November 25, 2024; Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; A view of the Ottawa Senators logo on jerseys worn by team members during the second period at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Image The NHL on Thursday modified the disciplinary sanctions imposed on the Ottawa Senators for their role in trading Evgenii Dadonov to Las Vegas in July 2021 and subsequently nullifying a March 2022 deal between the Golden Knights and Anaheim Ducks.
The sanctions, first imposed on the Senators in November 2023, forfeited the club’s first-round draft pick in the 2024, 2025 or 2026 NHL Draft. The Senators asked the league to reconsider the deal, citing mainly changes in club ownership and management.
The NHL announced on Thursday that the Senators will receive a first-round pick in the 2026 draft, but it will be No. 32, the final selection, regardless of ranking. Additionally, the Senators will not be allowed to trade or transfer those picks and will pay a $1 million fine to NHL Foundation Canada.
“We fully accept the revised sanctions imposed today by the league,” Senators owner Michael Andlauer said. “We appreciate the league and commissioner’s open mind on this matter and amending the penalty. The Senators organization is grateful that the fine will be forwarded to NHL Foundation Canada to help grow the sport in our country. We consider this matter closed and will have no further comment on the situation.”
To accommodate this modification, any team that selects after the Senators in the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft will be moved up one slot.
The Senators traded Dadonov to Las Vegas for defenseman Nick Holden and a third-round draft pick on July 28, 2021. However, Ottawa caused problems at the 2022 NHL trade deadline by failing to notify Vegas that Dadonov had a 10-team no-trade clause in his contract.
Just before the March 21, 2022 deadline, the Golden Knights sent Dadonov and a second-round draft pick to the Ducks in exchange for the contracts of defensemen John Moore and Ryan Kesler. However, the NHL canceled that deal because Dadonov listed the Ducks as one of the teams on the no-trade list.
Dadonov, now 37, is in his first season with the New Jersey Devils after signing a one-year, $1 million contract on July 1, 2025.
–Field level media
