Less than 48 hours removed from his team’s first-round series loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk admitted it still feels like it hasn’t ended.

“I’m still not over it … I still wish we were playing Game 7 tonight,” he said.

With a dozen Senators players carrying zero playoff experience into the team’s first post-season series since 2017, the almost inevitable disappointment of failing to reach the ultimate goal was bound to be difficult to process. Every team that goes on to find playoff success endures it, but that doesn’t make it any easier.

Still, the early playoff exit is ripe with lessons for this young Senators core.

“It was a good learning experience for all of us to live it for the first time,” said Thomas Chabot, whose rookie NHL campaign came one year after the team’s 2017 playoff run. “One little play can cost you the game, and that’s playoff hockey, but it’s going to be good for next year when we come to that situation.”

A commonality amongst the younger Senators was their gratitude towards the team’s grizzled playoff veterans. Claude Giroux, Linus Ullmark, Travis Hamonic, David Perron and Nick Cousins carry varying degrees of playoff success, but for a team in short supply of experience, all were appreciated through the team’s short run.

“Even when we went down 3-0, they were still positive,” said Dylan Cozens, who got his first taste of playoff hockey after several lean seasons with the Buffalo Sabres. “Just having those guys around has a huge impact on the dressing room.”

Perron, a member of the Stanley Cup-winning 2019 St. Louis Blues, knows a thing or two about what it takes to go all the way.

“Getting playoff experience is so valuable. It’s unbelievable,” he said. “ It feels like two different seasons … it was so refreshing to get up in the morning and just feel the electricity in your body right away.”

The Senators’ young talent has felt that energy. Tkachuk even called it “addictive.”

That said, Perron cautioned the team to take care of the regular season before worrying about the playoffs: “I almost want to just fast forward to March 15 every year and get to playing those bigger games, but you don’t get there if you don’t take care of the first part.”

Chabot echoed the difficulty of just making the post-season, saying that the road back to the playoffs next season will only be more closely contested now that Ottawa won’t be sneaking up on other teams.

“It’s coming back in the same mindset of doing whatever it takes,” he said. “We saw how tight it was this year; it’s going to be the same thing, if not maybe even harder, next year.”

Jake Sanderson, lauded by his teammates all season for his meticulous and thorough preparation, preached the importance of not becoming complacent.

“You don’t want to get too consumed in your routines,” he said. “Comfort kills growth.”

The breakout defenceman admitted he felt himself getting caught in routines throughout the season instead of “seeking out challenges.” In many ways, the Senators’ first three games against the Leafs were the culmination of learning what it means to play consistently over the course of a playoff series while also knowing how to break out of the mould.

“Playoffs make you realize the type of game you need to play to win, and it’s long too,” he said. “ We only played six games, and it’s physical, it’s intense.”

Even in defeat, the team’s confidence is still snowballing. Perhaps that is no clearer for any player than goaltender Linus Ullmark, who statistically endured a rough series against the Leafs. However, earning his first career NHL playoff shutout in Game 5 was a major confidence booster, even if not making the cut for Sweden’s roster at the world championships in Stockholm was a letdown.

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“For next time, I know there’s a possibility I can do it. I don’t have to think, ‘Can I do it?’ I know that I can,” he said.

That attitude has permeated the team. After playing a series full of fortuitous bounces and overtime hockey, they know how much every shift, shot, hit, face-off and deflection matters, and they have the desire to be right back there next year.

“It was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing hockey,” Tim Stützle said. “It’s gonna push me even harder to get better every year and try to accomplish our goal.”

“This year was just the first step of many for us in the future,” Sanderson said.