The Ottawa Senators made the move their fans have been wanting for weeks. Ottawa fired head coach DJ Smith after an extremely disappointing start to the 2023-24 NHL season. In his place is a familiar face, as Jacques Martin takes the reigns behind the Sens bench for the first time since 2004.

Interim Ottawa general manager Steve Staios spoke with the media on Monday after news of the firing broke. He took note of the things the team has gone through this year. However, there was one recurring theme in Monday's press conference: faith.

“I do have faith in this group,” Staios said, via NHL.com. “I have faith in the leadership of this group and the character of this group. I think with the right guidance and environment that they can get to that level.”

“There's plenty of room for optimism within our group with the individuals that we have. I think it's our job now to make sure that we steady these things,” the interim Senators general manager continued on Monday.

Ottawa Senators owner Michael Andlauer in Ottawa showing patience with head coach DJ Smith and star forward Brady Tkachuk

Senators season went downhill under DJ Smith

Ottawa entered the 2023-24 NHL season with a lot of the optimism Staios talked about. Despite losing Alex DeBrincat over the summer, they had an incredible core in place already. Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk led the way last season, with other young stars such as Jake Sanderson and Drake Batherson making impressions of their own.

This year, however, things never got off the ground. The Senators began the season 3-1-0 but soon fell back to around .500 or even under. Since November 24, Ottawa has won just three games. They are dead last in the Eastern Conference based on points and second-last on points percentage, as well.

Owner Michael Andlauer recently commented that he wanted to remain patient. That said, his team's playoff hopes are dwindling. In fact, they have just an 11% chance at making the Stanley Cup Playoffs, according to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.

At the end of the day, the Senators had no choice. Something had to give, and waiting any longer to make the move could have been catastrophic. Let's see if Jacques Martin's return as Senators head coach can spark this team to their first playoff appearance since the 2016-17 NHL season.