Ostapchuk played a similar role in both Ottawa and San Jose following a trade deadline deal seeing him move south of the border. Regularly seeing single digit minutes of ice time, the 22 year old rookie filled a bottom six role with both teams, seeing minimal special teams time with either club. Where Ostapchuk will be called upon, and potential provide value in fantasy leagues, is with his physical play. He averaged less than half a shot per game, and managed one goal and four assists in 56 games, but he threw two hits a game in less than 9:26 in ice time per game.

There isn’t much likelihood of Ostapchuk discovering a hidden offensive flair, but in deep cap leagues that track hits, Ostapchuk’s $900k cap hit could provide cheap category specialization if needed. At 6-4 and 212 pounds, his a big body on the ice, and though his penalty minutes aren’t terribly high -45 last year- he could be called upon to help keep teams honest with the Sharks’ budding young talent and increase his multi cat value with more deployment.

Ostapcuk was traded to the San Jose Sharks in the Fabian Zetterlund deal.

Ostapchuk is the lone bright spot from the Senators 2021 draft class. He made great strides in his game this past year and earned his way into the NHL lineup for a seven-game stint. At this point in his development, Ostapchuk will most likely become an NHL regular in the next one to three years. As soon as this season, he could be manning the faceoff dot on the Senators’ fourth line. If not, another year in Belleville will be good for his development. He prides himself on his two-way game, and that will pay off in spades for him as he’s a player who realistically will not be a top-six player in the NHL.

Ostapchuk was named the captain for the first two games of the prospects tournament held in Buffalo. The Senator’s coaching staff were impressed with Ostapchuk’s play away from the puck and his hockey IQ. His foot speed is still an issue along with a lack of high-end offensive creativity or puck skills. His ceiling could be that of a third-line center.