Kevin Francis: Sens 4th line options/Zaitsev and Sens rumours

DJ Smith will find a way to screw up the defense on this team when the season starts like he has since he was named head coach of Ottawa.
Anyone watching this team last night sees zero structure on defence again. Ottawa will be a great team to bet against until they fire the coach.

Good post, but 2 games in a row, Ottawa wins by a goal against a team much inferior!
- Kevin Francis

I'm carrying this over from the last blog because it is relevant I think.

Three games now. Don't get me wrong because I have steadily maintained that the Sens can become a perennial Cup contender if they don't squander assets and don't sign stupid contracts.

I like Chychrun and if the team was going to challenge for the Cup this year I would reluctantly support an overpay for that one missing piece but that's not the case here. Plus Chychrun is a left shot LD with a long injury history so that makes me pretty disinterested unless the asking price comes down a lot which it won't.

DeBrincat is just too small for my taste. He may put up numbers during the regular season but unless he really surprises me I don't see a player that will do well in physical playoff hockey. I could be wrong but I say there's no rush so let's see what happens this year. Personally I would be surprised if he reaches 30 goals. The whole team will struggle with Smith as coach and he's not going to be scoring ridiculously easy PP goals against marginal AHL players.

I don't know how the cap will work out but I would be sick if the team had to move on from the likes of Pinto or Norris or Stutzle because they've overpaid DeBrincat and can't move the contract. Right now the worst that can happen is that they can just walk away from any arbitration ruling and let him become a UFA.

I like Kastelec and would prefer Brassard over Gambrell. Send Zaitsev to Belleville but don't give up a valuable asset to unload him just so you can throw money at DeBrincat. Sign Zub for gods sakes. Thomson belongs back in Belleville and so does JBD for now but I've said that he will be a really solid defensive minded Dman and they should keep him. Forget this Chychrun nonsense.

I personally like reading Sens news everywhere and I have agreed with much skepticism around the GM/coach in the past, but Kevin come on! You barely post anymore & when you do it's so negative & repetitive about firing the coach. You need new material bud! You've even dwindled your readers/bloggers down to the minimum & even they've taken on your negativity. We've got some great hockey to look forward to this year...I don't get your need to convince fans to fire the coach. I'm personally done coming to you for commentary. Won't stop reading other bloggers here but it's too bad since I'm a Sens fan!

I personally like reading Sens news everywhere and I have agreed with much skepticism around the GM/coach in the past, but Kevin come on! You barely post anymore & when you do it's so negative & repetitive about firing the coach. You need new material bud! You've even dwindled your readers/bloggers down to the minimum & even they've taken on your negativity. We've got some great hockey to look forward to this year...I don't get your need to convince fans to fire the coach. I'm personally done coming to you for commentary. Won't stop reading other bloggers here but it's too bad since I'm a Sens fan!
- Mickey77

This 100%!

I have stopped giving a sh!t about Kevin's blogs... Always negative, same old information and he's got worse sources than Ek!

I'm carrying this over from the last blog because it is relevant I think.

Three games now. Don't get me wrong because I have steadily maintained that the Sens can become a perennial Cup contender if they don't squander assets and don't sign stupid contracts.

I like Chychrun and if the team was going to challenge for the Cup this year I would reluctantly support an overpay for that one missing piece but that's not the case here. Plus Chychrun is a left shot LD with a long injury history so that makes me pretty disinterested unless the asking price comes down a lot which it won't.

DeBrincat is just too small for my taste. He may put up numbers during the regular season but unless he really surprises me I don't see a player that will do well in physical playoff hockey. I could be wrong but I say there's no rush so let's see what happens this year. Personally I would be surprised if he reaches 30 goals. The whole team will struggle with Smith as coach and he's not going to be scoring ridiculously easy PP goals against marginal AHL players.

I don't know how the cap will work out but I would be sick if the team had to move on from the likes of Pinto or Norris or Stutzle because they've overpaid DeBrincat and can't move the contract. Right now the worst that can happen is that they can just walk away from any arbitration ruling and let him become a UFA.

