The 5 Most Important Players for the Ottawa Senators in 2023-24

The Ottawa Senators are headed into a season with the most talented, impactful roster they've had in years with the likes of Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, Jakob Chychrun, Claude Giroux, Thomas Chabot and several others.

While they won't talk about it publicly, the Senators’ goal is to make the playoffs. And if they're to succeed, these will be their 5 most important players this season:

1. Tim Stutzle

We could go in many different directions for naming the most important player on this team. However, let’s not make this too complicated: Ottawa’s best player is Tim Stutzle. Stutzle is fresh off a 39-goal, 90-point campaign as a 21-year-old. The sky’s the limit and if he can make another leap to becoming a 100-point player, it would be hard to see the Sens missing the playoffs.

2. Joonas Korpisalo/Anton Forsberg

I know this is cheating. I said most important players, not positions. But the Sens have a goaltending tandem, with newly-signed Joonas Korpisalo and Anton Forsberg. Korpisalo had a really good season last year, posting a .914 save percentage, while Forsberg had a down year at .902. 

Last season, Ottawa had seven goalies with a combined save percentage of .895. If they got a few more saves, maybe they would have made up those 6 points they missed the playoffs by. If the Senators get solid goaltending this year, then playoff games are most likely coming to Ottawa in April.

3. Josh Norris

The Sens' other big personnel problem was that they had their number 2 centre, Josh Norris, for only 8 games last year. Norris is coming off a shoulder surgery in January and just returned to full-contact in practice last week. But he is expected to play in preseason. 

So, one could argue it’s actually Norris’ shoulder that's the 3rd most important factor in whether the Sens make the playoffs. The Sens really struggled to score 5-on-5 last year outside of their top line. Norris’ absence forced Shane Pinto (who remains unsigned at the moment) into a second line centre role. Pinto played well but not at Norris' level and Ottawa’s 3rd and 4th lines struggled to produce. When everyone is healthy and signed, the Sens have a phenomenal 1-2-3 punch down the middle.

4. Jake Sanderson

The Sens D-core has been an issue for years: it was Thomas Chabot and everyone else. Chabot now has some very talented reinforcements in Jake Sanderson and Jakob Chychrun. It was hard to decide between Sanderson and Chychrun but we have a track record for Chychrun. He gets 15-20 goals most years, he's good defensively, a great skater, shooter, and puck mover. 

Sanderson is an enigma: he has the pedigree of a 5th overall pick and just signed an 8-year, $64.4 million contract extension. Among the Sens current top four, Sanderson had the best relative CORSI percentage last year. The question is how good will he be offensively? In preseason, he's been trying to jump up in the rush a bit more and create in the offensive zone. If he takes another step, the Sens might have a Norris trophy candidate for the next decade.

5. Thomas Chabot

Thomas Chabot skates incredibly and moves the puck effortlessly; he is a player that always catches your attention. Last year, many fans and pundits expected him to take a huge leap with more talent around him. However, he was underwhelming. He was very poor defensively, yet still finished with 41 points in 68 games. He doesn’t possess great defensive instincts, but if his elite offensive game returns and his chemistry with Chychrun develops, he could be the key factor to making the playoffs.

Honourable mentions

Brady Tkachuk, Jakob Chychrun, Shane Pinto (if signed)

There is so much talent on this team, it was hard to pick the five most important players. The Senators have enough game breakers to make the playoffs. If they get relatively good health, decent goaltending and their young guys keep improving, it could be a very good season in the nation’s capital.