Senators Pound Leafs To Finish Rookie Tournament Unbeaten

The Ottawa Senators rookies scored six unanswered goals to erase a 2-0 deficit and down the Toronto Maple Leafs rookies 6-2 in a heated affair to close out the London Rookie Tournament.

May 22, 2013; Ottawa, ON, CAN; Pittsburgh Penguins centre Brandon Sutter (16) and Ottawa Senators right wing Mark Stone (16) fight for the puck in the second period in game four of the second round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at Scotiabank Place. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

Shane Prince scored twice to tie the score before the second period was out, after the Leafs had taken a 2-0 lead courtesy of Stuart Percy and Matt Rupert.  Mark Stone broke the tie early in the third with a shorthanded breakaway goal after stealing the puck from a Leafs defenseman at the Toronto blue line.  Vincent Dunn added a power play goal and then 7 seconds later scored again to break it wide open, and Stone added his second of the game to salt it away.

The game turned nasty at times, with Dunn being the victim of a vicious two hander over the shoulder.  But cooler heads prevailed and Ottawa once again was the class of the 4 team tournament.  Toronto also entered the game undefeated, winning both of their contests against Pittsburgh and Chicago in shootouts.

Overall, it was a very successful week for the Senators from an evaluation point of view.  Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Mark Stone and Shane Prince look like they are a step above the rest of the competition and should all get looks at the Senators main camp, and if they don’t make the team out of camp will be among the first names called upon to fill the vacancies that will arise due to injuries.

The invite list of which rookies will carry on to main camp should be released sometime today, with players reporting for the always fun physical testing on Wednesday.