Let the games begin.
Four days into training camp, the Ottawa Senators will ramp up their auditions for jobs by hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Not only will the Senators open the National Hockey League pre-season schedule at home, but it will also be the only exhibition game they play in Ottawa before the regular-season home opener against the Nashville Predators on Oct. 13 at 1 p.m.
The Senators don’t have many jobs open. Still, Steve Staios, the club’s president of hockey operations and general manager, and head coach Travis Green will begin to determine where everybody fits once the season gets underway in Florida against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 9.
Staios and Green are still toying with the lineup for Sunday’s contest, but it’s expected the Senators will have half of their NHL roster. League rules require that they have at least eight regulars.
The Senators will face the Leafs again on Tuesday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto for the second of Ottawa’s six exhibition games this fall.
“Every team goes about it the same way. You want to get some guys into some games, but there is also a fine line of playing too many games,” Green said Saturday. “You’d like to see three to four games for the guys who are going to start the season, but we’ve also got decisions to make on players.
“We’ve got to see enough of guys to make sure that we make the right decisions.”
With 52 players in camp, the Senators won’t waste any time cutting to workable numbers. It’s likely they will make some roster moves before heading to Quebec City on Thursday for five days, including games against the New Jersey Devils and Montreal Canadiens.
The Senators held a second straight scrimmage on Saturday, and the lineup against the Leafs will come from a mix of the two groups.
“Early in the pre-season, you’re looking to evaluate. You’re looking to work on the structure of your game, but you have to understand that there’s probably going to be some mistakes as well,” Green said.
The preseason will go a long way in deciding what the Senators roster will look like heading into the season. For example, we’ve stated before that the Senators need to decide who will play on the right wing with captain Brady Tkachuk and centre Tim Stutzle.
There are a lot of moving parts up front. Another question is about where veteran forwards David Perron and Claude Giroux, who both played top-six roles last season, going to fit.
Green said we shouldn’t read much into lines combinations on the first few days of camp, but Fabian Zetterlund skated beside Tkachuk and Stutzle for the second straight day on Saturday.
Zetterlund was signed to a three-year extension in the summer that will pay him $4.275 million U.S. per season.
He had only two goals and three assists for five points in 20 games with the Senators last season after being acquired from the San Jose Sharks, and his offensive production has to increase.
The fact that Zetterlund didn’t produce as much offensively when he arrived here after the trade deadline doesn’t bother him, though.
“That’s in the past,” Zetterlund said. “I don’t really like to look back. It’s a new season, a new camp and a new No. 20 out there. I’m trying to have as much fun as I can.”
Zetterlund has good speed and skills. He knows his job if he does play with Stutzle, who has looked strong to start camp.
“I have to get open, win wall battles, puck battles and give him the puck when he has speed,” Zetterlund said. “That’s why (Stutzle) beats so many defencemen in the league because of his speed.”
Ottawa Senators head coach Travis Green says that in training camp, “You’re looking to work on the structure of your game, but you have to understand that there’s probably going to be some mistakes as well.”
Jensen back on the ice
Defenceman Nick Jensen, who had major hip surgery four months ago, joined the first group of players on the ice on Saturday. He didn’t stick around for the scrimmage, but he looked good.
“I’m really happy for him,” Green said. “Anytime a guy has an injury with major surgery, people don’t see the hard work these players have to put in to get back on the ice, so it’s nice.”
There is no timetable for when Jensen will play. He likely won’t be ready for the start of the regular season, but he’s ahead of schedule in his recovery.
“He’s worked extremely hard to be back on the ice with the team right now, so it’s impressive,” Green said.
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