The Senators got some good news on the injury front on Friday as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch notes that goaltender Linus Ullmark was back on the ice on Friday for the first time since suffering a back injury before the holiday break. Head coach Travis Green indicated that he’s hopeful that the veteran will be able to return to practice soon which is the next hurdle to clear before he can return. After a slow start to his season, Ullmark has a 1.48 GAA with a .957 SV% in his last ten outings which helped briefly propel them into one of the Wild Card spots in the East. But since he went down, the Sens have won just one of their last seven games, making his eventual return a top priority.
Senators Rumors
Senators Sign Ridly Greig To Four-Year Extension
The Ottawa Senators announced that they’ve signed forward Ridly Greig to a four-year contract extension worth a reported $13MM. The deal will carry Greig through the 2028-29 season and will see him carry an AAV of $3.25MM.
The 22-year-old is in his third NHL season with Ottawa and has six goals and six assists in 36 games this year. Over 128 career NHL games, the former first-round pick has totaled 21 goals and 26 assists. Although his offensive numbers don’t jump out at you, his overall game is rounding into form. Greig does have some playmaking ability; his skating is fantastic, and he is starting to show an edge and an ability to get under the skin of his opponents.
Senators president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios said in a release from the team that “Ridly has established himself as a key member of our team going forward. He brings a good mix of versatility and tenacity to our forward group.”
Greig has made the jump to the NHL rather quickly after spending just 46 games in the American Hockey League, where he posted 16 goals and 16 assists. His ascension and versatility have given the Senators a lot of options within their forward ranks, as they can utilize Greig at both center and wing. Greig has been paired up recently with Brady Tkachuk and Shane Pinto to form a formidable line.
Greig was a member of Team Canada during the 2022 World Junior Championships when Canada took gold. He posted three goals and three assists in five games during the tournament. He also represented Canada last year at the 2024 World Championships after the NHL regular season was over, posting a goal and two assists in two games.
At the end of his new deal, Greig will still be a restricted free agent with one year to go until UFA eligibility. He’ll be eligible for arbitration – which he wasn’t going to be this summer if he held out – and will be due a qualifying offer of $3.25MM.
PHR’s Josh Erickson contributed to this article.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Michael Andlauer Sells OHL Team To Hyman Family
Ottawa Senators majority owner Michael Andlauer has sold the Brantford Bulldogs of the Ontario Hockey League to current Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman and his family (as per CHCH News). Andlauer bought the Bulldogs back in 2015 when they were the Belleville Bulls, he moved the club to Hamilton where they went on to win the OHL Championship in 2018 and 2022. The Bulldogs were then moved to Brantford in 2023 due to the Hamilton arena (First Ontario Centre) undergoing extensive renovations and several disagreements between the city and the Bulldogs.
No official announcement has been made as of yet, but one is expected on Monday after the OHL Board approves the sale (as per TSN’s Darren Dreger). A press conference is expected to happen sometime in the middle of next week.
Once it is official, it raises a lot of questions about whether the team will stay in the city of Brantford, the Bulldogs home for the past two seasons. Brantford has information listed on the city’s website that outlines plans to build a $140MM sports and entertainment center that would presumably house the Bulldogs. The website mentions that construction could start this year, with 2027 as the target date to open up a new facility. However, with a new ownership group coming in, those plans could change. Hyman’s father, Stuart Hyman, is a developer in the Toronto area and is expected to be part of the ownership group along with his son.
Senators Recall Matthew Highmore And Zack MacEwen
The Ottawa Senators have recalled forwards Matthew Highmore and Zack MacEwen from the Belleville Senators of the American Hockey League (Twitter link). The recalls come on the heels of the Senators getting booed off the ice last night at home after suffering a 4-0 defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres.
Highmore has yet to see NHL action this season but did dress in seven NHL games last season for the Senators, posting two assists. The Halifax, Nova Scotia native has played 146 career NHL games in parts of six seasons with four NHL franchises. The undrafted 28-year-old has put up some productive AHL seasons with his best coming in 2022-23 while he was part of the St. Louis Blues organization. Highmore posted 19 goals and 42 assists with their AHL affiliate the Springfield Thunderbirds but could not carry any of that momentum into the NHL as he went scoreless in two games with the Blues that season.
