Key Senators defenseman out at least a week with concussion

The Ottawa Senators are looking to pick up their third win of the young regular season Thursday night against the New Jersey Devils but will have to do so without an important defenseman. TSN’s Bruce Garrioch reported defenseman Artem Zub will miss at least a week with a concussion while goaltender Linus Ullmark and defenseman Thomas Chabot appear ready to go.

The injury to Zub will strain the Senators’ defense for a short time, with the team already being thin on the right side of the blue line. According to line rushes Wednesday, veteran defenseman Travis Hadmonic will move into the first pairing next to Jake Sanderson, with Jacob Bernard-Docker making his season debut on the bottom pairing.

Ottawa will find it difficult to match up against a speedy New Jersey Devils offense Thursday night but it appears they are taking a more balanced approach to their defense while Zub recovers. Hamonic is no longer the quality shutdown defenseman he was with the New York Islanders organization in the early-to-mid 2010s, but he has started the 2024-25 season well, averaging 15:02 through the first three games.

Zub’s injury also gives some context to Garrioch’s report a few days ago that the Senators were already perusing the trade market to add a depth defenseman. The group looks markedly weaker even after sustaining one injury and Ottawa likely doesn’t want this to become a theme throughout the season with their eyes on the playoffs.

The back half of Garrioch’s injury report from Wednesday was positive as Ullmark returned to practice while recovering from a strain. TSN’s Claire Hanna shared a note from head coach Travis Green, who said, “Linus Ullmark skated today, looked good, progressing well." He did not confirm whether Ullmark would be the starter against the Devils but it appears they are headed in that direction. The team felt his absence in their most recent game against the Los Angeles Kings with Mads Sogaard and Anton Forsberg allowing seven goals on 26 shots in an overtime win.

Chabot left practice early Wednesday after colliding with Bernard-Docker during a drill in the neutral zone. He did not return to practice but multiple sources indicate he is doing fine and there is no concern for his availability on Thursday against the Devils.