The dust has officially settled on the most memorable off-season in Ottawa Senators’ history. General Manager Pierre Dorion has managed to assemble a formidable forward core that, when healthy, should be amongst the best in the NHL.
With that being said, the players still need to produce. Of all their top-6 forwards, veteran Claude Giroux was the only one who didn’t set a career-high for points in the 2021-22 season. Brady Tkachuk, Josh Norris, Drake Batherson, Tim Stützle, and Alex DeBrincat all had successful offensive seasons last year. But now that the expectations are going to be higher in the Nation’s Capital, what are some realistic point predictions for the group as a whole?
Let’s take a look at what a successful season would look like for each individual:
Brady Tkachuk
The captain finished last year in style by scoring his 30th goal as a game-winner with under 2 minutes to play in the last game of the season. Tkachuk later admitted that it was a personal goal of his from the beginning of the season to hit 30 and was relieved he could do so.
On top of this, Tkachuk added 37 assists. 67 points for a 22-year-old coming off a monster contract is a pretty impressive season. Especially considering that Tkachuk signed that deal on opening night, meaning he missed training camp in its entirety. With a full training camp under his belt, it’s fair to expect Tkachuk to step his game up even more than he did last year.
Prediction: 35G 42A 77P
Josh Norris
Norris led the Senators in goals in just his second full NHL season with 35, despite missing 16 games with a separated shoulder. Norris solidified himself as one of the more lethal snipers in the NHL, finishing 3rd in the league with 15 power play goals.
This was reason enough for the Sens to sign him to an 8-year, $63.6 million extension this summer. Certainly no discount, Norris earned the deal by slowly working into the #1 centre role for the Senators over the past 2 seasons. That being said, the team will now have more weapons to turn to offensively. I think that could hurt Norris’ production a little bit, but it still isn’t crazy to suggest he could hit 40 goals.
Prediction: 41G 30A 71P
Drake Batherson
For the purpose of this article, we’ll ignore the elephant in the room regarding Batherson and the Hockey Canada situation. When that comes to fruition and/or he officially reports to training camp, I’ll have more comments on the matter and what the Sens should do.
Batherson was arguably the Senators’ MVP last season (not including Anton Forsberg). He posted 44 points in just 46 games after Aaron Dell decided to become public enemy #1 in Ottawa. Batherson provided the Senators’ offense with stellar playmaking ability and wicked chemistry with Norris.
I could genuinely see Batherson leading the team in scoring IF he stays healthy for all 82 games. He was an extremely underrated part of their offense this season and will certainly be pivotal if they’re to take a step this season.
Prediction: 28G 55A 83P
Alex DeBrincat
This is where the fun begins. DeBrincat is truly one of the NHL’s best wingers and has been since he entered the league in 2017. He’s only 24 years old and has already hit the 40-goal-mark twice in his career (arguably 3 times after being on pace to do it during the shortened 2021 season).
Batherson was the team’s best forward but after DeBrincat was acquired, he assumed the mantle. His dynamic scoring ability mixed with agility and competitive playing style make for a nearly perfect hockey player. The only thing that will hold DeBrincat back, at least to begin, is that he won’t have Patrick Kane dishing him the puck anymore. I still don’t think that will matter as much as some might believe.
I’ve watched hours of DeBrincat’s play since he became a Senator and can confidently say that he should have no issue playing alongside Stützle and Giroux.
Prediction: 45G 35A 80P
Tim Stützle
Here is the true X-factor for the Senators going into this season. The German superstar is fresh off an 8-year, $66.8 million extension after establishing himself as one of the best young centremen in the NHL last season.
In his final 29 games of the 2021-22 campaign, Stützle recorded 31 points. I think that’s a significant enough stretch to say that it was no fluke. The kid is the real deal and Dorion clearly thinks so as well. I think the sky is the limit for him and it might be as soon as this season based on the weapons he’ll have around him at even strength. His move to centre last season after about 20 games was very understated because of how seamless he made the transition look. Now after a full summer of training knowing exactly where he stands, Stützle should explode this season.
Of note for the first few games is Stützle’s start last year. It took him 14 games to score his first goal, a stretch that saw the Senators win just 2 games. It’ll be key for him to have a statement type of start and prove to the league that he is worthy of such a massive payday.
Prediction: 35G 57A 92P
Claude Giroux
Last but not least, 34-year-old Giroux will have some keeping up to do this season. He’s 10 years older than the next oldest player in this top 6, but that doesn’t appear to concern anybody. Giroux has long been lauded as one of the hardest workers in the NHL and by all accounts, that was the case this summer too.
In what was surely a whirlwind season last year, Giroux put up a respectable 65 points split between the Flyers and the Panthers. Just 4 years removed from a career-best 102 points, Giroux still brings an elite level of offense to the table. He will be relied upon for faceoffs and his playmaking ability to set up players like DeBrincat and Norris.
I think Giroux is a very underrated addition in NHL circles. He was named the 2022 All-star game MVP, and while that’s a game that most players take it easy, it’s still the best players in the world.
Prediction: 28G 45A 73P
Final Projections:
Stützle: 92 points
Batherson: 83 points
DeBrincat: 80 points
Tkachuk: 77 points
Giroux: 73 points
Norris: 71 points
This forward core is so deep that I wouldn’t be surprised if any of the 6 leads the team in scoring by the end of the year because they each possess the ability to do so. It’s a very, very exciting time to be a Sens fan.
Buckle up, folks. The Sens are so back.
-Jack Richardson
Twitter: @jackrichrdson
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.