Hoyt Stanley apologized to the contingent of media that surrounded his stall on Monday after practice, because he couldn’t stop using the word ‘grateful’.
His place on the Senators’ opening-night roster is far from confirmed, with Travis Green noting that there are still changes to be made before Saturday’s game in Toronto. But Stanley sticking around past the team’s first cut says a lot about the camp he’s had in Ottawa, with only six games of pro experience under his belt.
“I don’t want to say I’m super surprised, but I’m definitely grateful. I think I just put the work in all summer and just kind of wanted to work as hard as I could every day at camp and kind of show what I could do, control what I could control,” said Stanley, who trains in the offseason with a group of NHLers that includes Macklin Celebrini and Connor Bedard.
“So I think just grateful that they’ve taken notice, that I’m still here and just continuing to try to learn as much as I can for as long as I stick around.”
One person he’s learned a lot from in Ottawa has been Thomas Chabot, who he skated alongside for the majority of camp. Chabot told media after Saturday’s game in Ottawa that he thinks it won’t be long before Stanley appears in an NHL game.
“It’s obviously nice, nice to hear,” said Stanley of Chabot’s praise.
“I grew up watching him play in the World Juniors, play in Ottawa, so it’s definitely cool. Kind of surreal being around him in the dressing room and in the rink, and he’s been very, very nice to me since day one. So it’s cool to hear. Don’t want to get too far ahead of myself, but it’s definitely it’s cool to take in.”
In his first NHL training camp, Stanley appeared in two preseason games, scoring a game-tying goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday. That was even quicker than the five games it took him to score his first goal with Belleville last spring.
“I think I’ve always thought that as the game kind of gets faster and the players are elevated, that I also seem to rise to the occasion and play better with better players,” said Stanley.
“So I think just fortunate that’s the way my game’s kind of been made up since I was younger. So I think [I] just, believe a lot in myself and the work I’ve put in.”
If Stanley were to be assigned to Belleville at some point, where he played those six games after finishing his NCAA career with Cornell in the spring, he wouldn’t need to pass through waivers, because he is on an entry-level contract. But he’s going to make the most of the opportunity he has in Ottawa in the meantime.
“I don’t really know exactly, one hundred per cent, what’s going on. I’m kind of just sticking around, kind of getting text messages from people like, ‘what’s next, what’s tomorrow’. So I’m kind of taking it one day at a time, and yeah, see how it goes,” said Stanley, who said he’ll see the benefit either way.
“Just kind of being around everyday, NHLers, superstars… sort of being able to practice with them and kind of see little habits they do, and also just compete with them. It gives me a lot of confidence if I end up going back down as well, just to keep working on my game.”