NHL modifies penalty to Senators for cancelled trade
NEW YORK – The National Hockey League announced today that it has decided to modify the disciplinary sanction originally imposed on the Ottawa Senators’ franchise for its role in connection with the July 2021 trade of Player Evgenii Dadonov from the Senators to the Vegas Golden Knights and the subsequent, invalidated March 2022 Dadonov trade between the Golden Knights and the Anaheim Ducks.
The sanction originally imposed on the Senators provided for the forfeiture of the Club’s first-round draft pick in one of the 2024, 2025 or 2026 Drafts. The Senators subsequently applied to the League for reconsideration and relief from the original penalty, citing primarily the change in Club ownership and oversight which, in the Club’s view, changed the appropriateness of the penalty initially imposed. After due and thorough consideration, the League has decided that a modification of the original penalty is warranted and, accordingly, has amended the Club sanction as follows:
The Senators’ penalty will now involve the forfeiture of their first round pick in 2026 in favor of the right instead to pick 32nd overall in the 2026 NHL Draft (the last pick in the first round). The Club will not be permitted to trade or transfer its right to the 32nd overall selection in the 2026 Draft. In addition, the Club will pay a fine of $1 Million (CDN).
In order to accommodate this Draft order modification, the Club’s normal draft position in the first round – whether determined by way of the Draft Lottery or by the Club’s final standing – will be forfeited and its position will be reassigned to the 32nd selection in the first round. All other Clubs who would normally have been slotted behind the Senators in the first round will each be assigned draft selections which are one position better than where they would have otherwise selected.
With regard to the Draft Lottery, in the event the Ottawa Senators do not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, the team will still be allocated the same Lottery odds that would have normally been assigned to the Club based on and consistent with its Regular Season finish, but the Club will not be eligible to “win” the DraftLottery. In the event a number combination assigned to Ottawa is selected in either of the two (2) Lottery Draws, it will result in a re-draw. This ensures that the odds of all other non-Playoff Clubs to win the Lottery are enhanced equally.
The $1 Million fine will be directed to the NHL Foundation Canada, a League-sponsored charitable organization whose mission is to strengthen communities and improve lives across Canada through the game of hockey by, among other things, promoting access and fostering positive experiences both on and off the ice.
The League intends to have no further comment on this matter.
