{"id":85203,"date":"2026-06-12T09:13:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T09:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/85203\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T09:13:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T09:13:36","slug":"ottawa-senators-should-not-pursue-rasmus-andersson-in-free-agency-the-hockey-writers-ottawa-senators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/85203\/","title":{"rendered":"Ottawa Senators Should Not Pursue Rasmus Andersson in Free Agency – The Hockey Writers – Ottawa Senators"},"content":{"rendered":"

With free agency less than a month away, teams are now preparing themselves for what is out there, and what is out there isn\u2019t all that glamorous. This year\u2019s free agency class is projected to be extremely weak, and only a handful of players will realistically cause a bidding war. One of those players is right-shot defenceman Rasmus Andersson<\/a>, who is currently in the Stanley Cup Final with the Vegas Golden Knights.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Andersson is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades defenceman. He\u2019s not \u201celite\u201d in one single category, but he\u2019s a smooth skater, moves the puck up the ice efficiently using his feet or stick, provides an offensive element from the backend, and can be an absolute pest to play against defensively inside the dirty areas. This all sounds great. Why would the Senators not want to be in on this right-shot blueliner?<\/p>\n

Do the Senators Have Their Top-Four Solution In-House?<\/p>\n

The Senators currently have a hole on the right side of their defence in their top four. Jordan Spence<\/a> is a pending restricted free agent, and their seventh-overall pick from 2024, Carter Yakemchuk, are two internal players who could fulfill that role. However, the role of playing 20 or so minutes a night for both could be daunting and set them up for failure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yakemchuk came into Game 4 of the Senators\u2019 first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes. It was his NHL Playoff debut, and he arguably didn\u2019t look out of place. He logged just under 20 minutes in that game and assisted on both of Ottawa\u2019s two goals in the 4-2 loss. He registered a goal and an assist in four games during the regular season, while having an impressive rookie campaign in Belleville in the American Hockey League (AHL) with 40 points (10 goals, 30 assists) in 54 games.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The future is bright for Yakemchuk<\/a>, and he certainly is showcasing the potential of a top-four defenceman. Alas, having two offensive-minded blueliners paired together can create havoc on the defensive side of the puck. It would make more sense for Yakemchuk to be paired up with Kleven on the third pair rather than be with Chabot.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Spence had a bit of an up-and-down season. But when elevated in the lineup down the stretch in the regular season, he showed his potential, and he would have the upper hand in slotting into the No. 4 spot over the rookie Yakemchuk. However, Spence needs a new contract and shouldn\u2019t be painted as an \u201cuntouchable\u201d for the Senators. If he can help them fetch more scoring help in their forward group, general manager Steve Staios should be willing to move the 25-year-old right-shot blueliner.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Roster Domino Effect<\/p>\n

Andersson isn\u2019t going to get a short-term deal (most likely) in free agency. As a player who turns 30 later in the year, he will be looking for a contract that will take him past his mid-30s. If the Senators were to give him a six-year deal, how would that impact the rest of the roster?<\/p>\n

\"RasmusVegas Golden Knights defenceman Rasmus Andersson (Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Artem Zub\u2019s contract expires at the end of next season. He has turned into a perfect partner for Jake Sanderson, and we can\u2019t underestimate how significant his loss was when he left the Carolina series with an injury. Zub\u2019s next contract will see him at 32 years old by the time the 2027-28 season starts. Yes, his age could factor into contract discussions, but defencemen with his kind of defensive skillset can\u2019t be overlooked.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brayden McNabb of the Golden Knights is an unsung hero<\/a> for his team. He plays alongside Shea Theodore, the team\u2019s No. 1 defenceman, and is a staunch defensive rearguard who allows Theodore to focus on the offensive side of the puck. That\u2019s Zub in a nutshell. The Senators will want to get a deal done with him sooner rather than later.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s assume Zub stays put in Ottawa and that Andersson is also signed. Where does Yakemchuk go now? If Zub and Andersson are both around long-term, that will stifle Yakemchuk\u2019s development path. There would be no room for him to move up. That can create a dissatisfied high-end prospect \u2014 look at Simon Nemec in New Jersey<\/a>. Yakemchuk may view Andersson\u2019s signing as a sign that the organization doesn\u2019t trust him and his potential.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also the factor of money. Andersson is expected to get a significant pay raise from the $4.55 million\u00a0 cap hit he currently has. Many are projecting him to get a contract no lower than $8 million per year and closer to the $9 million mark. That could also increase further if he has an impressive Stanley Cup Final. Paying Andersson as much as he is expected to fetch could make him the highest-paid player on the Senators. Would the organization be comfortable with that? Does that not really matter with the salary cap constantly rising?<\/p>\n

Andersson\u2019s Playoff Run Causing \u201cBuyer Beware?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Golden Knights gave up four pieces to acquire Andersson from the Calgary Flames this season. That included a first and second-round pick along with a well-respected member in the locker room, Zach Whitecloud. It was a heavy price to pay<\/a> for a deal that didn\u2019t come with a contract extension, but that\u2019s the cost management sometimes needs to be willing to make to win a Cup. However, is there some \u201cbuyer beware\u201d forming from his play throughout these playoffs?<\/p>\n

Andersson has been partnered up alongside his former Flames teammate, Noah Hanifin. The two would no doubt have chemistry, but it hasn\u2019t necessarily been showcased on the ice. Courtesy of Natural Stat Trick<\/a>, the two have played over 300 minutes together at 5v5. Their Corsi is by far the worst at 41.76%. They\u2019ve allowed 141 scoring chances against (SCA) and 62 high-danger scoring chances against (HDCA). Compare that to the McNabb and Theodore pairing, who have allowed 107 SCA and 42 HDCA.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When you separate the two and look at just their individual analytical stats, Andersson ranks near or at the bottom in about every important category. He has the worst Corsi; he\u2019s been on the ice for the most shots against, SCA, and HDCA. Additionally, if you filter for just the Stanley Cup Final games, Hanifin and Andersson are being absolutely caved in by the Hurricanes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, to play devil\u2019s advocate. The Senators are in \u201cwin-now\u201d mode. It makes absolute sense to target a player of Andersson\u2019s caliber who could be the piece that helps push them over the edge. The organization doesn\u2019t just want to avoid another first-round exit. Is a right side that consists of Zub, Yakemchuk, Spence, and Nikolas Matinpalo, good enough? I think the obvious answer is no. The team would be banking on Yakemchuk or Spence to stabilize that No. 4 spot. But if they don\u2019t do that? Well, then the team would have to start looking at spending assets and acquiring a player via trade, which is not ideal.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In an ideal world, the Senators roll into next season with Spence or Yakemchuk as their right-shot blueliner on the third pair, and Matinpalo is No. 7 on the depth chart. So while acquiring Andersson to fill that hole makes sense, it would create complications for the organization\u2019s top prospect moving forward, and perhaps his play in the playoffs has turned teams away.<\/p>\n

Free Newsletter<\/p>\n

\n Get Ottawa Senators coverage delivered to your inbox <\/p>\n

In-depth analysis, breaking news, and insider takes – free.<\/p>\n


\n Subscribe Free \u2192
\n <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With free agency less than a month away, teams are now preparing themselves for what is out there,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":85204,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[21472,9851,22562,61,2970],"class_list":["post-85203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ottawa","tag-2026-nhl-free-agency","tag-carter-yakemchuk","tag-jordan-spence","tag-ottawa","tag-rasmus-andersson"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85203\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85204"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}