Not to alarm anyone but according to the pocket-size schedule affixed to my refrigerator, the Ottawa Senators play tonight.
The game, which is scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM eastern standard time, will see the Senators challenge the Anaheim Ducks. This particular match will be played at the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata, Ontario.
Further to tonight’s game, this schedule indicates that there are 34 such occurrences expected over the next two and a half months. Eeep.
The Senators stumble into tonight’s game having lost six straight and looking as lifeless as they have all year.
It’s not that they are getting blown out necessarily (three of the six losses were by just one goal) but it just doesn’t really feel like they are ever truly in the game. It’s as though every night, they are just waiting for something bad to happen. And when you play like that, something bad usually happens.
Tonight they face another desperate team fighting for their playoff lives.
The Ducks sit just outside the playoff picture in the Western Conference, tied with the Minnesota Wild for the second Wild Card spot. They’re making a push though, going 6-3-1 in their last ten games including three straight wins, the last coming against the red-hot Boston Bruins. Like the Hurricanes, the Ducks will be a desperate team.
Meanwhile for the Senators, these last 30 some games are all about individual impressions. For some players, it’s about proving they want to be a part of the solution here in Ottawa. For others, it will be a showcase leading up to the trade deadline. And for a handful, it will be about earning an NHL job somewhere next year.
Filip Chlapik is healthy again and yesterday, was returned to Belleville of the American Hockey League. Erik Burgdoerfer was sent down earlier in the day. Mark Stone is out again and could miss both games on the weekend too. Johnny Oduya is healthy and expected to play. Nate Thompson is considered a game time decision.
A best guess for now. Game day skate at 10:30 AM.
Hoffman-Duchene-Ryan
Dzingel-Brassard-DiDomenico
Smith-Pageau-Pyatt
Paajarvi-Thompson-Burrows
Oduya-Karlsson
Phaneuf-Ceci
Borowiecki-Chabot
Mike Condon gets the start in goal for Ottawa. Puck drops just after 7:00 PM.
-Senators Owner Eugene Melnyk went on a little media tour yesterday in an attempt to mend fences with an angry fan base. Melnyk has been working with a Toronto-based PR firm and it’s clear that he is trying a new and more diplomatic approach to communicating with fans. It was needed after his meltdown on the front lawn at Parliament Hill. Based on the reaction to yesterday’s various media appearances, it’s obvious that he still has a lot of work to do to win people over. And I’m not sure it’s going to happen with some scripted answers in the media. Silence might be the best approach actually. He made a couple appearances in Toronto to start the day but you can see his full ten minute interview with CTV News here.
-Thanks to everyone that participated in yesterday’s comment section! We ended up with more than 1430 comments which will round up to 1500 for all the comments Josh made that got deleted. At 5 cents a comment that means a donation of $75 to the Royal Ottawa Foundation for Mental Health. Also, one reader sent in $25 bringing us up to $100 even. At least two readers have already matched with donations of their own and others are expected to do the same. The conversations that took place yesterday will contribute to breaking down the stigma surrounding the topic of mental health and our donation will help provide much-needed services for those in need right here in our city. Thanks again to everyone that participated!
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|---|---|---|
| Record | 25-17-9 (59 pts) | 15-24-9 (39 pts) |
| Goals For | 2.76 (21st) | 2.58 (26th) |
| Goals Against | 2.69 (10th) | 3.40 (30th) |
| Power Play | 17.7% (22nd) | 15.1% (29th) |
| Penalty Kill | 82.9% (7th) | 74.6% (28th) |
| Shots For/Shots Against | 29.8 (30th) 33.4 (27th) |
30.1 (26th) 33.2 (26th) |
| Scoring Leaders | Rakell- 38 pts Getzlaf- 31 pts Silfverberg- 25 pts |
Stone- 44 pts Karlsson- 32 pts Hoffman- 30 pts |
| Team Save % | .920% (4th) | .898% (27th) |
| Chance of Winning Draft Lottery | 2.2% | 10.5% |
