NHL.com is providing in-depth analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 8-Sept. 8. Today, three important questions facing the Ottawa Senators.
[Senators 32 in 32: Season preview | Top prospects | Fantasy breakdown]
1. Have the Senators made enough moves to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
The games will determine that but there is no doubt that Ottawa has made significant strides forward and in goal. The Senators, who finished 26th in the NHL in goals with 227 last season, augmented their top-six forwards with the additions of Claude Giroux (21 goals, 44 assists, 65 points in 2021-22) and Alex DeBrincat (41 goals, 37 assists, 78 points). Both will see plenty of time on a power play that ranks 20th in the NHL (19.3 percent). The Senators were 22nd with 264 goals against. Enter goalie Cam Talbot who was 32-12-4 with a 2.76 goals-against average, .911 save percentage and three shutouts in 49 games (48 starts) with the Minnesota Wild last season. The Senators finished 27 points behind the Washington Capitals for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference so there is still work to do. But they’ve certainly addressed some of the areas that could make them a contender.
Video: DeBrincat lands at 17 on NHL Network’s Top 20 Wingers
2. Will the Senators be more consistent in goals with Cam Talbot?
In the past two seasons the Senators have used six goalies: Anton Forsberg (54 games), Matt Murray (47), Filip Gustavsson (27), Marcus Hogberg (14), Joey Daccord (eight), Mads Sogaard (two). In that same span Talbot made 82 appearances for the Wild and went 51-20-9 with five shutouts. While team defense involves much more than just a goaltender, Talbot brings stability and durability, even at age 35, to a team that very much needs it.
3. Are the defensemen good enough after Thomas Chabot?
Chabot has established himself as a No. 1 defenseman in the NHL but there are plenty of question marks on the blue line. Ottawa has a promising cache of prospects ready to make the jump Jake Sanderson (20), Jacob Bernard-Docker (22) and Lassie Thomson (21) but there’ll be growing pains even if they do make the team out of training camp. Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice says it usually takes a defenseman about 180 NHL games to get a feel for the position. As such, it will be up to Travis Hamonic, Artem ZubErik Brannstrom and Nikita Zaitsev to hold the fort until the kids get up to speed.
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