Here’s every NHL team’s player to watch break out this year
By Paul Grant
Ottawa Senators: Christian Wolanin
Meanwhile, in Ottawa … WHAT A DEBACLE. First, the owner alienates fans by vaguely threatening to move. Then there was the whole spat between Erik Karlsson’s wife and Mike Hoffman’s fiancee, which is in court and is so completely unsavory that we’ll nay speak of it again. Oh, and then there was assistant GM Randy Lee being accused of giving unsolicited shoulder rubs to a shuttle driver at the combine in Buffalo (Lee has since resigned).
Stop it, Ottawa. Netflix is not interested in your fantastic story.
The hockey fallout is that pending unrestricted free agent Karlsson is rumored to be traded (Hoffman was dealt to the Sharks who then pulled a fast one and dealt him to the division-rival Panthers). So who will step into this void? Christian Wolanin is the best candidate to get more minutes on defense for the Sens. The fourth-rounder from 2015 is composed in his own end and impressed with his puck skills during a 10-game stint with the woeful Sens late in the season, logging a huge 14:39 in average ice time.
Regardless as to whether Karlsson is around or not, chances are good the Sens will groom the 6-foot-2 Wolanin — son of former Stanley Cup winner Craig — with a good amount of playing time, which could result in a breakout for the 23-year-old.