The Senators waived eight players: forwards Samuel Blais, Tyler Boucher, Xavier Bourgault, Philippe Daoust, Ryan Suzuki and Philip Tomasino, along with defencemen Samuel Bolduc and Christian Kyrou.

The Senators waived eight players Sunday, including forwards Samuel Blais, Tyler Boucher, Xavier Bourgault, Philippe Daoust, Ryan Suzuki and Philip Tomasino, along with defencemen Samuel Bolduc and Christian Kyrou.

If those players clear waivers Monday, they will be sent to the club’s American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville.

With the National Hockey League deadline to finalize a 23-man roster set for Monday at 5 p.m., the Senators officially closed the door on a shortened training camp and will turn their attention to the start of the regular season when they hit the ice Monday.

There were no surprises in the decisions made by president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios and coach Travis Green when they assigned players to the club’s American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville.

The following 10 players were sent down because they didn’t require waivers: Djibril Toure, Oskar Pettersson, Kasper Halttunen, Tomas Hamara, Eskild Bakke Olsen, Matthew Andonovski, Gabriel Eliasson, Lucas Ellinas, Jackson Parsons and Kevin Reidler.

However, injuries to several key players have complicated matters. The Senators will have to do some juggling before submitting their roster to the NHL’s Central Registry. There are still 29 players in Ottawa after the moves on Sunday.

D Jake Sanderson: He left Saturday’s 4-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens at home to wrap up the preseason with an undisclosed ailment. The club called it precautionary and Green stated Sanderson would be ready to start the season, but this was his first exhibition game because he’d been dealing with it all week. The injury is described as “minor” in nature, but this will be a storyline to watch for the next six days.

D Artem Zub: He didn’t have surgery, but he is still not ready to play after a knee injury he suffered in Game 1 of the club’s first-round series loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in April. The Senators believed he would be ready to start the year, but that’s not the case and there is no timetable for his return. He won’t play against the Leafs on opening night Saturday, and if Sanderson can’t play, then Ottawa will be without its top pairing.

C Shane Pinto: He was supposed to play Saturday, but didn’t. That’s not a good sign. He suited up for two preseason games. Another wait-and-see situation.

LW Andre Burakovsky: He took a hard hit from Arber Xhekaj in the win over the Habs in the third period and didn’t return. Green had no update during his post-game media availability.

LW Warren Foegele: He was injured in training camp and the chances of him starting the season appear to be slim. He has only skated with the club once during camp. We’ll see in the coming days if there is an update on his status. Acquired at last year’s trade deadline, the Senators need him to score goals.

LW Kurtis MacDermid: He only suited up for 19 games last season and didn’t participate in training camp because of an injury suffered during the summer. No timetable.

Winger Ridly Greig will be on the roster, but he’s suspended for the first two games because of an incident in Game 4 of the series against the Canes. He will have to take up a roster spot.

The Senators can carry extra players on Monday by simply placing some of these players on the injured reserve list retroactive to when they were hurt. With the exception of Sanderson, they’d all be eligible to come off the list at any time.

Since Sanderson left Saturday’s game, the Senators likely wouldn’t place him on IR because if you’re designated for that list, you have to be there at least seven days. But these injuries also create an opportunity for some of the players on the bubble.

Let’s start with defenceman Carter Yakemchuk. Did he do enough in camp to earn a spot? That’s debatable, but he stepped into the playoffs last year and showed poise. He’ll start the year in Ottawa and then likely get sent to Belleville to work on his defensive game.

Defenceman Cameron Crotty wasn’t among those waived on Sunday, which means he’ll likely be here to start the year.

Veteran blueliner Ben Hutton, who came to Ottawa on a professional tryout, had a solid camp. He has 500 games of NHL experience and can help this blue line. The expectation is that the Senators will sign him.

He’s a pro and brings depth, especially if Yakemchuk needs more time in Belleville.

Defencemen Hoyt Stanley had a strong camp and won’t require waivers to be sent down.

Forwards

Michael Amadio, Drake Batherson, Andre Burakovsky, Nick Cousins, Dylan Cozens, William Eklund, Claude Giroux, Ridly Greig, Stephen Halliday, Shane Pinto, Tim Stutzle, Fabian Zetterlund, Hayden Hodgson.

Defence

Thomas Chabot, Tyler Kleven, Nikolas Matinpalo, Jake Sanderson, Jordan Spence, Carter Yakemchuk

Pushing for spots: Cameron Crotty, Ben Hutton

Goaltenders

Linus Ullmark, Samuel Ersson

Injured: Warren Foegele, Kurtis MacDermid, Artem Zub

Five players have been released from their PTO: Scott Harrington, Landen Hookey, Luke Mistelbacher, Cal Uens and Vadim Zherenko.

Four players were sent back to their junior teams: Louis-Félix Bourque (Drummondville, QMJHL), Jaxon Cover (London, OHL), Adam Nemec (Sudbury, OHL) and Blake Vanek (Calgary, WHL).