The 50 Greatest Ottawa Senators of All Time: #40 – #31
This is the second part of a series looking at the 50 greatest Ottawa Senators of All-Time.
Here are links to all the other parts:
Part One: #50 – #51
Part Two: #40 – #31
Part Three: #30 – #21
Part Four: #20 – #11
Part Five: #10 – #1
Now, kicking off the second part of the list:
40. Ron Tugnutt/Damian Rhodes
Rhodes:
Stats: 181GP
Height/Weight: 6foot0, 180lbs
Acquired: Trade with New York Islanders (w. Wade Redden for Don Beaupre, Martin Straka, Bryan Berard)
Tugnutt:
Stats: 166GP
Height/Weight: 5foot11, 155lbs
I guess this is technically the 51 greatest Ottawa Senators of all-time, as I’ve paired Ron Tugnutt and Damian Rhodes together. These two were a Senators tandem for four years and were both dubbed as starting goaltenders.
Although Tugnutt would ultimately win the battle, and was probably the more impactful player the Rhodes/Tugnutt era lasted from 1995-2000 with each goaltender making a case as starter. Tugnutt would take the reigns during the 1998-99 season with incredible play that garnered a 5th place nod in the Vezina race as he posted a 1.79 GAA and .925sv%.
Rhodes would be shipped that off-season and Tugnutt the year after. Both for minimal returns. This era saw the Senators’ first playoff birth and the transition into what became a legitimate NHL contender. It would be when Patrick Lalime took over that the contender status really became true.
Rhodes/Tugnutt was always a back and forth battle. Each of them played a similar number of games (181 vs 166) and held similar numbers during their time in Ottawa. For that, they both receive a nod on this list in the same spot.
Next: #39 One Of Vancouver's All-Time Defenders
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39. Sami Salo
Stats: 195GP, 19G, 69P
Height/Weight: 6foot3, 215lbs
Acquired: 1996 NHL Draft (9th Round pick)
For a player selected in the 9th round, Sami Salo made himself quite the career.
It began in Ottawa until he departed for the Vancouver Canucks in a trade that brought back Peter Schaefer for the Senators. Salo is fairly high on my list as he was a steady defender who gave Ottawa nearly 200 games as a young hockey player. The Senators could have probably benefited from keeping Salo around as he turned out to be a top-tier defender in Vancouver.
Salo was never a minus while with Ottawa and during the 195 games he played, he added a little bit of offence too. He suffered injuries which led to shortened seasons in 1997 and 1998, but would put up good numbers in those two years.
Salo certainly isn’t remember for his time in Ottawa, but the fact that he started his career as a Senator and would end up with 900 games of NHL experience gets him a nod on this list.
Next: #38 Another Who Moved On Too Soon
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38. Vinny Prospal
Stats: 213GP, 34G, 111P
Height/Weight: 6foot2, 198lbs
Acquired: Trade with Philadelphia (with Pat Falloon, 2nd round pick for Alexandre Daigle)
Much like Salo, Prospal finds himself in a similar situation when looking back on his career.
Prospal certainly isn’t remembered as an Ottawa Senator, rather as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning where he would put up his best years. Unfortunately, Prospal saw three stints with the Lightning when of which saw him depart for the 03-04 cup winning season.
Prospal spent 4 seasons in Ottawa where the team worked on developing him. He’s another regrettable move, as the Senators only received a conditional pick for his services when they shipped him to the Florida Panthers in 2000.
During his four seasons as a Senator, Prospal put up 55 and 36 point seasons, leading to 111 points in 213 NHL games. He gets a nod on the list considering he did develop as a Senator and would put up good numbers in Ottawa and elsewhere.
37. Ray Emery
Stats: 134GP
Height/Weight: 6foot2, 196lbs
Acquired: 2001 NHL Draft (4th Round pick)
Ray Emery remains the only goaltender of the modern Senators era to get a start in the Stanley Cup Finals.
During the run of 2007, a young Emery, still only 23 led the Senators during the regular season with a 33-16-6 record. He also played all 20 of the Senators playoff games while holding a .918 save percentage throughout.
In total, Emery saw 134 regular season starts with the Senators. The 07 run led to a big contract for Emery and the start of what many thought was a star in the making. Sadly, off-ice issues and struggles on the ice would then lead to an Emery buyout and he would become a journeyman for the rest of his career.
He settled nicely in Philadelphia for a while and even saw two more Stanley Cup finals as he was part of the Flyers’ 09-10 cup run and the Chicago Blackhawks’ 12-13 Cup winning year.
Currently, Emery is a UFA and after coming off a 3.06 GAA/0.896sv% season, at 32-years-old, Emery’s time in the NHL may have wound up. It’s too bad Emery left the Senators organization the way he did. He was able to make a nice career afterwards, but didn’t ever come close to the potential he displayed early on.
Still, Emery is among the greatest Senators goalies of all time. Due to his 2007 cup run and early career numbers.
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36. Todd White
Stats: 230GP, 58G, 144P
Height/Weight: 5foot10, 195lbs
Acquired: Free Agent Signing
Todd White was a short stay Ottawa Senator who would put up some big numbers during the early 2000’s.
White, a local player entered the organization as a free agent at 25-year-old, and it was in Ottawa where he broke into the league full-time. What’s interesting is that the Senators signed another local free agent at 25-years-old with limited NHL experience this off-season in Eric O’Dell, a similar player in stature and previous production.