I like Kastelec and would prefer Brassard over Gambrell. Send Zaitsev to Belleville but don't give up a valuable asset to unload him just so you can throw money at DeBrincat. Sign Zub for gods sakes. Thomson belongs back in Belleville and so does JBD for now but I've said that he will be a really solid defensive minded Dman and they should keep him. Forget this Chychrun nonsense.
- Whatisavailable

I agree and disagree on some points here. First on the agree side: definintely agree with Kastelec and Brassard over Gambrell along with whatever we can do to get rid of Zaitsev. Disagree on Debrincat. If we had a full team that size, then sure, it's an issue. Come playoffs he is a great player to have, because he does one thing that a lot of others cannot do consistently and that is score and he has a shot that he can score from a distance or in tight. He's not weak on the puck, he battles, he's exactly what we need. It gives us a different look, especially where we pretty much have two first lines that give completely different looks. My thoughts on Chychrun are that if we get him then we can insulate Sanderson in his first full season, move Sanderson and Hamonic as the "third pairing" and Chychrun and maybe Holden become the defacto "second pair" freeing up Sanderson for more offensive zone starts. Think Dante Fabro in Nashville, you have both Josi and Ekholm in front of him. And if it doesn't work out, he's got a great cheap contract that either comes off the books or is easy to move.

And final disagreement. The fact you believe Kevin's quote is relevant "Good post, but 2 games in a row, Ottawa wins by a goal against a team much inferior!". It's preseason. The vets are just ramping up at this time of the year. If this was mid season, then sure, it's relevant then. Now, not at all. It's about getting reps in and not getting hurt.

For the fourth line, I'd like to see Kelly - Kastelic - Watson, with Brassard as the spare forward. Waive Gambrell. His signing in June was a head scratcher. Fortunately, pro level asset management seems to have vastly improved this summer. I'm thinking that the addition of Ryan Bowness has helped.
For the third pairing, I'd like to see Holden with a rotation of Brannstrom/JBD. Waive Zaitsev. As for adding Chycrun, the organization needs to wait until the asking price is reasonable.

I have stopped giving a sh!t about Kevin's blogs... Always negative, same old information and he's got worse sources than Ek!
- riceroni

I dunno... while the fire-the-coach bit is indeed a recurring theme, I do enjoy the blog overall and do not find it 'always negative'.

I agree and disagree on some points here. First on the agree side: definintely agree with Kastelec and Brassard over Gambrell along with whatever we can do to get rid of Zaitsev. Disagree on Debrincat. If we had a full team that size, then sure, it's an issue. Come playoffs he is a great player to have, because he does one thing that a lot of others cannot do consistently and that is score and he has a shot that he can score from a distance or in tight. He's not weak on the puck, he battles, he's exactly what we need. It gives us a different look, especially where we pretty much have two first lines that give completely different looks. My thoughts on Chychrun are that if we get him then we can insulate Sanderson in his first full season, move Sanderson and Hamonic as the "third pairing" and Chychrun and maybe Holden become the defacto "second pair" freeing up Sanderson for more offensive zone starts. Think Dante Fabro in Nashville, you have both Josi and Ekholm in front of him. And if it doesn't work out, he's got a great cheap contract that either comes off the books or is easy to move.

And final disagreement. The fact you believe Kevin's quote is relevant "Good post, but 2 games in a row, Ottawa wins by a goal against a team much inferior!". It's preseason. The vets are just ramping up at this time of the year. If this was mid season, then sure, it's relevant then. Now, not at all. It's about getting reps in and not getting hurt.
- Jman6687

Gord Wilson said it best on the radio this morning. The Sens have played teams with a lot of minor leaguers and are giving up 4 goals per game, teams are having their way with the Sens defensive system. He said, you can't just turn it on and this team has never been able to just turn it on. DJ was furious after the 4-2 blown lead earlier this week saying bad habits.

It's just like the NFL, look at the teams that struggled at times in the pre-season or didn't play with much intensity, and got out of the gate slow.

With Chychrun, take a look at how many games Chabot has missed the last few seasons too. So for Whatsavaible poster to say he's injury prone, Chabot certainly has missed a good chunk the last few years too.

