All-Time Teams: Senators

Today's team is an early-'90s reboot of an original NHL franchise. Here's the all-time roster for the Ottawa Senators: 

The Senators were Stanley Cup finalists in 2007, losing a five-game series to the Anaheim Ducks. They were Eastern Conference finalists ten years later, losing a heartbreaking Game Seven to Pittsburgh in double-overtime. Ottawa has not reached the postseason since.

1st Line

Left Wing - Marian Hossa 2020 Hall of Fame inductee played more games and scored more points in Chicago - where he won three Stanley Cups - but wouldn't have made their top two forward lines. The Senators' first round pick in 1997, Hossa is fourth in Ottawa annals with 188 goals and 0.40 goals per game. The Slovak star posted four straight 30+ goal seasons (including a career-high 45 in 2002-03) before being traded to Atlanta for Dany Heatley.

Center - Jason Spezza The second overall pick in 2001, Jason Spezza ranks second in Senators history with 251 goals, 436 assists, and 687 points in 686 games. His 1.00 points per game average is also second-best in Ottawa annals, and only five players have suited up for the Sens more times than Spezza. The five-time 30-goal scorers is currently a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Right Wing - Daniel Alfredsson Ottawa's all-time leader in several categories including goals, assists, and points, Daniel Alfredsson won a Calder trophy, a King Clancy trophy, and a Messier trophy in his 17 seasons with the Senators. "Alfie" captained the club for 13 seasons, including the Eastern Conference champions in 2006-07. His 1,157 career points (in 1,246 games) are more than Marian Hossa (in fewer games) yet he has not received the call to the Hall.

2nd Line

Left Wing - Dany Heatley The second overall pick of the Thrashers in 2000, Dany Heatley spent just four seasons in Canada's capital. In that time, the German-born sniper registered the only two 50-goal seasons and two of the three 100-point campaign in Senators history. Ottawa's fifth-leading goal-scorer holds the team record for goals per game with 0.57 and points per game with 1.14.

Center - Alexei Yashin Another second overall pick (in 1992), Alexei Yashin was the first draft choice in Senators history. The Russian star ranks third in franchise annals with 218 goals and 0.97 points per game, fourth in points with 491, and second to Heatley in goals per game with an 0.43 average. Yashin finished second in Hart trophy voting after scoring a career-high 44 goals in 1998-99, then sat out the next season in a contract dispute. He returned in 2000-01 to register his second 40-goal campaign. 

Right Wing - Mark Stone The first captain in Vegas Golden Knights history, Mark Stone is fifth in Senators' annals with 0.85 points per game and fourth in shooting percentage with 16.2%. Though he played just 366 games for Ottawa, Stone sneaks into the team's top ten in goals (tenth), assists (ninth), points (tenth), and even-strength goals (tied for ninth). He's eighth among Sens with 28 offensive point shares.

 

3rd Line

Left Wing - Shawn McEachern A Stanley Cup champion with the 1992 Penguins, Shawn McEachern spent six of his 14 NHL seasons in Ottawa. The two-time 30-goal scorer set a career high with 72 points for the Sens in 2000-01. He ranks eighth in team history with 142 goals and 100 even-strength goals, and only eight Senators have scored more power play goals than McEachern's 39 man-advantage markers.

Center - Radek Bonk The third overall pick in 1994, Bonk's career got off to a slow start with the struggling Senators. The Czech center topped out at 35 points in his first five seasons, then averaged 23 goals and 61 points over his next four campaigns. In his ten years with the team, Bonk played the fifth-most games as a Senator (689), earned the sixth-most assists (247), and compiled the sixth-most points (399) in franchise history.

Right Wing - Martin Havlat Ottawa's first-round pick (26th overall) in 1999, Martin Havlat played just four full seasons and 298 games with the Senators. The fifth-leading scorer in his draft class, Havlat ranks 16th in Senators annals in goals, assists, and points. His 40 power play goals for Ottawa are the eighth-highest total in team history, and only four Senators have a higher career shooting percentage than Havlat's 15.2%.  

 

4th Line

Left Wing - Magnus Arvedson Two-way forward is fourth in Ottawa annals with a career +102 rating and his eight short-handed goals are tied for sixth-most among Senators. In his second season, the Swedish forward finished second to Jere Lehtinen for the Selke trophy after a career-high 47 points and +33 plus/minus rating.

