Dorion has no choice but to play nice with Staios. I think this is a great hiring. Now we put the brakes on Dorion's total control over Senator operations (from a personnel point of view). Pierre McGuire was never the answer for this team. A reactive hire by Melnyk that was doomed for failure. Staios is Andlauer's guy and Dorion is going to have to learn to share info and power or he is the first out the door. I also feel this is good as we will have Staios as the 2nd eyes and ears for this team to prevent those trades of the past that Dorion blunders into .... Staios has a background in player development as well. We just need one more assistant GM for the Dorion/Bowness team to be filled.
Alfredsson is next I assume. I wonder where he will go? I'm just happy that Alfredsson did not get the Pres of Hockey Ops (no experience).

As for other's mentioning Sogaard in a trade. Why would Ottawa trade away their potential future #1 goalie? I really doubt that happens. I think Mandolese is the only goalie in the system they may trade away.
- OttawaB

Can somebody just please for the love of god hire somebody who can do some pro scouting?

It's all that's needed for this team to be a competitor.

Dorion has no choice but to play nice with Staios. I think this is a great hiring. Now we put the brakes on Dorion's total control over Senator operations (from a personnel point of view). Pierre McGuire was never the answer for this team. A reactive hire by Melnyk that was doomed for failure. Staios is Andlauer's guy and Dorion is going to have to learn to share info and power or he is the first out the door. I also feel this is good as we will have Staios as the 2nd eyes and ears for this team to prevent those trades of the past that Dorion blunders into .... Staios has a background in player development as well. We just need one more assistant GM for the Dorion/Bowness team to be filled.
Alfredsson is next I assume. I wonder where he will go? I'm just happy that Alfredsson did not get the Pres of Hockey Ops (no experience).

As for other's mentioning Sogaard in a trade. Why would Ottawa trade away their potential future #1 goalie? I really doubt that happens. I think Mandolese is the only goalie in the system they may trade away.
- OttawaB

No need to trade Soogard at all. Especially not to a division rival. Especially not to a team who the sens are trying to supplant to make the playoffs

Two Flyer scouts there last night.

To Ottawa: Oliver Bonk and (cap relief)
To Philly: Joseph, Brannstrom and the proverbial second.

no, not an overpay in fact Flyer fans would probably say no. Sens get cap relief. Room for Pinto. And the Bonk's still live in Ottawa so that works into typical Ottawa narrative of keeping things close to home with fathers and sons.


Another question. Seeing as how the victim involved in the 2018 WJC scandal settled(again) in August...is that that then? Will Formenton every play again? Are the other 3-5 main perpetrators ever going to see supplementary discipline from the NHL or anyone?
- Octavarium

Instead of the second, I think the flyers would take Boucher. And they may want only one of Branny and Jospeh. So maybe one of those two, Boucher and a 2nd.

I like how Branny showed up last year. I see the improvement. Seems well liked by his teammates. But to quote Get Shorty....hes too small. METE 2.0.

And you can replace him with JBD, Thomson et al.

Brannstrom is a tradeable asset though. Has value.

Best to wait to see how training camps progress around the leagues

No disrespect to Steve, the worst kept secret Staios.
So what.
We've been getting along reasonably well without a VP of hockey ops. Without Alfredson doing whatever people think he might do. My point is this just looks like spending money to spend it. What value do they bring to the table?

The pro-scouting angle...fine I agree with.

The drafting (other than Boucher) has been pretty good. The signings....win some lose some. Like any GM.

If you're bringing Steve in so he can hover above like Shannahan.....why? Is he an expensive sounding board between GM and owner? Did Dubbas need Lou, and Shanny to turn the Leafs into an excellent regular season team? Nope. I disagreed with some of what he did but the team was still performing and entertaining.

this coach....I swear.
Keeps putting Tarasenko on the left.
Once again playing the "watch this, i know better" card.

To quote Brad Pitt from Money Ball......"you don't".

