Senators’ Thomas Chabot Undergoes Wrist Surgery
May 8: Chabot underwent the surgery within the past week and is doing well, general manager Steve Staios confirmed to Garrioch. He’s expected to be ready for training camp in September.
April 30: Top Ottawa Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot is expected to spend the next two to three months recovering from a wrist surgery that’s set to take place in the coming weeks, reports Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Ottawa has spent the last month debating the necessity of this surgery, following Chabot’s early exit in the team’s season-finale with the injury. The injury came just a few games after Chabot’s return after missing much of March with a lower-body injury. The pair of injuries, along with a fractured right hand suffered in November, limited Chabot to just 51 games this season.
Chabot will now have all off-season to make sure he’s back to full health for next season. He remained one of Ottawa’s best defenders despite the injuries this year, netting 30 points in 51 games, just 11 points behind Jakob Chychrun‘s – who played all 82 games- scoring lead among the team’s defensemen. Chabot held onto his role as the team’s top option, averaging over 23 minutes of ice time in the games he played, though a step down from the 26 minutes he averaged from 2019 to 2022.
Ottawa only has one defenseman set for free agency this summer – pending RFA Erik Brännström. They should have the rare chance to bring back every member of what was a well-rounded defense, even despite Ottawa allowing the sixth-most goals in the league. A healthy Chabot should help the Senators get and maintain the puck much more often, especially with the backing of Artem Zub – who often received top line ice time in Chabot’s absence.
Senators Notes: Stutzle, Pinto, Sanderson, Chabot
Ottawa Senators star Tim Stutzle was bearing through multiple injuries this season, per Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun (Twitter link). Garrioch reports that a wrist issue plagued much of Stutzle’s season, while a nagging shoulder injury is what’s ultimately held him out of the lineup. Stutzle missed Ottawa’s final seven games of the season, after playing in the previous 75. He told the media at locker clean-out that he, “hasn’t been feeling good for a year or something”, shares Claire Hanna of Sportscenter (Twitter link).
Stutzle ranked second on the Senators in scoring this year, totaling 18 goals and 70 points. While certainly a strong year, Stutzle’s scoring marked a big step down from the 39 goals and 90 points he recorded in 78 games last season. The persistent injuries are likely a big factor in that decreased scoring, though the Senators as a team also collected six fewer goals on the season compared to last year.
These lingering injuries will keep Stuzle from joining Team Germany at the World Championship this summer. Instead, he will focus on overcoming his lingering injuries this summer, as he prepares to once again rival the century-scoring mark.
Other notes from Ottawa’s cleanout day:
- Senators forward Shane Pinto says he’s hoping to join Team USA at the World Championship this summer, shares Garrioch (Twitter link). Pinto added that he’ll seek his own insurance for the event if he doesn’t have a new contract with Ottawa by June. Pinto will be joined by defenseman Jake Sanderson, who said he’s excited to play meaningful games and reunite with USA Hockey, per Hanna (Twitter link). Sanderson
- Meanwhile, defenseman Thomas Chabot shared he won’t be joining Team Canada due to lingering injuries, sharing that he’s not yet sure if he’ll need any surgeries, per Hanna (Twitter link). Chabot only managed 51 appearances this season, though he did score an impressive nine goals and 30 points. He’ll have the off-season to heal and look to return to continue leading Ottawa’s defense corps next season.
Senators Assign Tyler Kleven To Minors
The Senators announced they’ve assigned rookie defenseman Tyler Kleven to AHL Belleville. His spot in the lineup will go to Thomas Chabot, who, according to multiple reports, has been cleared to return from a lower-body injury ahead of tomorrow’s game against the Devils.
Kleven, a 2020 second-round pick, had filled in for Chabot since the latter was injured in a March 27 contest against the Sabres. He played a limited role in his four-game recall, going without a point, posting a -2 rating, and logging five shots on goal while averaging 14:41 per game. That was up drastically from the minimal 11:01 per game he averaged during a five-game run on the roster in October and November.
Those will likely be his only two stints on the NHL roster in 2023-24, closing out what’s otherwise been a strong campaign for the shutdown prospect. The 6’4″, 200-lb blue-liner has made 45 appearances for the B-Sens, recording 17 points and a +13 rating. He’s in his first full professional campaign after spending three seasons with the University of North Dakota, with whom he won the NCHC tournament and regular-season championship in 2021, along with a gold medal while representing the United States at the World Juniors.
