After having probably his best season as a pro, Erik Karlsson had surgery to the foot that was injured late in the season and aggravated during the playoffs, and he admitted yesterday that he might not be ready for opening night.
While having Karlsson in the lineup is of paramount importance, having him at 100% for the long haul is even more vital to the potential success of the Senators, as he is the straw that stirs the drink, and any aspirations they have will be dependent on his having another Norris level season.
However, if he is going to miss time, it is probably better for him to do so at the beginning of the season, and the silver lining might just be that the Senators can find out very quickly if top prospect Thomas Chabot is ready for prime time minutes or if he needs some seasoning.
With the swap of Marc Methot for Johnny Oduya being the only significant move on the blue line, the Senators seem to be expecting big things from their prized asset, but it is still a big leap from being a dominant junior to being a top 4 NHL defenseman. He was no doubt going to be given a huge opportunity to step up anyway, but now that Karlsson will likely miss the entire pre-season and likely the opening of the real season (there is no timeline in place for him to even begin skating yet), there will be that much more spotlight for Chabot to step into, and the Senators management can get a glimpse of where he is really at in his development.