Robin Lehner has heard his name in the rumour mill this month, as the Ottawa Senators try to land Rick Nash as part of a blockbuster trade.
But the young goaltender insists that he is not expecting to be dealt to the Columbus Blue Jackets, even though he would likely be included if a trade was to materialize.
“I’m confident — I’m not too nervous,” Lehner said on Tuesday morning. “I really like this organization and I don’t want to leave this organization. I don’t think it’s going to happen — that’s my gut feeling. If it would happen, then I’m an asset and they’re going to use me as best as they can.”
The Senators have a handful of young prospects that might be attractive to Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson if he decided to engineer a trade with Ottawa. In addition to Lehner, prospect Mika Zibanejad’s name has been tossed around as trade bait for Nash. The club’s first round pick from last season says having his name included in trade rumours is something he has to learn to deal with.
“I guess it’s a new thing for me as a young player in this league. But I guess it’s just getting used to it,” said Zibanejad. “There are going to be a lot of rumours and stuff. You just have to stay focused where you are right now and kind of deal with that when it happens. You can’t worry about it that much because it’s going to distract your training. So just block it out somehow.”
Both Lehner and Zibanejad are in Ottawa this week to participate in the Senators development camp for top prospects. Lehner, who many feel is ready to play in the NHL right now, remains third on the Senators’ depth chart for goaltenders.
While a trade to another organization might get him more NHL playing time this season, the young netminder confirms he is happy playing in the Ottawa organization — even if he’s behind Craig Anderson and Ben Bishop at this point.
“It’s a marathon, not a sprint. They’re doing what they think is best for me,” explained Lehner. “They’re not trying to go against me. They are trying to develop me as good as they want. I’m an asset to them and they want me to do as good as possible. You have to trust them — they have lots of hockey experience in this organization. I’m 20 going on 21 and I don’t know that much. I’m just eager to play and eager to show myself. I’ve been shooting myself in the foot sometimes and taking a couple of steps back. Now I’m trying to go forward here.”
