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 who don’t often see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2025-26 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 are the Senators.
Ottawa Senators
Current Cap Hit: $92,446,600 (under the $95.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
None that are playing on a regular basis.
Signed Through 2025-26, Non-Entry-Level
F Nick Cousins ($825K, UFA)
F Lars Eller ($1.25MM, UFA)
F Claude Giroux ($2MM, UFA)
D Nick Jensen ($4.05MM, UFA)
G Leevi Merilainen ($1.05MM, RFA)
F David Perron ($4MM, UFA)
G James Reimer ($850K, UFA)
D Jordan Spence ($1.5MM, RFA)
Potential Bonuses
Eller: $1MM
Giroux: $2.75MM
Total: $3.75MM
Perron has been hit or miss outside of St. Louis in his career but that didn’t stop the Sens from giving him a two-year deal. The first season didn’t go great due to injuries and while he has been healthier this season, the overall performance hasn’t been great. At this point, it’d be hard to see him beat this on the open market and it wouldn’t be surprising to see his next deal be a one-year, incentive-laden one that keeps the base cost down to allow for more flexibility. Doing that could push the maximum value at least within the vicinity of his current contract. Giroux is someone who signed the type of deal Perron might get. After his initial three-year deal expired, the two sides had a prolonged negotiation but eventually got this deal over the finish line. While $750K of his bonuses are achievable simply through games played (topping out at 60), the remainder have a playoff-related component to them with $1.75MM being tied to series wins. That’s a fair structure and one that will likely be repeated if he sticks around for another year.
Eller was a valuable third-line center for many years but has slowed down lately, resulting in him needing to take a structure like this as well although only half of his bonuses are playoff-related. He’ll be 37 next season and it stands to reason that he’ll be going year-to-year moving forward, likely with contracts structured like this. Cousins has hovered at or just above the league minimum for several seasons now. A 12-year veteran in what has largely been the same type of role, his next deal should once again land in that area.
While landing Jensen as the centerpiece of the return for Jakob Chychrun might feel underwhelming, the veteran was one of their better blueliners last season although he hasn’t fared quite as well this year. He’ll be 36 when the 2026-27 campaign begins but there might be enough market interest to land him a two-year pact (performance bonuses wouldn’t be an option with that term) at least close to his current price tag. Spence was brought over in a draft day trade with the Kings with the hopes that he could take on a bigger role. That hasn’t happened and instead, he has been scratched several times already. Owed a $1.7MM qualifying offer with arbitration rights this summer, Spence’s point production in recent years could give him a shot at doubling that required offer. If Ottawa doesn’t want to go that high, however, he becomes a potential trade or non-tender candidate.
Merilainen was a big bright spot when pressed into duty as the third-stringer last season and without his efforts, they may not have made the playoffs. That small sample size was enough to get him the full-time backup job this year where things haven’t gone as well and they’ve since shuffled him to the AHL to get him more playing time. He has arbitration eligibility this summer and given how this year has gone, the Sens could ultimately look to a different backup option that’s a little more proven. With his struggles, Ottawa recently turned to Reimer to try to help stabilize the backup position. Given how he has bounced around and had to wait half a season to get signed, it’s safe to say that his next deal will be at or near the minimum, if he gets one at all.
Signed Through 2026-27
F Michael Amadio ($2.6MM, UFA)
F Drake Batherson ($4.975MM, UFA)
D Tyler Kleven ($1.6MM, UFA)
F Kurtis MacDermid ($1.15MM, UFA)
D Nikolas Matinpalo ($875K, UFA)
D Artem Zub ($4.6MM, UFA)
Batherson has been one of Ottawa’s better bargains for quite some time now. He is making second-line money but has put up better than that level of production for the last four years. He was just shy of a point per game in 2021-22 and then followed that up with three straight years of more than 60 points. This season, he’s once again flirting with the point per game threshold. If he stays around that trajectory, pushing past the $9MM per season mark is a very realistic outcome, especially if he were to make it to the open market. The Sens have had several below-market contracts for their young core and his deal is arguably the best one of them all.
Amadio has been quite consistent with three straight seasons of 27 points and is around that mark again this year. That’s not a great return for their money but it’s not a bad one either as he’s consistently in their middle six. But unless he can find another gear offensively, he might not be able to beat this by much in 2027. MacDermid came over in a late preseason trade and has played rather sparingly since then. While there is still a role for the true ‘enforcer’, his limited usage could bring his price tag closer to the minimum salary moving forward.
Zub has had some challenges staying healthy over his time in Ottawa but when he’s healthy, he’s a capable top-four defender who logs some tough defensive minutes. He’ll be entering his age-32 season when his next deal begins, meaning another multi-year pact (three to five years, specifically), is more than reasonable. In a market where the price of top-four blueliners is going to rise, Zub should be able to push past the $6MM mark per season on his next contract.
