We focus on the NHL trade deadline, the state of the Senators goaltending, and more.

As we hit the NHL All-Star break, it's not exactly breaking news that the Senators are well outside of the playoff picture. To put it kindly, the season has been off the rails for a long time now.

But the Senators still have plenty to play for. This team has recently been playing its best hockey, with plenty of interesting storylines to follow down the stretch. One of them is whether this improved play should be taken seriously or not. This does look like a movie we've seen several times before.

Here are five other Senators storylines to watch for the rest of the season.

5. Ridly Greig’s development

The Senators have not had many bright spots this season, but the emergence of the tenacious Ridly Greig has been one of them. The 21-year-old centre has been arguably Ottawa’s most consistent player, and even in reduced minutes, leads the team with a +15. 

Greig has shown himself to be defensively responsible while not looking out of place (six points in six games) in his stint as a second-line centre. With Shane Pinto drawing back to the lineup, Greig is now playing on Pinto's wing on the third line. Greig told The Hockey News-Ottawa this was the first time he had ever really played on the wing and adjusting to the new position had been a challenge. 

No matter where he plays, Greig's progress and development will be a huge story to monitor as we move toward next season.

4. Steve Staios’ first NHL trade deadline

Steve Staios will be entering his first trade deadline as an NHL General Manager and he'll have plenty of different decisions to make:

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There will be many moving parts at the deadline for Staios and he'll have many fascinating decisions to make.

3. Shane Pinto’s addition a game changer?

The Senators have only had Shane Pinto in the lineup for six games following his 41 game suspension. With four points in six games, the long layoff for Pinto hasn't slowed his production. Meanwhile, since his return, the Senators are 4-1-1, their best stretch of hockey all season. In that time, the Senators have given up 3.16 goals a game, almost a half goal less than their overall season average of 3.62. 

If the Senators end the season close to the way they have played thus far with Pinto, it it bodes well for next season.

2. Which goalies emerge as keepers?

The Senators currently have the worst team save percentage in the NHL (.881). As bad as the Senators have been in front of their goalies, the goalies have been just as bad. Since their 2017 run to the Eastern Conference Final with Craig Anderson, the Senators have been in the bottom third of the league in team save percentage in every year but one. 

Joonas Korpisalo, Anton Forsberg and Mads Sogaard have all been underwhelming and it's unclear right now if any of them can be the goalie of the future. If no one plays well in the second half, Staios could look to add a goalie in the off-season. Either way, these next two and a half months will give the Senators a better picture about their goaltending situation.

1. Defensive turnaround continues?

The Senators have been one of the worst defensive teams all season. But in the past 10 games, they're 6-2-2. Interim head coach Jacques Martin’s system looks like it's beginning to work.

Overall, it has been a step in the right direction. If the Senators can continue to improve on the defensive end, it will surely allow them to pick up more points, win more games, and indicate to the next coach that they actually can play structured hockey.