Two nights ago, the Ottawa Senators closed out March with a 1-0 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. After finishing March 10-3-2, crucial games in April had arrived with the first one being against the Buffalo Sabres.
Despite being the worst team in the Eastern Conference coming into tonight's game, the Sabres had defeated the Senators in all three meetings against the Senators this season. In the fourth and final meeting, it was the same old, same old.
The Sabres defeated the Senators 5-2 at Canadian Tire Centre to sweep the four-game season series. With the loss, the Senators fell to 39-29-6 on the season.
The best part about tonight's game being completed is the Senators will no longer play the Sabres for the remainder of the season. In the four games combined, the Sabres outscored the Senators 17-5.
Before the game, the Senators were dealt a blow to the lineup that captain Brady Tkachuk would not play after being injured against the Penguins. Not having Tkachuk in the lineup impacted the Senators.
In the first period, the Sabres jumped out to a 2-0 lead after goals by Alex Tuch and Rasmus Dahlin in a span of 3:13. In the second period, each team scored one goal.
In the third period, both teams traded goals in a 33-second span. With the Senators on a powerplay late in the final minutes and Linus Ullmark pulled, Ryan McLeod scored a shorthanded empty-net goal to put the game on ice.
Tonight marked the first time since the 1993-94 season that the Sabres swept the season series against the Senators. If there was one big positive from tonight's game from a Senators standpoint, Jake Sanderson's goal in the third period helped him record his first 50-point season of his career. The 22-year-old defenseman has made a significant jump this season.
8️⃣5️⃣ absolutely RIPS this one after doing his 🐍 thing‼️ #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/0XUW9BcwU2
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 2, 2025
In the loss, Linus Ullmark allowed in four goals on 21 Buffalo shots on goal. In his two starts againt the Sabres this season, Ullmark allowed in a combined nine goals. James Reimer won his second consecutive start against the Senators with making 33 saves.
The Senators will continue their playoff push on Thursday night when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at 7 p.m. ET. The Senators have not played the Lightning since a back-to-back in Tampa.
When the Senators played the Lightning, the Senators viewed the two games as playoff games, but the Senators fell in both games in Tampa. In the only meeting in Ottawa, the Senators won 5-4 on Oct. 19. Thursday is the fourth and final meeting against the Lightning.