The Ottawa Senators have a power-play problem, and it’s starting to drag everything else down.
Through 16 games, Ottawa has cashed in on only eight of 65 man-advantage chances. That’s a 12.3% success rate, good for 30th in the NHL and only a step ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks and rival Montreal Canadiens. For a team with playoff expectations and no interest in taking a step backward, that number is nowhere near acceptable.
The frustrating part is that the pieces are there. Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot are handling the blue line duties, while Tim Stützle, Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens, and Shane Pinto give the group plenty of finish and creativity up front.
On paper, this should be a dangerous unit. In practice, it has looked stuck in neutral.
The problems keep showing up in the same places. The puck movement isn’t sharp enough.
The passing gets sloppy. The pressure disappears before Ottawa can turn zone time into real danger.
Instead of forcing defenses to scramble, the Senators too often make life easier on them.
That’s become even more costly because the power play isn’t just failing to score - it’s also giving goals away. Ottawa is tied with the Colorado Avalanche for the league lead in shorthanded goals allowed with four.
The fix, at least in the short term, starts with a simpler approach. Head coach Travis Green needs his group to stop chasing the perfect look and start putting pucks on net.
The Senators aren’t shooting enough, and without shots, there’s nothing to build off. More pucks toward the goal would create rebounds, open up second chances, and make the attack less predictable.
Better movement around the zone would help, too, by creating cleaner passing lanes and better shooting angles.
It’s also not fair to lay this all at the feet of Ben Sexton, who is overseeing the power play this season after Daniel Alfredsson’s departure. Goaltending issues and injuries have played a part, but they don’t fully explain why the unit has fallen this far behind.
Other teams have found a way to make their power play work. Ottawa has to do the same.
The urgency is real because the Senators need this area to turn around if they want to be taken seriously as contenders. Their most recent power-play goal came from Dylan Cozens on October 29 in a 6-5 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Kings, and the next few games will be watched closely.
Ottawa heads to Buffalo tonight to finish its five-game road trip.
In Other News...
Senators Give Two Depth Names A Big Chance In Buffalo
The Senators finish their five-game road trip in Buffalo with a lineup that looks a lot like the one they used in Anaheim, but there are still a couple of fresh wrinkles for a team trying to get through the stretch without much margin for error. Sammy Blais is set to make his regular-season debut for Ottawa, a chance earned in part by the injuries that have thinned the group and opened a door for depth players to step in and matter.
Carter Yakemchuk is also expected back in the lineup after missing the previous game, giving Ottawa another young option on the blue line as Nikolas Matinpalo sits out with illness. Samuel Ersson gets the start in goal, and with the road trip winding down, the Senators are again leaning on a mix of regulars and call-up energy to get through one more game before heading home. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Catch A Break As Senators Face Another Goalie Issue
An optional skate offered a little hope, but it did not change the outlook for Ottawa in goal. Linus Ullmark took part in the session, yet he will not start against the Buffalo Sabres because of a lower-body injury, leaving the Senators to lean on Samuel Ersson again as they try to manage another night without their usual setup in net.
The lineup hit did not stop there, either. Defenseman Tyler Kleven will also miss the game because of illness, adding another absence for a Senators team already dealing with a thin margin for error as it faces Buffalo. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Look Smarter By The Day After That Josh Norris Trade
At the 2025 NHL trade deadline, Ottawa made one of the boldest moves of its season when it sent Josh Norris to Buffalo in a deal for Dylan Cozens, a swap that also sent draft picks and other pieces into the mix before those assets were later moved or signed elsewhere. For the Senators, the trade was about more than changing names on the roster. It was a bet on fit, health and a fresh start for a team trying to build a more reliable forward group.
So far, the early returns have tilted Ottawas way. Norris has battled injuries and uneven play in Buffalo, while Cozens has settled in quickly and given the Senators the kind of production they were hoping to add. The longer this trend continues, the better that deadline gamble looks for Ottawa, even if the full ripple effects of the deal are still being sorted out. [Read more 🡒]