Let’s Talk D
Written by: Franky Robertson
As the opening weekend of the NHL season comes to an end, I think it’s safe to say if the Ottawa Senators want to be a playoff team, they still have some lingering issues that need to be fixed sooner rather than later, especially on defence. Although we’re only three games into the season, the highly anticipated defensive core hasn’t quite yet had a great game top to bottom. Whether it was full-blown missed coverage on our end, or just a defensive pairing looking like they weren’t on the same page, there are improvements to be made. That being said, once this D core is at its best, they could really help this team win. So, let’s talk defence.
First and foremost, the offence that this D core is capable of providing every night is dangerous. We’ve known for a few years now about Thomas Chabot’s offensive abilities and what he can bring to the table when he chooses to join the rush or when he decides to go for a leisure skate in the offensive zone, looking to set up some high-danger chances. Although as of the last year or so, hasn’t been his usual self, neither on offense nor on defense. Can’t forget about Erik Branntsrom either, who likes to go for a pretty impressive ‘end-to-end’ skate every once in a while. Despite the fact that his size tends to give him an edge on offence, in regard to his speed and agility, it can sometimes cause a disadvantage on defence, as you can imagine. But what we are really starting to see is what the Sens can do with Jakob Chychrun for a full year, and better and more mature Jake Sanderson.
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After three games, Jakob Chychrun has two goals and two assists, ranking him the second-highest scorer amongst defensemen in the league with four points. Jake Sanderson currently stands with one goal and two assists tying him as the highest scorer in the league under the age of 22, a list of players that includes Cole Caufield, Tim Stützle, and Connor Bedard. I can hear you whine and moan through your computer “Okay yeah but it’s only been three games” or probably something along the lines of “There’s no way they can keep that up.” I know, and I get it… But you can’t tell me they don’t bring an offensive edge to the table. Something we haven’t necessarily had a problem with, but wouldn’t hurt to have, especially when it comes from the D core.
Something we have been having a problem with though, is the defense. As in, playing defence, not necessarily the position itself. But, if I included players on offence who don’t backcheck nor pick up their man in transition, this article would have an extra 500 words, so I’ll stick with the defensive players. In fact, I’ll talk about one player specifically. Thomas Chabot. A player who used to be highly regarded due to his impressive offensive skills and ability to at least defend adequately, but coming off a down year, he’s been known recently to make defensive mistakes, and who quite frankly, hasn’t looked confident with the puck on his stick. My guess is, being the top defenseman on the team during the rebuild, playing 30 minutes a night for multiple seasons with some not-so-great defensive partners who I won’t name, might have burned him out a bit. Don’t worry, I’m not about to suggest we move on from him (yet), but I do think he’s due for a break. Now that our top-four defensive core finally actually consists of top-four tier defensemen, the team should use this as an opportunity to cut back on Chabot’s time-on-ice, letting any one of; Chychrun, Sanderson, or even Zub help with the workload.
Feature photo: Getty Images
The coaching staff should even let Jake Sanderson quarterback the first powerplay unit. With more capable defensive players on the team now, there’s no reason Chabot should still be working as much as he has been. Letting him step back, even temporarily, could give him the energy and focus needed to get back to his old self. Unfortunately, DJ Smith and staff show no sign of letting Jake Sanderson take over as the top guy on the back end. Even though most of the fanbase can agree that, in his second year in the league, he’s already our best defenceman.
Finally, the last key piece of our defensive core is Erik Brannstrom. I’m not sure if it’s his speedy D zone exits, deking through opposing teams’ players, or the fact that he’s mainly the last piece left of the Mark Stone trade, that tends to make him a fan favourite. But whether you like him or not, you might have to get used to no longer seeing him on our team. His name has been brought up as a possible trade option to make cap room in order to sign RFA Shane Pinto.
I figured it might be a good idea to try and warm up to the thought of not only Brannstrom being gone, but of our already thin defensive core having to rely on a defensive player with little NHL experience on the third pairing. If the team wants to stick to the theme of having a small puck-moving defenseman in that position, Lassi Thomson could work. Personally, I think the reason he was put on waivers after a few pre-season games this year, was because with Erik Brannstrom in the lineup, there really isn’t any role for Thompson on this team, seeing as he can’t crack the top 4, and a line of Brannstrom – Thompson would get crushed. But seeing as Thompson is back in the organization after being reclaimed by Ottawa on waivers, and the fact that Brannstrom might be on his way out, a third pairing of Thomson and Hamonic is something we could see in the future.
If the team decides to take this opportunity to run a more defensive third pairing, a mix of Jacob Bernard-Docker, Dillon Heatherington, and even Tyler Kleven could come up from Belleville to play with Travis Hamonic. I was hoping Tyler Kleven would spend more time on the farm team to develop before becoming a full-time NHL player, but I think he would be the better fit. While all three still need AHL time to improve on some fundamental aspects of the game, at least Kleven’s size and ability to lay the body gives him an edge.
In the end, there are still some important questions that remain. Can this D core continue to help score goals and create offence like they have been so far? Can Thomas Chabot clean up his game and have a bounce-back year, or has he shown us everything he’s got? Will Erik Brannstrom continue to show off his speed and agility, or will we see Lassi Thomson or Tyler Kleven get a call-up? We’ve got 79 games left to find out.
