Five Belleville Senators Players Who Could Play in Ottawa Next Year
These five players have the highest chance of starting the 2021-22 season in the NHL.
The Ottawa Senators are regarded as one of the best drafting and developing teams in the NHL. Because of that, their AHL affiliate is always well stocked with promising young talent.
After a mostly successful 2020-21 season, albeit without a postseason, Senators’ management should be happy with where things are at regarding prospects. As with any successful season in the AHL, there are always mixed emotions. This is because there will almost certainly be Belleville players making the jump to Ottawa next year.
Here is a list of five players who will have the highest chance of making the jump next year to the NHL.
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Egor Sokolov
Sokolov is a big, hulking winger with a booming shot. He was one of the most important players on the Belleville Senators this year, with 25 points in 35 games.
Somehow all 31 NHL teams passed on him at least twice going into his third year of draft eligibility. An over-ager, the Senators were lucky to nab him late in the 2nd round of the 2020 NHL Draft.
His aforementioned shot and size are his biggest assets, however, his size is a two-sided coin. On the one hand, he is a physically dominant player and is good in the corners, but he pays for it with his lack of speed.
The Ottawa Senators have an overflowing prospect cupboard, including many that have already graduated to the NHL. Sokolov played much of the 2020-21 season on the left wing. The Senators are full at left-wing going into next year.
Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk are guaranteed the top two spots, while players like Alex Formenton, Nick Paul and potentially Ryan Dzingel fighting for the last two spots. I don’t see Sokolov exceeding any one of those players on the depth chart.
It is unlikely that Sokolov will be on the Senators roster by opening night. However, with the recent Vitaly Abramov news, there may be a slight opportunity to move up the depth chart.
The most likely course of action for Sokolov is to start in the AHL and be the first call-up in case of injury.
Parker Kelly
If you would have told me a year ago that Parker Kelly will in serious consideration to play in NHL games full-time, I would have laughed. The Camrose, Alberta native has a reputation of being the hardest worker in the room, as he has won two hardest worker awards at the Senators development camp.
Kelly was never drafted by an NHL team and slowly worked his way up the depth chart. He had a memorable first game in Ottawa’s season finale, scoring his first NHL goal.
After putting up 16 points through 57 games in his AHL rookie season, he played a bigger role this time around. In a pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season, Kelly scored 10 goals and 18 points in 33 games.
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He is a long-shot to make the NHL full-time next year but was one of the best players on a solid Belleville team this year. At 22-years-old, Kelly is an intriguing prospect to keep an eye on for the next few years.
Angus Crookshank
Crookshank burst onto the scene this year after his point-per-game NCAA season was completed. He scored 18 points in 20 games with the University of New Hampshire or 0.90 points per game.
Compared with his pace (0.65 PPG) last season, that alone would be a huge improvement. But he didn’t stop there, going on an absolute tear to kick off his pro career.
He scored 11 points in his first 9 games, finishing with 16 in 19. While he had quite the electrifying season, he will need at least one, maybe two more years in the AHL before being NHL ready.
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The Vancouver, BC native has come a long way from being drafted by the Senators in the 5th round of the 2018 NHL Draft. The Senators are building quite the reputation for finding gems in the later rounds of the draft.
In the past, they have drafted Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman, in the 6th and 4th rounds, respectively. Recently it has been the drafting of the aforementioned Crookshank, Drake Batherson (4th round, 2017), and Joey Daccord (7th round, 2015) that has given the team’s scouting staff that recognition.
Filip Gustavsson
Perhaps the prospect that has raised his value the most this year is Filip Gustavsson. He was originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2nd round of the 2016 NHL Draft. He played in Sweden during his entire tenure as a Penguin.
Gustavsson would only come over to North America after his 2018 trade to the Ottawa Senators. However, the sailing was anything but smooth in his adjustment to the AHL’s style of play. His save percentages were .887 and .889 in 2018-19 and 2019-20, respectively.
His play began to turn around with his low-pressure stint playing for Sodertalje SK in his native country. After the AHL announced its return to play, Gustavsson played some of the best hockey of his career.
In nine games with the Ottawa Senators, he was 5-1-2, which is incredible considering where the Senators finished in the standings.
There remains a question of where he will play next year. The Sens have Matt Murray signed to his mega-deal and they just re-signed Anton Forsberg, who was solid last year. The latter deal is interesting because the team already had Murray, Gustavsson, Joey Daccord, Mads Sogaard, Kevin Mandolese, Leevi Merilainen and technically Marcus Hogberg in the organization at the time.
Of all the players mentioned in this article, Gustavsson naturally has the highest chance of playing in Ottawa backing up Murray next year. I dare say he could even be a dark-horse candidate for the Calder Trophy. But don’t quote me on that, I’m not a betting expert.
Jonathan Aspirot
Aspirot is yet another undrafted player working his way up the ranks. After not being drafted in three consecutive years while playing for Moncton in the QMJHL, Aspirot decided to take a chance with the Ottawa Senators development camp.
He tried out at the 2019 camp and impressed the scouts so much that they offered him a contract to play for the Belleville Senators. He quickly went from being a relative nobody to one of the best defenders on the team.
With his team struggling on the back-end at the start of this season, Aspirot took the reigns and helped turn the team around. He isn’t flashy but he has a knack for getting the job done when needed.
Aspirot finished tied for first among Belleville defencemen in points, albeit with eight fewer games than Lassi Thomson whom he was tied with.
A lot would have to go wrong on Ottawa’s defence for Jonathan Aspirot to play more than a sampling of games in the NHL next year. A left-handed defenceman, he has Thomas Chabot, Erik Brannstrom, Victor Mete and Olle Alsing ahead of him on the depth chart.
However, if the Senators have injury problems and need someone to fill in for the big guns, Aspirot is the man for the job.