This season there is a lot of excitement around the senators of Ottawa. The team had a good show in last season’s play -offs, so that the Toronto Maple Leafs pushed to six games, despite the fact that they came in like a wildcard, and in the low season they indicated one of their biggest problems, gaining Jordan Spence to help the right side of their blue line. This is no longer an emerging team; The senators want to prove that they can be in the same conversation as the powerhouses of the Atlantic Division.
One of the players who will be the key in the senators coming, is Shane Pinto, who has emerged as one of the most undervalued stars of the team. Despite different setbacks, he has succeeded in taking a step forward in each of his five seasons. This season he is ready for a big outbreak, but what that will look like is for a debate. Here are three possible comparisons for what Pinto’s Punttotaal will be in 2025-26.
Low End: Mike Fisher
From 1999 to 2011, Mike Fisher was one of the The best depth centers of senators, Record 348 points in 675 career competitions for the franchise. As a non-Zes staple, he had an average of 42 points per season in Ottawa, but in 2009-10 he set a career high with 25 goals and 53 points after a silver medal at the 2009 World Championship.
Pinto plays a very similar role as Fisher, anchores the third rule alongside Ridly Greig and a rotating cast of characters, and has been very consistent as a two-way player of 20 goals, 35-point. He has also been excellent. Last season he led all senators Vooruit with 56 blocked shots and 27 collection restaurants, and was the most used player in the defensive zone, from 68% of his services in his own end. With the penalty murder he was the fifth most used player and the only attacker to take on average almost two minutes of ice age per match, while also recording a positive Corsi for percentage, which means that when he was on the penalty kill, the senators had the puck more often than not.
According to Float prospects’ writer Chris Kane, Average attackers with at least 200 games under their belt and a strong second half of the season are ready for an outbreak, and Pinto checks both categories. From January 1 to April 17, 2025, he registered 28 points in 42 games, giving him a pace of 54 points and ended the season with 210 career NHL matches. If he were to wear that in 2025-26, he would be exactly on his way to match Fisher’s career.
Kane, however, admits that the use of Pinto can stop him, because it is unlikely that he will replace Tim Stutzle on the upper line or Dylan Ciens on the second. However, Pinto has done more with less, and a 50-point season seems almost guaranteed for this season. He is at least ready to the The next big third-liner of the senators. However, whether he surpasses that is still under discussion.
Optimistic but realistic: Tomas Hertl
Despite playing 200 career games, Pinto has to play two full seasons back-to-back. That is his momentum seriously limited, so it is someone’s gamble about how high he could climb if he got the chance. He is already looking to go and scored twice in two pre-season games, including one overtime game winner. So maybe his breakout -potential may be slightly higher than suggests last season.
Pinto broke in the NHL at the age of 20 and during his first five seasons he registered 107 points, giving him a career average of 0.51 points per match (p/g), or a pace of 42 points of more than 82 games per season. He also has 51 career goals for an average of 0.24 goals per match or 20 goals per full season. Moreover, he has an average of 57 blocks and 40 away actions per full season, and held a 50.1 faceoff win percentage (FOW%) while taking more than 1,000 faceoffs, all with an average of 16:39 ice age.
Tomas Hertl also broke in the NHL at the age of 20, and during his first five seasons he recorded 170 points in 324 games, giving him a 0.53 p/g. During a season of 82 games that was on average up to 42.5 points. His 81 goals also gave him an average of 20 goals per season of 82 game. Moreover, he had an average of 57 blocks and 45 away actions per full season, and held a 52 FOW% while he took more than 500 faceoffs, while on average Ice Age on average.
Related: Demolition of each of the first 17 inheritance schedule of the senators
The first five seasons of Pinto and Hertl are frankly creepy comparable. Both players had an average ice age and produced well in their given roles, but struggled with considerable setbacks. Hertl even had a similar finish as his fifth season, ended with 24 points in 43 games from January 2, 2018. But in the sixth season of Hertl he jumped out of the gate and scored 35 goals and 74 points with the San Jose Sharks. Now he is a consistent 60-point player and a reliable medium-six employee in a number of very strong teams.
The only major problem is committed. Hertl was moved to the wing on the second line In 2018-19, by stimulating his ice age for a whole minute, and besides Logan Couture and Timo Meier he flourished. He pushed couture from the middle point and led the team with 609 Faceoff victories. Couture hardly took that amount throughout the season. Pinto will not have a chance to get the second line minutes unless he can push the wing together. It is not impossible, and if he convinces his coach to give him a greater role, he could easily be a player of 30 goals, 60 points for the senators, which should be Josh Norris, but never exhausted.
Best-case scenario: Dylan Larkin
Pinto’s best achievements so far were demonstrable last summer at the 2025 world championship, where he came in third place in scoring with two goals and 10 points in eight games on Team USA and a major role to help the team claim a gold medal for the First time since 1933. It was a big reason why the Americans took him back for their Olympic training camp, and although he is still considered a longitudinal shot to make the last selection, his production at the world championship could imply that a big season is coming for him in 2025-26.
Could that mean that a breakout from the Dylan Larkin type is coming? In 2016-17, Larkin joined the Americans at the world championship after the Detroit Red Wings were eliminated from the play-offs. During that tournament, he finished second in the team with two goals and 10 points in eight games. Then, in 2017-18, he finally had his big breakout season that the Red Wings had waited for, which doubled the point of his previous season from 32 to 63. He brought his game to the next level in 2018-19, scored 32 goals and set up 73 points, and since then he hardly looked back, regularly 70-plus points.
Unlike Hertl, Pinto and Larkin have far fewer similarities. Larkin’s international outbreak came in his third World Championship Tournament while he was only 20 years old, while 24-year-old Pinto was only in his second season. Larkin also only had two seasons under his belt before he was on his way, and most of the past decade is the top line center of Detroit and played more than 20 minutes a night. Pinto will almost certainly never challenge Stutzle for the top track in Ottawa.
Nevertheless, Pinto’s impressive world championships indicate that a major outbreak could come. Various players, including Logan Cooley, Conor Garland, Clayton Keller and Johnny Gaudreau, all changed strong international achievements in NHL success. Although a 70 -point player is probably out of the tickets for Pinto, a single season of 70 points is not too incomprehensible.
Whatever happens, the senators will be looking for Pinto to take a step forward this season. He has been proven to be a very effective player and someone who can trust Ottawa while building a Stanley Cup competitor. But whether he will be a fisherman, a Hertl, or maybe even a Larkin is now completely up to him.
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