As the Ottawa Senators head into the upcoming NHL Entry Draft on June 27 and 28, they should have one goal in mind for their first-round pick at 21st overall. That’s to choose the best player available at that time. As I argued in my last piece for The Hockey Writers, there are very good reasons for the Senators to forget about filling holes in their organization with their first pick and instead take the most talented player still up for grabs when their turn comes to choose.
Related: Ottawa Senators Need a Goalie From 2025 Draft
The question facing Senators president of hockey operations and general manager (GM) Steve Staios is which players are likely to be available after 18 other teams have picked over the players eligible in the first round, and who among them offers the most.
Let’s have a look.
Mock 2025 NHL Draft From The Hockey Writers
The Hockey Writers’ Ottawa Senators writer Dayton Reimer thinks the first round of the draft will unfold as follows:
New York Islanders: Matthew Schaefer, LD, Erie Otters
San Jose Sharks: Michael Misa, C, Saginaw Spirit
Chicago Blackhawks: Anton Frondell, C, Djurgardens
Utah Mammoth: Caleb Desnoyers, C, Moncton Wildcats
Nashville Predators: James Hagens, C, Boston College
Philadelphia Flyers: Porter Martone, RW, Brampton Steelheads
Boston Bruins: Brady Martin, C, Soo Greyhounds
Seattle Kraken: Radim Mrtka, RD, Seattle Thunderbirds
Buffalo Sabres: Roger McQueen, C, Brandon Wheat Kings
Anaheim Ducks: Jake O’Brien, C, Brantford Bulldogs
Pittsburgh Penguins: Victor Eklund, LW, Djurgardens
New York Rangers: Kashawn Aitcheson, LD, Barrie Colts
Detroit Red Wings: Carter Bear, LW, Everett Silvertips
Columbus Blue Jackets: Jackson Smith, LD, Tri-City Americans
Vancouver Canucks: Lynden Lakovic, LW, Moose Jaw Warriors
Montreal Canadiens: Justin Carbonneau, RW, Blainsville-Boisbriand Armada
Montreal Canadiens: Logan Hensler, RD, U. of Wisconsin
Calgary Flames: Ben Kindel, C, Calgary Hitmen
St. Louis Blues: Cameron Reid, LD, Kitchener Rangers
Columbus Blue Jackets: Malcolm Spence, LW, Erie Otters
With what’s likely to be available to them with the 21st pick overall, Reimer makes the case that Staios and company should target 18-year-old centreman Braeden Cootes of the Western Hockey League’s (WHL) Seattle Thunderbirds. For him, Cootes fits the Senators’ gritty identity, bringing a Brady Tkachuk style of play combined with the speed and skill of Tim Stutzle.
If Cootes is drafted before the Senators can get their hands on him, then Reimer suggests they go after the offensively gifted Cameron Schmidt playing with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL. Also a consideration is Cullen Potter, a dangerous offensive player with the University of Arizona who would mesh with Stutzle and eventually take a spot in the Senators’ middle-six.
2025 NHL Draft Presents Many Choices for Senators
I can’t take issue with Reimer’s first-round pick recommendations. Any of them would significantly improve the Senators’ prospect pipeline which, lacking high-end offensive skills as it does, is one of the worst in the NHL. As I argued in my last article, it is at offence, at least for now, that the Senators need the most help.
Still, there are other draft choices the Senators should be considering. Here are my top three picks.
Benjamin Kindel
Reimer projects the 5-foot-10, 176-pound right winger with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen to go to the Calgary Flames as the 18th pick overall. Still, the Flames could pass on him, and he may still be around when it comes time for the Senators to take the 21st pick.
While the knock on Kindel is that he’s on the smaller side, there’s no questioning the offensive firepower he could bring to the Senators organization. In the 2024-25 regular season, he marked up the scoresheet for 35 goals and 99 points in 65 games. In the playoffs, he notched 15 points in 11 games.
His scouting reports credit him with being a playmaker with excellent puck-handling skills and a high hockey IQ. Even so, there isn’t a lot of consensus among hockey experts as to his draft ranking, which has him as high as 11th and as low as 27th. For my part, I’ll go with EliteProspects.com who ranked him 21st overall.
Malcolm Spence
The 18-year-old, 6-foot-2, 200-pound left winger has a reputation as a two-way player. Not only does that fit with the culture that the Senators are trying to build, but he also brings scoring punch. In 65 games with the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League last season, he racked up 31 goals and 73 points. In the playoffs, he showed himself to be a point-a-game player, notching four goals and five assists in nine games.
In The Hockey Writers’ 2025 Draft Prospect Profile, Spence is described as a disrupter. “He uses his combination of size and speed to break up plays and is not afraid to throw the body around when that opportunity is there. Where he elevates to the level of a top prospect is what he is able to do after breaking up a play. He has the ability to create offense going the other way thanks to his vision and awareness. He has as many shorthanded goals in 2024-25 as he does power-play goals.”
Blake Fiddler
At 6-foot-4 and 209 pounds, the 18-year-old Fiddler cuts an imposing figure cruising the blue line of the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. While I’ve argued that from an organizational development standpoint, the Senators should be focusing on offence, I can’t ignore the fact that Fiddler is a right-shot defender. Strength on the right side of the Senators’ blue line has been in short supply over the last number of years.
As Fiddler is profiled in The Hockey Writers’ 2025 Draft Prospect Profile, he “could become a top-four, two-way defenseman in the NHL, particularly excelling in a shutdown role. His size, skating ability, and defensive instincts are significant assets, especially during penalty kills and defensive assignments. He is similar to Brandon Carlo of the Toronto Maple Leafs—a big, mobile, and defensively responsible player who can effectively handle shutdown responsibilities while occasionally contributing offensively.”
Senators Have Intriguing Choices in 2025 NHL Entry Draft
Statistics show that barely more than a third of the players selected in the first round of a typical NHL Entry Draft ever play more than 100 games in the league. That makes it difficult to predict how well the Senators will fare picking 21st in the first round this year. Still, the Senators have some intriguing prospects to consider, and only time will tell what impact they’ll have on the team’s fortunes down the road.
