Ottawa Senators clinch playoff spot with win over Isles, Detroit losing to New Jersey

AtlanticBruinsCanadiensLightningMaple LeafsPanthersRed WingsSabresSenatorsMetropolitanBlue JacketsCapitalsDevilsFlyersHurricanesIslandersPenguinsRangersCentralAvalancheBlackhawksBluesJetsMammothPredatorsStarsWildPacificCanucksDucksFlamesGolden KnightsKingsKrakenOilersSharksScores & ScheduleStandingsPodcastsFantasyNHL OddsNHL PicksPlayoff projectionsNHL Draft rankingRed Light NewsletterNHL Regular The Ottawa Senators are headed to the playoffs for the second year in a row under head coach Travis Green. Rich Graessle / Getty Images Share full article5ELMONT, N.Y. — The Ottawa Senators have clinched a playoff spot in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs, marking their second consecutive postseason appearance under head coach Travis Green. Entering Saturday, the Senators needed a victory over the New York Islanders and a Detroit Red Wings loss to the New Jersey Devils. Both results occurred, with the Sens winning 3-0 and the Red Wings losing 5-3 later that evening. “We’ve been playing a lot of good hockey as of late,” Senators forward Michael Amadio said. “So, we’ve just got to take it day by day, not look too far ahead. And obviously, once we get to the playoffs, that’s another whole challenge. So, we’ve just got to make sure we’re ready for it.” The Senators faced long odds to make the playoffs in January, when a 2-6-1 skid had them tumbling down the Eastern Conference standings into a tie for last place with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 12. The Senators’ chances of making the playoffs were once as low as 15 percent, according to Dom Luszczyszyn’s model. That came after their goaltender, Linus Ullmark, went on personal leave for mental health reasons. But even before his leave, the Senators were plagued by inconsistent goaltending, a poor penalty kill and a significant right thumb injury to captain Brady Tkachuk. “It was maybe a little ugly, but our team’s confident. I think we always knew we were going to be in this spot,” Senators forward Ridly Greig said. The Senators are 23-8-5 since Jan. 12, tied for the second-best record, points-wise, with Montreal in that span of time and only trailing Buffalo. That includes a four-game winning streak dating back to last Sunday against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Senators’ penalty kill has also improved since assistant coach Mike Yeo took over for fellow assistant coach Nolan Baumgartner on Jan. 24, operating at an 83.1 percent rate — sixth-best in the league. On Saturday, the Sens’ PK was a perfect 5-for-5 against the Islanders. “Give them credit, they’ve embraced it,” Green said about his team. “They got the job done.” Ullmark has also improved since returning to the lineup from his leave of absence. Since Jan. 31, he is 14-4-3, and is 5-1-0 with a 2.20 goals-against average and .926 save percentage in April. Against the Islanders, he made 23 saves for his third shutout of the season. “He’s unbelievable,” Greig said. “Kept us in it early. And then we get a couple of goals and went from there.” The Senators will hope for some good injury news in the meantime. Tkachuk was injured partway through the Senators’ victory over the Islanders. After suddenly turning to avoid an Islanders player coming off the bench, Tkachuk stumbled and nearly fell to his knees as he made his way toward his team’s bench. Tkachuk briefly went to the dressing room during the second period before returning to the bench at the start of the third. However, after one shift, Tkachuk went down to the dressing room again and didn’t finish the game. “He just wasn’t feeling well,” said Green, who added that he didn’t see what could have led to Tkachuk’s injury. The Senators are already missing defencemen Tyler Kleven and Nick Jensen due to injury. Ottawa is presently in the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, tied on points with the Boston Bruins while holding the tiebreaker via regulation wins. If the regular season ended Saturday, the Senators would play the Buffalo Sabres in the first round of the playoffs. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Julian McKenzie is an NHL staff writer and contributor to the NHL's news and enterprise team for The Athletic. McKenzie also hosts The Chris Johnston Show with The Athletic's Chris Johnston. McKenzie is also the writer of the upcoming book, Black Aces, on Black hockey players and people. McKenzie's work can also be found in The New York Times, FiveThirtyEight, the Montreal Gazette, the Canadian Press, TSN 690, CTV Montreal and more. Follow Julian on Twitter @jkamckenzie