As was reported in various media outlets yesterday, Senators veteran blueliner Chris Phillips suffered a setback in recovering from his back surgery and will not be ready for training camp.
Although they will never say it publicly, the Sentators front office is probably breathing a little bit of a sigh of relief, because that news is a bit of a blessing in disguise as far as the roster is concerned.
There aren't many scenarios going around the sees Phillips being more than a spare part going forward to a younger blueline that will have more of a focus on speed and puck moving ability in its top 4. All signs point to the Big Rig starting the season on the DL, delaying what is probably a tough but inevitable conversation that will have to go on between management and the lifetime Senator.
What is tough news is that he is having trouble with day to day tasks in real life, which is something you don't wish on anybody. I know many of you will rejoice that he won't be occupying a spot on the 23 man roster, but I am sure you share my sentiment that wish him well in his recovery so he can lead a normal everyday life whether he can get back to the NHL or not.
From his perspective, Phillips stated the goal is to prove people who think he is finished wrong, and he still thinks he can contribute in the second half.
The news does open the door for a roster spot on the blueline, most likely for Chris Wideman who would have to pass through waivers to get sent down to the AHL. Frederik Claesson and possibly Mikael Wickstrand will also have something to say about that in training camp, and that should be one of the more interesting battles to watch on a roster that was pretty much set heading in.
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If you missed last night's post about 30 goal scorers followed by some Leaf fans trolling the message boards check it out at the link below.