A new start in Ottawa

[tcblcommish]

So I started playing a season in FHM8 using the Ottawa Senators and I am now thinking about trying to rebuild them. I simmed game by game in the first season and enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would so I thought I would try and keep this going for a while and I wanted to keep track of my progress somewhere and here seems like a good spot. Since I finished the first season already, I am going to recap the season more or less if anyone is interested and then I will keep a more detailed day by day thing.


So here is the year in review...

[tcblcommish]

The team finished with a respectable 35-37-10 record, 80 points and 13th in the conference. We missed the playoffs by 10 points but the season started pretty horribly and we lost 9 of the first 11 games. We finished strong with 7 wins in the last 11 games but overall, we just couldn't score enough to pull out the games we really needed.

On home ice, we were 15-21-5 and struggled way more than we should have but the team played much better away from home with a record of 20-16-5. The team scored 208 goals for the season and allowed 231 goals for a difference of 23 goals which ended up not too bad when the season ended. The Senators finished with a 16% power play and was 30th in the league and we finished 15th in the league for penalty killing at 81.7% but we also gave up 6 shorthanded goals. We did however manage to score 13 shorthanded goals, which was 4 more than the Edmonton Oilers for number 1 in the league.



Player Stats

[tcblcommish]

Connor Brown 28 RW
74 gp 18g 31a 49pts 19pim -10pm 11ppg 16:29toi 68 gr

Brown had a solid season for the lackluster offence that the Sens had this year. One of the mainstays on the 2nd line, he played pretty much every situation for the club.

Brady Tkachuk 22 LW
82gp 19g 23a 42pts 70pim -13pm 6ppg 18:23toi 74gr

Expected more from the captain but overall, he had a solid season. Looking for more offence from him next season

Thomas Chabot 25 D
76gp 14g 24a 38pts 36pim 0pm 6ppg 26:26toi 69gr

Chabot probably played too much this season, however he was successful. Played in the Olympics with team Canada as well this season

Drake Batherson 24 RW
79gp 17g 20a 37pts 34pim -5pm 1ppg 1shg 16:55toi 69gr

Expected way more offence from Batherson, he is our leading offensive player and needs to produce more next season. More production on the PP needed too

Kailer Yamamoto 23 RW
Picked up in a trade with Edmonton for a 2nd round pick and the rights to Vitali Abramov
70gp 9g 25a 34pts 42pim -6pm 1ppg 14:25toi 65gr

We picked up Yamamoto to add some speed and offence. Took him a while to settle in but played fairly well after he did.

Josh Norris 22 C
75gp 17g 16a 33pts 34pim -3pm 4ppg 17:32toi 63gr

A disappointing season for Norris. Much more expected out of a 1st line center. Looking for more next season

Nick Holden 34 D
77gp 9g 24a 33pts 31pim 5pm 1ppg 1shg 17:13toi 61gr

Holden was a pleasant surprise on the D core. He played mostly on the 2nd pair but was effective when he was there

Nick Paul 27 LW
82gp 11g 20a 31pts 31pim -5pm 2ppg 3shg 12:27toi 64gr

Paul played well on the 4th line overall and was a very good penalty killer. Debating bringing him back as he is a free agent after the season is over.

Morgan Geekie 23 C
Claimed off waiver from Seattle
64gp 13g 14a 27pts 10pim 2pm 2ppg 2shg 11:29toi 61gr

Geekie was a solid pickup from the penalty kill and mostly played 4th line but jumped around due to injury. He has some upside

Alex Formenton 22 RW/LW
74gp 12g 13a 25pts 27pim -3pm 1ppg 3shg 12:31toi 63gr

About what we expected from Formenton, a little flash and some solid PK due to his speed. Needs to step up more next season

Nikita Zaitsev 30 D
70gp 3g 22a 25pts 32pim 23pm 1ppg 23:56toi 63gr

Zaitsev played with Chabot on the top pair most of the year but was hurt and played hurt a couple of times. Was solid all season, especially on the PK.

