Screen Shots: Ottawa Senators, Lane Hinkley, Ryan O'Reilly
Adam Proteau discusses the Ottawa Senators parting with GM Pierre Dorion, QMJHL player Lane Hinkley being forced to retire and Ryan O'Reilly playing 1,000 games.
Welcome back to Screen Shots, a regular feature in which we discuss a few different hockey topics and break them down in short bursts. On to it, we go:
As was expected at some point this season, the Ottawa Senators parted with GM Pierre Dorion.
The Sens were in the news anyway for forfeiting a first-round draft pick for a botched trade, but Ottawa’s 4-4-0 start to the season no doubt played a part in new Senators president of hockey operations Steve Staios’ decision to part with Dorion.
Indeed, from the moment Staios was hired in late September, the clock began ticking for Dorion and coach D.J. Smith, who himself may now be working on borrowed time. Whoever Staios chooses to replace Dorion will want to have his own coach in place, so Smith might not last very long in his current role. A hot streak from the Sens may buy Smith some time, but we’d be shocked if he finished the season as Ottawa’s bench boss.
Dorion has given his successor a lot of talent to work with, but the Senators can’t be a non-playoff team yet again this year. They clearly need a reset, but the core there has been established, and now it’s about changing the team chemistry and possibly changing the talent surrounding the core.
Dorion’s legacy in Ottawa won’t be sparkling, but he’s done some solid work, and he may get another shot running another team down the road. The Sens owe some amount of gratitude for his services, but the NHL is a zero-sum business, and the Senators’ inability to win consistently ultimately cost Dorion his job.
Best wishes to Lane Hinkley, a defenseman for the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders, who announced this week he had to retire from competitive hockey after being told he had to make that move for his long-term health and well-being.
In an Instagram post, Hinkley said he was told by doctors his hockey career was over last Friday morning.
“Too many hits, too many punches, too many concussions that I didn’t properly heal from,” Hinkley wrote in that post.
The 19-year-old also revealed he was told he is at risk for chronic traumatic encephalopathy – otherwise known as CTE, a degenerative brain disease many scientists suggest is linked to repeated traumatic brain injuries and early-onset dementia.
While it must have been an agonizing choice for Hinkley to make, this is in some regards a positive development. For many years now, CTE researchers have warned players they’re vulnerable to suffering long after their hockey career is over, and their message of proper concern for players’ long-term health is a worthwhile message.
Not every player might listen to doctors’ orders and step away from the game, but giving players information about their choices is paramount to taking the next step in athlete care.
Hinkley may no longer play at an elite level, but he’s doing the right thing for himself and his health many years from now.
Finally, cheers to Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly, who played his 1,000th regular-season game yesterday. O’Reilly plays a rugged style that can shorten the careers of players, and O’Reilly has missed a good deal of time – the 32-year-old hasn’t played a full NHL season since 2018-19, although he played 78 games for the St. Louis Blues in 2021-22 – but it’s a credit to him that he’s still thriving and now making a legacy with the Preds.
O’Reilly has amassed 449 assists and 709 points, but his most valuable statistic is one Stanley Cup victory. He’s put together an impressive overall NHL career, and he’s got enough left in the tank to be a meaningful contributor as Nashville tries to rebuild and improve. Good on him for lasting as long as he has, as the toll taken on his body is not a light one.