Seravalli says Ottawa is interested in Pierre-Luc Dubois.

#17,Zadina, and a2nd or Boston's 2024 1st for the Cat

According to the source, for the trade to happen, the deal is contingent on two things. “One being that a certain unknown prospect must be available for Ottawa to pick at 17, and the second being that an extension has to be agreed upon with DeBrincat, which shouldn’t be terribly hard to accomplish because Detroit is on his list of desired cities to play in.”

https://detroitsportsnati...s-news/06/26/2023/414891/
- HenryHockey

Assuming this is true (which is a major-league assumption), it would be interesting to know who the Senators might be targeting at #17 that would realistically be available. It's doubtful to be anyone that would have to fall out of the consensus top-12 or 15, but it's also a fairly deep draft with at least a few names I could see being in the conversation.

Some interesting potential targets...

- RHD Tom Willander (SWE) is a two-way right-shot defender (6'1-180) who's developed into one of the biggest risers of the draft because of his combination of high-end skating ability and competitive nature; after a very strong season with Rogle in the Swe-Jr League (note: also the team Oskar Pettersson played for), he's committed to play at Boston University (NCAA) next season

- RHD Oliver Bonk (CAN) is another solid two-way right-shot defender (6'2-180) who is the son of former-Senator Radek Bonk, and played extensive junior hockey in the Ottawa area before being drafted by the London Knights; in addition to playing another season with one of the top CHL teams in terms of producing NHL talent, he'll have the opportunity to take over the #1D role next season

- RW Ethan Gauthier (CAN) is a versatile winger (5'11-180) who can produce offensively (30G/39A) and play a tenacious physical game, and had a strong 6G/5GP performance at the U18; he's also the son of former NHL d-man Denis Gauthier and is the cousin of Julien Gauthier, which are the kind of NHL roots the Senators always seem to covet

Other notables: C Calum Ritchie, LW Eduard Sale

Seravalli says Ottawa is interested in Pierre-Luc Dubois.
- spatso

Are you using your back channels to have Tom Wilson and PLD linked to Ottawa?

One thing I have noticed with this GM in our lovely nation's capital is that he gets every one looking one way and pulls something off somewhere else.

Additionally you have to factor in that the new owner will have a HUGE say in any deal that gets pulled off here.

I genuinely think there's some legit push to return EK65 to the capital. It makes sense to move DeBrincat to SanJose at the same time and try and pry something else out of San Jose like New Jersey's 1st round pick. Its all about how the two GM's value their assets here.

How much money is going back with Erik to Ottawa etc etc. I don't like the chatter from the Team 1200 that Chabbot be included in the deal

One thing I have noticed with this GM in our lovely nation's capital is that he gets every one looking one way and pulls something off somewhere else.

Additionally you have to factor in that the new owner will have a HUGE say in any deal that gets pulled off here.

I genuinely think there's some legit push to return EK65 to the capital. It makes sense to move DeBrincat to SanJose at the same time and try and pry something else out of San Jose like New Jersey's 1st round pick. Its all about how the two GM's value their assets here.

How much money is going back with Erik to Ottawa etc etc. I don't like the chatter from the Team 1200 that Chabbot be included in the deal
- Octavarium

It’s the only way this happens is to trade Chabot for Karlsson with them retaining minimum of 3.5million with other pieces or picks from both sides Im guessing

Are you using your back channels to have Tom Wilson and PLD linked to Ottawa?
- SensFan25

I know I am in the minority in craving a deal for PLD. I would even go to $10m on the offer if you could make it happen. Having PLD play behind Stutzle on the 2nd line would make the Sens a powerful foe in the playoffs.

Now, when you raise the possibility of both PLD and Tom Wilson dressing for the Sens, my heart flutters with joy.

It’s the only way this happens is to trade Chabot for Karlsson with them retaining minimum of 3.5million with other pieces or picks from both sides Im guessing
- sens4life1971

Not a fan of all the interest being invested in bringing Karlsson to Ottawa.

Ullmark available. Would the Sens take a run?

Ullmark and bad contract (Smith) for some combo of Boucher, Formenton, Thomson, and a pick? Or would he warrant Grieg?

Ullmark back to Buffalo makes too much sense.

There are some deals to be had, I think. Maybe the Sens just wait out the chaos?

Seravalli says Ottawa is interested in Pierre-Luc Dubois.
- spatso

Marble slab cakes are interesting but it doesn't mean I'm going to get it or that it's worth the price

Chabbot Zub
Chychrun Karlsson
Sanderson Hamonic
Brannstrom

I mean.....

All the talk about Karlsson with Chabot going back to SJS is ridiculous.

Chabot is a top pairing D-man, he just needs to play less mins. Karlsson will be turning 34 in May.

