Hoffman trade made to repair Senators' 'broken' dressing room, GM says

DALLAS-- Mike Hoffman being traded was necessary in order for the Ottawa Senators to move forward, general manager Pierre Dorion said Thursday.

"Trading Mike Hoffman was something that we needed to do," Dorion said. "Our dressing room was broken. We have to have a dressing room that wants to win together. Key components for us moving forward are character, leadership, accountability, and we're very happy with the return that we got on Mike Hoffman.
"No rooms in the NHL are perfect. I think we've all been around for a long time and we understand that those 23 guys, at times they're like brothers. They get on each other's nerves, but this wasn't an indictment on Mike Hoffman. This was just the direction that we needed to go."
RELATED: [Hoffman traded to Panthers by Sharks after being acquired from Senators]
The 28-year-old forward was traded to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, with defenseman prospect Cody Donaghey and a fifth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, for forward Mikkel Boedker, defenseman prospect Julius Bergman and a sixth-round pick in 2020. About two hours later, Hoffman was traded to the Florida Panthers with a seventh-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft for a fourth-round and a fifth-round pick in 2018 and a second-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft.
The trades came a week after a report by the Ottawa Citizen claimed Melinda Karlsson, the wife of Senators captain Erik Karlsson, had filed an application for a peace bond against Hoffman's fiancée, Monika Caryk, alleging harassment and cyberbullying that occurred this season and continued after the Karlssons' son, Axel, was stillborn. Hoffman has denied the allegations.

Dorion said the off-ice focus should be on Melinda Karlsson and her healing process.
"All that we say here, the Ottawa Senators, is Melinda Karlsson is a victim, and we want to support her," he said. "Whoever is behind this should be brought to justice and there's an (ongoing) legal investigation."
Dorion said he believes Boedker will help the Senators.
"We know with the culture that we're aiming to get, [Boedker is] going to fit in that dressing room," Dorion said. "I did talk to one player, not about his hockey abilities, but about him as a person who played with him, [Senators center] Matt Duchene, and Matt's words to us were, 'He's a great guy, he's perfect for our room and the culture that we're trying to build.'"
Ottawa has the No. 4 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, which begins Friday at American Airlines Center in Dallas (7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN, TVAS). The Senators can give that pick to the Colorado Avalanche to complete the trade that brought them Duchene, or could keep it and give Colorado their first-round pick in 2019.
The Senators also pick No. 22, acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins in a trade for forward Derick Brassard.
"We went through scenarios through the morning," Dorion said. "It was one of the best meetings I've had with scouts in 20 years talking about what we plan on doing at 4, what possibilities are at 22, how these players will impact our organization moving forward.
"We're just excited. We suffered this year. There's no doubt we suffered as a team with the number of losses. But the one good thing is we know we're getting a really good player here."
NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger contributed to this report.