3 early Senators trade targets after Round 1 sweep in 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Ottawa Senators are left once again picking up the pieces following a disappointing first-round exit in the Stanley Cup Playoffs at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes swept the Sens in a quick four-game series and became the first club to advance to the second round of the 2026 postseason.

There were multiple offensive power outages on the part of the Senators, who got exactly no points from captain Brady Tkachuk, while only getting a goal and an assist from Tim Stutzle. Despite a strong performance in net from goaltender Linus Ullmark, the stingy defense of the Hurricanes proved to be too much for the Senators to overcome.

Now that the Senators are officially in offseason mode, attention is turning toward the plans of general manager Steve Staios, who will have plenty on his plate to consider in terms of both outside acquisitions as well as the fate of multiple players on the current roster with expiring contracts.

The likes of veteran forwards Claude Giroux, Nick Cousins, and Lars Eller, along with defenseman Nick Jensen, are set to become unrestricted free agents, while Jordan Spence is set to become a restricted free agent.

Should one or more of those players depart, that gap will need to be filled by Staios either on the free-agent market or via trade. Should he decide to go the trade route, there are multiple options to be considered.

Zach Whitecloud could fit Senators’ needs on the blue line

In the event of Jenson not being retained by the Senators, it will be a gap they’d like filled with another right-handed defenseman. Enter Zach Whitecloud into the discussion, who found himself on the move once earlier this season from the Vegas Golden Knights to the Calgary Flames as part of the Rasmus Andersson deal in January.

Whitecloud, along with prospect Abram Wiebe, a 2027 1st-round pick, and a conditional 2028 2nd-round pick (upgrades to 1st if Vegas wins the 2026 Stanley Cup) were sent to Calgary, who missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs, for Andersson.

Whitecloud, who has two years left on a six-year, $16.5 million contract, found his name still involved in trade rumors in the days leading up to the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline despite having already once been moved.

He carries a modest salary cap hit of $2.75 million per season through 2028. Over the course of his NHL career, he’s been known as a solid defender while having contributed a total of 23 goals with 65 assists. The next regular-season game he plays in will be his 400th.

If the Senators don’t retain Jensen, don’t be surprised to see them give a call to Flames GM Craig Conroy regarding the availability of Whitecloud.

Blake Coleman could assist with Ottawa’s penalty killing

Speaking of current members of the Calgary Flames, forward Blake Coleman, who is a two-time Stanley Cup winner dating back to his days with the Tampa Bay Lightning before he arrived in Calgary in 2021, had been heavily listed among players who could be traded in the days leading up to the NHL Trade Deadline.

Known as a defensively reliable forward who excels at penalty killing, Coleman also provides an offensive punch. He’s just two seasons removed from the first 30-goal campaign in his NHL career, and also lit the lamp 20 times in 2025-26.

Ottawa’s penalty killing was ranked 29th overall in the NHL in 2025-26 at just 75.8 percent efficiency, and an acquisition of Coleman could go a long way in helping to increase that percentage.

As far as his contract goes, Coleman still has one year remaining with a salary cap hit of $4.9 million; he can become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

He’s scored a total of 170 goals with 155 assists in 693 career games with the New Jersey Devils, Lightning, and Flames.

Could Laurent Brossoit slot in as an adequate backup?

The Senators are set at the starting position with Linus Ullmark carrying the reins, but they’ll need an adequate backup, as they aren’t likely to retain the aging James Reimer, who was signed midway through the season after he initially was released from a professional tryout with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Veteran Laurent Brossoit, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, had recently returned to the ice after missing all of the 2024-25 season while under contract with the Chicago Blackhawks. He was dealt to the San Jose Sharks in January to give him a fresh start following his return, and he posted a 12-8-1 record while playing with the AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda; he also posted a 2.97 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage.

He could be a good option to come in and play behind Ullmark, at least for the 2026-27 season.

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