Sens Rewind: The Senators Prospect Who Left Training Camp Without Permission, Then Got Put in Hockey Limbo

The Ottawa Senators’ 2015 offseason did not stay tidy for long. Defense prospect Mikael Wikstrand, a Swedish player the organization viewed as an emerging piece, left the Senators’ training camp and returned home without notifying the team. Ottawa responded by suspending him on September 25, 2015, turning a prospective development story into a public test of organizational control before the NHL season even began.

According to reporting at the time, Senators GM Bryan Murray framed the situation in blunt terms when he addressed the media after the suspension was issued. Murray said Wikstrand could “go back and be a grocery clerk” or play in beer leagues, but that he could not play professional hockey “in any shape or form” elsewhere without permission from the Ottawa organization. The key point was process, not just proximity, with the team describing Wikstrand as having departed for Sweden without informing the Senators, then notifying officials only after he was already on his way.

Wikstrand, 21 years old at the time, later provided his side through social media, saying he left Ottawa for personal reasons after a close family member was seriously ill. Reporting also indicated Murray did not learn the specific details of the health situation until after the suspension had been announced. In other words, Ottawa was not only reacting to absence, it was reacting to the disruption of expectations tied to an NHL-affiliated development plan.

From a hockey perspective, the Senators had reason to be paying close attention. Wikstrand was drafted by Ottawa in the seventh round (196th overall) in 2012 and had shown NHL-relevant offensive instincts during his time in Sweden, including five goals and 20 points in 46 games for Frölunda HC in 2014-15. He also carried additional uncertainty into camp because he had been dealing with a shoulder injury and had limited impact in the rookie tournament before exiting due to that issue.

The larger issue became permission. By suspending a player under contract, an organization can limit where that player is allowed to compete, even if the player’s destination is in a major professional league back home. Sportsnet reported that Ottawa’s decision effectively denied Wikstrand permission to play for his Swedish club at the time, while the Hockey News coverage described the Senators’ intent as preventing professional hockey outside the Ottawa organization during the suspension window.

The dispute eventually cooled, but not in a way that erased what happened. Four months after the suspension, Ottawa loaned Wikstrand to the SHL’s Färjestad BK for the remainder of the season, according to Hockey News, with Murray indicating the Senators would retain his North American rights while monitoring development. The rationale was practical and developmental, not simply punitive, with the reporting framing the loan as a way to keep him playing while the Senators evaluated a longer-term path toward the NHL.

For Ottawa, the episode is a reminder that prospect management is not confined to ice time. Communication, contractual expectations, and how a team enforces rights when a player’s personal circumstances push them toward Europe all matter, especially in the years when more prospects mature through top European leagues rather than North American junior routes. For fans watching the Senators’ pipeline, the Wikstrand saga is a case study in how quickly “development” can become “governance,” and how resolution often requires both sides to align on what comes next.

For teams across the NHL, the practical takeaway is simple: when a prospect is split between worlds, the contract is the common language, but relationships determine how smoothly everyone speaks it. In the months following 2015, Wikstrand’s situation moved from a camp departure to a structured loan back to Sweden, illustrating that Ottawa was willing to adjust the plan once the player and team could agree on a workable framework. That is the kind of behind-the-scenes outcome that tends to shape organizations more than any one highlight ever does.