2025-26 Sens Storylines

Image: Senators prospect D Carter Yakemchuk. Credit: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images

With the 2025-26 preseason officially underway and training camp in full swing, it’s a good moment to look ahead at some of the key questions and storylines for the Ottawa Senators in the coming season. For the Senators, the regular season begins away at Tampa Bay on Thursday October 9. Before the puck drops for real, here’s a look at some of the stories that may come to define the team’s trajectory in 2025-26.

Carter Yakemchuk - In or Out? 

When the Senators drafted D Carter Yakemchuk 7th overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, he immediately rocketed to the top of the team’s prospect rankings. The RHD from Fort McMurray, Alberta had just come off a season where he’d scored 30 goals and 71 points playing for the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Noted for his offensive prowess from the blueline, Yakemchuk also fills an organizational need on the right-hand side. Fans, and no doubt the team’s front office, hope that Yakemchuk can eventually become a long-term partner for star LHD Jake Sanderson. However, the 2024-25 season was a bit of a letdown for the Alberta native. The Senators opted to let Yakemchuk spend one more year in Junior rather than rush him to the NHL. A sensible decision in most cases, but one which soured when Yakemchuk and several other prized prospects were snubbed by Team Canada ahead of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. Between being denied the opportunity to play meaningful games at the sport’s premiere U-20 tournament and a drop in his offensive output, Yakemchuk’s draft-plus-one season was a bit of a letdown. 

That being said, it means that Yakemchuk and the team are now focused on exactly one goal: cracking Ottawa’s opening night roster. Whether Yakemchuk suits up alongside Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, and the rest of the Senators defensive corps or ends up playing in Belleville will be a major talking point over the next few weeks. Nick Jensen is recovering from hip surgery and Artem Zub has missed 68 games due to injury over the past three seasons. If Yakemchuk can put together a solid training camp, a top-four spot could be his for the taking. 

Can Zetterlund hang with the best?

Although the acquisition of Dylan Cozens from Buffalo grabbed most of the headlines on trade deadline day this past March, pundits warned fans not to sleep on the trade for Fabian Zetterlund either. The 25 year old LW had put up 24 goals the season prior on a terrible San Jose team and was considered a legitimate building block in their rebuild. His speed and shot were highly touted. So, naturally, his production cratered as soon as he landed in Ottawa. After bagging 17 goals and 19 assists in 64 games with the Sharks, Zetterlund managed a meagre 2 goals and 3 assists in the remaining 20 games of his season. 

Clearly, however, the team thought that Zetterlund had more to give. The Senators signed Zetterlund to a three-year extension averaging $4.275 million per year on June 19. Believers would argue that Zetterlund had limited opportunities to play with the team’s best players during his brief cameo in the back half of the year. For instance, Zetterlund played less than 70 minutes with Tim Stützle after joining the team. But the NHL is a league where nobody hands it to you. If Zetterlund wants to prove he can skate in a top-six role, he’s going to need to hit the ground running in 2025-26. 

Which version of Linus Ullmark will the Senators see?

By trading for and subsequently extending Linus Ullmark in the 2024 offseason, the Senators addressed the team’s most glaring issue from recent seasons. The 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner got off to a slow start in Ottawa, but ended the season with a respectable .909 SV% and 2.72 GAA while going 25-14-3 along the way. In 2024-25, the team posted its first above .900 save percentage season since 2021-22 and Ullmark (4) combined with Leevi Merilainen (3) and Anton Forsberg (3) to post 10 shutouts. The performance of all three goaltenders played a major role in earning the Senators their first postseason berth since 2017. 

That being said, it wasn’t always smooth sailing. Ullmark had some notable dips in form throughout the season, especially in mid-October and early December. He also had a hard time staying healthy, starting only 43 games while sharing the crease with Forsberg and Merilainen. Ullmark has also historically struggled in the playoffs, this past postseason being no exception. His .880 SV% in the six game series against Toronto certainly raised some eyebrows in Ottawa. Now that Forsberg signed with Los Angeles in the offseason, it will be up to Ullmark to assume the lion’s share of the starts while being backed up by the rookie Merilainen. Ullmark has been refreshingly honest in his assessment of his and the team’s performance throughout his tenure in Ottawa. The veteran goaltender has shown leadership and poise off the ice, while showing significant promise between the pipes. But he would be the first to tell you that he can do better. Senators fans will be eager to see if he’s right.