Ottawa Senators Return Home, Look To Rebound Against Florida
After imploding late in last night’s overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Ottawa Senators return home out of a playoff spot on account of the Boston Bruins’ victory over the New York Rangers. The Senators now sit 1 point back of Boston with a single game in hand. Meanwhile, Florida comes in to town sitting just 3 points back of the Senators, albeit having played 1 more game. Ottawa needs to put some distance between themselves and the Cats, or risk being overtaken in the standings within the week.
Ottawa: 37-25-6-6
Florida: 34-26-5-10
5:00 PM EST
Canadian Tire Centre
Ottawa, Ontario
TV: TSN5, RDS; Radio: TSN 1200
MATCH-UP HISTORY
This will be the fourth and final regular season meeting between the Senators and Panthers this season. Ottawa split the two games in Florida this season, with Craig Anderson posting a 1-0 shutout on October 13th and falling 3-2 on November 28th with Al Montoya in net for the Panthers.
The teams last played each other February 21st in Ottawa with Andrew Hammond between the pipes for a 4-1 win. Kyle Turris leads the Senators with 1 goal and 4 points against Florida this season, while Aleksander Barkov and Vincent Trocheck have 2 points each against Ottawa.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
VINCENT TROCHECK, FLA: The diminutive Trocheck may have only 2 points in his previous 8 games, but he always seems to cause havoc for the Senators with his speed and tenacity heading towards the net. He has 3 points in 2 career games against Ottawa, including two in the only game he has played against them this season.
BOBBY RYAN, OTT: Despite a 3 assist game against the Sharks, Ryan has been struggling for some time. He has just 1 goal in his last 11 games, and 4 points during that span. While he has generally played a solid two-way game even when he isn’t scoring, the Senators need him to step up now more than ever after dropping two straight games and falling back behind the Bruins for the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
THREE KEYS TO THE GAME
1. LEAVE IT IN THE PAST: Blowing a 2 goal lead in the third period is embarassing any night, but doing it against the 2014-15 Toronto Maple Leafs is downright inexcusable. However, the Senators don’t have time to dwell on losing that costly extra point as they need to win badly to keep pace with Boston for that final playoff spot. Focusing on today, not yesterday, will be key.
2. BURY THEM: While they can’t dwell on their loss to the Leafs, the Senators do need to learn from it. In this case, don’t let up when you have your opponent down. Keep the boot to their throat and don’t give them a chance to get back up. With the playoffs on the line, there is no other option.
3. ON THE DEFENSIVE: The Senators have allowed 9 goals in their past 2 games. That was unthinkable earlier in their surprising run to get back into the playoff race. They need to play within their system and not force any risky plays in an attempt to score.
PROJECTED LINE-UPS
Still to come.
Thanks for reading, and enjoy the game.
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