Signed to an entry-level contract with a $917K cap hit, Kleven is still one year away from his initial deal running out and will be an RFA in 2025. The North Dakota native should be a candidate to land a role on their opening night roster in the fall.
Evening Notes: Brazeau, Chabot, Tkachuk, Trenin
Boston Bruins rookie forward Justin Brazeau will be out week-to-week after suffering an apparently upper-body injury. Not many details are available yet, but Brazeau flew back to Boston yesterday to meet with doctors and more information will be available in the coming days regarding the severity and the timeline of the injury.
Brazeau was hurt in the first period of the Bruins game on Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators and did not return. He was stood up by Luke Schenn on the play and appeared to be favoring his arm or his shoulder while he received attention from the Bruins staff on the bench. In 19 games this season the 26-year-old rookie has five goals and two assists and has played predominantly in Boston’s bottom six.
In other evening notes:
- Ottawa Sun reporter Bruce Garrioch tweeted that he expects Ottawa Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot to return to the lineup this weekend. The 27-year-old has battled injuries throughout the season with the most recent ailment keeping him out of the lineup since March 27th. Chabot’s absence was caused by a lower-body injury that was called a nagging injury by Senators staff. Chabot has dressed in just 44 games this season for Ottawa and has posted good offensive numbers with eight goals and 20 assists.
- Matthew Tkachuk was back in the Florida Panthers lineup tonight as they routed the Senators 6-0. Tkachuk had a goal and two assists in 12:56 of ice time. Tkachuk didn’t dress for the Panthers on Tuesday in Montreal as he battled an illness but showed no ill effects of it tonight in Ottawa. With his three points this evening, Tkachuk now has 24 goals and 59 assists on the season in 75 games and is unlikely to eclipse the 100-point plateau for the third consecutive season.
- Corey Masisak of The Denver Post tweeted that Colorado Avalanche center Yakov Trenin did not dress tonight for the game against the Minnesota Wild due to an undisclosed injury. Trenin was acquired at the trade deadline from the Predators and has dressed in 10 games with the Avalanche posting two goals. Colorado’s head coach Jared Bednar did tell reporters that Trenin could play tomorrow night when the Avalanche head to Edmonton to take on the Oilers.
Injury Updates: Milano, Chabot, Nylander, Mangiapane
The Capitals will welcome back winger Sonny Milano to the lineup tonight against Boston, notes Sammi Silber of The Hockey News. He had missed the last two games due to an upper-body injury sustained back on Sunday. The 27-year-old has reached the double-digit goal mark for the third straight year as he has 13 in just 39 games, buoyed by a 31.7 shooting percentage that is nearly double his career average. Washington has clawed its way back into a playoff spot in recent weeks and are holding down the final Wild Card spot although they are just one point behind Philadelphia for the final spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Other injury news from around the NHL:
- The Senators won’t have Thomas Chabot in the lineup tonight for the second straight game with a lower-body injury but he shouldn’t be out much longer. TSN’s John Lu relays (Twitter link) that the blueliner is expected to return next week, either on Tuesday or Thursday. The 27-year-old has had an injury-riddled season, being limited to just 44 games so far. He has done well in those, however, collecting 28 points while logging 23:31 per night.
- Blue Jackets winger Alexander Nylander is expected to return to the lineup against his former team, reports Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 26-year-old had missed the last two games after taking an elbow to the head. Columbus picked Nylander up in a change-of-scenery swap that sent Emil Bemstrom to Pittsburgh last month and it’s safe to say the deal has worked out well for Nylander and the Blue Jackets as he has eight goals and three assists through 15 games with his new team.
- Flames winger Andrew Mangiapane won’t play tonight and is likely to miss Tuesday’s contest as well, mentions Sportsnet 960’s Pat Steinberg (Twitter link). The 27-year-old is dealing with an undisclosed injury that also kept him out of the lineup on Thursday. He remains listed as day-to-day. Two years removed from a 35-goal season, Mangiapane has managed just 30 since then, only 13 of which have come in 69 games so far in 2023-24.
Ottawa Senators Recall Tyler Kleven
A few moments ago, the Ottawa Senators announced that the team has recalled defenseman Tyler Kleven from their AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators. Since the transaction is being registered as an emergency loan, it will not count against the four potential call-ups the Senators have available to them since the trade deadline.
