# 2022–23 Ottawa Senators season

The 2022–23 Ottawa Senators season was the 31st season of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Senators improved on their record compared to the previous season, but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. The Senators were officially eliminated from the playoffs on April 6, 2023, in the 79th game of the season.

## Team business

The National Capital Commission (NCC) resumed the process to redevelop the LeBreton Flats overall site, reserving the site of an arena and asking for preliminary bids on the arena site separately. After a February 2022 deadline to submit bids, the NCC announced that it had received several bids for the site. Local media speculated that the Senators were actively pursuing a bid, authorized by Eugene Melnyk shortly before his death. In June 2022, the NCC accepted the Senators' proposal for a new downtown arena and mixed-use development as part of the Lebreton Flats redevelopment. The team will lease the land for their development. Construction is not expected before 2024 after a leasing agreement is finalized and municipal review of the project is completed. The lease agreement is expected to be put in place by autumn of 2023. In related business, the outstanding lawsuits around the previous LeBreton bid were settled out of court in December 2022.
The team parted ways with their ECHL affiliate, the Atlanta Gladiators, and signed an affiliation agreement with the ECHL's Allen Americans.
On February 17, 2023, the Senators retired Chris Neil's no. 25 jersey.

### Team sale

In November 2022, it was reported that Eugene Melnyk's daughters, and heirs to his estate, had engaged Galatioto Sports Partners, a New York City investment banker, to facilitate a sale of the team. The Senators confirmed the planned sale on November 5, with a condition of sale being that the team remain in Ottawa. On November 7, Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds disclosed publicly that he was interested in being part of the consortium to purchase the team. This was followed by news of bids endorsed by Snoop Dogg and The Weeknd. However, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated that the bids for the franchise would "stand on their own merit" and that negotiating in public was discouraged. The group Reynolds aligned with withdrew from bidding before final bids were submitted.
The final deadline to submit binding bids was May 15, 2023. Four groups submitted binding bids. The groups were led by Michael Andlauer, Jeffrey and Michael Kimel, Steve Apostolopoulos and Neko Sparks. Snoop Dogg is associated with the Sparks bid and The Weeknd with the Kimel bid. Andlauer was already a member of the NHL Board of Governors, being a minority owner of the Montreal Canadiens. The Kimels were former minority owners of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Sparks is an entrepreneur focused on emerging technologies based in Los Angeles. Apostolopoulos is a Toronto-based billionaire who had previously attempted to purchase the Washington Commanders of the National Football League. On June 9, Apostolopoulos withdrew his bid from the process. On June 13, 2023, the Senators announced that a purchase agreement had been signed with the group of investors headed by Andlauer. The sale was finalized in September 2023.

## Off-season

The Senators began the off-season being very active in trades and personnel changes. On the first day of the entry draft, the team acquired scoring forward Alex DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks, giving up their first-round and second-round picks in 2022 and a third-round pick in 2024. On July 11, 2022, the team traded away goaltender Matt Murray to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The following day, the Senators acquired goaltender Cam Talbot from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Filip Gustavsson.
The team also bought out forward Colin White and defenceman Michael Del Zotto. The team previously told forwards Chris Tierney, Adam Gaudette, and Tyler Ennis as well as defenceman Victor Mete that they would not be re-signed. Connor Brown was traded to the Washington Capitals for a second-round pick in the 2024 draft.
On the first day of free agency, the team signed free agent forward Claude Giroux. The next day, the team re-signed centre Josh Norris to an eight-year contract extension. The team added veterans Tyler Motte and Derick Brassard to complement the roster.
Former Senators defenceman Wade Redden was hired as a development coach, joining former Senators players Shean Donovan and Jesse Winchester as development coaches.

## Standings
### Divisional standings

Atlantic Division :
| Pos | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | p – Boston Bruins | 82 | 65 | 12 | 5 | 54 | 305 | 177 | +128 | 135 |
| 2 | x – Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 50 | 21 | 11 | 42 | 279 | 222 | +57 | 111 |
| 3 | x – Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 46 | 30 | 6 | 38 | 283 | 254 | +29 | 98 |
| 4 | x – Florida Panthers | 82 | 42 | 32 | 8 | 36 | 290 | 273 | +17 | 92 |
| 5 | e – Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 42 | 33 | 7 | 30 | 296 | 300 | −4 | 91 |
| 6 | e – Ottawa Senators | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 31 | 261 | 271 | −10 | 86 |
| 7 | e – Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 28 | 240 | 279 | −39 | 80 |
| 8 | e – Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 31 | 45 | 6 | 21 | 232 | 307 | −75 | 68 |

