FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-It was a classic case of rust vs rest last night with somewhat surprising results. The Buffalo Sabres were on home ice and playing their first game in ten days. Meanwhile the Senators were on a back to back and had traveled from Ottawa the night before. Rest is supposed to be an advantage in that situation but it was clear from puck drop that the Sabres just didn’t have it last night. And the Senators took full advantage. Buffalo pushed back a little bit in the final frame but this was a game the Senators controlled most of the way. An impressive win for Ottawa and a dagger for the Sabres, who for some reason still thought they had a chance at the post-season.
-Bad news tankers- the Ottawa Senators are red hot. Okay maybe that’s a slight exaggeration but after an ugly nine game losing streak, the Sens have picked up five of a possible six points . This recent surge has seen Ottawa climb from 30th overall in the standings to 27th. Still just four points clear of the Los Angeles Kings who are now holding down second-last overall. You get the sense there’s going to be a lot of jostling for position among the Senators, Ducks, Devils and Kings over the next few months. And because I know some of you are wondering and because I was foolish enough to check last night- 16 points out of a playoff spot.
-The Legend of Borocop continues to grow. A night after suffering what looked like a devastating eye injury, Mark Borowiecki was back out there against the Sabres. And then in the third period, he again left the game with what looked like a season-ending injury after a cheap little slew-foot by Kyle Okposo. Again, Boro returned. It’s just what he does. Take it easy the rest of the game? Nah, that ain’t Boro. He blocked two shots late in the third and scored the empty-netter to boot. There’s nobody that cares about being an Ottawa Senator as much as Mark Borowiecki. That’s something Pierre Dorion should think long and hard about as he decides what to do with the pending UFA.
-In a season where there isn’t a whole lot to play for, it’s going to be all about finding those little victories. And that’s why it gives me great pleasure to report that the Ottawa Senators no longer have the league’s worst power play. With last night’s three-goal effort, the Ottawa power play surged past the New Jersey Devils. 14.4% to 14.1%. And only .4% back of the 29th place Red Wings. Movin’ on up! Drake Batherson has added some much-needed skill to the Ottawa power play and it’s making a huge difference. The vision and touch on that pass to Tyler Ennis is something we haven’t seen from many Ottawa forwards this year.
-If you’ve spent any time on social media, you’ll know that today is Bell Let’s Talk Day. This yearly initiative encourages conversations around mental health and in the process, raises crucial funds for valuable mental health programs and services. This is the 10th edition of Bell Let’s Talk Day and as you’d expect, there have been some valid criticisms of the campaign. Does it go far enough? Does it encourage conversation beyond that one day? Is Bell, as a company, doing enough for their own employees? All fair questions. That said, there is no doubt that this campaign has encouraged life-changing conversations on the issue of mental health. As a society, we still have a long, long way to go in how we talk about mental health and how we lift up those in need but Bell Let’s Talk Day is a good step. The conversations people are having about mental health do make a differences and the funds raised will go to programs and services in desperate need. As always, we’ll be using the power of the SensChirp comment section to make a donation of our own. For every comment posted, I’ll donate 5 cents to the to the Royal Ottawa Foundation for Mental Health here in our city. Join the conversation.
Smith’s Post-Game Comments
Player Interviews
Advanced Stats
Boxscore
Loading …Up Next- vs. Washington (Friday), @ Toronto (Saturday), vs. Anaheim (Tuesday)
