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Ottawa Senators: 3 Players Who Could Surprisingly Make the Opening Day Lineup

By Daniel Bruce

LONDON, ON - FEBRUARY 13: Alex Formenton #80 of the London Knights skates with the puck in the second period during OHL game action against the Guelph Storm at Budweiser Gardens on February 13, 2019 in London, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)
LONDON, ON - FEBRUARY 13: Alex Formenton #80 of the London Knights skates with the puck in the second period during OHL game action against the Guelph Storm at Budweiser Gardens on February 13, 2019 in London, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /
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Alex Formenton #80 of the London Knights (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)
Alex Formenton #80 of the London Knights (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

A Senators lineup that has spots up for grabs, some players could surprisingly make the opening night roster

Heading into the offseason it was seeming like there would be a ton of spots available on the Ottawa Senators’ opening day roster but through their plentiful offseason additions, there are fewer spots available.

With key offseason acquisitions of Evgenii Dadonov, Alex Galchenyuk, Erik Gudbranson, Austin Watson and Josh Brown, all likely to start on opening night. Tim Stuetzle is likely to make the team out of camp as well, leaving room for players on the outside looking in very minimal. That being said there is still a chance for those players to make the roster if they show enough in camp.

There are some expected graduates from the AHL that wouldn’t be a surprise to make the roster, players include: Drake Batherson, Josh Norris and others such as Rudolfs Balcers and Filip Chlapik who’ve already proven themselves at the NHL level. D.J. Smith hasn’t been afraid to take chances on players, like the surprising insertion of Scott Sabourin into the opening day lineup or J.C. Beaudin’s 22-game stint in Ottawa.

There’s at least going to be one player who surprisingly makes the lineup that nobody expected, so I go through three players who could pull it off.

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