Nine games into the season, the Ottawa Senators have put together a 6-3-0 start that looks sharp on paper and a little more complicated when you dig underneath it. The points are piling up, but so are the lineup questions.
That’s the balancing act heading into the week of Oct. 18-24, 2026.
The early results have been driven by a team that has done a lot of things well away from home. Ottawa has picked up road wins in Toronto, Boston and New Jersey - a 3-2 result, then 4-1, then another 4-1 - and those games showed a group that can stay organized and keep dangerous chances to a minimum in transition.
At the same time, the Senators’ home form has already offered a reminder of how quickly things can unravel when the structure slips. A 7-2 loss to St.
Louis exposed those breakdowns, even if Ottawa steadied itself afterward with a 2-1 win over Philadelphia and a 2-1 shootout win over New York before Saturday’s 3-1 road loss back in Philadelphia.
That leaves Ottawa sitting at roughly a 67% points percentage through nine games, a rate that gives them a useful cushion in a crowded Atlantic Division. The catch is obvious: maintaining that pace is going to be harder if the injuries keep forcing the staff to patch together new combinations.
The biggest hole right now comes from William Eklund. The off-season addition suffered a torn ankle tendon after a hit along the boards in the Oct. 8 game against Philadelphia, then had surgery this past week.
He is officially projected to miss 10 to 12 weeks. That’s a major blow for a player whose playmaking and ability to carry the puck through transition had been valuable on the top two scoring lines.
The blue line is dealing with its own set of moving pieces. Jake Sanderson sat out the win over the New York Islanders because of a day-to-day lower-body issue, though he is expected back soon.
Thomas Chabot left Saturday’s game against the Flyers and is also listed as day-to-day. Ridly Greig is still working through a minor physical strain that cut into his third-period ice time earlier in the week, but he was in the lineup against Philadelphia.
The schedule offers no break, but it does at least keep Ottawa at home all week. The Senators host three games in a row at Canadian Tire Centre before heading into a longer West Coast trip later in the month. First comes Florida on Wednesday, then San Jose on Thursday, then the Rangers on Saturday.
That back-to-back against the Panthers and Sharks will be a test of management as much as execution, especially when it comes to sorting out the workload between Linus Ullmark and the backup unit. After that, Ottawa closes the week against a New York team that brings a top-six forward group that will demand a clean defensive night.
Ottawa Senators schedule, Oct. 18-24, 2026:
Wednesday, Oct 21, 2026 vs. Florida Panthers, 7:30 PM ET, Canadian Tire Centre
Thursday, Oct 22, 2026 vs. San Jose Sharks, 7:00 PM ET, Canadian Tire Centre
Saturday, Oct 24, 2026 vs. New York Rangers, 7:00 PM ET, Canadian Tire Centre
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 🡒]