Ottawa Senators Fall 4-1 To The Columbus Blue Jackets

Welp, while the Ottawa Senators are still mathematically in the playoff race, I think we can all admit tonight’s 4-1 loss to a Columbus team that played last night should convince most that this team is not going to make the playoffs this season.

GAME RECAP

The first period was fairly uneventful. A few good chances here and there, but overall nothing to write home about. Give goaltenders Robin Lehner and Curtis McElhinney (a former Senator) full credit though. When they needed to, the stood tall. By the end of the period, it was 0-0 with the Senators holding a slight edge in shot attempts 19-17.

The second would stay scoreless as well, though Lehner and McElhinney would continue to put on a show. There were several pushes from both sides, and Mark Stone was particularly impressive for the Senators as he would end up with a team-high 6 shots on net. Also worth noting is that Chris Neil fought the Blue Jackets’ Dalton Prout and managing to get the Ottawa crowd somewhat into the game. Columbus held a minor advantage over the Senators in shot attempts at 39-38 after two periods.

Then in the third period, the wheels came off for Ottawa. Cody Ceci lost position on his man, Cam Atkinson, and allowed him to get his own rebound past Lehner and put the Blue Jackets up 1-0 at 4:13 of the third period. At 8:51 another ex-Senator, Nick Foligno, would drive hard to the net and tuck a backhand shot past Lehner to put the Jackets ahead 2-0. Erik Condra would get the Senators on the board, with Chris Neil charging the net, but it was too little too late, though Kyle Turris did hit the post in tight. With Lehner pulled for the extra attacker in the late stages of the game, Scott Hartnell would lift the puck over the Senators’ defenders and into the empty net at 18:44 of the third to restore a 2 goal lead. Shortly thereafter, Mark Letestu would make it 4-1, which caused Lehner, back in net, to toss his stick and seemingly have some words at Jared Cowen. As the final buzzer sounded, Lehner snapped his stick over his leg as he left the ice, clearly frustrated with losing a game that he had generally played well in. And while Lehner made some spectacular saves to keep his team in the game, the Senators also managed to finish with a major lead in shot attempts at 65 to 51, though it was only after going down 2-0 that they really piled it on.

GAME NOTES

THE PASSION OF THE LEHNER: Sportsnet colour commentator Greg Millen was very critical of Lehner’s actions at the end of the game. While I’ve tended to disagree with Millen on a lot of things, normally I’d agree with him here on Lehner’s behaviour. However, with only one win in his last six starts, and after making some spectacular saves tonight to keep the Senators in it, I can completely relate to Lehner’s furstration. Now, I still think he should address his teammates and apologize for letting his emotions get the better of him, but as Ottawa falls further out of the playoff race, it’s good to know which players see losing as unacceptable no matter the position in the standings. Lehner still has some maturing to do, but tonight, given management right down through the players still talking about getting back into the playoff race,and Lehner finally getting a steady string of starts, his frustraton is understandable.

BIG GUNS ALL QUIET: After a strong stetch of games, this is the second contest in a row that Bobby Ryan and Erik Karlsson failed to score a point. Not that either player was bad tonight as both created scoring chances, especially Ryan’s great pass to Clarke MacArthur that resulted in McElhinney robbing him. It should be noted that MacArthur continues to be snake-bitten with 0 goals in his last 9 games, and neither Mika Zibanejad nor Mike Hoffman were especially impressive this game. In fact, Hoffman opted to try and pass despite having a clear 2 on 1 break in the game.

SECOND PAIRING STRUGGLES: In his 100th NHL game, Cody Ceci was anything but good. Kudos for his partner, Jared Cowen. Ceci was on the ice for all four Columbus goals, including one that was the result of him missing his assignment, and Cowen was on the ice for three. Overall, Ceci had a Corsi of -8 at 5 on 5, good for worst on the Senators. Cowen meanwhile was a -1 at even strength. Dave Cameron may want to consider splitting up this pairing as, while they both show poential (Ceci much moreso despite tonight’s performance), the two seem to struggle together in the defensive end.

The Senators next game goes February 10th at7:00 pm against the Sabres in Buffalo. Thanks for reading, and keep on trekking.