The Ottawa Senators have loaded up this offseason and are set to fully break out of their rebuild and get back into the playoffs. There are a few things that stand in their way though. Head coach DJ Smith had this to say about Josh Norris, who is currently injured. “At this point, I’m being told he’s just unable to play. With injuries, things happen sometimes where maybe it didn’t rehab quite the way they had expected.” This makes us believe that there is no timetable for the second-line center’s return.
The Senators had to deal with Norris spending most of last season on the injured reserve as well. This definitely puts them at a disadvantage. It’s just unfortunate for a young player who’s locked into a contract to be dealing with long-lasting injuries like this. The Senators continue to leave the necessary cap space open for Norris in the lineup, so it hurts the team a lot too.
Fantasy hockey owners want to know what’s going on with Norris as well. If healthy, he is a big contributor in the Senators’ lineup. In 2021-22, Norris’ last semi-full season, he scored 35 goals and 55 points in 66 games. This was without Claude Giroux, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Jakob Chychrun on the team as well. Bruce Garrioch noted that Norris will either start the season on the injured reserve (IR) or long-term injured reserve (LTIR). If Norris is placed on the LTIR, he will have to miss 10 games or 24 days. He says the Senators’ center has been on the IR for about a week.
Which Senators Get a Bump From the Norris Injury
Norris played just eight games last season. His absence from the lineup allowed for Shane Pinto to step in as a rookie into that top-six spot. On the Senators, that is big. He was beside the best players on the team, so he is the obvious first choice to step into the top-six again. Right now, he is unsigned. Since Norris is set to begin the season on the injured reserve, it is better to be safe than sorry and move him over to the LTIR. This will open up the cap space and the Senators can get Pinto signed.
With a little extra money to work with right now that he’s looking for, Pinto can step in and play beside wingers like Tarasenko and Drake Batherson. Each can easily net 20-plus goals and 55-plus points. This will allow Pinto to be a relevant fantasy player while Norris heals up. It could last 10 games or it could last a season like it did in 2022-23. With Norris out, the second power-play unit is also impacted. This was set to be a very dominant unit that could easily play a lot. Norris is supposed to be the centerman there. With him out, the unit might lose some production, but Pinto or Ridly Greig would also be able to fill in nicely.
If Pinto still isn’t signed, the opportunity will fall to Greig. The 21-year-old has only played 20 games in the NHL, but has the talent. With Pinto unsigned, he was set to move over to center. But with Norris also injured, he could get a great opportunity in his rookie season.
Who is Negatively Impacted on the Senators
Now there’s the other side of things as well. The Senators lose their number two center who can score 30 and put up a good amount of points. I would still have to say Norris is better than Pinto or Greig. So the second-line wingers will be a little worse off. As noted above, Tarasenko and Batherson appear to be the wingers on the second line.
Tarasenko is coming off a bit of a tough year. He struggled on the St. Louis Blues but so did everyone. Once he was traded to the New York Rangers, everything didn’t necessarily click perfectly, but he still put up points and was effective offensively. The Russian sniper relied on a lot more assists than goals last season. He could have again if Norris was his linemate from the start. Instead, Pinto, although scoring 20 goals last season, isn’t on the same level. Whereas Greig has just two goals in 20 career NHL games. Batherson is in a similar boat. He hit 20 goals last season, but also recorded many more assists. These two are who fantasy hockey owners have to watch out for the most in terms of production falling.
The Senators should still be a solid team, but this is definitely a hit. Injuries create opportunity, but also negatively impact others. Make sure to stay up to date with how injuries to key players around the league impact players in fantasy hockey. You will be able to find that here in the future.