Senators Prospects: The Top Goalies

As we work our way through the quieter days of the NHL world, it seems like a good time to start looking into the Ottawa Senators’ top prospects. Let’s start with the goalies. I’ll be diving into how they’ve played in recent years and what can be expected of them for next season. 

Mads Sogaard

Drafted 37th overall in 2019, Sogaard has progressed well over the last few seasons. The noticeable part to Sogaard has always been his size, standing at a massive 6 foot 7. Last season, he played in 32 games for the Belleville Senators, posting a .916 SV% and an 18-9-3 record. 

A few weeks ago, Sogaard signed a two-year contract with the Senators. The most notable part of the contract is that the second year is a one-way deal. Of course, there is no guarantee that he will be a full-time NHL goalie a year from now. He has struggled at the NHL level in limited action. Over the last 3 seasons, he is 10-10-3 with a .884 SV% and a 3.44 GAA. With Linus Ullmark and Anton Forsberg set up as the Senators duo at the NHL level, Sogaard should spend this year in the AHL. The hope is that he can build off his solid play for Belleville last year. Undoubtedly, this is a massive season for Sogaard, trying to prove himself worthy of being an NHL goaltender for next season. 

Leevi Merilainen

Merilainen was drafted 71st overall in the 2020 draft. Since then, he has moved around a lot. He played in the OHL in 2021-22, the Finnish League the next season, and then he split last season between the ECHL and the AHL. In the ECHL, he put up great numbers, going 9-4 with a .926 SV%. He was solid in the AHL, posting a 10-9-1 record and a .906 SV%. 

The Senators recently moved on from Kevin Mandolese. It seems as though they are putting their faith in the duo of Sogaard and Merilainen. The expectation is for Merilainen to stick it out in the AHL for the whole season. If he can build off of his good season a year ago, he could potentially earn a decent number of starts, although he’ll start the year in a backup role to Sogaard. 

Kevin Reidler

Reidler was drafted out of Sweden in 2022, 151st overall. Last season, he joined the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL. He went 27-5-6 with a .902 SV% and then posted a 7-4 record in the playoffs with an impressive .934 SV%. He was also Sweden’s 3rd goalie at the World Juniors, but he did not see any action in the tournament. While the .902 SV% may not seem impressive, it ranked Reidler 4th in the USHL among qualified goalies. 

Reidler will be making the jump up to the collegiate level, playing for the University of Nebraska-Omaha. It will be interesting to see how much playing time Reidler gets, though, as Nebraska-Omaha’s starting goalie from last season, Simon Latkoczy, is returning for his 3rd season. Last year, Latkoczy played in 34 games, leaving the backup to play in just 8. Reidler will have to make the most of any starts that he gets. 

Vladimir Nikitin

Nikitin was drafted in the 7th round in 2023, 207th overall. Last season, he joined the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL. Splitting the starts for the Chiefs throughout the season, he went 15-6-2 with an .898 SV%. That SV% ranked 16th out of the 20 qualified goalies. He struggled in the playoffs, going 0-2 with a .870 SV%, and mainly watched from the bench. The brightest part of last year for Nikitin was being named the top goaltender at the IIHF U20 Division 1A World Championship. He helped Kazakhstan get promoted to the World Junior Championship, coming to Ottawa in 2025.

Nikitin will be heading back to Kazakhstan next season, joining Snezhnye Barsy Astana of the MHL, the Russian junior league. They were one of the worst teams in the league last season, winning just 12 of their 50 games. Chances are, Nikitin will also be one of the goalies for Kazakhstan at the World Junior Tournament, as he doesn’t turn 20 until January 7th. For both his MHL team and Kazakhstan, Nikitin will certainly face plenty of shots. For now, he is a long shot to become a quality pro goalie, but he has shown enough flashes to warrant keeping an eye out for how he progresses. 

Michael Simpson

Simpson went undrafted out of the OHL, but he played well enough over the last couple of OHL seasons to earn a one-year contract with the Belleville Senators. Two years ago, he helped the Peterborough Petes to the OHL Championship. Last season, he did the same with the London Knights. He went 34-10-2 with London, posting a 905 SV% during the regular season. His SV% was 3rd best in the OHL, and he led the league with a 2.61 GAA. In the playoffs, he went 15-2 with a .908 SV%. He then went 3-1 with a .917 SV% in the Memorial Cup as London lost a heartbreaker in the finals to the Saginaw Spirit. 

As an undrafted goalie, it will be a tough task to prove that he’s capable of being a quality pro goaltender. At 6’1”, he is on the smaller side for goaltenders in this era. With Sogaard and Merilainen forming the duo for Belleville in the AHL, Simpson will likely start the season in the ECHL. That would send Simpson to the Allen Americans, who are the ECHL affiliate for the Senators, as well as the San Jose Sharks, Minnesota Wild, Seattle Kraken, and the Utah Hockey Club. There’s a good chance for Simpson to play some games in the AHL as well. Last season, the Belleville Senators had 4 different goalies play games for them, and the year before, they had 10.