During his NHL playing days from 1992-2007, Ottawa Senators head coach Travis Green was a gritty, tenacious forward who played on the edge. It should come as no surprise that Green is a fan of Nick Cousins, who has all those traits and more.
Cousins ​​signed a one-year, $800,000 contract with the Senators on Thursday.
“Well, he’s another Stanley Cup-winning player,” Green said Friday on TSN 1200 Radio in Ottawa. “He’s been in the league for a while, a veteran player. He brings a lot to the game — grit and work ethic, and he’s not easy to play against. He can go either way and he’s been to the Finals. He’s lost in the Finals, he’s won a Cup and I think he’s a great addition.”
Green spoke about the importance of surrounding the young core with players who know how to win. Cousins ​​is the third former Cup winner (David Perron and Michael Amadio) to sign with the Senators in free agency this summer.
“We feel it’s important to help our young core grow and it’s not easy to win a Stanley Cup,” Green said. “Everybody wants to do it so bad. We just found that having people around us that have done it … and it’s not just in the games, it’s your daily approach to the game, your attention to detail, the importance of practice. Understanding the little things that go into winning are sometimes the hardest things for younger players to understand.”
Green says Cousins ​​is now one of several forwards at the club who can play centre, joining the top three of Tim Stutzle, Josh Norris and Shane Pinto.
“I like having guys that can play center or wing or left or right and I think we have a lot of options. I’m not in a hurry to sit down and say these three are going to play together. I want to watch camp. I want to take it all in and then we’ll make a decision as we go. But there are some options at center. Obviously Ridley Greig can play center, Nick Cousins, Zack Ostapchuk, Adam Gaudette, Jan Jenik, Matthew Highmore. There’s a lot of guys that can play center. So we’ll see where it goes.”
Along with his sharpness, Cousins ​​brings more skill than the Senators are used to at the fourth-line position. For example, it’s hard to imagine the Sens sending one of their recent fourth-line guys into overtime in a playoff series-deciding game.
