Navigating the salary cap is one of the most important tasks for a front office. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t often see struggles and front office changes.
PHR is looking at every NHL team and giving a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2024-25 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of PuckPedia. We’re currently covering the Atlantic Division, next up is the Senators.
Ottawa Senators
Current Cap Hit: $88,257,127 (over the $88MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Ridly Greig (one year, $863K)
D Tyler Kleven (one year, $917K)
F Zack Ostapchuk (two years, $825K)
Potential Bonuses
Kleven: $600K
Ostapchuk: $82.5K
Total: $682.5K
Greig has already signed an extension so we’ll cover him later on. Ostapchuk has had his first extended NHL look this season but has primarily been limited to duty on the fourth line with very limited output. He should be able to reach some of his games played bonuses but he’s likely heading toward a low-cost second contract barring a big uptick in his output and role next season.
Kleven is holding down a regular spot on Ottawa’s third pairing but his deployment has been limited thus far. As a result, he’s not on track to reach his ‘A’ bonuses while his next contract should be a low-cost bridge deal although passing the $1MM mark isn’t out of the question.
Signed Through 2024-25, Non-Entry-Level
D Jacob Bernard-Docker ($805K, RFA)
F Nick Cousins ($800K, UFA)
G Anton Forsberg ($2.75MM, UFA)
F Adam Gaudette ($775K, UFA)
F Claude Giroux ($6.5MM, UFA)
F Noah Gregor ($850K, RFA)
D Travis Hamonic ($1.1MM, UFA)
F Matthew Highmore ($775K, UFA)
D Nikolas Matinpalo ($775K, RFA)
F Cole Reinhardt ($775K, UFA)
Giroux was brought in to be not only a veteran mentor to what was (and still is) a relatively young core group but also to be a key contributor in their top six. Mission accomplished on both fronts. He was third in team scoring in his first season and fourth in scoring last year. At 37, he’s starting to slow down offensively but he’s still a top-six player, at least for now. One of the big questions for next season as he heads into his next contract is how much longer he can play at that level. A two-year offer probably isn’t off the table but it’d likely reflect the expectation of a diminished role in the second year which could result in a small dip in pay. But if Giroux is open to a one-year deal, something around this price point is doable while he’d also be eligible for performance incentives.
Gregor has been non-tendered for two straight years with his former teams wanting to avoid giving him salary arbitration eligibility where his more productive years (23 points in 2021-22, 10 goals the following year) will come into play. That seems like the probable outcome here as well but without those rights, he could still check in a bit closer to $1MM. Cousins had to wait until late August to get this contract and not much has changed in terms of his role and production. He’s effective enough to stay above the minimum salary but he’s probably only a tier above PTO territory so another low-cost one-year deal is likely.
Gaudette only got into two NHL games last season but he has been one of Ottawa’s better success stories this year, sitting inside the top five on the team in goals. Nonetheless, he historically has had a hard time hanging onto a full-time spot which should keep his cost lower than someone with a shot at 20 goals. A one-year deal in the $1.25MM range, one that can largely be buried in the minors if things don’t go well, would represent a nice raise for him while lessening the risk on the signing team. Highmore and Reinhardt have been back and forth to and from the minors this season and are likely to remain at the minimum salary moving forward.
Hamonic has had a bigger role this year but his playing time is still rather limited compared to even just a few years ago. He’s struggling to keep up and will be entering his age-35-year next season. A one-year, minimum-salary deal with some low-cost performance incentives could still be doable but he could also be a PTO candidate.
Bernard-Docker became a full-timer last season but has been scratched a bit more often this year while injuries haven’t helped either. He’s also arbitration-eligible which could work against him if Ottawa needs to keep this salary slot a little lower. With a hearing, he could plausibly double this price tag but it wouldn’t be shocking to see him non-tendered if they can’t agree on a lower number before then. Matinpalo is also arbitration-eligible but doesn’t have enough NHL experience to really command any sort of big raise. A jump closer to $1MM is doable but probably not much more than that.
Forsberg hasn’t been able to come close to the level of performance from 2021-22, the one that earned him this contract. He has been a bit better this year but his save percentage is still below the league average. He might not get back to the level of third-string money but it’s quite possible his next AAV is half of this or less barring a big turnaround down the stretch.
