Smith: Depth the key to getting Senators over the hump

For the second consecutive offseason, the Ottawa Senators made large-scale changes to the roster in an attempt to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17.

Forward Alex DeBrincat, who was acquired for a trio of draft picks last year, was traded to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for forward Dominik Kubalik, prospect Donovan Sebrango, and draft picks. Goaltender Cam Talbot, who was acquired from the Minnesota Wild last offseason, was not retained and signed with the Los Angeles Kings as an unrestricted free agent.

The loss of DeBrincat and Talbot was offset with the free agent signings of forward Vladimir Tarasenko and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo.

Heading into the 2023-24 season, head coach DJ Smith believes the team’s depth and roster competition will be the key to reaching the postseason for the first time in seven seasons.

“I think the biggest thing is the inner competition," Smith said on TSN1200. “We don’t just have one or two top forwards or defencemen. We have guys that can take another spot on any given day. The job of the coach is to recognize who’s going and put them on the ice when they’re going.

“That’s how we feel we can get ourselves over the hump, is that inner competition among the team.”

With the addition of Tarasenko, a former 40-goal scorer and Stanley Cup champion with the St. Louis Blues, Smith says the team will have plenty of flexibility up front, but he is not putting too much stock into line combinations at this point in the offseason.

“I’ve spoken to Vladdy at length throughout this process and got his feelings on what he wants out of this," said Smith. "The biggest thing he wants is to win. My job is to get everyone at their best.

“We’ll figure it out throughout camp. Drake [Batherson] has reached out and said he’ll play left wing. We’ve thrown some different combinations around, special teams, defensive partners. You don’t want to put too much stock into it. Right now it’s all about the system play, our mentality, getting off to a good start and just getting ultra organized. We’ll come up with what we think is the best top-six for us. As long as we’re winning games, I don’t care where they play.”

Looking ahead to the upcoming season, Smith says the key is for the Senators to stay healthy following long-term injuries to forward Josh Norris and goaltender Anton Forsberg last season. Smith specifically mentioned Norris, who played just eight games in 2022-23 due to a shoulder injury. The 24-year-old scored 35 goals in 66 games in 2021-22 and is projected to be the team’s second-line centre.

“The biggest thing for us is we have to be healthy. If we’re healthy we’re going to be a really competitive hockey team,” said Smith. “Especially with Josh we’re a completely different hockey team.”