The 28-year-old MacEwen cleared waivers over a month ago and has split this season between Belleville and Ottawa. While he hasn’t produced much offense for the Senators with two goals and an assist in 19 games. However, those numbers already match last year’s totals, which took MacEwen 30 games to reach. MacEwen’s underlying numbers have also been much better this season, but he has benefitted from more favorable deployment (63.4% offensive zone starts) and a PDO that is 3.6 points higher than last year’s number.
Ottawa Senators Reassign Jan Jeník
After playing in his first game since last April, and first with the Ottawa Senators, forward Jan Jeník is headed back to the American Hockey League. The Senators organization announced they’ve reassigned Jenik to their AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators.
Jeník is best known for his time as a higher-end prospect in the Arizona Coyotes organization. The Coyotes drafted him with the 65th overall pick of the 2018 NHL Draft and he was quickly loaned to the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs. He was a point-per-game player in his first year with the Bulldogs and wrapped up his OHL career with a 22-goal, 56-point performance in 27 games during the 2019-20 season.
He transitioned to professional hockey in 2020-21, when he first played for the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. Jeník became an above-average scorer at the AHL level for the next four years but never seemed to find his next level in the NHL. He collected 46 goals and 120 points in 165 games for the Roadrunners from 2020 to 2024 but only had four goals and six points in 22 games for the Coyotes over the same timeline.
Since his future in Arizona was seemingly closing shut, he was traded to the Senators organization this past summer for Egor Sokolov. Jeník quickly signed a one-year, $775K contract with his new team but failed to crack the NHL roster out of training camp.
Due to injuries, he’s been limited to only 13 games with the AHL Senators this season. Still, when healthy, Jeník has been a quietly productive forward scoring four goals and seven points good for 14th on the team in scoring.
Senators’ Jacob Bernard-Docker Out Long-Term With High Ankle Sprain
Senators defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker will miss an extended period while recovering from a high ankle sprain, head coach Travis Green told TSN 1200 Ottawa on Tuesday.
Bernard-Docker, 24, sustained the injury in practice on Monday after taking an awkward spill into the boards. He immediately left the session for evaluation, and it was clear he would miss time when Ottawa recalled Max Guenette from AHL Belleville earlier today. Bernard-Docker is likely headed for IR to accommodate Guenette’s recall.
The Sens’ second of two first-round picks in 2018 after Brady Tkachuk, Bernard-Docker has established himself as a roster fixture but not much more than that. He’s made 25 appearances this season and spent a good bit of time in the press box, posting a goal and three assists for four points and a plus-two rating when healthy.
Bernard-Docker has averaged 13:06 of ice time per game, down from last season’s 15:42 mark and no longer receiving fringe penalty kill deployment. That’s despite the Alberta native putting up better possession metrics at even strength, controlling 50.6% of shot attempts.
His usual pairing with Tyler Kleven has been on the ice for 10 goals, second on the team behind the Thomas Chabot–Nick Jensen pairing’s 33, per MoneyPuck. When dressed, he’s been an effective third-pairing piece, one the Sens will miss for the next few weeks despite the limited minutes he’s vacating.
Recovery from a high ankle sprain usually lasts around six weeks, meaning JBD should be back in action in mid-to-late-February if all goes well.
Senators Recall Max Guenette
The Senators recalled defenseman Max Guenette from AHL Belleville on Tuesday, per a team announcement. The move indicates Jacob Bernard-Docker will be unavailable for tonight’s game against the Red Wings after sustaining a lower-body injury in Monday’s practice. Guenette puts Ottawa one over the active roster limit, so a corresponding transaction, likely an injured reserve placement of some kind, is still coming.
It’s Guenette’s first recall of the season but not the first of his career. The 23-year-old has logged eight appearances for the Sens since the 2022-23 campaign, posting a minus-two rating and eight shots on goal while averaging 13:10 of time on ice per game.
