The Ottawa Senators should get a boost to their defensive corps relatively soon. According to TSN’s Bruce Garrioch, defensemen Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub should return to the Senators within the next few days.
Sanderson has been out with a lower-body injury since Ottawa’s first game of the year. Because of the injury, Sanderson has been limited to 4:29 of ice time, without any points. Regardless, Sanderson is Ottawa’s most important defenseman to return to the lineup. Over the past two years, Sanderson has scored 25 goals and 111 points in 147 games while averaging 24:37 of ice time per game.
Meanwhile, Zub has been recovering from a more serious injury. Injured in last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, Zub missed all of the Senators’ training camp and preseason action because of a knee ailment. Although he doesn’t offer the same offensive profile as Sanderson, Zub is another important blue liner for Ottawa to reintroduce to the lineup.
Additional notes from the Atlantic Division:
Staying in Ottawa, they are also close to returning an injured forward to the lineup. According to head coach Travis Green (via Garrioch), winger André Burakovsky is “close.” Nursing an upper-body injury, the Senators acquired Burakovsky from the Chicago Blackhawks this past summer ahead of the NHL Draft. He scored 11 goals and 33 points in 75 games with the Blackhawks last season.
According to a team announcement, the Detroit Red Wings have activated forwards Chase Stillman and Carter Bear from the non-roster/injured list and have reassigned them to AHL Grand Rapids. Bear, 19, is the more notable of the two, being a recent first-round pick. The former 13th overall selection scored 36 goals and 77 points in 53 games for the WHL’s Everett Silvertips last season.