Ottawa Senators @ Nashville Predators: Game 1 Preview

The Ottawa Senators open the 2014-15 regular season on the road in Music City.

Ottawa: 0-0-0-0

vs.

Nashville: 0-0-0-0

Bridgestone Arena. Nashville, TN.

TV: TSN5, RDS2; Radio: TSN1200

MATCHUP HISTORY

Last season, the Senators went 1-0-1-0 against the Predators with a 2-1 shootout win on January 11th in Nashville and a 4-3 overtime loss, where the Sens rallied from being down 3-0 in the third to force an extra frame, on March 10th in Ottawa. Mika Zibanejad scored the shootout winner in the Sens’ victory, while Seth Jones scored in the winning goal in Nashville’s victory. Former Senators Jason Spezza and Ales Hemsky led the Senators with 3 points each against the Predators last season while Jones had 3 points and Ryan Ellis 2 against Ottawa. The Senators have won 10 of their 17 games against the Predators all-time.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Anton Volchenkov, NSH – The former Senators defenseman signed on to a bargain basement deal to stick in the league after being bought out by New Jersey.  He has played many hard years and is near the end of the line, but you have to expect he will have a little punishment left in him for his old squad.

David Legwand, OTT – This will be the first time Legwand faces the  team that made him their first ever pick at 2nd overall back in 1998. He looked solid for the Senators in the preseason, and players love to perform well against their old teams.

TOP 3 STORYLINES

1. GETTING OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT – The Senators struggled early in 2013-14 season, where they won only two of their first 6 games, all of which were on the road. Getting some early wins and positive buzz around the team, starting tonight with the season opener on the road, would be great.

2. THE BLUELINE – Last season, the Senators were downright atrocious at times in their own end. While the team’s forwards deserve a fair share of the blame, the defense was worse and often struggled to get the puck out of their own end. New captain Erik Karlsson and the rest of the defense corps will want to show the team’s commitment to playing better in their own end wasn’t just talk.

3. YOUNG GUNS’ TIME TO SHINE – With Curtis Lazar, Mike Hoffman, and Mark Stone all sticking on the Senators’ roster after training camp, and Mika Zibanejad set to get an increased role, the team seems to have embraced its youth movement. Ottawa currently has the 5th youngest team in the NHL. However, now the games count for real, and the Sens will need all hands on deck from game one to have a legitimate chance of making the playoffs.

PROJECTED LINEUPS

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