Senators could get Jake Sanderson back in time for Brady Tkachuk’s return to Ottawa

Senators defenceman Jake Sanderson (85) in action in the first period of the NHL season opener against the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Oct. 3. Sanderson left that contest early because of injury and hasn't played a game since, but is said to be close to returning to the lineup. Photo by Andrew Lahodynskyj /NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES

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The Ottawa Senators could have all hands on deck on the blueline for the return of former captain Brady Tkachuk.

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Defenceman Jake Sanderson, who has not suited up since he left the National Hockey League club’s season opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 3 after the first period, wasn’t to be on the ice on Saturday night against the Philadelphia Flyers, but was expected to face Tkachuk and the Florida Panthers next Wednesday.

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Senators head coach Travis Green told reporters in Philadelphia on Saturday morning that the hope was that Sanderson would return from his unspecified lower-body ailment for the Oct. 21 contest against the Panthers.

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“He’s probably going to play the next game,” Green said. “That’s the hope.”

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Sanderson has struggled mightily to stay healthy in the past month. He missed the first week of training camp with another unspecified ailment, but returned to the lineup for the Senators’ final preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens on Sept. 29.

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He left that game midway through the second period with a different injury, then returned for the regular-season opener, but didn’t last the full 60 minutes.

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Sanderson was on the ice with Senators teammates during the morning skate on Thursday and took part in an optional skate on Friday before the club travelled to Philadelphia.

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He has been cleared for contact, so the Senators are giving him a little extra time for his recovery.

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Nikolas Matinpalo of the Ottawa Senators is attended to by a trainer after being hit by Anthony Mantha of the New Jersey Devils (not pictured) during the first period at the Prudential Center on Oct. 12. Photo by Andrew Mordzynski /GETTY IMAGES

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Nikolas Matinpalo, who left the road game against the New Jersey Devils on Monday after getting slammed into the boards by Anthony Mantha, was to be back in the lineup against the Flyers.

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That meant defenceman Cameron Crotty was a healthy scratch after returning from an unspecified illness to play in Thursday’s 2-1 home-ice victory over the New York Islanders.

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If Sanderson does play against the Panthers, the Senators will finally have their top defence pairing in place. Artem Zub suited up Thursday for his first game in six months following recovery from a knee injury during Round 1 of the 2026 playoffs against the Carolina Hurricanes.

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“I think we had three rookie defencemen (against St. Louis on Tuesday), and you don’t see that a lot in the NHL,” Green said. “We’ve dressed 10 defencemen so far, so it’d be nice to get some of our guys back in the lineup.”

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The Senators have battled through their early-season struggles to stay healthy and went into the visit to Philly with a 6-2-0 record. They have been helped by the fact that goaltender Linus Ullmark went into Saturday’s start with a 6-0-0 record.

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