FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-In the end, that game was strikingly familiar to the game against the Kings on Friday. A tight defensive effort, solid goaltending when they needed it and a complete inability to bury their chances against another team’s back-up goalie. Three of four points against the Wild and Kings is nothing to be ashamed about though so in the end it’s a pretty successful two game home stretch for the Senators. A lack of offence continues to be a story for this team. It’s only a matter of time before they break out though because the scoring chances are there.
-Guy Boucher certainly has his hands full with this power play. They went o/4 on Sunday and now sit dead last in the entire National Hockey League with a 9.3% success rate. Much was made about Boucher’s specialty on the power play during the off-season so it’s interesting to see this part of the game lagging behind. The Head Coach wants his team to play “fast” with the man-advantage but right now they look like a group that is agonizing over ever decision they make when they’re up a man.
-Thank goodness for the penalty kill. While the power play continues to struggle, the penalty kill remains an area of strength for the Senators. They killed off three Minnesota chances last night and now have gone like three weeks without allowing a power play goal. Their recent success has seen them climb all the way to 7th in the NHL with an 86.4% success rate. At some point that PK is going to come back down to earth but right now it’s keeping them in hockey games.
-That’s certainly a game Mike Hoffman would like to wipe from his memory. Nothing was going right for him last night as it seemed like every time he tried to make a play at the offensive end, it resulted in the puck quickly heading the other way. Boucher held him off a power play late in the game and a quick glance at the shift chart shows that Hoffman only played four shifts in the third period. He had a great chance to end the game in overtime too and missed wide. Hoffman was visibly frustrated following the winning goal.
-Marc Methot made it through most of the first period but did not come out to start the second. The team called it a lower body injury but it was tough to recall a play during that first that may have caused the injury. During the game, Ray Ferraro mentioned the possibility that perhaps Methot was dealing with something before the game and that’s part of the reason Ottawa dressed seven defenceman to start the game. Boucher confirmed as much during his post-game remarks. Regardless, the Sens certainly can’t afford to be without Methot for a significant period of time.
Boucher’s Post-Game Comments
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