The NHL’s schedule is moving toward the 25 percent mark, and already this year, we’ve seen plenty of surprise teams at the top of their division. The best example is the Atlantic Division, where the three teams that sit at the top weren't projected to be in that spot.

Those being the first-place Montreal Canadiens, second-place Ottawa Senators and third-place Boston Bruins. But if you’re wondering which of those three teams has the best likelihood of staying in a top-three position, the correct answer (in this writer’s opinion) is the Senators.

Why? Well, for a couple of reasons. The first one is the main one: the Sens have got to second place in the Atlantic with a 9-5-4 record, and they haven’t been close to their best. 

Here’s what we’re getting at: Ottawa currently has the fifth-best offense in the league at 3.44 goals-for per game. Not bad, right? Right – except the Senators also have the NHL’s third-worst defense at 3.56 goals-against per game. What they take from you at one end of the ice, they give back to you at the other end.

Meanwhile, the Sens have also been above-average despite a thoroughly subpar performance from starting goaltender Linus Ullmark. The 32-year-old has posted a 6-4-4 record, a 3.21 goals-against average and a .870 save percentage. Young netminder Leevi Merilainen has been better, but he’s appeared in only four games, and his overall numbers are a 3.53 GAA and an SP of .868. As he gets more consistent, Merilainen will be able to spell off Ullmark a bit more, and that, in theory, should improve Ullmark’s performance as well.

Finally, Ottawa’s core of talent is still one of the younger cores in the league – meaning their best days are still ahead of them. Tim Stutzle is 23 years old. Shane Pinto is 25 years old. Brady Tkachuk is 26, and Jake Sanderson is 23. Oh, and Tkachuk has played only three games this year, so the Senators are going to get a huge boost when he returns to action.

Returning to answer our original question, we see the Canadiens dropping back a little as the season unfolds. That goes double for the Bruins, who we believe are in over their heads. But the Sens showed last season that they were a team on the rise, and nothing has changed in that sense. 

From this writer’s point of view, Ottawa has only scratched the surface of what they’re capable of. And while first place in the Atlantic may be a bit lofty for them, a second-or third-place finish for the Senators feels like a very doable achievement.

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