Thomas Chabot Returns in 17 Days After Broken Arm and Ottawa's Playoff Hopes Just Got Real
Ottawa's Thomas Chabot is back on the ice Thursday, just 17 days after surgery on a broken right arm. Yeah, you read that right. The Senators defenseman got cross-checked by Rangers captain J.T. Miller on March 23, had surgery three days later, and is somehow defying every doctor's initial prognosis to suit up against Florida. The team originally expected him to miss four to eight weeks. Instead, he missed eight games and is ready to help Ottawa chase down a playoff spot with the clock ticking.
A Faster Recovery Than Anyone Expected
Chabot sustained the injury in Ottawa's win against New York on March 23 and went under the knife on March 26. The timeline coming out of the Senators' medical staff suggested he'd be sidelined for a month or more. But here we are in early April, and the 29-year-old is suiting up for Thursday's game against the visiting Panthers. It's the kind of comeback that makes you wonder what kind of conditioning program the Senators have going on, because this defies typical recovery expectations for a broken arm that required surgery.
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The Senators (41-27-10, 92 points) currently hold the No. 2 wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with four games remaining. Getting Chabot back healthy is huge for a team trying to lock down a playoff berth down the stretch. This season, the veteran defenseman has 31 points (seven goals, 24 assists) in 55 games. Over his career with Ottawa since being drafted 18th overall in 2015, Chabot has been a workhorse, recording 335 points (78 goals, 257 assists) in 567 games. He was an All-Star back in the 2018-19 season.
With four games left and four points separating them from the rest of the wild-card picture, the Senators need their best players healthy and ready. Thursday's matchup against Florida is exactly the kind of game where Chabot's experience and defensive presence matter most.
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