New York Rangers presented with golden opportunity in Ottawa thanks to Senators trade shake-up

The Blueshirts are in Ottawa, ON this afternoon to take on the Senators in a matchup with massive playoff implications. With both teams currently sitting at 67 points in the standings, the Senators hold the final wild card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, with just about 21 games remaining the season.

With the NHL trade deadline in the rearview mirror, many teams (including the Rangers and Senators) now have new lineups to debut and adjust to on the fly. The Blueshirts have done a lot of business this season, dealing away players like Jacob Trouba, Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Lindgren, and many others.

Of course, the Rangers have brought in some big names, including J.T. Miller at forward, and Will Borgen, Urho Vaakanainen, and Calvin De Haan to shore up the back end.

It seems that a lot of these additions have helped to drag the Rangers out of a miserable middle of the season, and help New York push toward a playoff appearance that might've seemed impossible in December. The defensive additions have helped the Blueshirts cut down on their goal concessions- while J.T. Miller has registered seven goals and seven assists for 14 points in just 12 games with New York.

The Blueshirts aren't the only team that made moves at the deadline in pursuit of a playoff berth, though. The Senators made one of the bigger moves of Friday- trading away high-scoring forward Josh Norris to the Buffalo Sabres in return for Dylan Cozens in a deal that also included Dennis Gilbert, Jacob Bernard-Docker, and a 2026 2nd round pick.

The loss of Norris is multi-faceted for the Senators locker room. Not only is the team losing a player with 20 goals and 13 assists (33 points) on the season, but many players in the room are losing a close friend. Senators captain Brady Tkachuk spoke to media after learning of the trade, saying

"He was my number one guy I'd talk to about everything, not just on the ice."

Brady Tkachuk, Senators captain

Norris scored in his last game with the Senators on Wednesday, as Ottawa beat the Blackhawks 4-3 in overtime. Adjusting to new players on the roster can already be difficult for clubs, but maintaining composure and poise after a close teammate is traded away is an entirely different challenge.

The Rangers will meet a Senators team trying to incorporate a new forward, and move ahead without a staple of their lineup since 2020. If the Blueshirts are lucky, they'll benefit from the mixed feelings in Ottawa, and leapfrog the Senators to occupy the number one wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.