Days after being swept in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Ottawa Senators are still coming to terms with an ending that arrived far too quickly.
After fighting to clinch the final wild card in the Eastern Conference, the Senators saw their playoff hopes dashed by the Carolina Hurricanes in four games.
Veteran defenceman Thomas Chabot described the experience as a “punch in the face,” and one that will leave an impact.
“I think it’s a big thing as players and as individuals that just the way they carried themselves the whole playoffs,” Chabot said of how Carolina approached their game. “You saw how even keel they were the whole playoffs.”
Ottawa scored just five goals and was an ugly 1-for-21 on the power play.
“I was just really sad for the guys next to me and how hard we battled all year to get to that point,” said forward Tim Stützle, who was held to just one assist.
“I think, overall, I think we took major steps again, just getting better. Looking at the process, the big picture, I think we’re really close to being a really good team and going really far in the playoffs.”
Aside from Drake Batherson, who scored three goals, and Dylan Cozens, who had a pair, not a single other forward found the back of the net. Captain Brady Tkachuk was held pointless.
Tkachuk was unavailable to meet with the media as he was with his wife for the birth of their second child.
Tkachuk was a lightning rod for criticism throughout the season, both for what he did on the ice and for how he carried himself off of it during and after the United States’ run to gold at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.
Head coach Travis Green says he doesn’t understand what all the doubt is about.
“I feel like I’m repeating myself a lot in this room getting questioned about the player that 31 teams would love to have,” said Green.
Green said there were games when Tkachuk could have been better, but that’s the case for any player and in his opinion his captain still had “a pretty good year.”
A bright spot of the playoffs was the play of goaltender Linus Ullmark, who was undoubtedly the Senators’ best player of the series.
“It was the first real time where I felt like myself again, and could do what I thoroughly enjoy and didn’t feel like a chore,” said Ullmark. “It didn’t feel exhausting, it felt motivational and inspirational.”
Now comes a long off-season to sift through a year of progress and promise — and ask the hard questions about what must change to take the next step.
Ottawa will need to make decisions on forwards Claude Giroux, Lars Eller, Nick Cousins, defencemen Nick Jensen and Dennis Gilbert, and goaltender James Reimer, who are all set to become unrestricted free agents.
As good as Ullmark was during the playoffs, the Senators clearly learned the importance of having a solid backup.
General manager Steve Staios acknowledged he could have handled the backup goaltending situation better. Last summer, the Senators believed pending restricted free agent Leevi Meriläinen was their best option, but when Ullmark took personal leave in late December it put both the team and the young netminder in a difficult spot.
Ottawa eventually turned to Reimer, but goalie depth remains one of the club’s biggest question marks heading into next season.
“We’ll take a look at all options, and I’ll look at the process again,” Staios said. “The way we had gone through it as a group, when we looked at it and why we made the decision that we did, I’m going to challenge that and look at it again and see what options may be there for us.”
At 38, Giroux remained an integral part of the lineup, finishing sixth in team scoring with 14 goals and 35 assists. He continued to play on special teams, and his leadership and experience remained invaluable for a team that is still lacking deep playoff experience.
Giroux said he still wants to play, but will take time to ponder what’s next.
“It’s still too early to even answer that question for me,” he said. “I need to calm down a little bit. I’m still fired up about the series, and sometimes you need to take a step back and give yourself a chance just to kind of chill and then see what’s next.”
They will also have to deal with forward Stephen Halliday and defenceman Jordan Spence, who are restricted free agents.
Spence started the season as the team’s seventh defenceman and was in and out of the lineup for the first month, but earned more playing time as the season progressed. And when Ottawa’s blueline was decimated by injuries late in the season, the 25-year-old provided stability.
Spence, who currently earns $1.5 million US, said he enjoyed his time in Ottawa and is hopeful to remain.
Staios believes there is good reason to be optimistic, but it’s going to take some time to get past the sweep.
“We’ve come a long way in a couple of years as a group and we have lots to be proud of,” he said. “But we’re sitting here outside the playoffs right now and it’s not a good feeling.”
