Well, this is it.
After six months of inconsistency. Six months of disappointment. Six months of bickering over exactly what went wrong- the end is finally here. This afternoon in Boston, the Ottawa Senators play the final game of the 2015/2016 season.
Unlike previous seasons when the end has come suddenly, we’ve had plenty of time to prepare ourselves this time around. The Senators have been out of the playoff race for at least a month and for much longer if you ask the more skeptical fans.
The “what went wrong?” question isn’t necessarily an easy one to answer but that’s what this organization will have to try to figure over the next six months (Bah!).
So many questions heading into the final game of the regular season…Who will be this team’s General Manager heading into next season? Is this Dave Cameron’s final game behind the Ottawa bench? Is this Mike Hoffman’s final game in an Ottawa uniform?
The only thing we know for sure is there will be changes. The team that skates off the ice at the TD Garden certainly won’t be the same one that takes the ice in training camp in September.
And while there’s nothing on the line for the Senators, it’s the exact opposite for the Bruins. The playoff scenarios are complicated at the bottom of the Eastern Conference but safe to say that a loss would be devastating for the Bruins. Boston currently sits in the second Wild Card spot but the Flyers are just a single point behind and play twice this weekend.
Boston needs to win this game. Badly.
The Senators have once again turned to Binghamton for a little help ahead of the season finale. Philip Varone, who was acquired from Buffalo in a deadline deal, has been called up and will make his Ottawa debut. Varone has been pretty impressive in Binghamton and is a UFA heading into the summer.
No morning skate obviously but here’s a best guess at the Ottawa line up.
Smith-Pageau-Ryan
Hoffman-Zibanejad-Dzingel
Puempel-Paul-Chiasson
Robinson-Varone-Neil
Claesson-Karlsson
Harpur-Ceci
Kostka-Wideman
Andrew Hammond gets the start in the Ottawa goal. Puck drop is scheduled for just after 12:30 PM.