It's like everyone sitting at home watching the Blue Jays. How is it that WE ALL KNOW if you bring Romano in in the 8th, or in a tie, or even if they're losing-----he'll screw it up. And they lose. Guaranteed. (Schneider) You can ONLY bring him in in the 9th, when you're winning, and even then it's a poop show....a double a walk a strike out a razor thin double play--save.
- Octavarium

While I generally agree that Smith can be frustrating, for me it's more about when players are on the ice (e.g. the 4th line trying to defend a 3rd period lead) vs. what side of the ice they're playing on. As for Tarasenko, I'm inclined to disagree with you for three major reasons:

1) Tarasenko is a natural LH shot, while Batherson is a natural RH shot... so you're dealing with the position favouring one player's natural shot vs. one player's general preference.

2) Batherson was dealt a complete $hit sandwich last year in terms of being moved off the top line, losing his natural C, and being part of one of the worst goal differential lines in the entire NHL. It might not be the worst idea to rebuild some of his confidence at his natural position, instead of moving him around again.

3) Tarasenko is the veteran here... like Giroux & Hamonic have done, the mindset needs to be to show some leadership and do what's best for the team's success. They really don't need this kind of drama from new players who claim they want to be part of this team.

Will be very interesting to see if guys like Ty Smith (PIT) or Xavier Ouellet (PIT) get picked from waivers. It could speak to both the potential trade market out there, as well as the likelihood of OTT being able to sneak players like Thomson or maybe even Bernard-Docker through waivers if they really start trying to get creative with the waiver/cap situation.

No disrespect to Steve, the worst kept secret Staios.
So what.
We've been getting along reasonably well without a VP of hockey ops. Without Alfredson doing whatever people think he might do. My point is this just looks like spending money to spend it. What value do they bring to the table?

The pro-scouting angle...fine I agree with.

The drafting (other than Boucher) has been pretty good. The signings....win some lose some. Like any GM.

If you're bringing Steve in so he can hover above like Shannahan.....why? Is he an expensive sounding board between GM and owner? Did Dubbas need Lou, and Shanny to turn the Leafs into an excellent regular season team? Nope. I disagreed with some of what he did but the team was still performing and entertaining.
- Octavarium

You should be clear here. Shanahan was brought in first. Babcock was hired and the Leafs brought in Lou to handle Babcock. Then Lou was released and Dubas made defacto GM (promoted from assistant GM). Make the argument all you want but having more then 1 voice at the trading table is helpful and necessary. Staios has been around the league and is very familiar with the game today. Dorion only has experience in and around the Ottawa Senator universe. Plus it will be Staios's job to flesh out the rest of the hockey ops including hiring of scouts, fleshing out the analytics department, and then generally figuring out how the whole operation works together.
Dorion as GM could not do all of that in today's NHL, and manage the team make-up, and make trades and assimilate data to make the decisions. Often times Dorion would try to go on brief scouting trips ..... you can't make brief little trips and hope to soak in all you need in a game or 2.

Staios just means this organiztion is getting bigger and stronger. More to come i do believe. Love it.

You should be clear here. Shanahan was brought in first. Babcock was hired and the Leafs brought in Lou to handle Babcock. Then Lou was released and Dubas made defacto GM (promoted from assistant GM). Make the argument all you want but having more then 1 voice at the trading table is helpful and necessary. Staios has been around the league and is very familiar with the game today. Dorion only has experience in and around the Ottawa Senator universe. Plus it will be Staios's job to flesh out the rest of the hockey ops including hiring of scouts, fleshing out the analytics department, and then generally figuring out how the whole operation works together.
Dorion as GM could not do all of that in today's NHL, and manage the team make-up, and make trades and assimilate data to make the decisions. Often times Dorion would try to go on brief scouting trips ..... you can't make brief little trips and hope to soak in all you need in a game or 2.
- OttawaB

The rationale behind hiring Staios is pretty straightforward. He's buddies with Andlauer, and Andlauer trusts him. That's it - end of story. Andlauer has opted to not rock the boat by keeping the incumbents, but he doesn't trust them and wants his own sheriff in town. Staios in there slides into the GM AND PoHO roles whenever Dorion slips up badly enough to get the axe. PD is on borrowed time, but then again, so is nearly every GM in the league. MLSE kept Shanahan over Dubas - clearly they like him despite the fact he almost never speaks to the media, so genpop has zero clue what he does other than look like a sad alcoholic basset hound in an expensive suit. While I would agree the PoHO role is nebulous in the best of times, in this case it absolutely makes sense for a new owner who just spend a billion dollars to have his trusted guy in the room, irrespective if that guy is actually good at the job.

