Without Sanderson, Senators’ playoff hopes face real test

OTTAWA — The Ottawa Senators’ playoff lives went from a hope and a prayer to a real possibility in a matter of weeks, but now the Senators and their fan base are desperately knocking on wood for a healthy Jake Sanderson.

In a resounding 7-4 win in Seattle, Sanderson took a hit from Brandon Montour in the second period and left the game immediately while grabbing his shoulder.

Senators’ fans' hearts sank when Sanderson went down as fast as the Toronto Maple Leafs have sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic.

It’s been one of the best seasons any defenceman has ever played in a Senators uniform, rivalling Erik Karlsson in his time in Canada’s capital.

Sanderson was on pace for career highs in every offensive category while on the trajectory to amass 60-plus points.

Sanderson’s defining trait is his defensive prowess, with his unmatched skating ability, hockey IQ and size, which has led him to enter the discussion as the best defensive defenceman in the game.

“Everyone knows how important he is to us. So, we’re praying for him, and hopefully everything’s all good,” Senators forward Shane Pinto said about Sanderson.

Sanderson has also entered the Norris Trophy discussion, and all that means his loss at this time, especially, could make or break the Senators' season.

If Sanderson misses limited game action, the Senators' 51 per cent playoff chances, according to MoneyPuck.com, will take a jolt, but if he’s out long-term, the mission just got infinitely more difficult.

The sting is even greater, given how well the Senators have been playing. They’ve earned points in 10 of their last 11 games, going 8-1-2 while outscoring opponents 45-25 since Jan. 25.

Meanwhile, Linus Ullmark hasn’t lost in regulation in 2026; it’s been 13 consecutive starts since his last regulation defeat, which was on Dec. 9.

If Sanderson is out, the Senators’ elite defensive structure will bend; it’ll be up to Ullmark that it doesn’t break.

Next man up — but who?

Thomas Chabot was the No.1 defenceman for a long time. In theory, he can provide elite puck-moving, despite less defensive aptitude than Sanderson.

Meanwhile, Nick Jensen has seemingly turned a corner just in time.

It’s likely that Tyler Kleven and Jordan Spence vault up from the third pair to the second, like they did earlier this season when Chabot was on the sidelines due to injury. Their analytics were excellent against better competition with the Kleven-Spence pair churning out a 58 percent expected goals share at five-on-five with a plus-1 goal differential, from Nov. 13 to Dec 18, when Chabot missed 15 of the 16 games.

Don’t sleep on newly minted Olympic bronze medallist Nikolas Matinpalo, who played all six of Ottawa’s playoff games last season but has been a healthy scratch the majority of the season.

Regardless, the Senators could find themselves facing another massive hurdle in a season defined by distractions and adversity.

Ottawa has stayed afloat despite the chaos and lack of saves, but this one is different. This time it's Sanderson, arguably their best player this season. We could be about to find out how good this Senators team truly is without their star defenceman.

Adams’ Apples

Warren Foegele needed no time to introduce himself to the Senators’ faithful, scoring in his debut.

“It’s been a wild 48 hours,” said Foegele, after getting traded to Ottawa from L.A. on Thursday.

Foegele detailed how he had been plagued by injuries in training camp and throughout the season, for a player coming off back-to-back 20-plus goal seasons. 

He looked the part of a skilled, fast, defensively attuned player on Ottawa's fourth line in Seattle. 

One of his first acts as a member of the Senators was to text a winky emoji to Spence.

"I was really confused. I'd never gotten a text like that before,” said Spence, jokingly.

The two former L.A. Kings bonded in California and became close friends.

It’s not the only connection Foegele has to his new team. The newest Senator also trained over the summer in Muskoka with the currently red-hot Dylan Cozens and Sam Gagner, the Senators director of player development.

Interestingly, Foegele explained that his new Senators team reminded him of his Carolina team that made it into the playoffs in Game 81 in 2019 before making the Eastern Conference Finals. There is no doubt that if Senators get into the playoffs, they could do damage.

Explaining Dylan Cozens’ heater

Cozens is playing the best hockey of his career. His goal in Seattle thrust him to goals in four straight for the first time in his career. Cozens has 18 points in his last 17 games with 31 points in his first 45 games.

So, what changed?

Seventeen games ago, he started playing with Brady Tkachuk. 

When the Senators were mired in a dismal January stretch, coach Travis Green decided to split up Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle from the first line to help boost Cozens on the second, which had struggled at five-on-five. That’s when his heater started, and when the line of Tkachuk, Cozens and Ridly Greig became a force.

Cozens had 12 five-on-five points in his first 45 games before playing with Tkachuk: since Tkachuk’s insertion to his side, Cozens has 10 five-on-five points in 17 games. Juxtapose that with Tkachuk’s 21 points in his last 17 games since joining Cozens’ side. The other linemate on the dominant line, Greig, has been a defensive stabilizer who retrieves pucks, and is good on the forecheck. At the same time, Tkachuk has been doing the majority of the heavy lifting.

Tkachuk’s ability to drive play, win battles, and be an effective playmaker has given Cozens the ability to be the goal scorer he was touted to consistently be when he scored 31 goals in 2022-23.

Cozens is on pace for 30 goals this season.

Tkachuk has taken a lot of criticism this season. The condemnations have to end. The captain is propelling his Senators and Cozens’ stock upward.