TSN: Darren Dreger when asked if the Ottawa Senators are going to be sellers at the trade deadline.
** NHLRumor.com transcription
Aaron Korolnek: “What do you think these Senators approach is for the next couple of months there with regards to potential trades? Do you expect them to be active, perhaps potentially sellers leading up to the deadline?
Dreger: “Well, again, it’s too soon to say Aaron. I think what Steve Staios and company have to figure out is, who’s in and who should be out. And that’s where they’re at, right?
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Like most of us I think thought that Ottawa, Buffalo and Detroit would be better. You know, Detroit, showed flashes and I think Detroit is still interesting to me.
Ottawa’s a big disappointment.
So they’re at a phase now in their development where okay, enough of the development. Like your younger stars, that secondary leadership core, whatever, you know, we’ve seen enough now we need to figure out what’s going to make us a playoff for the team for next year. And I’m not talking about looking at the primary pieces. It’d be ridiculous to look at their young stars and say, well, this guy’s on the block, that’s not what I’m talking about.
But I think you do have to take stock of what you’ve got in your blue line. Unfortunately again for Ottawa Thomas Chabot has been hurt a big chunk of this year. But look, beyond that Erik Brannstrom‘s name was out there. It was out there with Mathieu Joseph, prior to the (Shane) Pinto suspension because we were trying to figure out a Pierre Dorion at the time was going to make salary cap space.
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So Steve Staios and hockey operations have got to take full stock of where they’re at as an organization. And, you know, if, if you’re a player that has shown a little bit and you’re not sure that he’s going to show much more, well, then that needs to be trade fodder or whether it’s, you know, around the trade deadline or going into the offseason, they’ve got to find a way to turn a corner.
