The Ottawa Senators took a step forward in 2024-25, making the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and showing that they are one of the up-and-coming teams in the Eastern Conference. Even after a disappointing first-round loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games, the Senators have a lot to look forward to heading into next season.

However, in order to continue to rise the ranks in the stacked Eastern Conference, the Senators know that they have to improve this offseason. That starts with keeping the best players on the roster around, including standout forward Claude Giroux. Giroux is 37 years old and will turn 38 next season, but the Senators will still want to keep him around in free agency.

Despite his age and the timeline not exactly matching up for Giroux, the Senators still reportedly want to keep him around according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen.

“We’re led to believe that the Senators would like to sign Giroux to a one-year extension and that was the length of their initial offer,” Garrioch wrote. “This is a contract for an over-35-year-old player, which means it won’t offer any cap relief if Giroux’s game falls off.”

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Giroux notched five points in the six playoff games that Ottawa played in this season, good for a tie for second on the team behind star winger Brady Tkachuk. He did that in less than 18 minutes of ice time per game as well, so he was very efficient in his minutes.

During the regular season, Giroux was one of the best players on the roster even as his production has declined somewhat since his prime years. He scored just 50 points, on 15 goals and 35 assists, scoring four of his goals on the man-advantage.

Perhaps Giroux's best skill at this stage of his career is his availability. He missed just one game last season despite his age, and that kind of dependability is the kind of thing that the Senators need if they want to keep this momentum going into next season.

Ottawa knows that it has a star in Tkachuk, and it will want to continue to put the best team possible around him for the foreseeable future. Retaining Giroux is a good first step in the right direction for the Senators in that department.