Weekly Question: What’s The Ottawa Senators Best Case Scenario?

Oct 1, 2022 - 11:00 AM

The first couple of weeks of NHL training camp are the time for the most unhinged optimists: anything is possible, every prospect is going to hit their ceilings, the veterans will all stay healthy. Every team can be the best version of themselves. As the season progresses, cold, hard reality sets in for many. Maybe that promising 19 year-old needs another couple of seasons in the AHL, or maybe the veterans aren’t just experienced; they’re also washed up. As I’ve written many times before, sometimes being a fan is suffering.

But for now, at the start of the long road ahead, we can indulge our most starry-eyed enthusiasm. For Sens fans, it’s been several years since there was a real case to be excited for the season to begin. It’s a bit of an unfamiliar feeling.

To my thinking, the Sens are one of the most unpredictable teams. They are going to be better than they were last year, of that much we can be sure, but there is also a lot of uncertainty. Jake Sanderson and Shane Pinto are bonafide top tier prospects, and we have good reasons to believe they’ll be positive contributors, but it’s rare for rookies, even the best ones, to carry the load. If they both hit, Ottawa could be good. What if Tim Stützle takes another big leap forward playing with Alex DeBrincat and Claude Giroux? That seems very possible, but just how big a leap?

So I thought for this edition of the Weekly Question, we’d indulge a little bit. Where do you think the Sens could end up in their best-case scenario? Are we shooting too low with talk of just barely squeaking into the play-offs? Is there a world in which Ottawa is one of the top teams in the league? Could they even be Cup Contenders? Let’s hear what you think in the comments below!