Ottawa Senators Trade Deadline Review

What looked like a quiet trade deadline for the Ottawa Senators turned into a frenzy in the final hour.

Hockey analysts and Sens fans alike were ready to criticize the Senators for not making any moves at what was their first buying deadline in quite some time.

That was until their first and biggest trade broke.

The Ottawa Senators acquired forward Dylan Cozens, defenseman Dennis Gilbert, and a 2nd-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft from the Buffalo Sabres for forward Josh Norris and defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker.

The first reaction for anyone following the Sens closely is how much the team, organization, and fans are going to miss Josh Norris. But once you get past the locker room hole he is going to leave, this is a fantastic trade for Ottawa.

Cozens and Norris are two similar players with similar contracts and equally high ceilings, the only difference is Cozens may be more likely to reach that ceiling.

As easy as it is to love the way Norris plays when he is healthy, the issue is that he isn’t often healthy.

The most games Norris has played in a season is 66 and that was back in 2021-2022.

It isn’t often you see two players, both with contracts so large, be swapped. However, I think this is a good move for both sides. However, when looking at what else Buffalo threw into this deal, the Sens may be the clear winners.

Getting Dennis Gilbert to add some depth to this D-core, especially in the absence of Jacob Bernard-Docker, is a win. Bernard-Docker has been on the LTIR, and although he is set to return within the month, adding a guy who is healthy is something the Sens needed after a trying February.

Getting a second-round pick out of this deal is also a steal for the Senators.

So, despite the fact that this will obviously shake up the locker room chemistry, I love this deal for the Senators.

And as it stands, their March 8th, post-deadline debut resulted in a gritty overtime win from the Senators against the New York Rangers, with a standout performance from Brady Tkachuk.

That is something Senators fans needed to see after his emotional interview following Norris’ departure. Many fans speculated this would cause Tkachuk to walk, but I think most people underestimate how dedicated he is to this Ottawa team. So him showing up big with a two-goal performance to get a win against a team just below them in the Wild Card race is huge.

In the second move, the Senators made at the deadline, they acquired forwards Fabian Zetterlund and Tristen Robins, and a 4th-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft from the San Jose Sharks for forwards Zack Ostapchuk and Noah Gregor, and a 2nd-round pick in 2025.

This is another trade that I like from Ottawa. Zetterlund is an immediate upgrade from Ostapchuk and that is what this struggling offense needs at a “win now” time. Losing Gregor and a second-round pick is also not a massive hit for the Senators.

Tristen Robins was drafted 56th overall in the 2020 NHL Draft and has just three games played in the NHL since then, so this piece has little impact on the Sens’ current season, but adds another prospect to their pool.

Zetterlund did not make it to Ottawa for their March 8th game against the Rangers, but it will be interesting to see how he fits with this Ottawa offense. He’s been a standout player on a bad Sharks team, so you can only hope he will be an impact pick-up for the Senators.

Overall, I really like this deadline from the Senators.

I don’t think they were a good deadline away from being Stanley Cup Champions, I don’t know if anyone thought that, but I think they have a better shot at making a playoff run and they didn’t give up their entire future for it.

Their moves made them a healthier team heading into the season’s make-or-break stretch, giving them a little depth if they can claw their way into the postseason.