The daily main story at Hockey Hot Stove is powered by Watrhouse Brands, dedicated to quality, consumer education, and awareness: Benevolent Bakery, SoSHEL beverages, and Smokiez vegan fruit chews. Benevolent Bakeries and SoShel are proud sponsors of Hockey Day in Houston 2026. Today: What’s next for the Ottawa Senators.
It wasn’t the most exciting game Monday, the Ottawa Senators got the job done, blanking the Vancouver Canucks 2-0.
Making his first start since the Senators’ final game prior to the Olympic break, James Reimer earned a 16-save shutout. Reimer became only the third NHL goalie to shut out an opponent for seven different clubs. Sean Burke and former Senator Cam Talbot were the others.
They also did so minus the services of Jake Sanderson. The Senators’ defenseman stalwart is deemed week-to-week after Seattle Kraken Brandon Montour appeared to follow-through on a check, landing on an already-prone Sanderson. The blueliner left the ice clutching his shoulder.
Senators head coach Travis Green shuffled the deck on the back end, elevating Thomas Chabot to Sanderson’s spot alongside Artem Zub. Tyler Kleven/Jordan Spence remained a twosome, and Nik Matinpalo entered the lineup for his first game after 11 games of being a healthy scratch. The Finnish Olympian fit in seamlessly paired with veteran Nick Jensen.
Beating the hapless Canucks is one thing, but taking on the Montreal Canadiens Wednesday and Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks back-to-back this coming weekend is another thing without Sanderson.
The Canadiens are currently the third-highest scoring team in the league (3.54 goals per game). The Ducks are one of the most-improved clubs filled with youngsters. With 73 points, Anaheim is only seven points shy of their 80-point total of all last season. While the Sharks sit one point out of a Western Conference Wildcard berth, not to mention their lineup includes the ever-dangerous Macklin Celebrini who’s on his way to a 100-point campaign at the age of 19.
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With 19 games remaining, the Senators have been doing their utmost stay in the playoff race. Ottawa will head into Wednesday’s game, five points out of the final Wildcard spot currently held by the Boston Bruins and six behind the Detroit Red Wings.
The road to the postseason is interesting one. There are basically four teams chasing two spots, the Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets, Boston, Detroit.
To their credit, Ottawa has been doing their part, posting a 9-1-2 record over their past 12 games. During this period, they’ve gained 10 points on the Red Wings, four on the Bruins.
The Blue Jackets have risen from the depths of the Eastern Conference to two points out of a Wildcard, thanks to a new coach bump after the hiring of Rick Bowness. Columbus is an outstanding 13-2-3 under the former expansion Senators head coach.
Current standings:
Wildcard
Detroit 65 GP 79 PTS
Boston 64 GP 78 PTS
Out
Columbus 64 GP 77 PTS
Ottawa 63 GP 73 PTS
Perusing this standing from a distance, the biggest thing is the Senators hold two games in hand on the Red Wings. Detroit has been free falling of late, 4-6-2 in their past 12 outings. Ottawa plays the Red Wings one more time, March 24 in Detroit.
So what are the Senators chances to make the playoffs?
Per MoneyPuck; it’s 55.8%, Red Wings 68.9%, Bruins 64.9%, Blue Jackets 60.3 %.
Those numbers certainly don’t favour the Senators, but the oddest number is, Ottawa has a better chance of landing in the Stanley Cup Final among any other of these four teams. Per the same MoneyPuck; Senators 9.1%, Red Wings 6.8%, Bruins 6.5%, Blue Jackets 6.4%.
But don’t fear Senators’ fans, per Tankathon; the Bruins and Blue Jackets possess the second (Columbus) and third-toughest (Boston) schedules the remainder of the 2025-26 season. The Senators remaining schedule ranks ninth-toughest.
iMore good news; per the analytic predictive site Hockey Viz, the Senators and Red Wings will be the two Eastern Conference Wildcard teams. Ottawa is currently predicted to finish with 95 points, and that is one point more than the Bruins and Blue Jackets.
The Senators return to Canadian Tire Centre ice Wednesday after completing a 4-0-1 road trip. The Canadiens will be playing on a second game of a back-to-back after defeating the Maple Leafs 3-1 at the Bell Centre Tuesday. The NHL’s second-leading goal scorer, Cole Caufield (37) will be a game-time decision after playing only two third period shifts due to illness.
