What Bandwagon Fans Need to Know About the Ottawa Senators

For the first time since 2017, the Ottawa Senators will be one of the sixteen teams in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Part of the fun of being in the playoffs is that you get more eyes on your team. Casual fans tune in now that the games have real stakes. National media pays more attention now that the field has been cut in half. Fans of other playoff teams watch so they can get a sense of the competition. And fans of non-playoff teams pick a new team to cheer for. Some hockey fans like to get mad about new people hopping on the bandwagon, but I say the more the merrier. 

The Sens are a bit of an off-the-board pick. They’re not expected to make a ton of noise in their first playoff appearance in 8 years, so fans wanting to follow a deep run might be wary of getting too attached to this team. They’re also in a small enough market that people might not have heard much about them before now. Still, they’ve got underdog status, and now that it's official that they're playing the Leafs, they’ll have every non-Leafs fan in the country on their side in the first round.

Also, shoutout to the city of Whitehorse, which is apparently hopping on the Sens' bandwagon thanks to our new acquisition Dylan Cozens, who people call the "Workhorse from Whitehorse?" I hope this guide is helpful to you.

So if you’re hoping to jump on the Sens’ bandwagon for this postseason, this article is for you. Whatever your reason for being here, know that we’re thrilled to have you - so much so that we’re going to help you learn the basics before the playoffs start.

This isn’t a full roster breakdown, but an overview of the big names and storylines. Think of it as a sparknotes for the Sens’ roster. These are the main things you need to know if you’re going to become a Sens fan for these playoffs.

You like Brady Tkachuk now

It might be a bit difficult for fans of other teams to get on board with this one, but it’s non-negotiable. No ifs or buts about it. Brady is the one player who unites all sides of Sens fandom, from the old school fans who like grit and toughness to the fancy stats nerds to the, ahem, enthusiastic group of online progressives. It’s truly impossible not to like him when he’s on your team.

Brady is the captain, and he plays with a level of emotion that is unmatched in this league. Sometimes that’s a detriment to the team - he tends to get upset when things aren’t going well and start fights at bad moments - but most of the time it’s a good thing. He scores big goals, he gets under his opponent’s skin, and he celebrates like no one else. 

Brady once went straight from a game at the CTC to a bar in downtown Ottawa, where he got up on stage with the band to sing Mr. Brightside. He yells “we’re winning the cup” to random people on the street. He joins street hockey games with little kids. He has been trying and failing to pull off the same cool move for about 3 years. He gets so intense during games that it can be scary, but he’s truly one of the goofiest guys in the league, and the heartbeat of this team.

Tim Stützle doesn’t dive, and if he does it’s funny

Tim Stützle is a name you’re going to hear a lot during this playoff run. The 23-year-old German centre is probably the most talented and entertaining player on this team, and oh boy does he have a knack for annoying his opponents.

Hockey fans tend to stereotype European players as highly skilled but not very tough, and not playing with a lot of intensity. Tim Stützle sure is skilled, but he's also one of the hardest workers on the team, always trying to improve his game, and he really gives it his all when the games matter. He lives for the rivalries.

But Stützle also has a… well, a reputation around the league.

Look. Tim Stützle has no centre of gravity. He’s also a very flashy player, who’s always dancing around opponents and trying out cool moves with the puck. And he’s extremely dramatic. What all that means is that he tends to fall down spectacularly several times a game, and he usually draws penalties on those plays. Many people believe that this is “diving,” aka pretending to fall down to draw a penalty. In hockey, diving is basically the most serious accusation you can make against a player. People also tend to care a lot more about it during the playoffs, when the games are more important and the penalties therefore mean more. Basically, get ready for some discourse.

As a Sens fan, you’ll need to prepare your defense of Stützle for when the diving accusations inevitably happen. You have two options. You can repeat the above paragraph, and argue that Timmy doesn’t dive at all, he just can’t help that he falls down all the time. Alternatively, you can say that he does dive, it’s funny, he’s really good at it, and everyone else should get on his level. That second one is more risky but I’ve been having fun with it.

Thomas Chabot deserves this more than anyone

Thomas Chabot often  gets overlooked on a team full of young exciting players. Don’t overlook him.

Chabot first came into Ottawa with a ton of hype, touted as a gamebreaking offensive defenceman and coming off MVP performances at both the World Juniors AND the QMJHL championship. Then, in just his second season, he was forced to basically carry the team on his back. Throughout the rebuild, he was among the league leaders in icetime, and did it while dragging around defense partners who were barely NHL-calibre. He struggled a bit, and that’s why a lot of fans have turned on him, but he’s still an excellent puck-moving defenseman who can put up points.

He was also the first member of the sens’ core to commit to the team long-term. He was almost named Captain. He’s been mentoring all the young defensemen. Now 28, and in his 8th full season, he’s the longest-tenured Ottawa Senator. He’s been through more shit than anyone else on this roster. Him finally making it to the playoffs is absolutely massive.

Jake Sanderson is criminally underrated

You might not have heard of Sanderson before, but now that you’re a Sens fan, you need to know who he is, and you need to start talking about him.

