Seven games into the March, the Ottawa Senators have caught the eyes of many. After Thursday's 6-3 win against the Bruins, the Senators have earned 13 out of 14 possible points for the month. At the end of the Bruins game, Sens fans chanted "we want playoffs." Now, the final Battle of Ontario meeting awaits against the hated Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Eastern Conference standings are extremely tight with the Senators holding the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, if Sens fans want their playoff hopes to come true, the team needs to respond with another key win against the hated Maple Leafs.
Final Battle of Ontario arrives this season
The Senators travel to Scotiabank Arena to take on the Maple Leafs with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Thursday saw a lot go right for the Senators in their win over the Bruins. Eleven different players recorded at least one points, highlighted by Drake Batherson's three-point game and Linus Ullmark's unreal diving glove save. Tyler Kleven and Shane Pinto also scored a goal in back-to-back games.
As for the Maple Leafs, they come into tonight's game with a 39-23-3 record. The Maple Leafs are currently in second place in the Atlantic Division with 81 points, but have posted a 1-3-1 record over their past five games.
Mitchell Marner leads the Maple Leafs with 80 points and 59 assists. William Nylander leads the Maple Leafs with 36 goals. Brady Tkachuk's 4 Nations Face-Off teammate Auston Matthews is tied for third on the Maple Leafs for the most points on the team with 56 points along with John Tavares. In the last meeting between the two teams from January, Tavares didn't play.
The first two Battle of Ontario meeting were won by the Senators. Ullmark recorded his first shutout as a Senator on Nov. 12 in the first meeting. In the second meeting on Jan. 25, Anton Forsberg stood tall and stopped 28-of-29 Maple Leaf shots on goal. In the two meetings, the Senators outscored the Maple Leafs this season 5-1.
The Senators trail the Maple Leafs by six points for the Atlantic Division's second seed. With the standings getting tighter with every game plays, the final Battle of Ontario meeting this season has meaning for the playoff chase.