Jake Sanderson releases public apology after controversial goalie comments

The Ottawa Senators finally made it back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs a year ago, and despite the first-round exit, they built plenty of hype and expectations for the 2025/26 campaign.

Unfortunately, injuries and inconsistency have held them back thus far this season, with the team now sitting at 22-19-7 as they are currently in last place in the highly competitive Atlantic Division.

Frustrations have been at an all-time high recently for this group, and after their weekend defeat at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens, Jake Sanderson threw the team's goaltending under the bus.

That included taking a shot at young netminder Leevi Merilainen, but after a few days to think on it, Sanderson has not only revealed he apologized to the 23-year old, but offered a public apology as well.

This is a situation that many thought was blown out of proportion, but given how the Senators season has been going, it was only a matter of time until someone came out and said something about their poor play.

However, calling out the young goaltender with less than 35 NHL games under his belt was uncalled for, with Sanderson showing his maturity in apologizing for the comments that never should have been made.

Ultimately though, Sanderson was right when he said this team can't win if they can't make enough saves, and unless that changes, this could be a team that ends up with a very disappointing finish in 2025/26.

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