The Senators Are Already Facing a Test of Their Depth

There’s something almost funny about the Ottawa Senators’ injury news heading into Saturday’s game against the Maple Leafs. Andre Burakovsky is out. Warren Foegele might be back. So, in a way, the Senators are just shuffling names on the lineup sheet.

One guy comes out. Another guy goes in. But sometimes those little lineup changes tell us something bigger about a hockey team. And I think that might be the interesting part of this news. Burakovsky will miss Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury. Last season, he scored 11 goals and added 22 assists in 75 games, including 10 power-play points. Foegele, meanwhile, has been dealing with an undisclosed injury but might be available against Toronto. He had 13 goals and 17 points in 68 games last season with Los Angeles and Ottawa.

If Foegele can play, he’ll likely move into Ottawa’s top six. And that’s where things get interesting.

The Senators Need Their Depth to Matter.

Nobody wants to lose a player like Burakovsky. But this is an 82-game season. Players are going to get hurt. Lines are going to change. Somebody who starts the season on the third line will eventually find himself playing beside a star. That’s the way NHL hockey works. The question for Ottawa is whether those changes can happen without the whole thing falling apart.

Foegele potentially stepping into the top six is a pretty good little test. He doesn't have to become Burakovsky. He just has to give the Senators some reliable play. That sounds simple, but good teams are usually the ones where the next guy can step in and keep the machine moving.

Maybe This Is the Kind of Team Ottawa Is Trying to Become.

Here’s a thought about the Senators. For a long time, the Senators have been a team talked about for its potential. Young talent. High draft picks. Players expected to take the next step. But eventually a team has to become deeper than its best players.

That's when things start getting interesting. If Ottawa is going to take another step, it can't be a team where every injury to a top-six forward becomes a crisis. Somebody has to move up. Somebody else has to take that player's minutes.

And the team has to keep playing. That’s what makes Saturday interesting. Not simply Burakovsky being out, and not simply Foegele possibly being back. It’s a tiny test of whether Ottawa has enough depth to absorb the bumps that come with an NHL season.

The Senators don't need everything to go perfectly. They need the next guy to be ready. And on Saturday, Warren Foegele might be that guy.