The Ottawa Senators surprised many in the hockey world when they snuck back into the playoffs in 2014-15 and it earned coach Dave Cameron a well-deserved two-year contract.
They’re a young team that should be competitive once again in 2015-16.
Head coach: Dave Cameron
GM: Bryan Murray
Team payroll: $63.5-million cap hit on $71.4 million cap
Last season record: 43-26-13, 99 points, 7th in the East
Goals for: 238
Goals against: 215
PP: 16.8 per cent, ranked 22nd
PK: 82.9 per cent, ranked 11th
Corsi for per 60: 54.1
Key acquisitions: Matt O’Connor
Key departures: Robin Lehner, David Legwand, Erik Condra
Rookies to Watch: Matt O’Connor, Nicholas Paul, Matt Puempel, Mikael Wikstrand, Tobias Lindberg, Thomas Chabot, Colin White.
Paul and Puempel could add some size and offence to the Sens lineup and O’Connor’s development will be in the spotlight after the team landed the coveted college free agent.
Pre-season letter grades
Forwards
Despite a dearth of star power up front, the Sens were a top-10 offence last year averaging 2.83 goals per game. Youngsters Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman burst onto the scene with tremendous rookie campaigns, fellow rookie Curtis Lazar showed promise while Kyle Turris and Mika Zibanejad had career years. The core group was productive, which is one reason why management barely changed a thing in the off-season. GRADE: B
Defence
Much like the forward group, the blue-line was basically untouched. Led by point-producing machine and reigning Norris winner Erik Karlsson, the Sens defence is a steady group. They won’t dominate you physically or anything, but they’re a smart group that limits mistakes. Patrick Wiercioch is set to become a restricted free agent at season’s end and if he continues to progress he could be in for a significant raise on his current $2-million cap hit. GRADE: B
Goaltending
Andrew Hammond was one of the feel-good stories in the NHL last season, compiling an incredible 20-1-2 record, .941 save percentage and a 1.79 goals-against average. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to keep up that strong play in the post-season. Meanwhile, 34-year-old Craig Anderson had a subpar regular season, but managed to perform admirably in the playoffs. Ottawa traded away Lehner, but supplemented their depth at the goaltending position by adding Boston University standout Matt O’Connor, which seems like a great move for the future. GRADE: B-
The Senators will have a successful season if… the goaltending holds up. They don’t come close to the playoffs last season without Hammond’s crazy hot streak. There’s no way he can duplicate what he did last year, so if Anderson looks shaky like he has at times over the past two seasons, there will be cause for concern.
The Senators will have a disappointing season if… Stone and Hoffman go through dreaded sophomore slumps. Their 53 combined goals were a pleasant surprise to management and they’ll have to maintain that production. Even though they’re still young they’ll be counted on just as much as veterans Bobby Ryan, Turris and Karlsson.
