OTTAWA — In the NHL, some stars are known for wearing their emotions on their sleeves. Think of Connor McDavid’s eruption of emotions in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final.
Yet we have a star amongst the ranks who practises stoicism: Jake Sanderson.
“Just a lot of stoicism. That’s my big thing,” said the Ottawa Senators defenceman.
The always-reserved, quiet and reflective Sanderson has taken up the principles of the ancient Greek philosophy to monitor emotional regulation and to accept what you cannot control.
“I would be scared (at some points), but I (remind myself) it’s not going to last forever,” Sanderson told Sportsnet.ca about how stoicism has changed his hockey mindset. “You may be nervous at some points in a high-pressure situation, but you’re going to look back in 20 years and you’re going to wish you had those in your life again.”
It’s been working. Sanderson has 20 points in 25 games while being one of the best defensive defencemen in the world with his blend of monstrous speed, immense IQ and whiff of offensive firepower. Not a bad combination.
Sunday night offered an example of his prowess as he single-handedly cycled in the Dallas zone to score the lone goal in the Senators’ loss. That goal moved him past Zdeno Chara (pretty good hockey player) for fifth all-time in points by a Senators defenceman.
It’s part of Sanderson’s nature not to be a rah-rah guy — in complete contrast to his always emotive captain, Brady Tkachuk.
“I think the vocal stuff is continuing to come, and the comfort with that (type of leadership),” said Sanderson.
When asked if he ever gets hot on the ice or in the dressing room, he had a clear answer.
“No, I know I don’t,” he said. “Sometimes I get fired up on the ice or on the bench too, but I’ll never really yell.”
However, last season Sanderson felt he rode the high and lows of the game too often, which led to a poor start that initially kept him off Team USA for the 4 Nations tournament. (He eventually made the team as an injury replacement.)
“I think, last year, with the pressure of trying to make the 4 Nations team and me wanting it really badly, it affected me,” said Sanderson. “It was a great learning experience for me, and not wanting to change who I am as a player and just, again, be confident with who I am.”
This season, he’s had a different approach: every day when he drives to the rink, he gets perspective through Ryan Holliday’s podcast, The Daily Stoic.
“So, I’ll just throw it on for like 10-15 minutes,” said Sanderson. “Sometimes I’m not totally paying attention, but I hear some good snippets every now and then. But, yeah, just the perspective, how lucky I am to be doing this, but also the mental too. It’s a high-pressure atmosphere, but you learn different ways in how to cope with it.”
What sticks out about Sanderson’s game is how consistent it is. There are no highs and lows — it’s regulated between great and really good, in a similar vein to the emotional regulation he’s trying to achieve.
“Rarely will he make a mistake,” said Senators coach Travis Green.
His play has led to some high praise and comparison to an always steady, almost mistake-free Hall of Famer.
“He reminds me a lot of how Scott Niedermayer wheels around out there,” said Chris Pronger.
Like Niedermayer, Sanderson is one of the best skaters in the league who can chew up heavy minutes with elite confidence like a dog with its chew toy. That’s why Sanderson is trusted to play a career-high 24:40 of ice time per game this season.
Sanderson is always trying ways to improve, calling himself an “everydayer.” He’s a hockey nerd’s hockey nerd. Tkachuk affectionately called him “boring” for how locked he is with hockey.
After last season, Sanderson said, “Comfort kind of kills growth … you want to seek out challenges every single day.”
Sanderson has multiple contraptions at home for recovery that he doesn’t share publicly, to keep an edge on opponents. But he tries to learn from others who’ve gone through similar pressures as high-performance athletes. Recently, Sanderson has taken inspiration from Michael Jordan’s “Last Dance” documentary and former World No. 1 tennis player Andre Agassi’s renowned “Open” autobiography.
“Wanted to read it just because I’ve gotten big into tennis this summer,” said Sanderson.
“What I’ve taken away from it so far is how much has gone into his life, the stress of tennis, just the routine too, as well. And it kind of just puts in perspective about my hockey as well.
“I’m in a team sport. I know he mentions it multiple times in the book, that he wishes he played a team sport, and how lonely tennis can be. So, I’m lucky. I have 25 brothers to go out on the ice with me.”
The interesting dynamic that presents itself to Sanderson is the tug between his ego and the stoic belief that you need to escape the ego.
“You have to have a little bit of both,” said Sanderson.
“I think with ego, you have to be confident in your abilities, but also you have to be open to constructive criticism to get better and expand your abilities. Just taking it all in, and with a Michael Jordan (mindset) too. He talks about ego and how it’s a big part of his competition, and in stoicism, ego is not good. I think, for me, just finding the balance between the two.”
It’s allowed Sanderson to have an excellent start to the season with all the pressure that comes with being a franchise defenceman.
Sanderson has quarterbacked the 11th-best power play in the absence of the Senators’ most talented power-play talisman, Tkachuk, who has played in just five of the first 25 games.
“It’s funny how really good players in the league find a way to just get the job done,” said Green of Sanderson’s play.
He’s also starting to enter the Norris Trophy conversation. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on a recent 32 Thoughts described Sanderson as just a notch behind Cale Makar.
“I know it’s still early for Sanderson, but this is how good he is,” Friedman said. “Is Sanderson going to be at a point in time in the league the best player who’s never won a Norris Trophy?”
Sanderson is 10th in defenceman scoring, including 13 points in 14 road games, and is tied for fourth in power-play points by a defenceman. He is also tied for 14th in WAR (wins above replacement) of any player and eighth in WAR among defencemen. Sanderson blends Jaccob Slavin’s elite defence with outstanding offensive attributes.
It becomes a challenge to name a defenceman who is clearly better than Sanderson in the Eastern Conference.
Sanderson has all the tools to be a Norris Trophy candidate for years to come, even if he won’t say it.
“I think you know my personal goals, at the end of the day,” Sanderson told Sportsnet.ca with a smirk.
As Green said last season, perhaps summing up the passionate fervour Senators fans have for their star defenceman: “We’re lucky to have him.”
