Kevin Francis: What do you think of the Senators depth chart as it stands now?!

I am really curious about L Brown moving to wing.

Stutzle - Pinto - L Brown is a very inexperienced 2nd line but it could be fun to watch.

I am not sure we're playoff bound but we won't get the sh1t kicked out of us in a nightly basis either.

Let's hope Matt Murray is in 2016/17 form and if so then we are looking great.

Defence is still a liability but I hope that Brannstrom is given every opportunity to grab that 2nd pairing spot.

Most glaring hole is a true 1st line centre. But that has been beaten like a dead horse and most fans won't pay the price to get one, so leave that for the time being.

I think Egor Sokolov could make some noise to fill a void at right wing. This teams lacks true snipers and he appears to have the tools to be one. He's turning into one of my favourite prospects.

The defence is a pretty mixed bag but it's ok for now assuming younger guys trend in the right direction. I think one could be moved for a forward at some point.

I’d sign Bobby Ryan 1 year deal.

I also can’t fathom, Ottawa medical experts approval pending, how Ottawa isn’t a front runner for eichel. It’s your biggest need, you have an abundance of assets that can be enticing. It’s a perfect match.

Most glaring hole is a true 1st line centre. But that has been beaten like a dead horse and most fans won't pay the price to get one, so leave that for the time being.

I think Egor Sokolov could make some noise to fill a void at right wing. This teams lacks true snipers and he appears to have the tools to be one. He's turning into one of my favourite prospects.

The defence is a pretty mixed bag but it's ok for now assuming younger guys trend in the right direction. I think one could be moved for a forward at some point.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

Finally someone mentions sokolov he could be my new favourite player coming up 👌

I’d sign Bobby Ryan 1 year deal.

I also can’t fathom, Ottawa medical experts approval pending, how Ottawa isn’t a front runner for eichel. It’s your biggest need, you have an abundance of assets that can be enticing. It’s a perfect match.
- ChrisMS

There has been some compelling cases made as to why Eichel should be brought aboard.
If this was 1 year from now. I think the Sens would be all in on that move. They are still figuring out exactly what they have . I do think this is the last year before they start going big game hunting. However if they did add Eichel i think it would be a good move and perhaps a neccesary 1 if they have 1 eye on the future needs.

I’d sign Bobby Ryan 1 year deal.

I also can’t fathom, Ottawa medical experts approval pending, how Ottawa isn’t a front runner for eichel. It’s your biggest need, you have an abundance of assets that can be enticing. It’s a perfect match.
- ChrisMS

Great question. Sometimes the question is more important than the answer?

Why would Ottawa, LA, Anaheim, Canadiens and perhaps the Rangers not be bidding like crazy for Eichel? In Ottawa's case it is not about salary. With Ottawa absorbing all of Eichel's remaining salary, the combined total for their top 4 salaries would still be around $32m. (about 38% of cap). A very healthy balance for a top contender.

I think the bigger question is would Eichel make the Sens a Stanley Cup contender?

If not, what would be the reason for the Sens to chase that deal?

My guess is Dorion does not believe that Eichel would make them an elite contender.

I am not opposed to Eichel. But I would have the some concerns in regard to his rumoured negative influence on the dressing room. But we all know how winning changes dressing room attitudes very quickly.

My concerns are less about Eichel and more about the Sens fizzling as a result of their becoming to premature contenders. The fan base seems happy with their overall progress. If they deal for Eichel, I doubt the team could perform at the level to where fans' hopes would escalate.

Thought the Leafs did a great job in rebuilding through the draft. Leaf fans were genuinely and rightly exited for a really good young team. But Leaf management went off prematurely on their hopes a signed Tavares. Suddenly, overnight, the Leafs went from a young team contending for the playoffs to a disappointment incapable of living up to playoff hopes and expectations.

I am not opposed to Eichel. But I would have the some concerns in regard to his rumoured negative influence on the dressing room. But we all know how winning changes dressing room attitudes very quickly.

My concerns are less about Eichel and more about the Sens fizzling as a result of their becoming to premature contenders. The fan base seems happy with their overall progress. If they deal for Eichel, I doubt the team could perform at the level to where fans' hopes would escalate.

Thought the Leafs did a great job in rebuilding through the draft. Leaf fans were genuinely and rightly exited for a really good young team. But Leaf management went off prematurely on their hopes a signed Tavares. Suddenly, overnight, the Leafs went from a young team contending for the playoffs to a disappointment incapable of living up to playoff hopes and expectations.
- spatso

Toronto signed a forward in Tavares that was redundant to their lineup and the money could have been used to address other needs. Ottawa has a glaring hole at 1C and Eichel would fill that.

