The Ottawa Senators are a team under pressure. After an aggressive offseason and the expectation was a significant step forward. However, 15 games into the season, GM Steve Staios is reportedly already working the phones, and it highlights a significant issue: the team’s assets are thin.
According to Alex Adams at Sportsnet, the Senators are aggressively looking to add a winger and a right-shot defenseman. The problem? They lack a first-round pick and have a prospect pool with few high-end, movable pieces outside of Carter Yakemchuk and Logan Hensler, who they’d clearly prefer to keep.
This is where the roster-player trade market comes in, and a surprising name has surfaced: Fabian Zetterlund.
Why is a Zetterlund Trade Even Being Discussed?
On paper, trading Zetterlund makes almost no sense. He was acquired just last season and was viewed as a key part of the top-six puzzle—a 20-goal scorer who could complement the Sens’ young centers. This summer, the team committed to him with a three-year, $12.825 million contract ($4.275M AAV).
To put it bluntly, that commitment has not been rewarded.
Zetterlund is struggling mightily, with just one goal and three points through 15 games. He’s been demoted to the fourth line and looks like a player who has completely lost his confidence. For a GM looking to add impact players, having a $4.275 million winger stuck in a fourth-line role is an anchor. It’s a deal that Staios is already wearing, and it’s not looking good.
While names like Dylan Cozens or Nick Jensen have been floated in hypothetical “hockey trades,” those moves are complex. Moving a core piece like Cozens would be a massive, franchise-altering shake-up. Trading Jensen, a veteran defenseman, would create another hole that Staios would immediately have to fill.
My Take: Zetterlund is the Path of Least Resistance
This is where my analysis differs. A move involving Zetterlund seems far more likely and logical than a blockbuster involving Cozens. He’s a former 20-goal scorer, and there are plenty of GMs around the league who will see his 15-game slump as a buy-low opportunity. They’ll bank on the idea that he simply “isn’t a fit in Ottawa” and that a change of scenery could unlock the potential he showed just a year ago.
The real question isn’t if the Senators would trade him; it’s what they could possibly get back. His value has plummeted. They won’t get the immediate roster help Staios is looking for in a one-for-one swap. More likely, they’d have to package Zetterlund with another asset to clear the cap space and land the impact winger or defenseman they truly need.
Whether it happens this week or closer to the deadline, Zetterlund’s name is now firmly on the trade-watch list.
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The post The Price of Patience: Are the Ottawa Senators Ready to Move on From Fabian Zetterlund? appeared first on NHL Trade Rumors.
