2022-23 NHL preview: Ottawa Senators

Welcome to the 2022-23 season preview as brought to you by Betway Sports. We’ll be taking a dive into each team’s offseason and what their Stanley Cup odds are for next season from the worst odds to the best. All odds are current as of the time of writing.

Ottawa Senators Stanley Cup Odds: +5000

Was there a team who had a more fun offseason than the Ottawa Senators? I’ll wait.

On draft day, they made a massive splash acquiring Alex DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for the 7th and 39th overall picks, and a 2024 3rd round pick.

They moved on from Matt Murray moving him with 25% salary retained, a 3rd round pick in 2023, and a 7th in 2024 to the Maple Leafs, then acquired a disgruntled Cam Talbot from the Minnesota Wild. Oh, and they traded Connor Brown, too.

The cherry on top of it all, Claude Giroux signed a three-year deal returning to play hockey in Ontario for the first time since he played Jr. A hockey with the Cumberland Grads.

All in all, this is an arrow-up team and they should be able to take a step forward this season. Their top six should be as strong as they come with a decent enough third line to contend. Defence will be a weak spot for the Sens, however, but they have a few nice pieces there in Thomas Chabot, Erik Brannstrom and Nikita Zaitsev that should be able to contribute.

Are we betting on the Senators to win the cup? I wouldn’t lay a bet on the Senators to win the cup, but they’re going to be a lot better than the 73-point season they had last season. Would it be out of the realm of possibilities to see them push for 90-points? I don’t think so.