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3 takeaways from Senators' 5-4 Saturday matinee win over Lightning

By Jake Ferraro |
Tampa Bay Lightning v Ottawa Senators
Tampa Bay Lightning v Ottawa Senators / Chris Tanouye/Freestyle Photo/GettyImages
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The Ottawa Senators entered Saturday afternoon closing out their three-game home stand against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In a game that went back-and-forth, the Senators needed to show their grit against one of the top teams in the NHL, and they did.

The Senators defeated the Lightning 5-4 at Canadian Tire Centre to improve to 3-2-0 on the season. The Senators concluded their three-game home stand with a 2-1-0 record, and handed the Lightning their first loss of the season to drop them to 3-1-0. The Senators have now won six of the last seven meetings against the Lightning.

After Thursday's rough 3-1 home loss against the New Jersey Devils, the Senators needed to get their confidence back before heading off to the West Coast for three road games. Today's win will help the Senators boost their confidence with having three tough road environments to play in.

3. Goaltending struggles happened again, but came through when needed

For the third consecutive game, Linus Ullmark would not play due to a strain injury. That meant Anton Forsberg would get the start in goal for the third consecutive game.

In Forsberg's last two starts, he allowed in three goals. Today was a tough match up for Forsberg to go up against Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy.

The Senators jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead after the first period, but Forsberg allowed in three goals in the second period, but the Senators led 4-3 after the second period. The Lightning had momentum after Mitchell Chaffee cut the Senators lead to 5-4 with 11:49 remaining in the third, but Forsberg stood tall.

Forsberg made 10 saves in the third period and finished the game with 25 saves. As much as Forsberg showed inconsistency in his past two starts, he did come through and made 10 saves in the third period when the Senators needed him the most.

2. One young superstar is getting better and one veteran is finding his rhythm

One player that the Senators will need to have a big year from is defenseman Jake Sanderson. At 22 years old, Sanderson is getting significant playing time from head coach Travis Green, and he showed why today.

Sanderson recorded first three-point game of the season with recording three assists, and it was his second multi-point game in the past three games, as well as his third consecutive game with recording at least one point. It was also Sanderson's second three-point game of his career.

The Senators will continue to rely on Sanderson this season, and he has made big strides five games into the season with now recording seven points. Sanderson is tied now with Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk for the most points on the Senators roster.

One veteran the Senators needed to get going is Claude Giroux. Prior to today, Giroux was off to a slow start with recording just two points. Today, Giroux showed why he is still heavily relied on by the Senators.

Giroux recorded two assists for his first multi-point game this season, and has now recorded points in the past three games. Giroux recorded the primary assist on the first two goals by the Senators in the first period, and had a beautiful pass on Josh Norris' goal.

When Giroux is playing at a high level on offense, the rest of the Senators get more confident. With Giroux recording two assists today, both Giroux and the Senators can start heating up more on offense. The Senators needed Giroux to get out of his slow start, and today he did.

1. Special teams is helping the Senators big time

One of the biggest reasons why the Senators are having success this season is due to special teams. Prior to today, the Senators recorded a powerplay goal in three of their first four games. Today, the Senators' powerplay contributed again, and the shorthanded unit came through when least expected.

Drake Batherson scored the opening goal of the game 1:50 in on the powerplay, and would later record two more points in the game. For the second consecutive game, captain Brady Tkachuk scored a powerplay goal. Tkachuk's goal came with 1:04 remaining in the second period to give the Senators a 4-3 lead, and it came 43 seconds later after the Lightning tied the game at three.

Noah Gregor came through clutch in the third period to score his first goal of the season shorthanded to give the Senators an insurance goal to improve the lead to 5-3. Gregor's goal turned out to be important as the Lightning scored under two minutes later.

To have three of the fives goals scored today against Andrei Vasilevskiy on special teams is a big deal. Vasilevskiy entered today's game with a 1.00 goals against average and a 3-0-0 record. Today marked the first time since the 2008-09 season that the Senators scored a powerplay goal in each of their first 4+ games at home to start the season.

The Senators will be back in action when they head to Utah for the first time ever and take on the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday night. Puck drop for the game is scheduled for 9:15 p.m. ET.

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