SNAPSHOTS: Defenceman Victor Mete faces his former Montreal teammates for first time Saturday … Looks like Matt Murray will make the start

Article content

Who says you can’t go home again?

Trying to get settled into his new home with less than a month left, Victor Mete went back to Montreal with his new Ottawa Senators’ teammates by train Friday afternoon as they prepare to face the Canadiens Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. at the Bell Centre to start a four-game road trip.

Picked up on waivers by the Senators at Monday’s trade deadline, Mete and his fiancee threw a few clothes in a bag to make the short two-hour drive to Ottawa so he could suit up for the club’s 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets Monday night. He also played Wednesday against Winnipeg and will now get the chance to see his old teammates on the other side.

This has all happened pretty quickly for the 22-year-old defenceman but he’s trying to learn on the fly.

“(The last few days) have definitely been pretty crazy,” Mete said following the club’s skate. “I know I’m here now but there’s still a lot I have to learn with systems and this was only my second practice. It’s still a little bit hard to adjust but I’ve been doing a lot of video with the coaching staff and getting a couple of games under my belt has been good.”

Article content

General manager Pierre Dorion opted to pick up Mete on waivers after the club traded Mike Reilly to the Boston Bruins and Braydon Coburn to the New York Islanders late Sunday night. A fourth-round pick in the 2016 NHL draft, Mete has 187 games in the league and, right now, that makes him one of the Senators most experienced blueliners.

Ottawa Senators defenceman Victor Mete lines up for a face-off Winnipeg Jets during second period NHL action at the Canadian Tire Centre, April 12, 2021. Photo by Errol McGihon /Postmedia

It’s an opportunity to have a look at what Mete can bring to the table and see where he fits in next year.

“His mobility helps us,” coach D.J. Smith said. “He has the ability to break pucks out for us, hold onto pucks, and as a young team if you don’t have the puck it’s not a lot of fun when you’re defending the whole night.

“(Mete), (Erik) Brannstrom and (Thomas) Chabot on the back end right now are skating really well and they’re breaking the puck out. If we can have it on our stick we don’t have to defend as much so he’s brought that to us. I think his confidence is starting to grow so let’s see what we’ve got.”

Given the rules on the road because of COVID-19, Mete was going to see if he go could back to his Montreal home Friday night to pick up some clothes to return to Ottawa.

“I might go grab some stuff that I left behind, bring it on this road trip and then bring it back to Ottawa,” said Mete.

THIS N’ THAT

Mete has been partnered with Josh Brown and it will likely stay that way in Montreal. “We’ll make that decision as a staff but I really think Josh Brown has played well,” Smith said. “He brings an element of toughness, especially with a young group that we have in there, that we’re going to need on the road. I thought he played his best game as an Ottawa Senator (Wednesday) so he won’t be coming out.” … The NHL announced changes to its schedule with the Vancouver Canucks still in COVID-19 protocol, but the Senators weren’t part of any of the re-shuffling this time. The club will play four straight games against the Canucks — two at home and two on the road — starting next Thursday and Saturday at Rogers Arena. The two teams will face off in Ottawa Apr. 26 and Apr. 28. The only change to the schedule saw a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 12 in Ottawa moved to 8 p.m.

Article content

OFF THE GLASS

With the tip of the cap to legendary TSN 1200 play-by-play voice Dean Brown, it would appear goaltender Matt Murray will make his second straight start. He did most of the work in practice Friday and stopped 32-of-35 shots against the Jets Wednesday. That was Murray’s first return to the net in seven weeks after being out with an undisclosed upper body injury. He has a 7-13-1 record this season with a 3.80 goals-against average and a .882 save-percentage … Not sure if we’ll see rookie defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker in this one. The University of North Dakota product made his NHL debut against the Jets Wednesday because Nikita Zaitsev was unable to play. Zaitsev took a regular rotation with Thomas Chabot Friday but Smith wasn’t sure if he’d be able to go or not. That decision will be made Saturday morning … The Senators held their team picture before the skate Friday. Asked if he would appear in two team photos this year, Mete noted he didn’t pose for the camera with the Habs. Under normal circumstances, teams take the photo after the deadline when the final roster is settled.

THE LAST WORDS

The Senators signed forward Cole Reinhardt to a three-year entry-level deal Friday. He has been on an amateur tryout with the club’s AHL affiliate in Belleville and was sixth-round pick in 2020 from the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Reinhardt, 21, has three goals and seven points in 22 games with Belleville this season.

“We’ve been exceedingly happy with Cole’s play this season,” said Dorion. “For someone who was just recently drafted, he’s already showcased a great combination of strength and speed in addition to excellent hockey sense, which is likely his best attribute.”

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

Twitter: @sungarrioch