Throwback Thursday: Greatest Players at Each Position in Senators History

Despite only being in the NHL for 27 seasons, the Ottawa Senators have had numerous superstar players hone their talents at 1000 Palladium Drive

Throughout the Senators franchise, fans in Ottawa have enjoyed some super talented teams that had a wealth of skilled players who made a name for themselves in Ottawa.

The first name that comes to mind when anybody mentions the Ottawa Senators has to be the longest-tenured captain in the history of the franchise Daniel Alfredsson. The Senators legend played 17 seasons for the club and ended up reaching the 1,000 point plateau in a Senators jersey.

Ottawa has also enjoyed the presence of some star players who left and went on to do bigger and better things, players like Marian Hossa, Martin Havlat and Zdeno Chara who were all dealt in their primes.

This is a franchise that has seen their fair share of star talent and despite some of them leaving in the prime of their career, they still brought some exciting moments to the team.

Center: Jason Spezza

Career Stats (OTT): GP: 686 G: 251 A: 436 P: 687

The 2nd overall selection in the 2001 NHL Draft, Jason Spezza was expected to do great things in Ottawa and that he did. Amazingly Spezza concluded his career in Ottawa at over a point per game.

Playing 11 seasons for the franchise, nearly surpassing 700 games played, Spezza was an integral part of Ottawa’s constant success through the 2000s. Ranking second in goals, assists and points for the franchise, the savvy centerman is without a doubt the second-best forward to ever lace them up for the Senators.

One of the nicest goals scored in Senators history was Spezza’s undressing of Montreal Canadiens defenceman Sheldon Souray for the overtime winner on October 27th, 2005.  The goal can be seen by clicking on the link here.

Spezza also centred the best line in Ottawa Senators history when he played between Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley, the line was famously called the “Pizza line” because when the team would score five goals or more all fans would receive a free pizza.

A usual culprit for Senators highlight-reel goals, on March 26th, 2012 he dangled seemingly the whole Winnipeg Jets defence to set up Kyle Turris on the wide-open net, the dazzling goal can be seen here.

Regular season aside, Spezza produced 52 points in 56 games for the Senators over his career and was an essential part of their 2006-07 Stanley Cup run where he had 22 points in 20 games. One of the most talented players in the history of the Ottawa franchise should see his name on the ring of honour in the near future.

Honourable Mention: Alexei Yashin

The first draft pick in the history of the Ottawa Senators, Yashin enjoyed 7 seasons with the club from 1993-2001. He produced 491 points in 504 games in Ottawa.

Left-Wing: Dany Heatley

Career Stats (OTT): GP: 317 G: 180 A: 182 P: 362

The leader of all Senators players in points per game at 1.14, Dany Heatley was arguably the most explosive offensive player in the history of the franchise.

Heatley was acquired on August 23rd, 2005 for Marian Hossa and Greg de Vries. While Hossa was a great talent, Ottawa was able to acquire a top-flight goal scorer who would help put them over the top for the next few seasons.

Breaking out in his first season with the Senators, the star forward would score 50 goals and total an insane 103 points, tying for the team lead.

Then the very next season he would add another 50-goal season to his resume and would then dawn the famous line “50in07”, which has been a common punch-line for Heatley’s career.

Crazy enough, Heatley would finish 5th among all NHL players during his stretch in Ottawa from 2005-09, slightly behind the likes of Pavel Datsyuk, Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and Joe Thornton. He was one of the most dominant players in the NHL during that period, along with “The Pizza Line”.

Heatley didn’t shrink in the playoffs either, adding 35 points in 34 games during his tenure in Ottawa beside Alfredsson and Spezza, propelling the Senators to their first Stanley Cup appearance.

Honourable Mention: Shawn McEachern

There is not a whole lot of notable talent behind Heatley at left-wing, but McEachern was very solid in his time in Ottawa from 1996-2002, accumulating 304 points in 454 games.

Right-Wing: Daniel Alfredsson

Career Stats: GP: 1178 G: 426 A: 682 P: 1108

Undisputedly the greatest player to ever dawn the Senators jersey, the leader in goals, assists and points for the franchise and also just one game back of Chris Phillips for the most games played.

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Despite being a 6th round pick in the 1994 NHL Draft, Daniel Alfredsson would go on to win the Calder Trophy in his rookie season in 1995-96, where he produced 61 points on a poor Senators team. At this moment Sens fans knew they had a steal on their hands.

Alfredsson would be awarded the captaincy in 1999 and wouldn’t relinquish the honour until he decided to part ways with the team in 2013. During the end of his stretch in Ottawa, he was the longest-serving captain in the whole league.

