Halliday and Thomson will apparently join the Senators for a gruelling road trip.
The Ottawa Senators continue to beef up and shuffle their organizational roster ahead of their upcoming seven-game road trip.
One day after acquiring left-shot defenseman Dennis Gilbert from the Philadelphia Flyers for unsigned RFA defenseman Max Guenette, the Senators recalled two players from the American Hockey League.
Forward Stephen Halliday and defenseman Lassi Thomson both join the Senators in time for their trip out west, which starts Thursday night in Anaheim against the Ducks.
Halliday is the Senators’ leading scorer with 16 points in 15 games. He’s been almost exclusively a setup guy, with 15 of those points coming on assists. The 23-year-old, who stands 6'4" and 212 lbs, was the club’s fourth-round draft pick in 2022. Alongside first-rounders Carter Yakemchuk and Logan Hensler, Halliday is about as good a prospect as the Senators have in their organization.
Thomson was once viewed in a similar light. He was drafted by the Senators in the first round six years ago, but he’s yet to carve out a full-time NHL spot. That said, young defensemen can often take more time to develop, and while it feels like he’s been in the organization forever, Thomson is still only 24. He has three goals and four points in 15 games for Belleville, who simply don’t have many other trusted NHL-ready options on their AHL roster.
Thomson will have to clear waivers for his inevitable trip back to Belleville, whenever that is. Halliday, who's still waivers-exempt, is still hoping to get his first taste of NHL action.
With Brady Tkachuk (thumb), Thomas Chabot (upper body), and Olle Lycksell (concussion) all on injured reserve, the Senators will still hit the road with a bloated roster. Tkachuk will travel with the team and could be activated at some point during the trip, while it appears that Chabot and Lycksell will stay behind.
What's Eating Gilbert?
It's a sensible question to ask why the Senators would acquire a left-shot defenseman in Gilbert on Monday and then recall the right-shot Thomson on Tuesday.
The issue is the health of Gilbert, who hasn't played a hockey game since getting injured on October 29th. He's only appeared in six AHL games this season, but he's nearly ready now to get back to work. So while he is here to help with Ottawa's left side depth, he needs a little more time. The Sens want him to get back up to speed in Belleville first.
After Anaheim, the Senators’ road journey will take them to San Jose, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, St. Louis, Dallas, and then, as they finally begin to wind their way home, Montreal. Ottawa won’t have another home game until December 4th, when they host the New York Rangers.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa
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