The Ottawa Senators turned over a new leaf, or in their case, leaves during the offseason.

First general manager Pierre Dorion lured Maple Leafs assistant D.J. Smith away from Toronto, naming him head coach on May 23. Then Dorion added defenseman Nikita Zaitsev and forward Connor Brown from the Maple Leafs on July 1 in a seven-player trade which saw Senators d-men Cody Ceci and Ben Harpur head west down Highway 401.

But the GM wasn’t finished there. A few hours later, Dorion inked former two Maple Leafs via free agency: 38-year old blueliner Ron Hainsey and three-time 20-goal man Tyler Ennis.

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For a team rebuilding, Dorion surely kept himself busy in July — and not just with acquiring former Leafs.

He exchanged centres with the Chicago Blackhawks, sending Zack Smith, the Senators’ longest-tenured player, packing for Artem Anisimov. Two weeks later he moved veteran goalie Mike Condon from a crowded goal crease to the Tampa Bay Lightning for forward Ryan Callahan. The swap assisted both teams, solidifying Craig Anderson and Anders Nilsson as the club’s primary goaltending tandem and creating cap space for the Bolts. Callahan, a former captain of the New York Rangers, will land on Long Term Injured Reserve due to a degenerative back injury.

These transactions, combined with the Senators’ Feb.25 trade deadline purge, gives the team a decidedly different look when training camp opens Sept. 12.

In fact, half of 2018-19 opening night roster is gone:

Forwards: Matt Duchene (Predators), Ryan Dzingel (Hurricanes), Max McCormick (Hurricanes), Magnus Paarjaarvi (UFA), Tom Pyatt (Sweden), Smith (Blackhawks), Mark Stone (Golden Knights)

Defensemen: Ceci (Maple Leafs), Chris Wideman (Ducks)

Goaltender: Condon (Lightning)

But don't expect this year's Senators squad to be a cakewalk every night.

To start, the competition will be fierce for the few remaining spots available in Smith’s lineup. Judging by the Senators’ current roster, ten forwards are locks: Anisimov, Mikkel Boedker, Brown, Anthony Duclair, Ennis, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Bobby Ryan, Chris Tierney, Brady Tkachuk and Colin White.

Therefore, the battle, for what is likely three openings up front will showcase the next generation of Senators forwards in Rudolfs Balcers, Drake Batherson, Logan Brown, Filip Chlapik, Alex Formenton, Josh Norris, Nick Paul, and Max Verroneau.

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A similar situation is evolving on the blue line as nine d-men are vying to be among the Senators’ top six. Mark Borowiecki, Thomas Chabot, Dylan DeMelo, Hainsey, Christian Jaros, Nikita Zaitsev are mainstays with rookie Erik Brannstrom, Max Lajoie and Christian Wolanin pushing for playing time. Long-time Senator Borowiecki likely becoming the swingman, shuttling in and out of the lineup.

With Anderson and Nilsson tending the Senators’ net, it's expected that Joey Daccord, Filip Gustavsson and Marcus Hogberg will compete for crease spots with Ottawa’s American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville.

While Senators’ fans are focussing on the trials and tribulations of the upcoming campaign, Dorion is already looking ahead to the next offseason. At this moment, the team will have an unprecedented 27 unsigned players (11 unrestricted, 16 restricted free agents) within the entire organization at the conclusion of this campaign. To put this in perspective, that's over 56% of players currently in the Senators’ organization — without contracts — for 2020-21.

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This season may be the final time three of the team’s four remaining most-tenured players don Senators’ colours. Anderson (401 regular-season games), Pageau (368) and Borowiecki (322) are all entering the last year on their deals. Other possible pending 2020 UFA’s include: Boedker, DeMelo and the recently signed Ennis and Hainsey.

However, all eyes are on potential RFA Chabot. The 22-year defenseman appeared in his first of (what is expected to be many) All-Star games last season and is only scratching the surface of a stellar career. Preliminary talks are reportedly already underway on a significant contract extension. With that all being said, Dorion and assistant GM Peter MacTavish have their work cut out for them in the months ahead.

For now, the focus is on training camp which is only four weeks away. As mentioned, there will be quite a few new faces on the ice, but first, the Senators’ GM needs to get a familiar one, his lone existing RFA, Colin White under contract.