Game 78 Hub: Ottawa Senators @ Columbus Blue Jackets (Clinch Day?)

Today could be the day.

With a win over the Columbus Blue Jackets or a Detroit Red Wings regulation loss, the Ottawa Senators will be headed to the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They haven't made the playoffs since 2017, and it's been a long time coming for fans, the organization, and the players that have been around for a few years or even all those years like Thomas Chabot.

The Senators are on a three-game winning streak and after defeating the Blue Jackets 4-0 on Sunday, they headed to Columbus to play them yet again. Here is what the lines will look like tonight, although there is a chance Nick Jensen plays:

And here is how the Blue Jackets will line up:

Game Notes:

• The last time the Senators clinched a playoff spot was April 6th, 2017 after a 2-1 shootout win over the Boston Bruins. Although they finished 2nd in the Atlantic Division that year, they clinched on the third last game of the season and were only four points clear by the end of the season. Ottawa should have more of a cushion this time, and it's nice that they should be able to rest some players before the playoffs.
• While they could still clinch tonight with a Red Wings loss, it sure would be nice to clinch emphatically with a decisive victory.
• The Blue Jackets are barely mathematically alive, as they sit eight points behind the Montreal Canadiens with six games remaining. A loss tonight would make that even more challenging.
• Brady Tkachuk will get the night off again, and for good reason. Let him rest up for the playoffs.
• Anton Forsberg gets the start tonight and has been on fire of late. In six appearances and four starts since the Four Nations, he has a .954 SV%. It's enormous that they have a backup they can trust right now.
• Nick Cousins was practicing again today in a non-contact jersey but isn't quite ready to go.
• Fabian Zetterlund has to score at some point, right? He has just two assists in 15 games, but he has been doing all the right things and isn't getting the bounces. I'm hoping he's saving his goals for the playoffs.

Team Stats:

Player Stats:

Go Sens Go!