The Ottawa Senators must be scratching their heads this morning as to how they lost last night. For the majority of the game looking composed, but stung late on.
That was a bitter pill to swallow. After all of the hype and the excitement, a little bit of air has been let out of the Ottawa Senators tyres. Irony perhaps that the game was held at the Canadian Tire Centre.
The Sens looked composed, comfortable and intense. By far having the greater chances to score. Credit of course must be placed on Bruins goaltender Tukka Rask who kept his team alive, no question. Denying the Sens attackers some real grade A chances in front of the Bruins net.
Positives
They outplayed the Bruins for two periods, and could’ve been further ahead. Battling hard and showing great linkup play in the forward lines. Outshooting Boston by two shots, 27-25, in truth however it felt like more.
Were it not for Tukka Rask standing on his head, the Ottawa Senators would be feeling confident and 1-0 up in the series. Rask finished with a .963 save percentage, those are the sort of numbers that can help a team progress in the playoffs.
The Canadian Tire Centre was bouncing last night, the fans fully supported their team bar the late sucker punch at the end. They’ll need to continue that positive support come Saturday afternoon.
Negatives
One issue I have is screen clearing. The Ottawa Senators have struggled to clear the sights for Anderson in tough games. Look back to those games with the Montreal Canadiens, having a lot of real estate to play with in front of the Sens goaltender.
Secondly, goalscoring. Oh my are the Ottawa Senators going to struggle if they cannot score more goals. It was an epidemic prior to the playoffs but there were signs again last night of the Sens inability to stick the puck in the back of the net more than once.
Not so much a negative but I didn’t feel Craig Anderson had the best of nights. Saying that he still finished with a .920 save percentage. The first goal was unlucky but you would like to see Anderson get a little more of it.
Final Thoughts
A tough, tough result to stomach considering the manner in which they lost. It also lifts the Bruins heads in terms of beating the Sens which they hadn’t done all season.
Saturday will be another nerve-wracking affair. Not a must-win but you certainly don’t want to be 0-2 heading to the raucous TD Garden.