With September Now Here, Did the Senators Do Enough Over the Summer to End Their Playoff Drought?

Just when it looked like Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staios had pushed back from the table, seemingly satisfied with his roster, he made a surprise late addition on Thursday, signing veteran Nick Cousins.

Is Staios finished now? Is he still working the phones? Only time will tell.

But with the unofficial end of summer now here, it's time to look back and evaluate his first offseason at the helm and whether the Senators are now set up for success in the tough Atlantic division.

Cap Management

This was an issue heading into last year, so the fact that the Senators have not blown their budget is worth pointing out. New head coach Travis Green will be able to dress a full lineup come opening night with at least one extra player.

Staios also delivered this without leveraging another buyout which many were calling for.

Thumbs up so far.

Roster Moves – Outgoing

The biggest move was the deal to send Korpisalo to the Bruins along with Mark Kastelic and a first-round pick in return for 2023 Vezina winner, Linus Ullmark.

The move instantly upgraded the crease, and it came at a cost. Retaining $1 million of Korpisalo’s cap hit per year for the next four years is not inexpensive, but status quo in the crease simply wasn’t an option.

Kastelic had an off-year and though he is good at the faceoff dot and has some grit, he is replaceable.

Another noteworthy trade was sending Jakob Chychrun to Washington for Nick Jensen and a 2026 third rounder. The addition of Jensen provides balance and leadership to the right side of the defence, and though the Senators take a hit on the offensive side of the ledger, Jensen has been to the dance in five of the last six seasons, which Chychrun has never done.

Jensen will be 35 at the end of this contract and doesn’t appear to be a long-term solution, but for a team hoping to get to the playoffs now, there isn’t a lot of downside here.

The Sens also unloaded Mathieu Joseph and his cap hit for the next two years. Joseph had a bounce back year and his speed might have been nice to have around. That said, he lacks the grit that today's Senators covet.

Meanwhile, Staios didn’t just make his mark by doing, he also made it by not doing.

Staios chose to give the Senators organization closure on the Mark Stone trade by not qualifying Erik Brannstrom and letting him go the UFA route. If a suitable trade was not an option, this move makes sense. If he had stayed, Brannstrom would have gotten more than the $2 million cap hit he had last year via arbitration.

The same route was chosen for Parker Kelly. Ideally, you would like to get something back for assets you have developed for several years. Clearly, there were no dance partners, and this was the best that could be done.

No alarm bells in this area either.

Roster Moves – Incoming

Staios didn’t just value grit in changing the dynamic of his roster, he also valued past winning experience. His three key free agent acquisitions all have one thing in common. They all drank from the Holy Grail of Hockey and have done so in the past five years.

David Perron, Mike Amadio and Nick Cousins all bring an intangible that will serve the core players well, not just with their willingness to get their hands dirty, but also their leadership and experience.

The value of having been there and done that cannot be overstated.

Perron’s price point at $4 million per is not ideal for a declining asset and two years for a 36-year-old is a bit risky when you consider that he will now be the second such player projected for the top six.

Is the Senators' top six better than it was last season?

Vladimir Tarasenko has more offensive impact than Perron, but it’s close and Tarasenko now has two Stanley Cup rings. Perron will need to bring that intangible to the table to help justify his contract.

That said, it wasn’t the top six that really held the Senators back last season. It was the bottom six and their lack of production.

Has that been improved?

It certainly has – in skill, versatility and experience. Amadio is a legitimate replacement for Joseph, Cousins more than makes up for the loss of Kastelic, and newcomer Noah Gregor is one of the fastest players in the game today.

Area of Concern

Staios allowed Brannstrom to fly the nest but didn’t replace him. Obviously, the belief and confidence in Tyler Kleven is there. However, the spot appears to be his with no training camp competition.

The bottom-pair defense was an area of weakness last season and bequeathing that spot to a player with 17 games of NHL experience is a gamble. All signs point to Kleven being ready to ascend to the parent club. But what if he isn’t? What if he gets hurt?

This is the only real box unchecked and things may pan out with Kleven, but the Senators may find themselves scrambling for a plan B if it doesn’t.

Staios has given Travis Green the tools to work with. Are the Senators set up for success? For the most part, yes. The roster has balance, experience, skill and grit.

If Green was the right selection as head coach, April games should be meaningful in 2025.

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