For fans expecting fireworks from the Ottawa Senators at the NHL Entry draft this weekend, they’ll likely have to wait a few more days. After trading their recently-acquired ninth overall pick to the San Jose Sharks in a swap centred around forward William Eklund, there was chatter Senators general manager Steve Staios was shopping the 25th overall selection. Staios himself confirmed post-Draft he had conversations regarding Pavel Dorofeyev, Mason McTavish, J.J. Peterka who were all dealt during the First Round. But ultimately, the Senators held onto to all of their eight picks heading into the weekend.
One NHL executive told Hockey Hot Stove, the Senators also checked in on Stars RFA Jason Robertson.
However, the Senators GM was busy during the hours leading up to the Draft Friday, re-upping defenseman Jordan Spence four years, extending minor league depth blueliners Samuel Bolduc, Djibril Touré, trading for goalie Samuel Ersson and veteran forward Andre Burakovsky.
https://hockeyhotstove.com/sens-notes-eklund-speaks-spence-signs-trades/
First a look at the Senators Draft selections:
No. 25 Jonas Lagerberg Hoen RW – Leksand Jr Sweden
Lagerberg Hoen is an intriguing selection at no. 25. Mainly due to being limited to only nine games last season after undergoing knee surgery, Lagerberg Hoen basically dropped out of view for several scouts. But in those nine outings with Leksands U20 team the 6’2″, 190-pound forward registered nine goals, seven assists. It was the Swede’s prevous campaign which turned heads. Lagerberg Hoen notched 27 goals in 38 games, second-most on his Lesksands J20 club.
“We had a plan going into this thing to get some skill in our lineup, so it fell into place that way. People say that you could have waited, maybe, but that’s not the case, because what would happen if we take a guy or don’t take a guy at 25 he goes at 28 (Senators also owned the 32nd pick) and we’re not happy about that. So my feeling about it is that we did the right thing at the right time,” said Senators head amateur scout Don Boyd.
On Lagerberg Hoen, Boyd noted, “He’s big, he can skate, he can shoot the puck, he could score, he’ll go to the net, and he’s probably got one of the better releases in Europe for his age group.”
Via Zoom Saturday, Lagerberg Hoen described his game similar to that of Islanders Emil Heineman, “I’m like a more offensive forward. I have a very good shot and good skating. I try to play like Emil Heineman. He’s from my hometown, so he’s a very good player. I try to play physical like him.”
Lagerberg Hoen hopes to be ready to play his club team Leksands in Sweden’s second division Allsvenskan. Leksands was relegated from the SHL last season.
No. 32 Jaxon Cover RW – London OHL
By now hockey fans worldwide are familiar with Cover’s story. Born in Miami, Cover’s family moved to the Cayman Islands where the youngster learned the game playing roller hockey. The Cover’s then landed in the Toronto area when Jaxon was 12.
Fast forward only six years later, after attending St. Andrew’s College, Cover garnered 52 points (20 goals, 32 assists) in 67 games for the OHL London Knights.
Assessing Cover’s game, Boyd explained, “I think the actual fact that I think five years ago he played roller hockey. It’s a great story, but we drafted him because we believe he’s got ability, we believe he’s got a skill level, we believe he’s got some, he’s going to have a chance to be an offensive guy, he plays in a good program, we know he’s going to get good coaching. He’s going to be managed well. He’s going to be held accountable for what he does, and how he performs. That’s all part of the package.”
On being selected by the Senators, Cover via Zoom Friday late evening told media including Hockey Hot Stove, “I just remember that it felt like they really did like me, and they really did want me to be there. So that was just from the jump, it felt really almost like another home. Just talking to them was going, and I just loved the talks with them. And it was when I heard my name called, it was just a lot of mixed emotions, especially just seeing my mom. just givinwhog her a big old hug, and then just getting to get all my family members and friends a hug. It was amazing.”
No. 72 Adam Nemec LW – Sudbury OHL
Ranked as high as 48 by TSN Draft expert Craig Button, the Senators selected Adam Nemec 72nd overall. Unlike Adam’s elder brother Simon, a highly-sought defenseman who was recently dealt to Calgary, the Senators Nemec is an offensive wing displaying great vision mixed with decent shot.
A native Slovakia, the 6’1″, 176-pounder tallied 14 goals, 21 assists in 31 games after arrving in Sudbury post-World Juniors where he recored five points in five games.
Nemec opened last season playing in the Slovakia professional league with HK Nitra notching 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) in 28 games, but didn’t return due to wanting more ice time.