Chabbot Zub
Chychrun Karlsson
Sanderson Hamonic
Brannstrom

I mean.....
- Octavarium

It would be nice. And if you could get him at pennies on the dollar (or somehow do a deal that includes SJs 1st pick in the draft) I might be inclined. Its a good PR move.

Truth be told, previous to this year, SJ would have to give up 2 1sts just to get someone interested in taking him.

But he, like Debrincat, is a luxury we can't afford, at a price point that makes no sense.

We need a goalie. And Sanderson signed long term. That's where Karlsson's/Debrincat's money should go.

All the talk about Karlsson with Chabot going back to SJS is ridiculous.

Chabot is a top pairing D-man, he just needs to play less mins. Karlsson will be turning 34 in May.
- AlfieisKing

I’m not a fan of it either
Our D man are looking decent as is now
Plus his 11,500m is not good idea
Now if they wanna take Zub/Joseph and eat 4million of Karlsson cap I’m all in 😂
JOKING BY THE WAY lol

Pierre Dorion comments:

DJ Smith will be back. He was recommended to the board + new owner.

Free Agency - few things need to address (trade next few days will dictate what they do).

On DeBrincat: "We liked Alex when we traded for him. Last year approached the camp to talk extension. He wanted to see how Ottawa was. At end of this year, his camp said that free agency might be the only time in his career, they weren't ready to sign long term with us. We elected for arbitration and we've been having trade talks. He hasn't asked for a trade but we need to do what's best for the organization."

Q-offers: Sokolov, JBD, Pinto, Brannstrom, Mandelose
No QO: Gauthier, Gambrell (thank god), Lodin

*Doesn't sound like Dorion will have a 1st rounder tomorrow. Therefore roster players to help the team with playoff push is what is most likely

Pierre Dorion comments:

DJ Smith will be back. He was recommended to the board + new owner.

Well that's exceptionally unfortunate.




Free Agency - few things need to address (trade next few days will dictate what they do).

On DeBrincat: "We liked Alex when we traded for him. Last year approached the camp to talk extension. He wanted to see how Ottawa was. At end of this year, his camp said that free agency might be the only time in his career, they weren't ready to sign long term with us. We elected for arbitration and we've been having trade talks. He hasn't asked for a trade but we need to do what's best for the organization."

sounds completely accurate

Q-offers: Sokolov, JBD, Pinto, Brannstrom, Mandelose
No QO: Gauthier, Gambrell (thank god), Lodin

agree with all of these

*Doesn't sound like Dorion will have a 1st rounder tomorrow. Therefore roster players to help the team with playoff push is what is most likely

All the talk about Karlsson with Chabot going back to SJS is ridiculous.

Chabot is a top pairing D-man, he just needs to play less mins. Karlsson will be turning 34 in May.
- AlfieisKing

Some people will react badly to this trade idea, because the Chabot issue is very polarizing. Personally, I think there's actually quite a clear rationale to this move, even if it's relatively unlikely to manifest.

Role Perspective
Even the biggest Chabot supporters would have to admit that he's largely failed to realize the offensive upside he showed early in his career. The past 4 seasons have established a functional offensive ceiling of ~50pts, which is not exactly top-tier among NHL d-men. Plus, there are still major deficiencies in Chabot's defensive game, to the extent that it's generally acknowledged that he's less effective in his own zone than any of Chychrun, Zub, or Sanderson. I'm not suggesting that Chabot is bad, but any time a player is earning $8.0M/yr you have to apply a critical lens... especially when you consider what the likes of Tkachuk/Stutzle bring to the table for the same AAV.

As for Karlsson, there are certainly known deficiencies to his defensive game, but he's still among the best in the game with the puck on his stick. Last year (finally) showed what he can do when played as a clear-cut #1 offensive d-man, and he immediately returned to Norris Trophy-form. And for those who question Karlsson's health/durability, it's worth noting that Chabot has actually missed more games than Karlsson over the past 3 years to injury, while Karlsson outproduced Chabot by over 35%. Projected over a 82GP season, the margin between them is roughly 67pts vs. 49pts.

AAV/$$$ Perspective
There's no GM in the NHL that would take on the full contract that Karlsson signed, but it's widely known that SJ is willing to retain a certain amount of salary. If we assume the Sharks would accept 30% retention, it would reduce the AAV of Karlsson's deal from $11.5M down to $8.1M, which is effectively on par with Chabot's deal. And if you look at the actual $$$ payout over the remaining term of each deal, it makes the Karlsson deal considerably more affordable in real dollars. That could make a significant difference in terms of UFA options, or for the structure of a long-term deal for Sanderson.

