This past August, the Ottawa Senators were looking to add one more piece to their young roster in free agency. To do so, the Senators signed veteran forward Nick Cousins.
Signing Cousins was going to provide good leadership and toughness for the Senators. Cousins has championship pedigree after spending the past two seasons with the Florida Panthers.
Two games into the season, the Senators have a mixture of both good and bad. The Senators are 1-1-0, but the Senators had a tough loss in Montreal last night. If the Senators are going to get hot, they need to get more from their newly signed forward.
Senators need Cousins to start producing after two rough games from him
Through two games into the season, Cousins hasn't produced much for the Senators like they have hoped. Cousins has yet to record a single shot on goal and has had low ice time to go along with his zero points this season. Newly acquired defenseman Nick Jensen recorded a point before Cousins.
Cousins played over 12 minutes of ice time in the season opening win on Thursday, but his minutes dropped in the last game in Montreal to below nine minutes of ice time.
If the Senators are going to exceed expectations, they are going to need their depth to start producing offense. One of those players on the Senators' depth that needs to start producing is Cousins.
Four goals have been scored by the Senators through two games. Three of the four goals have come from Tim Stutzle. Cousins playing on the fourth line offers a perfect chance for him to thrive under head coach Travis Green.
What adds more pressure on Cousins is he's on an expiring contract. If Cousins still isn't producing, he can become easy trade bait. With barely getting ice time through the first two games, more pressure is on him to impress the coaches and front office.
Cousins has been able to produce points well for playing on the fourth line in his career, but he has struggled in Ottawa thus far. If Cousins is able to produce like he used to, it can make the Senators a deeper team.
The Senators are going to be home against three playoff contending teams for the next three games, so Cousins has a perfect opportunity to get his point production going.