Sanderson has been quietly excellent since his very first game in the NHL. He’s a steady, reliable presence on defense with enough talent to make a huge difference offensively. He’s the type of player that you don’t always notice because he’s just quietly doing his job, and doing it very well, but every once in a while he’ll pull off a game-saving defensive play or score a big goal to remind you how good he is. If the Sens end up playing any marathon overtime games, he and Chabot will be the guys logging outrageous minutes.

If you want to fit in with Sens fans, start calling him underrated. Say that he and Stützle were the best players to come out of the 2020 draft.  It doesn’t matter how many times the broadcast mentions him; they need to be talking about him more.

Claude Giroux rocks

Hi, Flyers fans!

Claude Giroux is up there as one of the most beloved players around the league, which is impressive considering that he’s a bit of a pest on the ice. He played exactly 1,000 games with the Philadelphia Flyers, most of them as their captain, and is one of the most beloved athletes in Philadelphia sports history. In his prime, he was so good that some Flyers fans would tell you with a straight face that he was better than Crosby (he wasn’t, Flyers fans are just world class haters, but he was good enough to be in the conversation). He took the Flyers on some great playoff runs, but unfortunately when the team entered a rebuild in 2022 he decided to move on.

Usually, when a player that good who’s never won the cup before approaches the end of his career, he signs with the team that will give him the best chance of winning the cup. Claude Giroux opted to sign with… his hometown Ottawa Senators.

This decision, while baffling to absolutely everyone who follows hockey, instantly made him one of this fanbase’s most beloved players. You have to understand that nobody ever chooses to play for Ottawa. Most players try to leave as soon as possible. “G” loves this city, he loves this team, and he’s teaching all our young players how to annoy the shit out of their opponents - Ridly Greig is his protégé. He brings some old man energy and a lot of playoff experience, and if you’re going to follow this team, you need to understand how important this run is to Claude Giroux.

Also, I think Flyers fans will actually burn down the city of Ottawa if this team lets Giroux retire without a cup.

The goalie has something to prove

Hi, Bruins fans!

The most significant upgrade the Sens made in the last year was bringing in Linus Ullmark, who was one of the best goaltenders in the league for several years running when he played for Boston. He’s a ray of sunshine and a delightful presence on the team, on top of being one of the main reasons the team is even in the playoffs. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a very good playoff record with the Bruins, so he’ll be looking for redemption this year. Hard to think of a guy that’s easier to root for.

If Ullmark is on his game, the Sens have a fighting chance against anyone.

This is a team full of shitheads

You need to decide right now if you’re going to love this team or hate it. There’s no middle ground, because once the puck drops in game 1, everyone cheering against this team is going to hate them so, so much.

This is a group of players who live to piss off their opponents. We’ve already talked about Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stützle and Claude Giroux, but it doesn’t stop there. Third liner Ridly Greig is already public enemy #1 in Toronto because of an empty net incident from a few years ago, and plays such a dirty game that he received his first NHL suspension before playing his first NHL game. David Perron is not someone you want to play against. Nick Cousins is an asshole too.

Zub is your god

At some point during a game in Ottawa, a stay-at-home defenseman is going to touch the puck, and it's going to sound like the whole crowd is booing him. Don't worry! They're not! They're chanting "Zuuuuuuuub," and you should join them, even if it's just from your couch.

Zub has a cult-like following in Ottawa. He showed up as a complete unknown during the 2021 COVID bubble season, when we were all very bored and had nothing better to do than come up with weird bits about the Ottawa Senators, and we thought, what the hell, let's start a cult centred around the mysterious Russian guy who doesn't speak a word of English. Him turning out to be actually good was one of the best things that's ever happened to the best posters in Sens fandom.

We are dead serious about our rivalries

If you’re one of those people who cheers for multiple NHL teams, you’re valid and I support you. If one of those teams is the Leafs or Habs, get out of here right now. 

Hating the Leafs is central to the Sens fan identity. No level of hatred is too cringe, or too over the top. Some Sens fans would even say that the Leafs losing in the playoffs is more important than the Sens winning. Our hatred for the Leafs is so cringe that it circles around to being funny. In fact, there are few things Sens fans find more offensive than when people say they like both the Sens and the Leafs.

If you’re going to get offended by jokes about how Mitch Marner’s daddy doesn’t love him, then maybe Sens fandom isn’t for you.

They have some playoff demons

Speaking of the Leafs...

Yes, this is a fresh start for the Sens, and they actually had a decent amount of playoff success the last time they were here, but this series has an even greater meaning than just the rivalry.

The Sens teams of the early 2000s were very good in the regular season, but kept losing specifically to the Leafs. They played them 4 times in 5 years and lost all 4 matchups. The Sens have never won a series against the Leafs before, so finally beating them in their grand return to the playoffs would be massive.

Another thing that might come up is that this franchise has never won a game 7 in their entire history. In fact, among teams who have never won a game 7, they have the most game 7 losses, with 6. The only other teams in contention are the organization currently known as the Utah Hockey Club, with 5 losses, and the Columbus Blue Jackets, with 0. I'm not saying I want a game 7 in these playoffs, but a game 7 win would be a pretty big deal.