Ottawa Senators prospects

Ups and Downs: Bingo Edition - December

A look back on how the streaky Binghamton Senators performed in December

It was a less than ideal month for the Binghamton Senators which saw them try and stop sliding further down the Eastern Conference standings. Jean-Gabriel Pageau got the call up to Ottawa, which left Binghamton looking for someone to fill that void. The B-Sens finished the month with a record of 6-5-0.

Biggest Gains: Alex Grant

It was a big month for the Senator defenseman, recording points in nine of eleven games in December. He used his booming shot from the point to cash in three powerplay markers. He also had a Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist, fight) on New Year's Eve against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. While Grant's offensive side has taken off this month, his defensive game is far from perfect. He's a physical player, but can get out of position on occasion. Hopefully he'll be able to keep the offense coming while shoring up his defensive game in January.

Biggest Losses: Andrew Hammond

A nightmare of a month from Hammond. Started only four games and was yanked in two of them. One was especially bad, giving up three goals on three shots in the first 36 seconds of the game. He hasn't been giving his team the opportunity to win because he often gives up early goals which forces his team to play catch-up for the rest of the game. Finished the month with a 4.52 GAA and a .855 Save% for December. Far from numbers you would hope for from a starter.

Goaltenders	Trend	Notes
Andrew Hammond		See Biggest Losses

Defensemen
Fredrik Claesson		As a guy who doesn't find himself on the scoresheet very often, he picked up three goals and three assists through 11 games in the month. He, along with the rest of the Sens defensemen, struggled this month in their own zone and thus comparatively gets an up arrow.
Alex Grant		See Biggest Gains
Aaron Johnson		The defensive minded Binghamton captain has struggled and has taken some poor penalties. He only managed a single assist in the month.
Patrick Mullen		He picked up a goal and four assists in the month. He isn't the most physical of defensemen and needs to be a bit stronger in board battles going forward.
Michael Sdao		He's been in and out of the lineup as a healthy scratch. He struggles on a nightly basis trying to play the body on opposing forwards. He also went pointless through six games in December.
Chris Wideman		He continues to rack up the points from the back end, picking up a goal and six assists this month. While continuing to score, he has struggled defensively playing alongside Sdao and missed some assignments that led to goals.

Forwards
Carter Camper		The 5'9 center has seen some increased icetime playing with Prince and Schneider in Pageau's absence. Their line has looked strong and has been one of the few bright spots in recent games
Ryan Dzingel		Continues to be a volatile player, recorded four goals and one assist through eight games. His dzangles would earn him an up arrow for the month, but he did see some time as a healthy scratch due to some defensive errors. He picked up the overtime winner for the BSens back on Dec 27
Dave Dziurzynski		His role seems to change on a nightly basis. One night he is playing a checking fourth line role, and the next night he is shifted up to the top six. He plays a physical game and seems out of place when he needs to fill in as part of the top six.
Derek Grant		Great month from Grant. He kicked off the month with seven points in the first six games. While his main role used to focus on his defensive reliability, him shifting to a more offensive-minded role made his plus/minus slip to -7 for the month. Overall, a net positive for him.
Alexander Guptill		Failed to meet expectations and he was only in the lineup for five games. He seems to be struggling trying to figure out what type of player he is. He has seen limited icetime, so hopefully with the injuries that have come to the BSens he'll be able to break out of his funk.
Darren Kramer		Dropped the gloves four times in December, plays a decent fourth line role.
Max McCormick		Scored a pair of goals in December while playing on the fourth line. Very physical player and isn't afraid to drop the mitts.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau		His up arrow carried him to the big club in Ottawa and he is very missed by the Binghamton players and fans.
Shane Prince		Nice month from Prince, notching two goals and eight assists. He also had a pair of scraps in the month. Shows a ton of offensive flash and has been developing nicely into a quality player.
Matt Puempel		Shoots a ton, ranking second on the team and 14th in the league in shots on goal. Had three multiple point games in December and was held pointless in seven games. He needs to keep ripping his shot on the powerplay and good things will start to happen.
Buddy Robinson		After a promising start to the season, he has dropped down to the bottom six. He kicked off the season as an impact player, but has gone through streaks of being invisible.
Cole Schneider		Not a flashy player, but I believe he's the most consistent player on the team. Chipped in offensively with five goals and four assists in the month. Got a little banged up at the start of January and his timetable for return is uncertain.
Garrett Thompson		Plays in the bottom six for the most part. Despite playing a few games with more offensive players (Camper and Prince) on his line, he only picked up one assist in the month.