Thomas Chabot Nail Senator 2025 – 26 New Mindset – Hockey Writer – Ottawa Senator
Ottawa has a new standard. Thomas Chabot didn’t have a sarcasm when asked about the expectations of the Ottawa Senators this season. Entering the playoffs is no longer a distant dream, or a “no longer a good” goal. This is the standard. This word is very important.
The standard has been stuck. These standards have become the standard for the team to measure themselves every day, not only in April, the math positioning of the playoffs has become closer. With head coach Travis Green leading the way, the Senators have made great progress over the past two seasons.
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Chabot is a player on a team that has gone through too many thin years and sounds like a player tired of moral victory. Senators once leaned into the playoffs, which made them crave more. They are not chasing the ribbon. As he said in the video below: “We don’t want to be in it – we want to go in and do some damage.”
Losing maple leaves doesn’t taste good for senators
From the past eight seasons I have covered up NHL hockey, players remember their own bone errors. This is what you get when you listen to Chabot talking about his team. Last spring, Ottawa left a sting.
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The Senators entered the playoffs and only fell 3-1 in the first round of the series. They pushed, fought, and almost dragged it to Game 7. That said, Close is not counted in the Horseshoe or Stanley Cup playoffs. Chabot said the entire team came home with a “bad taste” in their mouths. This taste does not disappear easily. It lingers in training camp, weight room, morning skates. It provides you with it.
For Ottawa, this fuel has become a collective mindset. They’ve been through the feeling that it’s too late, too thin and a little too short. That’s what makes this season unique: Expectation is not about finding out what it feels like to playoff hockey. The goal is once they get there.
However, for the senator, it’s work before words
Of course, just expectation will not win the game. Chabot admitted a lot. He knew “a lot of work was going on before that.” It was just that the team’s collective ambition could not cheer on Ottawa. Every skateboard in the camp, every workout in the gym, every small tactical adjustment, they will be important if they want to encounter their own raised bar.
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Still, in the Canadian capital, these signs are good. Chabot said the guys showed up and honestly, where they fell and were determined to find a solution. Honesty is huge. Teams that lie about weaknesses won’t get better. Face the team they face directly.
How Senators envision their season
Senators are no longer a reconstruction project. They are a team that thinks they belong to the battle. Chabot’s words set the tone: The playoffs are standard, and once you’re there, you’re going to make noise. Ottawa wants to be the kind of team that is easy to go out on the calendar.
Will they pull it down? It depends on health, depth and whether their young core can take the next step. But no doubt – the days of “just happy to be here” are over.
What’s next for the Senator?
For Ottawa, the first half of the season is everything. A slow start won’t cut it. No holes were dug, and then tried to backfill. Chabot knows from experience that climbing down from 3-1 in a series is usually too steep. The same goes for the start of 8-12 this season. The group needs to set the tone in October, rather than waiting until March to bring its behavior together.
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The senator did not evade the challenge. They’ve played the postseason hockey at once and now they want more. If they can support Chabot with the daily grinding he calls for, then it might be that Ottawa is no longer a good story and is starting to be a serious threat.