### Conference standings

Eastern Conference Wild Card :
| Pos | Div | Team v t e | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | ME | x – New York Islanders | 82 | 42 | 31 | 9 | 36 | 243 | 222 | +21 | 93 |
| 2 | AT | x – Florida Panthers | 82 | 42 | 32 | 8 | 36 | 290 | 273 | +17 | 92 |
| 3 | ME | e – Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | 31 | 262 | 264 | −2 | 91 |
| 4 | AT | e – Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 42 | 33 | 7 | 30 | 296 | 300 | −4 | 91 |
| 5 | AT | e – Ottawa Senators | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 31 | 261 | 271 | −10 | 86 |
| 6 | AT | e – Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 28 | 240 | 279 | −39 | 80 |
| 7 | ME | e – Washington Capitals | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 27 | 255 | 265 | −10 | 80 |
| 8 | ME | e – Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 31 | 38 | 13 | 26 | 222 | 277 | −55 | 75 |
| 9 | AT | e – Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 31 | 45 | 6 | 21 | 232 | 307 | −75 | 68 |
| 10 | ME | e – Columbus Blue Jackets | 82 | 25 | 48 | 9 | 15 | 214 | 330 | −116 | 59 |

## Schedule and results
### Preseason

The pre-season schedule was published on July 1, 2022.

### Regular season

The regular season schedule was published on July 6, 2022.
2022–23 game log :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Overtime/shootout loss (1 point) :

## Player statistics

Final Statistics

### Skaters

Regular season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Tim Stuetzle | 78 | 39 | 51 | 90 | −3 | 54 |
| Brady Tkachuk | 82 | 35 | 48 | 83 | −10 | 126 |
| Claude Giroux | 82 | 35 | 44 | 79 | +4 | 34 |
| Alex DeBrincat | 82 | 27 | 39 | 66 | −31 | 45 |
| Drake Batherson | 82 | 22 | 40 | 62 | −35 | 33 |
| Thomas Chabot | 68 | 11 | 30 | 41 | −11 | 52 |
| Shane Pinto | 82 | 20 | 15 | 35 | −21 | 18 |
| Jake Sanderson | 77 | 4 | 28 | 32 | −6 | 12 |
| Derick Brassard | 62 | 13 | 10 | 23 | +3 | 30 |
| Travis Hamonic | 75 | 6 | 15 | 21 | −5 | 71 |
| Mathieu Joseph | 56 | 3 | 15 | 18 | +5 | 36 |
| Erik Brannstrom | 74 | 2 | 16 | 18 | +5 | 38 |
| Nick Holden | 65 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 0 | 10 |
| Austin Watson | 75 | 9 | 2 | 11 | −7 | 123 |
| Mark Kastelic | 65 | 7 | 4 | 11 | −6 | 102 |
| Dylan Gambrell | 60 | 4 | 6 | 10 | −4 | 35 |
| Artyom Zub | 53 | 3 | 7 | 10 | +2 | 39 |
| Tyler Motte$^‡$ | 38 | 3 | 6 | 9 | +1 | 4 |
| Ridly Greig | 20 | 2 | 7 | 9 | +1 | 12 |
| Julien Gauthier$^†$ | 17 | 3 | 2 | 5 | −1 | 2 |
| Jakob Chychrun$^†$ | 12 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −1 | 8 |
| Patrick Brown$^†$ | 18 | 2 | 3 | 5 | +4 | 27 |
| Nikita Zaitsev$^‡$ | 28 | 0 | 5 | 5 | −5 | 8 |
| Parker Kelly | 55 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −9 | 37 |
| Josh Norris | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −1 | 6 |
| Egor Sokolov | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | +2 | 0 |
| Tyler Kleven | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −1 | 2 |
| Jake Lucchini | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| Jacob Bernard-Docker | 19 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 11 |
| Lassi Thomson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 4 |
| Jacob Larsson | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Rourke Chartier | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dillon Heatherington | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 0 |
| Maxence Guenette | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |

### Goaltenders

Regular season :
| Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Cam Talbot | 36 | 32 | 1,947:00 | 17 | 14 | 2 | 95 | 2.93 | 935 | .898 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Anton Forsberg | 28 | 25 | 1,471:43 | 11 | 11 | 2 | 80 | 3.26 | 817 | .902 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Mads Sogaard | 19 | 17 | 1,047:30 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 58 | 3.32 | 524 | .889 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Dylan Ferguson | 2 | 2 | 118:52 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2.52 | 83 | .940 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Magnus Hellberg$^‡$ | 1 | 1 | 60:00 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2.00 | 31 | .935 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kevin Mandolese | 3 | 3 | 182:12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 3.29 | 119 | .916 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leevi Merilainen | 2 | 2 | 85:05 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4.23 | 49 | .878 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
$^†$Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Senators. Stats reflect time with the Senators only. $^‡$No longer with the Senators.

