The Ottawa and Belleville Senators' seasons are going in opposite directions.
With the Ottawa Senators coming home on the heels of another 0-5 road trip and looking at their seventh straight non-playoff season, it can be hard to get excited about prospects and development.
But we're going there anyway. Because in a season where nothing has gone according to plan, fans need to find the positives anywhere they can.
The AHL affiliate Belleville Senators have just won seven games in a row, completing a three-game sweep against the Manitoba Moose with a 4-0 win. They now find themselves in the enviable position of being the hunted (third place in their division), rather than always being the hunter. The club has only made the playoffs twice in their six-year history.
Current core members Drake Batherson, Josh Norris and Ridly Greig all honed their skills in Bellevegas before making the jump to Ottawa. The same can be said for roster players such as Erik Brannstrom and Jacob Bernard-Docker. Even Thomas Chabot did a brief tour of duty in the AHL.
The belief has long been held that there is very little correlation between the success of the AHL team and the NHL team.
That may be true from a team perspective. However, success in the regular season and playoffs in the AHL has surely had a positive impact on the development of individual players and their success at the NHL level.
Ottawa has had to lean on Belleville heavily this season to deal with injuries and suspensions to key players. In an NHL season that has not lived up to expectations, some of the pleasant surprises have been the emergence of players within the system that may soon play a more prominent role in Ottawa.
Despite the helping hand, fans wonder aloud if the cupboard of Sens prospects is getting bare. So let's explore that.
Ottawa is more than familiar with Angus Crookshank, who made a nice impression in his seven-game cup of coffee. His return to the AHL was met with a well-deserved All-Star nomination.
The same can be said for Roby Jarventie and Jiri Smejkal who figure to see more action in the future.
And there are players who haven't been to Ottawa yet this season, but are having very solid seasons:
- Max Guenette, who's tied for the lead among all Belleville scorers
- Mads Sogaard, who got the 4-0 shutout and now has a .920 AHL save percentage
- Kevin Mandolese, whose numbers are on par with Sogaard's
- Leevi Meriläinen, the number one goalie with the Allen Americans.
Guenette will be joining Crookshank at the All-Star game and has served notice this season and last that he could be a late round find (seventh round in 2019) that proves very useful.
With the struggles of Ottawa’s Korpisalo/Forsberg tandem and Forsberg’s new injury, fans can also take heart in knowing that the long-term future at this position has a great deal of upside. All three goalie prospects boast winning records and save percentages of .915 or better.
While Ottawa figures out its structure and system issues that will allow them to finish games (five blown third period leads in 10 games), their goaltending prospects can remain insulated.
In fact, in light of Forsberg’s injury, perhaps the more veteran Mandolese should be the first call. That would keep Sogaard, the probable heir to the throne, from being exposed to the Ottawa chaos.
Finally, it’s David Bell who may be the Senators biggest secret down on the farm. Whomever comes in as a permanent Head Coach in Ottawa is going to need assistants. And with the work Bell is doing with the team and its prospects, it’s hard to imagine he won’t be part of the discussion.
Is this the discussion fans wanted to have? No. That said, the AHL affiliates play a much bigger role than they usually get credit for.