Alex DeBrincat never wanted to sign long-term deal in Ottawa

Last night saw the end of the Alex DeBrincat saga in Ottawa. The little maverick, who didn’t want to make a long-term commitment to the Senators, was being shopped around by the club to find a new destination before the start of the current season.

In the end, the Michigan native landed… in Michigan.

Today, DeBrincat took the time to speak with the media, and he was quite frank in his comments: throughout his time with the Sens, he never thought he’d get along with the club on a long-term basis.

That’s pretty clear.

Of course, it’s a shame for the Senators, who paid a hefty price to acquire him (they gave up the seventh pick in last year’s draft, which became the promising Kevin Korchinski, in addition to two other picks) and are getting a steal by sending him to the Red Wings.

Even the first-round pick in 2024 comes with protection, so he probably won’t be worth much.

That said, even if the DeBrincat gamble didn’t work out in Ottawa, the Senators are still banking on a solid core of forwards. Obviously, the loss of DeBrincat hurts a bit, but both offensively and defensively, there are resources in town, especially if Josh Norris can stay healthy.

In fact, if there’s one person who can’t be happy about what happened yesterday, it’s not Pierre Dorion: it’s William Nylander.

The Maple Leafs winger, who will become an independent player in a year’s time, is aiming for a contract that will pay him $10 million a year. But seeing DeBrincat, who is a good match for him, sign for less than $8 million a year hurts his chances of getting the salary he wants.

Especially since it can be argued that DeBrincat’s performance is superior to Nylander’s by looking at a sample of a few years.

-One just signed for $7.875M AAV
-The other one wants 10M AAV
– pic.twitter.com/3jiXbmRYcE

– Carlo Colaiacovo (@CarloColaiacovo) July 10, 2023

I can’t wait to see how the Nylander saga ends, but it’s a good thing the DeBrincat saga is now behind us. Both the player and the Senators can now move on, and that’s just fine.

Not sure his comments of the day were necessary, but good for DeBrincat, who has found a place where he’s ready to settle in for a few years.

In bursts

– Speaking of DeBrincat.

– Dominik Kubalik, acquired in the deal, will wear #81 in Ottawa.

New #Sens threads! #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/amqNpN2E81

– Ottawa Senators (@Senators) July 10, 2023

– News on the Raptors’ latest first-round pick.