A seventh-round pick by Ottawa in 2019, Guenette has already given the Senators positive value on their selection just by beating the odds to appear in an NHL contest. The Sens have controlled 46.2% of shot attempts with Guenette on the ice at even strength in his limited minutes – not great, but not painting him as a humongous liability, either. He’s a fine replacement-level call-up at this stage of his career with more room still to grow.
Whether he’ll get the chance to show that ceiling on this call-up is uncertain, however. Ottawa also summoned Nikolas Matinpalo from Belleville yesterday, so even with Bernard-Docker out and Travis Hamonic heading to injured reserve, Guenette is likely to sit in the press box for tonight’s game unless another injury strikes.
Guenette, a Quebec native, has nine points and a team-high +16 rating in 27 games for Belleville this season. Emerging as their top shutdown option, Guenette also serves as an alternate captain for the B-Sens in what’s now his fourth season of professional hockey.
In terms of who may land on IR to make room for Guenette’s recall, Bernard-Docker and goaltender Linus Ullmark are the likely options. JBD’s placement will be contingent on the results of his post-injury evaluation, while Ullmark has already missed multiple games with a back strain and could be eligible for activation at any time.
Alex Chiasson Announces Retirement
A long-time middle-six scorer is officially hanging up his skates. Originally announced by himself and then shared by the National Hockey League Players’ Association, Alex Chiasson is retiring after spending a few years off the ice.
The Dallas Stars drafted Chiasson with the 38th overall pick of the 2009 NHL Draft out of the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers program. Instead of immediately turning professional, Chiasson joined the Boston University Terriers for the 2009-10 NCAA season one year after they won the National Championship. Unfortunately, Chiasson would fail to reach the Frozen Four throughout his three-year tenure with Boston University.
He still became an effective playmaker at the collegiate level. He finished his NCAA career with 36 goals and 99 points in 108 games before signing his entry-level contract after the 2011-12 campaign. Chiasson started quickly with the AHL’s Texas Stars, scoring one goal and five points in nine contests.
Much of the next calendar year was spent in AHL Texas until Dallas recalled Chiasson in early April of the 2012-13 season to debut in the NHL. After scoring six goals and seven points in seven games to end the regular season, Chiasson became an NHL regular for the next decade.
Chiasson scored 13 goals and 35 points in 79 games during his official rookie season, which would be his last with the Stars. The following summer, he was acquired by the Ottawa Senators organization as a part of the return package for franchise icon Jason Spezza.
Although he became one of the better players from the trade for Spezza, his time in Canada’s capital was mostly disappointing. He finished his tenure in Ottawa with 19 goals and 40 points in 153 games before arduous contract negotiations led to a trade to the Calgary Flames in the summer of 2016.
After a solid year as a depth scorer for the Flames, Chiasson signed with the Washington Capitals for the 2017-18 season. He won his first and only Stanley Cup that year, scoring one goal and one assist in 16 playoff games for the Capitals.
It wasn’t until he joined the Edmonton Oilers that Chiasson experienced the most personal success of his career. During his time with the Oilers, Chiasson scored 42 goals and 78 points in 183 games, including a 22-goal campaign in the 2018-19 season.
Chiasson’s final game came on April 13, 2023, as a member of the Detroit Red Wings one year after spending the season with the Vancouver Canucks. He ended his career with 120 goals and 233 points in 651 games with another four goals and seven points in 37 postseason contests.
All of us at PHR extend our best wishes to Alex as he enters the next chapter of his life.
Senators Recall Jan Jeník, Nikolas Matinpalo
The Senators summoned forward Jan Jeník and defenseman Nikolas Matinpalo from AHL Belleville on Monday, per a team announcement. Ottawa only has one open roster spot, so a corresponding move must have been made – likely placing defenseman Travis Hamonic on injured reserve, per PuckPedia.
Jeník’s recall is his first of the season and his first as a Senator. Ottawa acquired his signing rights from the Utah Hockey Club on July 3 for depth winger Egor Sokolov.
Two days later, Jeník put pen to paper on a one-year, two-way contract that pays him $775K in the NHL and $190K in the AHL. He did not make the Senators’ roster out of training camp and cleared waivers on his way to Belleville, where he’s sat injured for most of the season.