Albeit positive news for Kleven to be back up at the NHL level, it was preluded by some unfortunate news, as top defenseman Thomas Chabot was injured last night in the team’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, necessitating the transaction. It is unclear how long Chabot will be out with this specific injury, but it has certainly been a theme this season for one of Ottawa’s best players.
Because of these injuries, Chabot has only played in a total of 44 out of a possible 71 games for the Senators this year, projected to be his lowest total since the 2020-21 NHL shortened season. When healthy, Chabot has still been heavily relied upon by Ottawa, scoring eight goals and 28 points while averaging 23:31 of ice time per game.
Kleven, on the other hand, is not as heavily utilized by the Senators, as he’s only suited up in five games at the NHL level this season. In those five contests, the former 44th overall pick has registered only one assist while averaging just over 11 minutes of ice time per game.
At the AHL level, Kleven has shown flashes of being a quality shutdown defenseman in professional hockey, scoring three goals and 17 points in 45 games for Belleville, while also registering a +13 rating. While still carrying six healthy defensemen on the NHL roster, it remains to be seen if Kleven will suit up in the team’s game tonight.
Morning Notes: Senators, Khusnutdinov, Wild/Predators
The Senators’ top four on defense has rarely been healthy at the same time this season, mainly due to Thomas Chabot and Artem Zub struggling to stay healthy. Zub has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury, and although he appears ready to return tomorrow against the Coyotes, it could be one step forward and as much as three steps back, notes Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. Chabot, Jake Sanderson, and center Joshua Norris all underwent MRIs for undisclosed (upper-body in Norris’ case) ailments yesterday, per interim head coach Jacques Martin, putting their statuses for the Arizona game in doubt.
Aside from the on-ice impact derailing their recent momentum, it’ll be quite the roster puzzle to make corresponding recalls. Zub is the only extra skater on the Ottawa roster, and despite that, they have no cap space for any standard recalls unless they determine one of their three newly injured players will miss at least 10 games and 24 days, in which case they can be placed on LTIR. For a $0 emergency recall, Ottawa would have to play short a player for one game, meaning they could be limited to just 16 skaters tomorrow. They could then recall two players whose cap hits are $850K or less for Saturday’s road game in Philadelphia.
Other things to keep an eye on this morning with the deadline approaching:
- The Wild hope to have newly signed prospect Marat Khusnutdinov with the team by the end of next week, GM Bill Guerin told Joe Smith of The Athletic on Wednesday. After inking his two-year, entry-level deal yesterday, the 21-year-old Russian center will now begin the work visa and immigration process. Guerin confirmed that Minnesota would start him in the NHL upon his arrival and forego an initial assignment to AHL Iowa and anticipates him stepping into a center role down the stretch. The 2020 second-round pick had six goals, 14 assists, 20 points, and a -14 rating in 55 games with the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg and HK Sochi this season.
- Sticking with Minnesota, their game on the road in Nashville tonight will likely go a long way toward informing trade deadline strategies and playoff outcomes for both teams. The Predators now have a five-point gap between them and ninth-place Calgary for the final playoff spot in the West, while the Wild are looking to swing two points in their favor to draw within four of the postseason cutoff with a game in hand. Minnesota’s 8-2-1 run since the All-Star break has them squarely back in the playoff conversation after falling out of it entirely a couple of months ago, but a similarly scorching stretch from Nashville has helped them tighten their grip on a playoff berth for the 16th time in the last 20 seasons.
Senators Notes: Chabot, Joseph, Kubalik
The Senators will welcome back defenseman Thomas Chabot a bit earlier than expected as TSN’s Claire Hanna relays (Twitter link) that the blueliner will play today against Buffalo. Originally, Ottawa had been hoping that he’d be back at some point during their upcoming five-game road trip. The 26-year-old has missed the last four weeks with a leg injury and had been on LTIR. On top of that, he also missed time with a hand injury earlier in the year; as a result, he has only played in nine games so far. Chabot’s return will certainly be a welcome one for an Ottawa team that has scuffled in its own end defensively throughout the season.
Other notes revolving around the Senators:
- CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that winger Mathieu Joseph has been placed on LTIR. The 26-year-old suffered a lower-body injury a little over two weeks ago and was believed to be a candidate to return at some point on the trip. However, this placement was needed in order to stay cap-compliant with Chabot’s activation. Joseph has had a nice bounce-back campaign, picking up 19 points in 25 games so far after recording just 18 in 56 contests last season. The earliest he’ll be eligible to return now is January 9th as he must miss 10 games and 24 days from the date of the injury.
