Yakemchuk uses strong Sens camp to build on his game

Carter Yakemchuk was paying close attention to his surroundings during his first experience in an National Hockey League environment.

The 6-foot-4 right-shot defenceman had been taken seventh overall by the Ottawa Senators a few months earlier at the 2024 draft in Vegas, and was keeping his eyes open for the things that would help him adjust as a professional hockey player during the Senators’ training camp.

“I was just watching for all the little things that the players do to prepare for games, which was good for me to see and learn from,” said Yakemchuk. “I was watching for their day-to-day habits and how they treat their bodies off the ice. It was an intense experience and eye opening.

The Senators decided to pair Yakemchuk with defenceman Thomas Chabot in order to help him adjust.

Chabot was once in a similar position to Yakemchuk as a highly rated prospect trying to adjust to the NHL’s skill and speed and his experience and leadership helped Yakemchuk get comfortable.

“I was paired up with Chabot at the start for the first couple of practices and he really helped me out,” said Yakemchuk. “The main thing was to adjust to the pace of play, which was a lot faster than I normally play, and he really helped me. IT was nice to have a guy like that show me the ropes.”

Once the games started, Yakemchuk’s profile started to rise in Ottawa. He opened up the preseason with a game-winning overtime goal against the rival Toronto Maple Leafs and went on to record two goals and six points in four preseason games before being returned to the Western Hockey League’s Calgary Hitmen.

As a native of Calgary, Yakemchuk had spent his entire minor league career in the Alberta minor hockey system before playing with his hometown Hitmen. The love he got from Senators fans during the preseason makes him excited to potentially move east and play in Ottawa.

“As camp went forward, I got more comfortable and felt I was better every day,” said Yakemchuk. “All of the games in Ottawa were really intense with the fans there. All of Canada have amazing fans and Ottawa is no different.

“The preseason games and training camp was awesome, and I really like the city.”

Yakemchuk views himself as a quiet and reserved person off the ice who lets his personality show on it. He considers himself as an offensively focused defenceman who likes to join the rush and quarterback the power play.

His offensive prowess was on full display during his draft season last year, recording 30 goals and 71 points in 56 games with the Hitmen. It was his offensive abilities that helped him get recognized as a top prospect and drafted seventh overall.

The Senators asked him to focus on his defensive side of the ice, which will help him become more of a 200-foot player that will allow the team to utilize him in more situations.

Yakemchuk took the notes from the team to heart and it’s something he’s been working on throughout the season.

While his point production took a hit this season, recording 17 goals and 49 points in 56 games, it was compensated by the improvements he made on the defensive side of the ice.

Yakemchuk has had a minus rating throughout his WHL career, starting as a minus-19 in his rookie season to a minus-6 last year. This season, he finished with as a plus for the first time at plus-6.

“I’ve taken a lot of strides on the defensive side of my game,” said Yakemchuk. “It’s been a work in progress, but it’s been improving every day and every practice so far. [If] I work on the defensive side of my game, the offence will come.”

Despite his improved defensive play, Yakemchuk was not invited to Team Canada’s selection camp for the 2025 World Juniors in Ottawa, which surprised many around hockey.

Senators president and general manager Steve Staios and head coach Travis Green spoke openly about their confusion over their prospect’s exclusion from camp.

Staios told Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch in December he felt Yakemchuk’s ability to thrive under pressure would have helped Team Canada while Green said that he was “surprised” that there are “10 better defencemen” in Canada.

While Yakemchuk appreciates Staios and Green for defending him in the media, he understands Hockey Canada’s decision and is using it to make himself better.

“Obviously, it was disappointing to not be selected for that tournament, but I’m using it as motivation to get better,” said Yakemchuk. “I found areas in my game that I needed to improve on and I’m going to try to make that jump to the next level next season. It sucked, but it was motivation to keep getting better.”

Yakemchuk helped the Hitmen become one of the best teams in the WHL this season, after missing the playoffs last year. Calgary finished third in the league with a 45-17-6 record to claim the third seed in the Eastern Conference and home-ice advantage in the first round.

They were neck-and-neck with the Medicine Hat Tigers for top spot in the East, but a 5-2 loss to the Tigers on the final game of the season left them two points short.

Calgary made quick work of the Saskatoon Blades with a four-game sweep in the first round and are down 1-0 to the Lethbridge Hurricanes in Round 2.

Yakemchuk’s dream is to help his hometown team to an Ed Chyoweth Cup victory and he believes they have the team to do it.

“It would be awesome to do it in Calgary, my hometown,” said Yakemchuk. “When we sat down in the summertime, that was our No. 1 goal.

“For our group, we have to keep with it for the entire 60 minutes of each game. If we stick to our game, we’ll have no problem [in the playoffs].”