After earning five out of a possible six points in the first three games of March, the Ottawa Senators then finished the trade deadline by making two trades with the Buffalo Sabres and San Jose Sharks ahead of their Saturday afternoon showdown against the New York Rangers.
Both teams headed into today with 67 points each in the Eastern Conference standings, and the Rangers were eager to sweep the three-game season series. Dylan Cozens and Dennis Gilbert, who were both acquired from the Sabres in the Senators' recent trade, would each make their Senators debut, and a sweep would be avoided.
The Senators defeated the Rangers 4-3 in overtime at Canadian Tire Centre to improve to 32-25-5 on the season. In the biggest game of the season, the Senators needed a win and got it. The game wouldn't start as planned for the Senators.
After Carson Soucy scored his first goal as a Ranger in his Rangers debut in the first period, Mika Zibanejad and Brady Tkachuk each scored a goal in an 11-second span heading in the second period. With the Rangers up by one heading into the second intermission, the Senators needed a big third period, but it started bad.
In the third period, Artemi Panarin scored a goal to make it 3-1 Rangers with under 13 minutes to go. Momentum appeared to be on the Rangers side and a season series sweep was in site for the Rangers, but the Senators had other ideas.
With 9:44 remaining, Ridly Greig scored to get the Senators back to within one goal. In the final minutes, Michael Amadio scored his biggest goal of the season to tie the game at three with 2:52 remaining in regulation. Overtime would be needed thanks to two late third period goals by the Senators. Then, the captain came through in the clutch.
Just 33 seconds into overtime, Tkachuk scored his second goal of the game to win the game 4-3 for the Senators. Tkachuk's 500th career NHL game was a memorable one with scoring two goals in the win. With his two goals scored today, Tkachuk now has 26 goals on the season.
Do your dance Tkaptain 👏#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/OIslkwx4H5
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) March 8, 2025
In his Senators debut, Cozens recorded an assist on Greig's goal. Tim Stutzle would also extended his point streak to 14 games with recording an assist.
With the overtime win, the Senators now have 69 points on the season. In four games in March, the Senators have earned seven out of a possible eight points to hold a Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Senators will return to action on Monday night when they host the Detroit Red Wings at 7:30 p.m. ET, in another pivotal game for the playoff race. The Senators won the first meeting 2-1 back on Dec. 5 in Ottawa, but the Red Wings won the last meeting 3-2 in overtime on Jan. 7 in Detroit.