Eichel is also only 24 whereas Tavares was 28 or so at the time of the signing. Bigger window of opportunity.

Not entirely the same situation.

I went from wary of the Sens getting Eichel, to entertaining the idea, to now I really want the Sens to get Eichel on board. The only reason I could see that makes sense for the Sens not to get Eichel is if Eichel made it seem clear to Sens management that he would hate to play in Ottawa.

Other than that there is no other reason that I can see that would make him a bad get for Ottawa as even these rumors of being bad in the locker room would probably be cleared up by playing with great guys like Paul, Tkachuk and Chabot.

Also I've mentioned before but Buffalo hardly has any leverage. It would be a bad move of theirs to start the season with him in their lineup and all Ottawa has to do is outbid the other teams in on him and they are probably all going to be lowballing Buffalo.

Finally someone mentions sokolov he could be my new favourite player coming up 👌
- sens4life1971

The overage issue will hold him off prospect rankings for the time being, but he has shown tremendous improvement since being passed over in his first year of draft eligibility. That's what you want in a prospect. Constant improvement.

I went from wary of the Sens getting Eichel, to entertaining the idea, to now I really want the Sens to get Eichel on board. The only reason I could see that makes sense for the Sens not to get Eichel is if Eichel made it seem clear to Sens management that he would hate to play in Ottawa.

Other than that there is no other reason that I can see that would make him a bad get for Ottawa as even these rumors of being bad in the locker room would probably be cleared up by playing with great guys like Paul, Tkachuk and Chabot.

Also I've mentioned before but Buffalo hardly has any leverage. It would be a bad move of theirs to start the season with him in their lineup and all Ottawa has to do is outbid the other teams in on him and they are probably all going to be lowballing Buffalo.
- TDBSenatoR

I can only imagine he does not want to come to Ottawa due to ownership, but if Melnyk wants to show a commitment to winning, it would be a great move.

And as you mention, the perceived price to get him is dropping it seems but who knows what is actually going on behind closed doors. I assume a team wanting him will want him for training camp, so a few more weeks, we might get more news.

I am not opposed to Eichel. But I would have the some concerns in regard to his rumoured negative influence on the dressing room. But we all know how winning changes dressing room attitudes very quickly.

My concerns are less about Eichel and more about the Sens fizzling as a result of their becoming to premature contenders. The fan base seems happy with their overall progress. If they deal for Eichel, I doubt the team could perform at the level to where fans' hopes would escalate.

Thought the Leafs did a great job in rebuilding through the draft. Leaf fans were genuinely and rightly exited for a really good young team. But Leaf management went off prematurely on their hopes a signed Tavares. Suddenly, overnight, the Leafs went from a young team contending for the playoffs to a disappointment incapable of living up to playoff hopes and expectations.
- spatso

Prematurely? The leafs were too late. You gotta jump on star players during their elcs. Edmonton another example. Should have gone for it year 1-3 of mcdavid. Teams over play the rebuild and shoot right past their window as players start getting 2nd and 3rd contracts.

Defence has enough players/depth for the season and will allow for the development of JBD at Belleville.
Goaltending is set. With Murray, Forsberg and Gustavsson we should have goaltending that approaches league average. The big question is whether Murray can play above a 0.905 save percentage.
Left wing is set with Tkachuk, Stutzle, Formenton and Nick Paul.
Center and right wing is where we do not have enough quality NHL depth. Nick Paul should be moved to center to allow Pinto to develop in Belleville, as it seemed a great move for the development for Norris. Parker Kelly can move into the 4th line left wing position. If Tierney is moved at the deadline, then Pinto can be recalled into full time duties at the NHL. Right wing depth is a problem.

If goaltending is solid (0.910 SV%), I see us finishing in the 15 to 20 range for the NHL overall. If not, we will finish in the 20 to 27 range.

Prematurely? The leafs were too late. You gotta jump on star players during their elcs. Edmonton another example. Should have gone for it year 1-3 of mcdavid. Teams over play the rebuild and shoot right past their window as players start getting 2nd and 3rd contracts.
- ChrisMS

I agree that can happen. The Sens are currently walking a tight rope as to when to push the chips in.

Btw i thought that happened with 65. They missed out on his prime by not adding at the right time

Toronto signed a forward in Tavares that was redundant to their lineup and the money could have been used to address other needs. Ottawa has a glaring hole at 1C and Eichel would fill that.

Eichel is also only 24 whereas Tavares was 28 or so at the time of the signing. Bigger window of opportunity.

