Ottawa Senators vs. Florida Panthers Picks and Predictions, Saturday October 11, 2025
The 2025/26 NHL season has started strong, and with so many teams in the East having Stanley Cup hopes, we'll see two do battle on Saturday with our Ottawa Senators vs. Florida Panthers prediction.
The Ottawa Senators (1-0-0) broke their Stanley Cup Playoffs drought a season ago, and with the team loaded with a great blend of youth and experience, they are aiming even higher this season.
On Saturday, they battle the Florida Panthers (2-0-0), a team that has been hit hard by injuries, but on the back of two straight Stanley Cup victories, this is a team that's battle-tested and ready for a big regular season. Read on to see our Ottawa Senators vs. Florida Panthers prediction.
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Can the Senators start their season with two straight road victories?
The Ottawa Senators have been building something special for a number of years now, and with some big stars preparing for a big 2025/26 campaign, they've got big hopes despite playing in the toughest division in the NHL in the Atlantic Division. The Senators' biggest off-season pickup over the summer was defenseman Jordan Spence, with the team hoping that their homegrown stars can take a step forward and become a genuine Stanley Cup threat this season.
Leading the way in scoring last year for Ottawa was rising star Tim Stutzle with 79 points, and with a good core of Brady Tkachuk, Shane Pinto and Drake Batherson (who will miss this game due to injury) among others around him, this is a team full of high-end talent. Last time out for the Senators was a season-opening win in Tampa Bay, with Tkachuk, Pinton and Artem Zub all having three points on the night as they came up winners 5-4 despite Linus Ullmark allowing four goals on just 25 shots on the night.
Expected starter: Linus Ullmark (.840 save percentage, 4.00 GAA in one start this season)
Can the Panthers continue their red-hot start?
The Florida Panthers have made three straight Stanley Cup Finals, and while injuries may be catching up to them, it hasn't stopped them early in the season as they are 2-0-0 in two games played at home already in 2025/26. Over the summer, this team brought back three key pieces of the team, but coming into this one, they'll still have the trio of Tomas Nosek, Matthew Tkachuk and captain Aleksander Barkov out in this one. Forwards Aleksander Barkov is out for the regular season and Matthew Tkachuk will miss the first 2 1/2 months due to injuries. Defenseman Dmitry Kulikov suffered an arm injury on Thursday and did not return after crashing into the boards against the Flyers.
Through two games in 2025/26, the Panthers have been led by the trio of AJ Greer, Mackie Samsokevich, and Evan Rodrigues, all with two points, with a total of 11 players scoring in those first two games. Last time out for the Panthers was a great win over the Philadelphia Flyers, with goals to Lundell and Marchand leading the way as Bobrovsky was stellar, stopping 19 of 20 shots as they came away winners 2-1.
Expected starter: Sergei Bobrovsky (.923 save percentage, 1.51 GAA in two starts this season)
Ottawa Senators vs. Florida Panthers pick
Moneyline pick for Senators vs. Panthers
- Florida -150 (4 units)
On paper, this could be a very tight matchup, but with Florida off to a red-hot start with so much battle-tested, experienced talent, it's easy to see why they're favored in this one after starting the year 2-0-0 at home.
Last season, the home team won all three matchups between these teams, with the Panthers winning their lone game in Florida, and with a 7-3 record in their last 10 head-to-head meetings with the Senators, expect them to pick up a tight victory in this one.
Over/under pick for Senators vs. Panthers
- Under 8 (4 units)
Both of these lineups are filled with plenty of talented players who can pick up goals in a hurry, but with a matchup of All-Stars in Ullmark vs. Bobrovsky, it's no surprise that the under is the best pick for this matchup.
In their last 10 head-to-head encounters, the under comes in at 5-3-2, with a total of just 13 combined goals scored in their three games played in 2024/25, so expect this to be a tight, low-scoring affair.
Keep it simple, take the under.