Ottawa Senators 2025-26 Prospect Awards

Since arriving in 2023-24, general manager Steve Staios has put a lot of effort into refreshing the Ottawa Senators’ prospect pool. At the end of the 2025-26 season, the team had signed four of their six 2024 draft picks and seen significant development from the other two. The Belleville Senators have also taken a big step forward. Although they didn’t qualify for the American Hockey League (AHL) Playoffs, nearly every player made progress. For the youngsters like Blake Montgomery and Hoyt Stanley who joined the team at the end of the season, it’s a great sign for their future in Ottawa.

After handing out the Senators’ Season-End Awards, let’s shift focus to prospects and celebrate some of the best performances in Ottawa’s farm system.

MVP and Best Defenceman: Carter Yakemchuk

Carter Yakemchuk’s first professional season couldn’t have gone much better than it did. His 10 goals and 40 points in 54 games not only made him the highest-scoring rookie defenceman in the AHL, but of the 13 AHL rookies that outscored him, only three were younger than him. His total set a franchise record as the youngest defenceman to hit 40 points and ranks among the 50 greatest performances from a 20-year-old in league history alongside Roman Josi, Mike Green, and Sergei Gonchar.

The Senators seemed intent on letting Yakemchuk develop the full season in the minors, but the team was ravaged by injuries near the end of the season, leading to Yakemchuk’s debut on Mar. 24, 2026. Despite the less-than-ideal circumstances for his debut, Yakemchuk scored a goal and recorded an assist, earning the first star of the game. That led to three more games and a playoff game with Ottawa. “It was not an easy situation to be thrown into,” said veteran Lars Eller, “and I think he handled it incredibly well. I’m sure he’s going to have a good career ahead of him.”

Best Forward: Stephen Halliday

Stephen Halliday is one of the most fascinating prospects the Senators have ever had in their system, in that he somehow keeps outperforming expectations. This season was no different. What started as a temporary replacement for Ridly Greig in November turned into a 30-game stint for the 23-year-old, where he became one of the Senators’ best possession players. His 56.9 Corsi For Percentage (CF%) and 1.8 goals against per 60 minutes (GA/60) were two of the best averages on the team, and his four goals and seven assists put him on pace to hit 30 points over a full season.

Now Halliday has a full NHL deal for next season after the Senators signed him to a two-year extension in early May, and he should be an excellent replacement for Eller on the bottom six. It will be his biggest test yet, but if we’ve learned anything, it’s that he’ll do just fine.

Honourable Mention: Arthur Kaliyev had an incredible season in Belleville, becoming the first player in franchise history to hit 40 goals, which won him the AHL’s Willie Marshall Award as the league’s top goal scorer and Belleville’s MVP. He’s not a prospect, but he was treated like one and should have gotten more than two games with the Senators this season.

Best Goalie and Playoff MVP: Lucas Beckman

Lucas Beckman has been nothing short of incredible this season. He started with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, where he was last season, and put up a .905 save percentage (SV%) over 23 games despite recording just four wins. Then, at the trade deadline, he was acquired by the Chicoutimi Saguenees, who were going all-in on a championship run. Finally, with a competitive team, Beckman flourished. Over the next 15 games, he posted a 13-1-0 record, four shutouts, and a league-best .940 SV%.

Then, in the playoffs, Beckman went two rounds without recording a loss and led the league with a 1.98 goals-against average and three shutouts. It was just what the Sanguenees needed to claim their first Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) title since 1994, and it earned their goalie his first NHL contract. For an organization that has struggled with goalies, Beckman now looks like the Senators’ next goalie of the future, and with his artistic background, his kit might be one of the best-looking, too.

Honourable Mentions: Despite an underwhelming NHL performance, Leevi Merilainen remains the Senators’ next best goalie, and his continued success in the AHL proves he just needs a bit more time to develop. As for playoff MVPs, Eerik Wallenius doubled his point-per-game pace in the playoffs with the Moncton Wildcats and finished with nearly as many points as he put up in the regular season.

Most Improved: Tyler Boucher

At this point, most people have either written off or completely forgotten about Tyler Boucher, the Senators’ disappointing 10th overall selection from a terrible 2021 Draft. Out of the 32 players selected in that first round, he’s one of just four who haven’t made their NHL debut, and after two underwhelming AHL seasons, you wouldn’t be alone in assuming he wouldn’t.

Yet Boucher had a very solid 2025-26 season. Offensively, he was better than he had ever been, scoring 12 goals and putting up 26 points, which more than doubled his previous career highs despite playing the same number of games last season. He also doubled his penalty minutes and recorded the first positive plus/minus total of his career, finishing with a plus-7, the second highest on Belleville. Injuries are still a concern, but with his contract expiring in July, he may have done just enough to earn a second chance.

Honourable Mention: Jorian Donovan nearly doubled his point total from last season and played a much better defensive game, earning himself a two-game call-up to the Senators while they were dealing with injuries. He was also named Belleville’s Man of the Year for his community service and charity involvement.

Biggest Surprise: Philippe Daoust

While technically not a Senators prospect, Philippe Daoust deserves recognition for a massive bounce-back season. A sixth-round pick in 2020, he joined the Senators organization in 2022, but he missed most of the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons with a significant injury. When he returned, he put up a respectable 22 points in 52 games, especially considering the time he missed, but with his contract expiring, it wasn’t enough to earn another deal with the Senators.

Rather than leave the team, Daoust decided to stick around, signing a one-year AHL contract with Belleville. That little extra time was all he needed. Over 63 games this season, he scored a career-high 14 goals and 50 points, the third-highest total on the team, and was given the Coaches’ Choice Award thanks to his leadership, work ethic, and consistent production. “Phil was a driver on our team all season long,” said interim head coach Andrew Campbell. “He brought competitiveness and work ethic to the rink every single day and made everyone around him better.” After being written off, Daoust may have played his way back into another NHL contract.

Honourable Mention: Graeme Clark had an excellent run with Belleville after joining the team in March, putting up 19 points in 15 games, and after the season ended, he said, “It really felt like I played my best hockey of the season within those 15 games.” Hopefully, he can keep it up for a whole season in 2026-27.

Senators Farm Team is Improving

There were some truly impressive performances from the Senators’ top prospects this season. Yakemchuk and Halliday solidified themselves as the next wave, but several others showed strong development in their overall games and are getting closer to becoming NHL players.

But the Senators still have a lot of work to do. The Hockey Writers’ Logan Horn ranked them 26th among the NHL’s best farm systems in January. The team is in the playoff hunt now, but if they want to stay competitive, they need to prepare the next wave of talent. That’s why Staios has spent so much more time and effort working on Ottawa’s farm team and prospect pool. It’s much better than it was, but it still needs some work to become a championship-calibre organization.