Nine Ottawa Senators defenseman fight for Seven open positions on team – NHL offseason Update
Ottawa Senators might have realised it before, but for next season, they will be stuck with two extra players who will not play on the defensive line-up, but will still require to get paid since being under contract with the struggling Canadian franchise.
The last option Ottawa carries with them is the trade card, which they can use and most probably will, according to sources; before the new season begins and maybe even before the physical tests start.
“I think that’s a good thing because it’s going to push all of us to play at our best level”, defenseman Matt Carkner said.
Sergei Gonchar and Filip Kuba are two veteran defenseman Ottawa had in mind after the regular season ended that it would try and exchange with other team’s in order to clear up salary cap space, unfortunately, Senators are still stuck with them, which could
end up very pricey indeed.
“They can’t afford to just give Kuba away if they are going to trade him”, said a league executive. “They’re going to have to be willing to take some salary back”.
Gonchar, a former 14th overall pick during round-one of the 1992 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft by Washington Capitals, was not able to perform as well as he once did in the league after finishing off a 50 point season with Pittsburgh
Penguins in 2010.
Last season, the 37-year-old from Chelyabinsk, Russia, managed to play 67 games and scored a mere 27 points (7 goals, 20 assists) along with finishing with a plus-minus rating of -15.
“It’s the same every year”, added Carkner, who will make $700,000 this season. “You always have prospects coming in and you always have chances of trades before training camp even starts. For our team, there’s going to be a lot of competition”.
Kuba also faced a tough time in Ottawa last season in which he managed to score only 16 points (2 goals, 14 assists) in 64 games, which was much lower from his previous two seasons with Senators.
The situation will only be clear once the regular season begins and team’s finalise all their moves.
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