Important Decisions Ahead for Dorion SensChirp

Pierre Dorion clearly has his hands full this off season.

With a few RFAs needing new contracts including Jean Gabriel Pageau and Ryan Dzingel along with a significant chunk of the team’s forward depth headed for unrestricted free agency, Dorion will have to work quickly over the next month or so. He has an expansion draft, annual entry draft and the free agent frenzy on his radar too.

There’s no shortage of items on the second year GM’s To Do list over the next‎ month and a bit.

And while there may not be the same level or urgency, July 1st also means an opportunity to negotiate with players that have one year left on their contract. In Ottawa’s case, that includes three key players in Craig Anderson, Kyle Turris and Mark Stone. Dorion is expected to reach out to all three of their agents early on to talk about an extension.

The easiest conversation should be the one with Craig Anderson.

Andy is entering the final year of his contract and will earn just $3.1 mil this coming season. At age 36, Anderson is in the twilight of his career but the organization is hopeful they can get a couple more years out of him. Hard to argue after the way he played this season. While Dorion was predictably tight-lipped during his season-ending remarks, the belief is they’d like to extend his contract by a year.

It would give the team certainty at the position for two more seasons and allow Anderson to finish his career in a Senator uniform. Easy decision.

The conversations with Kyle Turris and Mark Stone will likely be a little more complex. Both players are in the prime of their career and both are in line for significant raises. And how Dorion handles these negotiations is likely to have an impact on Erik Karlsson’s next contract which looms in the not too distant future.

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Acquired in one of the greatest trades in franchise history, Kyle Turris has solidified himself as Ottawa’s top centre and at 27 going on 28, Turris is in the prime of his career. Aside from the 2015-2016 season when he suffered a significant injury, he’s consistently put up 20+ goals and 55+ points and he’s a reliable player at both ends of the rink.

His current deal is often referenced as one of the best contracts anywhere in the National Hockey League.

Because he has an opportunity to be a UFA at the end of this deal, Turris has all the leverage in these negotiations. We know he and his family love playing and living in Ottawa so obviously there’s a mutual interest but the Senators will have to pay market value to get it done. He’s almost certainly going to get north of $5 mil on this next deal and if a player like Derick Stepan can get a 6 year deal at $6.5 a season, there’s a chance Turris is pushing $6 mil on his next contract.

In the case of Mark Stone, the Senators still have some leverage. He’ll earn $4.5 mil this season but at 25 years of age, he’s still a restricted free agent.

Dorion can probably be a little more patient with this one and based on how they’ve handled previous RFA negotiations, it’s unlikely the team will be in any rush to get an extension done. Stone has three straight 20 goal seasons under his belt and despite a somewhat quiet playoff where he played through a significant leg injury, he’s still one of the top forwards on this team and an important piece of the future here in Ottawa.

He’ll also be looking for a significant raise on the $4.5 million he’s scheduled to make this season.

This most recent playoff run proved that this core of players is capable of not only making the playoffs but hanging with the top teams when they get there. There is a clear window to contend and it’s just starting to open for the Senators. Keeping Anderson, Turris and Stone in the mix is an important part of ensuring that window stays open.

Pierre Dorion has lots to do this off season but when July 1st rolls around, he can get a head start on next summer’s priorities. In the case of Anderson, Turris and Stone, it’s an easy decision to keep them around but getting all three signed to reasonable extensions will be a challenge.

What do you think these three players get on their next contract?