The other day when Marian Hossa was traded, I began reminiscing about how things would have gone differently if he was never traded for Dany Heatley. And then that made me think...what other Senators players do I miss? There are a few that immediately come to mind, and here is that list:
Clarke MacArthur
MacArthur is the best free agent signing in Senators history. His two-year contract had a measly cap hit of $3.25M, and he averaged 53 points per 82 games in those first two years in Ottawa. It’s unfortunate that his contract extension didn’t work out, as he ended up playing just 8 regular season games from 2015-2017, although he at least did get to be apart of the 2017 playoff run for 19 games.
Seeing him score this massive goal will always give me goosebumps:
Clarke seemed like a great teammate, and he was a perfect winger who could play anywhere in the lineup. When he came back last year he instantly made the lineup that much deeper, and the Senators have sorely missed that. I sincerely hope he is healthy moving forward, because nothing is more important than his brain health. Concussions are no joke, and it’s awful that they cost him some successful seasons in Ottawa (and hopefully nothing else).
Jason Spezza
Spezza had a pretty terrible season this past year with just 26 points in 78 games, but the three previous years in Dallas were still solid. At the age of 35, I’m not sure if he’ll be able to bounce-back to the 60 point player that he previously was in Dallas, but that’s not the point here. The point is that Spezza was incredibly good in Ottawa, and people forget that he was a point per game player in 686 games (687 points).
He certainly had his fair share of injury problems, but when he was healthy he was the most talented player on the team until Erik Karlsson showed up. He was my favourite player as a child, and I miss having that automatic first line centre presence in the lineup. You just knew that he was going to be putting up around a point per game, and I feel like we took that for granted.
Matt Duchene is a fantastic player, but he’s no prime Jason Spezza.
Marian Hossa
Like I said, Hossa gave me inspiration for this article. I remember for the first few years after the Hossa for Heatley trade thinking that Ottawa had won the deal, but in the years that followed it became blatantly obvious that moving Hossa was a massive mistake.
I was quite young when Hossa was still a Senator, but I do have some memories of him. Obviously he isn’t playing anymore, but he was able to be a consistent top-six winger for 12 years after leaving Ottawa. And realistically, he was an elite first line winger for 10 of them. If the Senators had kept Hossa they wouldn’t have acquired Milan Michalek who was decent for them, so it’s not as if they received nothing of value in the trade tree after seeing Heatley plummet. However, upgrading from Michalek to Hossa over the past 12 years would have still been a big help.
Ottawa might not have been as good in 2007 with Hossa instead of Heatley, but he sure would’ve made the team a lot better in the years after. It really stings seeing him become a Hall of Fame player later in his career.
Mika Zibanejad
I will never understand the trade that sent Zibanejad away for Derick Brassard, and it is especially maddening since Brassard was shipped away not even two years later. Yes, Ottawa was at least able to get Filip Gustavsson and some picks in return, but they gave up Zibanejad for no real reason.
He has been the better centre of the two since the trade, and although Zibanejad is making $5.35M compared to $3M, Brassard is a UFA next summer so their salaries will end up being similar anyway. The Senators went from having a 50 point 23-year-old centre, to a 50 point 29-year-old centre, to prospects/lottery tickets instead of an established product.
Zibanejad got the “inconsistent” label put on him, which was partially fair but also a tad extreme. He was a solid player who had been increasing his point totals every single season, and I was excited to see a top draft pick blossom before our eyes. I also just miss having more Swedes on the team. This moment did not happen while in a Senators jersey, although I do remember being so happy that a Senators prospect scored the “golden goal:”
Kyle Turris
Turris was incredibly underpaid during his time as a Senator, and he was nothing but gracious as a leader on and off the ice. He was able to take over the first line centre duties once Spezza was traded, and obviously it was hard to replace that production, but he proved that he was capable of being a 60 point player.
His role with the Capital City Condors will forever have him in my good books, because him and his wife Julie’s commitment to the team is incredible, as even after being traded to Nashville they have come back to visit a few times. Turris came to Ottawa from Arizona looking for a fresh start, and he took advantage of that. I understand why it was going to be tough to keep him around, but it’s a tough pill to swallow considering how many clutch goals he had scored in his six year career as a Senator.
Here’s a clutch moment that I think of when Turris pops into my mind:
Fredrik Claesson
This one definitely mainly pertains to me, and if you have read any of my previous work you would know how much I loved Freddy Claesson’s personality. I still believe that he is a solid third pairing defenseman as well, but it’s also nice to have players on the team that you can root for due to who they are off the ice.
Claesson was always smiling and having fun, and you could tell that he was a player that lightened up the room. He hasn’t even played a game in a Rangers jersey yet, but I’m going to miss him.
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