Game 23 Preview: Sens @ Stars
We need a win tonight, we just do....
So begins a new era for the Ottawa Senators; the years without Chris Wideman. Or is the era with no downtown arena in sight? The era where Melnyk sues everyone who comes in contact with him? Whatever era this is called, I don’t like it. The past 24 hours have not been friendly to Sens fans and a win tonight might just distract us a bit from the state of rage we’re all in.
Tonight’s game features your Ottawa Senators in Dallas to face Spezza’s Stars. The Senators are coming off two failed comeback attempts and a whole baggage of frustrations. Craig Anderson will get yet another start (no surprise) and Ben Harpur will draw back into the roster after being cleared from IR. Both teams are coming off a 2 game losing streak and both fighting some injuries on their rosters.
Tonight’s lineup may be missing a few pieces tonight as Borowiecki and Ryan are questionable pieces and White sidelined with a minor injury opening the door for McCormick to draw in.
Sens Projected Lineup:
McCormick - Tkachuk - Stone
Dzingel - Tierney - Ryan
Paajarvi - Smith - Pyatt
Chabot - DeMelo
Lajoie - Ceci
Harpur - Jaros
Anderson (starter)
McKenna
Stars Projected Lineup:
Shore - Spezza - Hintz
Nichushkin - Faksa - Pitlick
Janmark - Dickinson - Comeau
Lindell - Heiskanen
Bayreuther - Polak
Hanley - Fedun
Khudobin (starter)
Game Notes:
- The Chris Wideman trade makes no sense in terms of timing and return. Yes, he was bound to go but for a 6th round? Why now? It does seem like Wideman may have been welcome to the idea as well.
- Boucher stated he wants a more defensive game, can they hold the fort tonight?
- With all the commotion surrounding Melnyk and the team, does anyone think it affects the players?
- Ben Harpur is back in the lineup, if he doesn’t perform as expected in the remainder of the road trip, do we see Wolanin called back up?
- The Stars are missing some key names including Methot, Klingberg, Hanzal and most notably Ben Bishop; would be great if the Sens could capitalize on both their injuries and low confidence after a 5-1 beat down against the Penguins. /
Team Stats
| Category | Ottawa | Senators | Columbus | Blue Jackets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -- | Value | Rank | Value | Rank |
| Goals/GP | 3.15 | 11th | 3.24 | 9th |
| Goals Against/GP | 3.92 | 31st | 3.03 | 19th |
| Shots/GP | 29.2 | 25th | 32.0 | 13th |
| Shots Against/GP | 37.4 | 31st | 30.5 | 8th |
| Powerplay % | 21.8 | 11th | 13.4 | 30th |
| Penalty Kill % | 74.5 | 28th | 79.2 | 16th |
| Corsi (5v5, Score & Venue Adjusted) | 42.91 | 31st | 49.86 | 15th |
| Fenwick (5v5, SVA) | 43.25 | 31st | 51.42 | 11th |
Player Stats
| Ottawa | Senators | Washington | Capitals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -- | Player | # | Player | # |
| Goals | Mark Stone | 18 | Cam Atkinson | 23 |
| Assists | Thomas Chabot | 28 | Artemi Panarin | 29 |
| Points | Mark Stone | 43 | Artemi Panarin | 41 |
| Shots | Thomas Chabot | 100 | Cam Atkinson | 149 |
| TOI/GP | Thomas Chabot | 23:52 | Seth Jones | 26:18 |
Additional Information:
Time: 8PM
Location: American Airlines Centre, Dallas
Broadcast: TSN5, RDS, fs-sw, NHL.TV and as usual you can listen to the game on TSN1200
