Ottawa Senators general manager Steve Staios is working the phones in hopes of adding a scoring winger, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports.
Garrioch notes that Staios began making calls before Warren Foegele exited the team’s 4-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, but an injury to the winger could further the general manager’s desire to make a deal.
Ottawa is currently 21st in the NHL, averaging 2.85 goals per game amid their promising 8-5-0 start to the season. The team is currently without off-season addition William Eklund with the winger likely sidelined into the new year after ankle surgery.
Garrioch points to Chicago Blackhawks forward Teuvo Teravainen, Detroit Red Wings forwards Andrew Copp and Michael Rasmussen, and Michael Eyssimont of the Boston Bruins as possible options on the trade market.
Teravainen, 32, has two goals and six points in 10 games with the Blackhawks this season. He is a pending unrestricted free agent and carries a cap hit of $5.4 million on his current deal. Teravainen is a four-time 20-goal scorer, but is coming off a 14-goal, 35-point campaign in 75 games last season.
Staios has previously worked with Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson, having swung a deal for Andre Burakovsky for a sixth-round pick in June. That deal has yet to pay off as Burakovsky is without a point in seven games this season and sat as a healthy scratch last week.
The Red Wings have no shortage of irons in the fire with Dylan Larkin’s trade request still hanging over them and plenty of teams showing interested in unsigned restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson. The team is off to a competitive start this season with a 5-4-3 record.
Copp, who is also pending unrestricted free agent, has two goals and an assist in 12 games this season while carrying a cap hit of $5.625 million. The 32-year-old centre had nine goals and 43 points in 79 games last season, his highest point total since joining the Red Wings in 2022.
Rasmussen is signed through next season at a cap hit of $3.2 million and has one goal and three points in 12 games this year. He had six goals and 14 points in 64 games last season.
Eyssimont has yet to play for the Bruins this season and is currently with the AHL’s Providence Bruins, where he has a whopping nine goals and an assist in six games. The 30-year-old centre posted eight goals and 18 points in 56 games with the Bruins last season. He is also on an expiring deal, carrying a cap hit of $1.45 million.
While Staios is exploring options in the now, Garrioch notes that the general manager would prefer to wait until closer to the trade deadline to make a splash to boost his group. That could allow more teams to make more players available and shift their willingness to accept future-based returns.
The Senators will visit the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday and could have their full arsenal of defencemen for the first time this season as captain Thomas Chabot appears set to return.