Kleven’s first full NHL season in 2024-25 was a decent one as he was a regular on the third pairing but his limited track record didn’t give him much earnings upside. Somewhat surprisingly, though, Ottawa signed him to a deal that walked him right to UFA eligibility. He’s playing a bigger role this season and if he can get closer to the 17-18-minute mark, a jump past $3MM per season could be doable. Matinpalo is in his first year as a full-timer on the roster, though not a full-timer in the lineup as he remains more of a depth piece. That will need to change if he’s going to be able to push past the $1MM mark by any sort of meaningful amount.
Signed Through 2027-28
D Thomas Chabot ($8MM, UFA)
F Brady Tkachuk ($8.206MM, UFA)
F Fabian Zetterlund ($4.275MM, UFA)
It took quite a while for Tkachuk to sign coming off his entry-level contract but the deal has held up quite nicely. This season aside, he has been quite durable and produced largely at a top-line rate. Between that and his being a power forward, it’s fair to say he’s heading for a considerable jump; a contract in the $12MM range could very well be on the table. Zetterlund did well in San Jose but struggled following a late-season trade to Ottawa. He signed based on his production with the Sharks but his struggles have carried over into this year. As a result, this deal may be close to double what his value is based on his performance with the Sens.
Chabot was the first core Senator to sign a pricey deal coming off an entry-level pact, a well the team has gone to several times since then. While he’s no longer among the most-used defensemen in the league, he’s still a capable all-around defender who can still play at a 40-point pace or more. While his injury history could hurt his market a bit, with the rapid escalation of prices for top-pairing blueliners, he should be in line for a double-digit AAV on his next contract.
Signed Through 2028-29
F Ridly Greig ($3.25MM, RFA)
G Linus Ullmark ($8.25MM, UFA)
A few teams have opted for a longer-term bridge deal in recent years and Ottawa did so with Greig. Doing so ensured him some guaranteed money over going with shorter-term pacts where his performance could have dictated a lower offer while the Sens got him at a price that is rather reasonable for a third-line center. His production has somewhat plateaued this year but even if he stays in the 30-point range moving forward, he could get a nice boost from his $3.9MM qualifying offer, one that comes with arbitration eligibility.
Ottawa took a couple of big swings on Ullmark in 2024. First, they moved a first-round pick along with a serviceable forward in Mark Kastelic while taking on a four-year dead cap charge to acquire him as a rental. Then, before the season even started, they signed him to this contract, one that puts him in a tie for sixth in terms of the highest-AAV goalies in the league (fifth if you take out Carey Price who hasn’t played in years). Ullmark has yet to play 50 games in a single season but had been coming off some strong years in Boston, living up to the promise he showed at times in Buffalo. He’s a riskier option than some of the other proven players at that price point although it’s at least a shorter-term deal compared to the others. However, Ullmark will need to get back to his Boston-level form to provide value on this contract.
Signed Through 2029-30 Or Longer
F Dylan Cozens ($7.1MM through 2029-30)
F Shane Pinto ($3.75MM in 2025-26, $7.5MM from 2026-27 through 2029-30)
D Jake Sanderson ($8.05MM through 2031-32)
F Tim Stutzle ($8.35MM through 2030-31)
Stutzle was another one to bypass the bridge deal in favor of a long-term pact, signed after his second season, right before he had a career-high 90 points. While he hasn’t reached that threshold since then, he’s a legitimate top-liner who has seen more time at center recently and is basically a full-timer there this season. Given the price of number one middlemen, this contract will look even better if Stutzle remains at center long term.
Cozens followed the same path as Stutzle, signing a long-term extension before his entry-level deal expired. He has yet to reach 50 points since recording 68 back in 2022-23 (when the extension was signed) but given the value of centers around the league, this deal holds up relatively well even as a second liner. Pinto got off to a great start this season, landing this extension recently to avoid another potential squabble after it was believed that he was hoping to land an offer sheet in his last trip through restricted free agency. He’ll need to produce as a legitimate second-line center to live up to the price tag when the contract begins next season.
Sanderson also skipped the bridge contract and signed a long-term deal that already looks to be a club-friendly one. He’s an all-around two-way number one defensemen and the price tag for several of those players has already nudged past the double-digit mark in millions per season and will only go up from there. This might not be their biggest bargain today but it may very well be soon enough.
Buyouts
F Colin White ($875K through 2027-28)
Retained Salary Transactions
G Joonas Korpisalo ($1MM through 2027-28)
Carryover Bonus Overage Penalty
None
Best Value: (non-entry-level) Batherson
Worst Value: Zetterlund
Looking Ahead
This season, the Sens opened up with a reasonably-sized cushion that they haven’t had to dip into much to cover for injuries. As a result, as long as the budgetary space is there (and comments over the summer suggest that’s not a guarantee), GM Steve Staios should have enough wiggle room to add a piece or two to his roster to aid in their playoff push.
They will gain some flexibility over the summer with more than $14MM coming off the books. While that involves seven players who will need to be re-signed or replaced, Staios can shuffle things around if the opportunity presents itself to add either a top-six forward or a top-four defender to fill Jensen’s slot. With less than $49MM on the books for 2027-28, that will be an even bigger chance to reshape the core if necessary, leaving them in solid shape from a cap perspective.
Photos courtesy of Wendell Cruz and John E. Sokolowski – Imagn Images.