Just three games remaining in the regular season for the Ottawa Senators.
While playoff-bound teams battle for positioning or for the final spot in the dance, the Sens are left to wonder what went wrong in the 2015/2016 season.
For the Senators, this final week of the season is mostly just about playing out the string. A few guys will have personal milestones they’re chasing and the temptation to spoil another team’s playoff plans will be there but really there’s nothing left to play for. Fans will be keeping a close eye on the team’s position in the standings heading into the Draft Lottery at the end of the month but there’s not a whole lot of suspense there either.
Regardless of how these last few games go, the Senators will be a long shot to land one of those top picks.
Tonight’s opponent, the Pittsburgh Penguins, rolls into Ottawa as one of the league’s hottest teams. They’ve won six straight and nine of their last ten and have been making it look fairly easy in the process. They now sit second in the Metro Division, three points clear of the New York Rangers. Their recent surge means that they’ll likely have home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. And they’ve been doing it all without the services of Evgeni Malkin.
Add him to this Penguins line up and they look like a legitimate contender to come out of the Eastern Conference. They’ll certainly be a tough challenge for a depleted Ottawa line up.
Another youngster will get a chance to make his NHL debut tonight as Buddy Robinson will dress against the Penguins. The 24 year old Robinson has 22 points in 59 games with Binghamton this year. Robinson is a restricted free agent at the end of the year so obviously it helps that the Management group will get to see him in a few NHL games before deciding what to do with him heading into next season.
Dave Cameron has his team on the ice for the morning skate. Here’s how the Senators are expected to line up for this one.
Smith-Pageau-Ryan
Hoffman-Zibanejad-Dzingel
Puempel-Lazar-Chiasson
Robinson-Paul-Neil
Claesson-Karlsson
Harpur-Ceci
Kostka-Wideman
Andrew Hammond gets the start for the Senators. Puck drop is scheduled for just after 7:30 PM.
