After successfully completing their league-mandated three day Christmas shopping break, the Ottawa Senators are ready to get back to business.
The business of occasionally winning hockey games, that is.
When we last saw the Senators, they were the good version of themselves. Storming out to a big lead over the powerhouse Predators and then putting them away in overtime thanks to that beautiful man Thomas Chabot.
But that was years ago.
And now, the Senators are on the road. And that means it’s entirely possible Brad Marsh, Dave Archibald and the boys show up to play this one. Stay tuned, folks.
Senators and Devils from New Jersey. Time to drain the swamp, am I right?!
In the history of professional sports, there has never a more successful, less interesting team than the New Jersey Devils. Nine division championships, five conference titles and three Stanley Cups. And nobody cares.
Think about it- have you ever met a New Jersey Devils fan? If you say yes, you’re either lying or you’re confusing David Puddy from Seinfeld with a real life person. And even Puddy seemed like a bit of a bandwagon fan.
The Devils true legacy in the sport is making it boring. And while they have strayed from Jacques Lemaire’s light in recent years, the stink is still there. You see Sens/Devils on the schedule and it’s only natural to make other plans that night.
No I’m not fond of these Devils. And if I ever saw Jeff Friesen in person, I’d probably take a swing.
Some good news on the injury front as it sounds like the Sens will have a couple of key pieces back in the line up.
Matt Duchene, the team’s best centre and one of the hottest players in the league last month, is back. He took a few weeks off to pursue a career in country music and while he almost made it, hockey is his true calling. So he’s back.
And Dylan “fuckin rights Melo” DeMelo also returns and assumes his position alongside Thomas Chabot. Boucher is going with a 11/7 tonight. You might think that’s bad news for his son Tom Pyatt but NOPE, Nick Paul is the odd man out. Coach says his lack of a last name is still a bit of a concern.
Here’s how they’ll line up…
Tkachuk-White-Stone
Tierney-Duchene-Boedker
Dzingel-Smith-Ryan
Pyatt-Paajarvi
Chabot-DeMelo
Lajoie-Ceci
Borowiecki-Jaros
Harpur
Craig Anderson gets the start in goal. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:08 PM but may be slightly delayed as they wait for the Devils fan to show up. He’s working late tonight.
The game is available on TSN5, RDS and if you’re just dead set on wasting your Friday night, I bet there’s a stream out there somewhere.
After careful deliberation, I have decided to retire the Head2Head table
.
.
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Nahhhhhh. Presenting, TABLE #100!
| HEAD2HEAD |  |
 |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 15-16-4 (34 pts) | 11-15-7 (29 pts) |
| Goals For | 3.31 (T-7th) | 2.94 (T-18th) |
| Goals Against | 3.86 (31st) | 3.58 (T-27th) |
| Power Play | 22.0% (T-12th) | 17.8% (21st) |
| Penalty Kill | 73.8% (30th) | 82.9% (7th) |
| Shots For | 29.0 (25th) | 33.2 (6th) |
| Shots Against | 38.0 (31st) | 31.5 (T-17th) |
| Leading Scorers | Stone- 39 pts Chabot- 36 pts Duchene- 34 pts |
I- 33 pts Don’t- 30 pts Care- 21 pts |
| Starting Goalie | Craig Anderson 14-12-3 3.49 GAA, .907 sv% |
Keith Kinkaid 11-9-6 3.00 GAA, .902 sv% |
