Our Ottawa Senators vs Boston Bruins preview covers the odds, puck line, total, start time, TV channel and where to watch on Monday, October 5, 2026. The Ottawa Senators (1-0-0 this season; 44-27-11 in 2025-26) visit the Boston Bruins (2-1-0 this season; 45-27-10 in 2025-26) at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. Puck drop is 7:30 PM ET (7:30 PM local). TV: NESN (U.S. regional) / Sportsnet+ / TVA Sports (Canada).
Storyline: Ottawa plays its second game two nights after a 3-2 win at Toronto, and the Senators could be without defenseman Jake Sanderson, who reaggravated an injury and left Saturday’s game in the first period (NHL.com). Boston is 2-1-0 after a 4-1 loss at Minnesota on Saturday, and Monday is the fourth game of defenseman Charlie McAvoy’s six-game suspension. Ottawa won three of the four meetings last season. DraftKings lists Boston at -110 and Ottawa at -110 on the moneyline, with the total at 5.5.
Ottawa Senators vs Boston Bruins Odds, Puck Line & Game Info
| Matchup | Ottawa Senators @ Boston Bruins |
|---|---|
| 2026-27 Records | Ottawa Senators 1-0-0 | Boston Bruins 2-1-0 |
| 2025-26 Records | Ottawa Senators 44-27-11 | Boston Bruins 45-27-10 |
| Head Coaches | OTT: Travis Green (3rd season) | BOS: Marco Sturm (2nd season) |
| Puck Line | OTT -1.5 (+215) | BOS +1.5 (-265) |
| Moneyline | Ottawa Senators: -110 | Boston Bruins: -110 |
| Total | O/U 5.5 (o-125 / u+105) |
| Venue | TD Garden (Boston, Mass.) |
| Date / Time | Monday, October 5, 2026 — 7:30 PM ET |
| TV / How to Watch | NESN (U.S. regional) / Sportsnet+ / TVA Sports (Canada) |
| Probable Starting Goalies | OTT: TBD (Linus Ullmark / Samuel Ersson) | BOS: TBD (Jeremy Swayman / Michael DiPietro) |
Odds via DraftKings (through ESPN), cross-checked on Action Network, as of Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, ~6:20 PM ET. Other books listed the same total at research time. Lines move, so check your sportsbook before puck drop. Starting goalies had not been confirmed at research time.
Ottawa Senators Preview: Last Season, Offseason & Goalies
2025-26 recap: Ottawa went 44-27-11 (99 points), finished fifth in the Atlantic Division and made the playoffs for the second straight season before the eventual champion Carolina Hurricanes swept the Senators in the first round. Tim Stutzle led the team with 83 points (34 goals, 49 assists), Drake Batherson scored 33 goals and Dylan Cozens scored 28. Ottawa ranked 29th in team save percentage (.878) (NHL.com).
Offseason moves: Ottawa traded captain Brady Tkachuk to Florida on June 21 for the No. 9 and No. 25 selections in the 2026 draft, a conditional 2029 first-round selection and a 2027 second-round selection. The Senators sent the No. 9 selection to San Jose for forward William Eklund (53 points last season) and two prospects, acquired forward Andre Burakovsky from Chicago and signed goalie Samuel Ersson to a two-year, $4.4 million contract. Goalie Leevi Merilainen was claimed off waivers by Vancouver (NHL.com, TSN).
Key players & coach: Stutzle, Batherson, Cozens, Shane Pinto, Eklund, Fabian Zetterlund, Claude Giroux and Ridly Greig lead the forwards. Sanderson (54 points in 67 games last season), Thomas Chabot, Jordan Spence, Tyler Kleven and Carter Yakemchuk are on defense. Ottawa has not named a captain to replace Tkachuk. Travis Green is in his third season as coach.
Goalies: Linus Ullmark went 28-12-8 with a 2.73 GAA, .891 save percentage and three shutouts in 49 games last season, including a 12-4-3 record after the Olympic break (NHL.com). He made 27 saves on 29 shots Saturday. Ersson went 14-11-5 with a 3.12 GAA and .870 save percentage in 33 games for Philadelphia last season. Ottawa plays at Detroit on Tuesday and had not confirmed a starter for Monday at research time.
Season opener recap: Chabot scored at 18:51 of the first period, Auston Matthews and Kirill Marchenko (power play) scored for Toronto in the second, and Michael Amadio tied it later in the period. Stephen Halliday scored the winner at 9:46 of the third. Chabot had a goal and an assist, Giroux had two assists, and the teams were even at 29 shots each (NHL.com).