Chabot ($8.0M AAV) - 8.0, 10.0, 10.0, 10.0, 8.0 ($9.2M/yr)
Karlsson-70% ($8.1M AAV) - 8.1, 7.7, 6.3, 5.3 ($6.9M/yr)

New Blue Line Structure
Despite being a near-constant point of contention, the 2022/23 season effectively re-defined the Senators' blue line. At this time last year, there was no clear sense of how well Sanderson would adjust to the NHL, the Chychrun trade was still a matter of pure speculation, and there was no guarantee that Zub would sign an extension. But with all three of those major blueline pieces in place, it effectively re-defines Chabot's primary role going forward as the offensive d-man. And in that role, Karlsson is just undeniably more productive, has the benefit of being a natural RHD shot, is potentially available at a discount, and has all kinds of strong connections to the team.

I'll reiterate that it may be unlikely to actually happen, but people who dismiss the idea out of hand are doing so at their peril.

I like Karlsson. I like the talks with him coming back. BUT.... seeing him play in SJ (catching some games) - before last year he was HORRIBLE in his own end. I didn't watch him enough this year. What he did this past year is absolutely incredible. To score 101 points as a DMAN. On a garbage team. It's nuts.

With that said, moving Chabot is not logical. Take away the contract. If he's making 1-1.5M less, and playing on a GOOD team (not leading the NHL in ice time and playing on a horrible team) mentally he will check back into what he was in 2018-2019

I like Karlsson. I like the talks with him coming back. BUT.... seeing him play in SJ (catching some games) - before last year he was HORRIBLE in his own end. I didn't watch him enough this year. What he did this past year is absolutely incredible. To score 101 points as a DMAN. On a garbage team. It's nuts.

With that said, moving Chabot is not logical. Take away the contract. If he's making 1-1.5M less, and playing on a GOOD team (not leading the NHL in ice time and playing on a horrible team) mentally he will check back into what he was in 2018-2019
- AlfieisKing

Sorry, but this is exactly the kind of rhetoric I just can't buy into anymore regarding Chabot. There are essentially 3 primary myths...

1. "He plays too many minutes"
Maybe in the dark depths of the rebuild I can believe that, especially when there really wasn't much blueline support. However, in his best season (18/19) he put up 55pts (39pts at ES) in 24:17 of ice time. Last year, he put up 41pts (21pts at ES) in 24:58 of ice time, which is his 2nd worst year of production since 18/19 despite having the lowest ice time of any of the past 4 years. Not to mention that Karlsson just had his best season in years while playing on a terrible team with virtually no support (i.e. more ice time/role actually made him far more productive).

2. "He's been playing on a terrible team"
Okay, but this was equally true in 18/19, when he managed to score 55pts. In fact, the 18/19 team was the 2nd worst season of the past 5yrs in terms of actual win/loss record. There's also little dispute that the 22/23 team was the best of the past 5yrs in terms of win/loss record and quality of supporting cast... and it did absolutely nothing to improve Chabot's offensive numbers. In fact, his production was down last year from both 20/21 and 21/22, when the team was bottom-10 in the NHL.

3. "His contract is only a minor over-payment"
Right, but the relative value of contracts is quite literally the most important criteria for NHL team evaluation right now. When the Senators signed him to $8.0Mx8yrs, I'm quite sure they didn't expect a 15pts regression in his offensive output, in addition to settling in as the least reliable defensive player of the team's top-4D. And even if his contract isn't objectively far off of an NHL benchmark, it still doesn't make it good value to the team.

There is quite simply no evidence whatsoever to suggest that Chabot would magically become anything more than a 50pts d-man anywhere in the NHL, and just claiming it would be the case based on nothing doesn't change that. And as much as I 100% fully appreciate the importance of that Chabot contract at the time it was signed in terms of laying the foundation for the team's overall rebuild, it doesn't necessarily make it acceptable value in 22/23, or any of the next 5 years. As GM you have to constantly re-evaluate your team, and personally I don't think there's been a time in Chabot's career where his relative value to the team has been lower.

So Karlsson wins the Norris and scores 101 points on the season. However, somehow he finished at -26 on a +/- basis. Stop and consider that for a moment. He was on the ice for 127 goals against San Jose. On a bad day, I don't think Chabot is that bad. And this is now Tkachuck/Giroux/Chabot/etc team. The structure and interactions are nowhere near what it was like when Karlsson was Captain. Karlsson would have to be taking a backseat here. Can he? I just think the team dynamics would experience too much disruption with his addition.

Not averse to bringing EK65 back home personally. Would include Chabot in the deal only because we have a logjam at LD right now and he's the least cost-effective option.
Would only do that with the caveat that SJS eat the full half of EK's salary. Chychrun, Sanderson, bring back Brannstrom to be third line LD and pair him with one of the kids who never get to play (JBD).
Chychrun - Zub
Sandman - EK
Brannstrom - Ham/JBD

Yes EK is 35, but he's a bonafide star who loves this city, and he'd be a killer mentor for Sanderson. Under 6M, rock and roll. Any more than that, no thanks. SJS likely doesn't do that because it adds cap rather than subtracts, but maybe Chabot's potential is enough to make it worth it. Who knows, but I wouldn't say it's out of the realm of possibility.

