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We draw to a close the Senators report cards (and I know some of you are applauding that fact) with a look at the last player on the list, winger Clarke MacArthur.
PRE-SEASON EXPECTATION
MacArthur and his chemistry with Kyle Turris was expected to carry over to the season and be a top 6 forward, likely on the top line. 20 goals was almost an expectation, as well as helping Turris assume the mantle of top line center.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED
The veteran pretty much did what he does. I have a friend who is a Leafs fan, and when he signed in Ottawa my friend pretty much said, "he will get you 20-25 goals at the end of the season regardless of how or when he gets them". That stuck with me at the time and that kind of holds true.
MacArthur had 7 goals in his first 12 games, but then had just 1 in his next 16. He also had another stretch of 13 games without a goal later on in the season. Still, when the final numbers were in, he had 16 goals in 62 games, a 21 goal pace.
It was MacArthur colliding with Robin Lehner on a backcheck that ended Lehenr's season and introduced the world to Andrew Hammond. He missed almost 6 weeks himself, returning for the last 9 games. He was a key part of the Sens sprint to the finish after the club had got itself back into the race, and Mac closed out the season on a 7 game point streak, and recorded 10 points in the 9 games after he returned.
THE HARD STATS
THE FANCY STATS
THE "KEY" STATS
Like Turris, the added offensive pressure had an effect on his overall game, and his +/- rating went from a +12 last season to a -6 this year.
FUTURE OUTLOOK
MacArthur is signed for the long term, and is the type of player you need in a supporting cast. He works hard, seems to be well liked and isn't high-maintenance. On a contending team he would be a good second line player.
GRADE: MacArthur isn't totally consistent in terms of production from game to game, but at the end of the season you pretty much know what you are going to get from him and in many cases he is a stabilizing factor. B .
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As was announced yesterday, the Senators got one of their 5 restricted free agents signed to a deal. Jean-Gabriel Pageau inked a 2 year contract extension that will see him earn $700K next season and $1.1M the following year. The $900K cap hit is more than fair (I anticipated about $1.5M on Tuesday), and it also means that he will earn a decent qualifying offer after this contract is up, because it is based on the salary from the last year of the deal. That is a great signing at that price, and that is coming from a guy who wasn't completely sold on him heading into the season.
That was probably the easiest one to get done. The more challenging will be Stone, Hoffman and Zibanejad. Chiasson's shouldn't be too tough to wrap up either, because he simply doesn't have the numbers to warrant a big raise.
If you missed them, check out prior Report Cards: