Senators stuck with Alex Formenton, whether they like it or not

The Ottawa Senators officially find themselves in an awkward situation with Alex Formenton. Formenton, along with Carter Hart, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, and Cal Foote, faced charges stemming from a June 2018 incident at a London, Ontario, hotel following a Hockey Canada gala. McLeod also faced an additional charge of being a party to the offence. In July, Justice Maria Carroccia acquitted all five players. After some back and forth between the NHL and the NHLPA, it was confirmed last week that the group will be eligible to sign contracts starting October 15 and can return to NHL action on December 1.

The Sens had been clear that they were not looking to reunite with Formenton, probably to stay away from the backlash that would entail. But not so fast…

Despite his involvement in the 2018 World Juniors investigation and the fact he hasn’t played an NHL game since, the Senators cannot simply remove him from their reserve list. Thanks to the rules surrounding qualified restricted free agents, Formenton remains tied to Ottawa until he’s either traded or becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2027.

PuckPedia recently broke it down: because the Senators extended him a qualifying offer, Formenton remains on their 50-contract reserve list. Unlike waivers or buyouts, there’s no mechanism in the CBA that allows a team to voluntarily drop a qualified RFA. In short, Ottawa can’t release him even if they want to.

In theory, the NHL could step in and grant an exception, but unless that happens, the only exits are a trade or the clock running out on his RFA status. That means he’ll continue to count toward the Senators’ reserve list limit for at least another two seasons.

With 49 other roster slots to manage, every spot matters in Ottawa and one of them is locked up by a player the organization clearly has no future with. Unless the league changes course, the Senators are stuck in a holding pattern, with Formenton lingering on their books until 2027.