The season isn’t going as well as many hoped for the Ottawa Senators, which isn’t something new. For the past seven seasons, the Senators have been a bad regular season team and have not made the playoffs, and it looks like they are on the wrong track. Amidst the growing need for a shakeup, Frank Seravalli reported that Josh Norris could be on the move.
How We Got Here
The 25-year-old center who was once regarded as a key piece of the future has had some struggles in Ottawa, including three separate shoulder surgeries in his young career. After scoring 35 goals as a sophomore, there was legitimate reason to believe that he could emerge as a prolific goal-scorer, but since hitting that mark, injuries have led him to just 18 goals in the two seasons after, and through 21 games in 2024-25, he has eight goals and six assists.
It is evident that things aren’t working the way they are built now. Much of the roster is still remaining pieces from the Pierre Dorion era, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Players like Jake Sanderson, Tim Stutzle, and Brady Tkachuk are the future of this team, but with Norris, he has become more expendable than some of the other young stars.
Dorion signed Norris to an eight-year deal with an average annual value of $7.95 million after his 35-goal season, and largely in part due to the multiple injuries, he hasn’t lived up to it and with the Senators in a cap crunch, it makes the most sense to move on from him to clear space and shake up the roster.
Here are three potential trades involving Norris.
Trade 1: Norris to the Rangers for Chris Kreider
Proposed Trade:
To Ottawa: Chris Kreider
To New York: Josh Norris, 2025 third-round draft pick
In another surprising report, Elliotte Friedman reported that the New York Rangers are open for business, and mentioned Chris Kreider as a potential trade option along with some others.
The Senators’ deepest position is without a doubt center. With Stutzle, Norris, Shane Pinto, Ridly Greig, and Zack Ostapchuk all more than capable centers, and while Norris plays a big role on the second line, Pinto has shown in the past that he can play in that role. Pinto hasn’t gotten off to a great start, but he will almost certainly turn it around.
With all of that being said, if the Senators do trade Norris, they don’t necessarily need a center in return. One of their weaker positions is on the left wing, where Kreider could slide in very well. He brings a physical, gritty style of hockey while also being able to bang and crash the net and score goals. That kind of play is exactly the kind of thing the Senators could use on the left side.
As it sits today, the left side starts with Tkachuk, then goes to Claude Giroux, Cole Reinhardt, and Nick Cousins. That group of four, especially considering Reinhardt is just filling in for David Perron, but Giroux is on his off-wing, and it could certainly use an improvement.
Kreider has scored 36+ goals in each of the last three seasons, including a 52-goal season three years ago. He is a great power forward who fits the Senators’ mantra very well.
For the Rangers, Norris brings good two-way play, and while he hasn’t done it as consistently, he is capable of scoring at a similar rate Kreider has in his past. He will also help add to the Rangers’ center depth, and while they have Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck, and Filip Chytil, there have been some struggles and he could shake that up as well.
Trade 2: Norris to the Blue Jackets for Jiricek
Proposed Trade:
To Ottawa: David Jiricek
To Columbus: Josh Norris, 2026 third-round draft pick & 2026 sixth-round draft pick
Another name being thrown around in trade rumors is Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman David Jiricek. The former sixth-overall pick has struggled to make the Blue Jackets in a full-time role this season, and it has been reported by many sources that a trade is likely to come sooner rather than later.
Related: Ottawa Senators Have Been Constructed to Lose
With a player like Jiricek, the trade isn’t happening because he is a bad player by any means. There is a combination of the roster not having room for him, the new regime of management not having the same connection to him as the previous ones who drafted him, and more.
For the Senators, while they just selected Carter Yakemchuk in the NHL Entry Draft, their right side of the defense is very weak and with Artem Zub missing an extended period of time, they now have Travis Hamonic and Jacob Bernard-Docker in the lineup, which is less than ideal.
Jiricek would be an immediate upgrade on both Hamonic and Bernard-Docker, and with him being young and having a lot of potential, he is exactly the kind of player the Senators could use, especially with Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot being established on the left side.
Trade 3: Norris to the Blackhawks for Murphy, Draft Picks
Proposed Trade:
To OTT: Connor Murphy, 2026 second-round draft pick & 2026 fourth-round draft pick
To CHI: Josh Norris
With Zub out for an extended period of time, the Senators need a right-shot defenseman. That could be solved with a trade for Jiricek, but if the Senators want to stick to older, more proven players, the Chicago Blackhawks could be a great way for them to make a deal.
Connor Murphy has been a great defenseman for the Blackhawks for a while, but this season, he has stepped up and been playing a strong shut-down role on the top pair. Murphy is currently 20th in the NHL with 46 blocked shots, has eight assists, and playing over 20 minutes per game.
The Senators could certainly use the minute-eating right-shot defenseman, even with Zub in the lineup. He would be a similar addition to the team as Nick Jensen was, and that has worked out very well so far.
From the Blackhawks side of things, after chatting with The Hockey Writers’ Gail Kauchak, it may not be the most enticing thing for Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson. The proposed trade makes sense for both sides, but Kauchak noted that Davidson hasn’t shown himself to be the type to acquire players with big money and term. With that being said, acquiring a player like Norris would make sense.
The Blackhawks have a superstar center in Connor Bedard, but that may not last forever. There has been speculation that Bedard will make a switch to the wing rather than play center.
Behind Bedard, the Blackhawks don’t have strong center depth at all. Lukas Reichel is struggling this season, but still has the potential to become a middle-six option, and Ryan Donato and Jason Dickinson, while playing well, are much better suited in a bottom-six role. Norris would solidify the top-six center positions for a long time if Bedard is to stay, and if not, he would be a great center option to play on Bedard’s wing.
Plenty of Options for Norris Trade
There are lots of ways to look at a potential trade involving Norris. The Senators could value cap space and take back picks and prospects, could look for a one-to-one swap with another top-six player, go younger, search for a combination, or anything.
There is still no guarantee that Norris is traded, but if they do opt to move him, it could be beneficial for the team.
