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Senators Get Encouraging Thomas Chabot Injury News Before Facing Capitals

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Devon A. Platana | Last updated Jan 16, 2025 10:48 AM ET

After a bumpy start to the New Year, the Ottawa Senators are back on track.

The Senators have started climbing up the Eastern Conference standings again with three straight victories ahead of Thursday's encounter with the Washington Capitals. As much as Travis Green's team would love to win its fourth outing in a row, victory will be easier said than done if Thomas Chabot isn't in the lineup.

The veteran defenseman exited Tuesday's 2-0 win over the New York Islanders after he took a puck to the face in the first period. Considering how Chabot didn't return to the game for precautionary reasons, Senators fans are naturally concerned about his outlook before taking on the Capitals.

Fortunately, it appears the Senators dodged a major bullet this time around.

Ottawa Sun's Bruce Garrioch is reporting that Chabot was a participant during Thursday morning practice at the Canadian Tire Centre. Although the 27-year-old defender was sporting a full facial shield for the session, the good news is that he wasn't wearing a non-contact jersey.

Chabot with the full shield thus AM #Sens pic.twitter.com/CjawXlstAY
— Bruce Garrioch (@SunGarrioch) January 16, 2025

Full-shield visors — commonly known as 'fishbowls' — offer players complete protection when they're dealing with face-related injuries. They're also allowed to be used in NHL games, meaning there's a decent chance Chabot will be suiting up against the Capitals.

The Senators' backend has taken some hits in recent weeks. Defensemen Jacob Bernard-Docker and Travis Hamonic are currently on injured reserve. The last thing the team needed was to add another blueliner to the list.

After a few rough seasons, Chabot has returned to form under head coach Green's watch this season.

Through his first 43 appearances, the former 2015 first-rounder has tallied three goals and 16 assists while playing to the best plus-minus rating (plus-10) of his nine-year career. He's yet to miss a game, too, meaning he's on pace to hit the 70-game mark for the first time since 2019-20.

The Senators are a better team when he's on the ice, so it wouldn't be surprising if their success is correlated with Chabot's turnaround.

Thomas Chabot gets ALL of that puck to tie things up! pic.twitter.com/78INAnxmzE
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 8, 2025

Time will tell if the 6-foot-2 defenseman can help Ottawa stop Washington, which enters tonight's affair as the Metropolitan Division leader.

Although the Capitals are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, it's worth noting that they've lost five of their last seven meetings with the Senators — including a 6-1 defeat in the last clash at Canadian Tire Centre on Oct. 18, 2023.

Tonight's showdown between the United States and Canada's capital cities can be viewed on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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