It began with restricted free agent
Shane Pinto being slapped with a 41-game suspension due to potential dealings with gambling. Then the Senators lost two key defensemen to injury, one of them being
Thomas Chabot, who will be sidelined for six to eight weeks due to a fractured hand, and
Erik Brannstrom, who is out with a concussion after his head hit the ice during a body check by Cal Clutterbuck of the Islanders.