Senators set to hire Green as head coach

The Ottawa Senators are finalizing the details to hire Travis Green as their new head coach, according to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger.

Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch indicates that the team is expected to hold a press conference on Wednesday to announce the signing, and that the draft lottery results will be respected in the ultimate hiring. 

Green, 53, was interim head coach of the New Jersey Devils this season after the team parted ways with Lindy Ruff, going 8-12-1 in the role. He joined the Devils as an associate coach last summer.

He previously worked four-plus seasons as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks from 2017 to 2021, amassing a mark of 133-147-34 (.478).

As a player, Green appeared in 970 NHL games over 14 seasons with the New York Islanders, Anaheim Ducks, Phoenix Coyotes, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins from 1992 to 2007.

Ottawa fired D.J. Smith from the head coach position midway through the season on December 18 after an 11-15-0 start and brought in Jacques Martin on an interim basis. The team finished the season with a 37-41-4 record, good for seventh in the Atlantic Division. 

Smith led the team for four-plus seasons, and they never finished better than sixth in their division in any of those campaigns. 

The Senators entered the season with significant hopes of ending their now seven-season playoff drought, with new ownership in Michael Andlauer and the additions of goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and defenceman Jakob Chychrun, among others.  

Korpisalo struggled mightily in his first season with the Senators, and promising youngster Josh Norris' season was ended early by shoulder surgery for the second consecutive campaign. 

With the draft lottery set to take place on Tuesday and the Senators holding seventh-highest odds at the top pick, Green will have work to do immediately to get the franchise headed in the right direction.