NHL teams need to have their final roster set on Oct. 10 at 5 pm. While the Ottawa Senators are close, there are a lot of questions and concerns looming over the team. They don’t have any extra skaters, some NHL players are in the American Hockey League (AHL), Shane Pinto isn’t signed and the club has $62,180 in cap space.
Putting aside the last week of waivers, salary cap gymnastics and the contract debacle, there is a ton of optimism surrounding this team. The 20 Thoughts on 20 Spots is going to be a new weekly series breaking down the Senators roster, spot by spot. An update on how each players has been doing, and what role they are playing in for the team.
While there are still a lot of moving pieces, the expectation is that Josh Norris will not be in the lineup and therefore will not be included in the initial 20 thoughts. Projected lines are based on the Senators’ most recent practice and while there are some players included that were sent to Belleville, it is expected that they will be recalled ahead of opening night.
Forward Line 1
Tkachuk-Stutzle-Giroux
1. Tim Stutzle is entering the year as the first-line center. This is one of, if not the only thing people were certain of headed into the year. After a 90-point campaign in 2022-23, Stutzle has taken a giant step in the right direction. He is just 21 years old and has reached the verge of true superstardom. The sky is the limit for him this year, and it seems the Senators will be sticking with the dominant top line from last season.
2. Brady Tkachuk is lacing up on Stutzle’s wing yet again and it worked very well for him last season. He set a career high in almost every measurable category with 35 goals, 48 assists, 83 points, 126 penalty minutes, 347 shots and eight fights. While he isn’t expected to smash every personal best again this season, it is perfectly fair to expect a replication from last season. The only knock against his game headed into this season is to challenge him to stay out of the box more, though it wasn’t detrimental to the club in 2022-23.
3. The Senators signing Claude Giroux has been even more successful than they could have imagined. A new career high in goals, a fantastic offensive season and the first high-quality veteran this team has signed to be part of this current group, and frankly, the best free-agent signing in team history. On top of his own success, Giroux has been an integral part of this team and has helped Tkachuk become a better leader, helped Stutzle as a center and other things along those lines. He is clearly loved in Ottawa and he seems to be very happy with his decision to sign.
Defensive Pair 1
Chabot-Chychrun
4. Thomas Chabot is looking to rebound after a season in which he was criticized plenty over his defensive efforts, but given the fact that his workload has been outrageous throughout his career, having a season like he had is forgivable. Even amidst the criticism, he posted 41 points in 68 games. That is solid production from him. He has a strong supporting cast for the first time in his career, including his new defensive partner Jakob Chychrun and depth in Jake Sanderson. He will have to worry slightly less on the defensive side and can blossom into the offensive game at levels we saw in his sophomore season. This could be a huge year for Chabot.
5. The aforementioned Chychrun managed to get 12 games in with the Senators after being acquired and while that was more of a transition period, he has looked fantastic in the preseason and can make a huge change on this team. He has incredible offensive capabilities, but he is also very strong defensively. He will complement Chabot’s game very well and it is going to be very exciting to see how the two play together.
Forward Line 2
Joseph-Greig-Batherson
6. Where things start to get interesting is Ridly Greig slotting in as the second-line center in the absence of Norris. He had a great showing through 20 games last season, recording nine points. He has had a strong camp and while there is some that believe the AHL would be the best place to start, the Senators don’t have the luxury of deciding for themselves. How Greig plays in this role will determine just how valuable this line can be. He is in a great position to thrive offensively alongside Drake Batherson who had a great training camp, and also share defensive responsibilities with Mathieu Joseph.
7. Batherson struggled at times last season—that is no secret. He talked about how he was still feeling the lingering effects from his high-ankle sprain that shut him down for the back half of the 2021-22 season, and he looks to be back to his point-per-game potential form as he lit the lamp in preseason. His defensive play last season was shocking at times, but he still had solid production, posting 62 points, but was in contention for the NHL’s Green Jacket with a minus-35 rating in the plus/minus category. He can have a great season and round out his game very well and be an important part of this team moving forward.
8. After a down year, endless trade rumors and uncertainty headed into the season, Joseph is looking to have a strong bounce-back year with the Senators. Through 56 games in 2022-23, Joseph didn’t record a single even-strength goal and posted 18 points. His defensive efforts were good as usual, but the team needed more from him, especially at his nearly $3 million cap hit. He has speed, potential for offensive impacts and good two-way play. It just needs to be put together, and finding his offense with Greig and Batherson could be a good fit.
Defensive Pair 2
Sanderson-Zub
9. Jake Sanderson is an incredible asset to this team. Need I say more? No, I don’t, but I will anyway. His defensive capabilities are far and away the best this team has. His skating and transition help complement how impactful he is in the defensive end, his positioning is great and all of this is reinforced by his eight-year extension after just 77 NHL games. On top of being the best defender on the team, he has some very underrated offensive ability and will be on the second power-play unit. He is an all-around fantastic defenseman and will look to take another step as he is more comfortable in the pro league.
Related: Stutzle, Tkachuk Lead Senators Players in NHL 24 Rating
10. The fanbase picked their favorite player after Artem Zub was signed. He is a solid defensive defenseman and rounds out the top-four pretty well. He doesn’t have much to prove in 2023-24, all he needs to do is stay consistent. It was a slightly down year last season, but to make a big deal of that would be nitpicking. He was good enough, but can be better.
