99% of the time, NHL players give very little with their comments to the media. It’s a whole bunch of clichés as players try to stay out of the headlines. In Jake Sanderson’s four year career, it’s hard to remember any comments that would catch your eye in the slightest. That was until last night. Fresh off an overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens where the Senators blew a late two goal lead, Sanderson let his frustrations be known. He commented on the poor play of Leevi Merilainen. He also voiced annoyance over the opposing team’s fan base taking over the Senators home arena. What should be made of Sanderson’s comments? Let’s dive into the details.
READ MORE: A Look at the Senators Disastrous Goaltending
Sanderson on Leevi Merilainen
Here’s what Sanderson had to say about Merilainen’s play last night,
“I think Leevi made some good saves. But, at the end of the day, you’ve got to make more than 10 saves to win the game.”
Technically, Merilainen did make more than 10 saves. He made 13, all the while giving up six goals. At even strength, he made just eight saves. It was yet another brutal game from Merilainen. Of the 67 goalies with at least 10 starts this season, Merilainen’s .860 save percentage ranks 66th. This goes beyond just Merilainen of course. Linus Ullmark has just an .881 SV%. The Senators have the worst save percentage in hockey at .865.
I’ve written this in several articles now because of how mind-boggling it is: This is the worst save percentage by the Senators since 1993-94. That was their second year in the league! They were absolutely horrible back then! This season, they are giving up the third fewest shots per game in the league. This isn’t just a 10 game sample size, either. It’s been nearly 50 games of dreadful goaltending now. Maybe this will really make everyone understand just how bad their goaltending has been. Since the Senators came into the league in 1992-93, here are the three worst team save percentages of any team in any season:
- 1992-93 Ottawa Senators: .852
- 1993-94 Ottawa Senators: .857
- 2025-26 Ottawa Senators: .865
Again, that’s of every team across 33 seasons. The only worst save percentages were by the Senators when they were coming in as an expansion team, at a time when expansion teams were given next to no talent to work with.
For Sanderson to be beyond frustrated is perfectly reasonable. If the goaltending doesn’t improve, the Sens will miss the playoffs in a season where they have no business missing the playoffs. I have no problem with Sanderson speaking the truth. If it came from a lesser player, maybe it wouldn’t be as acceptable. Sanderson has been incredible this season, though, and he’s clearly a leader on the team at this point.
Sanderson on the Home Crowd
Here’s what Sanderson had to say about the Canadiens fans taking over the Canadian Tire Centre:
“Yeah we’re used to it. Playing an away game at home, it happens quite often. It is what it is.”
I have even less of a problem with this comment than I do the one about Merilainen. This has been an issue with Ottawa games at home against Montreal and Toronto for a while now. Last night was particularly bad. It sounded like Habs fans outnumbered Sens fans quite easily.
When the Senators played the Maple Leafs in the playoffs last spring, there was a concerted effort to keep Leafs fans out of the Canadian Tire Centre. It led to the arena being filled with a majority of Sens fans in game three. When the Leafs won that game to go up 3-0 in the series, though, there were quite a few Leafs fans in the arena for game four. I can say that from first hand experience.
That seems to be how it goes in Ottawa. We’re at the point now where Habs and Leafs fans take pride in taking over Ottawa’s rink, while a decent amount of Sens fans are content to stay away during those games, either because they can make some money for selling their tickets, or because they find those fanbases annoying to deal with up close and personal.
Final Thoughts
If I know anything about NHL players, it’s that a high majority of them prefer to stay out of the limelight for anything other than their play. Sanderson’s comments are now all over social media, with everyone giving their two cents on the matter. I would guess that would lead to Sanderson keeping his comments a little more cliché in the near future. He let his frustrations control his words last night after a collapse to a rival. It’s okay to be blunt every now and then. Maybe he shouldn’t make a habit of it, but having a superstar that is that passionate and competitive is a good thing.