## Awards and milestones
### Awards

| Player | Award |
| Shane Pinto | October NHL Rookie of the Month |
| Claude Giroux | NHL Stars of The Week (1st) |
| Mads Sogaard | February NHL Rookie of the Month |
| Jake Sanderson | 2022–23 NHL All-Rookie Team |

### Milestones

| Player | Milestone | Date |
| Jake Sanderson | 1st career NHL game | October 13, 2022 |
| Claude Giroux | 300th career NHL goal | November 5, 2022 |
| Jake Sanderson | 1st career NHL goal | November 24, 2022 |
| Jake Lucchini | 1st career NHL game | December 14, 2022 |
| Jake Lucchini | 1st career NHL goal | January 2, 2023 |
| Jake Lucchini | 1st career NHL point | January 2, 2023 |
| Ridly Greig | 1st career NHL game | January 25, 2023 |
| Ridly Greig | 1st career NHL point | January 25, 2023 |
| Kevin Mandolese | 1st career NHL game | February 14, 2023 |
| Kevin Mandolese | 1st career NHL win | February 14, 2023 |
| Ridly Greig | 1st career NHL goal | February 19, 2023 |
| Derick Brassard | 1,000th career NHL game | March 2, 2023 |
| Dylan Ferguson | 1st career NHL win | March 20, 2023 |
| Tyler Kleven | 1st career NHL game | March 30, 2023 |
| Tyler Kleven | 1st career NHL point | March 30, 2023 |
| Leevi Merilainen | 1st career NHL game | April 4, 2023 |
| Egor Sokolov | 1st career NHL goal | April 8, 2023 |
| Claude Giroux | 1,000th career NHL point | April 10, 2023 |
| Maxence Guenette | 1st career NHL game | April 13, 2023 |

## Transactions

The Senators have been involved in the following transactions during the 2022–23 season.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| July 7, 2022 (2022-07-07) | To Chicago Blackhawks1st-round pick in 2022 2nd-round pick in 2022 3rd-round pick in 2024 | To Ottawa SenatorsAlex DeBrincat |
| July 12, 2022 (2022-07-12) | To Toronto Maple LeafsMatt Murray 3rd-round pick in 2023 7th-round pick in 2024 | To Ottawa SenatorsFuture considerations |
| July 12, 2022 (2022-07-12) | To Minnesota WildFilip Gustavsson | To Ottawa SenatorsCam Talbot |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | To Washington CapitalsConnor Brown | To Ottawa Senators2nd-round pick in 2024 |
| February 19, 2023 (2023-02-19) | To New York RangersTyler Motte | To Ottawa SenatorsJulien Gauthier 7th-round pick in 2023 |
| February 22, 2023 (2023-02-22) | To Chicago BlackhawksNikita Zaitsev 2nd-round pick in 2023 4th-round pick in 2026 | To Ottawa SenatorsFuture considerations |
| March 1, 2023 (2023-03-01) | To Arizona CoyotesConditional 1st-round pick in 2023 Conditional 2nd-round pick in 2024 2nd-round pick in 2025 | To Ottawa SenatorsJakob Chychrun |
| March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03) | To Philadelphia Flyers6th-round pick in 2023 | To Ottawa SenatorsPatrick Brown |
| March 10, 2023 (2023-03-10) | To Calgary FlamesKristians Rubins | To Ottawa SenatorsFuture considerations |
| March 10, 2023 (2023-03-10) | To New Jersey DevilsJayce Hawryluk | To Ottawa SenatorsFuture considerations |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Claude Giroux | Florida Panthers | 3-year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Jake Lucchini | Belleville Senators (AHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Kristians Rubins | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 14, 2022 (2022-07-14) | Antoine Bibeau | Seattle Kraken | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 14, 2022 (2022-07-14) | Jacob Larsson | Anaheim Ducks | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 18, 2022 (2022-07-18) | Rourke Chartier | Belleville Senators (AHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 25, 2022 (2022-07-25) | Jayce Hawryluk | Skellefteå AIK (SHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 14, 2022 (2022-09-14) | Tyler Motte | New York Rangers | 1-year | Free agency |
| October 3, 2022 (2022-10-03) | Magnus Hellberg | Seattle Kraken | | Waivers |
| October 10, 2022 (2022-10-10) | Derick Brassard | Edmonton Oilers | 1-year | Free agency |
| May 5, 2023 (2023-05-05) | Jiri Smejkal | IK Oskarshamn (SHL) | 1-year†‡ | Free agency |
| May 25, 2023 (2023-05-25) | Nikolas Matinpalo | Porin Assat (Liiga) | 1-year†‡ | Free agency |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Term | Via |
| July 12, 2022 (2022-07-12) | Michael Del Zotto | | | Buy-out |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Andrew Agozzino | San Jose Sharks | 2-year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Clark Bishop | Calgary Flames | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Adam Gaudette | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Logan Shaw | Toronto Marlies (AHL) | 3 year | Free agency |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Colin White | Florida Panthers | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 14, 2022 (2022-07-14) | Victor Mete | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 17, 2022 (2022-07-17) | Michael Del Zotto | Florida Panthers | 1-year | Free agency |
| July 19, 2022 (2022-07-19) | Chris Tierney | Florida Panthers | 1-year | Free agency |
| October 3, 2022 (2022-10-03) | Zachary Senyshyn | Utica Comets (AHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| October 10, 2022 (2022-10-10) | Michael McNiven | Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| November 10, 2022 (2022-11-10) | Magnus Hellberg | Seattle Kraken | | Waivers |
| May 6, 2023 (2023-05-06) | Viktor Lodin | IK Oskarshamn (SHL) | 2-year‡ | Free agency |

