FIVE QUICK THOUGHTS
-It wasn’t pretty but after the ugly loss to the Buffalo Sabres earlier in the week, it really didn’t have to be. Against a high-flying Tampa Bay Lightning team, the Senators were at their lock it down best, scoring the first two goals of the game and then hanging on for dear life the rest of the way. Good goaltending, win the special teams battle and then just do whatever the hell it takes in the third period. Just a massive two points against one of the best teams in the conference and in what was their biggest game of the season to date. Florida Panthers up next on Saturday and Columbus in town on Sunday.
-Kobe Bryant said it best. “What’s there to be happy about? Job’s not finished. Job finished? I don’t think so”. Now with that said, with last night’s gritty win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, they’re damn close. The Senators wake up this morning seven points clear of the New York Rangers and nine points up on the Columbus Blue Jackets. That can obviously swing in a hurry, especially with that home and home against the Blue Jackets on the horizon but the Senators have certainly put themselves in a good spot with just seven games left in the regular season. Going to spend a good portion of today just staring blankly at the standings.
-Linus friggin’ Ullmark. When the Senators made the move for Ullmark and then locked him up to a long-term deal, it was with the hope that he could turn in performances exactly like that one.. Looking back on Ullmark’s first season with the Sens, it’s fair to call it a bit of a rollercoaster. He’s had stretches where he looked like the Vezina-winning version of himself and then in large part due to injuries, there have been times when he just wasn’t at his best. What matters most though, is that he’s at his best when the team needs him most. Ottawa wasn’t at their best last night but Linus Ullmark certainly was. Ullmark stopped 31 of 32 Lightning shots, including all 11 that he faced in the third period.
-Ridly Greig’s progression this season has honestly been incredible to watch. It’s not that his game has changed in a dramatic way. From his rookie season, you could tell that Greig was gonna be one of those players that always made the right play, that you could trust in his own end of the rink and that was gonna annoy the hell out of the opposition. He’s still doing all those things only now he’s doing it for 20 minutes a night, in all situations and against the other team’s best players. Incredible for a 22-year old with just 160 games of NHL experience under his belt. That four year deal at $3.25 million a season is gonna look like a steal in a couple seasons. It already does.
-Gosh it’s nice to see the Canadian Tire Centre come alive the way it did last night. There are times when a thrilling game creates an amazing atmosphere in the rink and then there are games like last night, when it’s the crowd that just kind of sets the tone and drags the team with it. In that third period, you could feel like eight years of pent up emotion in the building and 18,000 plus just kind of willing the team to victory. That desperation in the arena was then matched by the team on the ice. It’s only gonna get louder from here.
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