Game Day: Ottawa Senators @ Florida Panthers

Sunday March 4th, 2012

6:00 pm

Rogers Sportsnet, Team 1200

7th East (34-24-8)  VS.  3rd East (30-22-12)

The Ottawa Senators embark on their second tour of Florida in less than a month, this time without their fathers in tow.  They face the Florida Panthers first, with both teams occupying the same position in the standings as they did the last time they met.  Florida is scuffling along, playing just well enough to stay ahead of Winnipeg (2 pts) and  Washington (3 pts)  in the Southeast Division, but not much else.

Ottawa is coming off a loss to the Blackhawks on Friday night, but are still 3 points back of the Bruins for first in the Northeast Division.  They have a 6 point cushion over 8th place Winnipeg in the playoff race, but could occupy the 5th place in the conference with a win and losses from New Jersey and Philly on Sunday afternoon/evening.

Robin Lehner will be in the pipes for his 4th consecutive start, hoping to give Ottawa the season sweep of the Panthers.

Players To Watch:

Erik Karlsson (OTT):  Had his 8 game point streak snapped on Friday, so the league’s top scoring blueliner will look to start a new streak tonight to continue his personal quest towards post-season hardware.  He has averaged over a point per game in his career against the Panthers (10 points in 9 games) so there is a high likelihood of that happening.

Brian Campbell:    The veteran blueliner has had a resurgent season in Florida, but has cooled off somewhat as of late.  With 6 points in his last 14 games, along with a -5 rating, he has been as up and  down as the team he plays for.  If the Panthers are going to hang on to make the playoffs, they need the former Ottawa 67 to carry them there.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Thanks for reading and as always, comments are welcomed.

Can’t get enough of SenShot? Here are more ways to get the most info about your Ottawa Senators.

You can follow us on Twitter: Jared @alfieisgod,  Brandy @brandychadala, and Kevin@sensforlife11

Visit our SenShot Facebook Page. Like us and post comments, photos and videos.

Please visit our NHL Main Page: Too Many Men On The Site.