Senators Active in NHL Trade Market Looking for a Defenseman

Before, while, and after the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Conor Timmins from the Arizona Coyotes, rumors continue to surround the Ottawa Senators, who are reportedly aggressively out in the NHL trade market looking for a defenseman. The Sens have been linked to a number of names, and there was recently a report Nikita Zaitsev could have been on the move to help land the blueliner Ottawa is looking for, but to date, Senators’ GM Pierre Dorion hasn’t pulled the trigger on a deal yet.

The Senators have been reportedly shopping for a defenseman since this past summer and with Thomas Chabot having been sidelined for a week with a concussion, things are growing more urgent by the game. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet notes they may consider adding a sweetener to move Nikita Zaitsev but have a limit on what they would do. Some of that is due to cap concerns, some due to a lack of viable options out there, and some due to the fact the options that do exist don’t necessarily want to waive their no-trade clauses to come to a Canadian team.

Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun continues to link the Senators to Arizona Coyotes’ Jakob Chychrun. Talk has been that the price is too high, but if Ottawa is getting desperate, perhaps things have changed. The 24-year-old defenseman is back on the ice with the Coyotes and if he plays well, talk about a trade to send him elsewhere could pick up.

The Senators have also been linked to Erik Karlsson, but it’s not clear if Karlsson is willing to waive his no-move to leave the San Jose Sharks. Considering Karlsson’s $11.5 million cap hit, that won’t be an easy trade to make if all parties involved are open to making it.

Other names on the market that Ottawa might look at include: Matt Dumba, Vladislav Gavrikov, Dmitry Orlov, Brian Dumoulin, Artem Zub, Scott Mayfield, and Tyler Myers.

Next: Devils “Badly” Want to Trade For Josh Anderson, Says Podcaster