White’s best year came later in Atlanta, but he also had two formidable years in Ottawa with 50 and 60 point campaigns. The departure came after a down year when White was sent to the Minnesota Wild for a 4th round pick.
White would play 230 games with the Senators and would total 144 points. For a player with a non-tradional path too the NHL, White made himself quite a good career; finishing with over 600 games and 350 points.
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35. Alexandre Daigle
Stats: 301GP, 74G, 172P
Height/Weight: 6foot0, 200lbs
Acquired: 1st Overall Pick, 1993
When the Ottawa Senators were awarded the first pick in the 1993 NHL entry draft, the organization was more than thrilled to select Forward Alexandre Daigle.
If you watch his draft video, you can hear TSN analyst Bob McKenzie say “he’s not the next Wayne Gretzky, he’s not the next Mario Lemieux, he falls right now in projection as a guy who could be the next Jeremy Roenick or Steve Yzerman or Joe Sakic or Pat Lafontaine, with a potential to kick it up a notch”
Sadly, none of those projections came true on Daigle who is now often considered one of the biggest draft busts of all time. However, his rookie numbers of 51 points and sophomore season of 37 points in 47 games don’t put him as the worst Ottawa Senator of all time.
In fact, if it weren’t for his draft status and early expectations, fans would probably view Daigle differently. He would end up playing 301 games in a Senators jersey with 74 goals and 172 points. Daigle gets put on the list due to the seasons where he put up over 25 goals and 50 points. Of course, many NHL experts and fans around the early 1990’s expected Daigle to be much much higher on this list.
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34. Clarke MacArthur
Stats: 141GP, 40G, 91P
Height/Weight: 6foot0, 191lbs
Acquired: Free Agent Signing
When Clarke MacArthur signed with the Senators on July 5th, 2013, he was brought in to help make up for what was a devastating departure on the same day.
MacArthur has done that successfully over the past two seasons in a Senators uniform. He’s set to be in the organization for another 5 years and should continue at a pace similar to his current one. That’s that of a point-getting, top 6 winger, worth about 20 goals and 45 points annually.
He’s a smooth skater and has built chemistry successfully with center Kyle Turris. Give it a few more years and more success in a Senators uniform and MacArthur certainly has potential to hop up this list.
He’s now 30-years-old, so Mac’s not a young player. He has over 500 games experience and has over 300 career points. He’s arguably the best free agent signing in Senators history as Bryan Murray was able to lock MacArthur up with a very favourable 3.25 million aav.
33. Marc Methot
Stats: 141GP, 9G, 43P
Height/Weight: 6foot3, 23lbs
Acquired: Trade with Columbus (for Nick Foligno)
Since joining the Senators organization in 2012, Marc Methot has been a solid defender. He’s locked up for 5 more years at a likeable term and should continue to play beside Erik Karlsson, providing stability, and hopefully aiding with another Norris trophy or two.
You can also bet he’ll throw in a few hip checks to keep opposing players on their toes.
The piece the Senators gave up for Methot, Nick Foligno, has since become a leader in Columbus and among the league’s top scorers. Even with how Foligno has progressed, the Senators don’t regret the deal as Methot has been that good for the Senators.
He’s a local guy who makes a great fit. At 30-years-old, he’s not a young NHLer, but he’s still a big piece to Ottawa’s success.
He now has 167 games of experience in a Sens jersey and since he’s under contract for 5 more seasons, fans can expect Methot to be around for quite a while yet. There’s also a good chance he’ll jump on this list later on as he could finish his career as one of Ottawa’s top defenders.
32. Jason York
Stats: 380GP, 25G, 124P
Height/Weight: 6foot2, 195lbs
Acquired: Trade with Anaheim (w. Shaun Van Allen for Marc Moro and Ted Drury)
The trade that brought Jason York as well as Center Shaun Van Allen to Ottawa ended up being a steal for the team. In Van Allen, the Senators found a solid 3rd/4th line center who would play almost 500 games for the Senators and in York the team received a minute munching, two-way defender.
York’s 380 games are good for 5th all time among Senators defenceman and his 124 points are bettered only by Erik Karlsson, Wade Redden, Zdeno Chara and Chris Phillips.
York would play with the Sens from 1996 until 2001, when he signed with the Anaheim (Mighty, at the time) Ducks as a 31-year-old free agent. York finished his career with 757 games and 229 points, the majority of each coming in Ottawa.
Next: #31: Ottawa's Swedish Factory At Work Again
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31. Andreas Dackell
Stats: 401GP, 65G, 180P
Height/Weight: 5foot10, 191lbs
Acquired: 1996 NHL draft (6th round pick)
When the Ottawa Senators drafted Andreas Dackell at age 22, they knew they were taking a risk. It would end up being a risk that would pay off as Dackell would join the Senators the year after his draft and pay immediate dividends for the young club.
He would finish 6th in team scoring during his first season and would be part of the organization for 5 more years until his services were shipped to the rival Canadiens for a draft pick.
Dackell’s best year came when he posted a 15-goal, 50 point performance in 1998-99. He was a fairly steady winger and an undersized body who would make a perfect fit filling in Ottawa’s top 6 forwards in the team’s early years.
He gave the Senators 5 good years and with 400 games of experience, he’s top 15 in the franchise among games played. Although Dackell played most of his years outside of the NHL, he gets a spot on the list, finishing off part two.
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If you missed it, check out part one and be sure to stay tuned as the rest of the list will be rolled out over the coming days.
Next: The 50 Greatest Ottawa Senators Of All-Time: #50 - #41