OTTAWA — Steve Staios has prioritized adding right-shot defencemen ever since he took over as general manager of the Ottawa Senators two seasons ago.
He has already used two first-round picks on right-shot defencemen Carter Yakemchuk and Logan Hensler but that is about the future.
The off-season trade for Jordan Spence is about the present. The Senators needed more puck movement from the right side of the blue line and Spence will fill that void.
Spence, 24, is the type of elite puck-moving defenceman that every team covets and a player the analytics community loves. The Kings were significantly better with Spence on the ice at five-on-five last season, according to Hockey Viz, with an expected goals rate of 2.59. That number dropped to 2.45 with him off it.
Right-shot defencemen are at a premieum in the NHL and the Senators have seen first hand what can happen to a team thin at that position. Left-shot Jakob Chychrun struggled playing on his off-side behind Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot, so Staios ultimately traded Chychrun to the Capitals for the less-flashy Nick Jensen.
Jensen provided stability to the right-side last season but the Senators needed more. No shade at Travis Hamonic, but he wasn’t the solution on the right side, and neither was Nikolas Matinpalo, whose solid play on the third pair was rewarded with a two-year extension.
However, the truth is the Senators were only six defencemen deep last season. Not anymore.
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Spence is not only talented but highly motivated joining his new team. First, he wants to prove he’s a top four defenceman, which he couldn’t establish in Los Angeles, and second, he’s a restricted free agent at the end of the season.
“I’m not really focused on (the contract) at all, whatsoever,” Spence said at a Senators media event earlier this week. “I think it just matters how I play this season.”
As for the top-four role:
“Obviously that’s always in the back of your head,” Spence said. “Just to try to be better as a player and to gain the coach’s trust to play more ice time. But at the end of the day, it’s the effort and the individual work that you put in.”
What’s certain is that Spence, who had 28 points last season, would be a major upgrade on Ottawa’s top six over Hamonic or Matinpalo. Last season, the Senators finished 25th in goals from defencemen but only had a combined seven goals from right-shot defencemen. Spence had four goals alone last season in L.A.
By comparison, Sanderson and Chabot alone combined for 20 goals last year from the left side.
Offence from the right side of the blue line is needed to improve the Senators’ overall offence, which finished second last in the NHL in five-on-five goals last season.
Spence still needs to improve as an undersized five-foot-10 defender who isn’t overly physical, an archetype that has both succeeded (Erik Karlsson) and failed (Erik Brannstrom) in Ottawa.
It’s still unclear when Jensen will return from off-season hip surgery but when he does head coach Travis Green will have plenty of options.
Projected defence corps
Sanderson-Zub
Chabot-Jensen
Kleven-Spence
Matinpalo-Yakemchuk
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Zetterlund needs to be impactful
Who will be the Senators’ first line right-winger? It’s an open debate with three worthy candidates: Drake Batherson, Claude Giroux and Fabian Zetterlund. Zetterlund had a less-than-ideal start in Ottawa, scoring two goals in 20 games after arriving at the trade deadline. His shooting rate plumeted to just five per cent after the trade, a major drop from his 9.6 per cent rate over the first five years of his career.
Zetterlund has scored 43 goals the last two seasons and offers some versatility by playing on both wings. But outside of his physical play has not shown himself to be a play driver.
The Senators clearly see a role for Zetterlund as they signed him to a three-year, $12.83-million contract this summer. Scoring 20 goals should be the bare minimum next season for the price point the Senators are paying him.
Giroux is now 37 and Batherson has found chemisty with Dylan Cozens, opening the door for Zetterlund to find a role as a finisher alongside Tim Stutzle. A Brady Tkachuk-Stutzle-Zetterlund line could do wonders and if Zetterlund strikes some on-ice chemistry with Stutzle, then the trade will prove to be an ingenious move by Staios.
New look for a new season
The Senators unveiled a new third jersey during a media event on Wednesday. Senators legend Chris Phillips modeled the new sweater as part of the presentation.
The jerseys will be worn during 13 games next season.
As with any new jersey announcement, reactions have been mixed online with some fans objecting to the lighter shade of red used. However, the Senators deserve credit for trying something new.
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