I dunno... while the fire-the-coach bit is indeed a recurring theme, I do enjoy the blog overall and do not find it 'always negative'.
- Panzer_IVA

Too many fans take negativity the wrong way in all sports. Anyone who writes or does radio, that states facts, fans take it as negative. When indeed the person is doing being objective. When too many fans want to hear subjectivity, cheering homers and always putting a positive spin on it rather than giving honest facts about what truly is going on. Alot of the homer broadcasters want to control the narrative because the team hired them and tells them how to spin it. Fact.

For the fourth line, I'd like to see Kelly - Kastelic - Watson, with Brassard as the spare forward. Waive Gambrell. His signing in June was a head scratcher. Fortunately, pro level asset management seems to have vastly improved this summer. I'm thinking that the addition of Ryan Bowness has helped.
For the third pairing, I'd like to see Holden with a rotation of Brannstrom/JBD. Waive Zaitsev. As for adding Chycrun, the organization needs to wait until the asking price is reasonable.
- SensFan25

pro scouting, what a concept eh lol? Gambrell is dead weight, I cant see any team picking him up if he was put on waivers, then Ottawa can just send him down to Belleville.

DJ Smith will find a way to screw up the defense on this team when the season starts like he has since he was named head coach of Ottawa.
Anyone watching this team last night sees zero structure on defence again. Ottawa will be a great team to bet against until they fire the coach.
- PuckPix

Anyone with half a brain watching the leaky defense over and over is fooling themselves if they think any DJ coached team will flip the switch in less than a week. Still no 5 man units, still no defensive structure. I had a buddy who is a Flames fan ask a bunch of us Sens' fans, what the Sens' identity is? I said let's hope it involves a clean transition game when releasing from their defensive zone, structure, structure, and more structure. But when media members are on the air saying they don't see it in practices, then someone please tell me how it's going to change all of a sudden? Dean Brown said last night on the pre-game show and earlier in the week too, that the attention to detail is alarming at how little there is.

Weegar extended in Calgary is the Chychrun domino, yes?

The concern about the GA vs. is a bit overblown, and I'm not prepared to blame DJ Smith until the roster is properly assembled. The early pre-season games were about giving some of the younger prospects more of a chance to showcase, and the later pre-season games are about sorting out potential pairings. Regardless, it's not like the lack of defensive ability is a team-wide issue. So far in the pre-season, Hamonic leads all D-men at +2, Chabot is +1, Sanderson is +1 (+3 since his first game), Zub is even, and Holden is even. Meanwhile, Zaitsev and Brannstrom are tied for a team-worst -5, even when playing relatively sheltered minutes.

It's not rocket science, and you don't necessarily have to aim for the fences with a Chychrun trade... 1) remove Zaitsev from the equation, 2) play Holden as the veteran presence on the 3rd pairing, 3) limit Brannstrom to games where you really need the mobility or extra PP support, and 4) bring in a #4/5 RHD like Ethan Bear or one of the CGY options to provide NHL-quality depth and roster flexibility.

The concern about the GA vs. is a bit overblown, and I'm not prepared to blame DJ Smith until the roster is properly assembled. The early pre-season games were about giving some of the younger prospects more of a chance to showcase, and the later pre-season games are about sorting out potential pairings. Regardless, it's not like the lack of defensive ability is a team-wide issue. So far in the pre-season, Hamonic leads all D-men at +2, Chabot is +1, Sanderson is +1 (+3 since his first game), Zub is even, and Holden is even. Meanwhile, Zaitsev and Brannstrom are tied for a team-worst -5, even when playing relatively sheltered minutes.

