After trading Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers, it is fair to argue that the Ottawa Senators could use more bite on their roster. They recently brought in young star forward William Eklund, but he won't be able to provide the same kind of grit that Tkachuk did.
Because of this, it would not be surprising if the Senators looked to add at least one gritty forward to their roster through the free agent market. When looking at this year's pending unrestricted free agents, New Jersey Devils winger Paul Cotter stands out as a fascinating option for the Senators to consider.
Cotter was recently not given a qualifying offer by the Devils. With that, he will become a UFA on July 1 if the Devils do not sign him to a new contract by then. If he does end up reaching free agency, it would make a lot of sense for the Senators to try to lure him to Ottawa.
Why the Senators should pursue Devils' Cotter
Cotter appeared in 79 games this past season with the Devils, where he had nine goals, 15 points, and 192 hits. This was after he scored a career-high 16 goals and posted 22 points in 79 games for New Jersey in 2024-25. With this, he has shown in the past that he can provide some secondary scoring when playing at his best.
However, the main reason why the Senators would be bringing in Cotter is because of his extremely physical style of play. Before this past season, he set a Devils franchise record with 245 hits. He also had 233 hits during the 2023-24 season with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Every contender needs to have some toughness, and landing a high-energy player like Cotter would provide the Senators with just that. On an affordable short-term deal, there could be a good match here between the Senators and the five-year veteran.
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