The NHL has a wide range of international players. From Canada to Latvia to Australia, there are players from all across the globe, and some teams become notorious for drafting and playing players from certain countries. The biggest connection to a country the Ottawa Senators have would be Sweden, with 32 Swedes having played for the club, including the two greatest Senators in franchise history. Here is a look at the best Senators player from each country.
Canada, Jason Spezza
Other Candidates: Wade Redden, Chris Phillips, Dany Heatley, Mark Stone
Jason Spezza is one of the best centers the Senators have ever had and is the best Canadian-born player in team history. With 687 points in 686 games, Spezza ranks second in points and sixth in games played in team history.
His greatest years with the club came in the mid-to-late 2000s where he posted 87+ points in three straight seasons. He has had some of the best individual seasons by a Senator, topped off by his 90-point season in 2005-06 in just 68 games. Spezza is one of the best players in the teams’ history, and while there is some strong competition, he is the easy pick for Canada.
USA, Brady Tkachuk
Other Candidates: Shawn McEachern, Bobby Ryan
The Senators’ crop of players from the USA is much weaker than Canada’s. Six seasons after being drafted by the Senators, Brady Tkachuk has already made his mark on the Senators’ history and is one of the best players on the current roster. Tkachuk is a bit of a unicorn of a player. He can score goals, and put up the points, he is among the top of the league in hits, shots, and fights every year, and is an all-around special player.
With 162 goals and 349 points, Tkachuk leads the way for Americans to play for the Senators, and there aren’t many that are rivaling him.
Czechia, Radek Bonk
Other Candidates: Martin Havlat, Milan Michalek, Filip Kuba
Radek Bonk is up there on the all-time games played list with Spezza. With 689 games with the Senators, Bonk ranks fifth all-time, and he is top 10 in goals and points. There have been some good players for Ottawa out of Czechia, but the impacts Bonk had during the late 1990s and early 2000s are unmatched by the rest of the players.
Denmark, Peter Regin
Other Candidates: Mikkel Boedker, Mads Sogaard
There have only been three Danish players to lace up for the Senators, and Peter Regin is the best of the three. Mads Sogaard could take over this spot pretty quickly, and Mikkel Boedker has the better points-per-game rate, but with five seasons as a defensive bottom-six center, Regin takes the cake for the Senators’ best player from Denmark.
Finland, Sami Salo
Other Candidates: Janne Laukkanen, Jarkko Ruutu
Sami Salo will always be remembered for his physicality and blistering shot in Ottawa. He wasn’t as good as the player he would become in Vancouver, but he did have a strong four seasons with the Senators. The crop of Finnish players to play for the Senators isn’t particularly strong, but the three defensemen to lead the way here were good in Ottawa for their short times, but Salo was the most impactful.
France, Stephane Da Costa
Other Candidates: N/A
The only French-born Senator has been Stephane Da Costa. The Senators signed Da Costa out of the NCAA, and after four seasons and 47 games of fighting for a permanent NHL spot, he opted to go to Europe and play in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Da Costa had some strong American Hockey League (AHL) seasons, but it just never translated to the NHL.
Germany, Tim Stutzle
Other Candidates: Christoph Schubert, Dany Heatley (German-born, Canadian nationality)
Tim Stutzle has emerged as one of the best players in Senators history, and he is just 22 years old. His 90-point season as a 21-year-old was one of the best seasons, and he still has a lot of room to grow. He was picked third overall in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, and since then has become the first-line center and one of the core pieces the future of the Senators will build around.
He needs some more time under his belt, but within a few years, there is reason to believe he can be in the conversation for the most talented player in team history.
Latvia, Sergei Zholtok (Sergejs Zoltoks)
Other Candidates: Kaspars Daugavins, Rudolfs Balcers
In the late 1990s, Sergejs Zoltoks made a stop with the Senators during his development, playing two seasons with the team. He scored 51 points with the club and was showing signs of the dependable two-way bottom-six center he was going to be. He tragically passed away during a game in Europe during the NHL’s lockout after his time in Ottawa.
Kaspars Daugavins gets an honorable mention here, not because he has a big impact on the team, but because that one shootout attempt was so memorable it needed to be brought up.
Russia, Alexei Yashin
Other Candidates: Anton Volchenkov, Artem Zub
Yes, Artem Zub has already made the honorable mentions for Russia. There isn’t much to pick from in terms of Senators from Russia, and Alexei Yashin is the only one with more than 100 points.
Related: Alexei Yashin Trade Tree Continues to Grow
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Yashin was developing into a superstar center. Of course, things ended in bad taste with contract disputes, but his time in Ottawa is underrated because of that. Yashin had five seasons with 70+ points, including a 44-goal and 94-point season. He was one of the first truly good players in the Senators’ organization.
Slovakia, Marian Hossa
Other Candidates: Zdeno Chara, Andrej Meszaros
Marian Hossa’s seven-year stint with the Senators was quite memorable. He started his remarkable career in Ottawa, and during his time, received votes for the Calder Trophy, Hart Memorial Trophy, Lady Byng Trophy, and Frank J. Selke Trophy. While he didn’t win any, he was regularly in the conversation for those awards.
Zdeno Chara could certainly have challenged for this spot if he stuck around longer. He was great in Ottawa, but his career really took off once he landed with the Boston Bruins.
Sweden, Daniel Alfredsson
Other Candidates: Erik Karlsson
The first one that had a truly difficult choice was Sweden. Daniel Alfredsson is without a doubt the greatest Senator of all time, but there is an argument to be had about Erik Karlsson as he is the most talented player for the club. The longevity, records, and impacts Alfredsson had for the Senators is just too hard to argue with. He is the franchise leader in goals, assists, and points, and was one game shy of the games played record.
Switzerland, Martin Gerber
Other Candidates: Roman Wick, Julien Vauclair
The only Swiss player to make an impact with the Senators has been Martin Gerber. In 100 games, Gerber posted a 49-36-8-4 record, and across three seasons with the club, had a .908 save percentage. He was an important part of the tandem that brought the Senators their success in the last 2000s, and had he stuck around longer, could have been one of the better goalies in franchise history.
Diversity Among Senators Top Players
While some countries like Switzerland and Latvia haven’t had many players play in Ottawa, they have had success finding top players from around the world. It is clear that the majority of their top players have been Canadian and Swedish, but with the surprise of the current core and having Tkachuk and Stutzle already taking the mantle for their respective countries, the Senators are becoming more diverse and having success with it.
