from Chris Stevenson at NHL.com,

The Ottawa Senators will be an interesting team this season because the elements that made them the success story of the final two months of last season also present the biggest question marks.

Their charge to the Stanley Cup Playoffs was fueled by a rookie coach, a goaltender making his NHL debut, and a group of young players who successfully handled bigger roles and more responsibility.

Here are three questions the Senators face this season:

What will Bobby Ryan contribute? The 28-year-old is expected to be one of the Senators' offensive leaders, but he struggled down the stretch in 2014-15.

Ryan had 18 goals and 36 assists for 54 points, but after scoring in back-to-back games March 3 and 4, Ryan had one goal in the final 20 regular-season games. He did not have an assist in 17 of those games.

Ryan scored two goals in Game 5 of the six-game, Eastern Conference First Round loss to the Canadiens.

It's remarkable the Senators were capable of going on the run they did to make the playoffs with Ryan contributing so little. It says a lot about what they got from their emerging young talent.

There will be even more scrutiny on Ryan, who enters the first year of a seven-year, $50.75 million contract extension he signed on the eve of last season.

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