On the same day that the Ottawa Senators officially reduced their Training Camp roster by 33, the team showed that they still have a ways to go in their preparations for the 2016/2017 regular season.
The Senators held a lead for most of the third period but a late goal by the Montreal Canadiens tied the game late and won it in overtime.
Guy Boucher has mentioned on a few occasions that it’s not about the result but rather individual performances but I’m sure this is a game he would have liked to see his team close out.
Most of the talk after this one was about the first period benching of Bobby Ryan an Cody Ceci. It’s not something you see often in the preseason but it’s clear that the new Head Coach wants to set the tone early in his tenure.
Both Ryan and Ceci showed up late for a team meeting earlier in the day and the consequence was a full period on the bench. For what it’s worth, Boucher said both players accepted the decision.
Message sent and message received.
If you’re looking for positives in the preseason to this point, it has to be the new-look power play. This was billed as a Guy Boucher specialty and the difference is already pretty noticeable. He has them moving the puck quickly and with a purpose and there are shots being taken from all over the offensive zone. They looked even more dangerous with Erik Karlsson on the ice for the first time this preseason.
Just three preseason games left including tomorrow night in Winnipeg, Tuesday in Toronto and then home to the Sabres on Friday night.
Tomorrow night will likely be the last chance for the players on the roster bubble to show what they can do.
Then the real difficult decisions will have to be made.
