Gutted: What's left of the Ottawa Senators?

Matt Duchene. Ryan Dzingel. Mark Stone. And, what must seemto Senators fans like an eternity ago, team captain and generational bright light Erik Karlsson. All gone.

The gutting of Ottawa's top talent before Monday's trade deadline caps off a woeful year for the team. But wait, there are 20 games left.

• Golden Knights win Mark Stone trade derby as Senators clean house

So what's left to cheer for? Who's left to cheer for?

Here's a look.

Class of 2017

Three-quarters of the players who got the Sens within a goal of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final are gone.

In case Sens fans needed a stark illustration of that fact, thisimage started making the rounds on Twittershortly after Monday's trade deadline passed.

Bobby Ryanis the only Senator signed through the 2021-22 season, andwill be counted on to lead the young players through the rebuild.

Veteran netminderCraig Anderson holds franchise records in games played and wins by goalies, but he's not having a great year compared to the standards he set over his previous seven seasons with the Senators.

Cody Ceci, 25,already has 423 games under his belt.Now the team needsto iron out a new contract with the hometown defenceman or trade him, too.

ZackSmithis the team's active leader in games played at 595 going into Tuesday night's showdown against the Capitals.

Local grinderMarkBorowieckiand defensive specialistJ-GPageaueach have one year left on their contracts after this season.

The young guns

BradyTkachukand Colin Whiteare among the league's top rookie scorers this season.

Thomas Chabotwas Ottawa's only all star this season. At 22, he is the team's best player and suddenlyits leading scorer.

If the team can hang on to them, this trio should be coming into their prime by the time the Senators are a ready to contend again.

The next wave

Some have earneda nibble of NHL action, others are stars in a junior, minor, college or European leagues.

Filip Gustavssonis the team's best goaltending prospect, and already logged some time in the big league earlier this month.

Erik Brannstrom is an offensive defenceman, a smaller Swedetaken 15th overall in his NHL draft. Sound like another Erik Karlsson? Dare to dream, Sensfans.

He goes from the AHL's Chicago Wolves to Belleville.

ChristianWolaninhas played well in Belleville during his first professional season, in addition to a taste of NHL action with the Senators. He's currently in Ottawa, butneeds to improve his defensive game.

Forwards VitalyAbramovand Josh Norrishave yet to play for the Sens.Abramov was just acquired in the Matt Duchene trade andmade his debut in Belleville over the weekend.

Norris would have to leave University of Michigan early to go pro. Unfortunately, the 19-year-old is out for the season after getting hurt at the World Juniors.

Then there'sDrakeBatherson, Logan Brown, AlexFormentonandRudolfsBalcers.There's a decent chance these young forwards will see big minutes in Ottawa next season.

Formentonis fast,Bathersonleads Belleville in scoring, Brown is huge, skilled and finally healthy, andBalcershas quickly earned the trust of the big-league coaching staff in 19 games so far.

Expiring contracts

Mikkel Boedkerand Dylan DeMeloare solid NHLerswhose contracts expire after next season, which could makethem tempting for Cup contenders looking to patch holes without making long-term commitments.

Of course, the Sens could always sign them back up for a couple more years in red and black.

Chris Tierney and Ben Harpurwill need new contracts. Their futures remainunknown and the team will have options.

The wildcards

These guys are all younger than 24 and have promise, but their ceilings are a little harder to predict.Part of the team's rebuild plan is to give these players a chanceto show what they've got.

FilipChlapikhasmadethe journey between Belleville and Ottawa a few times over the past two seasons.He could start next season in the NHL

Slovakdefenceman ChristianJarosis in his first full NHL campaignand will turn 23 in the last week of the regular season. He will occupy some of the room on the right side of Ottawa's defence as he looks to become less tentative and more physical.

MaximeLajoie andAnthonyDuclairhave offensive potential, but it's hard to tell if they'll be consistent difference-makers or more complementary pieces.

For Duclair, those troubles with consistency have led him to his fifth NHL team in as many seasons. He needs a new contract after this season.

Lajoie is only 21 and started this season red-hot, but cooledoff around the start of December.

The rest

Anders Nilsson, Magnus Paajarvi, Oscar LindbergandBrian Gibbons the latter two trade deadline pickups making their Sens debuts tonightare all unrestricted free agents this summer. They will likely leave.

GoalieMikeCondonandMarianGaborikare hurt; Gaborik hasn't played this season while Condon has just two NHL appearances and an AHL game under his belt.

How low can you go?

One factor to consider as Sensfanslook ahead to next season is the NHL'ssalary floor, a minimum level teams must spend.

This year's floor is $58.8 million, while the salary cap is $79.5 million.

You can bank on new contracts for Wolanin and White. Throw in some of those other prospects and the numberrisesslightly.

There are questions around Ceci and Duclair. The final 20 games will give a clearer picture of their futures.

Even so, the Senators will need to sign a few free agents to stay above the salary floor.