NHL: Senators will not forfeit '26 1st-round pick

Montreal Canadiens vs. Ottawa Senators: Game Highlights (1:19)

In a surprising reversal, the NHL has decided the Ottawa Senators will no longer forfeit a first-round draft pick for their role in the canceled 2022 trade between Vegas and Anaheim involving winger Evgenii Dadonov.

Rather than giving up their first-round pick in June's NHL draft, the Senators will select last (32nd overall) in the round and pay a $1 million fine in Canadian dollars, the league announced Thursday. That money will go to the NHL Foundation Canada, a league-sponsored charitable organization.

When the Senators dealt Dadonov to the Golden Knights in July 2021, there was no mention that the winger had trade protection. The contract he signed with Ottawa in October 2020 had a clause stating that he couldn't be traded without first submitting a 10-team no-trade list. Vegas then traded Dadonov to the Ducks in March 2022, unaware that Anaheim was on his 10-team no-trade list, which had been submitted to Ottawa for the 2021-22 season by the stated deadline in his contract.

The NHLPA disputed the validity of the trade between the Golden Knights and the Ducks, and the NHL announced it was canceling the trade, saying it "could not be concluded because Dadonov's contract includes a limited no-trade clause, which has not been complied with."

In November 2023, the NHL announced that Ottawa had to forfeit its first-round pick in one of the 2024, 2025 or 2026 drafts. The Senators used their first-round picks in 2024 (Carter Yakemchuk, No. 7 overall) and 2025 (Logan Hensler, No. 23), meaning they'd have to forfeit their 2026 selection. That was until the NHL decided to reduce Ottawa's punishment.

The Senators appealed to the league for leniency, citing major changes for the organization since the canceled Dadonov trade. GM Pierre Dorion resigned in November 2023 after the NHL's punishment was announced and was replaced by current GM Steve Staios. Michael Andlauer had also just taken over as owner of the franchise when the NHL slapped the Senators with the pick forfeiture.

"Why I inherited this is beyond me," Andlauer said at the time.

Ultimately, the NHL agreed that the current Senators should not pay for the sins of a former regime.

"After due and thorough consideration, the League has decided that a modification of the original penalty is warranted," the NHL said in a statement.

"We fully accept the modified sanctions the League has imposed today," Ottawa said in a statement. "We are grateful for the league and commissioner [Gary Bettman] keeping an open mind on this issue and modifying the penalty. The Senators organization is appreciative the fine money will be directed to the NHL Foundation Canada, to help grow the sport in our country. We consider this matter closed and will have no further comments on the situation."

For the purposes of the draft, every team that finishes behind the Senators will move up one spot. If Ottawa misses the Stanley Cup playoffs, it will still be allocated the same lottery odds that would have normally been assigned to the team for the drawing. But If the Senators win either of the two lottery draws, there will be a redraw.

This is the second time in a dozen years that the NHL has decided to rescind a draft-pick forfeiture for a team. After originally ruling that the New Jersey Devils would have to give up a first-round pick for signing winger Ilya Kovalchuk to a 17-year contract circumventing the salary cap in 2010, the NHL decided the Devils would instead pick last in the first round of the 2014 draft.

Kovalchuk had retired from the NHL and left to play in Russia.