2018 has been quite the eventful year for the Senators. I could do a year in review, although that would be such a long piece and there would simply be too much to cover. I do want to look back on a few things throughout the year though, which is why I’ll be splitting it up into two blogs. For today, I’ll be looking at the five best things regarding the Senators in 2018. Then before the new year, I’ll also be looking at the five worst things. Obviously, it was a lot easier to find bad things, but I think it’s still fun to look at both sides of the coin.
So here are the five best developments from 2018:
1. Thomas Chabot becoming elite
This is by far the most encouraging sign for the team moving forward. We don’t want to dwell too much on the departure of Erik Karlsson, although it’s impossible not to talk about it. With him leaving, it was going to be very hard to replace him right away. However, Chabot is at least doing his best to be something close.
No, he isn’t anywhere near peak-Karlsson and he has only been doing this for half a season, but Chabot has an incredible 37 points in 37 games. He will turn 22 in January and has a shot to get 70 or even 80 points on the season. You know what age Karlsson was when he exploded with 78 points and got his first Norris trophy? 22. There are some similarities in their games, although Chabot still needs to work on the defensive side of things.
Nevertheless, he has been electric everywhere on the ice, and whatever defensive deficiencies he has are more than compensated for with his offensive ability. I didn’t think Ottawa would be able to find a first pairing defenseman (especially not a #1) so quickly, but Chabot looks like the real deal. Drafting him at 18th in 2015 was an absolute steal. 2. Brady Tkachuk making an immediate impact
Tkachuk was an extremely polarizing prospect before he even got drafted. Many Senators fans (myself included) were disappointed with the selection of Tkachuk over Filip Zadina, as Brady seemed like the safe choice with not much upside. I still believe Zadina is going to be a very good player, but with Tkachuk being a legitimately great NHL player in his rookie season makes me not care about that too much.
Despite going through a recent cold streak, he still has 18 points in 26 games, which would put him on pace for 57 points in a full season. As a 19-year-old, that is incredibly impressive. Sure, he has been playing with Mark Stone for a long portion of the season, but he has been a part of that success between the two of them as well. His ability to get to the front of the net and wreak havoc is unmatched, and he adds a different dimension to the Senators offense.
He ranks 8th in the entire league in individual high-danger scoring chances per 60, meaning that he is amongst the best in the league at getting scoring chances very close to the net. The math adds up, as he’s almost always parked in front of the opposing goaltender. Tkachuk is already a solid top-six player, and you could make the argument that he’s even a first liner. Plus it’d be reasonable to expect some more growth in his game, so there’s a real possibility that he becomes a 60+ point player, which did not seem like a shoo-in in the past.
3. Derick Brassard trade to Pittsburgh
This is one of a handful of good trades that Pierre Dorion has ever made. Brassard had an interesting tenure in Ottawa. For starters, it was a bad move to get rid of Mika Zibanejad just to essentially acquire an older and slightly worse version of him, so it was odd having him in the first place. But once he got to Ottawa, I felt that I simultaneously had to defend him but also critique him because he was both underrated by some and overrated by others.
The trade that sent him to Pittsburgh was the first of many that essentially began the tear down, although even if they had kept Mike Hoffman and Erik Karlsson, it might not have been a bad thing to move on from Brassard. When all was said and done with two deals being finalized, Ottawa moved Brassard and a 3rd and acquired Filip Gustavsson, a 1st (which turned into Jacob-Bernard Docker), a 3rd, and Nick Moutrey (who is no longer in Belleville).
Gustavsson is a solid goalie prospect, although he is struggling right now in Belleville. Bernard-Docker (JBD) has been phenomenal so far at UND, as he has been amongst the highest scoring freshmen in the NCAA as a defenseman. Getting those two prospects (plus a later 3rd) is certainly significant. Meanwhile, Brassard has just 17 points in 41 games across two seasons with the Penguins. He’s capable of being better than that, but if the 31-year-old is on the slow decline, the Senators definitely got a solid return for him. Considering what Ottawa got back in other trades, this one looks even better.
4. Farm system looking stronger than ever
The farm system is finally fully replenished, with a lot of young talent either in the NHL or on the cusp of making it. One reason why is because of trades like the Brassard one, plus the Karlsson trade as well. Since many rookies have played in games this season, who counts as a “prospect… right now has drastically changed, so technically the Senators farm system ranking would be quite low after the graduation of Chabot, White, Lajoie, Tkachuk, Jaros, and potentially even more. However, those semantics don’t matter, as the main point is that the organization has a plethora of young talent.
Amongst these young players you can include the aforementioned five, plus Logan Brown, Rudolfs Balcers, Filip Gustavsson, Josh Norris, Christian Wolanin, Drake Batherson, Filip Chlapik, Marcus Hogberg, JBD, Johnny Tychonick, and Alex Formenton. I wouldn’t say that it is quite an elite group when you compare it to the cream of the crop, but there is still a lot to be excited about with their top 10-15 prospects. Previous seasons had looked pretty bare, especially in the years following the dreadful 2012-14 drafts, but they have finally overcome that.
Not all of these players are going to pan out, but the sheer volume means that it’s more likely that a decent amount of them will be NHL players. In fact, we’ve already seen that some of them like Chabot, White, and Tkachuk have proven themselves. Prospects provide hope, and there are plenty of prospects in Ottawa.
5. Sens Twitter being a reprieve from real life
This isn’t something that the team has done, but it’s been a positive this year nonetheless. I feel like the Senators Twitter community really stepped it up this past year with their content, and not only has it been funnier than ever, it has also been a great place to mourn about the state of the organization together. Especially as someone who lives all the way out on the West coast, there aren’t many Senators fans I get to interact with in person and the only way to vent frustration is through Twitter.
By having that community of people usually thinking along the same lines, it’s easier to handle the frustration surrounding the team. We could all be laughing at bRian5or6’s periscope rants or making jokes about Eugene Melnyk, and there has been a stronger sense of togetherness amongst most people. Speaking of bRian5or6, it still amazes me that Hotsam Batcho started with him and it was even said by Dean Brown on the radio after a Chabot goal back in March. Chabot loves the name and “bRian’s… shirts have been a hit with the entire team, which just shows the power of Sens Twitter:
Huge interest in my #HOTSAMBATCHO merchandise....I wonder why 🤔 pic.twitter.com/zz9t0CrZHf
— Ben Milks (@brian5or6) October 7, 2018
There are still some who like to be divisive and controversial, but for the most part, I feel like every fan has been supportive and made it entertaining rather than depressing to follow the Senators. So for that, I thank every person that considers themselves a part of Sens Twitter.
What else would you consider as the best parts about 2018 regarding the Ottawa Senators?