Signed Through 2025-26
D Nick Jensen ($4.05MM, UFA)
F David Perron ($4MM, UFA)
F Shane Pinto ($3.75MM, RFA)
Perron was brought in over the summer with the hope he could be a reliable veteran secondary scorer. That hasn’t really happened as when he has been in the lineup (which hasn’t been often between an injury and a family-related absence), his production has been quite limited thus far. He’ll be 38 when this contract ends so he’ll need to rebound considerably to have a shot at matching this price tag a year and a half from now. Pinto was at one point believed to be hoping for an offer sheet as early contract talks didn’t go well. But, instead, they settled on a second bridge contract on a back-loaded deal that cranks the qualifying offer up to $4.5MM with arbitration rights. If he can establish himself as a legitimate top-six forward by then, he’ll be able to get a fair-sized raise on that and the long-term deal he’s been seeking.
Jensen has been a nice fit in Ottawa after being acquired from Washington back in July. He has settled in nicely as a second-pairing blueliner in recent years although he doesn’t produce a lot which will keep the price tag down. A jump into the $5MM range on a long-term deal should be achievable if he plays like this over the rest of this season and next.
Signed Through 2026-27
F Michael Amadio ($2.6MM, UFA)
F Drake Batherson ($4.875MM, UFA)
D Artem Zub ($4.6MM, UFA)
Batherson has produced at or close to a top-line rate in the past three seasons heading into this one and is putting up points at a similar clip this year. That makes him a nice bargain and if this keeps up, he could find himself closer to the $8MM range in 2027. Amadio came over from Vegas after putting up back-to-back 27-point seasons. He hasn’t fit in quite as well despite an uptick in playing time but as a bottom-six forward, it’s not a steep overpayment.
Zub has had some challenges staying healthy but when he is in the lineup, he’s a legitimate top-four blueliner, one that flies under the radar a little bit. With his limited production, he’s not on a bargain contract but it’s not a bad one by any stretch. Like Jensen, his next deal likely starts with a five.
Signed Through 2027-28 Or Longer
F Ridly Greig ($3.25MM through 2025-26 through 2027-28, RFA)
F Josh Norris ($7.95MM through 2029-30)
D Jake Sanderson ($8.05MM through 2031-32)
F Tim Stutzle ($8.35MM through 2030-31)
F Brady Tkachuk ($8.206MM through 2027-28)
Stutzle signed this contract coming off the second year of his entry-level deal, a clear sign of confidence from then-GM Pierre Dorion. He has rewarded their faith in him with his two best offensive seasons coming in the two years since then while he’s hanging around the point-per-game mark this year. He’s a legitimate top-line forward and at 23, there’s still some hope that he has another gear to get to from a production standpoint. Notably, the Sens have had Stutzle playing center off and on over the past several seasons. While he hasn’t made the switch full-time, the more time he spends down the middle, the more appealing he could become if he hits the open market with how rarely impactful middlemen get to free agency. That could help boost Stutzle’s value at that time even further.
Tkachuk has become a legitimate top-line power forward and when he’s on, he’s one of the more impactful wingers in the league. Having that type of player locked up at this price for several more seasons is a tidy piece of business. He’s well on his way toward a double-digit AAV and a max-term contract on his next deal.
Norris was signed with the hopes that he could be Ottawa’s long-term solution at the center position. However, injuries have taken their toll in recent years and it’s fair to say they haven’t received good value for their money just yet. But if he can get back to staying healthy and into the 30-goal range – a mark he has reached before – this could still work out for them. Greig signing an early bridge deal was a bit surprising as it’s usually long-term pacts that are signed a year in advance. But it gives both sides a bit of cost certainty while putting him in good shape in 2028 when he’ll be owed a $3.9MM qualifying offer with arbitration rights.
Buyouts
F Colin White ($625K credit in 2024-25, $875K from 2025-26 through 2027-28)
Retained Salary Transactions
G Joonas Korpisalo ($1MM through 2027-28)
Best Value: (non-entry-level) Batherson
Worst Value: Norris
Looking Ahead
While the Sens are in a position to potentially try to add to their roster before next week’s trade deadline, doing so could be a challenge. They are into using LTIR on two of their lowest-paid players which comprises their available cap space at this point. As a result, they’re one of the teams that will be in a money-in, money-out situation.
GM Steve Staios will get a little more flexibility starting this summer with more than $17MM in cap room, albeit with as many as ten players to sign. That should leave them enough room to re-sign or replace Giroux and then round out the roster with lower-cost options. They’ll have another $11MM come off the books for 2026-27 which, coupled with the anticipated increase to the cap at that time, will be their next real opportunity to try to add a core piece to their roster.
Photos courtesy of Imagn Images.