Sunday, July 2, 2023

Senators add more former Sea Dogs

Embed from Getty Images 
The Ottawa Senators continue to try and get the 2017 President Cup champion Saint John Sea Dogs back together.

After bringing in Mathieu Joseph to join Thomas Chabot last year, the Sens added forwards Matthew Highmore and Boko Imama to their organization on Saturday. All four helped the Sea Dogs win the QMJHL championship in 2017.

Both Highmore and Imama signed one-year, two-way contracts with the Senators, allowing them to move back-and-forth between Ottawa and AHL Belleville. Both players spent most of last season in the AHL.

Highmore, after playing in 46 games with the Vancouver Canucks in 2021-22, appeared in just two NHL games with the St. Louis Blues this past season. In 68 AHL games with the Springfield Thunderbirds, Highmore recorded 19 goals and 42 assists. He was considered one of the top AHL forwards on the market.
Imama, meanwhile, appeared in five games with the Arizona Coyotes last season. In 50 AHL games with the Tucson Roadrunners, the 26-year-old had five goals, 10 assists and 109 penalty minutes.

Forward Julien Gauthier, who was also a member of that 2017 Sea Dogs team, has become an unrestricted free agent. The 25-year-old played in 17 games with Ottawa last year after being acquired from the New York Rangers, posting three goals and two assists.

Belleville will likely feature another former Sea Dogs forward in 2023-24 in Philippe Daoust. The 2022 Memorial Cup champion played in just nine games last season after suffering a season ending injury early in the year.

Another Ottawa connection: current Sea Dogs forward Cole Burbidge will attend Senators development camp this week after receiving a free agent invite.

No comments:

Post a Comment