All to say - let's not be so quick to gripe about how our new owner chooses to spend his money in the front office. The point is he's spending money, and that's a real novelty around these parts.

Now hiring Alfie on the other hand... I love the guy, he's a legend. But he's a poor communicator with a wooden personality - if he's hired he's really just a figurehead to sell tickets, but I suspect he'd be mediocre at doing even that basic task. Honour him, venerate him, but hiring him to do hockey work? Maybe he could head up the Sens Foundation? That kind of role that makes sense.

I wouldn't go dismissing Alfredsson out of hand for virtually any role, based on a crude interpretation of his personality. In addition to being the 5th-longest serving captain in NHL history, he was also a VP of the NHL Players Association, and is the only European player to have won both the King Clancy and Mark Messier leadership awards. His potential value to the organization extends well beyond name recognition, and I would be surprised if he wasn't offered a very prominent role with the team in the relatively near future.

As per Dave Poulin on TSN .......... Sens and Sharks talking trade. Rumour is Joseph and Thomson to San Jose. If this is accurate ..... make that trade NOW. NOW. NOW.

As per Dave Poulin on TSN .......... Sens and Sharks talking trade. Rumour is Joseph and Thomson to San Jose. If this is accurate ..... make that trade NOW. NOW. NOW.
- OttawaB

seems sens put LASSI THOMPSON on waivers, so he cant be part of trade, someone will claim him for sure

seems sens put LASSI THOMPSON on waivers, so he cant be part of trade, someone will claim him for sure
- Mithos

It's certainly possible that he might be claimed... however, that team would effectively need to have the intention of playing Thomson in the NHL to start the season. Otherwise, they'll just have to go through the waivers process, at which time OTT or another team could claim him. Plus, it's worth noting that Ty Smith just cleared waivers for PIT, and he's a former 1st round pick D-man on a very affordable contract with 47pts in 123GP in the NHL. You'd think that any team that really wanted to add a young puck-moving D-man who's NHL-ready should have gone after Ty Smith.

Not to mention that going the waiver route while most NHL teams have a lot of potential options in camp is a strategy that other GM have used with higher-risk waiver moves. Essentially, you take the gamble when other teams still have a number of potential affordable depth players in training camp that they aren't quite ready to give up on yet. Plus, I'd add that putting him on waivers does not exclude him from trade consideration. It could just mean the team is interested in having Thomson play for them in the AHL vs. NHL, and want him to have already cleared waivers so they can demote him without risk.

Been liking Jarventie so far. He definitely needs at least one year in Belleville, but will be a fun prospect to watch this year.

I've read that Smejkal's been good too, but he also may need more time in Belleville / be pushed down just by numbers.

It's certainly possible that he might be claimed... however, that team would effectively need to have the intention of playing Thomson in the NHL to start the season. Otherwise, they'll just have to go through the waivers process, at which time OTT or another team could claim him. Plus, it's worth noting that Ty Smith just cleared waivers for PIT, and he's a former 1st round pick D-man on a very affordable contract with 47pts in 123GP in the NHL. You'd think that any team that really wanted to add a young puck-moving D-man who's NHL-ready should have gone after Ty Smith.

Not to mention that going the waiver route while most NHL teams have a lot of potential options in camp is a strategy that other GM have used with higher-risk waiver moves. Essentially, you take the gamble when other teams still have a number of potential affordable depth players in training camp that they aren't quite ready to give up on yet. Plus, I'd add that putting him on waivers does not exclude him from trade consideration. It could just mean the team is interested in having Thomson play for them in the AHL vs. NHL, and want him to have already cleared waivers so they can demote him without risk.
- khawk

^^^^this is the most insightful thing I've ever read in this forum^^^^

The Senators beat the Jets 3-1 on Friday night on home ice, which improved their preseason record to 3-1-0. The outcome wasn't entirely surprising, given that OTT had their best preseason lineup on the ice, while WPG had a lineup that included few of their high-end players.