Not entirely the same situation.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

this

My guess is Dorion does not believe that Eichel would make them an elite contender.
- spatso

Well, then Dorion would be an idiot... they would clearly be a much better team with Eichel playing on the top line/PP, and it would emphatically address their #1 roster problem. I mean, say he's too expensive, that he probably wouldn't be happy playing in a small Canadian market, or that the asking price is too high, but don't try to pretend he wouldn't be the team's best player the minute he set foot on the ice. Even if the solution isn't Eichel, at some point "the plan" really needs to come forward as to how they're going to address the #1C issue at a level that maps to their ambitions of unparalleled success. Quick reminder - if that success is expected to include a Stanley Cup, here's the benchmark...

Toews (CHI) x3
Crosby (PIT) x3
Kopitar (LA) x2
Point (TB) x2
Backstrom (WSH) x1
O'Reilly (STL) x1
Bergeron (BOS) x1
Datsyuk (DET) x1

Tough to find players like that? Yes, it most definitely is. All of those players were drafted by their Cup-winning team, they all have at least 80pts scoring upside, most of them are team captains, and only one of them has ever been on the trade market. Now it's true that those players weren't all top-5 picks, but most of them were at least 1st/2nd round picks. Which makes it a bit strange that despite having 17 1st/2nd round picks over the past 5 years, the Senators managed not to draft even one scoring C with that kind of potential upside. (Hint: this is a big reason why I was so pissed-off about their 1st/2nd round picks this year)

Honestly, if the answer is Stutzle, they need to be making that expectation abundantly clear... not go around in the media saying he's like a tall version of Pavel Bure (i.e. very much NOT a centre). And if he's not the answer, they need to stop pretending that they can cheap out on a solution to this issue, because this is every bit as foundational to a team structure as a #1D. Either way, pretending they couldn't have seen this problem coming from a mile away is just an admission of incompetence.

The overage issue will hold him off prospect rankings for the time being, but he has shown tremendous improvement since being passed over in his first year of draft eligibility. That's what you want in a prospect. Constant improvement.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

I'm also a big Sokolov fan, and excited to see what he can do next year.

Realistically speaking, when would he be ready to challenge for a spot?

Challenge for a spot out of camp in 2022-2023? If he continues to improve I could see him getting a call up at some point in the year.

I'm also a big Sokolov fan, and excited to see what he can do next year.

Realistically speaking, when would he be ready to challenge for a spot?

Challenge for a spot out of camp in 2022-2023? If he continues to improve I could see him getting a call up at some point in the year.
- david22

With the sparseness on the right side, I think he might have a shot out of camp? I'd rather see that then move White or L.Brown to the wing. If he doesn't crack the opening night roster and continues to improve on his rookie AHL campaign, he will def get a shot sometime during the year with injuries/etc.

As for the overall depth chart... there are definitely too many soft spots for my liking in the roster structure. As noted, the LW and LD are beyond overloaded, while the other positions are struggling to be NHL-quality. This doesn't jive particularly well with a coach that insists on deploying players on their correct-handed side.

C - Norris, White, Tierney
AHL - Brown, Pinto, Kelly, Beaudin
CHL/NCAA/EU - Ostapchuk, Daoust

Grade: C - Norris/Pinto are very good 2/3 options, but #1C remains the team's biggest need; have a feeling Brown is far more likely to be moved to another team than moved to RW

LW - Tkachuk, Stutzle, Paul, Formenton
AHL - Jarventie, Crookshank
CHL/NCAA/EU - Greig, Johansson, Novak

Grade: A+ - quality and depth abound; may have to start trading from this position of strength to address other needs

RW - Batherson, Brown, Watson
AHL - Sokolov, Aberg, Sherwood
CHL/NCAA/EU - Boucher, Nurmi, Latimer

Grade: C- - possibly worse than the C situation, though White could be shifted over; I'm not sold on Sokolov, but he at least projects as a scoring line winger; Nurmi may be a sleeper #3/4 option

LD - Chabot, Brannstrom, Del Zotto, Holden, Mete
AHL - Alsing, Aspirot
CHL/NCAA/EU - Sanderson, Kleven, Tychonick

Grade: A - hopefully the numbers game ends with Del Zotto at RHD, and not losing Brannstrom for a band-aid C. Regardless, the addition of Sanderson will change the complexion of the entire blueline.