I would only pair Karlsson with Zub. He needs a solid defensive d-man to make his defensive liabilities livable. Chychrun with Sanderson as a pair.

Other issue is size. Karlsson is only 6 ft tall. To me, that means we would have to deal Brannstrom and bring in meaner and bigger 3rd pairing d-man to play with Bernard-Docker.

All of this, to me, makes the Karlsson trade dicey with all the turnover necessary.

Mackenzie Blackwood traded to the Sharks for only a 6th.

Sens should have been in on that at least?

Such a low cost....

Mackenzie Blackwood traded to the Sharks for only a 6th.

Sens should have been in on that at least?

Such a low cost....
- GrimmdaGoalie

I agree with this - but would NJD deal the goalie within the conference? Maybe that was not something they would do

I know I am in the minority in craving a deal for PLD. I would even go to $10m on the offer if you could make it happen. Having PLD play behind Stutzle on the 2nd line would make the Sens a powerful foe in the playoffs.

Now, when you raise the possibility of both PLD and Tom Wilson dressing for the Sens, my heart flutters with joy.
- spatso

PLD traded to the Kings for Vilardi, Iafallo, Kupari, and a 2nd-2024. Guess it's all on Wilson now.
https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/wi...tract-extension-1.1978046

Sorry, but this is exactly the kind of rhetoric I just can't buy into anymore regarding Chabot. There are essentially 3 primary myths...

1. "He plays too many minutes"
Maybe in the dark depths of the rebuild I can believe that, especially when there really wasn't much blueline support.

2. "He's been playing on a terrible team"
Okay, but this was equally true in 18/19, when he managed to score 55pts. In fact, the 18/19 team was the 2nd worst season of the past 5yrs in terms of actual win/loss record. There's also little dispute that the 22/23 team was the best of the past 5yrs in terms of win/loss record and quality of supporting cast... and it did absolutely nothing to improve Chabot's offensive numbers. In fact, his production was down last year from both 20/21 and 21/22, when the team was bottom-10 in the NHL.

3. "His contract is only a minor over-payment"
Right, but the relative value of contracts is quite literally the most important criteria for NHL team evaluation right now. When the Senators signed him to $8.0Mx8yrs, I'm quite sure they didn't expect a 15pts regression in his offensive output, in addition to settling in as the least reliable defensive player of the team's top-4D. And even if his contract isn't objectively far off of an NHL benchmark, it still doesn't make it good value to the team.

There is quite simply no evidence whatsoever to suggest that Chabot would magically become anything more than a 50pts d-man anywhere in the NHL, and just claiming it would be the case based on nothing doesn't change that. And as much as I 100% fully appreciate the importance of that Chabot contract at the time it was signed in terms of laying the foundation for the team's overall rebuild, it doesn't necessarily make it acceptable value in 22/23, or any of the next 5 years. As GM you have to constantly re-evaluate your team, and personally I don't think there's been a time in Chabot's career where his relative value to the team has been lower.
- khawk

I understand your POV.

Point 1: Yes. He has been through the sh*t. Playing against the top players and playing tons of minutes. Can you imagine Chris Phillips or Wade Redden playing in that role? Chabot is supposed to be better, but those D-men would get chewed up too. I don't think people appreciate what he went through during these years.

Since 2018-2019:
2019-2020 - Chabot played the most mins per game AND total in NHL
2020-2021 - Chabot was 2nd in mins per game behind only Drew Doughty
2021-2022 - Chabot basically had the top mins per game in the NHL (with Seth Jones who played 1 more second per game)

Point 2: Yes Chabot had a bad year (relative to his contract and what he is expected to do). Offensively is not the problem for me. I'll take 40 points +10 over 60 points and -20. It's the combination of being a YOUNG D-MAN + being on a very poor team. Victor Hedman was almost at 500 GP before he had the season of above 55 points. Chabot has played 381. Let's see where he is at the end of next season - and (yes he has played on bad teams - he has never played a playoff game!) where Hedman went to the conf. finals in his second NHL season. Yes, Chabot isn't Hedman but how do you think Chabot would be on Tampa from 2015-2013, let's be honest? He might have a Norris.

Point 3: Your final paragraph I can completely understand. Again, I think we revisit this in a year and I think he will have a strong year if healthy. He needs to stop doing so much and get his mentality of using his skating and confidence in a much better way. Many many people acknowledge he can play a lot better than last year.