It wasn’t pretty at times, but the Ottawa Senators have strung together their best October in a long while, going 9-5-1 in 15 games. That would be enough for fifth place in the Western Conference, but alas, we aren’t that lucky. They are currently holding down the third spot in the Atlantic, with the Florida Panthers being a point back with a game in hand.

The Senators rank 18th in goals for per game (3.13) and 12th in goals against (3.00). Their last handful of games have heavily influenced those numbers, however, as they’ve scored at least 5 goals, and allowed at least 4, in four of their last six contests.Brady Tkachuk’s absence has predictably hurt the team’s ability to generate expected goals – ranked 20th in the league at the moment – while the club’s shooting percentage is sitting at a solid 10th, which is just as predictable a result of losing Trady.Ottawa continues to be a dominant defensive team at even-strength, ranking 6th in expected goals suppression at 5-on-5, and in spite of poor numbers from their backup options, Linus Ullmark’s start to the year has them ranked 4th in save percentage.The power-play, which has been hotly discussed as the team’s biggest weakness this season, has indeed been the team’s biggest weakness this season, with a spooky 12.9% success rate placing them 30th in the league, while allowing four shorthanded goals, including one with the net empty. It’s been a liability in most games, while arguably single-handedly losing them the home game against the Sharks. Jake Sanderson returning to the lineup hasn’t improved its production in a meaningful way, but the unit is at least getting over twice as many high-danger chances on net with him out there as opposed to when he’s on the bench. Oddly enough, this is one of the areas in which the otherwise dominant Atlantic struggles as a whole, with Buffalo, Tampa Bay, and Montreal joining Ottawa among the bottom nine teams. The PK, while not as dominant as what we saw down the stretch last season, has gotten off to an infinitely better start, ranking 17th league-wide, along with a pair of shorthanded goals, plus a third goal that just barely followed a player out of the box. Only a small handful of teams can threaten to strike on the kill, as effectively as Ottawa can.​Monthly AccoladesThird Star: Drake Batherson

Some may forget that during the 2021-22 season, Batherson was above a point-per-game pace as a sophomore after 31 games, when he was taken out long-term by goaltender Aaron Dell. It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that he’s capable of the 17 points he’s accumulated so far. Tied for 9th in the NHL with 9 goals, his production hasn’t been solely reliant on Tim Stützle – he’s been just as productive at 5-on-5 with him, as he has without. It’s hard to say whether that $10.75M cap hit will age well in the medium-to-long term, but we’ve got one more season at a steal, just a hair under $5M.

Drake Batherson is now tied for 7th in the league in goals.

He’s on a 7-game point streak, has 5 goals in his last 4 games.

Finally, since Oct. 21 he has the most points in the league tied with Connor McDavid.

He’s on a tear. pic.twitter.com/1klYFfTuFt

— Alex Adams (@AlexAdamsCIH) October 31, 2026
Second Star: Tim Stützle

Yes, a player who’s got 21 points in 15 games, is tied for 9th in the NHL in goals, has been outscored at 5-on-5 this season by Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Evan Bouchard, Kirill Kaprizov, and nobody else, scored twice off the same opposing power-play, rocking a 55% win rate in the faceoff circle, has a chef at home, and has drawn four minor penalties while taking just one, is only the second star of the month of October. We are truly blessed.

Tim Stützle capitalizes off some great passing by the @Senators! pic.twitter.com/skv2xM5aLZ

— NHL (@NHL) October 31, 2026
First Star: Linus Ullmark

The NHL’s best goalie in October 2026, ladies and gentleman. The ultimate trump card. Ullmark has somehow improved on his form in the playoffs, posting a 7-1-0 record and .945 save percentage, including a .926 or better in all but one of his starts. Essentially, if Linus is in goal, flip three coins. If any of them land on heads, you win.

In particular, he’s doing a much better job of controlling and reacting to rebounds – last season, a harmless shot from Alex Newhook would petrify this poor man like a glare from Medusa, but now, he’s got his head on a swivel, and keeps the crease clear of any shenanigans. He appears to be in a good place, mentally speaking, but his ability to stay physically healthy – quantitatively, the number of starts he can take on – remains a question mark.

In the spirit of Halloween, October’s accolade is awarded to the player wearing the most frightening costume, only to be not so scary under the mask. Imagine opening the door to this stat line: a 1-3-1 record, with an .866 save percentage – ok, you can have the gummy burgers and Coffee Crisps, just don’t kill me!

Looking a bit closer, however, Ersson doesn’t provide an overwhelming amount of nightmare fuel – under the right circumstances, such as what we saw in his first victory of the season yesterday, he can be an easy watch. He only faced 23 shots, strong goal support, a lack of high-danger rush chances against, and rewarded the team in front of him by stopping all but one. His track record spanning three seasons isn’t one that inspires confidence, but yesterday’s game was a step in the right direction for Ottawa’s latest goaltending project.

Looking Ahead to November:

Expect a higher quality of competition going forward after several early games against mediocre opponents. You’ve got a stretch against Buffalo, Utah, Washington, and Colorado in the first two weeks, with a brutal road trip through Carolina and both Florida clubs later in the month. In order to maintain or improve their current points pace, the Senators will need a swift return to the lineup for Ullmark while continuing to support Ersson as was the case in San Jose, as well as get that power-play in order.