Center - Mike Fisher A veteran of 18 NHL seasons, Mike Fisher played in two Stanley Cup finals - one for Ottawa and one for Nashville. The defensive specialist ranks sixth among Senators with 167 goals, tied for fourth with 31 game-winning goals, and tied for second with 14 short-handed goals. Fisher is married to a former American Idol contestant (but it's not Taryn Southern, so who cares?)

Right Wing - Bobby Ryan New Jersey-born Bobby Ryan was the second overall pick of the Ducks in 2005 (behind some guy named Crosby). The 2020 Masterton award winner posted four 30-goal seasons for Anaheim and could have made their all-time roster, but he played longer in Ottawa - where he ranks tenth among forwards with 159 assists and ninth among forwards with 121 even-strength helpers. Ryan signed with the Red Wings for the 2020-21 season.

spares - Kyle Turris, Chris Neil

Only 16 forwards have registered at least 200 points as a Senator, and Turris ranks tenth among them with 274. The third overall pick in 2007 ranks 11th among all Senators in goals with 117 and his 23 game-winning goals are tied with Havlat for the team's ninth-highest total. Neil is third among Senators with 1,026 games played, and his franchise-leading 2,522 penalty minute total is the 20th-highest in NHL history. His 96 even-strength goals are tied for ninth in team annals.

 

Defense Pair 1

Erik Karlsson - Chris Phillips

Two-time Norris trophy winner Erik Karlsson ranks third in Ottawa annals with 392 assists, 518 points, 29.3 defensive point shares, and 52.4 offensive point shares. The NHL's fourth-leading scorer in 2015-16 is fourth among all Senators players with 81.7 point shares. Ottawa dealt the six-time All-Star to San Jose in 2018. Phillips was the first overall pick in 1996 and ranks fist in Senators' history with 53.7 defensive point shares and 1,179 games played (one more than Daniel Alfredsson). His jersey #4 was retired by the team in 2020. 

Defense Pair 2

Wade Redden - Anton Volchenkov

The second overall pick of the Islanders in the 1995 draft, Wade Redden was flipped to Ottawa after #1 overall pick Bryan Berard refused to suit up for the Senators. The franchise's all-time leader in plus/minus with a +159 rating, Redden ranks fourth in Ottawa annals in games played (838), assists (309), and power play assists (139). His 410 points as a Senator are the team's fifth-highest total. Volchenkov was a shot-blocking specialist in his seven seasons with the Sens. The Russian rearguard ranks sixth among Ottawa defensemen with a 19.9 DPS score and ninth among all Senators with a +61 rating.

Defense Pair 3

Jason York - Marc Methot

Jason York is sixth among all Senators (and fifth among defensemen) with 21.2 defensive point shares. In his five seasons with the Sens, York posted 124 points including back-to-back 30-point campaigns. Methot was considered for the Columbus Blue Jackets' roster, where he played the first 275 games of his career. His production in Canada's capital was slightly better (0.23 points per game, 16.8 DPS) over slightly more games.

 

Spare - Cody Ceci

Currently a Pittsburgh Penguin, Cody Ceci is fourth among Ottawa defensemen with 440 games played. His 118 points for the Senators are six fewer than York's - in 60 more games - and his -60 plus/minus rating is third-worst among all qualifying Senators (Alexandre Daigle is dead last). Ottawa's blueline gets very thin after Redden; Karel Rachunek didn't play enough games and Thomas Chabot doesn't yet qualify.

Goalies

Starter - Craig Anderson

Backup - Patrick Lalime

Ottawa's all-time leader in wins and games played by a goalie, Craig Anderson ranks third among all Senators players with 82 point shares. His sterling performance in the 2016-17 season (after his wife's cancer diagnosis) earned him the Masterton trophy. Lalime is the franchise leader in goals against average (tied with Ron Tugnutt) and shutouts (two more than Anderson). Both goaltenders got Ottawa to within a game of the Stanley Cup final, but Anderson played nearly twice as many games for the team.

Head Coach: Jacques Martin  Captain: Daniel Alfredsson

Jacques Martin is the only head coach who lasted longer than four years in Ottawa. His 692 games and 341 regular-season wins are more than three times the next-highest total in team history. While Martin is also the all-time Panthers' head coach out of necessity, he's a better fit in Ottawa - where he led the team to the postseason eight times.

 

I hope you'll join us tomorrow for our next All-Time Team, the Philadelphia Flyers.

 

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

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