Fabian Zetterlund brings offense and perseverance to the roster of Senators – Hockey Writer – Ottawa Senator

Fabian Zetterlund of Ottawa Senator walked around. During four seasons in the NHL, the 25-year-old Swedish right-wing winger has played for three different NHL clubs, bounced from the Devils of New Jersey to the San Jose Sharks and finally headed to Bytown on the 2025 NHL trade deadline.

If some Senators fans want to know, Zetterlund is not traded because he is disappointed. So, The loyal Senator wants to see the team’s remaining 16 regular season games from the pending restricted free agent (RFA) and hopes to make the playoffs this spring? This is a look.

Zetterlund is shocked by Senators’ trade

Zetterlund was surprised to hear that he was traded to the Senator before the March 7 3pm deadline. He is not the subject of any trade rumors. Ottawa Senator’s debut against Detroit, Ottawa Citizens, 9/3/25).

The deal goes like Zetterlund’s bomb. He and his best friend and Shark William Eklund were in the sauna before the deadline, and when he left, he received a call from good friend Rasmus Sandin in the Washington capital telling him he had been traded. Sanding recounts the conversation: “I think, yeah man, it’s suck. He’s like, what? I think, you’ve just been traded. He doesn’t know. Their general manager (GM) calls him at the same time. He’s like, GM is calling me right now. I’ll call you back.” Grier told him that he and Tristen Robins are packing and sending 2025 fourth-round picks to Ottawa in exchange for Zack Ostapchuk, Noah Gregor, and 2025 second-round picks.

Related: Eklund’s comments on Zetterlund trade fairs need to be careful

The young shark star made a hard deal. It was obvious that he was happy in San Jose, and he shouted in an interview with local media: “I love this place. I love the city. I love everything about it, so of course I want to stay here for a long time.” Even so, Grier and Senator’s president and general manager of hockey operations Steve Staios have other plans.

What did the Senators see in Zetterlund

For Staios, Zetterlund’s trade is difficult to carry out engineering. As Grier explains: “Steve and I had some conversations throughout the deadline (the deadline), and we had some back and forth. Both sides were tough deals. It might have taken a long time because of our perception of Fabian and how they felt (Ostapchuk). Sometimes when you have these things, it’s not easy for both sides to separate from the player. It took a little time, but we solved it.”

Grier summed up the reasons for the deal, explaining that the 21-year-old Ostapchuck brought “the power in the middle of the shark, which gave us the difference between size, rhythm and body. Ottawa is ahead of us and (Zetterlund) is right for them to win now.”

Although Zetterlund played fourth-tier Wing with Adam Gaudette and Matthew Highmore, it wasn’t necessarily where Senators fans saw him staying. When Senators’ backup boss Travis Green first hit the ice in a Senator’s sweater against the Detroit Red Wings on March 8, he explained the ice cream on the ice, “I’m definitely a power player. We did change the line. I saw him up and down. It makes sense to put him out of the fourth line tonight and get him wet a little.”

One thing Green saw in Zetterlund is, “He worked hard online. He loved shooting hockey. His shot was good. He had a net nose.” For the Senators, that would be important because of their scoring goals this season. Despite their recent improvement in their goal scores, they still rank only 18th in the league in total goals.

Potential Zetterlund brings senators

According to the Senators’ views on Zetterlund in four games they have played with Ottawa so far, (zero points) they can forgive them for questioning Green’s belief that he is an offensive asset. But if they watch him in the 2023-24 breakthrough year, they will feel comforted. In 82 games, he marked 44 points with 24 goals and 20 assists, almost twice his previous career-high 23 points. Importantly, 17 of his 24 goals last season scored averages – a senator can use.

As Hockey writerJacob Billington explains this, and Zetterlund adds a lot of things that the senator lacks in the bottom and depth. Speed, strength and score. Giving up Zack Ostapchuk might be bad for some, but this (Zetterlund added) clearly shows what the ceiling of Ostapchuk will be. In fact, he did not predict that it would be a good four-tier center.

Zetterlund also brings physical dimensions to the Senators’ frontlines. Packed like him and weighing 220 pounds on a 5-foot-11 frame, he is probably one of the most powerful players in the league. He had a 600-pound video on his Instagram video!

Zetterlund used this power on the ice with the Sharks last season. Although he averaged only over nine minutes per game with Ottawa, he scored 11 hits in four games. This will be valuable to the Senators as the game heats up to the fourth playoff position in the Atlantic Division.

Although he is young and has no NHL playoff experience, he shows a glimpse of leadership and is able to play under pressure based on his international experience. He represented his country in seven senior international competitions. He was the replacement captain of Sweden in the 2019 World Youth Championship and played for Sweden in the World Championship last year. Some say he will play for Sweden at the 2026 Olympics.

Zetterlund should be the influence of the senator

Senators fans should expect Zetterlund to have an impact when the team charges conflicts in the playoffs. He seemed happy to play for the Senator, saying before his first game: “I’m ready. I feel good. I look forward to stepping on the ice tomorrow, which will be fun.” Playing for a playoff contender is something he has never experienced and is unlikely to do at the Sharks as any time. Not only that, as a pending RFA, he will also work hard to show that he deserves long-term extensions, and wages are significantly higher.

Zetterlund bear looked at it.