Ottawa Senators: Way Too Early Two-Round Mock Draft
While there’s still over 5-months until the NHL Draft, however, as the season winds down the draft will become more of a point of interest
With the Senators currently sitting in the cellar of the NHL once again with a 9-17-1 record, good enough for 30th in the NHL, it appears a high draft pick will once again be in the cards for Pierre Dorion and staff.
With the help of the Tankathon Draft Simulator, the Senators ended up with the first overall selection in the draft while entering the lottery with the 2nd best odds (13.5%). As for the 2nd-round, according to the current NHL standings, they would hold the 34th and 41st picks in the draft.
With the rebuild quickly progressing and as multiple prospects move to the NHL ranks, any other top prospects they can add is icing on the cake. Adding a player at 1st overall would add yet another top prospect to the team who could likely help the team for the 2021-22 season. Tony Ferrari of Dobber Prospects outlined the top-5 players in the draft as follows:
- Fabian Lysell (RW)
- William Eklund (C)
- Matthew Beniers (C)
- Jesper Wallstedt (G)
- Luke Hughes (LD)
Either one of these players would be a huge addition to the Senators organization, but the clear target here should be at forward position. Either one of the forward featured in the top-3 would be acceptable picks, but with more focus on Eklund and Beniers at 1st overall.
This draft class is certainly less talented than the 2020 draft class, which featured a top-3 comprised of players who would likely go first overall in the 2021 draft. This doesn’t mean the talent isn’t there at the top of the draft, and whatever player the Senators end up with will have a significant impact sooner rather than later.
1st Overall: Matthew Beniers (C), Michigan (NCAA)
H: 6’1″ W: 174 lbs
2020-21 Stats: 22GP, 10G, 13A, 23P
The Senators finally get a bonafide number one centre with the selection of Beniers, his blend of speed, skill and high-motor makes him a slam-dunk at 1st overall.
Leading Michigan in goals with 10 and sitting 3rd on the team in points, Beniers has been one of the teams best forwards despite being a Freshman, draft-eligible forward. The talented forward even helped lead the Americans to a win at the 2021 World Juniors, finishing the tournament with 3 points in 7 games.
Why Beniers?
While the Senators are deep at the centre position, they don’t have a clear top centre for the future, they have plenty of players who fit the middle-six role (Josh Norris, Shane Pinto, Logan Brown). While one of these prospects could carve out a future role on the top-line, getting a top-5 talent in the draft who is more likely to be the centre of the future seems like the correct decision.
It’s clear that in today’s NHL you have to play with pace in order to succeed, and adding Beniers into the fold could make the Senators that much more dangerous to play against. Ottawa would then have 3 burners up front with Tim Stützle, Alex Formenton and the aforementioned Beniers.
People have even compared Beniers to the Senators top pick in 2020, Tim Stützle, the pace that these two play with would give opposing teams fits, especially if the two are playing together.
Matthew Beniers reminds me of Tim Stützle, alot of parallels.
— Derek Lee (@DLee075) January 27, 2021
(It's never too early to start canvasing the prospects)
Seriously ⬇️https://t.co/xRLhzs2agN
With a defensive core that is already filled with top-prospects, adding another highly-talented prospect at forward would nearly put all the pieces together in the Senators rebuild.
34th Overall: Corson Ceulemans (RD), Brooks (AJHL)
H: 6’2″ W: 196 lbs
2020-21 Stats: 2GP, 2G, 3A, 5P
Ceulemans likely wouldn’t have been available at this position had it not been for Covid-19, he would have had a better chance to increase his draft ranking. His 5 points in just 2 games are quite impressive but with that small of a sample size, NHL GM’s may be hesitant to take Ceulemans inside the first round.
Corey Pronman of the Athletic had this to say about Ceulemans:
“He’s a 6-foot-2, right-shot defenseman with good mobility. He closes on checks well due to his great physical play and feet. He escapes pressures effectively and can skate pucks out of trouble”
A big, skilled defenceman who doesn’t shy away from contact is a premium at the NHL level, especially with Ceulemans being a right shot. This quick highlight pack shows a glimpse into the talented defenceman’s great mobility and offensive instincts:
Corson Ceulemans is the lone current CJHL player to earn an "A" rating from the NHL's Central Scouting Service this week.
— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) October 29, 2020
The Brooks Bandits have developed some fantastic defenders (Cale Makar says hello) and Ceulemans is another example. Here's a four-point effort on Oct. 16. pic.twitter.com/r9eW4jNsOs
While the Senators do have right-shot prospects Jacob Bernard-Docker and Lassi Thomson coming up the ranks, adding another capable prospect to the right-side isn’t a bad idea. On the left-side Pierre Dorion has it basically all figured out with Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson and Erik Brannstrom, so if they were to add a defenceman, a left-shot makes the most sense.
41st Overall: Oliver Kapanen (RW), KalPa U20 (U20 SM-sarja)
H: 6’0″ W: 161 lbs
2020-21 Season Stats: 37GP, 25G, 16A, 41P
One thing that I know the Senators staff will like is Kapanen’s work ethic, he never gives up on plays and is always tracking back into the defensive zone, rarely cheating his positioning.
If there’s any position where the Senators need to add more talent would be on right wing, they have a rising star in Drake Batherson and a solid middle-six contributor in Connor Brown but after those two, things get bleak. Kapanen would join Egor Sokolov as the likely heir apparent to Evgenii Dadonov once the veteran winger finishes his three-year contract.
Adding a talent like Kapanen in the middle of the second-round would be a steal for the Senators and one that would make this draft that much more of a success. Kapanen was just recently loaned to JoKP of the Mestis (2nd-tier Finnish league) and will look to continue his strong play versus men after his promotion.