Ottawa Senators: Making the Case for the top Line Centre
By Daniel Bruce
Chris Tierney
The oldest, most proven option is Chris Tierney who has been solid in his two-years since being acquired in the Erik Karlsson trade. Accumulating 85 points over that stretch, along with an impressive 65 assists during that stretch. While Tierney doesn’t wow you with anything he does, he relies on his smarts to create offence which contributes to his underrated playmaking.
Last season Tierney had 11 goals and 37 points and was one of the teams better penalty-killers with 4 shorthanded goals, good enough for a tie for the league lead.
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Tierney wasn’t used much on the man-advantage though, only producing 2 power-play points on the season. A number one centre with limited power-play usage is really rare, and while the Senators are in a unique position with their centre depth they will likely lean to a player with more upside.
Analytically, Tierney grades out pretty average as he boasts a CF% (Corsi-For) of 47.81% to go along with a relative CF% of -0.61%, he doesn’t exactly drive play for his line. His defensive impact however is felt, his GF% Relative was 0.67% which was second on the team to the traded Vladislav Namestnikov.
Tierney ideally projects as a bottom-six centreman who contributes on the penalty-kill, but with Ottawa’s lack of depth and experience down the middle he might be forced to play up the lineup.