The Ottawa Senators’ emergence this season can be attributed to many different factors. You could point to Linus Ullmark’s steady presence in goal, head coach Travis Green’s influence on the team’s defensive game, or players like Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk with their consistent improvement. There’s no doubt that these were all significant factors, but another was the stellar play of defenceman Jake Sanderson.
Sanderson made huge strides in 2024-25, his third season, to the extent that he garnered enough Norris Trophy votes to finish in the top 10 in voting. The 22-year-old continues to improve and is on track to become one of the league’s premier defencemen. More than that, he hopes to be a key piece of a Senators team that embarks on many deep playoff runs and, hopefully one day, wins a Stanley Cup.
The Senators have something special in Sanderson, and they too hope this is just the beginning.
Sanderson’s Past Season
This past season, Sanderson was a workhorse, logging 24:27 a night, which led all Senators skaters in ice time. He also led all defencemen on the team in points and finished third in team scoring. In addition to that, he quarterbacked the first power-play unit, played a significant role on the penalty kill, and utilized his superb skating and puck-moving ability to relieve the Senators from many jams in their own zone.
Sanderson has a significant frame as well and is able to use that strength to his advantage. This aspect of his game will only continue to improve with age as he grows and physically matures even more. His hockey IQ is through the roof, as he displays a fantastic ability to create space for himself to make the right decisions with the puck, as opposed to forcing plays that aren’t there.
Sanderson demonstrated in the playoffs that he’s not afraid of big moments either, an excellent example being his overtime winner in Game 4, which kept the Senators’ season alive by waiting for a lane to open up and firing a shot from the point. He also performed admirably for the Americans during the 4 Nations Face-Off, an experience that ultimately ended up being negative in terms of results but positive in terms of being placed in a high-pressure environment and holding his own.
Sanderson’s Team-Friendly Deal
In today’s day and age, it’s incredibly challenging to acquire defencemen of this caliber, and Senators fans should be genuinely excited about what he has shown early in his career.
Other than Erik Karlsson in his prime, it can be argued that the Senators have never had a defenceman like this. The best part may be that he is still only 22 years old and has seven more years on a deal that pays him just $8.05 million. With the cap projected to rise precipitously in the coming years, that contract will be considered an absolute steal given his age, position, and skill set.
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The majority of the writers who issued fourth-place votes for Sanderson were from outside the Ottawa market, indicating he is becoming more and more of a household name in league circles. As the team continues to grow and mature, hopefully progressing in their development, this will expose Sanderson to more writers and strengthen his case for a Norris win in the future.
The Work Ethic is Evident
While he possesses natural skill, Sanderson is also an incredibly hard worker, not resting on his laurels or relying solely on his talent. He actually started the season slowly, scoring only one goal in his first 28 games before hiring skills coach Jonathan Sigalet to help improve his game. From that point onward, he began to produce and never looked back.
Sanderson takes exceptional care of his body and has many recovery and strength tools at home; he is known for his intense workouts. He states that he takes after Tom Brady regarding his fitness methods, and that is certainly someone you would want to emulate as a professional athlete.
Sanderson’s deep dedication to his craft is a significant green flag in terms of mentality for a young group. While talent is a great asset to have, it can only take you so far if not paired with hard work, and Sanderson displays that in abundance. It’s only positive for that kind of mentality to rub off on a young group hoping to achieve greatness in the near future.
Players like Sanderson will need to continue to grow moving forward in an ever-competitive Eastern Conference environment if the Senators hope to reach their goals. Given what we’ve seen from him so far, it appears they have nothing to worry about in that regard.
