The Belleville Senators are yet to play in a post-season game during their short existence.

A sixth place finish in the North Division during their inaugural season was followed by a close fifth place finish last year during which they missed out on a playoff berth by the small matter of two points.

The third time is looking like the charm however with a very young crop of forwards creating a ton of offense to help hoist Belleville into second place in a very tight North Division at the midway point of the season.

Having put up 62 points in 59 games during his AHL rookie season as well as nine points in twenty NHL games with Ottawa, it’s no surprise that Drake Batherson has been leading the way for Belleville.
Thirty of his 41 points this season were accrued during Even Strength play and 27 were primary markers.
He is too good for the American Hockey League in truth and was recalled by Ottawa at the turn of the year.

Vitaly Abramov was drafted 65th overall by Columbus Blue Jackets in 2016 but was traded to Ottawa in the second half of last season.
Somewhat of a slow burner up until this point, the Russian forward has produced at point per game pace this season for Belleville with twenty of his 28 points accrued at ES (16 primary markers).
The 21 year old has played twice for Ottawa this year and scored his first ever NHL goal.

Another Belleville forward currently up in the NHL is Rudolfs Balcers.
The left winger has 25 points in nineteen AHL games this season and received the call in early January to join Ottawa.
Included in a trade between the Sens and San Jose, the 22 year old has kicked on noticeably from the last campaign and looks like he’ll become a full-time NHL player next season.

It’s two rookie that have proved the vital key ingredient to the mix for Belleville though and added a huge amount of offense that other might not have been available elsewhere to push Ottawa’s farm club within reach of their first playoff campaign.

Josh Norris is second only in points to Batherson (38) but leads Belleville with 21 goals.
Eight of those have been power play markers which is sixth best amongst all skaters in the American League.
Playing the centre position as a rookie is never easy and despite not dominating at ES like many of his counterparts in this article, the fact that 32 of his 38 points are primary markers is an extremely promising statistic.

Alex Formenton is the same age as Norris and has one fewer goal than his 20 year old team-mate.
A staggering 31 of his overall 32 point tally are primary markers and fourteen of his twenty goals are even strength tallies.
A 47th overall selection in 2017, Formenton played nine NHL games for Ottawa last season before being reassigned to the London Knights and that brief stint seems to have served him well in his rookie year.

None of the Senators three goaltenders during the 2019-20 season have excelled so scoring has been uppermost in success for Belleville and the five aforementioned prospects are the main reason the team lead the AHL with 148 goals in forty games.

The trade deadline might prove pivotal because dependant on trades and how they affect Ottawa, it would prove a pretty huge blow for Belleville if they were to lose the bulk of their scoring talent in the quest for a first run at the Calder Cup.