Ottawa Senators Acquire Scott Gomez
The Ottawa Senators made an interesting move yesterday. The Senators brass decided to sign Scott Gomez to a one year deal worth 575,000$.
Gomez is thirty six years old, he has played with both the St. Louis Blues and Hershey Bears this season. I really do not understand the reason for signing Gomez. He obviously was not very expensive, but what is the rationale in bringing him to Ottawa?
The Senators currently sit five points out of a wild card playoff berth, every move made around this time should be focused on getting into the playoffs. The Senators were very quiet at the trade deadline, as were most teams, with their only move being trading Shane Prince for a draft pick. How does Scott Gomez make the Senators any better? The answer is, he doesn’t. This is another strange move by Senators management.
Gomez has 755 points in 1055 career NHL games. Joining the Ottawa Senators makes it a seventh NHL franchise he will put a sweater on for. Gomez’s most notable achievement in recent memory was going through a streak in which he did not score a goal in over a year. Gomez had a goalless streak from February 5th,2011 to February 9th,2012. The streak and his 7.5 million dollar salary endeared him to the fans of the Montreal Canadiens.
Gomez has not had a 20+ goal season since 2005-2006, he has not has more than 20 points in a season since 2010-2011. Gomez’s last quality season was 2009-2010. Why the Senators elected to bring him to the team is a mystery. Gomez does have two Stanley Cup Championship’s so maybe it is the old “veteran leadership” phenomenon, where he will do more in the locker room than on the ice.
A playoff berth would excite the Senators fans and instill confidence in the team currently fielded by Bryan Murray and Dave Cameron. It seems as if many in the analytics community and blogosphere vehemently disagree with most decisions made by Senators leadership. This is yet another move that puzzles Senators fans.
Ottawa has only missed the playoffs three times since the full season lockout, but have not been able to replicate their post season success from 2007 when they lost in the Cup Finals to the Anaheim Ducks.
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The Senators have an uphill battle in chasing the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final playoff spot. Scott Gomez will not play a huge role in the Senators making a playoff push, the only Brightside is he will not be making 7.5 million dollars with the Senators.