The 2004–05 Ottawa Senators season was the 13th season of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). All games were cancelled due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout, which cancelled play for the entire League. Several of the Senators' players played for teams in European hockey leagues while some played for the Senators' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Binghamton Senators.
Off-season On June 8, 2004, Bryan Murray of nearby town Shawville, Quebec, became the team's fifth head coach, leaving the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim where he had previously been general manager.
Like all other NHL teams, the Senators were still eligible to take part in the 2004 NHL entry draft and selected Andrej Meszaros in the first round, 23rd overall.
The Senators replaced the traded Patrick Lalime with Dominik Hasek as the Senators' starting goaltender. Due to this signing, centerman Jason Spezza would wear number 19, previously Hasek's number as 39.
NHL lockout
The NHL Chairman of the Board, Harley Hotchkiss was a key figure in the resolution of the labour dispute. Initially taking a low key role, Hotchkiss was thrust into the spotlight when he was invited by National Hockey League Players' Association President Trevor Linden to a last-ditch meeting in January 2005 to save the season.NHL, NHLPA meeting in Chicago, cbc.ca, Accessed November 27, 2006 While that meeting was unsuccessful in saving the season, the two would continue to meet until an agreement was finally reached on July 13, 2005. Hotchkiss' role in the negotiations was prominently mentioned when he was voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2006.Owner Harley Hotchkiss inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame, Calgary Flames press release, accessed November 27, 2006
Several Senators played with the team's AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Senators, including newly-acquired goaltender Dominik Hasek, who only practiced with the group, and Jason Spezza, who played most of the season with Binghamton.
Schedule The Senators preseason and regular season schedules were announced on July 14, 2004.
| 1 || September 25 || Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 2 || September 26 || @ Montreal Canadiens |- | 3 || September 28 || Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 4 || September 29 || Florida Panthers |- | 5 || September 30 || @ Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 6 || October 2 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 7 || October 9 || Montreal Canadiens
| 1 || October 13 || Montreal Canadiens |- | 2 || October 16 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 3 || October 21 || Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 4 || October 23 || Philadelphia Flyers |- | 5 || October 27 || @ Carolina Hurricanes |- | 6 || October 28 || Los Angeles Kings |- | 7 || October 30 || New Jersey Devils |- | 8 || November 1 || Boston Bruins |- | 9 || November 5 || @ Washington Capitals |- | 10 || November 6 || New York Rangers |- | 11 || November 9 || Florida Panthers |- | 12 || November 12 || Montreal Canadiens |- | 13 || November 13 || @ Montreal Canadiens |- | 14 || November 16 || @ New Jersey Devils |- | 15 || November 18 || Dallas Stars |- | 16 || November 20 || Tampa Bay Lightning |- | 17 || November 24 || @ Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 18 || November 26 || @ Boston Bruins |- | 19 || November 30 || @ New York Islanders |- | 20 || December 2 || @ Boston Bruins |- | 21 || December 4 || Minnesota Wild |- | 22 || December 6 || @ New York Rangers |- | 23 || December 7 || @ Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 24 || December 10 || @ Atlanta Thrashers |- | 25 || December 11 || @ Tampa Bay Lightning |- | 26 || December 13 || Philadelphia Flyers |- | 27 || December 16 || Calgary Flames |- | 28 || December 18 || Boston Bruins |- | 29 || December 19 || @ Detroit Red Wings |- | 30 || December 21 || @ Nashville Predators |- | 31 || December 23 || @ Colorado Avalanche |- | 32 || December 26 || New York Islanders |- | 33 || December 28 || @ Washington Capitals |- | 34 || December 30 || Carolina Hurricanes |- | 35 || January 1 || Atlanta Thrashers |- | 36 || January 5 || @ Buffalo Sabres |- | 37 || January 6 || Florida Panthers |- | 38 || January 8 || Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 39 || January 10 || Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 40 || January 12 || @ Vancouver Canucks |- | 41 || January 14 || @ Calgary Flames |- | 42 || January 15 || @ Edmonton Oilers |- | 43 || January 18 || New York Rangers |- | 44 || January 20 || Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 45 || January 22 || Buffalo Sabres |- | 46 || January 23 || @ Chicago Blackhawks |- | 47 || January 25 || Pittsburgh Penguins |- | 48 || January 28 || @ Carolina Hurricanes |- | 49 || January 29 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 50 || February 1 || Washington Capitals |- | 51 || February 3 || @ New York Islanders |- | 52 || February 5 || San Jose Sharks |- | 53 || February 7 || Vancouver Canucks |- | 54 || February 8 || @ Buffalo Sabres |- | 55 || February 10 || Carolina Hurricanes |- | 56 || February 15 || @ Tampa Bay Lightning |- | 57 || February 16 || @ Florida Panthers |- | 58 || February 19 || @ Montreal Canadiens |- | 59 || February 21 || Edmonton Oilers |- | 60 || February 24 || Atlanta Thrashers |- | 61 || February 26 || Tampa Bay Lightning |- | 62 || February 28 || @ Philadelphia Flyers |- | 63 || March 3 || Boston Bruins |- | 64 || March 5 || New Jersey Devils |- | 65 || March 7 || @ Florida Panthers |- | 66 || March 9 || @ Atlanta Thrashers |- | 67 || March 11 || @ Buffalo Sabres |- | 68 || March 12 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs |- | 69 || March 15 || Montreal Canadiens |- | 70 || March 17 || Anaheim Mighty Ducks |- | 71 || March 19 || Phoenix Coyotes |- | 72 || March 21 || @ Boston Bruins |- | 73 || March 22 || @ St. Louis Blues |- | 74 || March 24 || @ Philadelphia Flyers |- | 75 || March 26 || Buffalo Sabres |- | 76 || March 28 || Washington Capitals |- | 77 || March 29 || @ New Jersey Devils |- | 78 || April 1 || Buffalo Sabres |- | 79 || April 2 || @ Columbus Blue Jackets |- | 80 || April 6 || @ New York Rangers |- | 81 || April 8 || New York Islanders |- | 82 || April 9 || @ Montreal Canadiens
Transactions The Senators were involved in the following transactions from June 8, 2004, the day after the deciding game of the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals, through February 16, 2005, the day the season was officially cancelled.
