The Ottawa Senators have nine pending Unrestricted Free Agents in their organization, Their names are Travis Hamonic, Austin Watson, Scott Sabourin, Jake Lucchini, Jacob Larsson, Antoine Bibeau, Rourke Chartier, Derick Brassard, and Patrick Brown. I wrote about them yesterday, but today I’ll explain why I think it’s okay to move on from players requiring a new contract sometimes.
Obviously, the goal for every team is to get better each season, and contend for Lord Stanley. Along the way, a team’s needs will change and certain players will establish themselves as a better option than a player that’s already on the team. The perfect example of this is Austin Watson. When acquired, Watson played great in his role as the fourth-line right wing. He hasn’t been bad at all, but the team has gotten to a point where they could use a different player than Watson for that same fourth-line role. Therefore, he’s a guy you can afford to just let walk and pursue another opportunity elsewhere, cause maybe another team needs exactly him to make their next push.
On the other hand, not everyone is someone you can afford to just let walk. Take a look at Erik Karlsson, arguably the most skilled player to play for the Ottawa Senators. When he did not want to extend his contract you absolutely had to trade him away because at that point he was the third-best hockey player in the world and if you trade him away, you need something that’s going to help you grow in the future as opposed to losing him for absolutely nothing.
As players age, it’s only normal that their play will decline. An example of this is Cam Talbot. He came into Ottawa being one of the better netminders in the NHL but leaves Ottawa not knowing what his next job will be as his play this season was a decline compared to the season prior. Players’ roles change as they age, and that’s okay. That doesn’t mean that the team owes them for their entire career by any means, once it’s not working anymore, you move on.
Another thing is that sometimes a player will not jell with a coach’s tactics, in that case, It’s also better sometimes to move on instead of ruining that player’s career by refusing to let him find a team that suits his playing style.
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Closing Thoughts
Sometimes it can be easy to judge a player based on their quality of play, but there are many factors to consider. Sometimes it’s just easier for all parties to agree to move on from their professional relationship and pursue different options.