From 2009-2017, Matt Duchene began his NHL career with the Colorado Avalanche. During that eight-year span, Duchene made some solid accomplishments. From making the 2010 All-Rookie Team, to winning Olympic Gold in 2014 with Canada and recording 428 points in nine seasons with the Avalanche.
In November 2017, Duchene went from one cold climate to another when the Avalanche traded him to the Ottawa Senators. The trade was a blockbuster in which some thought Duchene could put Ottawa over after making the Eastern Conference Finals the season before.
Unfortunately, the Senators failed to make the playoffs with Duchene on the roster. In 2019, Duchene was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets. While some might think Duchene's tenure in Ottawa was a struggle, it might not have been all that bad as some may say.
Duchene was solid Senator overall given the team's roster
In retrospect, the Duchene trade is one of the worst moments in Senators history. Considering the price and expectations for Duchene, the Senators were set back for a couple of seasons after the 2017 trade. The Avalanche won the 2022 Stanley Cup, which was four seasons after trading Duchene away, and Ottawa wouldn't make the playoffs until 2025.
However, Duchene's play in Ottawa was in fact solid. In 68 games played in the 2017-18 season with the Senators after being traded, Duchene recorded 49 points. Duchene's 23 goals for Ottawa that season was tied for the highest on the roster with Ryan Dzingel, and his eight powerplay goals were also tied for the most on the roster with Mike Hoffman. Considering Duchene wasn't on Ottawa for the whole season and still finished being tied for the most goals on the roster, his impact was solid.
In the following 2018-19 season, Duchene was at it again with the Senators. Duchene recorded 58 points in 50 games played. Duchene's 27 goals and 58 points were the second-highest on the Senators roster behind Mark Stone for each category. In February 2019, Duchene's Ottawa tenure ended when the Senators were out of a playoff position, and the team traded him to the Blue Jackets. In July 2019, Duchene then signed an eight-year contract with the Nashville Predators.
One part of Duchene's Senators tenure that people might remember the most was when he and several Senators were making negative comments about assistant coach Martin Raymond while riding in an Uber. With being a top player on the Senators roster, Duchene was criticized for his comments made toward Raymond.
In reality, Duchene's tenure in Ottawa might have been remembered by fans as a rough one due to the Senators missing the playoffs each year in his tenure. However, the Senators' goaltending and defense were rough in each of those two years with Duchene on the roster.
Duchene also didn't have Erik Karlsson to play with in the 2018-19 season. Karlsson was traded to the San Jose Sharks one month before the season. Had Karlsson been on the Senators with Duchene, it's unsure if the team would've finished with a 29-47-6 record (64 points) on the season.
Overall, Duchene recorded 107 points in 118 games played during his Senators tenure.