Trades Date Details Ref To Los Angeles Kings To Ottawa Senators To St. Louis Blues To Ottawa Senators
Players acquired Date Player Former team Term Via Ref Dominik Hasek Detroit Red Wings multi-year Free agency Pat Kavanagh Vancouver Canucks multi-year Free agency Jesse Fibiger San Jose Sharks 1-year Free agency
Players lost Date Player New team Via Ref Jody Hull Contract expiration (III) Curtis Leschyshyn Contract expiration (III) Rob Ray Contract expiration (III) Shaun Van Allen Contract expiration (III) Brad Tapper Nurnberg Ice Tigers (DEL) Free agency (VI) Andrew Allen Trenton Titans (ECHL) Free agency (UFA) Serge Payer Florida Panthers Free agency (VI) Todd Simpson Herning Blue Fox (Denmark) Free agency (III) , retrieved April 24, 2022 Peter Bondra HK Poprad (Slovakia) Free agency (III) , retrieved April 24, 2022
Signings Date Player Term Contract type Ref Brian Pothier 2-year Re-signing Martin Prusek 1-year Re-signing Chris Phillips 3-year Re-signing Peter Schaefer 2-year Re-signing Zdeno Chara 2-year Re-signing Denis Hamel 1-year Option exercised Josh Langfeld 1-year Option exercised Brandon Bochenski 2-year Entry-level Chris Kelly multi-year Re-signing Martin Havlat 1-year Re-signing Vaclav Varada multi-year Re-signing
Draft picks Ottawa's draft picks from the 2004 NHL entry draft held on June 26 and June 27, 2004 at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Round # Player Nationality College/junior/club team (League)123 Andrej Meszaros Dukla Trenčín (Slovak Extraliga)258 Kirill Lyamin CSKA Moscow (RSL)377 Shawn Weller Capital District Selects (EJHL)387 Peter Regin Herning IK (Oddset Ligaen)389 Jeff Glass Kootenay Ice (WHL)4122 Alexander Nikulin CSKA Moscow (RSL)5141 Jim McKenzie Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)5156 Roman Wick Kloten Flyers (NLA)7219 Joe Cooper Miami University (NCHC)8251 Matt McIlvane Chicago Steel (USHL)9284 John Wikner Västra Frolunda (Elitserien)
Farm teams Binghamton Senators The Senators named Dave Cameron the head coach of the team for the 2004–05 season. John Paddock remained with the club as a co-coach with Cameron.
Binghamton finished in first place in the East Division with a record of 47–21–7–5, earning 103 points. In the post-season, the Senators were upset by the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the division semi-finals.
Jason Spezza led the league with 117 points, winning the John B. Sollenberger Trophy for the top scorer in the AHL, as well as winning the Les Cunningham Award for league MVP. Denis Hamel scored a team high 39 goals. Ray Emery led the club with 28 wins, while Billy Thompson had a team best 2.44 GAA and a .920 save percentage.
Charlotte Checkers Ottawa announced a new affiliation with the Charlotte Checkers of the ECHL beginning in the 2004–05 season. The club was coached by Derek Wilkinson.
The Checkers finished the season with a 39–26–2–5 record, earning 85 points and third place in the East Division and seventh place in the American Conference. In the playoffs, the Checkers upset the Columbia Inferno and the Gwinnett Gladiators before losing to the Florida Everblades in the conference finals.
Offensively, the team was led by Dusty Jamieson, who scored a team high 31 goals. Eduard Pershin led the club with 67 points. Senators prospect Kelly Guard earned 12 wins with a 3.06 GAA and a .901 save percentage in his first professional season.
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