Game 56 Preview: Ottawa Senators @ St. Louis Blues
Fresh off a tough 2-1 overtime loss, the Ottawa Senators have no time to rest as they are right back at it, this time facing a Western Conference powerhouse.
(24-21-11, 59 points) 6th Atlantic Division
VS
(37-12-5, 79 points) 2nd Central Division
8:00 PM EST
Scottrade Center
TV: Rogers Sportsnet; RADIO: TSN1200
MATCHUP HISTORY
This is the second meeting of the season, and the Senators will be looking to sweep the series after Cody Ceci‘s first NHL goal was the OT winner in the first matchup, a 3-2 final.
LAST GAMES
Ottawa is coming off a tough 2-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, in a game that was stolen from the stick of Erik Karlsson by a great Marc-Andre Fleury glove save. St. Louis has been off since Saturday night, when they scored a 4-3 victory over the Nashville Predators.
Dec 16, 2013; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; St. Louis Blues right wing Chris Stewart (25) chases the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre.The Senators defeated the Blues 3-2 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Robin Lehner, OTT – The Lehener should get back into the net after Craig Anderson made over 4o saves last night in Pittsburgh. After allowing 5 goals in 3 of his last 4 starts (the other being a shutout) he needs to get some consistency back into his game to push Anderson for the starting spot. Lehner beat the Blues in their matchup in December.
Chris Stewart, STL – With just 2 points in his last 11 games, the power forward has at times been lost on the Blues’ depth chart. He has been mentioned in a lot of trade rumors lately and could be moved before the March 5th deadline.
TOP 3 STORYLINES FOR THE GAME
1. Calm before the Sochi Storm – Both of these teams have to avoid looking ahead to the weekend and the getaway. While only 2 Senators players will be heading to Sochi (possibly 3 if Lehner gets added to Sweden’s roster) they will be recharging, while the Blues will be sending half of their roster (10 players0 to the games.
2. Back to back – Ottawa needs points even against tough teams. They gained a point against Pittsburgh and still lost ground in the playoff race. It doesn’t matter who they play against, what matters is points on the board.
3. Get The Scorers Scoring – In Ottawa’s last two games they have scored 4 goals – Chris Neil has 2, Colin Greening 1 and Stephane Da Costa 1. The top two lines need to contribute something for the Senators to be successful.