Ottawa Senators new draft picks hit the ice amid busy trade season

It's been a rampant start to the summer for the Ottawa Senators.

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Tuesday saw the start of the team’s development camp, where the organization’s young players take to the ice hoping to earn a spot on the regular season roster.

Many fans were in attendance at the Bell Sensplex in Kanata to see the team’s top draft pick Carter Yakumchuk, who was drafted seventh overall at this year’s NHL draft.

"I think there is an opportunity for me to make an impact on the roster," said Yakemchuk, speaking to Ottawa reporters for the first time.

"That's what I want to do one day, so I was very happy with the selection that they picked me."

While many fans were pleased with the Senators draft selections, there have been mixed emotions about other dealings, notably a trade that sent fan favourite, defenceman Jakob Chychrun, to the Washington Capitals.

"It's a little bit weird," said Senators fan Ethan MacTavish.

"I didn't think he was going to be gone. I thought it was a good piece. But apparently Jensen's a pretty good player, so I'm excited."

In return, the Ottawa Senators received 32-year-old defenceman Nick Jensen from Washington.

"We've got a lot of defensemen, so maybe down the road and we're going to have like a really good defense," said Sens fan Tony Eitzen.

"It's always hard to move good players," said Steve Staios, the team’s general manager and president of hockey operations on Monday.

"But we certainly feel comfortable about what we were able to accomplish with that trade."

The Sens have also added veteran players David Perron and Michael Amadio, who are both previous Stanley Cup winners. Goaltender Linus Ullmark was also signed to the team last week.

"I feel like the Ottawa Senators have kind of messed up with the trades, because I feel like they're getting a lot of older players. They should [go] more younger," said Sens fan Jordan Kuster.

"To provide that experience, I think was something that we were looking to do," said Staios.

"As I watched our team last year, I felt like we maybe we need a little bit more of that at times."

While the Senators try to assemble more leadership for the much-touted young core, players like Yakemchuk are dreaming of their spot in the NHL.

"Maybe a dream partner would be Jake Sanderson," said Yakemchuk. "That'll be a guy I see myself playing with."

For the Senators front office, it’s been a flurry of movement aimed at raising the team to a best in class level, as Staios has repeatedly said.

But the general manager will not put marked goals on the table just yet.

"I'm not putting any expectations on it from a level of success when you talk about playoffs. It's more on the consistency of this group and the maturity of this group," Staios said.