The offseason is characterized as a period of time dedicated to change.

Teams restructure their rosters as they aim to address weaknesses and plan for the future, creating a shuffling of staff and players. Trades, free agency signings, draft events, and contract negotiations dominate the headlines.

For the Ottawa Senators' official radio and television broadcast partner, the Bell Media-owned TSN network, changes have also been afoot.

The Hockey News revealed in early September that the Senators' official English radio broadcast team would not be travelling on the road to cover games live for the first time in this franchise's history.

Dean Brown and Gord Wilson have been the Senators' respective play-by-play and colour commentators since the franchise returned to the NHL for the 1992-93 season. The pair will no longer travel with the team. Instead, they are relegated to watching the television feed and relaying their own interpretation of the game from TSN 1200's downtown George Street broadcast studio.

Now, the Senators' television broadcasts will change next season, as former Senator Marc Methot will no longer appear on TSN's regional broadcasts.

The Hockey News asked TSN to provide a list of its broadcast team for the 2025-26 season.

Here was the response:

"For the 2025-26 season, TSN's live regional coverage of the Ottawa Senators features a multitude of TSN Hockey personalities. Gord Miller, Kenzie Lalonde, and Matt Cullen deliver the call alongside game analyst Jamie McLennan. Claire Hanna hosts live panel coverage with a rotating crew of analysts and special guests, including Cheryl Pounder, Frankie Corrado, Mike Johnson, Marc Denis, and former Senators head coach Paul MacLean."

Conspicuously absent from that list was Methot.

A follow-up email was sent requesting that TSN provide a statement on Methot and his removal from the Senators' broadcasts.

TSN issued the following reply:

"The personalities across all TSN panels can change and evolve from season to season. We're looking forward to delivering great regional coverage of the Ottawa Senators for TSN viewers."

Methot was a wildly popular Senator in the five seasons he played for the organization, from 2012 to 2017. The rugged and hard-hitting blue liner's best years came from playing alongside Erik Karlsson, who won two Norris Trophies during this period.

Born and raised in Ottawa, it made sense for Methot to transition into broadcasting after he formally announced his retirement in 2021. As a player, he was always receptive to the media and appeared comfortable in front of a camera.

In retirement, he possessed the look and charisma to thrive as a prospective analyst, but it was his ability to point out the positives while being unafraid to be forthright with his criticisms that added significant weight to his analysis.

Methot has real potential, and it felt like he was tracking for a national broadcast analyst role if he wanted it.  

An email to TSN requesting clarification on the reasons for the change was left unanswered at the time of publication.

The Senators' regional broadcasts will now move on without Methot. The network has pivoted to fly and put up their out-of-market talent for these games. Cheryl Pounder, Mike Johnson and Frankie Corrado are familiar faces who have capably filled the on-air analyst role before, but Marc Denis and Paul MacLean will be new additions this season.

Denis currently serves as a colour analyst for the Montreal Canadiens' Francophone broadcasts on RDS, while MacLean will return to the city where he coached for four seasons. He started his head coaching career in Ottawa at the beginning of the 2011-12 season. He ranks third in all-time wins by a Senators coach (114), trailing only D.J. Smith (131) and Jacques Martin (246), famously winning the 2013 Jack Adams Award as the NHL's 'Coach of the Year.'