While the Ottawa Senators didn’t have the most eventful 2023 Draft, they’ve made many moves to fill some needs since the beginning of the free agency period. Not only did they re-sign Erik Brannstrom, Jacob Bernard-Docker, and Travis Hamonic, but they also signed Joonas Korpisalo to gain stability in net.
With Alex DeBrincat looking like he’ll be dealt, the Senators could be looking to find a replacement to fill his shoes. Once he is traded, the team should return to the free agency market to get a good top-six forward.
Since Vladimir Tarasenko’s name is still on the market, could this be a golden opportunity for general manager (GM) Pierre Dorion to alleviate the effects of losing DeBrincat only a year after acquiring him?
A Pure Offensive Talent
Tarasenko was drafted with the 15th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues. In the 2014-15 season, the Russian winger cemented himself as an elite scorer in the NHL by breaking out with 37 goals and 73 points in 77 games. For the next few years, he continued to be an offensive threat. As of now, he has scored 33 goals or more six times and has also put up at least 70 points four times.
With the Blues having a difficult season last year, it was time for the team to make some changes and rebuild. Tarasenko, who had already been rumored to be on the trading block, was highly sought after. Eventually, the New York Rangers acquired him alongside defenseman Niko Mikkola in return for forward Sammy Blais, prospect Hunter Skinner, a 2023 first-round pick, and a conditional 2024 fourth-round pick. It was a pretty hefty price to pay for an unrestricted free agent (UFA), but one that showed that he still brings value to a team.
Even though Tarasenko is entering the later stages of his career as a 31-year-old, he could still provide some scoring on a team’s top-six. For the Sens, he could fill a role similar to the one DeBrincat fills.
A Similar Resume To Giroux 一 And More
Last offseason, Dorion made a splash by signing Claude Giroux in free agency to support the team’s top-six group 一 a job he accomplished with his 79 points even though the team missed the playoffs. While Giroux has a different style of play and is a bit of a better player overall than Tarasenko, they have a lot of other interesting similarities.
Both have won gold at the World Junior Championship, with Giroux doing so in 2008 and Tarasenko doing so in 2011. Both were long-time key pieces on the teams that drafted them until they were both dealt to a contending team only to lose early on in the playoffs. Another interesting similarity is that both appeared as cover athletes for Electronic Arts (EA) NHL gaming franchise, with Giroux appearing on NHL 13’s cover and Tarasenko appearing on the one for NHL 17.
Despite these interesting resemblances in career paths, there’s something one of these cover athletes has that the other is still seeking. That thing happens to be the trophy every NHL player dreams of winning one day. In 2019, Tarasenko was a part of the Blues’ first-ever Stanley Cup win in franchise history, where he put up 11 goals and 17 points in 26 games. While Giroux brings valuable experience from his days with the Philadelphia Flyers, it’s not every day you could sign a Stanley Cup winner to help demonstrate to a young team what it means to go all the way.
The Downsides and the Decision
Of course, there are always downsides to acquiring an aging free agent and it’s no different with Tarasenko. The first risk comes with his recurrent health problems. When healthy, he can be a potent scorer. However, he has not played a full campaign since his Stanley Cup-winning season and has only played more than 60 games twice since. Signing a more injury-prone player is a risk, but anyone can get injured regardless of who you sign.
Related: 2023 NHL Free Agency Tracker
The second pushback factor for signing Tarasenko would be that Ottawa has some important contracts coming up. His contract will likely be a multi-year deal close to Giroux’s $6.5 million annual average value (AAV), which would leave the Senators with $1 million in cap space. While using up the cap space is not a problem, the Sens will need room to sign Jake Sanderson next season and Jakob Chychrun the season after. Quality defensemen are difficult to find, so they need to make sure they have enough room to get them both locked in. Trades could always be made but no GM enjoys giving up extra assets in cap dumps.
In the end, if the Senators manage to trade DeBrincat, they should sign Tarasenko. However, it really has to be a calculated move. Having a player like him can help round out the offense, but I don’t believe they can afford to take the biggest of risks right now given they already have multiple players locked into major contracts such as Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, Josh Norris, and Thomas Chabot. If they want to do this and remain competitive, they’ll need a plan to sign Sanderson and Chychrun down the road. With the Senators being a team he’s rumored to want to sign with, it’ll be interesting to see what ends up happening.