No matter where a team selects in the annual NHL Draft, it’s always something of a crapshoot.
Obviously, the earlier the pick, the better the odds of finding a future star – but there are never any guarantees. Senators fans know this all too well, as even the coveted number one overall selection has a chance to blow up in your face.
Still, when given a shot near the top, Ottawa has done pretty well, especially in this millennium. For your offseason enjoyment, here’s our ranking of the nine times the Senators have picked in the top five overall.
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1. Brady Tkachuk – 4th Overall, 2018
The current captain and emotional engine of the team, Tkachuk has become exactly the type of player Ottawa had hoped for. With 404 points in 512 games and a wrecking-ball style of play, he’s both productive and endlessly entertaining. He’s also the kind of player you win with, on and off the ice. As a rabid consumer of hockey talk, I also have to inform you that it is now apparently against the law to describe Tkachuk's excellence without mentioning that he "drags his teammates into the fight."
Verdict: Already beloved at an Alfie level and still just entering his prime. A foundational piece.
2. Tim Stützle – 3rd Overall, 2020
Still just 23, Stützle is already one of the most electric young players in the NHL and arguably the best player from his draft class. Drafted out of Germany's DEL, he’s piled up 326 points in just 367 games, and earlier this month, he was named NHL.com’s top forward under 25. The fact that Ottawa landed him third overall after Alexis Lafrenière and Quinton Byfield is starting to look like a franchise-altering stroke of luck.
Verdict: A superstar in the making.
3. Jake Sanderson – 5th Overall, 2020
Drafted just two picks after Stützle in Ottawa’s legendary 2020 first round, Sanderson has quickly blossomed into one of the league’s most complete young defensemen. His 57-point breakout in 2024-25 shows the offense is coming to match his elite two-way game. The future Norris chatter is real.
Verdict: An elite defender who’s just scratching the surface.
4. Jason Spezza – 2nd Overall, 2001
Few players in Senators history were as skilled and productive as Spezza. He recorded 995 points in 1,248 NHL games, with the bulk of those coming during a dominant run in Ottawa. Spezza was a key part of the team's 2007 Stanley Cup Final appearance and briefly wore the "C" after Alfredsson’s departure. A Ring of Honour induction feels inevitable.
Verdict: An elite playmaker and one of the faces of the franchise’s golden era.
5. Chris Phillips – 1st Overall, 1996
He didn’t rack up big numbers, but Phillips was a steady, loyal presence on the Ottawa blue line for nearly two decades. His 1,179 games remain a franchise record, and his number 4 now hangs from the rafters at Canadian Tire Centre. He wasn't a superstar per se, but his consistency and leadership, while going wire to wire as a Senator, are the biggest chapters in his tale of excellence.
Verdict: The ultimate stay-at-home defender and a Sens icon.
6. Alexei Yashin – 2nd Overall, 1992
Yashin was Ottawa’s first real star, still the only Senator nominated for the Hart Trophy. He had elite offensive talent, racking up 781 points in 850 games, but his Ottawa legacy is, well, complicated. Contract disputes and holdouts marred his tenure here, and he was eventually traded to the Islanders in a deal that brought back Zdeno Chara and the draft pick used to select Spezza.
It was a deal the Sens won handily, but ironically, both Chara and Spezza, just like Yashin, wanted out of Ottawa by the end. All part of the previous ownership's legacy that someone will probably write a book about someday.
Verdict: Great talent, but an even better trade return.
7. Radek Bonk – 3rd Overall, 1994
A solid NHLer who carved out a long, respectable career, Bonk was a dependable two-way center for much of his time in Ottawa. But because of his early draft selection and the way he'd ripped up the IHL, expectations were mile high. He even added 208 IHL penalty minutes in his draft year while playing against men. Bonk had four straight years of 50-70 points in the early 2000s
Verdict: A steady contributor. Just not quite as impactful as the Sens were hoping for.
8. Bryan Berard – 1st Overall, 1995
Berard never played a game for the Senators. After refusing to return to junior, he was dealt in a trade to the New York Islanders that brought back Wade Redden, who went on to have a great career in Ottawa. Berard had flashes of brilliance, but his career was stunted by a devastating eye injury.
Verdict: The Redden trade made it worthwhile.
9. Alexandre Daigle – 1st Overall, 1993
Daigle came into the league with sky-high expectations but could never translate his junior dominance to the pros. He still had a good pro career, and it should always be remembered that he didn't pick himself first overall or create the 'generational' player hype.
That said, he didn't help himself by declaring to the media that no one ever remembers who comes second in the draft. That would be Hall of Famer Chris Pronger, who might have come in handy in Ottawa for the two decades that followed.
Verdict: An unfortunate miss but 100 percent of GMs, scouts, media, and fans would have taken Daigle. He was everybody's number one that year.
The Senators' track record in the top five of the draft has generally been pretty solid. And if they win a Stanley Cup this decade, the home runs they hit with their early picks in 2018 and 2020 will be a huge reason why.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa
Image Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
This article orginally appeared at The Hockey News Ottawa, where you'll find all the latest Senators news:
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