- Dominik Kubalik’s first season in Ottawa has been somewhat of a challenge as he has been limited to just seven goals and two assists in his first 31 appearances. Accordingly, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch believes that the 28-year-old is a lock to be moved before the March 8th trade deadline and that the Sens have already fielded some calls on him. Kubalik is in the final year of his contract which carries a $2.5MM cap charge and does not have any trade protection.
East Notes: Chabot, Peca, Spicer
Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot is currently on LTIR with a leg injury but is eligible to return for their game tomorrow against Toronto. While that won’t happen, it appears he won’t be out much longer as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch relays that the 26-year-old has resumed skating and could be on target to return at some point on their upcoming Western Canadian road trip which gets underway a week from today. Injuries have limited Chabot to just nine games this season which has been a huge blow to a back end that has certainly struggled so far which played a role in last week’s decision to make a coaching change and bring back Jacques Martin on an interim basis.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:
- Larry Brooks of the New York Post examines (subscription link) the impact that Michael Peca has had on the Rangers’ coaching staff. He has been assigned to work on the power play and faceoffs this season and New York reached the break leading the league in both categories, checking in at 31.1% and 54.8% respectively. Accordingly, Brooks wonders if the long-time NHL center might attract consideration for a head coaching job this summer. This is his first season behind an NHL bench while he has two years as an assistant with AHL Rochester as well.
- Bruins prospect Cole Spicer’s season has come to an early end but not because of injury. The 2022 fourth-rounder has been ruled academically ineligible to play the second half of the year, reports Matt Wellens of the Duluth News Tribune. Spicer is in his sophomore year at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and was moved onto their top line early in the season. After putting up six points in 32 games in 2022-23, the 19-year-old had a better showing in the first half of this season, notching five goals and four assists in 17 appearances.
Senators To Place Thomas Chabot On LTIR, Out “Minimum” Four Weeks With Leg Injury
Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot is facing his second lengthy injury-related absence of the young season. He will miss a minimum of four weeks after undergoing MRIs and other tests to determine the severity of a leg injury, although surgery is not required, reports Darren Dreger of TSN. Further to Dreger’s report, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch confirms the Senators will place Chabot on long-term injured reserve.
Chabot, 26, has spent his entire career in the Canadian capital since Ottawa drafted him 18th overall in 2015. His growth into a top-pairing caliber defender hasn’t expedited the Senators’ post-Erik Karlsson rebuild as they had hoped, but that’s far from being Chabot’s fault. His eight-year, $64MM extension signed in 2019 has aged well, as he’s produced at a 0.62 points per game clip over the life of the deal and has averaged nearly 26 minutes per contest since the 2020-21 campaign began. He’s historically been a positive possession force on a team that’s struggled to control play and remains the most valuable all-around defenseman on the roster.
That’s why a second long-term absence for him this season is so demoralizing for a team that finally looked to be gaining traction, going 6-4-0 in their past ten games. Chabot had played just two games since returning from a right-hand fracture that kept him out for all of November. The Senators are still at the .500 mark and sit only ahead of the Buffalo Sabres in terms of points percentage in the Atlantic Division, and they remain squarely out of the playoff picture as the calendar shifts to December. MoneyPuck lists their playoff odds at 30.9% at the time of writing, though, and given how many games in hand they have on the rest of the league, they’re one hot streak away from putting themselves back in the postseason conversation.
It’ll be difficult without Chabot, however, as his absence creates a domino effect felt throughout the Senators’ blueline. Head coach D.J. Smith has attempted to alleviate this by spreading out the Sens’ three best remaining defenders – Jakob Chychrun, Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub – on three different pairings. That still means giving tougher assignments than desired to depth defenders like Jacob Bernard-Docker and Travis Hamonic, though, and managing his blueliners’ ice time will suddenly become a crucial part of Smith’s job – as long as he still has it. External pressure is mounting for the Senators to make a change behind the bench after an all-too-familiar sluggish start, but under new ownership and management, the Senators appear content to let Smith lead the way for a while longer.
Chabot has four assists in nine games on the season while averaging 24:22 per game.