Training camp is down to its last few beats, and the Senators are staring at the part of the calendar where every practice, every shift and every lineup decision starts to matter a little more. With the regular season opener closing in, Ottawa’s staff is making its final calls on the bubble and trying to lock in the shape of the team for Oct. 3.
The biggest pressure points are still at the bottom of the roster. The fight for the final forward jobs and the third defence pair has tightened, with Stephen Halliday and Carter Yakemchuk among the young players who have put enough on tape to make the coaches think twice. Ottawa now has to weigh whether those players are ready for NHL minutes right away or whether heavier responsibility in the minors makes more sense for their development.
There’s also a layer of roster churn that could keep things moving right through the week. Depth is still an issue, and waiver activity around the league may open the door to additions. That makes flexibility a major theme as the Senators try to piece together the best version of the group before the season begins.
One notable change has already happened in goal. Leevi Meriläinen was claimed off waivers by the Vancouver Canucks after posting an 8-10-1 record with Ottawa last season. In response, the Senators brought in Jonas Johansson from the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday in exchange for future considerations.
Special teams are getting plenty of attention too. Ottawa’s coaches have put a clear emphasis on cleaning up the power play, with the focus on better puck movement from the point and creating cleaner shooting lanes instead of leaning on forced perimeter passes.
The penalty kill has its own marching orders. The priority there is aggression at the blue line, with the goal of stopping clean zone entries before they become problems. That should take some of the load off the goaltenders, who need a steady defensive setup if they’re going to hold up over an 84-game schedule.
Injuries are also shaping the picture as the season nears. Artem Zub is dealing with a knee injury and is targeted for an early-October return, which makes him a likely absence for opening night. Shane Pinto is out with an undisclosed minor issue, though he is expected back for the first game and is being kept out mostly as a precaution.
Warren Foegele and Kurtis MacDermid are both working through minor ailments and should be available around the first of the month. Jake Sanderson is day-to-day with an undisclosed issue, but the evaluation suggests he should be ready without missing much time. Adam Nemec, meanwhile, left the weekend game against Montreal with an upper-body injury after a hard hit along the boards, and his status is being watched as he gets set to return to his junior club.
And then there’s the game itself. Saturday’s trip to Toronto is the Senators’ 2026-27 regular season opener, and it comes with a straightforward early test: set the defensive tone right away and start building the identity Ottawa wants to carry into the year.
Saturday, Oct 3 at Toronto Maple Leafs Scotiabank Arena, Toronto Regular Season Opener 7:00 PM
In Other News...
Senators Roster Battle Just Got Real Before Opening Night
Training camp has been whittled down to the point where the next few days will tell Ottawa a lot about how the opening-night roster is going to take shape. The Senators cut their group nearly in half, moving a large chunk of players out of camp as the organization begins the harder part of the process, separating those who can help now from those who need more time elsewhere.
A mix of forwards and defensemen is still in the picture as Ottawa works toward the NHL deadline, with familiar names such as Claude Giroux, Tim Stutzle, Drake Batherson and Ridly Greig among those still in camp. The numbers are getting tighter, the decisions are getting tougher, and the last round of evaluation figures to be the one that really matters. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens-Senators Flashpoint Leaves Ottawa Fans With One NHL Question
The preseason meeting between the Canadiens and Senators produced more than just an early look at two Atlantic Division rivals. The NHL Department of Player Safety fined Montreal defenseman Mike Matheson for roughing Ottawa forward Ridly Greig, a decision that at least gives the flashpoint some formal closure from the leagues side. The money goes to the Players Emergency Assistance Fund, and it lands as another entry on Mathesons long list of discipline-related run-ins during his NHL career.
For Ottawa, the bigger issue is less about the dollar amount than the temperature this kind of exchange can bring to a game before the points even start counting. Greig was at the center of the incident, and Senators fans will be watching closely the next time these teams meet to see whether the edge carries over. The league stepped in on Matheson, but the broader question around how that play gets handled moving forward is still hanging there. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Preseason Win Came With A New Concern For Pittsburgh
Preseason games are supposed to be about building rhythm, but they can quickly turn into tests of depth, and that is where Pittsburgh finds itself after Bryan Rust left with an undisclosed injury. His status for the regular-season opener is now uncertain, adding another layer to a forward group already dealing with injuries to Blake Lizotte, Ben Kindel and Justin Brazeau. For a team trying to get through October in one piece, the concern is less about one night and more about how many bodies are left when the games start to matter.
Around the league, Ottawa had its own scare when Jake Sanderson exited a preseason game, a reminder of how quickly these exhibition nights can change the mood around a club. Buffalo also came out of the game with a notable absence, as defenseman Jack Rathbone is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. None of it changes the standings yet, but it does leave a few teams waiting on answers they would rather not need this early. [Read more 🡒]