Travis Green announced on September 23rd that the Ottawa Senators would be without their defensive stalwart, Artem Zub, to start the season. Green said that this was still the same knee injury that had been lingering since the Stanley Cup playoff matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes. Zub was routinely partnered with Jake Sanderson last season, so the Senators will immediately be without a key part of their first pairing.
Zub's injury creates huge chance for another player
Zub’s injury history is starting to become a real problem for the Senators, as he has played a full season only twice in his seven-year NHL career, and this season already has him missing time. Zub is entering the final season of his contract and will be hoping to cash in on years of steady service for Ottawa. There has been uncertainty about whether Ottawa would bring back Zub, especially if he’s going to be looking for some of the inflated NHL rates nowadays. However, with Zub out for the start of the season, the Senators have a significant gap in their lineup and don’t necessarily have someone to fill that hole.
Carter Yakemchuk’s pre-season has left a lot to be desired. The Ottawa Sun’s Callum Fraser wrote that “Carter Yakemchuk hasn’t done much to convince the Senators that he’s ready to graduate to the NHL.” So far, Yakemchuk has looked lost, lost puck battles and been outmuscled, with his foot speed looking like a real problem for the rookie. Of course, it is the pre-season, and sometimes players look like world-beaters, while at other times they look awful; but Yakemchuk’s performance thus far doesn’t inspire confidence in him as a short-term substitute for Zub.
With Zub’s absence and Yakemchuk’s poor play, the Senators would move Jordan Spence to the first pair and Nikolas Matinpalo to the second. If Yakemchuk isn’t able to show that he can be a reliable substitute for the big club, the Senators would need to look at other options. The two best options would be Cameron Crotty, an Ottawa native and right-shot defenceman who played in a few games last season when the Senators were riddled with injuries, and Ben Hutton, a left-shot defenceman whom the Senators brought in on a PTO for this training camp.
Hutton would bring the veteran experience that could stabilize the 3rd pairing while playing on his off-side, but he’d need to sign a contract. Crotty, on the other hand, would be playing on his natural side but doesn’t have the same level of game that Hutton does. The Senators have plenty of younger options within the organization, but with how some have looked in the pre-season, it’s best not to rush them.
It’s an unfortunate situation because, during the off-season, we were pencilling Yakemchuk into the lineup to help provide tertiary defensive scoring and take that next step. But with Zub’s injury, the Senators need someone now. The team will have to look around the organization and hope that someone rises above the rest to help fill out the roster.
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