The Ottawa Senators have spirits riding high as they currently have a 15-13-2 record, and are currently in the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with 32 points.
The Senators are 5-1-1 through their first seven games to start December. The Senators won four of their five home games for the month, with the last one being a thrilling 3-2 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday.
The win against the Penguins helped the Senators win three consecutive games for the first time this season. However, even with being hot in December, the time for the most critical part of the season has finally arrived, and pressure is immense for the Senators.
The critical nine-game road trip now begins for the Senators that can make-or-break season
The Senators are facing the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena tonight at 10 p.m. ET. Tonight's game is the start of the Senators' crucial nine-game road trip that could potentially make-or-break the season.
Nine-game road trip on Senators schedule with current record for all nine teams:
Tonight @ Seattle Kraken (15-15-2) 10 p.m. ET
Thursday @ Calgary Flames (15-11-5) 9 p.m. ET
Saturday @ Vancouver Canucks (16-9-5) 10 p.m. ET
Sunday @ Edmonton Oilers (18-10-2) 8 p.m. ET
Dec. 28 @ Winnipeg Jets (22-9-1) 7 p.m. ET
Dec. 29 @ Minnesota Wild (20-7-4) 8 p.m. ET
Jan. 2 @ Dallas Stars (19-11-0) 8 p.m. ET
Jan. 3 @ St. Louis Blues (15-14-3) 8 p.m. ET
Jan. 7 @ Detroit Red Wings (12-14-4) 7 p.m. ET
There's no denying that the nine-game road trip is a brutal one for the Senators. The Senators have three back-to-backs on the road trip. As of the morning of Dec. 17, five of the nine teams would be in the 2025 playoffs if the season ended today. Even for the remaining four teams that wouldn't be in the 2025 playoffs, three of the teams are currently at least .500 or better.
Of the nine teams, the Senators have played six of the teams so far this season. Against the six teams, the Senators have a combined 4-2-0 record. The two of the losses for the Senators came against the Canucks and Oilers, two teams that would be in the 2025 playoffs if the season ended today.
If one thing was needed for the Senators coming into the road trip, it's the fact that Linus Ullmark is hot in between the pipes. Over his past seven starts, Ullmark has posted a 6-0-1 record. In five of the seven starts, Ullmark made at least 30 saves. Because of his hot stretch, Ullmark has lowered his goals against average to 2.52 on the season.
There's no doubt that the Senators will be relying heavily on Ullmark to help them go through the nine-game road trip. With the current standings in the East, the Senators can't afford to lose a majority of their games on the road trip.
The Senators will start their road trip against the Kraken after a long flight to Seattle. However, the Senators defeated the Kraken 3-0 on Nov. 2 behind a 22-save by Anton Forsberg. Starting off the road trip against a team that the Senators beat earlier this season can spark some confidence to start the road trip.