Ottawa Senators fans will get an early look at the key player the team received in the Mark Stone trade because the team is calling up 19-year-old defenseman Erik Brannstrom for the home game against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.
The Senators traded all three of their top goal scorers at the deadline in Stone, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel.
While the return for Duchene and Dzingel from Columbus centered on draft picks, Ottawa received a potential star in Brannstrom from Vegas. He was selected 15th overall in 2017 by the Golden Knights and is considered an elite puck-moving defensive prospect. The Knights also sent forward Oscar Lindberg and a second-round pick.
Brannstrom played 41 games with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL before the trade, scoring seven goals and adding 21 assists. In five games with Belleville since the deal, he has an assist.
The Sweden native also played for his country in the world junior championships this year and had four goals in five games.