TSN: Claire Hanna on who the Ottawa Senators could trade at the deadline as they look towards next season.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
“One month out from the trade deadline the Ottawa Senators are sitting near the bottom of the Atlantic division, hovering around the .500 mark when it comes to their win-loss record.
And when Pierre Dorion looks ahead at their chances of making the postseason, the Senators’ general manager says he’s not sure if they’re going to make it in or if they are going to be on the outside looking in. But realistically the Senators’ chances of making the playoffs are slim. Therefore making them sellers come March 3rd.
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Now, forward Alex DeBrincat is an interesting one. I believe Pierre Dorion is in talks with his agent and they want to keep the left winger in Ottawa. He’s set to become a free agent. So can they sign DeBrincat to an extension before the trade deadline?
Now, I can see the Senators shopping goalie Cam Talbot around. He’s been to the playoffs the last three seasons. He was an All-Star last year. And after the trade deadline, there’s only two sets of back-to-back in the Sens season. With Mads Sogard now healthy, and Anton Forsberg proving he can perform under a large workload, I expect the Sens are looking for Talbot buyers.
Other markets have expressed interest in some of their young talent like forwards Ridly Greig, Shane Pinto, Tim Stutzle, and defenseman Jake Sanderson. Possibly in exchange for one of those coveted right-shot defensemen that are so valuable in the NHL. But Dorion said it would be foolish to trade these players now when Ottawa knows they’ll be an integral part of the teams future when they’re trying to win Cups and make long playoff runs.
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Now, since day one of the season the Senators have made it clear they want to play meaningful games at the end of the season but with those chances dwindling, their main focus, especially that of Pierre Dorion’s, is to make improvements for their team for 2023-2024.
