The Ottawa Senators’ general manager Pierre Dorian is set to attend his second consecutive Chicago Blackhawks game as he scouts out potential trade targets around the league. The Blackhawks have been of particular interest to him for a couple of reasons. They are in full on sell mode and it appears everyone is available.
The Senators are desperately trying to stay in contention for a playoff spot and could even make an earlier trade in order to gain some ground on some of the teams between them and a playoff spot. Dorian said that he would judge the team off of the next six weeks leading up to the trade deadline to see if he is going to buy or sell. As the fans of this team have been promised results by the GM for the last couple of years, buying early would be a solid move. So let’s look at two players in particular that Dorian could have his eye on.
Connor Murphy
It’s no secret the Senators need to upgrade the right side of their defence. This has been the case all season and their position in the standings indicate that. If Dorian is looking to add Connor Murphy from the Blackhawks, that means he is thinking of addressing the right side of the Senators defence for the next few seasons. The Blackhawks’ defender is signed through 2025-26 at a cap hit of $4.4 million.
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The Senators wouldn’t be taking on all of that cap hit as the Blackhawks would have to and be willing to retain some for a slightly better return. They will need money on the books to reach the cap floor for the next few seasons and the Senators want to ensure they can fit everyone in, including Alex Debrincat who is without a contract for next season. Murphy plays around 20 minutes a night and is a top-four defenceman. He’s not the most flashy, but the Senators can’t afford a more expensive player and still keep the core they have together.
Jonathan Toews
As for the need to address the offence, Jonathan Toews seems like the right fit for the Senators this season. There’s no indication as to if he will waive his no-trade clause at all, but there’s a possibility he could for Ottawa. The Senators just lost Josh Norris for the season after he is set to undergo shoulder surgery, so they once again have a hole up the middle and cap space for the season.
The Blackhawks would have to eat some of Toews’ cap, but according to Elliotte Friedman, the cost to acquire the Blackhawks’ centre is a second to third round pick. That isn’t a lot for the Senators to take a chance on acquiring to give themselves a chance this season. Toews is set to become a UFA at the end of the season, so it wouldn’t force any moves in the offseason to stay cap compliant.
