The Ottawa Senators are trying to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2025. They came close in 2023, but ultimately fell short. In 2024, they took a step back and weren't all that close to the playoff hunt. After moves such as trading for Linus Ullmark and signing David Perron in NHL Free Agency, Ottawa believes they can make a push this upcoming season.
The Senators have the talent to make the playoffs. Ullmark gives them a legitimate starting goaltender. They have a standout defenseman in Jake Sanderson to lead a blueline with Thomas Chabot and Artem Zub. Up front, Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk lead the way offensively.
That said, Ottawa is far from a lock to make the playoffs. Their performance this past season has served to raise concerns over the current group of players in place. If they fall short of playoff expectations, it's likely the Senators find themselves selling once again. With this in mind, here are two potential Senators trade candidates that could arise through the 2024-25 season.
Claude Giroux could be a trade candidate
The Senators signed hometown product Claude Giroux in NHL Free Agency back in 2022. Giroux went on a playoff run with the Florida Panthers following a trade from his longtime team — the Philadelphia Flyers. It started out well, with the veteran forward putting up 35 goals and 79 points in 2022-23.
However, Giroux took a step back along with the rest of the team this past year. The veteran forward scored 21 goals and 64 points for Ottawa as they stumbled to a seventh-place finish in the Atlantic Division. Looking under the surface, Giroux's offensive impact dipped pretty significantly. He went from 12.7 offensive goals above replacement in 2022-23 to 5.4 OGAR this past season.
Perhaps a more telling sign of his decline is that — for the first time in the last three seasons — Giroux played slightly below replacement level. He had a 2.3 WAR during his first season in Ottawa, according to Evolving Hockey. This represented an increase from the 1.3 WAR he recorded with the Flyers and Panthers in the year prior.
All this said, there are encouraging signs for Giroux. His expected offensive goals above replacement in 2023-24 was 13.6. Additionally, he had an expected standing points above replacement of 5.1. This would place his expected WAR for 2023-24 at around 2.5.
If Giroux can find a bit more consistency, he could have a big bounce back season. Whether he comes close to 80 points again remains to be seen. In any event, a more consistent Giroux will have a lot of teams calling Ottawa around the NHL Trade Deadline should the Senators be out of playoff contention.
Travis Hamonic may not have a spot in the lineup
The Senators shook up their blueline by trading Jakob Chychrun to the Washington Capitals this summer. In return, they received veteran rearguard Nick Jensen. Jensen currently looks to play the second line in place of Chychun. As a result, young defenders Jacob Bernard-Docker and Tyler Klevin could push veteran Travis Hamonic for the final two defensive spots on the team.
Hamonic has served a bottom-pairing role since arriving in Ottawa. However, his defense has left a lot to be desired at this point. Over the last three seasons, the veteran rearguard has -9 DGAR and a -1 WAR. His 2023-24 campaign was especially bad as he had a negative effect on Ottawa's standing points this past year.
Hamonic, like Giroux, is on an expiring contract. However, Hamonic may not have a spot on this roster. A contending team could still come in for him if they are looking for veteran depth, though. Especially if those contending teams are dealing with injuries on the bottom pairing of their defense.
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