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OTTAWA -- The Ottawa Senators three smallest players made the biggest impact in training camp and were rewarded for their efforts with roster spots. The trio of Cory Conacher, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Stephane Da Costa took advantage of a day off Monday to enjoy the news before returning their focus to the hard work that lies ahead. Da Costas performance was perhaps the biggest surprise. The 24-year-old centre seemed to fall out of favour with the Senators last season and was told to commit to his summer training regimen and be willing to make some adjustments. He took the advice and spent the summer in Poland training with his older brother Teddy, who is currently playing in Finland. "I knew what they were saying and I took it seriously," said Da Costa. "Im not the biggest player physically so I knew I had to work on that and I tried to focus on my defensive play." While he spent much of the pre-season centring the teams top line as Jason Spezza recovered from a mild groin sprain, Da Costa found himself on a line between Zack Smith and Chris Neil at Tuesdays practice. "Hes a player that plays with speed and some tenacity and hes got good skill level," said head coach Paul MacLean. "He was good in the faceoff circle so we expect him to do the same things. The expectation is that hell continue to play well and should be able to create more opportunities for those guys to maybe have an opportunity to score." Conacher had been one of four players being considered to play on the left wing on the second line with Clarke MacArthur and Kyle Turris, but he was easily the most consistent of all. The trio seemed to generate some early chemistry. "Theyre two guys who are pretty easy to play with," said Conacher. "I just want to try and create space for them because theyre two guys who are really good with the puck. As long as Im being a little bit of a pest in the (offensive) zone that will create a little bit more room for them." At five foot eight, Conacher is the Senators smallest player and hes also diabetic, but he wont let his size or his illness define his career. He refuses to allow anything to be used as an excuse should his play begin to slide. "Theres so much competition so you cant be too comfortable," said Conacher. "I have to show that Im willing to get better every day and it starts off by the things I eat and how I track my diabetes. "I think I worked a lot this summer to be more focused and more reliable on the ice to allow the coach to put me on the ice with two minutes left in the game rather than sit me on the bench." After an impressive start to his pro career last season -- which featured a playoff hat trick -- many wondered if Jean-Gabriel Pageau would be able to thrive under the high expectations. Pageau, 20, participated in the teams summer development camp and was strong at the rookie tournament. He earned regular praise from MacLean through the pre-season. "Its a great feeling (to be here)," said Pageau. "But even today I dont want to take anything for granted. I know theres always players pushing to come back here, but Im ready to do all the sacrifices to stay with the big team." As the teams youngest player, Pageau isnt afraid to take advice from his older and more experienced teammates. He also believes last years experience allowed him to come into camp with more confidence. "It helped me be more comfortable both on and off the ice," admitted Pageau. "I think when youre more comfortable you can play your real game. You dont have to think between every play you can just go and play like you can play." While all three players will face different challenges, the one thing the Senators will be looking for is a consistent effort. "As young players the hardest thing to find in the league is consistency," said MacLean. "At some point and time someone or all three could struggle with that, but at this point theyve been probably the most consistent players from the start of training camp to the end of training camp and as a result theyre here to start the season." Notes: Spezza has been sidelined by a mild groin sprain was able to take part in a full practice Tuesday and believes progress has been made. "It seemed to hold up pretty good," said Spezza. "I got through a whole practice and it felt pretty good. There was some hard skating." Spezza doesnt anticipate any more setbacks and is looking forward to Ottawas season opener at Buffalo on Friday. Carlos Beltran Jersey . The move will give Hentgen the "time needed to support his family and his fathers current health issues," the Blue Jays said in a release. Hentgen spent 10 of his 14 big-league seasons with the Blue Jays, winning a Cy Young Award in 1996. 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Next up is the Colorado Avalanche, who were the surprise winners of the competitive Central Division last season. Catch up on their summer moves and the issues they face this season, as well as Craig Buttons analysis of their top prospect and an analytical breakdown by TSNs Scott Cullen. Division: Central GM: Joe Sakic Head Coach: Patrick Roy 2013-14: 52-22-8 (1st in Central) Playoffs: Lost in First Round Goals For: 245 (4th) Goals Against: 216 (T-14th) PP: 19.8% (5th) PK: 80.7% (24th) That was Then: Starting anew with Patrick Roy behind their bench, the Avalanche got off to a torrid start to the 2013-14 season, earning wins in 12 in their first 13 games. Led by their young core of Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan OReilly and rookie Nathan MacKinnon, along with strong goaltending from Semyon Varlamov, the Avalanche quickly went from second-last in the league a year earlier to a team to be feared. The Avalanche cooled in December going 5-9, including a season-worst four-game losing streak, which left the team at 24-15 entering the new year. From there, the Avalanche rediscovered their form and entered the Olympic break at 37-21. The Avalanche finished their season on a 7-1-2 run, allowing the team to edge the St. Louis