Sep twenty first, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Ottawa Senators defenseman Jordan Spence (10) skates with the puck within the second interval in opposition to the Toronto Maple Leafs on the Canadian Tire Centre. Obligatory Credit score: Marc DesRosiers-IMAGN Pictures The Ottawa Senators broke their eight-season playoff skid final spring underneath new coach Travis Inexperienced and can look to take the subsequent step this marketing campaign.
In a season-opening Atlantic Division matchup Thursday night time, the Senators will sq. off with one of many Japanese Convention groups they might meet within the playoffs, the host Tampa Bay Lightning.
Inexperienced’s group managed to go 45-30-7 for 97 factors in 2024-25, falling only one shy of the third-place Florida Panthers, for the squad’s first playoff berth since 2017 because the No. 1 wild-card membership. The Senators fell within the first spherical to the provincial rival Toronto Maple Leafs in six video games.
The Canadian capital’s crew shored up its again finish and added playoff expertise by buying former Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jordan Spence within the offseason for 2 picks within the June draft.
The 24-year-old Spence, the NHL’s first non-goaltender with Japanese citizenship, will doubtless be paired on the third line with Tyler Kleven.
“I believe I am turning into extra mature, on the ice, on what to anticipate throughout playoff video games, and what to do, and what it takes to win playoff video games,” stated the right-handed-shooting Spence, who was born in Australia, quickly moved to Japan and ended up on Prince Edward Island at 13.
Prime-pairing blueliner Thomas Chabot stated there was nice worth in making the postseason and competing within the Battle of Ontario.
“We sort of set the usual of when you get within the playoffs, you need to simply be again there yearly,” stated Chabot. “I believe all of us went by the method of being on that stage and taking part in there for the primary time.”
In the meantime, Tampa Bay had a implausible however grueling preseason, posting a 6-1-0 mark that included two fierce matches final week in opposition to the arch-rival Panthers, who beat the Lightning in 5 video games within the first spherical en path to their second consecutive Stanley Cup title.
Nevertheless, Saturday’s preseason finale in Dawn was a brawler, because the groups confirmed as much as do something however play hockey and demonstrated that the Sunshine State rivalry is as nasty as ever.
The golf equipment mixed for an almost unbelievable 322 penalty minutes — a fight-fueled quantity that will have ranked ninth-most in NHL historical past had it occurred within the common season.
Florida received 7-0 and went 4-for-20 on the ability play, and 16 gamers had been ejected within the blow-for-blow blowout.
The NHL’s Division of Participant Security handed out a $100,000 nice to the Lightning and a $25,000 one to educate Jon Cooper. Prime-pairing defenseman J.J. Moser’s two-game suspension will hold him out this week.
When Tampa Bay launched its roster, it added two large forwards — 6-foot-9 enforcer Curtis Douglas and 6-foot-6 Jack Finley — doubtless for a 3rd straight postseason tussle with the champs.
“I take a look at it as guys sticking up for one another and doing what they really feel they must,” Cooper stated of the Florida feud. “I suppose you get that in a rivalry that is constructed up over these two groups previously six, seven years.”
Tampa Bay will once more depend on Nikita Kucherov, the group’s all-time help chief (637) who has received the previous two Artwork Ross trophies and is six factors from reaching 1,000.
One other 80-assist effort would mark the fourth straight for Kucherov, 32, who would tie Wayne Gretzky (13 consecutive seasons) as the one gamers with a minimum of 4 straight seasons of 80 or extra assists.
–Discipline Stage Media