It's not rocket science, and you don't necessarily have to aim for the fences with a Chychrun trade... 1) remove Zaitsev from the equation, 2) play Holden as the veteran presence on the 3rd pairing, 3) limit Brannstrom to games where you really need the mobility or extra PP support, and 4) bring in a #4/5 RHD like Ethan Bear or one of the CGY options to provide NHL-quality depth and roster flexibility.
- khawk

Chris Tanev from CGY. Shoots R. Played the entire season last year. Got same range of points as JC. Same salary. Only 32

Chris Tanev from CGY. Shoots R. Played the entire season last year. Got same range of points as JC. Same salary. Only 32
- GrimmdaGoalie

CGY is in win n ow mode, they are not trading anyone away

pro scouting, what a concept eh lol? Gambrell is dead weight, I cant see any team picking him up if he was put on waivers, then Ottawa can just send him down to Belleville.
- LawyerSens4Life

Gambrell isn't a terrible 4th line player, but he's very comparable to Mike Amadio in terms of serving an effective depth role. Earlier in the pre-season, I'd suggested they might keep Gambrell instead of Kastelic as the #4C because there was only a marginal difference in terms of their performance, and the waiver risk might determine who stays. Since then, Kastelic has done everything possible to make it clear that there's more than a marginal difference between him and Gambrell. So unless they really believe Gambrell is a critical piece of the PK, I think you'll see him put on waivers for assignment to the AHL before the start of the season.

CGY is in win n ow mode, they are not trading anyone away
- Mithos

100% yes, agreed. CGY will not trade anyone, they want depth in case of injuries....they will hang on to everyone now.

Gambrell isn't a terrible 4th line player, but he's very comparable to Mike Amadio in terms of serving an effective depth role. Earlier in the pre-season, I'd suggested they might keep Gambrell instead of Kastelic as the #4C because there was only a marginal difference in terms of their performance, and the waiver risk might determine who stays. Since then, Kastelic has done everything possible to make it clear that there's more than a marginal difference between him and Gambrell. So unless they really believe Gambrell is a critical piece of the PK, I think you'll see him put on waivers for assignment to the AHL before the start of the season.
- khawk

Yup, he's an average player and you can find 4th line guys like Gambrell, in fact I bet Hawryluk isn't much of a drop off either, plus he has better wheels.

Anyone with half a brain watching the leaky defense over and over is fooling themselves if they think any DJ coached team will flip the switch in less than a week. Still no 5 man units, still no defensive structure. I had a buddy who is a Flames fan ask a bunch of us Sens' fans, what the Sens' identity is? I said let's hope it involves a clean transition game when releasing from their defensive zone, structure, structure, and more structure. But when media members are on the air saying they don't see it in practices, then someone please tell me how it's going to change all of a sudden? Dean Brown said last night on the pre-game show and earlier in the week too, that the attention to detail is alarming at how little there is.
- LawyerSens4Life

I've heard Gord and Dean, all week talk about the issues they've seen in practice and carry over to the games when it comes to defensive structure. When those 2 stress it, you know they feel it's an issue, as they are very positive about the team. Lloyd and Creech today were actually concerned too about the same issues. I heard Ken Warren stating some of the stuff.....so it's hard not to ignore it when most media members in this town that are at practice all the time and have a feel for what is going on, are hammering the point. We'll know in 6 days time if they're saying is in fact still a problem!

I agree and disagree on some points here. First on the agree side: definintely agree with Kastelec and Brassard over Gambrell along with whatever we can do to get rid of Zaitsev. Disagree on Debrincat. If we had a full team that size, then sure, it's an issue. Come playoffs he is a great player to have, because he does one thing that a lot of others cannot do consistently and that is score and he has a shot that he can score from a distance or in tight. He's not weak on the puck, he battles, he's exactly what we need. It gives us a different look, especially where we pretty much have two first lines that give completely different looks. My thoughts on Chychrun are that if we get him then we can insulate Sanderson in his first full season, move Sanderson and Hamonic as the "third pairing" and Chychrun and maybe Holden become the defacto "second pair" freeing up Sanderson for more offensive zone starts. Think Dante Fabro in Nashville, you have both Josi and Ekholm in front of him. And if it doesn't work out, he's got a great cheap contract that either comes off the books or is easy to move.