Zach Sanford 27 F
71gp 9g 14a 23pts 12pim -10pm 2ppg 1shg 10:55toi 66gr

Sanford was a solid 3rd or 4th liner for the club and killed penalties. Not much flash but had an ok season

Erik Brannstrom 22 D
82gp 2g 21a 23pts 41pim -24pm 20:03toi 63gr

He played every game and we tried to make it good ones but he was a liability on the ice in his own zone. Probably should have played most of the last season in Belleville

Tim Stutzle 20 F
67gp 6g 15a 21pts 22pim 6pm 1shg 15:25toi 69gr

When Stutzle was healthy, he played very well oven though he only had 6 goals. He was solid in his own end on the wing but ran into issues being healthy. At 20, he is a massive player for us going forward

Tyler Ennis 34 RW/C
43gp 6g 13a 19pts 10pim -3pm 1ppg 13:58toi 61gr

Ennis broke his right kneecap halfway through the season and we really missed him. He wont be back next season as he is a free agent but he played fairly well before the injury

Atrem Zub 26 D
80gp 5g 14a 19pts 32pim -28pm 2ppg 20:40toi 60gr

We relied on Zub too often with our D core and it cost us too many times. Zub wasn't terrible but teams scored way too often with him on the ice.

Chris Tierney 27 C
56gp 9g 9a 18pts 10pim -14pm 2ppg 1shg 15:27toi 62 gr

Chris had an interesting year. He started on the club, played awful and got sent down and passed through waivers. Was great in Belleville and came back up later in the year due to injuries and stayed. Not sure about his future in Ottawa

Dylan Gambrell 25 F
46gp 7g 11a 18pts 16pim -6pm 1ppg 12:07toi 60gr

Dylan could have been better but played fairly well on the 4th unit but was injured too often with little nagging injuries. Hope top see more from him in the next season

Shane Pinto 21 F
51gp 6g 12a 18pts 22pim -4pm 15:15toi 63gr

A lot of pressure on Pinto this season, we used him too often. Should have stayed in the minors. Played ok when he did play but could have used more seasoning

Jacob Bernard-Docker 21 D
43gp 4g 12a 16pts 10pim -8pm 1ppg 15:05toi 62gr

Jacob had a decent stint with the big club, played fairly well but he wasn't ready for the game yet. He should be a mainstay in the next season on the D core

Viktor Mete 23 D
27gp 2g 8a 10pts 10pim -3pm 15:33toi 62gr

Hard to judge Mete this season, he was always hurt. Needs to be in better shape next season. When he did play, he played fine.

Colin White 25 C
13gp 3g 4a 7pts 6pim -1pm 16:12toi 63gr

White came back late in the year after a serious injury at the end of the season. He was very good in the OZone with the top unit but needs to be better over all aspects of the game. Will probably be the 1st center next season, at least to start

Max McCormick 30 F
Picked up on waivers from Seattle
20gp 0g 4a 4pts 52pim -5pm 11:49toi 64gr

Overall Max played well. He was there to make sure no one took runs at anyone but didn't get into many games in Seattle and was a healthy scratch for a lot of games in Ottawa. Numbers in the forward position made it tough for him to crack the lineup

Yegor Sokolov 21 F
9gp 1g 2a 3pts 4pim -3pm 13:50toi 66gr

Yegor showed flashes of why he is looked at as a top prospect in the organization. Will get a long look next season

Lassi Thomson 21 D
18gp 0g 3a 3pts 6pim -3pm 16:22toi 62gr

Thomson just wasn't ready for the big club but due to injuries played more than he should. Future is bright for him though


Michael Del Zotto 31 D
19gp 1g 1a 2pts 14pim -7pm 17:57toi 59gr

Fill in guy, game has passed him by

Jesperi Kotkaniemi 21 F
Claimed on waivers from the Carolina Hurricanes
3gp 0g 2a 2pts 1pm 15:17toi 70gr

Shocked to see him available on waivers but didn't get much of a look being so late in the year. He should be a good part of the club next season

Austin Watson 30 F
5gp 0g 2a 2pts 11:11toi 62gr

Didn't play much

[tcblcommish]

Matt Murray 27 G
42gp 2485mins 15-20-1 record 2.75gaa .903pct

Murray played the most of our goalies this season and played fairly well. He had the worst GAA and PCT on the team and does need to improve but he could be the #2 goalie next season.

