Duchene throws major curveball at Sens while discussing his future in Ottawa!

There was once again some drama in Ottawa on Wednesday when TVA Sports' Louis Jean reported on Tuesday that forward Mark Stone doesn’t want to play in Ottawa anymore because he isn’t happy with the direction of the team.

"That's it, Mark Stone does not want to be in Ottawa anymore. He does not want to play in Ottawa anymore. He's frustrated because he sees where the club is going. The team is unable to retain its good players," explained Jean, as translated from French. 

While Stone was quick to deny the rumour, it didn't take long for fans to wonder if his teammate Matt Duchene, who is also set to become an unrestricted free agent in July 2019, would accept a contract extension or walk away from the Senators. Fans - and general manager Pierre Dorion - would have greatly benefited from a reassuring answer from Duchene. 

He however decided to throw a curveball...

“It’s definitely something I would consider, absolutely,” Duchene said of a potential contract extension, according to TSN's Frank Seravelli. “We’ll see how things go. Obviously it’s the business side – I don’t have a crystal ball. It’d be good for me to see how we start and, obviously, these are big years of my career.

“So it’s going to be, either way – no matter what happens – it’s going to be a tough decision. You know, the later I have to make it, the better right now because I just like it to be simple and just worry about hockey.”

As you know, Dorion was as vague as we now know he can be, when he explained a the Erik Karlsson trade press conference that “We’ll just let nature take its course in the future."

Ok... 

Duchene explained at the beginning of the month that talks on a new deal hadn’t begun, but that was fine with him. In his eyes, he said he would prefer a longer runway to make a decision...

"Bright future of young guys … [but] there’s definitely both sides.”

Can he be more reassuring or what? 

“That’s the thing, when you come into that unrestricted year, it’s the first time you have that ultimate power as a player and I think you have to do what’s best for yourself,” Duchene said. “At that point, that’s hard to do because we’re taught to be team guys. We’re taught to be that way as hockey players, everyone’s really humble. But, you know, you have to respect yourself and your career.”

Clearly not...