Austin Watson to wear no. 16 in honour of Brian McGrattan
Austin Watson, who was recently acquired by the Ottawa Senators in a trade with the Nashville Predators, said on Thursday he is going go wear jersey number 16 with his new club in honour of former NHLer Brian McGrattan.
The 39-year-old McGrattan was also a member of the Senators, playing with them from 2005-2008. While he is alive and now healthy, he went through some tough times during his playing days with addiction, something Watson knows all too well.
Watson, 28, was suspended for 18 games during the 2018-19 season after a domestic dispute with his girlfriend earlier that summer. While details remained unknown for a while, Watson revealed in an Instagram post that the incident occurred as a result of him drinking again after 23 months of sobriety. In the post, he said that he has been dealing with anxiety, depression and alcoholism since the age of 18. After his arrest, he voluntarily entered the NHL's substance abuse program.
McGrattan works with the NHL's substance abuse program, acting as a mentor for others seeking the advice of a fellow player. During Watson's time in the program, McGrattan played a big part in his path to recovery, which is the reason Watson will honour him this upcoming season. This is an extremely inspiring story for other players or any other individuals battling addiction that despite its challenges, it can be overcome.
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Tom Wilson | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Alexander Ovechkin | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Brendan Gallagher | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Anthony Cirelli | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Josh Doan | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Victor Hedman | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack McBain | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Strome | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Guentzel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brandon Hagel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Christian Dvorak | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Zemgus Girgensons | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nick Paul | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brayden Point | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cam Atkinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| John Carlson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nick Desimone | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 56 | 39 | 14 | 3 | 81 | |
Capitals | 55 | 36 | 11 | 8 | 80 | |
Oilers | 55 | 34 | 17 | 4 | 72 | |
Stars | 55 | 35 | 18 | 2 | 72 | |
Golden Knights | 56 | 33 | 17 | 6 | 72 | |
Panthers | 57 | 34 | 20 | 3 | 71 | |
Hurricanes | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Wild | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Maple Leafs | 55 | 33 | 20 | 2 | 68 | |
Avalanche | 57 | 33 | 22 | 2 | 68 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||