Josh Norris out for the season with a shoulder injury

The news continues to get rough for the Ottawa Senators. This week according to the Canadian Press it was announced that Senators center Josh Norris of Oxford, Michigan had left shoulder surgery last week and is gone for the rest of the 2023-24 National Hockey League regular season.

Fourth time with a shoulder ailment

Norris has been dealing with shoulder issues dating back to the 2019 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Hockey Championships in Vancouver when he suffered an injury while competing for the United States and was out for six months. That was followed by shoulder problems in 2021-22 where Norris missed 15 games, and shoulder issues again last year where he only played eight games.

Norris in 2023-24

Norris has not played for the Senators since February 27 when they lost 4-1 to the Nashville Predators. In 2023-24, Norris had 16 goals and 14 assists for 30 points in 50 games. He was a -6 with 22 penalty minutes, 12 power-play points, three game-winning goals, one shorthanded point, 115 shots on goal, 328 faceoff wins, 30 blocked shots, 86 hits, 22 takeaways and 27 giveaways. Norris’s shorthanded point was a shorthanded assist on a goal by centre Ridly Greig of Lethbridge, Alberta. Defenseman Erik Brannstrom of Eksjo, Sweden picked up the other assist at 7:45 of the first period.

In the Erik Karlsson Trade

Norris was initially selected 19th overall by the San Jose Sharks in the 2017 National Hockey League Entry Draft. His rights were traded to the Ottawa Senators on September 13, 2018 in the Erik Karlsson blockbuster deal. Norris was one of six assets traded from the Sharks to the Senators for Karlsson, who ironically won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman with the San Jose Sharks in 2022-23.

Senators Struggling in 2023-24

Ottawa has the second worst record in the Eastern Conference. With 58 points, they only have three more points than the Columbus Blue Jackets, who have the fewest points with 55.