Senators acquiring Dylan Cozens from Sabres for Josh Norris

The Ottawa Senators are making a huge addition in an attempt to end their playoff drought.

The Senators acquired centre Dylan Cozens from the Buffalo Sabres for centre Josh Norris and defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker ahead of the trade deadline on Friday, Sportsnet can confirm.

The Senators will also acquire other pieces from the Sabres in the deal.

Ottawa hasn’t made the playoffs since 2017 but are currently tied with the New York Rangers for the second and final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Cozens, of Whitehorse, holds 11 goals and 16 assists through 54 games this season. The former seventh-overall pick has seen his numbers decline for two straight seasons since breaking out with 31 goals in the 2022-23 campaign.

The 24-year-old is in the second year of a seven-year contract worth $7.1 million annually.

Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos previously reported that “at least half a dozen teams” were interested in Cozens.

And so the Sabres, who sit last in the Eastern Conference, move on from a former core piece now without risking his value dropping even further.

But the trade also represents another partial reset as Buffalo attempts to snap its league-leading 13-season playoff drought.

Norris, 25, has battled injuries throughout his career, but has been mostly healthy this season. He has 20 goals and 13 assists in 53 games.

Norris was a first-round pick (19th overall) by the San Jose Sharks in the 2017 NHL Draft. He was traded to the Senators the next year in the Erik Karlsson blockbuster deal.

Bernard-Docker, 24, has been in and out of the lineup for the Senators, posting one goal and three assists in 25 games.