The Ottawa Senators Are Competitive This Season...How Did That Happen??

The Senators are finally starting to take the next steps towards being a playoff contender. What is behind their surge this season?

The NHL’s Atlantic Division has been a case of have’s and have not’s of late. On one side, you have the annual playoff contenders in the Florida Panthers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins always fighting for position.

On the other side, you have teams in the Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators that are trying desperately to break into the top-four of the Atlantic. The general consensus was one of the Red Wings, Sabres or Senators was going to crash the party and dethrone someone.

The Sabres are the same old Sabres. They have a bevy of issues that need addressed including roster construction and toughness in the future. There’s no question they have talent. But now they need to find the right mix.

Entering Saturday’s games, it’s the Senators and Red Wings that are holding down the East wildcard positions. The Senators hold the first wildcard and are tied in points with the Lightning for third in the Atlantic despite being swept in the mini two-game series this week by the Lightning.

The Senators are even within striking distance of second in the Atlantic and the Maple Leafs. That gap is just six points in the race for home-ice advantage in the first round.

What has gotten into these Senators? How have they been able to finally breakthrough to the point where they’re squarely in the playoff race? Turns out a combination of decisions and performance step to the forefront here.

Rise Started Last Season

Their record didn’t bear it out. But the rise of the Senators actually started as soon as they moved on from D.J. Smith. The team was just 11-16-0 at the time of his firing.

The Senators vastly underperformed despite having good, young talent around. But being last in the Eastern Conference just a week before Christmas, something had to give. Smith was replaced by Jacques Martin.

Although things got a little better from that point forward, things were still amiss with the Senators. They finished the rest of the 2023-24 season 26-25-4 under Martin.

The Senators not only needed a coach, they needed the right coach. Given what all was missing from the team, they needed a certain kind of coach that could develop a winning culture.

This leads us to the first key reason the Senators are much more competitive in 2024-25. They found the right coach for their situation.

Enter Travis Green

Not only did the new coach need to establish a winning culture, they had to be a good teacher while holding players accountable. Enter Travis Green.