Anton Forsberg 29 G
24gp 1408mins 9-10-1 record 2.47gaa .912pct

Forsberg kept us in some games and was solid overall. Was never meant to be a starter and was just a place holder this season. Won't be back next season


Filip Gustavsson 23 G
20gp 1087mins 11-7-1 record 2.43gaa .915pct

Gustavsson is the goalie of the future and he came up late and played the last 10 games and 20 of the final 25. Was very solid even though the team wasn't the best in front of him. Will probably start as the top goalie

[tcblcommish]

Overall, the season is about what we expected. We competed in games, finsihed close to .500 and the future looks bright. Pinto, Zub, Gustavsson, Stutzle, Tkachuk, Brannstrom and the names go on. We need to put it all together but things are looking good in Ottawa trying to get back to the top of the league.

There is some contracts that I am unsure about that we have to make decisions on in the next month or so.

Zach Sanford is asking for way too much money. Looking for a deal of 4.5m a year for 3 years. We can afford it but not sure he is the guy to sign at that deal.

Nick Holden is going to test the market after this season. Doesn't want to play here in Ottawa

Josh Brown won't be offered a contract. He spent the year in Belleville and just wasn't very good.

Viktor Mete is a thinker. I am not sure what to do with him at this point. He will be qualified so we won't lose him but not sure he is worth the asking price.

Nick Paul doesn't want to play for Ottawa anymore and will test the market. We tried offering him a deal earlier in the year and he turned it down.

Max McCormick won't be offered a new deal in Ottawa. He will become a free agent.

Tyler Ennis is another guy I am not sure about. He is only looking for 3.1m and a 2 year deal but there will be a bit of a log jam in the top 12

Chris Tierney was offered a contract, 4.5 a year for 3 years. Not much of a raise for him but he can help solidify the forward core and helps with leadership

[tcblcommish]

Erik Brannstrom is restricted. He is looking for a 2.7m deal but only for 2 years. Not sure I want a low term like that, would rather lock him up for a bit longer but he is still a bit of a crap shoot.

Viktor Mete. He will be qualified.

Alex Formanton will be qualified. He is looking in the 2.5m a season range for 3 years. Not sure if I want to do that yet.

Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Making 6 million a season already, now looking for 6.7 a season for 4 years. He is solid, not sure I want to pay that much for him. Will be qualified

Morgan Geekie will be qualified as will Dylan Gambrell. Not sure they will be big pieces of the puzzle going forward though.

[tcblcommish]

The Ottawa Senators have the following players playing in the World Hockey Championships.

Team Russia
Artem Zub D

Team Sweden
Filip Gustavsson G

Team Canada
Thomas Chabot D

Team USA
Brady Tkachuk LW

Team Germany
Tim Stutzle LW

[Tie Montana]

Good thread. Respect for the effort!

[tcblcommish]

Ok, so after the season was over, the contract demands dropped significantly.

All of the players I wanted to keep that were RFA signed a little less than they asked for before the season ended.

We also made a trade with the Edmonton Oilers. They shopped Tyson Barrie and we snatched him up for a 3rd round pick and a prospect. He should help the power play for sure.

We signed Riley Smith and Ollie Maata to contracts before the season starts as well. Maatta is more for depth but Smith should compete for a top 6 position.

The roster will be as follows to start the season this season

Goalies
Matt Murray
Filip Gustavsson

Defence
Thomas Chabot
Erik Brannstrom
Viktor Mete
Ollie Maatta
Nikita Zaitsev
Artem Zub
Jacob Bernard-Docker
Tyson Barrie

Forwards
Tim Stutzle
Brady Tkachuk
Alex Formenton
Jasperi Kotkeniemi
Chris Tirney
Colin White
Josh Norris
Shane Pinto
Morgan Geekie
Connor Brown
Kailer Yamamoto
Drake Batherson
Riley Smith

[tcblcommish]

Josh Norris was hurt in the preseason, should be out for 2 weeks.

