Ottawa Senators: Jean-Gabriel Pageau 2017-2018 Season Preview

It may just be August but the 2017-2018 NHL season will be on our hands before we know it. Training Camp will start in September and all the players will be brought together as they prepare for another season. With August as a down month in the NHL I thought this would be a great time to preview each of the players on the Ottawa Senators for next season.

If you missed it here’s our last preview!

Ottawa Senators: Alex Burrows 2017-2018 Season Preview

July was a month of relative inactivity for the Ottawa Senators. The only notable free agents that were signed were Nate Thompson and Johnny Oduya. Although they are valuable additions, neither are overly valuable. However, the Sens did secure their two restricted free agents. One was Ryan Dzingel, the other was the most significant signing of July, Jean-Gabriel Pageau.

Pageau was re-signed by the Sens to a three year contract with an average annual value of 3.1 million. This is a fantastic price for how valuable Pageau is to the Ottawa Senators.

This past season Pageau scored 33 points during the regular season while not missing a single game. In the playoffs he once again stepped up as he added 10 points in 19 games. This included his four goal performance against the New York Rangers in game two.

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The value Pageau brings to the Ottawa Senators is from his defensive play. He is by far the best penalty killer on the Sens. Not only is he good at killing penalties but he is capable of creating scoring chances while a man down. Additionally Pageau has a history of being a strong playoff performer. He first became a fan favourite by scoring a hat trick against Montreal in the playoffs in 2013. During the playoff run this year he once again played the hero when his team needed him. Expect more of the same from Pageau next season as he centers the third line. He’s one of the Sens most reliable players.