The Ottawa Senators have said on several occasions that you can never have enough right-shot defensemen in your organization. But this summer, they’ve acquired a pile of righties. They got Jordan Spence in a draft-day mugging of the Los Angeles Kings. They also re-signed Finnish defensemen Nik Matinpalo and Lassi Thomson, signed former Minnesota Wild defenseman Cameron Crotty, and welcomed former first-rounder Carter Yakemchuk to life as a first-year pro.
So maybe you can have enough right-shot defensemen.
And that may not be great news for 24-year-old Max Guenette, the last RFA defenseman remaining in the organization. According to Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch, “the expectation is that he will be dealt before camp.” At the moment, not including Guenette, the Senators have eight right-shot defensemen under contract within their organization.
Nick Jensen’s timetable for a return to the lineup will play a large role in the plans for Guenette. If Jensen ends up being out long-term, or just isn’t the same player anymore after hip surgery, there’s a chance that could change things.
Guenette, the Belleville Senators’ alternate captain, was a 7th-round pick by Ottawa in 2019. The 6-foot-1, 201-pounder from L’Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, has appeared in eight NHL games in his career. He was called up last season but didn’t see any game action, and he posted 23 points in 58 AHL games for the B-Sens.
Given that he cleared waivers to be sent down to Belleville last fall, and not much about his stock has changed since then, the Sens wouldn’t be counting on much in return if they choose to move him elsewhere.
The best they could hope for is an AHL player of similar impact who simply plays at a different position — one where the Senators aren’t operating at a surplus.
By Steve Warne
This article was first published at The Hockey News-Ottawa
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