Report: Senators gauging trade interest in Jordan Spence

The Ottawa Senators took steps forward this regular season under head coach Travis Green, but got a bad draw in the first round, ultimately getting swept at the hands of the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes.

One of the reasons the Senators improved this year when compared to last was the play of defenseman Jordan Spence, who Ottawa acquired from the Los Angeles Kings last summer in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and a sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Spence provided solid defensive play and chipped in 31 points in 75 appearances while skating an average of 18:44 per game. Now, set to become a restricted free agent on July 1, it appears that Spence’s stay in Canada’s capital may be a short one.

According to a report from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen, Senators general manager Steve Staios has sent out feelers around the league in a bid to gauge what he could command in a possible return for the right-shot blueliner.

“Let’s make this clear,” Garrioch wrote. “This doesn’t mean Steve Staios, the club’s president of hockey operations and general manager, is trying to deal Spence. But that possibility shouldn’t be ruled out because all options are on the table with all 32 teams trying to make changes.”

According to PuckPedia, Staios and his front office will have about $16.9 million in salary cap space with which to try to improve the roster this summer. That’s with 12 forwards, six defensemen and one goaltender already signed to contracts for next season.

The right side of Ottawa’s defensive unit is also somewhat crowded, as Artem Zub is established as a top-four mainstay (though he has just one year left on his deal before being eligible to hit unrestricted free agency) and highly-touted prospect Carter Yakemchuk is likely to make the jump to being a full-time NHL contributor sooner rather than later.