Thursday LNN: Rangers Looking Desperate, Ullmark Looking Sharp, and More!
The Sens are good, and things in the hockey world just seem right
The Ottawa Senators play again tonight and, after a convincing 3-0 victory over the Seattle Kraken to kick-off a crucial road trip, I'm feeling something that can maybe be best described as optimism about the season. Feels good man, feels good.
While the Sens are always and forever the main characters of the NHL, there's lots going on in the hockey world:
-The New York Rangers were viewed by many, including probably themselves, as Stanley Cup contenders prior to the start of the season but they've struggled to a 15-15-1 record and are not currently in a play-off spot. So what do struggling teams do? Trade some people. First Jacob Trouba got the boot, and yesterday former second overall pick Kaapo Kakko was sent to Seattle for Will Borgen and a third and sixth round pick in the 2025 draft. I get that Kakko has been a bit disappointing relative to his draft slot, but he's a useful forward and Borgen looks like...barely a third pairing defender? Certainly he made exactly zero impact on me while I was watching Tuesday night's game. This strikes me as a total own goal by Chris Drury. Weird times in New York!
-I'm not the only one that didn't like that deal for the Rangers.
-Why are the Sens suddenly red hot? Linus Ullmark has gone back to being one of the five best goalies in the world. Maybe it's not quite that simple, but it's pretty close!
-Is it too early to be doing Play-off Bubble Watches? I say no. The folks over at ESPN take stock of the current race and give the Sens about a coin flip chance of qualifying. I'll take it for now.
-Kevin He made history Tuesday when the Winnipeg Jets prospect signed an entry-level contract, making him the first player born in China to sign a professional deal. He has been absolutely torching the OHL to the tune of 43 points in 29 games. This is a feel-good story and this guy looks like a legitimate prospect.
-Another day, another good Alex Adams piece over at Sportsnet. Adams profiled Nick Jensen in yesterday's feature, probably the most pleasant surprise of the season to date. I've also written previously that I've liked what I've seen from Jensen, and I think this quote from the man himself captures some of what makes the Jensen-Thomas Chabot duo click:
“I honestly, I feel like we found chemistry pretty early,” Jensen told Sportsnet.ca in November. “I think we have very similar mentalities. He wants to skate, he wants to compete, he wants the puck, he wants to work. I think those are the same ingredients that are in my game as well.”
So anytime I have the puck, he's always working to find a spot where he can get the puck. And anytime he's got the puck with the guy on his back, I’m working to get to a spot to help him.”
While Jensen's reliability, especially relative to Jakob Chychrun's chaotic nature, has helped, the way that the pairing moves the puck has been maybe the biggest factor in their success to my eyes. Jensen's ability to help Chabot out in that regard has been a godsend.
-TSN had a fun little feature on "sewer ball", the two-touch soccer game that virtually every team plays. As you might imagine, NHL players come across like total competitive psychos.
-And last, but not least, Travis Yost has a fun little dive into Dustin Wolf's breakout season in Calgary.
