
Some important tidbits from the last week in Senators hockey
Once again Senators fans struggle through another playoffs without their beloved team fighting for the cup, but all is not gloomy as there have been some exciting happenings over the past week.
Josh Norris
The Senators superb rookie enjoyed a sensational season in 2020-21 and was awarded for his performance with a spot on the All-Rookie team, an honour that was well deserved. Norris’s 35 points placed him third amongst all rookies, trailing only Kirill Kaprizov and Jason Robertson and his 17 goals placed him in a tie for second, some could even argue he was Ottawa’s best forward.
Congratulations to #Sens forward Josh Norris who was named to the 2020-21 NHL All-Rookie Team.
— Sens Communications (@Media_Sens) June 30, 2021
The honour marks the second time in the last three seasons a Senator has been recognized (Brady Tkachuk, 2018-19). https://t.co/FCYY3F1Hyy
Norris was able to drive play on both ends of the ice, his defensive game gained some recognition from some of the top names in the analytics community:
Apropos of nothing, Josh Norris had an excellent rookie season where he played tough minutes and came out of it with great results at both ends of the ice and solid scoring as well. #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/VTVToKCCku
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) June 18, 2021
D.J. Smith could trust Norris late in games in the face-off circle as well, his 52.4% win percentage placed him first on the team, something that is quite rare for a rookie.
Leevi Meriläinen
The Senators 3rd round pick (71st overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft enjoyed a phenomenal season for Kärpät U20 where he posted a league-best 0.934 save percentage. Meriläinen was recently signed to his entry-level contract on June 14th, possibly indicating an impending move to North America?
Welcome to Kingston, Leevi!#MyFrontenacs | #GameON pic.twitter.com/pQQUPI8nw2
— Kingston Frontenacs (@KingstonFronts) June 30, 2021
Meriläinen was selected with the 48th pick of the CHL import draft by the Kingston Frontenacs and with his entry-level contract already signed as stated above, it’s becoming more likely that the young Finnish goaltender comes to North America.
If the18-year-old netminder decides to join Kingston he will be coming to an organization whose Assistant General Manager used to be the goaltending coach for the Belleville Senators:
One thing to consider with Leevi Merilainen and the Frontenacs: former #BellevilleSens goaltending coach, Kory Cooper, is Kingston's AGM and goaltending coach. Cooper was instrumental in the development of Joey Daccord, Filip Gustavsson and Marcus Hogberg.
— Matt Tidcombe (@MattTidcombe) June 30, 2021
Some interesting parallels could make this decision easier for Meriläinen.
Watch for more exciting news as the NHL Draft, Expansion Draft, and Free Agency period are all happening in the month of July.