Injuries: Sanderson, who missed part of training camp with the same undisclosed injury, left at 12:45 of the first period Saturday. "A little bit concerned," Green said, adding that the team will know more in the next few days. Defenseman Artem Zub (knee) and Burakovsky (upper body) skated in noncontact jerseys Friday and did not play Saturday (NHL.com Status Report). Forwards Kurtis MacDermid and Blake Montgomery are on injured reserve (ESPN).
Boston Bruins Preview: Opening Stretch Without McAvoy
2025-26 recap: Boston went 45-27-10 (100 points), finished fourth in the Atlantic Division and lost to Buffalo in six games in the first round. David Pastrnak led the team with 100 points (29 goals, 71 assists), Morgan Geekie scored 39 goals, Pavel Zacha scored 30 and McAvoy had 61 points.
Offseason moves: Boston acquired forward JJ Peterka from Utah on June 26 for two first-round selections (2026 and 2028) after Viktor Arvidsson left for Detroit. The Bruins signed defenseman Connor Clifton, and forward James Hagens, the No. 7 selection in the 2025 draft, made the opening roster at 19 (NHL.com, Boston Globe).
McAvoy suspension: McAvoy was suspended six regular-season games for slashing Buffalo forward Zach Benson in Game 6 of the first round on May 1 (NHL.com). Monday is the fourth game of the suspension, and he is not eligible to return until Oct. 13.
Key players & coach: Pastrnak, Peterka, Elias Lindholm, Geekie, Zacha, Casey Mittelstadt, Fraser Minten, Hagens and Mark Kastelic lead the forwards. Hampus Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, Will Borgen, Clifton, Mason Lohrei and Frederic Brunet are on defense. Marco Sturm is in his second season as coach.
Goalies: Jeremy Swayman went 31-18-4 with a 2.71 GAA, .908 save percentage and two shutouts in 55 games last season. He made 24 saves in a shutout of the Rangers on Sept. 29 and 30 saves on 33 shots at Winnipeg. Michael DiPietro made 26 saves on 29 shots at Minnesota on Saturday. Boston had not confirmed a starter at research time.
Season so far: Minten, Peterka and Kastelic (empty net) scored in the final 3:46 of a 3-0 win against the Rangers on Sept. 29. At Winnipeg on Oct. 2, Elias Lindholm tied it at 18:22 of the third period and Peterka won it at 3:21 of overtime. At Minnesota on Saturday, Tanner Jeannot scored 1:53 into the game, then Kirill Kaprizov scored twice (once on the power play, once into an empty net), and Quinn Hughes (power play) and Jared Spurgeon also scored for the Wild (NHL.com).
Injuries: Forward Matthew Poitras (lower body) is on injured reserve (ESPN).
Key Matchup Notes: Senators vs Bruins
- Schedule spot: Both teams played Saturday and had Sunday off. It is Ottawa’s second game and the first half of a back-to-back, with a game at Detroit on Tuesday. Boston plays its second home game.
- Last season: Ottawa won three of four meetings, 7-2 at home on Oct. 27, 2025, 5-3 at home on Nov. 13 and 6-2 in Boston on Dec. 21. Boston won 3-2 in overtime at home on Nov. 6 (NHL.com).
- Blue line: Boston is without McAvoy, and Ottawa’s Sanderson is day to day.
- Special teams: Boston has allowed three power-play goals in three games. Toronto scored once on the power play against Ottawa on Saturday.
- In goal: Swayman has a .947 save percentage in two starts this season. Ullmark stopped 27 of 29 shots in Ottawa’s opener.
- Odds snapshot: Boston -110 / Ottawa -110 on the moneyline, Senators -1.5 (+215) on the puck line, total 5.5 (DraftKings).
How to Watch Ottawa Senators vs Boston Bruins
Date: Monday, October 5, 2026
Puck drop: 7:30 PM ET (7:30 PM local)
Venue: TD Garden, Boston, Mass.
TV: In the U.S., NESN carries the game in the Bruins’ market (NHL.com), and ESPN also lists ESPN+ streaming. In Canada, Sportsnet+ and TVA Sports (French) have national broadcasts (NHL.com). No U.S. national TV broadcast is listed at research time.
Check the puck line, moneyline and total above against your sportsbook before the October 5, 2026 puck drop, and look for confirmed starting goalies closer to game time.