It's a nice, albeit minor signing. The Sens are not likely to contend next season. They simply don’t have enough scoring. So the plan seems to be to at least be a difficult team to play against; to make opponents dread coming to Ottawa.
Konopka says he wouldn’t have signed here if he thought the Sens couldn’t earn a playoff spot. For that to happen, they still need at least 2 more forwards with scoring touch. To that end, it surprises me Bryan Murray wasn’t able to do something beyond Konopka and Alex Auld. Maybe he tried. I don’t know.
In UFA, there was offence to be had with names like Cole, Ryder, Gagne, Leino, Brunette, Laich, Sullivan, Fleischmann. All would have upgraded the Sens top 6 for 4.5 million or less per season. Remember, the Sens still have 20 million to spend. Perhaps they're in cost saving mode, prepping for smaller attendance figures.
The plan may also be to stay lean and mean then see what transpires in the new CBA after this season.
