What do the Senators do with their blueline next season?
The Ottawa Senators clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this spring, but were swept by the Carolina Hurricanes and closed out the 2025-26 campaign with a bitter taste in their mouths.
While Jake Sanderson has emerged as one of the game’s best defenders, there’s questions about what the team does on their blueline. Jordan Spence will be a restricted free agent, and after a season that saw him reach career highs on the scoresheet and play an average of more than 18 minutes per night, he’ll be due for a pay bump.
Does that mean the team looks at trading someone like Thomas Chabot? Would Artem Zubov have value on the market? And what happens to Tyler Kleven, who will be a restricted free agent next summer?
On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton are joined by Brent Wallace of the Coming In Hot podcast to discuss the Senators’ offseason and what the future holds on Ottawa’s blueline.
Carter Hutton: The Sens dealt with a ton of injuries on their backend, and someone who impressed me in 2025-26 was Jordan Spence. I thought he stepped up and played a very good role in the playoffs and down the stretch. Where do they go with their blueline? Are they set or is there anything they need to upgrade to push?
We’re looking at an Atlantic Division that’s not going to give you any free rides. If we’re saying the Florida Panthers had an offseason, then the Atlantic is stacked and there’s going to be a lot of work to do for the Sens.
Brent Wallace: Jordan Spence is such an interesting player to discuss. I think Ottawa needs a little more snarl in their top-four corps. It goes Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub as their top pair, then Thomas Chabot, and right now it’s Jordan Spence. Now Spence is, I think, a fantastic player, but I don’t know if he fits in what Ottawa needs when they have Chabot on the left side.
Is there a way that maybe Chabot is moved and Spence is kept? Sure, that’s a possibility. But Spence is a restricted free agent who makes a lot less money, and is easier to control. That’s why I think his name continues to get tossed around in trade discussion. I have no issues with Spence being in the top four, as long as you have the right guy on the other side.