Welcome to SenShot’s Prospect Central

Prospect Central will be your one stop-shop for all Prospect related news and features.

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SIGNING: Mark Stone Signs Entry Level Contract

Mark Stone

Ottawa Senators’ prospect Mark Stone has been signed to a three-year, entry level contract. With the contract worth $630,000 a year, it probably won’t kick in until next season as it is expected Stone will return to junior to play out his last year.

With his breakout 2010-11 campaign, where Stone notched 106 points, he has flew up Ottawa’s depth chart since he was selected 178th in the sixth round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Expected to play a huge role this year with the WHL Brandon Wheat Kings, Stone hopefully can build on last year’s success and continue to improve his play.

To learn more about Stone, check out Jared’s Prospect Profile of Stone.

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PROSPECT PROFILES: Shane Prince

Shane Prince

Drafted in the second round, 61st overall of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Shane Prince is a product of the OHL Ottawa 67′s. Only the second player to be drafted in the Sens’ backyard, Prince had a breakout year his first full season in Ottawa last season. With a ton of speed, Prince is a playmaking center that is expected to be a contributing factor to the 67′s success this season.

Jared recently came into contact with Shane’s sister, Olivia, and she agreed to provide some personal insight into who Shane is as a person.  Olivia, who just turned 16, is an athlete in her own right. She is a top level gymnast in her native New York state.  Here is my conversation with Olivia Prince.

Click here to read the entire feature.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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PROSPECT PROFILE: Mark Stone

Mark Stone

Mark Stone was the Senators 6th rd pick in 2010, and when he was drafted he was coming off an injury filled year, playing only 39 games.  The Senators saw something in him and took Stone with the 178th selection.  Their foresight seems to have been rewarded as he had a stellar 2010-11 season, putting up 37 goals and 106 points in 71 games for the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Stone also made some noise this past week at the National Junior Team development camp, where in the second Red & White game he netted 2 goals and 2 assists while playing on a line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Ryan Johansen.

This week as part of the series of prospect profiles, Jared had the opportunity to pick the brain of Rob Henderson, who covers junior hockey for the Brandon Sun.

Click here to read the entire feature.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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SIGNING: Kaspars Daugavins Resigns

Kaspars Daugavins Resigns

With so many players from the AHL Calder Cup winning team leaving for other opportunities, theBinghamton Senators may see one of their core players return for one more season. Fan favorite Kaspars Daugavins was expected to take his talents overseas as he had signed a deal with Dynamo Riga of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Daugavins had rejected the Sens qualifying offer which was a two-way deal and signed with Dynamo. However, in his contract, he had a deal to come to Ottawa’s training camp in the fall in an attempt to stick with the big club.

But news came this week that Daugavins had actually signed a one-year, two-way deal to stick with the Senators. The deal will pay him $600,000 if he plays in the NHL, and $105,000 if he lands in the AHL. Daugavins will get a $42,500 raise if he plays in the AHL from his last years salary.

Click here to read the entire article.

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PROSPECT PROFILE: Ben Blood

Sens' prospect Ben Blood

When the Ottawa Senators drafted Ben Blood in the 4th round of the 2007 Entry Draft, he was still playing at the Shattuck-St. Marys prep school in Minnesota. When drafted, Blood was considered a project who had intriguing size and skill, but was still very raw and needed  time to develop.  Four years later, Blood is entering his senior year at the University of North Dakota.  He has since then developed into a 6’3″, 215 lb hulking defenseman who has some offensive upside and now has moved from a project to a legit prospect.

Jared got a chance to speak with Brad Schlossman, who has covered the UND Fighting Sioux for the Grand Forks Herald for the last 7 years.  Here are his thoughts on Ben Blood.

Click here to read the entire feature.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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PROSPECT PROFILE: Louie Caporusso

Sens prospect Louie Caporusso

Senators prospect Louie Caporusso is another name that many Ottawa fans have heard but might not necessarily know too much about. Caporusso was the Senators 3rd round pick (90th overall) in the 2007 entry draft.  The 22 year old forward just completed his fourth and final NCAA season with the Michigan Wolverines in the NCAA.  Twice he scored over 20 goals for Michigan, but his numbers were down slightly in his Senior year (11G, 20A). Now signed to a two-year entry level contract, Caporusso will suit up for the B-Sens this fall.

Jared got a chance to pick the brain of Steven Nesbitt, who is Co-Managing Editor of the Michigan Daily, U of M’s newspaper, and has watched Caporusso over his four at Michigan.

Click here to read the entire feature.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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PROSPECT PROFILE: Wacey Hamilton

Sens prospect Wacey Hamilton

Sens prospect Wacey Hamilton played for the Medicine Hat Tigers for four seasons, and was the captain for the last two. Signed as a junior free agent, Hamilton earned a three-year entry level contract with the Senators with his hard play and tenacity. Scheduled to suit up for the B-Sens this fall, Hamilton is sure to become a fan favorite in Binghamton.

Jared had the chance to speak with Darren Steinke, sports reporter for the Medicine Hat News, regarding the Senators Free Agent signing from this past spring of Wacey Hamilton. Darren has covered the team for the local newspaper for 7 years and has seen the best of the WHL come through town in that time.  He shared some of his first-hand insight, on the relatively unknown (in these parts at least) prospect, with SenShot.

Click here to read the entire featue.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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PROSPECT PROFILE: Pat Cannone

Sens prospect Pat Cannone

Perhaps one signing that went under the radar during the Senator’s late season activity was that of Miami University senior forward Pat Cannone.  He was not one of the most recruited players coming out of the NCAA, but Ottawa was able to sign him to a one year contract that covers the 2011-12 season.

Jared had the opportunity to correspond with Vic Brotzman, of the Miami Redhawks Examinernewspaper, shortly after the signing.  Brotzman has watched Cannone play over his four years in with the Redhawks, and offers his insight as to the type of player Ottawa is now developing in its system.

Click here to read the entire article.

~Written by Jared Crozier

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BINGHAMTON SENATORS: Saying Goodbye and Hello

With the surprise win of the AHL Calder Cup, the Binghamton Senators have now become a powerhouse in the AHL. But with success comes higher expectations, and as a result, many of the core players on the team have left the team to pursue better opportunities. In total, 14 players from the championship team have left the B-Sens for other organizations that offered more money or a chance to crack their NHL squad.

For a list of the players who have say goodbye to Bingo, click here and here.

But as the B-Sens lose a number of their players from their championship squad, it opens the door for a new crop of prospects to come in and fill the void. In total, 14 new players will be donning B-Sens jerseys for the first time this fall in hopes of defending the B-Sens Calder Cup championship title.

For a list of the players who will be joining the B-Sens this fall, click here.

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DEVELOPMENT CAMP: Meet the Prospects

At this year’s prospect development camp, the rebuild continued as Ottawa brought in one of its largest crops of prospects. Let’s meet all the new faces and hopefully future Sens.

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