Senators season preview: Pieces in place to make deep playoff run

The 2025-26 NHL regular season begins on Oct. 7. Leading up to the season opener, NHL.com is identifying six things to watch for each team. Today, the Ottawa Senators.

Last season: 45-30-7, fourth in Atlantic Division, lost in Eastern Conference First Round

Coach: Travis Green (second season)

Biggest challenge

The Senators made significant strides last season by qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2017, when they lost in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final to the Pittsburgh Penguins in double overtime. Although the Senators ended up losing in six games to their rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs, in the Battle of Ontario, their young core still got a much-needed taste of postseason hockey and the intensity that goes along with it. Having said that, it doesn’t get any easier at this point. Indeed, can they do it in back-to-back years? And can they take it another step by advancing to the second round, if not further. That is the goal, of course, of owner Michael Andlauer, general manager Steve Staios and coach Travis Green, who won’t be satisfied by just qualifying for the playoffs again. Still, advancing past the first round is easier said than done. Just ask those same Maple Leafs, who have won only two playoff series since 2004.

How they make playoffs

The key here is to continue following the defense-first blueprint that Green implemented so effectively in his first season behind the Senators bench. Ottawa allowed 49 fewer goals than in 2023-24 (281 to 232), and part of that success came from the stability in goal brought by Linus Ullmark, who is 163-87-26 with a 2.54 goals-against average, .917 save percentage and 12 shutouts in 291 career NHL games (281 starts), including winning the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender with the Boston Bruins in 2022-23. If he can continue to play at the level he did in his first season with Ottawa (25-14-3 with a 2.72 GAA, .910 save percentage and four shutouts), the future will be bright. However, he can’t do it alone. Indeed, he’ll need young offensive-minded forwards like Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk to build on the solid 200-foot games they developed last season.

Most intriguing addition

Ottawa hopes to be even stingier this season after acquiring 24-year-old defenseman Jordan Spence in a trade with the Los Angeles Kings on June 28 for a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and a sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. Spence set NHL career highs in goals (four), assists (24), points (28) and plus/minus (plus-23) last season, and he still has plenty of room to grow. He projects to start alongside Tyler Kleven, 23, as part of the third defense pair, but there is certainly potential to move up the lineup one day. Add that pair to a defense core that already includes budding star Jake Sanderson, Artem Zub, Thomas Chabot and Nick Jensen, and the future is bright for Ottawa’s blue line.

Biggest potential surprise

Leevi Merilainen is poised to show the hockey world he’s more than a six-week wonder. From Dec. 21-Feb. 1, the 23-year-old stepped up in place of Ullmark, who was dealing with a back injury, and went 8-3-1 with a 1.99 GAA, .925 save percentage and three shutouts. The Senators believed such a small body of work was indicative of his potential and signed him to a one-year, one-way contract on June 28, opting not to re-sign former backup Anton Forsberg in the process. The Senators are banking on Merilainen being the real deal, and he’s out to prove them right.

Ready to contribute

Spence’s arrival could keep top prospect Carter Yakemchuk off the NHL roster to start the season. If that’s the way it plays out, though, it’s just a matter of time before Yakemchuk becomes a mainstay on the Senators' blue line. The 20-year-old, who was selected with the No. 7 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, made a solid bid to make the Senators roster out of training camp last season by getting seven points (two goals, five assists) in four preseason games, but the decision was ultimately made to return him to Calgary of the Western Hockey League. One year later, and he’s again been turning heads at camp.

Fantasy sleeper with EDGE stats

Dylan Cozens, F: The 24-year-old center had 16 points (five goals, 11 assists), including eight on the power play, in 21 games with Ottawa last season after being acquired in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres on March 7. He also finished with NHL career highs in hits (205) and blocked shots (45). Cozens is expected to remain on the second line this season, as well as on the top power-play unit, and should bring exposure to elite fantasy options in Tkachuk, Stutzle and Sanderson. Cozens has shown his ability to score goals in the past (career-high 31 with the Sabres in 2022-23), and he should be attainable outside the top 175 overall based on fantasy average draft position. Per NHL EDGE stats, Cozens ranked among the NHL leaders in forwards in midrange shots on goal (91; 96th percentile), midrange goals (10; 90th percentile) and speed bursts between 20-22 mph (139; 84th percentile). -- Troy Perlowitz

Projected lineup

Brady Tkachuk -- Tim Stutzle -- Claude Giroux

Fabian Zetterlund -- Dylan Cozens -- Drake Batherson

Ridly Greig -- Shane Pinto -- Michael Amadio

David Perron -- Lars Eller -- Nick Cousins

Jake Sanderson -- Artem Zub

Thomas Chabot -- Nick Jensen

Tyler Kleven -- Jordan Spence

Linus Ullmark

Leevi Merilainen