Nikolas Matinpalo
Ottawa Senators Defense
Undrafted, no goals in ninety-five games, and the fifteenth percentile in possession.
| Season | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | PP | SH | GW | S | S% | TOI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 50 | 0 | 5 | 5 | -1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 0.0 | 15:38 |
| Career | 95 | 1 | 8 | 9 | -2 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 82 | 1.2 | 13:58 |
Last Season
No goals and five assists in 50 games, minus-one, at 15:38 a night with 16 penalty minutes.
The Finesse Game
Fifty-nine unblocked attempts from a median of 48 feet, eight per cent from inside twenty, and none went in. One goal in 95 career games.
Five assists in 50 games. He makes the short pass and defends, and the club is not asking for anything else.
The Physical Game
Six foot three, 213, and he is willing in front of his own net. Sixteen penalty minutes in 50 games.
The skating is adequate for a third pair and it is the ceiling on everything.
The Intangibles
An odd split: 51.2 per cent of the expected goals, 65th percentile, against only 45.6 per cent of the shot attempts, 15th percentile, across 712 minutes.
That is a defenceman whose pair concedes a great deal of puck and very little danger — which is either the Ottawa structure working around him, or him doing the specific thing this club is best at. The goals went 30-40 against, which is the goaltending.
He is 28, undrafted out of Finland, and reached the NHL at 26. Ninety-five games out of that is a good outcome and this is a sixth-defenceman page.