Additionally, the longtime captain also scored the biggest goal in the history of the Senators franchise, when he sniped a shot past Ryan Miller in overtime in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final to send the Senators to their first Stanley Cup:

Despite an odd end to his era with the Senators when he left to join the Detroit Red Wings on a one-year contract, due to a rift over financials with… you guessed it! Eugene Melnyk, he would end up having a happy ending with the organization.

Alfredsson would become the first modern Senator to have his jersey retired, when the organization sent his number to the rafters on December 29th, 2016 on an iconic day and one Senators fans won’t soon forget.

Now with all the Senators’ struggles over the last few seasons, it makes us all come to appreciate how great it was when Alfie and company were making consistent playoff appearances.

Honourable Mention: Mark Stone

Stone just edges out Marian Hossa, this honourable mention may be due to recency bias, however, Stone was exceptional in Ottawa and was the teams’ heartbeat for his last 5 seasons there. The intense winger had 311 points in 366 games with the Senators.

Right-Defence: Erik Karlsson

Career Stats (OTT): GP: 627 G: 126 A: 392 P: 518

While Daniel Alfredsson is referred to as the “greatest” Senator of all time, the best player the team has ever had has to be Erik Karlsson.

The two-time Norris Trophy winner was the best defenceman in the NHL during a six-year stretch from 2011-2017 and it wasn’t particularly close either. Other than the two Norris Trophies he won, he finished second in voting for the award twice during that stretch as well and could easily have two more in his trophy case if not for some questionable balloting.

During his time in Ottawa, Karlsson was consistently compared to the greats, primarily Nicklas Lidstrom and Bobby Orr, he matched up very well with Lidstrom in his first 9 seasons:

The star defenceman reached a career high of 82 points in the 2015-16 season, racking up 66 assists which tied for the lead in the whole league. The highest assist total for a defenceman since Brian Leech in 1996.

The peak of Karlsson’s career had to be in 2017 during the Stanley Cup Playoffs where he led Ottawa one-goal away from the Cup Final all on a broken heel, and torn ligaments in his foot. Finishing the improbable run with 18 points in 19 games, even receiving a Conn Smythe vote for his efforts.

Karlsson’s pass to Derek Brassard versus the Bruins in Game 2 will without a doubt go down as one of his best plays ever, but even that dynamic play doesn’t compare to the saucer pass he sent to Mike Hoffman in Game 3.

The pass combined with the finish makes this the nicest goal in Senators’ history with not many close to its level.

While Karlsson was phenomenal for all of his career with Ottawa, he finally got the recognition he deserved because of his heroic efforts during the playoff run.

Honourable Mention: Zdeno Chara

The big “Z”, Chara played four seasons in Ottawa and had 146 points in 299 games, a decision was made to keep Wade Redden over the towering defenceman when he left in 2006.

Goaltender: Craig Anderson

Career Stats (OTT): GP: 422 W: 202 L: 168 OT: 46 SV%: 0.914 GAA: 2.84

The best goaltender in Senators history is undoubtedly Craig Anderson, the all-time leader in wins and the only with 200+ in Senators history, Games played and Save percentage, he was a stalemate during the last 10 seasons.

Since Patrick Lalime left in 2004, Ottawa struggled to find a consistent starter, while the team did have Dominik Hasek for a breif period in 2006, it was short-lived. They struggled with goaltending up until they acquired Anderson halfway through the 2010-11 season.

In 2013, Anderson was a front runner to win the Vezina Trophy as through 24 games he had a 0.941 SV% and a 1.69 GAA, until he was injured for a significant stretch. Rarely do goalies remain starters for a decade if they’re not considered stars, but Anderson was an exception as he would be solid in the regular season and then would come alive in the playoffs.

Playing 40 playoff games for the franchise, Ottawa could always rely on the veteran netminder as he boasts a 0.928 SV% and 2.30 GAA with Ottawa during the postseason.

One of the more memorable moments in Senators’ history and for sure the most memorable in Anderson’s time in the league was his shutout versus the Edmonton Oilers after revealing his wife Nicholle had been diagnosed with cancer.

October 31st, 2016 a day that neither the Anderson family nor Senators fans will ever forget.

Anderson is without a contract for the upcoming season and his future in Ottawa looks bleak, but the veteran goaltender gave fans plenty to cheer about.

Honourable Mention: Patrick Lalime

With Ottawa from 1999-2004, Lalime was great especially in the playoffs with a 0.926 SV% and 1.77 GAA.