Re-Signing Erik Condra A Must For The Ottawa Senators
By Jack Leiper
On or around the trade deadline, some interesting quotes came out regarding Senators forward Erik Condra. The future remains hazy for the 28-year-old winger, yet Bryan Murray should add re-signing Condra to the top of his list immediately.
__
Murray shared his views in a February 20th interview, where Condra returning to the Senators seemed unlikely.
"“There have not been any talks. They have not talked to us (regarding contract talks)”"
Murray went further to explain the reasoning in which he felt Condra might not be back in a Senators uniform.
"“My point view is that we’ve got a number of young people coming and waiting for their turn to play and we’ll just have to kind of play that out here for the next little bit here while we have a good look and then make a decision on Erik going forward."
Murray certainly isn’t wrong in his analysis, Condra could easily be replaced by a younger player, and with 6foot5 Buddy Robinson waiting to get a shot in the NHL, replacements are available.
But that doesn’t mean the Senators shouldn’t re-sign Erik Condra, in fact he’s not the problem, if anyone is needing replacing it is players like Chris Neil, Alex Chiasson and possibly Zack Smith.
__
The first half was rough for most on the Senators squad, and you could argue Condra as well. Yet his value as a player to the squad has become more evident as the season passes on, and as he gells with Jean-Gabriel Pageau in a bottom 6 role.
More from SenShot
- Crunch. Crush. Grind. Mash. The Tyler Kleven Story
- Belleville Senators: What To Expect In 2023-24
- Daniel Alfredsson and Marian Hossa Hit The Ice One Final Time
- Ottawa Senators: Something’s Got to Give
- Hot Pierre Summer 2.0? Let’s Talk About The Ottawa Senators Offseason So Far!
Condra currently sits with 9 goals and 9 assists on the season, as he plays at an above NHL average pace. Condra’s goal vs the Canadiens last night displays what i’d like to see from the Senators as it showcases what solid depth can do for a team.
Pageau grabs the puck, beats the Habs D down-low and chips it out front for Condra to bang it in past Carey Price.
A typical bottom 6, hard-worked goal.
THE PAGEAU FACTOR
Forget grit, the NHL has moved on. Speed and puck skills are what 3rd/4th lines now provide as Condra and Pageau have proven to be a solid bottom 6 pairing.
And in fact, we see that Pageau and Condra actually make a nice little duo behind Ottawa’s Top 6. Condra and Pageau both average greater than a point per 60, and in being each others most frequent line mates, they make a rare bottom 6 duo.
When Condra and Pageau are on the ice together (just under 200 minutes of TOI), they average a 52.0 CF%,while playing harder minutes with an offensive zone start percentage of just 42.5. So really, Pageau and Condra are playing harder minutes, yet excelling on a line with each other. It’s simply a duo that makes sense.
TERM AND DOLLARS
Condra should come cheap, which is just another factor as to why the Senators need to consider re-signing him. He knows the system and has been a solid home-grown product, like most of the teams depth players.
Looking at interest around the deadline, it appeared as though a 5th or 6th round pick , especially with the return on Brian Flynn and Torrey Mitchell being around that mark. So, we can assume the interest around the league isn’t too high.
I’d look at a 2-3 year contract, with a bit of a pay raise to lure Condra back to Ottawa. $1.5-$1.7 on that deal could probably get it done. It would be a smart move and a popular one as Murray could bring solid depth back in the organization.