[tcblcommish]

Huge first game vs the Flyers

Chabot was the star to start off the season with 2 goals and an assist in our 5 to 1 victory. Colin White, Stutzle and Zaitsev also scored.

Game 2 was a 2-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils. Erik Brannstrom was the first star of the game with an assist and some great play in the Dzone. Pinto got his first of the year, as did Connor Brown. Gustavsson is now 2-0 to start the year.

Game 3 was a tough game vs the top team in the league, the Toronto Maple Leafs. we lost 5-4. Matt Murray played his first game and was awful giving up 5 goals on 18 shots. Gustavsson came in and played well but the game was already over. Barrie scored his first for the Sens, Formenton scored his 2nd and Connor Brown scored 2.

After the game, the Senators were informed that Connor Brown has some tightness in his groin and will miss about a week and Matt Murray fractured his Tibia and will miss at least 7 weeks.

Mads Sogaard was called up to replace Murray. The Senators are getting the view of the future goaltending tandem a bit earlier than expected. Yegor Sokolov was called up as well.

Game 4 was a loss to the Coyotes. Gustavsson was back in the net for the Sens and made 20 saves on 22 shots but gave up 2 shootout goals to take the loss. Morgan Geekie and Yegor Sokolov scored their first goals.

Game 5 vs the Pittsburgh Penguins was what the Sens needed. We won 5 to 3 and dominated the game overall. Chris Tierney, Kailer Yamamoto, and Kotkeniemi scored their first goals of the season and Chabot added his 3rd while Geekie scored his 2nd goal.

[tcblcommish]

Game 6 at home vs the Avalanche.

Solid game and rookie goalie Mads Sogaard got his first shutout making all 21 saves. Morgan Geekie scored his 3rd of the season, Zaitsev his 2nd, Erik Brannstrom with his first and finally Drake Batherson nets his first of the year.

Game 7 Vs Detroit

Another good game at home, 3-1 victory over the Red Wings. Shuffled the lines a little bit, switch Stutzle to the 2nd line and switched Riley Smith and Drake Batherson in lines. Stutzle scored his 2nd of the year, Josh Norris with his first and Artem Zub got his first as well. Gustavsson played this one and played well. After the game, Senators announced that Gustavsson signed a new 3 year deal.

Game 8 Big 4 - 2 win over the Bruins

Team is rolling along so far and we are getting production from all the lines. Formenton picked up goal number 2 to tie the game in the first period. In the 3rd, we blew it open on goals by Geekie (4), Batherson (2) and Stutzle (3). Gustavsson played again and made 34 saves in the win. Unfortunately, Kailer Yamamoto was injured and will miss some decent time.

Game 9 another win vs the Wings

Great defensive win, keeping the Wings to only 15 shots and winning the game 2-0. Gustavsson was in goal for the shutout. Tierney (2) and Brannstrom (2) got the goals.

Game 10 vs the Carolina Hurricanes

The win streak came to an end vs the Hurricanes, losing the game 3-0. Gustavsson made 35 saves in the loss. Not too much to say other than that

[alko]

What a detailed report. I hope, you will have patience to do it long-time.

Because our experience here says, it will not last long.

[tcblcommish]

Originally Posted by alko

What a detailed report. I hope, you will have patience to do it long-time.

Because our experience here says, it will not last long.

I have done that myself too. A couple of times, the game has crashed and ruined it. I'll keep going as long as I can

[tcblcommish]

After 10 games, the Ottawa Senators have found themselves in 2nd place in the division, a far cry from where we were last season. We have a 7-2-1 record, pretty good start.

A huge shock to the start of the season is our 3rd line center leading the team in scoring with 10 points, Morgan Geekie. 4 goals and 6 assists sp far playing very limited time makes me think maybe moving him into a bigger role. Very disappointed in Brady Tkachuk and Josh Norris on the top unit.

Top 5 Goals
Geekie -4
Chabot -3
Brown 3
Stutzle 3
Formenton 2

Top 5 Assists
Geekie 6
Formenton 6
White 6
Pinto 6
Zaitsev 5

Top 5 Points
Geekie 10
Formenton 8
White 7
Pinto 7
Zaitsev 6

[tcblcommish]

Game 11 at home vs the Caps

An explosion of goals tonight vs the Caps and we win 7-1. Colin White had 2 (3), Stutzle (4), Batherson (3), Brannstrom (3), Tyson Barrie (2) and Viktor Mete with his first were the other scorers. Gustavsson got his 7th win with 35 saves. Unfortunately, Erik Brannstrom was hit late in the game and will miss significant time going forward.

