The Ottawa Senators are currently in a position not many expected them to be in. As January is one week away from ending, the Senators would be out of the 2025 playoffs if the season ended today, but the team is still in the hunt with 52 points. However, even with a 24-20-4 record, the Senators have one forward on their team that will draw interest from teams at the trade deadline.
That forward is 37-year-old Claude Giroux. After this season, Giroux will be an unrestricted free agent. Giroux entered this season as the Senators' top trade bait piece with his experience, being a free agent after the season, his style of play and seeking his first Stanley Cup in his career. Although Giroux has 30 points this season, Giroux will still draw interest from teams.
Teams will be interested in adding a big piece at the trade deadline to make their team stronger. With the deadline drawing closer, one writer can see Giroux being a trade target for a powerhouse team in the Western Conference.
Giroux could be perfect trade target for Stars
To no surprise, the Dallas Stars are in Stanley Cup conversations again this season with a 29-17-1 record. The Stars have made the Western Conference Finals over the past two seasons. Blackout Dallas Site Expert Brian Sweet wrote an article yesterday titled "Jim Nill Nuclear Trade: 5 trade targets for the Dallas Stars." One of the trade targets Sweet named was Giroux. Sweet said Giroux would be an "excellent rental" for Dallas.
Since he joined the Senators at the start of the 2022-23 season, Giroux has been a solid top-six forward for the Senators by recording 143 points in his first two seasons as a Senator, but this season has been a let down for Giroux.
While Giroux is fourth on the Senators with 30 points, the Senators need to get more out of Giroux with where they're at right now. Giroux's nine goals this season is the sixth most on the Senators, but he has gone the entire month of January without scoring so far. That is 12 consecutive games without a goal.
If the Senators were to trade Giroux, it could be a sign they will be sellers at the deadline instead of buyers, but if the Senators continue to struggle and drop further in the standings, getting some value in return for Giroux might not be so bad.
The Stars are in need of a veteran forward who can play in the top-six and Giroux is capable of doing so. In Sweet's article, he mentioned how Giroux's veteran presence to go on the second line when Mason Marchment returns to the lineup would get the Stars "back on track" of making the playoffs. The Stars have lost three of their last four games.
Giroux's trade value could likely be in the middle rounds of a draft. If Giroux is traded by the deadline, the Senators can use a pick or a few to continue to build for the future with receiving draft picks.