Erik Karlsson Thriving So Far, Third Pairing Not So Much

Just like that, the Ottawa Senators are on life support. It’s shocking really, because the series could easily be 3-0 the other way around. Three one goal losses so far. Anyway, here is Monday’s Weekly Trending on Who’s Hot and Who’s Not.

Jay Maps:

Who’s Hot: Clarke MacArthur

After being a -2 in the game one of the Senators first round match up against the Canadiens, MacArthur has come back with a goal in each of the past two games. It’s understandable to to not get to high on that, as the team is looking at a 0-3 deficit, but its nice to see Grizz come back with some determination to be a difference maker. Clarke has been a point-a-game player since returning from his concussion in 12 games including the 3 playoff games(5G,7A). I expect him to be a big part of the teams offense Wednesday night, and wouldn’t be surprised if he potted another.

Who’s Not: Mika Zibanejad, Bobby Ryan, Mike Hoffman…

I know that currently Hoffman is playing on the 4th line, so he gets a bit of a pass, but it is the same old thing with Zbad and Ryan. These guys NEED to step it up. I’ve lost a lot of confidence in these two over the past couple of weeks. I’m praying that Bobby Ryan has an injury so that I can have a reason to be upset. On the other hand, Mika has played physical throughout the series but he continues to look for the pass before he looks to shoot. If I’m The coaching staff I may look at moving Ryan down to the 4th line, or moving Hoffman up to the 2nd line. What do we have to lose at this point?

Jack Leiper:

Who’s Hot: No-one on Ottawa

The games have been close, but no one has taken that consistent step forward to propel Ottawa to winning a game in this series. The team faces a 4 game sweep on Wednesday and could have their season come to a sad, quick ending.

Who’s Not: Canadiens’ Powerplay

They had five chances vs Ottawa in game 3, and did not convert on one of them. Special teams were not a factor, and the Senators have kept the games close, but haven’t found a way to get over the hurdle to beat Montreal just yet. That said, with the amount of silly penalties Ottawa took, they are lucky a dry Canadiens power play didn’t take advantage

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Trevor Shackles:

Who’s Hot: Erik Karlsson

I can’t believe I’m quoting Glenn Healy here, but he said “I’ve never seen Erik Karlsson play this physical.” And it’s true, last night he was a monster on the ice. In games one and two he played well also, but last night he was a man on a mission. He did absolutely everything right, and his speed was lightning quick. Not to mention he had the biggest hit of the night on Nathan Beaulieu. If only his efforts were backed up with a win.

Who’s Not: Officiating

I’m sorry, but the officiating this series has been horrendous. This is of course one of the most heated and physical series this playoffs, and emotions are running high. Normally a lot of plays would be considered “dirty,” but because it’s the playoffs usually plenty of calls are swept under the rug. However, there seems to be no standard for what constitutes a penalty, as evidenced by Montreal power plays in back to back games in the dying minutes of the third period.

In the last two games, the penalties are 13-4 in favour of Montreal. Both teams have been dirty so call it both ways, stripes.

Zachary Prenner:

Who’s Hot: Craig Anderson

Looked in fine form in game 3, sadly the team wasn’t there to match him.

Who’s Not: Habs Fans

Chances are if you’ve been following the Sens and you live in Ottawa, you’ve seen the story of the young woman who was harassed by some obnoxious Habs fans when she went to Montreal for game 2. I know not all Montreal fans are like this, but I’ve been seeing a bit more vitriol between fans this postseason than in one’s previous. Things need to come down a notch, and hopefully no one else needs to go through what that young woman did.

Apr 19, 2015; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Montreal Canadiens right wing

(22) shots on Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson (41) as defenseman

(3) defends during an over time period in game three of the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports

Eldrinson Vado:

Who’s Hot : Erik Karlsson in Game Three

He seemed like the only player other than Craig Anderson ready to play! Skating up and down the ice, carrying the puck into the offensive zone and making big hits too! Erik has shown the entire season why he deserves to be the captain, especially in the playoffs. It’s a shame his first season as captain might come down to a series sweep against their rivals.

Who’s Not: Take a wild guess who I’m going to pick… well it’s Eric Gryba and Mark Borowiecki

Eric Gryba in game two coughed up an awful turnover in his own zone. A turnover that lead to Ottawa’s eventual overtime loss in Montreal. All Alex Galchenyuk had to is shoot one on Andrew Hammond and his chances of winning the game were on a silver platter. Had Eric Gryba made a better play, Andrew Hammond might still be in net. Maybe, who knows?

Mark Borowiecki on the other hand didn’t help either. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize how much space Mark is giving up to the Canadiens forwards skating down the ice. Too much time and space is given for the forwards leading to good scoring opportunities. At this point of the season the Sens management really need to look into trading their bottom defensive pairing, they’ve hurt us all season long.

Next: Senators Run Nearly Over, Edmonton Needs A Goalie: Lehner A Fit?