OTTAWA — The Ottawa Senators have acquired centre Dylan Cozens and defenceman Dennis Gilbert from the Buffalo Sabres for centre Josh Norris and defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker ahead of Friday’s NHL trade deadline.
The Senators also receive a 2026 second-round draft pick from Buffalo in the deal.
Cozens, a seventh-overall pick with the Sabres in 2019, has 11 goals and 20 assists in 61 games this season. The six-foot-three, 207-pound forward adds size to Ottawa’s lineup alongside captain Brady Tkachuk.
The 24-year-old from Whitehorse signed a seven-year, US$49.70-million contract during a breakout 2022-23 campaign with the Sabres where he produced 31 goals and 37 assists in 81 games.
Norris has 20 goals and 13 assists in 53 games this season. The six-foot-two, 196-pound forward has 90 goals and 66 assists in 236 NHL games, all with the Senators, but has struggled to stay healthy.
Bernard-Docker, a Senators first-round draft pick (26th overall) in 2018, has one goal and three assists in 25 games.
The six-foot-two, 216-pound Gilbert has five assists in 25 games this season.
The Senators (31-25-5) hold the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with 67 points in 61 games this season. The New York Rangers also have 67 points while Detroit and Montreal are a point behind. The Sabres, meanwhile, rank last in the conference.
Norris arrived in Ottawa via trade from San Jose in September 2018, when the Senators sent captain Erik Karlsson to the Sharks.
The 25-year-old American is in the third season of an eight-year, US$63.6-million contract that he signed after scoring 35 goals in 66 games in 2021-22.
Bernard-Docker, 24, is a pending restricted free agent, while the 28-year-old Gilbert is a pending unrestricted free agent.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025.
The Canadian Press
