For the last 22 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.

The 23^rd annual review will appear here on Dobber Hockey throughout the summer. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey both for the season ahead as well as the foreseeable future. Offensively, will the team perform? Are there plenty of depth options worthy of owning in keeper leagues? What about over the next two or three years? These questions are taken into consideration when looking at the depth chart and the player potential on that depth chart.

Enjoy!

** Be sure to pick up your copy of the 2025-2026 Fantasy Hockey Guide **

Gone: Adam Gaudette, Anton Forsberg, Travis Hamonic, Matthew Highmore, Angus Crookshank.

Incoming: Lars Eller, Jordan Spence, Arthur Kaliyev, Olle Lycksell.

Impact of Changes: We hope Steve Staios was able to spend some time working on his golf game a little more this offseason or even got in a few extra dockside cocktails, as Ottawa's front-office boss was one of the quietest in the entire NHL since the 2024-25 campaign wrapped – and that's likely a good thing. Last season, the Ottawa Senators took the step that a lot of hockey pundits have been waiting on, returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and pushing the Toronto Maple Leafs to six games while announcing to the league that their time is now. All of the Muskoka-related jokes aside, Staios is at the helm of one of the best teams in the NHL, one that will be heard from come May and one that should also be looked at for elite fantasy hockey options.

As for the names in-and-out of the Nation's Capital over the summer, nothing truly moves the needle for this group, in the standings or in fantasy circles. Lars Eller will eat minutes as the fourth-line centre coming in on a cheap one-year deal, adding some veteran presence to the bottom-six and the other everyday NHLer added to the roster is rearguard Jordan Spence, who put up 28 points across 79 games for the L.A. Kings last year and will likely see time as Travis Green's final blue-liner. Neither of those pieces are fantasy worthy, meaning the meat-and-potatoes of this fantasy feast lie with the returning core of studs any GM would be ecstatic to have on their squad.

Ready For Full Time: Carter Yakemchuk

There's no denying the fact Sens fans are salivating over Carter Yakemchuk, but when will he arrive on the game's biggest stage as a premier performer and reliable fantasy option? The seventh overall pick from the 2024 NHL Draft is a six-foot-four behemoth with the kind of offensive flair that makes him a lock as a fantasy keeper/dynasty option and a player with a really good shot at sticking with the big club this season. Sure, his overall offensive output dipped in his final year with the WHL's Calgary Hitmen, but that really shouldn't detract from his ability to impact plays at both ends of the rink or crack the roster out of training camp. One knock on Yakemchuk is his skating ability, but give the 19-year-old time to round out his game and he should be playing in Ottawa for a majority of this season. The Sens passed on some really good defensemen at the seventh spot to take Yakemchuk, letting Zayne Parekh, Sam Dickinson, and Zeev Buium go elsewhere, so this player's caliber and upside screams top-four D-man. Don't be surprised if he winds up being a game-changer for both Ottawa and fantasy GMs before long.

Honorable mention to centreman Stephen Halliday who led the Sens' AHL affiliate Belleville Senators last season with 51 points, using his frame and aggressive style to establish himself as another depth option up-the-middle should injuries or struggles strike guys like Shane Pinto or even Eller.

Fantasy Outlook: GET YOURSELF A PIECE OF THIS OTTAWA COOKIN'. The Senators have to be looked at as a fantasy hockey goldmine with excellent options at every position. From a borderline top-10 netminder in Linus Ullmark, to a rising star of a rearguard in Jake Sanderson, to two tantalizing forwards in Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa has a number of attractive names that won't be around much past the fifth or sixth round. Targets remaining that you will be able to get in later rounds that still serve up a ton of draft-worthy value include Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens, and even Thomas Chabot. Will head coach Travis Green be able to harness all of the young talent and tame some of the beasts in the East that Ottawa will surely have to go through in the likes of the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes and others? Time will surely tell but for now, bank on the Sens to be an extremely difficult team to handle on the power play and offensive end in general and one that should be regularly plundered for fantasy gold.

Overall Grade: A (Last year, A-).