### Player signings

| Date | Player | Term |
| July 7, 2022 (2022-07-07) | Dillon Heatherington | 2-year |
| July 13, 2022 (2022-07-13) | Scott Sabourin | 1-year |
| July 14, 2022 (2022-07-14) | Josh Norris | 8-year |
| July 15, 2022 (2022-07-15) | Tomas Hamara | 3-year† |
| July 28, 2022 (2022-07-28) | Mathieu Joseph | 4-year |
| September 5, 2022 (2022-09-05) | Erik Brannstrom | 1-year |
| September 7, 2022 (2022-09-07) | Tim Stuetzle | 8-year‡ |
| September 23, 2022 (2022-09-23) | Jorian Donovan | 3-year† |
| October 10, 2022 (2022-10-10) | Derick Brassard | 1-year |
| October 27, 2022 (2022-10-27) | Mark Kastelic | 2-year‡ |
| December 21, 2022 (2022-12-21) | Artyom Zub | 4-year‡ |
| March 23, 2023 (2023-03-23) | Tyler Kleven | 3-year† |
| June 15, 2023 (2023-06-15) | Oskar Pettersson | 3-year† |
| June 29, 2023 (2023-06-29) | Jacob Larsson | 1-year |

#### Key

† Contract is entry-level.  ‡ Contract initially takes effect in the 2023–24 season.

## Draft picks

The 2022 NHL Entry Draft was held July 7–8, 2022 at the Bell Centre arena in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Senators traded their first-round pick and second-round pick to acquire Alex DeBrincat. The Senators' first pick was made in the second round - defenceman Filip Nordberg with the 64th-overall pick. The team had nine selections overall.
| Round | Overall | Player | Position | Nationality | Club team |
| 2 | 64 | Filip Nordberg | D | Sweden | Sodertalje SK (HockeyAllsvenskan) |
| 3 | 72 | Oskar Pettersson | RW | Sweden | Rogle J20 (J20 Nationell) |
| 3 | 87 | Tomas Hamara | D | Czech Republic | Tappara U20 (U20 SM-sarja) |
| 4 | 107 | Stephen Halliday | C | Canada | Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) |
| 5 | 136 | Jorian Donovan | D | Canada | Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL) |
| 5 | 143 | Cameron O'Neill | RW | USA | Mount St. Charles Academy (NEPACK 18U) |
| 5 | 151 | Kevin Reidler | G | Sweden | AIK J18 (J20 Nationell) |
| 6 | 168 | Theo Wallberg | D | Sweden | Skelleftea AIK J20 (J20 Nationell) |
| 7 | 206 | Tyson Dyck | C | Canada | Cranbrook Bucks (BCHL) |