The original Ottawa Senators franchise was founded in 1883. During the original Senators era, there was success with the franchise winning 11 Stanley Cups. The last one came in 1927.
From 1917-1934, the Senators were part of the NHL. However, in 1934, the original Senators franchise came to an end when they moved to St. Louis, Missouri, and were renamed to the "Eagles." It wouldn't be until over 5.5 decades later the that NHL returned to Ottawa.
People in Ottawa were excited to see the Senators return to the NHL when the team played their first season in 1992-93. However, the very first season of the Senators was an absolute ugly one that went down in hockey history.
Here's how bad the Senators were in 1992-93
In the 1992-93 season, the Senators finished with an awful 10-70-4 record, which was good for 24 points. Winning just 10 out of 84 games is an ugly way to go down in hockey history. There's a deeper dive to see how awful the 1992-93 Senators were.
Of the 35 skaters who played in at least one game for Ottawa during the season, 31 of them finished with a negative rating. Four skaters finished with a -40 rating or worse. Twenty-one skaters finished with a -20 rating or worse. Chris Luongo and Brad Shaw were each tied for the lowest rating on the team with a -47.
The Senators' 10 wins were the lowest win total for a full season of at least 80 games played since the 1974-75 Washington Capitals won eight games. The San Jose Sharks won 11 games in their second season of existence in the 1992-93 season to barely beat the Senators by just one win.
In a huge lopsided stat, the Senators were outscored 395 to 202 (-193 differential). The Senators' 202 goals were the lowest in the NHL.
Four different goaltenders played in at least one game during the season. All four goaltenders had a 4.30 goals against average or higher. The Senators' overall save percentage between the four goaltenders was .855.
Steve Weeks, who played in seven games during the season, finished with a 7.22 GAA. Peter Sidorkiewicz, who made 1993 All All-Star Game, led the NHL with 46 losses and 250 goals allowed. Sidorkiewicz was two wins away from tying Gary Smith for the most losses by a goaltender in a single season in NHL history.
Rick Bowness tried all he could to lead the Senators as head coach. Winning 10 games in a season as a coach is tough.
Seventeen years later after Ottawa's ugly first season, he led the Dallas Stars to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance since 2000 as their interim head coach. Bowness going through struggles in Ottawa helped him realize how hard it was to reach the Stanley Cup Finals as a head coach.
Despite the bad team, there were a few bright spots. Brad Marsh was the other All-Star on the roster along with Sidorkiewicz. Norm Maciver led the team with 63 points and 46 assists. Sylvain Turgeon led the Senators with 25 goals, but Bob Kudelski was the only other 20-goal scorer on the roster.
Although there was a few bright spots on the 1992-93 Senators season, most of it will be remembered in ugly history with lopsided stats and a poor record. Ten wins to start a franchise's existence is a tough pill to swallow for any franchise in sports.