Ottawa Senators make blockbuster deadline deal, landing Dylan Cozens for Josh Norris

Steve Staios  sent shockwaves through the Ottawa Senators dressing room on Friday morning.

The club’s president of hockey operations and general manager made his second biggest move since taking on the new role, sending centre Josh Norris and defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker to the Buffalo Sabres in a deal that brought back forward Dylan Cozens and defenceman Dennis Gilbert in return.

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The move made just before the NHL trade deadline on Friday caught the club’s dressing room off guard and captain Brady Tkachuk fought back tears as he spoke to the media.

“Yeah, it’s pretty tough,” Tkachuk said, fighting back tears. “It sucks. Losing a guy like that. Everybody knows how much he means to me. Next question.”

Tkachuk said goodbye to Norris before he left the building.

“I just spent the last little bit with him to kind of take advantage of every little minute we have today,” Tkachuk said.

The players were hitting the ice at the Bell Sensplex when they were informed of the move just before practice. Coach Travis Green called the players into a meeting to let them know.

“It’s the unfortunate reality of this being a business,” Tkachuk said. “We’re getting back important pieces that are really going to help us. It sucks and it’s part of it. With (Cozens and Gilbert), we’re going to welcome them with open arms.

“I feel bad a little bit that this is the initial reaction. They’re going to understand why it’s a little bit of a whirlwind for me personally. That being said, it’s all about being a good captain, and a good teammate and making sure that they have everything that they need.

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“(They’ll) have support right from day one and they’re going to be important pieces.”

Cozen is the centrepiece of the deal. He’s in the second season of a seven-year contract that pays him   $7.1 million US annually.

The 24-year-old has 11 goals and 31 points in 61 games with the Sabres this year, but he will make the Senators harder to play against.

Gilbert has suited up for 25 games with the Sabres this season.

Norris’ name had surfaced on the trade market in the past few days because other teams were looking for help in the middle and Staios wasn’t opposed to moving his $7.95-million cap hit through 2026-27.

It’s believed Staios also had serious discussions with the Nashville Predators and Vancouver Canucks in a trade regarding Norris. The Nashville deal fell apart late on Thursday night league sources told Postmedia.

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