Inside look at Ottawa Senators

NHL.com is providing in-depth roster, prospect and fantasy analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, the Ottawa Senators.

The Ottawa Senators got a new owner in billionaire Michael Andlauer, a new general manager in former NHL defenseman Steve Staios and a new coach in ex-NHL forward Travis Green in the past 12 months.

But it’s goalie Linus Ullmark, acquired in a trade with the Boston Bruins for goalie Joonas Korpisalo, defenseman Mark Kastelic and a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft on June 24, who could be the biggest key in getting them back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season.

Since the Senators last made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2017, the list of prominent goalies who have tried and failed to get them back to the postseason includes Craig Anderson, Filip Gustavsson, Matt Murray, Anton Forsberg, Cam Talbot and Korpisalo.

Now it’s Ullmark’s turn to give it a shot. Given that he won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s best goalie with Bruins in 2022-2023, the 31-year-old certainly has the credentials to do so and is eager to see just what this young, talented Senators squad can do.

“It’s a very dangerous and quick team,” Ullmark said. “But they can also be pretty heavy. They’ve got (captain) Brady (Tkachuk) that is pulling the boat forward and he can do everything out there.

“It’s all about consistency, it’s all about winning on a daily basis to try to achieve something new, and to evolve as a player every single day and not to be satisfied just because you won two or three games in a row. You’ve got to keep doing that, you can’t just win three or four and then lose three or four. It’s all about the consistency of winning that will get you into the playoffs.”

It’s a trait the Senators had far too little of in 2023-2024, making goaltending easily the team’s top position of need this offseason.

Consider this: Ottawa had the NHL’s lowest team save percentage last season (.884) with Korpisalo and Anton Forsberg handling the majority of the work. That played a significant role in Ottawa finishing third to last in the Eastern Conference, making Ullmark’s addition that much more significant.

Ullmark was 22-10-7 with a 2.57 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and two shutouts in 40 regular-season games (39 starts) for the Bruins last season. He was 0-1 with a 3.90 GAA and .886 save percentage in two Stanley Cup Playoff games (one start). With Jeremy Swayman emerging as the No. 1 goalie in Boston, Ullmark became expendable, and the Senators pounced.

“Hopefully, going into this season, with some new coaching staff and all that sort of stuff, we can get the ball rolling,” he said. “Once we do that, that's going to be a very dangerous team going forward.”

Staios is encouraged that Ullmark can help the Senators do just that.

“It’s not often that you can acquire a player of that caliber,” he said. “We couldn’t be happier to have him on. He’s a player we had interest in in a long time dating back to the NHL trade deadline.”

Ullmark is in the final season of a four-year, $20 million contract (average annual value $5 million) and said there is no rush to talk extension.

Ullmark fills a gaping hole on a Senators team that has no shortage of talent. Ottawa, despite allowing the 13th-fewest shots on goal per game (29.7) this past season, was tied for the fifth-most goals allowed per game (3.43) in the NHL, which was seventh most in the NHL.

It’s the biggest and perhaps most important player move made by the Senators under Staios, who was hired interim GM on Nov. 1, then got the job full time on Dec. 31.

Andlauer, CEO of Andlauer Healthcare Group, became majority owner of the team on Sept. 21 and quickly brought Staios into the mix. Staios had previously worked for the Andlauer-owned Hamilton Bulldogs of the Ontario Hockey League.

With the two men sharing the same vision of finally breaking Ottawa’s playoff dry spell, the no-nonsense Green was hired on May 8 to make that goal a reality, replacing interim coach Jacques Martin, who took over when D.J. Smith was fired on Dec. 18.

The 53-year-old has an NHL coaching record of 141-159-35 with the Vancouver Canucks and New Jersey Devils. Green, who helped lead Vancouver to the second round of the playoffs in 2019-20, is known for helping develop young players. That should play well with some of Ottawa’s young stars like forward Tim Stutzle, 22, whose 70 points last season (18 goals, 52 assists) were 20 fewer than the 90 (39 goals, 51 assists) he had in 2022-2023.

“All I know is when I look at this team, it’s young, it’s exciting and it’s got a bright future,” Green said. “I’m going to push this team in a direction of making it a winner and having a winning attitude. There’s one thing to be a skilled group, there’s another to be a skilled group with a winning team.”

The Senators added veteran depth to help in that regard.

Forward David Perron signed to a two-year, $8 million contract July 1 after having 47 points (17 goals, 30 assists) in 76 games with the Detroit Red Wings last season. The 36-year-old helped the St. Louis Blues win a Stanley Cup in 2019 and augments a leadership group that also includes captain Tkachuk and veteran forward Claude Giroux.

Another veteran, Nick Jensen, should help the penalty kill and bring stability to the defense. The 33-year-old, acquired with a third-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in a trade with the Washington Capitals for defenseman Jakob Chychrun on July 1, had 14 points (one goal, 13 assists) last season and is known for his efficient play in the defensive zone.

The Senators already had a talented core in forwards Tkachuk, Stutzle, Giroux, Drake Batherson, and defensemen Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot. Now it’s time to see if Ullmark is the ignitor who can give Ottawa that extra push and motivation it needs.

“I’m hoping this year will be a great one,” he said.