Whether it’s fair or not, Erik Brännström will always be remembered in Ottawa as the guy the Senators got for Mark Stone. It was 2019, and in a deal that former owner Eugene Melnyk said had been planned for some time, Stone was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights. Brännström was Ottawa's crown jewel in that deal, and GM Pierre Dorion was so excited to acquire the diminutive Swede, he initially called it his proudest day as GM.
History now shows that not only was Brännström not ready to be the impact NHL player Stone was, but he ultimately became a fringe NHL defenceman. He had back-to-back seasons of over 70 games played in Ottawa, but the Senators let him walk last year, and he began bouncing all over the league last season.
In 2024-25, he got into 28 games with the Vancouver Canucks, and also spent time in the organizations of the Colorado Avalanche, New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres. At that stage, the writing was on the wall, so Brännström packed up and signed a three-year deal with Lausanne HC in Switzerland’s top league.
Six years after being seen as the guy who'd soon make Ottawa forget about losing Mark Stone, Brännström’s NHL career appeared over.
But in his first season over there, he's now writing a nice silver linings playbook. With Lausanne, Brännström is tearing it up the way Dorion once thought he might in Ottawa. In 30 games, he has 13 goals and 25 points, leading all defencemen in both categories. He’s 10th overall in league scoring, right behind a couple of former Senators draft picks.
No, neither of them is named Alex Formenton. The December 1st deadline came and went, and Formenton remains an NHL RFA, so he won’t get an opportunity to play in the NHL this season. The RFA has battled some injuries and has just nine points in 20 Swiss games, which is unlikely to impress anyone on this side of the ocean.
Brady Tkachuk Gives Montreal Grinch Exactly What He Deserves - Community PostSenators captain Brady Tkachuk had some fun with a Montreal Canadiens fan in warmups on Tuesday night. Given the fan's costume, the totally insane rendering of Tkachuk, and the absolutely terrible chirp (Tkachuk sounds like Ketchup), the fan got exactly what he deserved.
We speak of Marcus Sorensen, who has 27 points, and Andre Petersson, who has 25.
Between those two players sits a guy many Sens fans wanted over Brady Tkachuk at the 2018 NHL Draft: Filip Zadina, who has 14 goals and 26 points. Brännström is also two points ahead of another former Senator, Dominik Kubalík, who has 13 goals and 23 points.
Even though the Senators do have some depth issues on the left side of their blue line, GM Steve Staios had clearly seen enough when he let Brannstrom walk into unrestricted free agency in 2024. That was also right around the time Ottawa drafted a bigger defenceman in Carter Yakemchuk in Round 1 and then an angry 6-foot-7 blueliner in Gabriel Elliason.
The Senators have a type, and Brännström, generously listed at 5-foot-10, simply wasn’t it.
It may be his plan B, but it’s still nice to see the 26-year-old getting a fresh start and having success.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News - Ottawa
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