Prospect Update - January 31st

Jan 31, 2023 - 12:00 PM

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Prospect Team of the Week

Forwards

Ottawa Senators fans couldn’t have really asked from much more in Ridly Greig’s first week in the NHL. The Sens won all three games and Greig looked like he absolutely belonged. Greig added a very nice two assists and ten shots. Playing alongside Claude Giroux and Alex DeBrincat will help anyone’s case but Greig looked like much more than a passenger.

Suffice to say that this week Carson Latimer made the most of his opportunity on a Winnipeg team expecting big things in the WHL postseason. Latimer added a goal, two assists, and five more shots this past week and we hope he has started settling into a groove after a bit of a transitional period following the trade. It feels rather safe to say that one of Latimer or teammate Zack Ostapchuk will show up weekly on this feature for the balance of the season given all the talent around them.

Cam O’Neill has had a streaky rookie season in the USHL to say the least. And this past week O’Neill went on the good kind of streak with two goals, two assists, and seven shots in a home-and-home series against Fargo. O’Neill has averaged about three shots per game for the past couple months now so even when he hasn’t accumulated points, he has created opportunities and I would argue O’Neill has had legitimate scoring streaks as opposed to random flukes. Like most of you, I look forward to what O’Neill can do next year at UMass alongside fellow Sens prospect Tyson Dyck.

Defence

In case you’re wondering, no I have not gotten tired of including Jorian Donovan on these lists. Donovan has arguably provided the most upside of any Senator drafted in 2022 and he has some pretty decent competition. Donovan now ranks seventh in OHL scoring among defenders as he added an absurd five more assists this past week and four shots for good measure. Donovan remains tied for eighth in the OHL in goals by defenders sitting at ten on the year. Keep in mind that Donovan had an ice-cold streak early in the season when he had just one point through nine games. Since then he has had 34 points in 33 games in Hamilton.

Jonny Tychonick has become maybe my favourite narrative among Sens prospects this season. A lot of folks, myself included had written Tychonick off after some underwhelming NCAA seasons plagued with injury. But it certainly seems like those injuries have resolved and now we once again have to ask if Ottawa can really pass on the opportunity to sign Tychonick this summer. I think most fans would settle for a one-way AHL contract but I would argue he can get a bona fide NHL ELC. Tychonick now finds himself tied for ninth among NCAA defenders in goals having added another one this past week (and an assist and four shots).

Goaltender

With an honourable mention to Kevin Reidler who stopped 41 of 42 shots in his one game this past week for a win, Leevi Meriläinen won three out of three games to steal the show (even if he had a more pedestrian 91.3 save percentage allowing two goals in each game). Ottawa’s two Europe-bound prospective netminders have set themselves apart from their AHL counterparts of late given the Sens’ struggles in Belleville. Sorry, no multimedia.

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