The Ottawa Senators will open training camp on Thursday without two familiar faces on the ice.
Head coach Travis Green said defenceman Artem Zub and winger Warren Foegele will not skate with the team to start camp, though both players have already resumed skating and are expected back at some point over the next two weeks.
Zub is dealing with a lower-body injury that also kept him out of Ottawa’s final three games in April, when the Senators were swept in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes. The 30-year-old blue liner played 81 regular-season games last year, finishing with five goals, a career-high 25 assists and 30 points while averaging 20:47 of ice time per game.
When he returns, Zub is expected to slide right back onto Ottawa’s top pairing alongside Jake Sanderson.
Since signing with the Senators as an undrafted free agent in 2020, the Khabarovsk, Russia native has appeared in 387 career games with the club and produced 24 goals and 90 assists for 114 points, along with a plus-37 rating.
Foegele, also 30, is working through an undisclosed injury to begin camp. He was held off the scoresheet in Ottawa’s four playoff games this spring, but he did chip in six goals and two assists after being acquired from the Los Angeles Kings ahead of the deadline.
The Markham, Ont. native brings a long NHL résumé, with 581 games over nine seasons. In stints with the Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, Kings and Senators, he has totaled 117 goals and 109 assists for 226 points.
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Artem Zubs Camp Setback Creates An Early Senators Concern
The Senators are heading into camp with an early dent in their blue line plans, after the club confirmed Artem Zub will miss the first two weeks because of a lower-body injury. For a team trying to settle its defensive pairings and get on the ice with some continuity, any delay for a veteran minutes-eater matters, even if it comes before the real games begin.
There is at least one piece of reassurance for Ottawa in that Zub avoided surgery, which keeps the situation from sounding worse than it is at this stage. Still, the setback pushes back the start of his camp work and leaves the Senators waiting a little longer to see how quickly he can ramp back up once he is cleared to return. [Read more 🡒]