This is a mock draft of the 2022 NHL draft with the Ottawa Senators, who have 10 picks in the draft, including 2 second-round picks, 3 third-round picks, and 4 fifth-round picks. It is highly possible for Ottawa to trade some of their current roster players in order to add some picks at the draft.
Related: Vancouver Canucks
Before the 2022 Draft, a few trades are made
Ottawa Senators trade Matt Murray to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Petr Mrazek, Topi Niemela, and Roni Hirvonen. Ottawa retains 1.5 million of Matt Murray’s contract.
Ottawa has no need for Matt Murray, as they are in rebuild mode, so they trade him for Petr Mrazek, who has a bad contract, as well as two real solid prospects in Topi Niemela and Roni Hirvonen.
The Senators also trade Chris Tierney, Colin White, and Nick Holden to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Alexandre Texier, a 2022 2nd-round pick, and a 2023 6th-round pick.
The Senators managed to get Alexandre Texier and some draft picks for a pending UFA, Colin White, a solid player, but is overpaid for his production and Nick Holden,
a journeyman defenseman, who just so happened to have a good season.
Victor Mete, Adam Gaudette, and Austin Watson are traded to the New York Islanders for Kieffer Bellows, 2023 4th round pick, 5th round pick ’23.
The Senators get a pretty good haul from the Islanders for three minor role players.
2022 Draft
7-David Jiricek
31-Adam Ingram
39-Jack Hughes
64-Gleb Trikozov
65-Tomas Hamara
72-Jorian Donovan
87-Miko Matikka
104-Jake Karabela
136-Tyler Duke
143-Fabian Wagner
151-David Moravec
168-Kevin Reidler
206-Braden Holt
The Ottawa Senators kicked off the 2022 Draft by selecting Czech Born Defenseman, David Jircek with the 7th overall pick. Jiricek is a steady, all-around defenseman, who can contribute in all areas of the game; as a 17-year-old he got his first true taste of pro hockey in 2020-21 when he joined his hometown pro team, HC Skoda Plzen. He finished the season with nine points in 34 games and also represented Czechia at the 2021 World Juniors, where he added two points in five games. Jiricek started 2021-22 the same way he finished the 2020-21 season, with 11 points through his first 29 games and a spot locked up on Czechia’s 2022 World Junior team but suffered a knee injury in the first game of the tournament, which put an end to his season. Offensively, he’s extremely skilled when it comes to patrolling the blue line, be it at even strength or on the power play. His edgework is very good and he also possesses what I believe might be one of the best shots among defensemen in the 2022 draft class. Defensively, he has elite gap control when it comes to boxing out incoming opponents. He’s incredibly hard to shake off when he’s chasing the puck carrier, and he uses his frame at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds to his advantage. Make no mistake, Jiricek has all the tools to become an effective, top-pairing defenseman in the NHL someday. With the 31st pick and 2nd pick in the 1st round in this draft, the Ottawa Senators selected Youngstown Phantoms center, Adam Ingram. Ingram is a natural scorer who is learning to use his physical traits to his advantage. The shot needs no introduction, as Ingram already has an NHL-caliber skill that will wreak havoc on goalies for the rest of his career. He has a quick release, great accuracy, and elite power. Although Ingram struggles in the defensive zone and off the puck, he has the skillset to be a top 6 forward
at the NHL level.
In the second round, the Senators selected former USNTDP standout, Jack Hughes, Russian Winger Gleb Trikozov, and another Czechia defenseman, Tomas Hamara. The son of Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes, Jack Hughes has been surrounded by the game of hockey his entire life, and it shows when watching him play. He is a dependable and hard-working two-way center, who isn’t afraid to play physically and is a team-first player. While he may not possess the high-end talent that other prospects ahead of him have, he is a safe pick and should be an effective all-around center at the NHL level. Gleb Trikozov has one of the deadliest shots in the 2022 draft class, as he’s able to pick corners and shoot from almost anywhere on the ice. His skating jumps off the ice when he turns it on, stemming from strong explosiveness and quick steps. He seems to use this skating speed sparingly, but it’s effective when in use. Gleb is an intelligent player, knowing when to attack or when to pull back, how to find and utilize open ice, and how to get around his obstacles. It may take several years for Trikozov to transition to the NHL level, but when he does he can be a Nikita Kucherov-type player. Tomas Hamara is a sturdy two-way defender who is excellent at supporting his team’s rushes through the neutral zone. He is slightly more offensively minded than defensive, as he can use his great puck skills and calm demeanor to support his teammates. Many fans were first introduced to Tomas Hamara when he played for Team Czechia at the 2022 under-18 World Junior Championship, where he was named one of the three best players on team Czechia at the end of the tournament. Hamara has the potential to become a solid top-four defender in the NHL with a consistent two-way game that minimizes defensive errors and maximizes the talent of his teammates.