The 24-year-old has been healthy for 13 games, posting four goals and three assists for seven points and a +4 rating while quickly racking up 38 PIMs. The 6’1″, 198-lb forward has always been a bit of a pot-stirrer, consistently recording PIM totals north of 50 across full junior and AHL seasons.
Jeník has 22 NHL games under his belt, all coming with the Coyotes in each of the last four seasons. The 2018 third-round pick has four goals and two assists for six points with a -4 rating, posting 27 shots on goal while averaging just south of 10 minutes per game.
The Czech winger/center has consistently been out-chanced at 5-on-5, only controlling 45.5% of shot attempts. That’s partly due to Arizona’s conservative defensive-zone deployment of Jeník during his time in the desert, though. He was a much more significant offensive factor in the minors, where he now has 127 points in 178 career AHL games.
Jeník gives Ottawa an extra forward option for tomorrow’s key matchup against the Red Wings. For now, it’s unclear if he’ll draw into the lineup.
However, Matinpalo almost certainly will. The oft-recalled defender projects to play a third-pairing role on his natural right side alongside Tyler Kleven with Hamonic out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Jacob Bernard-Docker also sustained an injury in Monday’s practice and looks to sit out tomorrow, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports.
Matinpalo, 26, has only managed one appearance for the Sens this season amid a few moves up and down the NHL-AHL wire. He took a minor penalty and skated 10:24 against the Wild on Dec. 29. Outside of that, the defensive-minded Finn has eight points and a -4 rating in 24 games for the B-Sens.
Senators’ Linus Ullmark, Travis Hamonic Out Week-To-Week
Ottawa Senators head coach Travis Green issued a laundry list of injury updates on Sunday, captured by TSN’s Bruce Garrioch. Most notably, starting goaltender Linus Ullmark was designated as week-to-week with a back injury. Ullmark hasn’t skated since leaving the team’s December 22nd match against Edmonton early after his back tightened up. He’s missed five games since, and will now continue to sit out through the bulk of January.
Losing their star netminder has been a tough blow for Ottawa to bear. They’ve turned to a mix of Anton Forsberg and Leevi Merilainen in his absence, but totaled a bleak 1-4-0 record and 3.20 goals-against per-game. Ullmark has been far more successful in net, ranking 16th in the league wins (12) and seventh in save percentage (.915). He’s everything Ottawa was hoping for when they traded two players and a first-round pick for him this summer. But with him on the shelf for the foreseeable future, the Senators are once again faced with a lack of goaltending depth.
Forsberg should continue his role of de facto starter, giving him a chance to improve on his .885 Sv% in 12 games this year. But Merilainen will receive the biggest opportunity with this news. He’s spent the season moving back-and-forth between the major and minor rosters, in the mix posting a team-best .901 Sv% in 13 games for the Belleville Senators. The 22-year-old has also set a 2-2-0 record and .884 in his NHL appearances this season, and could earn a big role if he proves to be the piece the pulls Ottawa out of their lump.
Green also shared that defenseman Travis Hamonic will miss two-to-four weeks with a lower-body injury. Hamonic played down to the final minute of Ottawa’s Friday loss to St. Louis, and didn’t seem noticeably limited in his final shift. But he’ll now be out for the long-term, likely opening the door for Jacob Bernard-Docker to step back into the lineup. Bernard-Docker has four points in 25 games this season, continuing his scoring slump after he scored just 14 points in 72 games last season. If he proves a shaky addition, the Senators could also turn towards Nikolas Matinpalo, who has only played one NHL game this season but has scored seven points in 24 AHL games.
In brighter news, forwards David Perron and Michael Amadio have both returned to skating. Both are recovering from upper-body injuries. Perron has been injured for much of the season, only appearing in nine games and not yet scoring for his new club. Amadio has been a bit more impactful, scoring 10 points in 33 games in the mix of Ottawa’s bottom-six. Placing Hamonic and Ullmark on injured reserve would clear the space for Ottawa to activate both forwards.