OTTAWA – Neither the Ottawa Senators nor the Edmonton Oilers have had the start to the NHL season they envisioned, but both teams are showing signs that a turnaround may be underway.

After a couple weeks of inconsistency there’s a growing sense in each locker room that the pieces are beginning to fall into place.

The Oilers (3-3-1) are returning home from a five-game road trip with a 2-3-0 record but were able to cap it with a 3-2 overtime win over the Ottawa Senators, after giving up a two-goal lead.

“We don’t get too rattled about how things are going when things are tough,” said Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch. “We could have really unravelled, really fell apart, but we stuck with it and the composure was good.”

Knoblauch liked his team’s response but says it can’t afford to not have a full 60-minute effort.

The Oilers had just two home games before heading out on the road and while the travel helps with team chemistry it makes for a rough start to the season.

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“The first stretch here I think is a pretty tough schedule and I think for us to be able to finish this road trip off with a win just really helps out,” said goaltender Stuart Skinner. “It could have been an ugly road trip, but we were able to manage two wins which is huge.”

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Skinner says despite the losses the team feels good about its game.

“We were in every single game that we’ve played, in all of our losses,” said Skinner. “I think that’s a really good stepping-stone just on the way that we’ve able to compete and keep ourselves in it.”

The Senators have not played to Travis Green’s liking of late, but the head coach believes his players have responded well to the feedback they’ve received.

Ottawa (2-4-1) is looking to return to the post-season again and while they’re only seven games in the understanding is that good habits need to be established sooner than later.

“I feel like we have a very coachable group,” said Green. “A group that we can be honest with … we’ve had a lot of open dialogue that probably wasn’t complimentary to our team, but I think when you have a team you can be honest with, they can accept responsibility of how they play and hopefully they can respond.”

The Senators have been talking about their identity of late and how they’ve gotten away from what made them successful last season. A team that’s hard to play against and sticks to its system for a full 60 minutes.

“Obviously, you want to get to your game as quick as possible,” admitted Dylan Cozens. “But, you know, it takes time sometimes to really rebuild your identity and, you know, I think we’re right there.”

It’s early in the season but both teams understand the expectations and the challenges ahead.

The Oilers are coming off consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup final, while the Senators are looking to build on their first playoff appearance in seven years last season.

“It’s only seven games here so there’s still lots of hockey to be played,” said Ottawa’s Nick Cousins. “But, you know, the teams that end up there in the playoffs are the teams that find that game consistently and we’re trending there in the right direction, so gotta stay with it.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2025.

&copy 2025 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – Sheldon Keefe was going about his normal game-day routine.

The New Jersey Devils head coach then turned a corner and stepped in front of a wall of cameras in the hours before his second trip back to a building he knows very well — down the hall from his old office — in the bowels of Scotiabank Arena.

“Up until about 45 seconds ago, when I stood right here, it felt like any other road game,” Keefe said with a smile shortly before noon Tuesday.

The 45-year-old from nearby Brampton, Ont., led the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2019 through 2024, a stretch that saw the Original Six franchise enjoy plenty of regular-season success with a star-studded lineup, but only secure a solitary playoff series victory in six tries before he was fired some 17 1/2 months ago.

After failing to get a win over his old club in three tries last campaign, the Devils made sure Keefe walked out of his old stomping grounds with a smile following a convincing 5-2 victory.

“We’re a year late from it really meaning a whole lot,” he said post-game in trying to downplay the result on a personal level. “But listen, I’ve got a lot of people here that are waiting to talk to me, and a lot of people in the building. It’s a special place for me. Always will be.

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“It certainly feels a lot better coming out on the winning side.”

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New Jersey has now won five straight games for the organization’s longest winning streak since January 2023 after dropping its opener.

“We all wanted it for him,” said Devils forward Cody Glass.

Keefe shared before puck drop he feels more comfortable in his second season in charge after not knowing anyone in New Jersey when he was hired only two weeks following his dismissal in Toronto.

“He knows what works with guys, and we know what he expects out of us,” said Devils centre Jack Hughes, who registered a hat trick to give him six goals in three games. “Just more familiarity — that’s the biggest thing.”

The Devils have killed 18 straight penalties over a winning run that’s pushed the club to the top of the Metropolitan Division early in the schedule.

“(Keefe) demands a lot out of us, which is great,” said Devils defenceman Brenden Dillon, who scored the third goal Tuesday. “He holds a high standard for our organization, for the players. We know what roles we have and what our systems are.

“Reacting as opposed to thinking.”

And while Keefe attempted to pour cold water on the result being about more than two points, Dillon said it was no doubt circled on the calendar.

“You’ve got lots of friends and people that you’ve built relationships with,” said the veteran blueliner. “He was here for a long time and had some good success with that group and helped those players build their game to what it is now. It’s a tough environment. His family’s here. He’s from here. Obviously, this place meant a lot to him.

“The guys really battled hard.”

Keefe, meanwhile, said he’s liked both the energy and the buy-in from the Devils early on in 2025-26 after an ugly 6-3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes that opened the schedule.

“We’ve pushed and challenged this group from Day 1 of training camp,” he said. “We’ve continued to push and challenge, even though we’ve been winning.

“When you’re winning, the group’s always going to feel good. But just in terms of how we’re playing, the group is really rallying around what we’re asking them to do.”

LOCAL SUPPORT

Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wore an Auston Matthews jersey ahead of Toronto’s 4-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Monday.

The Leafs captain returned the favour roughly 24 hours later with the first baseman’s name and number on his back as he walked into Scotiabank Arena after the Jays advanced to the World Series for the first time since 1993.

“It was awesome,” Matthews said of seeing his threads at Rogers Centre ahead of Monday’s winner-take-all ALCS finale. “Awesome to see them pull out that win, too. Obviously, huge moment in the city.”

NEW LOOK

Keefe got his first up-close glimpse at Toronto minus Mitch Marner. The star winger played nine seasons with the Leafs before bolting for the Vegas Golden Knights over the summer.

“Mitch was such a dynamic player and did so many things, touched the game in so many areas,” Keefe said. “They look different because of the way that you’re able to spread (financial resources) around and get greater depth, and change the identity and look of the group elsewhere.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2025.

&copy 2025 The Canadian Press