Ottawa Senators: Top 5 players they must move at the trade deadline

3. Ron Hainsey

Years left: 1 (UFA)

Cap hit: $3.5 million

Defenseman Ron Hainsey was the other major addition the Senators made in free agency. Much like Ennis, he has done fairly well, though not quite as well as Ennis. Hainsey is someone whose perceived value is higher than their actual value, especially for a contending team.

Teams are always looking to add defensive depth at the deadline. Hainsey fits the description of what teams are looking for. He can kill penalties and is actually fairly good at it. Hainsey is a third-pairing defenseman, but if you paired him with the right guy, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d be a passable top-four defenseman.

However, there are two issues with trading him. First of all, Hainsey has a 10-team no-trade list, though he could just put 10 non-contenders on that list and could still allow a trade to a team on that list. The more pressing issue is his $3.5 million cap hit. That’s a tad bit rich for someone like Hainsey. However, the Senators could retain some money to make the finances work.

Potential suitors: The Winnipeg Jets would make sense for Hainsey, given their lack of defensive depth. Likewise for the Montreal Canadiens. The San Jose Sharks could use some help on defense and they have a history of trading with the Senators.