Ranking the Top 5 Goalies in Ottawa Senators History

In the 30-year history of the Ottawa Senators, they’ve had plenty of success between the pipes

In the thirty years that the Ottawa Senators have participated in the NHL, they’ve used 45 different goalies according to HockeyReference. In this piece, I’m going to attempt to rank the top 5 of all time. For the purposes of this list, Dominik Hasek will not be included. If we’re talking just raw skill, he would no doubt be number 1, but as he only played one season with the nation’s capital, I don’t think it’s fair to include him. Rather, I’m going to rank these netminders based on their long-term contributions in the crease. I will also include three honorable mentions (other than Hasek) that I think would have been higher on this list should they have spent more time in Ottawa.

Honourable Mention: Anton Forsberg

I’ll start by addressing recency bias. I know Anton Forsberg is Ottawa’s current starting goalie (injuries aside), but he’s been pretty good for the Sens. He currently sits 8th in Ottawa Senators history for wins, and could very well hit top 5 in this stat before his contract comes to an end in 2024-25. Again, if you look at his numbers with Ottawa, they don’t sound spectacular, but as with the case with Nilsson, he’s putting these numbers up with one of the weakest teams defensively in the NHL. Last year, Forsberg’s record was 22-17-4 with a .917% and a GAA of 2.82. Imagine what he could do on this team with a competent d-core. We could find this out as soon as next season. With all that being said, he’s just an honorable mention because I want to see him sustain his good play longer term.

Honorable Mention: Ben Bishop

Ben Bishop was acquired when Craig Anderson cut his hand cooking and could not play way back in 2011-12 for a second-round pick (that became Tommy Vannelli) He was traded to Ottawa before he was established as a premier NHL goalie, as he was just in his sophomore season. Bishop is on this list mainly because of where he belongs in my all-time favorite goalie list. Spoiler alert, he’s pretty high on said list. The 6’7 american netminder played in the nation’s capital for only two years before being traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning for Cory Conacher and a fourth-round pick. Bishop was pretty good in Ottawa, but he made his true mark in Tampa Bay where he ranked first in wins by the time he left that organization, and beat many goaltending records for that franchise (before handing the reigns over to someone named Andrei Vasilevskiy. I think I’ve heard his name once or twice before… He’s good, right?)

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#5: Brian Elliot

Brian Elliott was drafted in 2003 by the Ottawa Senators in the ninth round. He is still active in the NHL, currently serving as Andrei Vasilevskiy’s backup. Elliott played four seasons in Ottawa and was regarded as the goaltender of the future for a few years before Brian Murray decided it was time for a shakeup in net. He was traded for an individual that will later be named. In his first season, he was named runner-up for rookie of the month in March 2009 but ended up losing to TJ Oshie of the St Louis Blues. Throughout his career, he ended up playing in two all-star games. With it all being said and done, Elliot ranks 6th all-time in Sens Wins for a netminder with 59.

#4: Ron Tugnutt

In three and a half seasons with Ottawa, Ron Tugnutt potted some pretty decent numbers. He is third all-time in wins for the Sens with 72. The thing stopping him from being any higher on this list is that his most memorable days were not in Ottawa. He is more remembered for his Quebec days, especially with the NHL record he set while with the Nordiques. On March 21st 1991, he made the most saves in a regular season game, stopping 70 of 73 shots against the Boston Bruins. That game turned out to be a tie. He also stood out by being a short goalie, standing at 5’11. Another thing that limits me from rising him anymore on this list is he was always battling for a roster spot. Initially for backup duties, then later for the starter job, with Damian Rhodes (a name I dropped from my list)

#3: Ray Emery

No list of this type can skip over the late Ray Emery (RIP). Emery is fourth in wins for the franchise with 71. In Ottawa, Emery played his very best. He was the goalie responsible when Ottawa made it to their first-ever Stanley Cup Final in 2007. Even though they lost, Emery gave it his all. In those playoffs, he spotted a record of 13-7 in 20 games with a .907S% and 2.26GAA. These numbers are pretty good for playoffs in my opinion. His all-time record with the Sens was 71-40-14, and he backstopped the team for 5 seasons. After leaving Ottawa, he eventually won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013. He also won the William M Jennings trophy that season with his partner in net, Corey Crawford. “Razor” unfortunately passed away in July 2018.

#2: Patrick Lalime

Being one of only two goalies to have won more than 100 games while being an Ottawa Senator, and his iconic goalie masks, Patrick Lalime earns the number two spot on this list. He is second all-time in wins for the Sens with 146. He only ever appeared in the playoffs with the Ottawa Senators, where he had a record of 21-20 with a .926S% and 1.77GAA. He was dominant in the playoffs. Also, while in Ottawa, the lowest S% he posted was a .903,  which he did in 2001-02. Lalime was probably the first consistently good goalie that the Sens had. Admittedly, his time in Ottawa was before I started watching, so I’m relying on stats.

#1 Craig Anderson

Number one is none other than Craig Anderson. Aside from being my favorite goalie of all time (he’s my background on my phone), he owns practically all goaltending records for the Sens. He’s played the most games, won the most games, made the most saves, faced the most shots, is second in shutouts, he even scored the most assists (11). Andy was the solid presence that helped the Sens through the 2010s. Anderson was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for the aforementioned Brian Elliot. Andy is surely on the list for jersey retirement considering once he retires. I’m not saying it will happen, I’m just saying it will be considered. Personally, I’d retire his number, but that’s a discussion for another day. Anderson was the backstop for all of Ottawa’s playoff pushes in the 2010’s, and he was the goalie to help the Sens reach the Conference finals in 2017. Funny how it was ten years after their first-ever finals appearance. He played 436 games with Ottawa and won 202. Aside from his time in Ottawa, Craig Anderson has 316 career wins at the time of writing this, which is good for 5th all-time for an American goalie, and 32nd all-time in general. If this is not his last season, I could see him climb to the 25-20 range if he plays 2 or three more seasons.

Conclusion

That is my list of best goalies in Ottawa Senators history. Unfortunately, I only started watching hockey in the Ray Emery days, so I don’t have much recollection before then. I also missed most of the Brian Elliot days.