After the game, Brannstrom was placed on IR and Maatta was put into the line up. Sokolov was taken out of the line up too and Chris Tierney was brought back in.

Game 12 vs the Columbus Blue Jackets

Columbus came off a big loss vs the Knights and were amped up to play, skating to a 4-3 win over the Senators. Maatta scored his first goal of the season to start it all off and Tyson Barrie scored his 3rd minutes later. however, we couldn't hold the lead and were down 4 to 2 when Josh Norris scored his 2nd late to make it close. Sogaard had a decent game making 33 saves but we couldn't pull out the win.

Game 13 at the New York Islanders

Great effort by the club tonight and we skated away with a 3-0 win. Gustavsson again with the solid game making 24 saves in the shutout, his 2nd of the season. Connor Brown scored his 4th of the season, Morgan Geekie notched his 5th and Riley Smith, the big Free Agent signing finally gets his 1st.

Game 14 at Philadelphia

Back to back shutouts by Gustavsson who is having an amazing start to the season. Big 2-0 win over the Flyers, Tierney with his 3rd and Artem Zub picked up his 2nd. During the game, Brady Tkachuk was injured. Shouldn't be too long but will miss a couple of games.

Game 15 in Toroto. A huge test!

Big game vs the Leafs and we dropped a 2-1 game. Formenton was the only Sen that managed to beat Mrazek. We hung with a top team which was good but need to find a way to beat those teams in those 1 goal games.

[tcblcommish]

After the Leaf game, Morgan Geekie was examined and it was found that he fractured a bone in his right hand and will miss significant time. Injuries are getting up there now and we will see if the depth we have can keep us on track.

We called up Otto Sompii to help out and will suit up for the next game.

Game 16 vs the New Jersey Devils

Big win with some bodies missing from the line up vs the Devils. A solid 3-2 win. Norris scored his 3rd of the season, Barrie got his 4th and then Norris netted the winner with 5 minutes left in the game.

Game 17 at home vs the Islanders

Rough game, ran into a real hot goaltender who stopped all 37 shots we threw at him. Gustavsson continues his red hot start to the season making 34 saves in a 1-0 loss.

Game 18 at home vs Nashville

Solid game vs the Predators and we skated away with I think, a 4-1 win but in a shoot out due to some mix up with the patch. Going forward should be better

Game 19 at the Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pens hand the Senators their 4th loss of the season 4-3. Solid overall game by the club but Gustavsson wasn't as solid. 4 goals on 34 shots is different than he usually does but nothing scary. Brady Tkachuk scored his 2nd of the season, Tyson Barrie with his 5th and Connor Brown with his 6th. Tkachuk also dropped the gloved in the 2nd period with Barclay Goodrow. Crosby scored the lone goal in the shootout for the winner and we still get a point.

Game 20 At Carolina

The Senators came back in a big way vs the Canes and won 4-0. Sogaard continues his hot streak getting his 3rd win in 4 games and his 3rd shutout. Ollie Maatta scored his 2nd of the year and the game winner. Colin White got his 4th, Artem Zub his 3rd and Tim Stutzle his 6th. Kailer Yamamoto came bnack this game and added 2 assists. Starting to get some players back.

[tcblcommish]

Not sure what has happened here but the game is acting a little weird. Games are showing 1-0 but there is a lot of goals and now I have overtime games happening when the games are 4-1. Will send to FHM and see what is going on.

[tomkmb]

Originally Posted by tcblcommish

Not sure what has happened here but the game is acting a little weird. Games are showing 1-0 but there is a lot of goals and now I have overtime games happening when the games are 4-1. Will send to FHM and see what is going on.

That's a real shame, this is an enjoyable read and I hope it can continue!

[tcblcommish]

Looks like the problem is fixed so I'll be starting back up again.

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