL team up for sale. While that discussion quickly turned to potential buyers — especially when actor Ryan Reynolds’ name was included – the team had not actually confirmed anything.

Today, that changed, as the Senators announced that a process has been initiated for the sale of the team. As reported, they have hired Galatioto Sports Partners to assist in the transaction. Sheldon Plener, chairman of the team, released a statement:

Galatioto Sports Partners has been retained as financial advisor and a process has been initiated for the sale of the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club.

This was a necessary and prudent step to connect with those deeply interested parties who can show us what their vision is for the future of the team. A condition of any sale will be that the team remains in Ottawa.

That last part will quell many uneasy hearts in Ottawa, who were worried that a sale could potentially take away their franchise. Even beyond Plener’s pledge, the NHL also includes standard clauses in sales which block relocation for a set period of time. If the sale does happen, which looks likely at this point, a new owner would not be allowed to simply pluck the team out of Ottawa.

Still, a change in ownership will be a huge shift for the Senators, who were owned by the late Eugene Melnyk since 2003. After his death earlier this year, control of the team shifted to his daughters, both in their early twenties.

A new owner, whether it is a group or an individual, will have some big decisions to make quickly. The Senators are in dire need of a new downtown arena, and the team has been intimately involved with the development plan at LeBreton Flats. They were approved as the preferred bidder for the site, though there are no shovels in the ground yet, meaning things could go south depending on how the sale is processed (Senators fans will be all too familiar with arena plans disappearing quickly).

The team was recently valued at $650MM by Sportico but some have indicated that a sale would be for much more than that.

Ottawa Senators Activate Cam Talbot

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It’s been a tough stretch for the Ottawa Senators, who now find themselves at the bottom of the Atlantic Division standings despite a positive goal differential. The team has lost three in a row and hasn’t gotten the goaltending they were hoping for so far.

Part of that is due to the absence of Cam Talbot, something that was rectified today as the Senators activated the veteran netminder from injured reserve. Talbot has been out since the beginning of October after arriving in Ottawa through an offseason trade with the Minnesota Wild.

While Anton Forsberg will still start tonight’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights, Talbot is going to dress and be the backup. He is expected to start on Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The 35-year-old Talbot has been a reliable option throughout his career, posting a .915 save percentage in nearly 400 regular season appearances. Last season with the Wild he went 32-12-4 with a .911 before essentially being replaced by deadline acquisition Marc-Andre Fleury.

Now with Ottawa, he should get a good chunk of the starts from here on out. If he can improve on the .909 that Forsberg has provided so far, the Senators look as though they can make some noise in a playoff chase.

One thing stopping them from doing that is the absence of defensive stalwart Artem Zub, who is still expected to miss another few games, according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia.

Senators Sign Cole Cassels To AHL Deal

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  • After inking Cory Conacher to an AHL tryout deal earlier this week, the Senators made another AHL signing today, announcing that they’ve inked forward Cole Cassels to a one-year, minor league contract. The 27-year-old has spent time in Vancouver, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, and Columbus but has yet to secure an NHL opportunity.  Cassels started the season in Sweden’s second division but now will have a chance to play a lot closer to home.

Ottawa Senators Re-Assign Dillon Heatherington

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The Ottawa Senators have sent depth defenseman Dillon Heatherington back to the minor leagues, as they arrive back for a three-game homestand. The move leaves them with six healthy defensemen on the roster.

Heatherington, 27, never did actually play during this recent call-up, and still has just 20 NHL appearances to his name. Without Artem Zub, who is out a few weeks with an upper-body injury, the Senators are struggling to find the right mix of playing time on defense. Nikita Zaitsev, banished to the press box earlier this season, ended up playing over 19 minutes last night because of all the penalties they took against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Both he and Nick Holden spent more than ten minutes shorthanded, leading to the Lightning outshooting the Senators 34-15 overall. They aren’t going to win many games playing a man down, and could sure use Zub’s stabilizing presence as soon as possible.

For Heatherington, he’ll have to return to the Belleville Senators and wait for his next chance. In six games there this season he has one goal and eight penalty minutes.

Evening Notes: Hedman, Letang, Formenton

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The Tampa Bay Lightning are down a big man – literally and figuratively – as they take on Ottawa tonight. Defenseman Victor Hedman has an upper-body injury and is day-to-day, according to Lightning play-by-play commentator Dave Randorf. Hedman sustained the injury in a win Saturday against San Jose, leaving in the third period.

Hedman is vying for a seventh straight Norris Trophy nomination this season, and one of the best defensemen of his generation is off to a strong start again. His eight points in nine games are tied for third on the team with Brayden Point, and his 24:48 ice time average per game clears second place (Mikhail Sergachev) by an even two minutes. The Lightning have a tough schedule over the next few games, including games against Carolina and Edmonton, so a quick return from Hedman would be highly desirable.

  • Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang is out for tonight’s game against Boston with an illness, as he didn’t skate in warmups. Chad Ruhwedel will draw in on the bottom pairing, while Jeff Petry will slide up alongside Brian Dumoulin in Letang’s absence. The 35-year-old, who signed a six-year extension with the team last offseason, is off to a slow start with four points in nine games and a -5 rating.
  • TSN’s Darren Dreger reported on today’s edition of Insider Trading that there are no real updates between the Ottawa Senators and forward Alex Formenton, who remains the only unsigned RFA in the league. The two parties now have just one month before the December 1 signing deadline, where Formenton cannot play in the NHL season if he doesn’t have a contract. Dreger notes a potential trade as an option for Formenton, and also floats the option of playing in Europe if a deal can’t be reached.

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