And final disagreement. The fact you believe Kevin's quote is relevant "Good post, but 2 games in a row, Ottawa wins by a goal against a team much inferior!". It's preseason. The vets are just ramping up at this time of the year. If this was mid season, then sure, it's relevant then. Now, not at all. It's about getting reps in and not getting hurt.
- Jman6687

So after you've allowed yourself to be robbed blind in order to acquire Chychrun I assume you'd want to keep him for the length of his great contract so that means insulating Sanderson for three years or playing Chychrun or Sanderson on the right side which may or may not work out; and if it does are you then insulating or blocking JBD or Thomson or do you dump those guys after drafting and developing them for a few years. Oh yeah Armstrong likes JBD, I wonder why, so no need to worry about him.

So after you've allowed yourself to be robbed blind in order to acquire Chychrun I assume you'd want to keep him for the length of his great contract so that means insulating Sanderson for three years or playing Chychrun or Sanderson on the right side which may or may not work out; and if it does are you then insulating or blocking JBD or Thomson or do you dump those guys after drafting and developing them for a few years. Oh yeah Armstrong likes JBD, I wonder why, so no need to worry about him.
- Whatisavailable

Never said I would be robbed blind. And Chychrun is not blocking JBD or Thomson. They are both right D. If Sanderson earns his stripes then you have 3 good pairs and at the end of Chychruns contract you let Sanderson take on more or trade Chychrun before if you have confidence in sanderson. Is it a bad thing to have defensive depth? Look at Setgachev in Tampa as another example. Not like JC is being paid 9 mil here.

Never said I would be robbed blind. And Chychrun is not blocking JBD or Thomson. They are both right D. If Sanderson earns his stripes then you have 3 good pairs and at the end of Chychruns contract you let Sanderson take on more or trade Chychrun before if you have confidence in sanderson. Is it a bad thing to have defensive depth? Look at Setgachev in Tampa as another example. Not like JC is being paid 9 mil here.
- Jman6687

I didn't realize Armstrong was willing to make a special deal with you because he wants to fleece everyone else.

You should actually read what I posted. If you keep Sanderson on the left side then you either play him or Sanderson or Chabot on the third pair. Otherwise you are playing one of them on the right side in which case you are blocking JBD and Thomson. There are only 2 sides - right or left.

Hey guys, just wanted to share this gem that one of your fellow posters left in the habs thread recently, the one about signing Logan Mailloux:


"These liberated, predatory girls (I can't say what they really are or I will get banned) go out and get trashed and then are embarrassed when Granny gets to see what they really are so they put on their oh so innocent, virginal pigtails and try to destroy a young man's career and they get total support from the whole friggin lot of you.

You are the reason Hockey Canada chooses to pay off the gold diggers that prey on young men in all professional sports because all they need is the allegation without evidence of any kind and that's more than enough for the whole nauseating, sanctimonious, virtue signaling bunch of you.

In this most recent case it was the step father who saw the dollar signs and decided to try and cash in."

- Whatisavailable



I just thought you might wanted to know, because I find this kind of comment a bit concerning, and I'm sure that not every senators fan in here agrees with this either. That is all, have a nice evening everyone.

Hey guys, just wanted to share this gem that one of your fellow posters left in the habs thread recently, the one about signing Logan Mailloux:


"These liberated, predatory girls (I can't say what they really are or I will get banned) go out and get trashed and then are embarrassed when Granny gets to see what they really are so they put on their oh so innocent, virginal pigtails and try to destroy a young man's career and they get total support from the whole friggin lot of you.

You are the reason Hockey Canada chooses to pay off the gold diggers that prey on young men in all professional sports because all they need is the allegation without evidence of any kind and that's more than enough for the whole nauseating, sanctimonious, virtue signaling bunch of you.

In this most recent case it was the step father who saw the dollar signs and decided to try and cash in."

- Whatisavailable



I just thought you might wanted to know, because I find this kind of comment a bit concerning, and I'm sure that not every senators fan in here agrees with this either. That is all, have a nice evening everyone.
- Pat1993

Logan Mailloux has paid his dept to society according to the laws of Sweden, if it had been the other way around you would be telling him to man up and its not a big deal.

And yes women lie out their ass to get big money settlements, it is why most major organizations with a brain have settlements funds as it costs more to fight them in court even when they win. Never believe women without evidence. 3 recent high profile cases illustrate this exactly: Amber herd vs Depp, Evander Kane and Virtanen.