Early look The full preview opens on Thursday 11 March, three days before puck drop, with the expected goalies, the latest team news and game-day prices. Until then this page shows the matchup as it stands.
Early look · NHL 2026-27

Vancouver Canucks at Ottawa Senators: game preview

Puck drop14 Mar · 5:00 PM ET
VenueCanadian Tire Centre
All-time meetings66 completed
BasisLast 5 meetings + 2025-26
The thesis

Forty-one points apart last season

Vancouver finished last season 32nd in the league on 58 points. Ottawa finished 9th on 99.

Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.

Head-to-head

Meeting number 67

Across 66 completed games, Vancouver lead the head-to-head 39-22-5.

All-time record39-22-5Vancouver's record in the series
Meetings played66This is number 67
2025-26 series—
Last 53-2Ottawa
DateResultShotsPower playWinner
9 Mar 2026OTT 2 – VAN 0——OTT
13 Jan 2026VAN 1 – OTT 2——OTT
21 Dec 2024OTT 5 – VAN 4 OT——OTT
23 Nov 2024VAN 4 – OTT 3——VAN
2 Jan 2024OTT 3 – VAN 6——VAN
Head-to-head finder

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

DateVancouverOttawa
13 Jan 202616-25-5 · 37 pts32nd21-19-5 · 47 pts24th
9 Mar 202619-37-8 · 46 pts32nd32-22-9 · 73 pts13th

League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 13 Jan 2026, Vancouver were 32nd in the league and Ottawa 24th. By 9 Mar 2026 it was 32nd and 13th.


Where the shots come from · last 5 meetings

Ottawa out-attempted Vancouver 124 to 93

Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.

Vancouver Canucks

93 att · 36 on goal · 1 G · 2.8%
Crease9 att · 0 G
Slot36 att · 1 G
Wing32 att · 0 G
Point12 att · 0 G
Neutral zone4 att · 0 G

Ottawa Senators

124 att · 64 on goal · 4 G · 6.3%
Crease15 att · 0 G
Slot46 att · 1 G
Wing47 att · 2 G
Point14 att · 1 G
Neutral zone2 att · 0 G
GoalOn goalMissedBlocked

Expected goals

Ottawa have created the better chances, last 10 games

Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.

VancouverOttawa
2.44xG for per game2.95
3.15xG against per game3.41
43.6%xG share46.4%
+9.2FinishingGoals minus expected goals+1.1
−5.4GoaltendingExpected goals against minus goals allowed+2.2

This season: 4 games for Vancouver, 3 for Ottawa. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.

Every team’s xG →


Special teams

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.

All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings

Vancouver

Small sample
Power play · 2026-2723.1%
Power play · 2025-2621.8% · 14th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2768.8%
Penalty kill · 2025-2671.5% · 32nd
Faceoffs · 2026-2749.3% · 112/227
Drawn · 2026-2713 (3.25/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-2716 (4.00/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Ottawa

Small sample
Power play · 2026-277.7%
Power play · 2025-2624.0% · 8th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2776.9%
Penalty kill · 2025-2675.7% · 29th
Faceoffs · 2026-2752.7% · 99/188
Drawn · 2026-2713 (4.33/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-2713 (4.33/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Skaters

Skaters to watch

Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.

PlayerGPGAPP/GP
47Paul Cotter44261.50
23Marco Rossi43141.00
18Tim Stützle33362.00
22Michael Amadio32131.00
19Drake Batherson32131.00
Points leaders
PlayerGPGAPP/GP
17Filip Hronek40551.25
5Tom Willander40330.75
72Thomas Chabot31120.67
Defencemen stats

Goaltending

Who has stopped this matchup

Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.

Expected startersAn estimate until the teams confirmEvery game tonight →

Expected starter after their game on 13 Mar: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Expected starter after their game on 13 Mar: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Vancouver crease

VAN · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 11 Mar

Kevin Lankinen.8243 GP · 1-2-0 · GSAx −6.4
Leevi Meriläinen.9432 GP · 1-0-0 · GSAx +1.0

No appearances against Ottawa in the last meetings.

Ottawa crease

OTT · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 11 Mar

Linus Ullmark.9492 GP · 2-0-0 · GSAx +3.4
Samuel Ersson.8862 GP · 0-1-0 · GSAx −0.9

No appearances against Vancouver in the last meetings.


Totals

Scoring rates point to about 6.7 goals

No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.

Goals in the last 5 meetings

9 Mar 20262 · OTT 2–0 VAN
13 Jan 20263 · VAN 1–2 OTT
21 Dec 20249 · OTT 5–4 VAN
23 Nov 20247 · VAN 4–3 OTT
2 Jan 20249 · OTT 3–6 VAN

Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.

Scoring rates

Team26-27 GF26-27 GA25-26 GF25-26 GA
Vancouver4.754.502.633.85
Ottawa3.332.673.393.00

Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.

Scoring rates suggest6.7Goals in this game
Last 5 meetings6.0Goals per game
Line—No total posted yet
Books at the line—With the game-day prices

Team news

11 on the injury lists

Vancouver · injuries

Akil ThomasUndisclosedIRReturn11 Oct
Filip ChytilShoulderIRReturn8 Oct
Jack ThompsonUndisclosedIRReturn11 Oct
Mackenzie MacEachernUndisclosedIRReturn10 Oct
Thatcher DemkoHipIRReturn21 Dec

Ottawa · injuries

Andre BurakovskyUpper BodyIRReturn10 Oct
Artem ZubKneeIRReturn10 Oct
Blake MontgomeryUndisclosedIRReturn8 Oct
Jake SandersonLower BodyOutReturn8 Oct
Kurtis MacDermidUpper BodyIRReturn31 Oct
Linus UllmarkUndisclosedOutReturn8 Oct
27 Sep · VAN

Placed G Nikita Tolopilo on waivers.

25 Sep · VAN

Claimed G Leevi Merilainen off waivers from Ottawa. Placed F Filip Chytil on injured reserve. Assigned F Braeden Cootes to Abbotsford (AHL).

24 Sep · VAN

Assigned Fs Ty Mueller, Riley Patterson, Ilya Safonov and Chase Wouters, Ds Kirill Kudryavtsev and Sawyer Mynio to Abbotsford (AHL). Loaned F Ben Berard and D Isaac Belliveau to Abbotsford. Waived for the purpose of assignment to Abbotsford F Trey Fix-Wolansky and Ds Cole Clayton and Jimmy Schuldt.

6 Oct · OTT

Recalled G Marcus Johansson from Belleville (AHL). Assigned D Donovan Sebrango to Belleville.

5 Oct · OTT

Recalled D Donovan Sebrango from Belleville (AHL). Placed LW Andre Burakovsky on injured reserve.

2 Oct · OTT

Loaned D Hoyt Stanley to Belleville (AHL).

Injury report
#3Caleb MalhotraRound 1 · BrantfordC
#24Adam NovotnyRound 1 · PeterboroughLW
#33Brooks RogowskiRound 2 · OshawaC
#41Niklas Aaram-OlsenRound 2 · Orebro Jr.LW
Full draft
#25Jonas Lagerberg HoenRound 1 · Leksand Jr.RW
#32Jaxon CoverRound 1 · LondonRW
#72Adam NemecRound 3 · SudburyLW
#87Oscar HolmertzRound 3 · Linkoping Jr.C
Full draft

Updated after every final