No team in the league is having less fun this season than the Ottawa Senators. They came into the year hoping to be one of those bright young teams and they have been anything but that.
They have made changes all over the place, had off-ice issues, and played poorly throughout the year. Now, they are making a huge change that should have been made a while ago.
On Monday, the team announced that head coach D.J. Smith is being relieved of his duties. They named Jacques Martin to be the interim head coach.
In addition to this move, they added franchise legend Daniel Alfredsson to the coaching staff as an assistant coach. He is expected to bring some life to this group.
News Release: D.J. Smith has been relieved of his head coaching duties; Jacques Martin has been named #Sens interim head coach. Daniel Alfredsson joins the team’s coaching staff as an assistant coach: https://t.co/UtadFrrkEG pic.twitter.com/LZiNGB5Mbm
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) December 18, 2023
The Ottawa Senators made a significant move by firing their head coach.
The Senators should be much better than they are. At 11-15-0, they are in last place in the Atlantic Division. They are way too talented to be that far down the standings halfway through December.
Now, it is on Coach Martin to help this team turn things around. We have seen coaching changes provide a spark for other teams around the league and now the Senators are hoping for the same results.
Having Daniel Alfredsson involved could be very good too. He is one of the greatest players to ever put on a Senators sweater.
Current stars like Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, and Jake Sanderson amongst others could learn a lot from him in terms of being a star in the NHL.
This is a franchise in complete disarray right now. Now that D.J. Smith is finally gone, they might be able to identify the long-term answer at head coach soon and start getting this team back on track.
Smith's last game with the team was a 6-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Vegas. Now, their western road trip will continue with their new coach on Tuesday night against the Arizona Coyotes.