Ottawa Senators Prospect Update - February 15th

Between Ottawa, Belleville, and everywhere else you’d find an Ottawa Senators prospect, tons of players found a decent amount of success this week.

Forwards

Oliver Johansson

Your weekly Ridly Greig update will have to come a minute later than usual because Ottawa’s top prospect this week was Oliver Johansson. A forward drafted in the third round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, he built on his dominant season in Sweden’s U-20 league with 3 goals and 4 assists in 3 games. Johansson is now up to 29 points in 23 games with Timrå IK and is most likely playing with the goal of landing a larger role in the SHL next season.

🚨🇸🇪nice to see Oliver Johansson scoring goals again

After 14 pointless games in the SHL, he’s back with Timrä’s J20 team where he sits 4th in scoring with 22 points (7G, 15A) in 20GP #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/BRNHj7cR7B

— Sens Prospects (@SensProspects) February 8, 2022

Ridly Greig

At this stage in his junior career, a 4-point week is a par for the course for the 28th-overall pick from 2020, but he brings a whole lot more to the table than just points. Greig is a Tom Wilson-esque forward who combines high-energy offense with the occasional dangerous, suspension-worthy hit. It might prove difficult for him to limit those plays without toning down the style of play that’s brought him success thus far, but if he’s able to find a balance and follow the lead of Brady Tkachuk, that’ll certainly make the Senators tough to play against, especially since Greig is also a noteworthy goalscorer, with 21 in 28 games with Brandon this year. He’s pretty good at passing the puck, too.

Siiiiiick dish from Ridly Greig 🍎 @SensProspects pic.twitter.com/8u2msnFEyT

— Locked On Senators (@SensCentral) February 12, 2022

Zack Ostapchuk

Despite a relatively quiet offensive season for a second-round pick, Ostapchuk had a three-assist game against Prince George on Friday. He currently has 24 points in 37 games with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL, and next season will be a key indicator of whether or not he has a future in the NHL, a point-per-game pace should be the bare minimum in 2022-23.

Defensemen

Maxence Guenette

Boy, this 2019 NHL Draft class has been interesting, hasn’t it? Despite the long-term injury to Shane Pinto, as well as Mads Søgaard’s numbers dropping a bit in his last few games, things have been pretty positive overall, and seventh-rounder Maxence Guenette is certainly contributing to that. With a goal and 2 assists in his last three games, he’s now up to 13 points in 28 games in his first AHL season. He appears close to playing in his first NHL game, which would buck a trend for a seventh-round pick, and give the Senators another option on the right point in the long run.

Ben Roger

The second of two second-rounders from 2021, the right-shot defencemen hasn’t done much this season, but he certainly stood out this week, scoring his first goal of the season in Kingston’s massive 9-6 victory against Mississauga on Saturday, joining an odd-man rush and cashing in on a one-timer from the slot.

🚨Ben Roger scores his first of the season (but not of his career)#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/pvqgkYv4yp

— Sens Prospects (@SensProspects) February 13, 2022

Now with 9 points in 39 OHL games, Roger has scored one-third of his points this year across his last 3 games — could this finally be the turning point in his junior career he’s been looking for?

Goaltending

Filip Gustavsson

It appears that Gustavsson is finally beginning to build momentum in the AHL this season. He backstopped Belleville to two victories over Lehigh Valley and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, allowing just one goal on 53 shots across the two games. Whether or not we see him in the NHL again before next season will depend on Matt Murray’s health, as well as what the organization plans to do with Anton Forsberg.

Silver Linings

• The good news? Top defensive prospect Jake Sanderson took part in Team USA’s round-robin game against Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics and picked up an assist in his team’s 4-2 victory on Saturday./

Here’s the replay of Sanderson’s assist last night pic.twitter.com/ZnbIhn0BLj

— Lalime's Martian (@LalimesMartian) February 12, 2022

The bad news? He suffered an injury in that game, is now day-to-day, and likely won’t be back in time for a hypothetical gold medal game. It’s yet another horrible stroke of luck for a Senators’ player, but at least the chance of winning an Olympic medal at 19 years of age is still there.

• Jonny Tychonick, Ottawa’s second-rounder from 2018, scored his first goal of the season in Omaha’s 4-2 loss to Miami on Saturday. /

🚨Jonny Tychonick scored his first of the season on Saturday night

Nice to see Tychonick get a lucky bounce on this one — he’s had a tough go with injuries and setbacks this year. In 17GP, he has 3 points with UNO #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/4YzFKZMbvY

— Sens Prospects (@SensProspects) February 13, 2022

• Carson Latimer had a solid week with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders, scoring a goal and two assists in three games, bringing the 2021 fourth rounder’s total up to 26 points in 38 games in the WHL./

🚨Carson Latimer's 10th of the season was the GWG on Saturday night for Prince Albert

Latimer has 26 points in 38GP this season #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/tYsjFer6Mn

— Sens Prospects (@SensProspects) February 14, 2022

• Lastly, while neither found the scoresheet, Mark Kastelic and Parker Kelly did a hell of a job along with Clark Bishop on Ottawa’s fourth line against the Washington Capitals on Sunday. In the limited minutes we saw from them, they played against the top two opposing lines and generally had the better chances when they were on the ice./

Stats

Pro (NHL, AHL)

NCAA

CHL

Europe

Goalies