Ottawa Senators catch NHL prospects off guard with 'joke' interview request during scouting combine sessions

At the recent NHL scouting combine in Buffalo, the Ottawa Senators put a little humor into their prospect interviews — a request for a joke on the spot. With the best prospects of the NHL trying to leave the best impression on scouts before the 2025 NHL Draft, the Senators' surprise question left everyone taken aback and soon became a viral conversation piece among hockey aficionados. The Ottawa Senators spoke with 73 NHL draft prospects at last week's combine in Buffalo, but it wasn't only their skating, shooting, or leadership skills that were put under the microscope — it was also their ability to be funny. The team's scouting department, headed by head coach Don Boyd, threw one curveball during the interviews: they asked players to share a joke, cold. On TSN 1200, Don Boyd divulged that the strategy was deliberate and had a purpose. “Very few people could come up with jokes,” Boyd said. “At one point, I think we were zero for 59…couldn’t even come up with a joke. Four of the five that did come up with jokes weren’t funny.” In spite of the mixed comic success, Boyd defended the question as a valuable psychological test. “Sometimes that puts them out of their comfort zone a little bit; we like that, see how they react because they were surprised by it. They still have to play on the ice.” The Ottawa Senators presently possess the 21st overall selection in the 2025 NHL Draft, which will be held June 27 and 28. With that pick and others, management is not only interested in selecting talented players but also players who demonstrate character, maturity, and leadership — traits that, in Boyd's opinion, are equally important to constructing a successful team.“We’ve recognized the need for that in our room. I don’t think it’s new, but we’ve certainly emphasized the leadership character qualities of players now and the compete level of players now,” Boyd said. The unconventional interview technique used by the Senators is part of an emerging movement in sports scouting in which teams probe for mental acuteness, emotional intelligence, and flexibility as well as athletic ability. The joke question, funny on its face, was intended to test a player's capacity for quick thinking, responding to the unanticipated, and showing personality under stress.Also read: Tyler Kleven eyes bigger role with Ottawa Senators after signing new contract extensionWhether the Senators did discover their next great locker room jokester or not is yet to be determined, but one thing is certain — in Ottawa, how a player performs under pressure may be rated as much by punchline as puck handling. As the 2025 NHL Draft approaches, the attention will once again turn back to in-game performance, but it's apparent the Senators are looking outside the box while searching for their next crop of stars.