Boyd was impressed by Nemec’s play in a difficult situation, “I think it says something about the players’ intelligence, his willing to be independent, come over here and fit into a new team, and and really take off. He started, I think, that they were feeling him out, and he started on the third line. At the end of the year, he was getting minutes, and a lot of minutes on the first line, playing on the power play, playing the penalty kill, got competitive skills so I think more than anything it showed that he has some desire and drive.”
No. 87 Oscar Holmertz C – Linkoping Jr Sweden
Born in the Sweden hot bed of Linkoping, the 6’1″, 194-pound centre has spent all his minor, junior and pro hockey all in his hometown.
Last season Holmertz played the majority for Linkoping’s J20 club where he was just over a point per game player, earning 36 points (13 goals, 23 assists) in 34 games. Holmertz appeared in 11 Swedish League games, but didn’t pick up a point in his few minutes of ice time.
At 18-years-old, Holmertz’s performance will dictate if he plays once again for his J20 team or in the SHL.
Boyd describes Holmertz as “a skilled kid with hockey sense, he does play a two-way game, but we probably have to consider him be a skill, smart IQ player on both sides of the puck, but he was a selection based on his skill level, really.”
No. 91 Louis-Felix Bourque RW – Drummondville QMJHL
Turning 18, July 15, Bourque completed a successful rookie season for the Drummondville Voltiageurs. The Stoneham, QC born forward registered 24 goals, 25 assists in 54 games.
At 6’2″, 215 pounds Bourque uses his size on the forecheck and possesses potential to be a proto-typical power winger.
“Bourque’s a skilled kid. He started off as basically a third, fourth line guy in Drummondville, at the start of the year. Drummondville was a real good team this year, and he was able to find the net, he was able to find some scoring, he can shoot the puck and he can skate. Bu his own admission, I think he has to get more consistent in his game, but the skill level is there and the hockey sense offensively is there, so we like him,” stated Boyd.
No. 110 Elliot Lennon G – Deerfield Academy USHS – MA
At 6’6″, 201 pounds, Lennon is a towering goalie for an 18-year-old. The Montreal area resident plied his trade at Deerfield Academy Prep School in Massachusetts. Lennon posted a 1.84 goals against average, .936 save percentage in 26 games. After ending last season with Madison in the USHL, Lennon will return to Madison for the 2026-27 campaign before he heads to Brown University the following season.
On Lennon, Boyd said, “He’s a big long kid without a lot of experience yet. He’s going to go to the USHL this year, and to Madison, and then going to college. His commitment at this point is Brown for a year down the road. So our guys like this. He went into the US U18’s and the National Championships, and shone there at the end of the year. Came out of Deerfield Prep School, and he works out in Montreal all summer.”
No. 151 Harris Pangretitsch D – Sault Ste. Marie OHL
While Harris Pangretitisch isn’t known as a point-producer (two goals, 12 assists), the hulking 6’4″, 218 pound right-shot defenseman is an adept puck mover and skater.
The Toronto area resident caught the eyes of Senators scouts when his highly-rated teammate Chase Reid was out of the Soo Greyhounds lineup due to injury.
“He didn’t get a lot of ice time early and then he moved up a little bit in the lineup, and kind of beat out a couple of people.And then Chase Reed got hurt partway through the year, and all of a sudden he’s up playing with the number one defender at that time. We watched him a lot during that time. When Chase came back, he went back to the second pairing, and his game just kept growing. He skates, he’s got long reach, smart in three zones, smart off the blue line. I think he’d tell you himself that he’s not a real offensive defenseman, but he can handle the puck at the blue line, make the right play at the offensive blue line, he can make the pass out of the zone, he can carry it up through the neutral zone He’s a kid that there’s a lot of potential there,” noted Boyd.
No. 183 Alexander Grunin D – Novosibirsk MHL Russia
To those, especially at Elite Prospects who ranked him 82nd, Grunin was a steal at 183. At 6’4″, 185 pounds, the left-shot d-man plays all around game on the back end.
On Grunin who toils Novsibirsk in Siberia, Boyd describes him as “a long, tall, lean defenseman that is a puck mover. I think that he’s probably what I would call a two-zone D. He can move the puck through the neutral zone, he can move it up out of the D-zone again. He hasn’t had a lot of opportunity. They play a little bit different in Russia. At times you’re not encouraged to be an offensive defenseman like a lot of other people. There’s probably a little bit more there than meets the eye, but basically he’s going to break the puck out for you, he’s going to move the puck up through the neutral zone, he’s going to make the right play at the offensive blue line to make sure that there’s pressure on people and make sure that we can keep possession of the pocket.”