RD - Zaitsev, Zub, Brown
AHL - Bernard-Docker, Thomson
CHL/NCAA/EU - Guenette, Roger

Grade: B- - could become a more significant issue if one of Bernard-Docker or Thomson don't pan out

G - Murray, Forsberg
AHL - Gustavsson, Sogaard, Mandolese
CHL/NCAA/EU - Merilainen

Grade: B - should be good enough for now, with promising upside in Gustavsson/Sogaard

I really hope that Pierre McGuire brings an overall team perspective to the way the roster has been developed so far, because it's well past time to start trying to form a contending team from all of the parts. But with such glaring weaknesses, it just leaves them vulnerable, and exposed to teams strategically going right after their weak links.

With the sparseness on the right side, I think he might have a shot out of camp? I'd rather see that then move White or L.Brown to the wing. If he doesn't crack the opening night roster and continues to improve on his rookie AHL campaign, he will def get a shot sometime during the year with injuries/etc.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

I think it depends on his overall progression. If he's ready I'd much rather see him than White or Brown, but he may benefit from another year in Belleville.

I really hope that Pierre McGuire brings an overall team perspective to the way the roster has been developed so far, because it's well past time to start trying to form a contending team from all of the parts. But with such glaring weaknesses, it just leaves them vulnerable, and exposed to teams strategically going right after their weak links.
- khawk

I think it's already been reported that McGuire has a "model" for a winner:

1. Two elite centres
2. One power forward
3. One specialist forward
4. One shutdown d-man
5. One elite puck moving d-man
6. Elite starting goalie

So far the Sens have:

1. No elite centres
2. Tkachuk - assuming he signs on
3. Connor Brown but Formenton may evolve into this too
4. No clear shut down d-man.
5. Chabot
6. No clear elite goalie

So maybe 3 of the 6 categories are accounted for. Will be interesting to see how quickly they try to address the other 3 as it is very hard to have all 6 at the same time.

I think it's already been reported that McGuire has a "model" for a winner:

1. Two elite centres
2. One power forward
3. One specialist forward
4. One shutdown d-man
5. One elite puck moving d-man
6. Elite starting goalie

So far the Sens have:

1. No elite centres
2. Tkachuk - assuming he signs on
3. Connor Brown but Formenton may evolve into this too
4. No clear shut down d-man.
5. Chabot
6. No clear elite goalie

So maybe 3 of the 6 categories are accounted for. Will be interesting to see how quickly they try to address the other 3 as it is very hard to have all 6 at the same time.
- Gord_Wilson_2.0

Yes, I saw that 7-player model as well, though I interpret it a bit differently. I think some combination of Norris/Pinto will be good enough to fill 1 of the C spots, Tkachuk, is the Power W, and Chabot is clearly the Scoring D. I'm comfortable with Sanderson being a placeholder for the Shutdown D role, plus any number of W in the Specialist W role, and Gustavsson/Sogaard as providing good enough goaltending in some combination. So within the prospect system, I can see 6/7 positions covered off, but this is why I keep doubling back on the #1C issue.

I would just add that despite my comments on Stutzle potentially being more of a winger, I'd actually be quite happy to see them at least try him at C this year. In fact, I think there's no time to lose if they're serious about the idea, because they have the roster support in place to facilitate that kind of development. Specifically, I'd play Stutzle with Connor Brown at RW, who provides good 200ft awareness and has the speed to keep up on a rush, and Nick Paul at LW who can help with tougher face-off assignments and provide size/physical support. Take it maybe 20GP at a time, and see if there's any uptake and progression in how he's doing... but this idea of waiting a year or two to start the idea of transitioning him to C is just a terrible idea. Do it now, when the pressure really isn't there, and Stutzle has the benefit of quality support, and a lot of patience and understanding from the fan base.

Im not sure if the 7 point plan proves mcguire is a team building anylis genious or he came up with simplified tv idea for couch gm's. I still like the addition of mcguire regardless

I would just add that despite my comments on Stutzle potentially being more of a winger, I'd actually be quite happy to see them at least try him at C this year. In fact, I think there's no time to lose if they're serious about the idea, because they have the roster support in place to facilitate that kind of development. Specifically, I'd play Stutzle with Connor Brown at RW, who provides good 200ft awareness and has the speed to keep up on a rush, and Nick Paul at LW who can help with tougher face-off assignments and provide size/physical support. Take it maybe 20GP at a time, and see if there's any uptake and progression in how he's doing... but this idea of waiting a year or two to start the idea of transitioning him to C is just a terrible idea. Do it now, when the pressure really isn't there, and Stutzle has the benefit of quality support, and a lot of patience and understanding from the fan base.
- khawk

This would be an excellent year to use Stutzle as a C.
Pinto needs a year in the AHL to log huge minutes and develop. The team does not have the forward/defensive depth to do anything more than compete for a playoff spot. Next year the team will see a ton of pressure to be a playoff team with the addition of Sanderson, Pinto and JBD.