The Ottawa Senators’ road to a first-round upset just got a lot steeper. While a 2-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1 was already a tough pill to swallow, the sight of Artem Zub heading to the locker room mid-game has sent a wave of anxiety through the fan base.
Zub's status remains unknown ahead of Game 2
Zub’s afternoon ended abruptly in the second period. After delivering a massive hit on Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis, the Russian defenseman appeared to be in immediate discomfort. He went right to the bench after getting up from delivering the hit and quickly retreated to the room and did not return for the third period. He finished the game with just 7:44 of ice time and three hits.
Following the loss, head coach Travis Green remained tight-lipped, offering no concrete update other than stating the team would "know more tomorrow."
Losing Zub is a massive blow to the Senators' defensive structure. He is the perfect defense partner for Jake Sanderson. Often taking on the heaviest defensive assignments and killing off crucial penalties. With Zub sidelined, the minutes were redistributed among a group already dealing with health questions.
Thomas Chabot and Sanderson both played heavy minutes in Game 1, but they are still fresh off surgery and long injury layoffs. Asking them to carry even more of the load because of Zub's absence is a risky proposition for a long series.
Senators will need to have "next man up" mentality
If Zub is unable to go for Game 2 on Monday, the Senators are in a bind. They were already missing Tyler Kleven and Nick Jensen entering the series. This likely means Lassi Thomson could draw into the lineup, or we may see an increased role for Nikolas Matinpalo and Dennis Gilbert.
Ottawa has thrived on a "next man up" mentality during their post-Olympic surge, but replacing a top-pair shutdown blueliner like Zub against a relentless Carolina forecheck is a different challenge entirely. For the Senators to even the series, they’ll need their remaining defensemen to simplify their game and hope for more heroics from Linus Ullmark.
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