Ottawa Senators Roll Into Edmonton To Face The Oilers
After a 4-3 overtime loss to the Canucks, the Senators will look to rebound tonight against the Edmonton Oilers.
Ottawa: 7-4-2-2
Edmonton: 6-9-0-1
9:30 PM EST
REXALL PLACE
EDMONTON
TV: TSN5, RDS2 RADIO: TSN1200
MATCHUP HISTORY
Last season, the Senators dropped both games to the Oilers by scores of 3-1 on October 19 and 3-2 on March 4. The latter was particularly crushing as Ottawa was trying trying to stay in the playoff hunt, only to allow the lowly Oilers, with 2 goals from Ales Hemsky, to edge them out. Seemingly because of his great play against them, Hemsky was acquired by the Senators the next day and instantly clicked with then captain Jason Spezza, but it was all for naught as the team failed to make the post season.
Last season, no Senator had more than a single point through both games against he Oilers, with Erik Karlsson, Chris Neil, and Spezza scoring the team’s goals. Meanwhile, Edmonton was led by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle with 3 points against Ottawa.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Jordan Eberle, EDM – Eberle is tied for his team’s scoring lead with 11 points as he continues to show he’s a consistent scoring threat in the NHL. Plus, he notched 3 points against Ottawa last season. That being said, he’s goal-less in the last 5 games and sports a shooting percentage of 7.7 this season on 39 shots. That won’t stay so low forever.
Kyle Turris, OTT – Despite the Senators’ recent struggles, Kyle Turris has been firing on all cylinders with 3 points in the last 2 games, including 2 goals. It’s nice to see after Turris went goal-less for a dozen games despite his solid play. Ottawa has to hope he keeps it up tonight as they try to snap a 3 games losing streak.
TOP 3 STORYLINES
1. DEFENSIVE PLAY – The Senators have struggled in their own end all season, but the last few games it has really come back to bite them. Last games, an old trend returned as the Vancouver Canucks outshot Ottawa 37-24 and beaten on shot attempts 57-42. Only some very fortunate plays allowed the Sens to push it to overtime. I’ve said before that the Sens can’t simply rely on Craig Anderson or Robin Lehner to stand on their heads almost every game, and now we see why: eventually, being outshot and out-possessed in games will lead to losses. Ottawa needs to start playing better with the puck and especially in their own end.
2. FACING ADVERSITY – After a surprisingly good start to the season, the Senators find themselves in their first real slump of the season with only 3 wins in their last 10 games. How will they respond to this? You could argue that this was bound to happen given how many shots they give up per game: 35.3, good for third most in the NHL. However, now the team needs to rally together to get out of this bad stretch, and it will be interesting to see if they do.
3. RYAN’S PRODUCTION – Generally speaking, Bobby Ryan has played well for Ottawa this season. In particular, I’ve noticed his tenacity in the defensive zone, as he’s often hustling back to break up plays and cover his man. It’s great to see a player known for their offensive talent commit to playing well away from the puck. That being said, his 3 goals and 8 points leave much to be desired. He’s no longer playing with Turris and Clarke MacArthur, which means offense is a bit harder to come by, but Ottawa needs him to find a way to score more.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
As per senators.nhl.com :
Ottawa Senators
Forwards
MacArthur – Turris – Ryan
Michalek – Zibanejad – Chiasson
Smith – Legwand – Neil
Hoffman – Lazar – Stone
Defence
Phillips – Karlsson
Cowen – Ceci
Borowiecki – Gryba
Goaltenders
Anderson
Lehner
Scratches: Condra, Greening, Wiercioch
Edmonton Oilers
Forwards
Pouliot – Nugent-Hopkins – Eberle
Perron – Arcobello – Yakupov
Pakarinen – Draisatl – Purcell
Hendricks – Gordon – Joensuu
Defence
Nikitin – Fayne
Ference – Petry
Aulie – Schultz
Goaltenders
Scrivens
Fasth
Scratches: Gazdic, Klefbom, Marincin
Thanks for reading, and enjoy the game.