Blues by point for first place in the Central Division. Duchene, despite missing 11 games with injury, led the Avalanche 70 points. Landeskog was second with 65, while OReilly and Mackinnon finished third and fourth with 64 and 63 points, respectively. OReilly led the Avs in goals with 28 and veteran centre Paul Stastny finished third on the team with 25 goals. In total, five forwards cracked the 20-goal plateau. Varlamov finished the regular season with a 41-14-6 record, posting a .927 save percentage and a 2.41 goals against average. He finished second in the Vezina Trophy vote for the leagues top goaltender and fourth in voting for the Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded to the play judged most valuable to his team. The Avalanche drew the division-rival Minnesota Wild in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Despite starting the series without the services of Duchene, who suffered a late season knee injury, the Avalanche jumped out a 2-0 series lead on home ice. However, the Wild also held their ground at the Xcel Energy Center, sending the series back to Colorado tied 2-2. The Avalanche won Game 5, in overtime but – despite Duchenes return – the Avalanche lost Game 6 convincingly, 5-2. In Game 7, the Avalanche had four one-goal leads erased before losing 5-4 in overtime, ending their hopes of winning their first playoff series since 2008. Stastny led the Avalanche in playoff goals with five, he also tied MacKinnon for the lead in points with 10. Varlamov posted a .913 save percentage and a 2.78 GAA in the seven-game series. Scott Cullens Analytics Avalanche 2013-14 stats by Quarter Games GPG GAA SH% SV% SAF% PTS% 1-20 2.95 2.05 9.6% .938 48.6% .750 21-41 2.52 2.67 8.0% .930 46.5% .619 42-62 3.05 2.81 9.2% .919 47.7% .690 63-82 2.75 2.55 8.5% .929 45.5% .675 NHL AVG 2.67 2.67 7.8% .922 50.0% .562 Key: GPG= goals per game, GAA= goals-against per game, SH%= even-strength shooting percentage, SV%= even-strength save percentage, SAF%= score-adjusted Fenwick percentage (differential of shot attempts faced vs. shot attempts, excluding blocked shots, adjusted for game score), PTS%= percentage of available points. Analysis: Games 1-20: Mediocre possession numbers were overwhelmed by great finishing offensively and superior goaltending. Games 21-41: Dodging bullets, with poor possession and declining scoring, yet pulled a favourable record. Games 42-62: Even with a slip in goaltending, the Avs scored at such a high rate that they offset their possession problems. Games 63-82: Above-average percentages carried the Avs to a strong finish, despite possession woes. Key 2014 Additions: RW Jarome p;Iginla, D Brad Stuart, C Daniel Briere, C Jesse Winchester Key 2014 Subtractions: RW PA Parenteau, C Paul Stastny This is Now: The Avalanche lost Stastny in free agency to the division-rival Blues, who were the only team to beat the Avs more than once last season (they earned three wins in four contests).dddddddddddd Despite losing Stastny, the Avalanche still boast one of the deepest centre groups in the league. MacKinnon, Duchene and OReilly can all take on top-six duties, while John Mitchell, Marc-Andre Cliche and off-season addition Daniel Briere fight for bottom-six roles. In all likelihood, the depth at centre forces the Avalanche to line up Ryan OReilly on the wing – as he did for the majority of last season - of the teams second line and Briere to the wing of the third. In his second year, MacKinnon may be tasked with taking on the role of the first-line centre. However, with the territory comes playing alongside Landeskog and free-agent signee Jarome Iginla, who scored 30 goals with the Bruins last season. If MacKinnon can make a seamless transition after opening last season as the third-line centre (before moving to the second line) and Iginla can mimic his success from Boston, the Avalanche offence could be stronger in 2014-15 than the year before. On defence, Erik Johnson and Jan Hejda are expected to form the Avalanches top pairing. Johnson led the defence with 39 points last season, while Tyson Barrie was second with 38 points and figures to round out the top-four with free agent signee Brad Stuart. Nate Guenin likely drops to the third pairing to play beside Nick Holden, who earned a three-year $4.95 million extension in the off-season after playing 54 games with the Avs in 2013-14. At goaltender, Varlamov is the undisputed starter, with trade-deadline acquisition Reto Berra assuming the back-up role. DEPTH CHART Forwards Left Wing Centre Right Wing Gabriel Landeskog Matt Duchene Ryan OReilly Alex Tanguay Nathan MacKinnon Jarome Iginla Jamie McGinn John Mitchell Daniel Briere Cody McLeod Jesse Winchester Maxime Talbot Patrick Bordeleau Joey Hishon Marc-Andre Cliche Andrew Agozzino Ben Street Troy Bourke Defence Left Right Jan Hejda Erik Johnson Nick Holden Tyson Barrie Brad Stuart Nate Guenin Ryan Wilson Zach Redmond Chris Bigras Stefan Elliott Duncan Siemens Bruno Gervais Goaltenders Semyon Varlamov Reto Berra Sami Aittokallio TSN Director of Scouting Craig Buttons Top Prospect: Conner Bleackley When it comes to Connor, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Hes productive in so many ways and that translates into having an influence in multiple areas of the game. Connor is smart and recognizes what is necessary at any given point and is capable of delivering. The styles of Duchene and MacKinnon differ from Ryan ORielly but in a group it makes the Avs very formidable. Connor will add strength in a similar manner. Fantasy - Scott Cullens Player to Watch Alex Tanguay Now 34-years-old, Tanguay was limited to just 16 games last season due to knee troubles, but he can still put up points and there is a good chance that hes still going to fit in a top-six role with Colorado. That alone offers up some intriguing possibilities, since the Avs have brilliant young forwards and a veteran winger, Jarome Iginla, with whom Tanguay has experienced some success in Calgary. Expectations have to be kept in check, given age and recent injury history, but Tang