Is P.K. Subban the Answer for the Blueline?
The 33-year-old defenceman is entering his 13th NHL season.
The Ottawa Senators are nearing the end of a triumphant offseason and the rebuild as a whole. They have solidified the offence and the goaltending, the one order of business that still remains is the defence.
Just today, they signed Tyler Motte to a one-year contract, further strengthening the forward group. As it stands, the Senators’ depth at all positions looks like this:
Note: This list includes only players who are likely to play NHL games this year. This is not a line prediction, simply a list of the best players by position.
Left Wing Center Right Wing
DeBrincat Stutzle Batherson
Tkachuk Norris Giroux
Formenton* Pinto Joseph
Motte Gambrell Watson
Kelly Kastelic Hawryluk
Grieg
Sokolov
Left Defence Right Defence Goalie
Chabot Zub Forsberg
Sanderson Hamonic Talbot
Holden Bernard-Docker Sogaard
Brannstrom Thomson
Zaitsev
*Formenton is still unsigned.
As a whole, the Senators are well prepared for the season. The top-six is likely in the top ten of the league and the goalie tandem is nothing to laugh at.
The defence group does look better than it did at the beginning of last season, mostly because of the arrival of Jake Sanderson. Right now, the Senators have two legit top-four defencemen (Chabot and Zub) and one (Sanderson) who definitely has top-four potential but we just don’t know what he’s capable of yet.
And while Hamonic was decent towards the end of last season, he hasn’t proved to be anything more than a bottom pair defenceman. JBD and Thomson are both solid prospects but like Sanderson, they haven’t proved to be top-four defencemen yet.
That leaves Nikita Zaitsev and Erik Brannstrom on the depth chart. Brannstrom played well last year but it would be a stretch to consider him a consistent top-four defenceman.
And Zaitsev is a known commodity in Ottawa as an offensively absent and defensive liability whose presence shouldn’t grace the inside of an NHL arena this year.
The Search for a Top-Four Defenceman
Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion has been calling other managers all summer trying to facilitate a trade to bring that coveted asset to Ottawa. Reportedly, the Sens were deep in talks with Doug Armstrong of the Arizona Coyotes regarding Jakob Chychrun but they have since stalled as Dorion balked at the asking price.
All other talks have led nowhere and the Senators have begun their training camp with no additional pieces on the backend.
Trading for a top-four defenceman is never an easy task and it hasn’t been any different for the Senators. But what if there is another option, one that is cheaper and comes with lower risk?
Enter: P.K. Subban.
Subban is coming off of an eight-year contract that paid him $9 million annually. Over the past few years, his stock has fallen dramatically, but he is still a capable defender.
Through 77 games played for the New Jersey Devils, P.K. scored five goals and 22 points, placing fourth among Devils’ defencemen in points. He had a -8 rating and a 49.6 CF%. His Corsi% numbers are down from his career average of 53.9%. So he has definitely taken a step back in his game.
As a right-shot defenceman, he could be a part of the answer to the Senators’ problem. And in no way am I saying he will fit in seamlessly as a legitimate top-four defenceman but he could be a good player to bring in on a one-year deal.
There is also the fact that Subban has a big personality which could be a positive or a negative for the team. So before entering into talks with the Toronto native the Senators should speak it over with team leadership.
Subban will at the very least be a mobile, bottom pair defender who can throw energy-boosting hits and chip in on offence. If the Senators can’t find a long-term fit for the team, there is little harm in bringing P.K. Subban in on a short-term contract.
What do you think? Should the Senators bring in Subban on a short-term deal?