A lengthy three day break would normally have been a down time for the Ottawa Senators.
Obviously the last few days have been anything but that. With the drama over Nikita Filatov and the Kyle Turris trade, there has been plenty to talk about to pass the time. Tonight, the Sens finally get back to playing hockey when they host the Buffalo Sabres.
The Buffalo Sabres come into tonight’s action sitting 8th in the Eastern Conference, just a single point up on the 10th place Senators. The Sabres have struggled on home ice this season but are still one of the league’s tougher teams on the road, posting an impressive 8-4- record. Marcus Foligno, brother of Nick, has been recalled by the Sabres and is expected to be in their line up tonight.
Plenty of hype around this one as it will be the first for Kyle Turris in an Ottawa Senators uniform. This is a guy that has played more than 100 games in the NHL but you have to think he’ll have the butterflies of a rookie when he takes the ice at SBP for the first time. Turris will wear #7 and centre a line with Nick Foligno and Erik Condra to start.
Here is how the Sens lined up at the morning skate.
Greening-Spezza-Alfredsson
Foligno-Turris-Condra
Smith-Regin-Neil
Daugavins-Konopka-Winchester
Kuba-Karlsson
Cowen-Gonchar
Phillips-Carkner
Anderson
The Sens will get a boost from the return of a couple of veteran defenceman. Both Filip Kuba and Sergei Gonchar will return to the line up tonight. Both players should help what has been a struggling power play. After hovering around the top 5 for most of the season, the Ottawa power play has slipped to 18th in the NHL at 16.7%.
Brian Lee and Bobby Butler are the healthy scratches.
Puck drop is scheduled for just after 7:30 PM tonight with all the action available on TSN and TVA Sports. Still tickets to be had for this one so as always, contact Mike McCarthy at mccarthym@ottawasenators.com to get yours.
- Good start for Sens prospect Mark Stone in the first exhibition game for Team Canada. He scored the winning goal against Team Finland on a play where he had his initial shot stopped but was able to cash in on his own rebound. You can catch the TSN game highlights here.
- Milan Michalek was back on the ice this morning, working out before the rest of the team. Great to see Michalek making progress the past few days. Definitely won't rush him back but it’s clear Michalek is getting closer to a return.
