Ottawa Senators’ rookie centreman Shane Pinto has had a magnificent start to his 2022-2023 training camp. After suiting up in just 5 regular season games last season and 17 total in his young NHL career, Pinto is looking to officially solidify himself as a regular in the Senators’ lineup.
With the Sens roughly halfway through their training camp, Pinto appears to be on track to be an incredibly impactful player for the club this season. A lot of things need to go right, but he could earn some hardware when all is said and done this season.
Here’s why Shane Pinto is a sleeper for the Calder Memorial trophy, awarded to the NHL’s Rookie of the Year.
A Gifted Athlete
My favourite part about Pinto’s development path is how he got started. Until he was 15 years old, he played house league hockey in his home state of New York. He then made the decision to take hockey more seriously than baseball, another sport he excelled at.
Once he did this he made the jump to his local AAA team, then it was onto the U16 Selects. After being a 21st-round pick in the USHL, Pinto made the Lincoln Stars and was so impressive that he was traded at the deadline to the contending Tri-city Storm. In 56 games split between both teams, Pinto racked up 60 points as a rookie.
He had already committed to play for the University of North Dakota (UND) before beginning his USHL season when he started to rocket up the 2019 NHL Draft watchlist. This is where the Senators caught wind of him and with the 32nd overall pick, selected Pinto.
The fact that just 4 years prior, Pinto was playing house league hockey for fun is absolutely unprecedented. That’s part of the reason Senators fans are so bullish about Pinto’s potential ceiling and why it shouldn’t be a shock if he wins the Calder this year.
The UND Effect
It should be noted that when the Sens picked Pinto at #32, fans were not happy. In a draft that already saw them lose the 4th overall pick to the Colorado Avalanche, selecting Pinto seemed like a reach when other highly regarded names were available.
Fast forward 3 years later, those fans are now eating their words. Pinto has been one of the Senators’ top prospects since he was drafted, largely due to his play at UND.
As of 2021, the 1st round now has 32 picks, so Pinto could technically be viewed as a 1st round selection. That means from 2018-2020, the Senators used a first-round pick to draft a UND-bound player. Jacob Bernard-Docker in 2018, Pinto in 2019, and Jake Sanderson in 2020. They clearly love the development program there, and it’s hard to blame them.
Pinto had a successful freshman year, posting 28 points in 33 games. He also made the USA World Junior roster, where he excelled, with 7 points in 5 games to lead the team. He was named the NCHC Rookie of the Year and a Top 3 player for the USA at the World Juniors.
Starting to notice a trend? Pinto consistently performs at every level he plays, regardless of his age compared to the age he’s playing against. That year was when the criticism began fading away after the Senators “reached” for him at #32. However, his most impressive season was his sophomore year in 2020-21.
32 points in 28 games is slightly better production than his rookie year, but it was the accolades that followed that really stood out. In the NCHC, Pinto was named the Best Forward, Best Defensive Forward, and Best Player in the conference. He was also named a finalist for the Hobey Baker award, given to the best player across the entire NCAA. This was some outstanding recognition for Pinto and led right to him signing his Entry-Level deal with the Senators.
The Calder Case
I should make it clear, the NHL is obviously not like every other league. Pinto will be challenged to remain consistent for an entire 82-game schedule, especially since he was limited to just 5 contests last year after separating his shoulder.
With that being said, the way he started his training camp has been incredible. In 3 games, he has 5 points and is coming off a 2-goal performance on Saturday night in Ottawa, both on the powerplay:
Watching this again, what a play by Pinto. He wasn't just standing in the slot wide open. Right when Giroux passed to Brassard, he broke towards the net. Escaped Evans' coverage for maybe one second and scored. https://t.co/A8FmSa6gNF
— Everyday Sens (@EverydaySens) October 2, 2022
The Senators are primed to be an offensively-driven team this season, and it looks like Pinto is going to benefit from that quite a bit. To begin the season, at least, Pinto is going to be the bumper on the powerplay with Alex DeBrincat, Claude Giroux, Sanderson, and Mathieu Joseph. If the season is anything like Saturday night, Pinto will be right in the mix.
At even strength, he’s slated to play in between Joseph and Tyler Motte, 2 responsible forwards who use their speed to their advantage. That line is going to round out a very impressive top-9 forward group and they should take a majority of the head-to-head matchups against the elite talent on opposing teams.
Given his track record at every other level, if Shane Pinto stays healthy, I fully expect him to make a statement in the Calder race this season. It’s a very impressive rookie class this year, but all signs point to Pinto making a serious push for the NHL Rookie of the Year award.
-Jack Richardson
Twitter: @jackrichrdson
Photo: Unknown. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.