Ottawa then drafted Hamilton Bulldogs defenseman, Jorian Donovan, Finnish winger, Mikko Matikka, and Guelph Storm forward, Jake Karabela. Jorian Donovan is probably already on a lot of NHL teams’ draft boards just for his explosive skating, offensive awareness, and ability to move the puck quickly out of his own zone. As a defenceman in the modern NHL, you have to have all three to succeed, and Donovan has them all in spades. Donovan definitely has the makings of a top-four defenceman. With his size, mobility, and confidence with the puck, he is perfectly suited for the NHL game right now. Add in his willingness to drive the play and attack the net, along with his competitive work ethic, and whatever team gets him could have a bigger Adam Fox-type defenceman. Big wingers who can score, carry the puck and play a physical style
of hockey are always in demand. This bodes well for Miko Matikka as the 6-foot-3, 187-pound right-winger has shown a well-rounded skillset that could flourish in the NHL if his
development pans out. Karabela’s strengths are in the offensive zone. He has the ability to pick out teammates with strong passes while getting into scoring opportunities himself.
His play along the boards is also something to watch, as he is difficult to knock off the puck and can make an outlet pass even when checked. Once he gets the outlet pass away, he can use his speed to catch up to the play and become a target for a scoring chance in the offensive zone. The big question surrounding Karabela is should he play wing or center? He does profile as a center, but he has poor defensive zone positioning and needs work in the faceoff dot.
His strengths indicate that he would excel on the wing, but he could also play some center as long it’s not in the defensive zone.
The Sens had 3 third-round picks in the 2022 draft and used them to select USNTDP defenseman, Tyler Duke, Swedish Winger, Fabian Wagner, and yet another Czechia defenseman, David Moravec. Tyler Duke is another small offensive defenceman coming up from the USNTDP pipeline that keeps on giving and he brings some familiar characteristics as well. While he may find himself overshadowed by some of the other offensively gifted NTDP defensemen on his team, he is a very talented puck distributor and is capable of making strong plays with the puck. He is a good puck carrier and sees the ice well with his head constantly on a swivel. Due to his size, he will be looked over in the draft because NHL teams will question his ability to contain bigger and stronger forwards, but if all goes right, he has the potential to be a bottom-pair defenseman, who can run the powerplay. Fabian Wagner is one of the more under-the-radar prospects in this year’s draft, with 38 points in 43 games, he was one of the most exciting players to watch at the J20 level. He possesses good hands which lead to good stickwork, and he’s not afraid to put both to work on any given shift. He has all the traits of a quality playmaker: he has good play recognition in the offensive zone, he can make plays in transition, and he has the ability to create time and space for himself and his teammates. Despite his production this year, scouts are skeptical about his defense and the lack of explosiveness in his game. Wagner is the ideal later-round pick because he has top-6 potential, but he is more likely to end up a bottom-6 winger with offensive upside. David Moravec is a Czech defender who takes pride in his play in his own zone; he is seemingly able to be everywhere in the defensive zone using his mobility and adept positioning. In his own zone, he does a great job of boxing out opposing forwards while also making sure not to screen his own goalie. He puts himself in a position to break up plays and block shots, and he efficiently gets the puck up the ice and out of the zone when he has the opportunity. Moravec is expected to contribute much offensively, but he fits the mold of an old-school, stay-home, who can be a top-notch penalty killer.
The Senators finished the draft by drafting two goalies: Kevin Reidler, a 6-foot-6, Swedish-born netminder, and Braden Holt from the Everett Silvertips of the WHL. Kevin Reidler is very raw in his development right now and is still very much a project at this point in his career, but because of his size, he is worth the risk, especially in the 6th round. Being that bigger goaltenders take longer to develop, it would not surprise me if it took at least 5 years for him to NHL ready, just look at Ben Bishop. Braden Holt was stuck behind one of the best goaltenders in his age group in Dustin Wolf, with the Everett Silvertips, but he significant contributor to the team, as he posted a 24-6-4 record, with a 2.56 GAA and .909 SV%. Mechanically, Holt doesn’t really have any dynamic traits to his game, but he is capable of making the saves his team needs him to make. Holt plays an aggressive style. He mostly plays on top of his crease, challenging shooters by cutting off the angles. Holt’s rebound control is hit or miss depending on the game, so that is an area of his game that needs to be improved. Holt may not have the potential to be a starter at the NHL level, but he could definitely be a backup at the NHL level,
if he develops properly.
Ottawa Senators re-sign the following Players:
Josh Norris-6yrs/5.5M per
Alex Formenton-2yrs/2.75M per
Mathieu Joseph-3yrs/1.8M per
Erik Brannstrom-2yrs/1.7M per
Kieffer Bellows-2yrs/1.2M per
Ottawa re-signs All Non-Roster RFAs
Ottawa Senators sign Claude Giroux to a 4 yr deal worth 8.5 million per season
This is how the Lineup looks like next season
2022-23 Ottawa Senators
B.Tkachuk-J.Norris-D.Batherson
A.Formenton-T.Stutzle-C.Giroux
A.Texier-S.Pinto-Co.Brown
K.Bellows-D.Gambrell-M.Joseph
T.Chabot-T.Hamonic
J.Sanderson-A.Zub
E.Brannstrom-N.Zaitsev
P.Mrazek
A.Forsberg
Top Prospects:
F: R.Greig, T.Boucher, Z.Ostapchuk, A.Ingram, J.Hughes, G.Trikozov, R.Hirvonen, M.Matikka, J.Karabela, F.Wagner
D: D.Jiricek, L.Thomson, J.Bernard-Docker, T.Niemela, T.Hamara, J.Donovan, T.Duke, D.Moravec
G: M.Sogaard, K.Reidler, L.Merilainen, B.Holt
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