Like the other 30 NHL general managers watching the playoffs, Sens GM Steve Staios is likely studying the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers to better understand what sets them apart from the team he runs. How did these two teams make it back to the Stanley Cup Final for the second year in a row? How have the Panthers made the finals three years in a row? What is it about their rosters that the Senators lack? This will ultimately guide Staios’ decision-making over the summer and dictate how he chooses to spend the projected $16.6 million in cap space available to him. May 3, 2025: GM Steve Staios is asked about finding talent at 21st overall in the NHL Draft (Senators on YouTube) The Oilers and Panthers are not the same kind of teams. They aren’t built the same way, and they don’t play the same way. Yet both found their way to the finals in back-to-back years. The Oilers are top-heavy with talent such as Connor McDavid [https://puckpedia.com/player/connor-mcdavid], Leon Draisaitl [https://puckpedia.com/player/leon-draisaitl], Ryan Nugent-Hopkins [https://puckpedia.com/player/ryan-nugent-hopkins] and Evan Bouchard [https://puckpedia.com/player/evan-bouchard]. They have grit with the likes of Corey Perry [https://puckpedia.com/player/corey-perry], Trent Frederic [https://puckpedia.com/player/trent-frederic], Viktor Arvidsson [https://puckpedia.com/player/viktor-arvidsson] and Zach Hyman [https://puckpedia.com/player/zach-hyman], who will be sorely missed in the finals. They have competent goaltending with Stuart Skinner [https://puckpedia.com/player/stuart-skinner] (when he's on his game), but make no mistake, they are built from the top down. If the Oilers win the Stanley Cup, it will be one of McDavid, Draisaitl, Nugent-Hopkins or Bouchard who accepts the Conn Smythe Trophy. The Panthers are built from the crease outward, with two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky [https://puckpedia.com/player/sergei-bobrovsky] leading the charge. They don’t have a defenceman with the offensive prowess of Bouchard, but they have depth, size, and scoring-by-committee, led by Aaron Ekblad [https://puckpedia.com/player/aaron-ekblad] and Seth Jones [https://puckpedia.com/player/seth-jones], and an ensemble that makes it very difficult for anyone to establish an offensive presence in their zone. They have no one with more than 20 points in this post-season, but they have size, scoring depth, and grit with Aleksander Barkov [https://puckpedia.com/player/aleksander-barkov], Matthew Tkachuk [https://puckpedia.com/player/matthew-tkachuk], Sam Bennett [https://puckpedia.com/player/sam-bennett], and Carter Verhaeghe [https://puckpedia.com/player/carter-verhaeghe]. If the Panthers win the Cup, the Conn Smythe likely won’t go to McDavid again, but rather to someone like Bennett, Barkov or Bobrovsky. Now, which of these two moulds most resemble the Ottawa Senators [https://puckpedia.com/team/ottawa-senators]: the Panthers or the Oilers? Up until this past season, the Senators’ goaltending was in turmoil, and Staios took steps to rectify that by acquiring Linus Ullmark [https://puckpedia.com/player/linus-ullmark]. He also severed ties with undersized Erik Brännström to pave the way for Tyler Kleven [https://puckpedia.com/player/tyler-kleven] to ascend to the NHL. The benefits were immediate and continuous. The Senators have elite skill and speed in Tim Stützle, but their identity is being forged through their defensive game and their captain, Brady Tkachuk [https://puckpedia.com/player/brady-tkachuk], and they try to play a more defensively conscious and puck possession game. Players like Shane Pinto [https://puckpedia.com/player/shane-pinto], Ridly Greig [https://puckpedia.com/player/ridly-greig], and Mike Amadio — and their 200-foot game — are more likely to propel the Senators forward than getting into track meets every night. In his first draft as an NHL GM, Staios even used his inaugural first-round pick to choose a huge defenceman with offensive potential and grit in Carter Yakemchuk [https://puckpedia.com/player/carter-yakemchuk]. His second-round pick was a 6’7” stay-at-home defenceman with a mean streak in Gabriel Eliasson [https://puckpedia.com/player/gabriel-eliasson]. NHL Draft Watch: Ottawa Senators Hope To Deal Themselves Another Winner At 21 [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/c51c724b-c99a-4253-bc53-5e6ac152181b.webp] NHL Draft Watch: Ottawa Senators Hope To Deal Themselves Another Winner At 21 So far, here in the roaring 20s, the Ottawa Senators' first-round picks at the NHL Draft have been all or nothing. They’ve either landed in the top 10 or haven’t had a first-round pick at all. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/nhl-draft-watch-ottawa-senators-hope-to-deal-themselves-another-winner-at-21] On the surface, it would seem that Staios has bought more into the Florida Panthers' model and believes the way out of the Eastern Conference is a war of attrition. Though they aren’t there yet, this is the way forward that Staios appears to have chosen — and given the Panthers’ recent success, it’s hard to blame him. Before he spends any money on free agency, Staios needs to figure out what to do with players whose contracts are expiring July 1. Nicklas Matinpalo was inked to what could easily be one of the most team-friendly two-year deals in the league at $875K per. A 6’3”/210 lb right-shot mainstay defenceman seems to fit right in with what Staios is building. Claude Giroux, Nick Cousins, Adam Gaudette, and Matthew Highmore are the UFAs up front. Travis Hamonic is the lone UFA on defence, and Anton Forsberg in goal rounds out the list. The lone RFA is Fabian Zetterlund, who's arbitration-eligible. The Ottawa Senators’ Quiet Logjam Up Front: What Are They Planning? [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/7abe13b8-6ff6-4ee9-b2a3-11104faea3f2.webp] The Ottawa Senators’ Quiet Logjam Up Front: What Are They Planning? If the Ottawa Senators are planning a new contract extension for impending unrestricted free agent Claude Giroux, it is hard not to wonder whether an accompanying trade is on the horizon. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/the-ottawa-senators-quiet-logjam-up-front-what-are-they-planning] The Senators became harder to play against this season, enough so to make the playoffs and give a good account of themselves. The question facing Staios about all of his potentially outgoing players and whether to retain them is: “Do any of these guys fit with what we are trying to do here?” That is a debate for another day. If the dealing of the popular Josh Norris to Buffalo is any indication, Staios is willing to do whatever it takes to move the Senators to the next level. If the GM isn’t overly attached to any of the existing players, then fans should take a similar approach and expect more than a few fresh faces come training camp. Recent Senators News at The Hockey News Ottawa [http://thn.com/Ottawa]: Will The Senators Select Another Calgary Hitmen Star In Round One? [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/getting-a-read-on-kindel-could-the-ottawa-senators-hire-a-hitman-again-this-year/comment/qk3boISrqdfp6z0xPw2T] The Sens' Short History Of Offer Sheets Isn't Likely To Grow This Summer [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/ottawa-senators-short-history-of-offer-sheets-isn-t-likely-to-grow-this-summer] Senators Open To Re-Signing Adam Gaudette – But At What Cost? [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/ottawa-senators-open-to-re-signing-adam-gaudette-but-at-what-cost] https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/nhl-draft-watch-ottawa-senators-hope-to-deal-themselves-another-winner-at-21Ex-Sens Head Coach Enters Ottawa Sport Hall Of Fame [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/former-senators-head-coach-enters-ottawa-sports-hall-of-fame] Former Sens Defenceman Officially Signs On To Play In Switzerland [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators/latest-news/former-senators-defenceman-officially-signs-on-to-play-in-switzerland]
