The Senators are only a few games into the 2026-27 season, and they’ve already burned through a league-high 10 defencemen.
That total, as of Oct. 16, leads the NHL. Philadelphia is second with nine, though the Flyers are still looking for their first win at 0-6-3 and will host Ottawa on Saturday. For the Senators, the number is jarring even before you get to the context: they’re sitting first in the Atlantic Division at 6-2 while juggling a blue line that has been in constant motion.
The group Ottawa has used so far includes Thomas Chabot, Jake Sanderson, Jordan Spence, Tyler Kleven, Carter Yakemchuk, Nikolas Matinpalo, Cameron Crotty, Hoyt Stanley, Jorian Donovan and Artem Zub.
Some of the turnover was baked in from the start. The Senators opened the season without Zub, who was still working his way back from an injury suffered last season.
Then came the Oct. 3 opener against Toronto, when Sanderson went down. He had been managing a nagging lower-body injury through camp, and losing him - along with another one of the team’s top three defencemen - was a major hit.
The injuries kept piling up from there. Matinpalo left Saturday’s game against New Jersey after being hit from behind by Anthony Mantha, and it appeared to be a concussion. That left Ottawa without three regular defencemen.
For the rookies, the chaos has opened doors. Yakemchuk has gotten more ice and more responsibility, while Stanley and Donovan are being handed a real chance to prove they belong in the NHL.
There was at least some relief on Thursday, when Zub returned and cut two and a half minutes from Chabot’s workload against the Islanders. Zub looked good and finished the game without any issues, which is exactly what Ottawa needed to see.
Even so, the Sens have already used enough defencemen to make it feel like they’ve nearly filled two blue lines by mid-October.
In Other News...
Senators Loss Suddenly Feels Secondary To A Growing Blue Line Concern
The Senators came away from Philadelphia with a 3-1 loss to the Flyers, but the result quickly took a back seat to a troubling moment on the blue line. Ottawa captain Thomas Chabot did not return for the third period after leaving with an upper-body injury, a development that added another layer of concern to a night already marked by a sputtering team effort and the end of Linus Ullmarks six-game winning streak despite a solid performance.
Travis Green acknowledged the injury after the game, and the timing only sharpened the focus on Ottawas defensive depth. The Senators have already had to lean on 10 defencemen this season, and losing Chabot for any stretch would only make that churn harder to manage as the schedule rolls on. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Lose Another Key Forward As Early Scoring Pressure Builds
Ottawas blue line may be getting a timely boost soon, with Jake Sanderson expected back in the lineup after missing every game since the Senators opener. The club is eyeing Wednesday for his return, a welcome development for a team that has had to manage its minutes and matchups without one of its top young defensemen while trying to stay organized early in the season.
The timing matters even more with the Flyers already missing winger Owen Tippett because of an upper-body injury, which only adds to the pressure on a Philadelphia group looking for offense out of the gate. Sandersons comeback is being monitored closely, and the setting only heightens the interest around it, with Brady Tkachuk also set to be in the building when Ottawa next takes the ice. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Loss Comes With A Bigger Concern On The Blue Line
The Senators went to Philadelphia looking to steady themselves early in the 2026-27 season, but the night ended with more concern than comfort. Ottawa fell 3-1 to the Flyers, who picked up their first win of the year behind a goal and an assist from both Matvei Michkov and Porter Martone, while the Senators blue line took another hit in a game that already had enough problems for the visitors.
What made the loss sting beyond the standings was what happened to captain Thomas Chabot, who left injured and appeared to be dealing with his right arm or wrist area. With another defenseman now sidelined, Ottawas depth on the back end is getting tested quickly, and the larger worry is no longer just one defeat but how long the Senators can keep patching together their defense before it starts to show in a bigger way. [Read more 🡒]