Senators should not acquire more centres
Having centre depth is crucial for the long-term success of any hockey team. The Senators have done a great job accumulating great young centres, so this should not be an area of concern going forward.
They have many centres under contract, and many more in the system. With Logan Brown, Colin White, J.G. Pageau and Nick Paul in the NHL, and Brady Tkachuk who can play as a centre. The Senators don’t need any more centres.
The only exception to this would be if they get a top two pick in the upcoming draft. Quinton Byfield and Alexis Lafreniere are both elite, generational centres you can’t pass up on.
Shane Pinto put up a good showing in his first World Juniors game today, with a pair of goals and a goal that was disallowed because time ran out.
Josh Norris is having a fantastic season down in Belleville, with 14 goals and ten assists for 24 points in 29 games. He can easily be in Ottawa full-time by next season, and will probably make the team right out of training camp.
Filip Chlapik is a good prospect who has NHL upside. Although his NHL call ups in the past haven’t worked out too well for him, this year he actually did very well with the big club.
Nick Paul and Logan Brown have both taken big strides in their play, for the Ottawa Senators. They each centre their own line and are responsible defensively.
With the possibility of a few centres being dealt closer to the trade deadline in February, we could see a glimpse of the teams future, especially at the centre position.
But being able to pick Byfield or Lafreniere would be incredible and speed up the process of the rebuild considerably.