FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-In a word- chaos. Probably what we should expect from these two teams given their recent history but on Monday night, it was more of the same from the Ottawa Senators and Arizona Coyotes. Perhaps not on the level of their last encounter a little over a week ago but equally wacky. This was a game where the Senators generally dominated the play from start to finish only, within that 60 minutes of domination, they found a way to sprinkle in some mind-numbing defensive breakdowns. It was a game the Senators clearly should have won and yet when the final buzzer rang out at a less than half-full Canadian Tire Centre, it was the Coyotes that had the upper hand. Even though the shots ended a ridiculous 43-15. We got Sens’d. Hard.
-And of course because the Senators lost on Monday night and even though they controlled the game from start to finish, the rebuild is again a failure and DJ Smith, Pierre Dorion and Spartacat all gotta go. Wait, no. That’s ridiculous. Although following the online discourse here and on Twitter, you might think that’s where most fans are at. This has been a really be strange year in Ottawa’s rebuild. Not only because it has been peppered with ridiculous and prolonged stretches of bad luck but also because it feels like the expectations around this team shift on a week to week basis. Which maybe makes sense considering this is a team on the cusp of taking that next step into being competitive but just not quite there yet. The pieces are in place and one some nights you can see what that finished product is going to look like but there’s still clearly some work to do. What’s clear in listening to the players after the game though is frustration is building internally.
-Not that there was ever really any doubt about it but uh Josh Norris is going to get paid. First line centres usually do. Two more goals last night, five in his last seven games and creeping steadily closer to a 30-goal season. Oh and he was injured for 15 games too. There’s a lot of different directions the Senators could go with his next contract but if they do end up going long term this summer, it’s going to cost them a whole lotta money. The Nick Suzuki contract in Montreal comes to mind as a good comparable but there’s no doubt that Norris is having a better year. And he’s really just scratching the surface of his offensive potential.
-It’s going to be interesting to see what the Senators do with Filip Gustavsson the rest of the way. With Matt Murray apparently “not close” to a return, Ottawa is going to need Gustavsson to stick around for a little bit but they also need to get him some regular game action. And night’s like that certainly can’t be good for a young goalie’s confidence. Gustavsson is on a one-way contract next year and at least at this point, the team has to have legitimate concerns about where his game is at heading into a year where they were obviously expecting he would be ready to take a big step forward. In defence of Gustavsson, it’s hard to expect him to be sharp when he’s playing once a month.
-With the trade deadline now less than a week away, you can expect the league’s rumour mill to kick into high gear. And while Pierre Dorion said he expects a fairly quiet deadline, it’s no secret that the Senators have a handful of guys that they would be open to dealing before the clock strikes 3:00 PM next Monday. Nick Paul is obviously going to draw the most attention if they can’t find common ground on a contract extension (I expect they will, by the way) but Zach Sanford, Tyler Ennis, Josh Brown, Chris Tierney and Anton Forsberg could all be in play. Seems like a good time to fire up the ol’ podcast making machine. Bruce Garrioch is stopping by the virtual studio later tonight so if you have a question you’d like me to pass along, leave it in the comment section below.
Smith’s Post-Game Comments
Player Interviews
Advanced Stats
Boxscore
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