The Ottawa Senators Rookie Tournament wrapped up on Monday night in London, Ontario. The Senators youngsters finished the tournament on a high note, beating the Chicago Blackhawks 5-4 in a shootout. This win followed a 6-2 blowout victory against the rival Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday night and a last-minute loss 4-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday afternoon.
All in all, the Senators rookies ended up with a 2-1 record in the tournament, and acquitted themselves quite well. For fans of rough and tumble hockey, Darren Kramer was particularly impressive. While wearing the captain’s “C” in the final game of the tournament, Kramer notched a Gordie Howe hat trick…and did one better by participating in a second fight.
Big defenseman Ben Harpur had a starring role of his own the night before, notching four assists in a 6-2 thrashing of the Maple Leafs. Buddy Robinson was a consistent presence in the three games, and recent draft pick Tobias Lindberg impressed in limited action. Nice to see his presence on the Sexiest Sens of All-Time list (despite only being on the organization for 3 months) hasn’t gone to his head.
Star prospects Curtis Lazar, Frederik Claessen, and Matt Puempel did not play in the Blackhawks game. Luke Richardson and his coaching staff felt familiar enough with the trio that they did not need to prove themselves further, although the real test will come in main camp as they fight for spots with Ottawa Senators veterans.
With the preview over, next on the docket is the opening of main camp on Thursday. Most of the rookies will either quickly be returned to their junior teams, or be slated to join the affiliates in Binghamton (AHL) or Evansville (ECHL). However, promising young players like Lazar and Claesson will be given every opportunity to fight for a spot on the opening night roster when the Senators face the Predators in Nashville on October 9th.
I think Puempel is ready to make the jump. I guess one more year in the AHL wouldn’t hurt though!
I think he’ll have a hard time squeezing into the lineup, but you never know with injuries. There are always opportunities to be seized!