Goaltending Duo
Korpisalo & Forsberg
11. Joonas Korpisalo is joining the Senators after signing a five-year deal in free agency. After sifting through seven defensemen in 2022-23, the Senators realized they needed a young, stable goaltender to lead the way. While it isn’t clear if the team will have a designated starter, they will likely run with a strong tandem and ride the hot hand. Korpisalo has a great finish to last season with the Los Angeles Kings, posting a .921 save percentage (SV%) in 12 games. His career average is a SV% of .904 but that includes a lot of poor seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He has shown he is better than that.
12. Anton Forsberg looked good in preseason, which let out a sigh of relief among the Senators fanbase. His 2022-23 season ended when he went down with two torn MCL’s and opted to go for a lengthy rehab and avoided surgery. He was back with a bang and instilled confidence form everybody. In his first full season with the Senators, Forsberg posted a .917 SV% in 46 games behind a weak team. He has it in him to be a fantastic goalie and everybody is hoping he can return to that form.
Forward Line 3
Kubalik-Chartier-Tarasenko
13. Vladimir Tarasenko was signed in the offseason to replace Alex DeBrincat in the lineup. He didn’t have a great preseason, but he also wasn’t fighting for a spot. Another barrier for him there was that he was playing in the top six on the left wing. He has spent the majority of his career on the right side, so that change was working against him, too. Projected on the third line isn’t an indicator of his play or the value he holds with the team, but the Senators have great right wing depth now. He is still more than capable of 30-plus goals, but could also come closer to 20. Right now, Tarasenko is a bag of magic beans and it is hard to set expectations and predictions, but he adds much-needed depth to this club.
14. The Senators were not going to get their DeBrincat replacement when trading him, but they did get a great asset in Dominik Kubalik. A former 30-goal scorer and a consistent 20-plus-goal scorer will fit in well on the third line in Ottawa, and could even swap with Joseph on the second line if a change is needed. He had a good preseason; the expectations are that he can be a solid depth scoring winger and post 20 goals on the third line.
15. One of the biggest holes to fill in this roster is in the middle of the third line. In the absence of Pinto, Rourke Chartier will be slotting into this role. While many hoped Roby Jarventie or another prospect could slot in there, Chartier earned it. Through six games with the Senators last season, he didn’t post a point but was a solid player and offered stability in the role. Don’t look at him to be an adequate replacement for Pinto, but he is a fine stop-gap while the club awaits an agreement on a contract.
Defensive Pair 3
Brannstrom-Hamonic
16. Erik Brannstrom has found his spot. Unfortunately, he has been blocked on the depth chart by Chabot, Sanderson and Chychrun. He hasn’t been able to produce at the rates many hoped for, but he has established himself as a strong-skating, smart, talented defenseman who can play well on the defensive side of things, too. He was one of the best Senators in defensive metrics last season and fills this role well.
17. Travis Hamonic was re-signed to a two-year deal in the offseason. Regardless of where you stand on the deal, he earned the opportunity to come back with the team. The original trade for Hamonic was heavily criticized at the time, and maybe fairly so, but he has proven to be a steady option in the Senators’ defensive depth. He does a lot of the right things.
Forward Line 4
Smejkal-Kastelic-Kelly
18. Jiri Smejkal was signed out of Europe and nobody knew what to expect from him. A lot of the information known knew about the player before the preseason came from his former head coach via The Senstennial Podcast. He is a big guy with good skating, great skill and that was on display in his first few preseason games. He could be a surprising addition to the team and add some great scoring depth.
19. Mark Kastelic didn’t have a strong preseason, and while people were hoping to see more, he was still solid defensively. He was good in this role last season, and while the fourth-line center spot isn’t something that will make or break a roster, it will be interesting to see how he can rebound from last season following a poor preseason.
20. One of the players to come close to losing a spot was Parker Kelly. He brings great physicality, tenacity and energy to the lineup and in a perfect world everybody wants a player like him in the bottom of the lineup. Unfortunately, he doesn’t bring much offensively and is mediocre defensively. He is replaceable, and with Zack MacEwen injured that may have secured his spot.
Extra Thoughts on Extra Spots
Now that the first 20 players are talked about, there are a few more noteworthy roster moves and decisions.
Jarventie had a very strong preseason but was sent down anyway. His lack of experience at center might have been the deciding factor here, but he will get more reps in the AHL and is among the top of the call-up list for the Senators this season.
MacEwen suffered an upper-body injury in the final preseason game. There isn’t much information about the injury yet, but there is hope he could line up in the season opener.
Maxence Guenette is sticking around on the roster as the seventh defenseman ahead of Lassi Thomson and Jacob Bernard-Docker who were both waived. Guenette wasn’t a massive stand-out in preseason, but did all of the right things to earn this spot. He had a great AHL season in 2022-23 as well, and earned his NHL debut in the final game of last season.
There are a lot of storylines to follow with this roster. With Norris and Pinto still on the outside looking in, there are bound to be a lot of changes. For now, this is the roster and extras that are expected to open the very exciting season for the Senators. Leave your thoughts on what players you are most excited to watch this season!