Highlights of the game can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLx95remIlk&t=312s

Jarventie opened the scoring with a sneaky shot off the rush, and Giroux scored the GWG late in the 2nd period on a very nice back-hand roof shot in-close. Tarasenko added an EN goal late in the 3rd period off of a selfless pass from Stutzle, which led to the two of them sharing a nice moment and smile together. This was the first game that all of Chabot, Sanderson, Chychrun, and Zub played together, and they all played between 20min-23min. That should end the absurd chatter in the Leaf-centric media about Senators d-men playing too many minutes in the preseason.

A few additional thoughts...
- Tkachuk missed the game with a nasty facial cut suffered in practice
- Kastelic/MacEwan seem destined for the 4th line... hopefully without Kelly
- Merilainen/Mandolese played well, despite a few goal-mouth scrambles
- Thomson was put on waivers yesterday, and will no doubt draw interest
- Heatherington, Pilon, and Currie were also waived, are are likely AHL-bound

I'm not so sure that a team may claim Lassi Thomson off waivers. That would mean that that team must keep him on their NHL roster for the full year. Not sure that Thomson is ready for full NHL exposure.

I believe the Senators want him to clear waivers so that they can include him as part of a trade. The team they trade him to (let's say San Jose), can then move him to their AHL affiliate and/or keep him on their NHL roster (can move back and forth). If the Sens just outright traded Thomson to San Jose, then the Sharks would have to keep him on their NHL roster or risk losing him if they placed him on waivers.

So I guess we will see if he clears this evening (24 hours later) and see if a trade comes to fruition either tonight or tomorrow.

I would suspect that if Thomson were claimed off waivers that a Plan B would come into effect ( a new player as the sweetener).

There were 5 more players sent to the AHL on Saturday - Crookshank, Daoust, Sebrango, Toure, and Merilainen. None of these players are at risk of a waiver claim, so they'll all be playing in the AHL this season. The newcomer in that groups is Djibril Toure, who is a 6'7-200lbs RHD who was recently signed from the OHL.

https://www.hockeydb.com/...s/pdisplay.php?pid=247215

No word yet on whether Lassi Thomson cleared waivers, but we'll know soon enough.

There were 5 more players sent to the AHL on Saturday - Crookshank, Daoust, Sebrango, Toure, and Merilainen. None of these players are at risk of a waiver claim, so they'll all be playing in the AHL this season. The newcomer in that groups is Djibril Toure, who is a 6'7-200lbs RHD who was recently signed from the OHL.

https://www.hockeydb.com/...s/pdisplay.php?pid=247215

No word yet on whether Lassi Thomson cleared waivers, but we'll know soon enough.
- khawk

Ducks claimed him.

Ducks claimed him.
- Ratsreign

Too bad, but there was really no room for him on the team's roster. The signing of Hamonic sealed that fate where he was going to need to clear waivers. One of the issues that all teams run into as they improve and take steps forward. There is not enough room for everyone.

I suspect that the Sens did try to trade him, but teams know the Sens are in a position where they will need to use waivers on guys like Thompson ..... so they just wait and not spend trade capital.

A curious move by Anaheim. They now have 8 d-men on the roster, NOT including Drysdale who remains an unsigned RFA.

I hope the best for Lassi. Every year he looks awful in preseason games. He was even worse this year. Just looked lost all the time.

safe to say the Duchene trades by OTT are among the worst trades in NHL history now, nothing to show

Bit surprised that ANA claimed Thomson, but whatever. Even if he makes the NHL it's not likely to be more that a 6D/7D. And it's clear that Kleven, JBD and even Matinpalo are well ahead of him on the depth chart. Wish him all the best in ANA, but it clearly wasn't working out in OTT.

Gotta give a player ice time to see what you've got. Maybe Lassi'll finally get that privilege in Anaheim. Not the finest asset management here, though Anaheim is flush with RD - Ty Smith would've made a heckuvah lot more sense.